All Channels
Popular
560°

Building a PC is easier than you might think

MonsterVine: "Anybody who is hesitant about building their first rig because they’re worried about missing the proper “know-how” should squash those fears. It’s a suspiciously easy hobby to get into and learn. "

Read Full Story >>
monstervine.com
RazzerRedux2150d ago

Would be cool if there was a pic of the inside of the case so we could see the work.

2148d ago
Father__Merrin2148d ago

Ohh Lian li very expensive over here

This is mine btw
https://imgur.com/a/LnNrUtU

2148d ago
RazzerRedux2148d ago

"Ohh Lian li very expensive over here"

Paid about $150 for it. But, frankly, it is worth it. Makes cable management so easy with all the room on the other side of the motherboard.

RazzerRedux2148d ago

@sinspirit

That is badass. What kind of case is that? Don't think I've seen a mini ITX setup like that.

sinspirit2147d ago

It's a Sliger SM560. This case is 11 Liters in volume so it's basically as big as a shoe box. It's an overkill build in a little package 😂

+ Show (3) more repliesLast reply 2147d ago
2148d ago
Skuletor2149d ago

For my first build:
Step 1) Made a list of parts on PC Partpicker, which showed they were all compatible.
Step 2) Ordered the parts.
Step 3) Basically watched a YouTube video and followed along, plus occasionally checked the motherboard manual.
Step 4) Turned it on and it didn't work

Turns out the ram was in the wrong slots but then I switched them and the PC worked.

ABizzel12148d ago (Edited 2148d ago )

Building a PC is easy, outside of lifting and locking the motherboard in place, nearly everything else either plug in teh cable or insert the part "cartridge".

Your GPU, RAM, NVMe, and CPU are basically no different from putting a game into the switch. Align it and push it down.

The other parts are like plugging your console into your TV, get the right cable to plug into the GPU, SSD (instead of NVMe), PSU, and plug it where it's labeled to go.

People think building a PC is this monumental task, but it takes 30 minutes to 1 hour for inexperienced builders, and eventually, once you build a few it's 30 minutes tops without some huge mod you're adding to it.

Best of all it's still a couple of hundred dollars cheaper to get all your PC parts and simply pay someone $50 to build your PC for you than it is to buy a pre-built gaming PC of equal performance.

Master of Unlocking2148d ago

Glad to hear it's that easy for you, but when you factor in all the incompatibilities you can have with the power block, the RAM, the CPU, the OS, etc. it's really not for everyone. My brother-in-law built me the one I'm using right now, because I can't assemble a PC by myself (and I'm not ashamed to admit it), and I can't afford a more modern, brand new PC either, currently. He just built it for me using parts people just give away and some leftovers he had, so mine is equipped with just a Radeon HD 5700, and it seems to be barely enough to emulate the PS2 and GC, but it is such a tremendous move forward for me when it comes to PC, compared to what I've always had, lol.

2148d ago
ABizzel12148d ago

@Master

If anyone has trouble building a PC it's more so from my experience that they're scared of messing things up, which can happen, or they simply do not know how to follow directions which again from my experience is the primary reason 90% of PC building screw ups.

CPUs go in one way often specified by an arrow often in the corner of the CPU and the motherboard. GPUs only go in one way due to the divider, RAM can only go on one with due to the divider, and pretty much each of the cables is shaped to fit their specific purpose so that you can't plug the PSU cable into anything but the motherboard, or SSD cables into GPUs because just like an HDMI and Power Cable on a console they ends don't fit in anything besides where they're supposed to go.

