How difficult is it to build a PC

veetwin

My 13 yr old son has a bundle of confirmation/birthday cash burning a hole in his pocket and is obsessed with the idea of building a gaming PC. He already has a good monitor, keyboard and mouse.

He appears to have done his research and seems to know what he wants. My fear is neither of us have any experience of building anything like this. Is taking on a build remotely feasible for someone with no experience?

Samuel T. Cogley

If you can build Ikea flat pack furniture, you can build a PC.

For reasons best known to the ATX standard Gods, there are a few very fiddly cables to plug into a header (pins coming out of the motherboard) that is the bane of most PC builds, but that's the most complicated part. People here will be happy to give you a spec and I'm happy to build for people in D5 if you get stuck.

Giblet

Patience is the key, it's straight forward. Just have the correct tools, have some containers to put the various screws in. It's LEGO!

Yes and headers are the most difficult part, only because you need good eyesight and a steady hand It's just plugging in tiny wires into awkward pins on the motherboard. I do it before even placing the Motherboard into the case! Keep the static bags to place any cards, motherboards, RAM onto.

Deagol

My advise it to read the manual that comes with the motherboard very carefully as you go. Most have great diagrams and such that help. And if in doubt - stop and ask for help - I've seen one or two very expensive 'bangs' from people doing stupid things (turning on the system without the CPU cooler 'just to see if it all started' was my favourite.

Like poster above, except I'm Co.Clare - happy to help you if needed / correct area.

taytobreath

thousands of utube tutorials there too if u come unstuck

EoinHef

If stuck theres usually someone from here close enough geographically to help or even if you can just post pics and ask questions here,people will be happy to help.

A bit of patience and you should be fine. A long magnetic phillips head screwdriver is also handy to have;)

spurious

Just like Lego. Get a motherboard with the processor already installed. That will cut out the most complicated bit. The rest is just click click click.

dreamers75

spurious wrote: »

Just like Lego. Get a motherboard with the processor already installed. That will cut out the most complicated bit. The rest is just click click click.

Nah

If you have to reseat a CPU better off knowing you did it 1st.

Aodhan5000

EoinHef wrote: »

If stuck theres usually someone from here close enough geographically to help or even if you can just post pics and ask questions here,people will be happy to help.

A bit of patience and you should be fine. A long magnetic phillips head screwdriver is also handy to have;)

This. Magnetic screwdriver is genuinely a lifesaver. Smaller ones are better IMO because the can reach the more awkward spots but each to their own. My case might just be bit awkward

scamalert

Samuel T. Cogley wrote: »

If you can build Ikea flat pack furniture, you can build a PC.

For reasons best known to the ATX standard Gods, there are a few very fiddly cables to plug into a header (pins coming out of the motherboard) that is the bane of most PC builds, but that's the most complicated part. People here will be happy to give you a spec and I'm happy to build for people in D5 if you get stuck.

id say ikea is like lvl 10 where pc would be about 5 :rolleyes: aside those few fan power pins theres f all to mess up to result in any damage, let him sit through couple hours of builds on youtube and he will be gtg in no time.
MB manual covers mostly everything one needs to know and its way easier then trying to read ikea instructions

bobbyy gee

there's some good YouTube videos to watch
pcpartspicker will compare parts. amd ryzen is probably better budget machine intel still does better in gaming as NVidia is bringing out faster cheaper gpu cards older card prices should drop
the gpu card is the most expensive thing I'm a build.with ryzen memory problem occers so with intel and amd look at motherboard maker memory recommended.here's a good pc expert video
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=IhX0fOUYd8Q

kingtiger

veetwin wrote: »

He appears to have done his research and seems to know what he wants.

I would be very proud my 13 year old son went out and researched his build

but is there any chance of his wishlist? I am intrigued with regards to his chosen components

veetwin

Thanks all for the helpful replies. The following is his spec:

Any feedback/thoughts appreciated.

