Print
Installing memory is relatively simple but requires more force to install than most components. For that reason, we typically recommend installing the RAM when the motherboard is on a flat surface, before it’s in the PC. It’s a good idea to lay the mobo on the plastic bag or foam lining that it shipped in to protect it from shock. To install the RAM, make sure the retention clips are in their fully unlocked position, then line up the notch in the RAM module with the keyed part of the slot (image A). When it’s lined up properly, follow the guides on the side of the slot to gently slide the module into place, applying even pressure across the top of the module. Finally, make sure that the retention clips are locked in place (image B). Repeat the process for the second module.
(image A)
Next, you’ll need to mount the motherboard in the case. Before you slide it in, check the back of the ATX backplane connector and make sure that any excess pieces of metal won’t block your ports. This is a fairly common rookie oversight that requires almost complete disassembly of the PC to fix, so you don’t want to miss it. If you find any obstructions, simply fold them up into the inside edge of the case.
After that, it’s time to carefully lower the motherboard into the case (image A). Make sure your ports line up with the holes in the ATX backplane, and double-check that there are motherboard standoffs behind all the mounting holes on your motherboard. Once you’re sure everything is good, you can start screwing down the board using the screws that came with the case (image B). We recommend starting in one corner, then screwing down the opposite corner, and working around the board until everything is locked in place. It’s important that you don’t overtighten—using too much force can damage your motherboard.
Finally, you’ll need to connect the front-panel headers (image C). Consult the motherboard manual to find the exact location of the front-panel power, reset, and light connectors. The power and reset switches don’t require a particular orientation, but the lights do—as a general rule, the colored wires are positive, while the white wires are negative. You should also connect the USB header and front-panel audio cables now, as well. They’re clearly labeled on the board and keyed to only work in the proper orientation, so it’s difficult to mess this up.
Comments are closed on this article
Aphelion
September 18, 2011 at 2:54am
Thermaltake V4 Black Edition
ASRock Z68M
Intel Core i5-2500 Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz
Team Xtrem Dark 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600
HIS H685FN1GD Radeon HD 6850
Seagate Barracuda ES ST3750640NS 750GB
Sony Optiarc CD/DVD Burner
LOGISYS FP528BK All-in-one USB 2.0 3.5" Internal Card Reader
LOGISYS Computer PS575XBK 575W ATX12V
As long as the hard drive is re-certified, you get a great deal for 654 dollars (with shipping). I would say this is an "updated" list of a buget PC :D Beat it Maximum PC!
judeclemens
August 07, 2011 at 1:50am
Gaming is one of my favorite part on computers.So thank you for this ideas.Thumbs up!
Curlz8015
July 13, 2011 at 3:08pm
I know we don't know the exact specs yet, but would this setup run Battlefield 3 given the specs we have been told of?
Holy Cow Says MOO
February 15, 2011 at 8:26pm
I like this build, but I wanted DDR3 memory and the things in here were very outdated. This is what I plan to use instead.
CPU: AMD Phenom II X2 Black Edition 3.2GHz
Motherboard: BIOSTAR A880G+
RAM: Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 1333 TW3X4G1333C9A
Video Card: HIS Radeon HD 5770 1GB GDDR5
Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache
Optical Drive: LITE-ON iHAS424-98
Chassis: Cooler Master Elite 310
Power Supply: Cooler Master eXtreme Power Plus 550W
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus
Give me some comments on how I can downgrade the cost or upgrade it for more bang for the buck.
Thanks:)
Holy Cow Says MOO
February 15, 2011 at 8:26pm
I like this build, but I wanted DDR3 memory and the things in here were very outdated. This is what I plan to use instead.
CPU: AMD Phenom II X2 Black Edition 3.2GHz
Motherboard: BIOSTAR A880G+
RAM: Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 1333 TW3X4G1333C9A
Video Card: HIS Radeon HD 5770 1GB GDDR5
Hard Drive: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache
Optical Drive: LITE-ON iHAS424-98
Chassis: Cooler Master Elite 310
Power Supply: Cooler Master eXtreme Power Plus 550W
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus
Give me some comments on how I can downgrade the cost or upgrade it for more bang for the buck.