Parts can go bad, and when they do, it can be an issue finding out what needs to be replaced without extra parts laying around which many people don't have. However, an easy quick guide would be as follows, if the PC isn't turning on at all and there's no indicator light showing up on the motherboard it's more than likely your PSU. If your PC crashes constantly it's most likely your Storage, RAM, or OS install, which can easily be found out with a storage wipe after backing up and a new OS install, so after doing that and it still doesn't work obviously the RAM is the issue. Anything else like the CPU and GPU can be tested well in advanced, a CPU issue will show up on any benchmark as the test will likely always crash on CPU sections, a GPU issue will either show up artifacts or never show an image to begin with, so simply take the cable out of the GPU and plug it directly into the motherboard and if it works, download the newest GPU drivers and try again.

So if you read your instructions and follow along with just about any YouTube video with similar parts to yours, it's hard to actually mess things up. But again if you don't feel comfortable just buy the parts and pay someone who has experience to build it for you, in your case your brother-in-law :)

As for your current PC, I don't know if you mean you have an A10-5700 APU or one fo the HD 5750 or 5770, but if you're having trouble with emulation then your CPU is likely too old to run it, and regardless of which of those 3 5700's you're using, your PC needs a serious upgrade as emulation is CPU intensive, and rarely ever GPU intensive unless you adding a lot of post-processing and resolution buffs.

You can easily build a decent 1080p gaming PC for around $400 with a combination of New and Used parts.

CPU: $100, Ryzen 3 3200G
GPU: $100 or less, Used RX 570 or RX 580
RAM: $40, 8GB DDR4 (2 x 4GB, higher the speed the better)
SSD: $30 - $50, 256GB or 500GB SSD
MB: $50, Any decent AM3 motherboard (AM4 if you can find it)
Case: $30 - $50, any case
PSU: $50 or less, Any good brand 80+

You can find most of these parts in abundance on newegg.com or amazon, however, if you have a MicroCenter or other specialty store by you then you can upgrade these parts to 1600 AF / Ryzen 5 3100x for the CPU, and possibly save a few dollars on the overall build. You should never have any issues running most of the emulators out there.

Again if building is too much for you, you can always buy a decent used PC from someone for around $300 - $500 off of Facebook Marketplace or buy an old Intel early 2010 - 2015 PC for $200 or less and pop a low wattage GPU in there like the GTX 1650, which takes no building, and can cost as little as $300 for the overall build with great emulation performance and decent AAA gaming performance at 1080p. Just have your brother-in-law look over the computers for you.

Tapani2148d ago

@ABizzel1

Why would you use Ryzen 3200G + discrete GPU? Why not Ryzen 3100 + Discrete GPU or just 3200G as is?

anubusgold2148d ago

I built my friend a cheap pc for 675 dollars during the bitcoin madness he plays shooters like cod and plays mobas like LOL and Heroes of the storm and world of warcraft also. He got a ryzen 1600 for cheap and a RX 580 with 16gb of ram thats a great 1080P system it plays hes games at 100 fps the games he plays. He doesnt play games like Battlefield not sure how it will perform but i bet it will run it like at 80 fps the 580 is a very old card but still will get you over 60fps in almost any game still.

ABizzel12148d ago (Edited 2148d ago )

@Tapani

Because the 3200G is still a Quad Core- 8 thread CPU fully in stock, and the 3100 has been consistently or out of stock or higher than it's normal price, and if he's using his PC mainly for emulation then the 3200G is still good, and won't bottleneck an RX 570 or 580, so on the CPU side while it's not as good as the 3100X it's more than enough for what he needs, especially if he's coming from the A10 APU, and a dedicated RX 570 can actually run AAA games still in 1080p @ 60fps Medium / High settings, the integrated GPU can run some AAA games at 720p but settings are often low and 60fps isn't always possible. The iGPU is fine for emulation, but not AAA gaming.

And if you read a bit further down you can see I recommend the 3100X or the 1600 AF if he can find it around the MSRP :)

If he's still using an A10-5700 PC that his brother in law gave him, then more than likely he's on a pretty extreme budget, and with parts still not back to normal MSRP across the board, you're getting a little less value than normal, so the build I suggested give him the best bang for his buck with the current state of PC gaming. In a few months he can go back to the 3100x and there will be a big used GPU influx as people sell their old cards to upgrade to the new RTX 3000 and RX 6000 series, but as of today if he wants to stay under $400 (generally console price) then that's his best bet for a minaly new PC.