AMD Ryzen 5 3400G Processor (4C/8T, 6 MB cache, 4.2 GHz Max Boost) with Radeon RX Vega 11 Graphics
£128.97

Sabrent 4-Port USB 3.0 Hub with Individual LED Power Switches (HB-UM43)
£10.99

MSI B450 TOMAHAWK MAX Motherboard ATX, AM4, DDR4, LAN, USB 3.2 Gen2, TYPE-C, M.2, RGB Mystic Light Sync, HDMI, DVI-D, AMD RYZEN 1st, 2nd and 3rd Gen Ready
£106.98

Vaorwne Usb Streaming Podcast Pc Microphone Professional Studio Cardioid Condenser Mic Kit with Sound Card Boom Arm Shock Mount Filter, for Skype Youtuber Karaoke Gaming Recording,
£22.73

Western Digital WDS500G2B0B WD Blue 3D NAND Internal SSD M.2 SATA, 500 GB - Black,
£51.48

Corsair iCUE 220T RGB Airflow, Tempered Glass Mid-Tower ATX Smart Gaming Case, White,
£84.05

Corsair CMK16GX4M2B3200C16 Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4 3200 MHz C16 XMP 2.0 High Performance Desktop Memory Kit, Black,
£54.99

Corsair VS450 450 W Active PFC 80 PLUS Certified Power Supply Unit - Black,
£39.99

Logitech G305 Lightspeed Wireless Gaming Mouse, HERO Sensor, 12,000 DPI,
£40.98

MSI NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1660 SUPER VENTUS XS OC Graphics Card '6GB GDDR6, 1815MHz, 3x DisplayPort, HDMI, Dual Fan Cooling System
£208

Total on Amazon £748

Samuel T. Cogley

Thats a bit of an odd config as the 3400G is an APU with graphics cores included. Other than that it's not a bad build. I'd go with a B550 Motherboard and a Ryzen 5 3600 if the budget allows. Alternatively just fire a 2600 or 2600X into the above build, which ever is cheaper.

Would he go micro-ATX do you know? It's a smaller type of PC. Example of a case here.

Edit: You are missing a wifi card also but they're not expensive and included on some motherboards.

Edit: This is also a great value option with a few changes but he wouldn't get the benefit of building it himself and it's a useful skill to have.

Edit: This SSD might be better as its a faster type of drive. It wont make a huge difference but there is only a tenner in it.

Hyzepher

Just a note - something with integrated graphics is not a bad idea for someone starting out as it allows for more troubleshooting. Having said that, if performance is a concern then I would go with a Ryzen 3300 at minimum

BloodBath

If he's interested in streaming you want a 6 core 12 thread processor.

Better off with a 2600 or 3600.

I wouldn't trust that PSU long term either.

Threw an alternate build together with some better parts and a similar price, just add your mouse and mic.

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3600 3.6 GHz 6-Core Processor (£186.02 @ Amazon UK)
Motherboard: Gigabyte B550M DS3H Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard (£87.66 @ AWD-IT)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 CL16 Memory (£58.48 @ Ebuyer)
Storage: Crucial P2 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive (£53.19 @ Amazon UK)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER 6 GB OC Video Card (£204.97 @ AWD-IT)
Case: GameMax Kamikaze PRO MicroATX Mini Tower Case (£59.99 @ Amazon UK)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12III 500 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply (£49.99 @ Amazon UK)
Total: £700.30
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-09-18 10:21 BST+0100

Samuel T. Cogley

Just to note though that there will be an annoucment on the 8th October re the new Ryzen processors. So if you're not in a rush you may want to wait and see - however given this is a teenager... :pac:

Also the I would suggest the MSI B550M Pro-VDH Wifi as it has wifi built in and got a good review.

Dcully

Its handy to build a pc, not so handy to diagnose any unforseen issues however.
I got scan to build my current one and it was actually €40 cheaper for them to build,test and ship than for me to ship all to components from them and build myself, no brainer for an ould like like me who simply doesnt need any added stress

Their cable management is a 10x better than anything ive ever done too.

deckie27

Just to note the Corsair led fan are not compatable with Mystic Light Sync

circadian

Just don't do this and you'll be good

https://youtu.be/2lmfF0k2UcU

veetwin

Thanks again everyone for the extremely helpful and knowledgeable advice.

My son is impressed with this;

https://www.awd-it.co.uk/awd-mb520-argb-ryzen-7-2700x-nvidia-gtx-1660-super-16gb-ram-desktop-gaming-pc.html?wgu=13527_54264_16002888833106_99ce5647b3&wgexpiry=1608064883&source=webgains&siteid=54264&wgu=13527_54264_16004170011889_c2a3d474dd&wgexpiry=1608193001&source=webgains&siteid=54264&wgu=13527_54264_16004176596079_e1d5febcf5&wgexpiry=1608193659&source=webgains&siteid=54264

It offers some peace of mind for me in that I won't have a 13 year old bawling over €800 worth of gear that neither of us have a clue to assemble.

Any thoughts welcome. Would this be able to run Microsoft Flight Simulator?

Samuel T. Cogley

The GPU might be a bit weak so you might consider an upgrade there. It defo needs a bigger SSD. Don't forget a wifi card.