Thanks:)
Unseendamages
February 08, 2011 at 10:29am
This is going to be my first build and I have pretty much looked up and found answers to all the questions I've had save 1, how do I check CPU compatabilty? I'm sure there is a simple answer, I just can't seem to find it. I have checked AMD's website and Gigabytes. Basically the listed cpu was sold out on newegg and since I am purchasing everything else from them I figured I would go ahead and order the CPU from them as well. Would this one work? http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103885 If not, any suggestions for another? I suppose I could get the listed 620 from ebay if I have to. Thanks
Unseendamages
February 08, 2011 at 10:26pm
After a little more research it appears that the AM3 socket would match the mobo, but is it really that simple? can anyone confirm before I purchase, newegg's return policy is pretty strict on CPUs.
Renteura
January 01, 2011 at 9:56am
I have my new PC assembled, but now what? Is there any information about recommended BIOS settings and installing Windows and everything after the build itself? Would the default BIOS settings work?
HeartBurnKid
January 07, 2011 at 1:23pm
Usually, BIOS defaults will work as long as you're not doing anything too exotic with the hardware. Just pop in the install disc, boot your system, and follow the directions.
dukeice
December 29, 2010 at 11:24pm
Choosing the best ice machine may be a hard job, as you'll find numerous issues to think about: width of the ice machine, every day yield, condenser style. Yet another selection you will must make is what size and style of ice you'd like your new home ice machine to generate. An really versatile choice is half ice maker price, which is produced by this C0330SA-1A from Scotsman. Cube ice might be utilized in a number of applications, like drinks and display purposes. It does not melt as rapidly as other style of ice, including flake, due to the fact every single piece has a sturdier construction. The half size has much less mass to it than a regular full size. Half ice maker installation is often a good choice for bars, restaurants, hospitals and much more.
Renteura
December 27, 2010 at 1:53pm
Oh my god, crap. I accidentally ordered an OEM processor. Is there any cooler and thermal paste (preferably pre-applied) I can order that would work with this, since newegg has a no CPU refund policy?
HeartBurnKid
December 28, 2010 at 3:56pm
The Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus is a damn good cooler, and has been on MPC's Best of the Best list for quite a while. There are, of course, a variety of more basic, lower profile, lower price models available, and pretty much any of them will do for running at stock speeds.
You'll need paste with most aftermarket heatsinks, though, and IMHO, you can't go wrong with good old Arctic Silver 5. Though I've used Arctic Alumina for my last few builds, on account of having acquired a huge syringe of it from the local shop, and it works pretty well too.
cpmumixam
January 16, 2011 at 4:16pm
except for the fact that the Hyper 212 doesn't fit. I bought it, and it's too tall for the case. Does anyone have any other suggestions?
Riceb0y
November 20, 2010 at 11:24pm
I am a novice at this, and i cant seem to find the Rosewill R220 Case. i checked on Newegg and it said the product was "Deactivated." Can anyone tell me a similar working case or a link to another place where it can be found?
Sprangun
September 28, 2010 at 2:58pm
Hi i just want to say or ask that you info about this ring must be wrong,the reson what im saying it is cause the video card ya using for this ring ( Sapphire Radeon HD 5770 1GB PCIe DDR5 DVI / HDM) is a 500 watt MINIMUM requirement and you using a 460 watt power supply. So This must be wrong can any one correct me if im wrong? The rerason im correcting this is cause i just bought the same Video Card and in the Requirements say 500 watt minimum. So i was ready to buy a new power supply i want to make sure i have to do it. (i have a 480 power supply)
HeartBurnKid
October 01, 2010 at 1:53pm
They recommend 500W at minimum because they don't know what else is in your system; for all they know, you're running a raid array, a bunch of TV tuners, CCFLs, etc. As well, cheaper manufacturers are well known for overrating their PSUs by 100W or more. As long as you're using a good quality unit like the recommended Cooler Master, I'd even be quite comfortable going down to 400W with this system; maybe even 380W.
Sbridge37
August 18, 2010 at 10:48pm
Built this machine piece-for-piece tonight after getting my shipment for newegg.
Windows7 will NOT install. When it gives the option to boot from the CDROM andI hit "Y" on the keyboard the screen shoots to a black screen with a bunch of H's down the side of the screen and a blinking white cursor.