$300, Buy an old Optiplex and add a GTX 1650
$400, Build a mainly new gaming PC with a used GPU
$400 - $500, check local gaming PC deals online

He could technically go lower, but it starts to lose too much performance IMO.

Tapani2148d ago

@ABizzel1

There's no such CPU as 3100X. There's only 3100 or 3300X. And they have different latency.

ABizzel12148d ago

@Tapani

You know I meant the Ryzen 3100. And the latency isn't an issue with a GPU of this caliber and a BUDGET of $400 or less. You're trying to make a recommendation based solely on performance, but you're not looking up the MSRP of these CPUs on commonly available platforms such as amazon and newegg, or you would see the MSRP is not where it's supposed to be on these CPUs due to low stock and COVID.

They're supposed to be $100 (3100) and $120 (3300x) and $85 (1600AF), and at those prices the 1600 AF or the 3300x would be my recommendations. But the 3100 and 1600AF are around $150 on amazon, and the 3300x only has 1 seller and cost $250. As a matter of fact the actual 2600 is $141 and the better value CPU on amazon currently. So none of those are worth it right now, which is why I picked the 3200G initially since it's $99 and stays in the $400 max budget. This is once again why I said if he has a specialty retailer near him (like a MicroCenter) he can go there instead. He can press his luck with aliexpress, but again this is someone who doesn't know how to build a PC, so expecting him to find a full configuration and search through Aliexpress is unlikely.

I'd rather he get a 3600 with a 5600 XT, 16GB of RAM, a 500GB SSD or NVMe, etc..., but again he's using an old PC his brother-in-law built him, so realistically speaking going with a $600 - $700 budget probably isn't ideal for him and his usage, and if his emulation is struggling them just about Any Ryzen CPU will fix that, or an old Optiplex system, preferably an i7 to still have 4 core / 8 threads for AAA PC gaming.

anubusgold2147d ago (Edited 2147d ago )

@ABizzel1 Newegg and amazon are some of the worse places to buy hardware because all of the fees they add on. Go to Provantage, B&H, frys, and other sites to get better deals , no tax, free shipping

ABizzel12146d ago (Edited 2146d ago )

@anubusgold

Cool, I always thought B&H was photography only based on their ads, so I haven't checked them out and provantage but just briefly checking their prices they range from equal to Microcenter to a bit more in price, so looks like you have to catch some deals there. Fry's is always a 3rd option for me because I almost always go to MicroCenter or eBay first, and newegg use to have great deals, now they occasionally do. Amazon is like a last resort, but they almost always have items in stock even if it's at a higher price, like now. None of the sites have the 3100 or 3300x in stock except amazon :(

+ Show (7) more repliesLast reply 2146d ago
1Victor2148d ago

That step 4 is a doozy 😂

taurul2147d ago

Literally the same steps for me, except I struggled and sweating like a **** when I tried to install the noctua nhd 15 cooler... Jesus fu** that thing is a monster. :))

Started the thing and nothing, the rams where not pushed until end. After everything worked fine.

But it was fun. 😁

Skuletor2147d ago

I had one of those be quiet! fans, looks a similar size but the Noctua has one more fan on it. Yeah those heatsinks have a little weight to them.
For my third and last build so far, the worst part was the NZXT case. The screws on that case came ridiculously tight. Great cable management but I'm not sure I'll ever get another NZXT in the future for that reason.

traumadisaster2148d ago

It's very easy AFTER you understand the terms and have done it. For new people a simple sentence means one thing to you and another to them since they are new to the concepts. It's the same for car mechanics and surgeons, it's all easy eventually

Mr Logic2148d ago

Well stop living in the 80s. Why on earth would you Read about putting a together a PC if you can Watch an instructional video?