Other than that it's bloody brilliant value - 8 core 16 thread CPU is amazing at that price.

As regards MSFS2020 I take it he wants to run just the Sim and not the things like VATSIM (live Air traffic control) and Navigraph (Actual avaiation charts)? If he wants to run all the add ons then you might consider 32GB RAM. It's not really needed though.

veetwin

Thanks Samuel.

https://www.awd-it.co.uk/awd-mb520-argb-ryzen-7-2700x-nvidia-gtx-1660-super-16gb-ram-desktop-gaming-pc.html?wgu=13527_54264_16002888833106_99ce5647b3&wgexpiry=1608064883&source=webgains&siteid=54264&wgu=13527_54264_16004170011889_c2a3d474dd&wgexpiry=1608193001&source=webgains&siteid=54264&wgu=13527_54264_16004176596079_e1d5febcf5&wgexpiry=1608193659&source=webgains&siteid=54264

How does that look?

Homelander

Just for clarity, the issue there is Flight Sim being heavily demanding, not the PC being weak. That PC would generally be good for all the latest games at 1080p ultra settings.

Samuel T. Cogley

I only ever see the default, I don't see your changes. The SSD I'd upgrade to 1GB SX6000. 500GB will work but MSFS2020 is huge and will take up 20-25% on it's own. Wifi Card I'd go for the Dual band internal @ £20.99. GPU maybe the 2060 depending on feedback from others like Homelander.

kingtiger

@veetwin

thanks for posting his wishlist, I among others would disagree with the CPU choice, but pretty nice choices other than that

I would say (and I know its hard to put off a 13 year old who wants a gaming rig right now)

is wait for the new amd cpus to be released next month and you will pick up a bargain 3600 with decent b450 board for 50% ( on adverts ) of what you are paying for it now

and put what you saved into a better GPU

Homelander

But you aren't really going to save anything, that PC on AWD is actually decently cheaper than it costs to buy all the parts separately, obviously they are clearing stock.

The 2700X is a fine CPU and 4th gen aren't going to drop by 50% in value either.

3rd gen had no effect on the price of 2nd gen for example, there are 2600's still selling for 100-110 2nd hand.

If you were building yourself you probably might as well wait, but when there's a pre-built bargain to be had, I don't think there's any need to avoid it and it's not going to hurt longevity of the PC.

Infini

This is just my honest opinion but it might be better off waiting for a month or 2 to build a new rig, we got amd announcing new cpus early october, new gpus late october, nvidia rolling out the 3070 and possibly 3060 etc.

Personally I'd build a small ITX as well theyre very cost effective. Also I'll be likely upgrading my rigs as well as well as others so you could possibly save a few quid by aquiring 2nd hand parts though make sure to check the seller first.

Andrew76

Homelander wrote: »

But you aren't really going to save anything, that PC on AWD is actually decently cheaper than it costs to buy all the parts separately, obviously they are clearing stock.

The 2700X is a fine CPU and 4th gen aren't going to drop by 50% in value either.

3rd gen had no effect on the price of 2nd gen for example, there are 2600's still selling for 100-110 2nd hand.

If you were building yourself you probably might as well wait, but when there's a pre-built bargain to be had, I don't think there's any need to avoid it and it's not going to hurt longevity of the PC.

Don't want to hijack the OP's thread but can I ask which would be considered the better CPU between the 2700X and the 3600X? I'm thinking of building an ITX PC for 1080p gaming and have a 3600X on my list. But I'm confused with the model numbering, Ryzen 7 sounds better/newer than 5 but then 3600X sounds better/newer than 2700X? Is 8 cores always better than 6 or does it depend on whether applications take full advantage etc?

I'll put up a separate thread with a list to get feedback but was just curious. Out of the loop a long time now with this kind of stuff.

AllForIt

Once you have all the parts putting it together is easy. It's not like you have to even read instructions except maybe for the way the heat sink is attached to the CPU as that can vary by model. In fact that prolly is the hardest part if you could call it hard at all. You just need to make sure it's attached properly as if it's not seated exactly right the cpu could overheat and cause shutdowns.

Samuel T. Cogley

Ryzen 2000 Series is the Zen+ architecture
Ryzen 3000 Series is the newer Zen 2 architecture

Ryzen 5 are typically 6 core CPUs
Ryzen 7 are typically 8 core CPUs

The Ryzen 2700X is an older CPU but with more cores. It's not as fast as the 3600 in games (at 1080p) if that's all you're doing but if you're streaming it may be better. Both CPUs will give good frame rates in gaming and the reason for the 2700X in this build is it's just really good value for money.