Like this:
H
H
H
H
H
I thought it was a bad win disk, but it installs fine on my old comp, thought it might be my drive or bad build, but when I put an old copy of win xp pro in the dvd drive of the new comp, it starts to install just fine.
Any suggestions?
TheMightyDM
July 28, 2010 at 10:33am
I've been in the market for a new computer for a while and have been looking into getting a desktop as opposed to replacing my laptop. This definitely looks like something I could afford and it looks like it would definitely run most of my games. And as a first time builder, the fact that this is a cheaper machine hopefully means that any mistakes won't be TOO costly (though costly still).
Thanks Max PC
victorg
June 27, 2010 at 11:28pm
Took me about 2 hours to build it. I was really nervous at first because I din't use a anti-static wristwrap, but It worked out fine. I even dropped the screwdriver accidently on the motherboard, but no damage done.
I had no problems, everything installed easily with no problems. It's really fast and handles any game easily.
I can play Crysis, Dirt 2, Just Cause 2, Call of Duty, and other games at very high settings, and even record with FRAPS, and STILL get good FPS.
Thanks MaximumPC.
da_samman
May 13, 2010 at 2:58pm
How about a FREAKING SOUND CARD?? The Soundblaster X-Fi 7.1 is now selling for 69.99, so you MIGHT want to grab it up while you can at this price. At current prices, WITH the aforementioned sound card, the total price is $652.90.
Sincerely yours, from Fort Lewis, WA
SGT Samuel E. McClard II
Life's a journey, enjoy the ride!!
TerryJune
April 25, 2010 at 6:55pm
Hello. This was a very nice article. What wireless card would be compatible with the hardware and If I put Windows XP on it does it have to be a 64-bit version?
demanl
April 17, 2010 at 6:33pm
Hi.
Which version of Windows 7 you load on your 12/2009 recession special machine...32 bit or 64 bit...??
TIA
L.Deman
gurujohan
June 04, 2010 at 3:12am
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razoredge671
March 28, 2010 at 8:05pm
Just wondering is it alright to use windows xp pro instead of windows 7 and will there be a performance difference if i get win 7???. I already have a brand new xp thats been sitting around for a while and can save probabaly a hundred bucks in the process if i just use that.Anyways just need some advice.
Sasquatchkilla
March 14, 2010 at 4:30pm
This will be my first build and will be a huge upgrade from the computer I have had for about 6 years. I have all the parts now except for the videocard. On most of the websites like newegg and tiger direct I can't seem to find the exact video card in stock. There is the same hd 5770 and says that it is the 3L model. Is there any real difference besides the price tag between this model and the 2L model? Also they have one that is called the juniper model. I've tried to research these some but still haven't gotten the answers I need. Any help would be appreciated
compnovo
March 09, 2010 at 5:42pm
I used some of the recommendations from this article to rebuild my aging P4 system that I had stuffed into a new Antec III Sonata case (dress on a pig, anybody?), so I already had a head start with the case, hard drive, PSU and optical drives. I wanted a full ATX board and didn't need onboard graphics so I went with an MSI mobo and DDR3 RAM, but I stayed with the recommended Athlon X4 620 and Sapphire HD 5770 and BOY I'm glad I did. MAJOR bang for the buck! Games like Mirror's Edge and Resident Evil 5 look fantastic --- actually they all do --- and the whole system cooks along nicely. I have to stay within my budget and this did the job.
envy
March 09, 2010 at 2:02pm
Wouldn't it be better to replace it with a 4850 or maybe even a 4870? I mean sure their not DX11 but they have better performance and same/less cost. I don't think DX10 will become obselete soon...
george22
March 09, 2011 at 11:07pm
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victorg
March 08, 2010 at 8:08pm
I have a DVD ROM that I don't use, could I use that one ?
What are the requirements for the DVD drive ?
epretorious
March 07, 2010 at 1:54pm
Hi, All:
Would it be worth the extra $15 to substitute a 2.5GHz AMD Phenom X4 9850 with 2MB L3 cache for the CPU (instead of the 2.6GHz AMD Athlon II X4 620)?