MetalGearsofWar2148d ago

Some people prefer to read instructions.

Psychotica2148d ago

Only part that bothers me is putting the thermal paste on for the cpu. Too much is bad and too little is bad..

Giblet_Head2148d ago

Too much of anything should be common sense when pressing two objects together, but generally as a rule it doesn't matter. You can do worse putting too little than too much.

rainslacker2148d ago

If you buy a MB and processor from a local shop, theyll often put the cpu and fan on for you.

Psychotica2148d ago

That's what I normally do if I am buying a new motherboard\cpu. The local shop charges $100 which works out good for me, if he damages it he replaces it but if I damage it then I have to eat the cost.

rainslacker2148d ago

Place I used to buy my MB/CPU from would put on the CPU and fan for me. I think they did that because it is the most likely thing to get damaged during install. Either a pin gets bent on the processor, or a person screws up the fan install. I'm pretty good at that stuff, but when I went to put a new fan that required a new mounting into a PC I inherited, I did bend the pin, and now can't get it to work. So it's not infallible.

Anyways, I think they did it to prevent returns, which end up costing them money I assume. Even if you can get a refund from the vendor, there is still cost involved.

luckytrouble2148d ago

I've watched enough tech YouTubers to know that as long as you don't put on absurdly little, it's the right amount every time lol

Gr1mmyshadows2148d ago

Just as long as you don't follow the verge's PC build

MadLad2148d ago

Watch the video and read the comments lol.

RazzerRedux2148d ago

That video is notorious. I love Bitwit's reaction video:

https://www.youtube.com/wat...

Show all comments (118)
70°

Microsoft Gaming Revenue Drops 7% Year-on-Year, Content and Services Down 5%, Xbox Hardware Down 33%

Microsoft announced its financial results for Q3 of fiscal year 2026, including an update on its gaming Xbox business and more.

Read Full Story >>
simulationdaily.com
Jin_Sakai31d ago (Edited 31d ago )

Not looking good. Hopefully Asha Sharma is able to turn Phil’s disaster around.

dveio31d ago

To me it's still quite remarkable how they can cash-in 5.3bn in revenue in a single quarter, since their hardware is basically dead.

Jingsing31d ago

The stock mark is what makes Microsoft remarkable, They have convinced every institutional and retail investor to just keep piling money into them. Like many big tech giants they are just a big growing pyramid scheme. As long as people keep dropping money into ETF's that cover the market Microsoft will always be liquid. At the same time it is completely stifling innovation and competition. People need to start being more discreet in how they invest their money as it's killing the system.

Tanktopmaster9231d ago

Once they re-evaluate exclusive all will be fine….

S2Killinit31d ago

Riiiiight because people will just flock back to them for one or two games per year.

Jingsing31d ago

15+ years of bad performance is what they call irreparable in business. It is time for them to sell off the assets and get out of entertainment.

Tanktopmaster9231d ago

These declines are on the back of extra revenue received from releasing games like Forza horizon 5 on PlayStation. So I’m being sarcastic here when I said they should go back to exclusives. Killing off a revenue stream from Ps5 sales will only make things worse

Show all comments (13)
50°

Report: Injustice 3 in Development at NetherRealm Studios

Thanks to the slip-up of an artist working on the title, we now have more evidence that a new Injustice game is in the works.

50°

Spiders Studio, Developers of GreedFall: The Dying World, Announce Liquidation of the Company

Spiders: "We're going to cut straight to the chase so you're not left wondering: After a long period without clear answers, we have received confirmation that Spiders is being liquidated.

What does it mean? This means the company as a whole no longer exists. We'll cease our functions immediately. The planned DLC will release via Nacon, and then-- well, that's it.

We're sorry that it's come to this and would like to thank each and every one of you for your support over the years.

If you have any questions or run into issues with your games, please contact Nacon directly as we'll no longer be able to reply."