A 3600 can be added to the above build for a tenner so it might be worth it if raw FPS is whats wanted.

Andrew76

Samuel T. Cogley wrote: »

Ryzen 2000 Series is the Zen+ architecture
Ryzen 3000 Series is the newer Zen 2 architecture

Ryzen 5 are typically 6 core CPUs
Ryzen 7 are typically 8 core CPUs

The Ryzen 2700X is an older CPU but with more cores. It's not as fast as the 3600 in games (at 1080p) if that's all you're doing but if you're streaming it may be better. Both CPUs will give good frame rates in gaming and the reason for the 2700X in this build is it's just really good value for money.

A 3600 can be added to the above build for a tenner so it might be worth it if raw FPS is whats wanted.

Ok cool, thanks for the explanation.

veetwin

ITEM DESCRIPTION QTY PRICE ITEM TOTAL

AWD MB520 ARGB Ryzen 7 2700X Nvidia GTX 1660 Super 16GB RAM Desktop Gaming PC
FL520-M50-4ED4
Options:
• Choose your Build Time: Standard Build Time - 7-10 Working days (Mon - Fri) (+£39.99)
• Choose your Case: Phanteks P400 Air White DRGB (+£4.95)
• Choose Your Motherboard: MSI B450 TOMAHAWK MAX (+£34.95)
• Choose your Graphics Card: Asus GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER 6GB
• Choose your PSU: Coolermaster 500W 80 Plus MWE
• Upgrade your Ryzen CPU (3600): AMD Ryzen 7 2700X 8 Core 4.35Ghz
• Choose your Corsair DDR4 Memory: Corsair Vengeance BLACK LPX 16GB (2x8GB) 3200MHz (+£8.95)
• Upgrade your CPU Cooling: Corsair H45 120mm Liquid Cooler (+£19.99)
• Choose your Primary Hard Drive: Adata SX6000 Pro 1TB NVME M.2 SSD - Read 2100MB/s , Write 1500MB/s (+£89.99)
• Choose your Secondary Hard Drive: No Drive
• Choose your Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 64 Bit - Installed and Fully Optimised (+£89.99)
• Choose Your Internet Security Package: BullGuard™ Internet Security - 90-Day Free Trial
• Choose your Wifi: Tenda 300MBps Internal Wifi Card (+£10.99)
• Choose your Keyboard and Mouse: No Keyboard and Mouse
1 £849.79 £849.79

Subtotal £849.79
VAT 20% £141.63
Shipping £12.99



Total £862.78


Hi all, OP here. We pulled the trigger on this last night. Thanks again for the expertise and advice.

Samuel T. Cogley

Enjoy! That should keep you going for a long time and has a great upgrade path.

Homelander

Bit late now but you could easily have saved £90 on Windows and put it into a better graphics card - Windows works forever without activation with just a tiny watermark, and AWD install Windows even if you buy the machine without it, it just isn't activated.

Also on the 2700X v 3600 debate (I don't mean the OP's situation, just the general discussion), there is more to it then than the 3600 being a better gaming CPU if it's a machine you plan keeping for a few years.

The 2700X is a better productivity or streaming CPU as it's 8 core/16 thread versus the 6/12 configuration of the 3600.

Also have to remember that the new console generation is based around Zen 8 core/16 thread processors, so that will directly translate well for the 2700X over the coming years.

It is a bit like how the K series of i5 processors were faster than the i7's in games around 2013-2015, but years later, the i7's came around to being much better in games due to the extra threads, where the i5's struggled.

So really there is no right/wrong answer in my opinion. Just a decision you have to make yourself about what works best for you.

murdog!

Plagiarising this build with slight changes!

Am I making any major mistakes here?

AWD MB520 ARGB Ryzen 7 2700X Nvidia GTX 1660 Super 16GB RAM Desktop Gaming PC
1 x £853.80

Choose your Build Time: Standard Build Time - 7-10 Working days (Mon - Fri) (+£39.99)

Choose your Case: Phanteks P400 Air Black DRGB (+£4.95)

Choose Your Motherboard: MSI B450 TOMAHAWK MAX (+£34.95)

Choose your Graphics Card: Asus GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER 6GB

Choose your PSU: Coolermaster 500W 80 Plus MWE

Upgrade your Ryzen CPU (3600): AMD Ryzen 7 2700X 8 Core 4.35Ghz

Choose your Corsair DDR4 Memory: Corsair Vengeance BLPX 32GB (2x16GB) 3200MHz (+£66.95)