What about an extra $45 for a 2.8GHz AMD Phenom II X4 810 with 4MB of L3 cache?
Eric P.
Sunnyvale, CA
epretorious
March 07, 2010 at 10:15pm
FWIW: I found a couple of articles on Tom's Hardware that indicate that the AMD Phenom with it's L3 cache is an improvement over the AMD Athlon but not necessarily for the value:
Comparing price against performance makes it crystal clear that true
budget-minded users shouldn’t (and probably wouldn't) consider the
Phenom II X4. The Phenom II X4 945 (3.0 GHz) starts at $170, while the
new sub-$100 Athlon II X4 trails fairly close behind on performance
when all other system factors are equal. AM2+ models of the Phenom II
X4 may start at $150 (Phenom II X4 940), but they don’t provide DDR3
support.Overall, the main performance differentiator between the Athlon II
X4 and the Phenom II X4 is clock speed. A simple 200 MHz increase for
the Athlon II X4 would probably match the performance of a Phenom II
X4, despite its large 6MB L3 cache. Knowing this, you can be sure that
there will never be an Athlon II product that matches or exceeds the
clock speeds of the premium Phenom II.We believe it’s important to consider the different market segments
that we inevitably blurred in this comparison. Phenom II is an
upper-mainstream to high-end product at $150 to $250, while the Athlon
II X4 targets the $100 audience. Still, it’s obvious that an Athlon II
X4 provides a great value, especially for users willing to overclock
the processor.Finally, it remains to be said that L3 cache memory is imperative if
you want to reach the highest performance levels. At the 2.6 GHz clock
speed that we benchmarked, it may not be that obvious, but at 3 GHz and
up we see the Phenom II scaling much better than the Athlon II X4.These are all worth a read:
AMD Phenom vs. Athlon Core Shootout (Dec, 2007)
Athlon II Or Phenom II: Does Your CPU Need L3 Cache? (Oct, 2009)
Phenom vs. Athlon Core Scaling Compared (Jan, 2008)
Eric P.
Sunnyvale, CA
george22
March 09, 2011 at 11:04pm
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crisisincanada
February 27, 2010 at 2:12pm
Anybody having trouble with (no) audio after installing the Radeon 5770? I loaded the GPS into my old (and headed for upgrade) HP a1410n (Asus A8N-LA mobo) and found, to my horror, that Windows no longer thinks I have an audio device installed (which means that, for gaming, the whole thing is fubar right now). Similar complaints on AMDs website suggest that there's a conflict between the HDMI audio driver (which I can't use) and the mobo-mounted RealTek audio hardware. I'd be interested to know whether this shows up anywhere else or if it's just an HP thing.
BigAl737
February 24, 2010 at 7:33pm
My first ever build and it turned out great. Used all the components in the article except I used 2 Baraccuda 1TB drives and an Antec 300 case. Never would have done this had I not been a subscriber for quite a few years. Now a few questions.
I'd like to add a Firewire card into the exposed PCI slot but the card will be VERY close to the fan on the Radeon graphics card. Problem? I think so but wanted to check. Are there any other options out there to add a Firewire port?
When loading Windows 7, the option to make a NEW partition was greyed out. I'd really like to install Windows in its own partition. How do I do that now that Windows is installed on a 1TB drive?
Basic questions I'm sure but I'm excited to be learning. Thanks.
BigAl
Stereotype81
February 23, 2010 at 7:40pm
This was my first ever build. Took around 1 hour, no mistakes woot. My CPU was set to run at x4 multiplyer had to change to x 14, but other than that this article was spot on. I can play WoW maxed out without the slightest problem. If you plan on making o partition in your HD to make a back-up, look out for the missing BOOTmsgr error. I had to put the disk back in, tell the comp to upload from drive and not HD, and then restore it and it worked for me. Once again thank you and best of luck to those thinking of building this.
goku_dsv
February 23, 2010 at 1:18pm
Hi gang, I'm new to the whole building thing, I'm tired of having to pay extortion-worthy prices to lenovo and hp for sub-par parts and performance. This site has been a valuable tool for me, been saving for 2 years for a new future-proof PC, and have been checking this site 3 times a day for as much info as I can get for the past year. What I'm basically looking for is something to surf the web on, rip DVDs, watch movies on Hulu and Netflix without any delays, problems or pixellation, play java games like Yahoo spades, as well as AOE III with max settings, (and Stracraft 2 if it ever gets released), and probably Dungeons and Dragons Online with max settings and the new Star Trek Universe game. Not really much of a hardcore gamer on the PC, I leave that for my 360. Also, I would like to be able to multitask between watching movies , playing games and listening to music. Furthermore, I'm looking for something that doesn't consume a whole lot of power (if possible), I just moved and I don't wanna run up the electricty bill just yet. :) Thanks for any help you guys can give me!
EricVLustbader
February 22, 2010 at 9:39pm
I took this article as the basis for building my new machine, something that I needed to do, but needed to do on a budget. This article was a great place to start
I started with the basics laid out here but because of a certain professional advantage and a bit of recycling I was able to upgrade the chassis, power supply and motherboard turning the $647 (US) machine into a $837 (CDN).
With the Athlon 620 and Sapphire 5770 I'm playing Bioshock 2, Fallout 3 and Crysis with acceptable framerates despite everything turned on. Which is a lot more than I could say for the efforts I was getting from the DC5700 smallf form factor I was running previously (with Radeon 4650).
New system specs:
- Athlon 2 X4 620
- 4Gb Corsair DDR3
- Asus M4A79XTD EVO motherboard
- WD Caviar Green 1TB hard drive (at $89)
- 2 WD Caviar Green 500Gb hard drives (recycled) in Raid 0
- 1 WD Caviar 320GB hard drive (recycled)
- Silverstone ST60F powersupply (600W)
- Silverstone Raven R2 Case (wicked)
- Sapphire 5770 video card
- LG DVD-RAM drive (seperate purchase)
- X-Fi Xtremegamer (recycled)
- Windows 7 ultimate (msdn)
There were some small issues due to the changes I made, like the Silverstone case wasn't build to accomodate the wire cage on the silverstone power supply, and that the cabling of the hard drives is less than accomodating because of the case design, but overall the machine rocks.
If I can put together a Cylong eye mod for the front bezel and perhaps take the time after I finish Bioshock 2 to reconfigure the hard-drives so i can utilize the on board raid properly perhaps I'll also move up to the 64 bit version of the OS, but for now I'm more than happy.
Though the case does create a draft.
bkoch1
February 17, 2010 at 9:23pm
A $19 case? C'mon!! For $20 more, you could have at least put in a case with easier hard drive access, like the Cooler Master Elite RC-310. As someone who plays around a lot, trying to dig hard drives in/out of the front/back directed drive trays is such a pain in the butt!!
Ceadderman
February 24, 2010 at 1:33pm
Yeah I agree that's why I went with the HAF 932.
I had to use an old MoBo (til I can find the AM3 board to replace my original purchase) also ASUS and the 3000 XP chip that is on it. which limits me to 2 sata ports. Even still the HAF makes things alot smoother during installation. I have a 320 gig drive that I have to use since the board is not current enough to run the SATA 3 Hitachi.
I have the Athlon II CPU.
I have the OCZ ModX 500w PSU
I have the Hitachi TB HDD
I have the RAM
I have the ASUS DVD+RW drive
I have the Zotac GT 240 AMP Video Card (running an old ASUS card for the time being)
I even got the Case painted inside though found out when I fired up the early hardware with the PSU that only one Red LED fan was supplied. That's on me though cause I didn't notice that there was only one supplied with the case. Even though the blue is 3 230mm LED fans. Go figure.
I'm really peeved that my MoBo has not arrived. Got hold of the Vendor and they are going to refund the dough and so I have to figure out what will work with everything I got for a reasonable sum of money. Still I'm going to run ASUS, cause I've had the best luck with them. The MoBo I'm running at the moment is an old AV8. Sucks that I have to use old equipment to get everything on board but nothing ever runs 100 percent smoothly even when planned to the nth degree. Hopefully soon.
Update... well lucked into a board for free. So I got everything together. Now to get 2 LED fans since CM skimped on that part of the case. I have the Red LED fan up front. Everything works smoothly though. So I'll be posting the pics soon.
I'll be posting pics soon as I get everything together though. So keep checking back folks.