Upgrade your CPU Cooling: AMD Ryzen Prism RGB Cooler

Choose your Primary Hard Drive: Adata SX8200 Pro 512GB NVME M.2 SSD - Read 3500MB/s , Write 3000MB/s (+£49.99)

Choose your Secondary Hard Drive: No Drive

Choose your Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 64 Bit - Installed and Fully Optimised (+£89.99)

Choose Your Internet Security Package: BullGuard™ Internet Security - 90-Day Free Trial

Choose your Wifi: Asus 300mbps Internal Wifi Card (+£16.99)

Choose your Keyboard and Mouse: No Keyboard and Mouse

Samuel T. Cogley

Dont buy it with windows, install it off a USB key yourself.

32GB RAM with only 500GB of SSD seems a bit inbalanced - what are you using it for?

murdog!

Samuel T. Cogley wrote: »

Dont buy it with windows, install it off a USB key yourself.

32GB RAM with only 500GB of SSD seems a bit inbalanced - what are you using it for?

Amateur music production and gaming (mostly counter strike 1.6, don’t laugh!)

I could remove windows and increase to 1tb?

Samuel T. Cogley

murdog! wrote: »

Amateur music production and gaming (mostly counter strike 1.6, don’t laugh!)

I could remove windows and increase to 1tb?

I would.

You can download and install windows 10 for free. If you must activate it - buy a key of adverts for a fiver.

I also suggest a better wifi card. Theres a dual band internal one 1200Mbit.

murdog!

Samuel T. Cogley wrote: »

I would.

You can download and install windows 10 for free. If you must activate it - buy a key of adverts for a fiver.

I also suggest a better wifi card. Theres a dual band internal one 1200Mbit.

Cheers thanks for the advice!

bobbyy gee

prices seem high were did you buy it power supply is small if you want to update new gpu is 300 watts

make sure you read were to put memory slots
as it will make speed differsncr

murdog!

bobbyy gee wrote: »

prices seem high were did you buy it power supply is small if you want to update new gpu is 300 watts

make sure you read were to put memory slots
as it will make speed differsncr

I’m getting it built by AWD, what power supply would you recommend?

Samuel T. Cogley

300W for a GPU is near the top end. If you see your self doing that then get the 750W. If you're going to keep the one that's in it 500W is enough. For £19.95 I might get the 650W non-modular if I really wanted to cover myself.

Homelander

The power supply is fine unless you plan going out and buying a €700 GPU.

Do get it without Windows. AWD do install Windows, it just won't be activated. You can use it forever not activated, or else get a key for €5 off Ebay. Either way, don't drop €100 on your budget on Windows.

As stated it would cover a bump up to a 1TB SSD and better WiFi card.

murdog!

Thanks for all the advice, updated as below, will pull the trigger shortly!

1 x £847.76
Choose your Build Time: Standard Build Time - 7-10 Working days (Mon - Fri) (+£39.99)

Choose your Case: Phanteks P400 Air Black DRGB (+£4.95)

Choose Your Motherboard: MSI B450 TOMAHAWK MAX (+£34.95)

Choose your Graphics Card: Asus GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER 6GB

Choose your PSU: Corsair CV650 Bronze Rated (+£19.95)

Upgrade your Ryzen CPU (3600): AMD Ryzen 7 2700X 8 Core 4.35Ghz

Choose your Corsair DDR4 Memory: Corsair Vengeance BLPX 32GB (2x16GB) 3200MHz (+£66.95)

Upgrade your CPU Cooling: AMD Ryzen Prism RGB Cooler

Choose your Primary Hard Drive: Adata SX8200 Pro 1TB NVME M.2 SSD - Read 3500MB/s , Write 3000MB/s (+£109.99)

Choose your Secondary Hard Drive: No Drive

Choose your Operating System: None

Choose Your Internet Security Package: BullGuard™ Internet Security - 90-Day Free Trial

Choose your Wifi: 1200Mbps Dual Band Internal Dual Antenna Wifi Card (+£20.99)

Choose your Keyboard and Mouse: No Keyboard and Mouse

Samuel T. Cogley

I'd remove that internet security bloatware.

Tasty machine

murdog!

Samuel T. Cogley wrote: »

I'd remove that internet security bloatware.

Tasty machine

Cheers will do!

Thecageyone

Yeah first thing I removed when ordering my build online was the crappy free anti-V trial. Honestly, windows defender does a better job without any weird issues. Very nice build overall - enjoy