"If at first you don't succeed... Shoot the summabiotch. Problem solved."
madlutsen
February 12, 2010 at 9:25am
Hi -
The article was a great starting point for building a gaming PC. I don't want to increase the cost too much from the article objectives, but I'm thinking of building a gaming and family media unit as follows.
To keep startup, shutdown, and gaming fast, I'm increasing costs for a boot disk that is SSD onto which I plan to install the OS and the game itself. I think the paging file would go onto the larger SATA drive. The cost including rebates is at $910 and I'd like to see how you folks can decrease the cost to the $647 starting point.
Motherboard: ($139.99 -$20 rebate = $119.99)
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0328212CPU: ($179.99)
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0317379Memory: ($109.99- $30 = $79.99)
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0317775Boot Disk: ($139.99 -$40 = $99.99)
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0304102Disk: ($89.99)
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0281709Case: ($44.99)
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0283272PSU: ($55.99)
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0326030Video: ($99.99)
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0327368DVD/CD: ($29.99)
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0293049OS: ($109.99)
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0318879Regards,
MadLutsen
Ceadderman
February 11, 2010 at 7:56pm
I like your bild. However Via Newegg I can shave a buck on an ASUS drive DVD-RW drive(actually bought it) yeah its a buck but on a budget every George counts. Also same place I have a Free OCZ 500w Modular power Supply heading my direction. Will be here 15 February. So I'll take that 35 bucks I saved(after rebate) and plunk it down on a $89 TB Hitachi unit at ZZF which has a 15 dollar rebate on that and parlay that back to Newegg for a pair of 2 Gig GSkill 7 Latency Ripjaw sticks in DDR3. To pair with the same chip you got and an ASUS AM3 micro board.
Not only do I get what you suggested I get something a bit more modern. For roughly the same price.
"Wait..., you say, how'd you score that OCZ Modular PSU?" Combo deal. OCZ Gaming board retails for $179 all by itself. With the $100 on site rebate for that and a rebate for the PSU as well as $75 give or take on rebates I score a nice PSU goodie and get a solid KB for $68 bucks. Which makes me feel so good I spring the extra cash for the HAF 932 red LED tower. So all in all I come extremely close to the budget that you set and get a few more ponies under the hood. Oh did I mention that I also got an ASUS wireless card to connect on local internet which saves me $540 a year on a DSL provider?
Here is my list.
HAF 932 Full Tower $139+ shipping. $159
ASUS M4N68T-M AM3 NVIDIA Geforce 7025/nForce 630a Micro ATX AMD Motherboard $55
Same Chip you got with Cooler $99 bucks
Onboard Video
HITACHI 0F10383 1TB SATA 3.0 7200 RPM 32MB Buffer Hard Drive $74 after $20 instant rebate and $15 mail in rebate.
GSkill Ripjaws Series 4 GB(2x2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) $134.99
OCZ Gaming KB + OCZ ModXStreamMXSP 500w SLI certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS rated Combo Price:$143.99 til 17 February '10 b4 rebates of $50 for the KB and $25 for the PSU. $5 shipping.
ASUS PCE-N13 b/g/n wireless card $29.99 with email code $39.99 w/o
I come in at $626 w/o video card. So lets go with the Zotac GT 240 AMP card through Newegg for $100 bucks because it's my Birthday on the 21st gotta splurge.
That gets me within spitting range of your build. Sure I skimped on the Video but I get free internet. I now have most of my parts and am waiting on the mobo and CPU.
How's my build looking now?
I'm doing and did this on my tax refund check.
Great article. I already had my build in the works before I read it. I'm glad that I will be getting virtually the same outcome but with more bang for my buck. Keep up the good work. It's articles like this that keep me reading.
Oh yeah my OS. I'll stick with XP for now. I already have a copy and can transfer my license w/o guilt since I'm the only owner of the license.
I should point out that by getting this MoBo and RAM Combo, I can upgrade to the Crosshair Formula III without having to get another 2 sticks of RAM unless I want 8 gigs onboard. Crosshair is going for $200 at them moment but the sales will inevitably make the upgrade a no brainer.
"If at first you don't succeed... Shoot the summabiotch. Problem solved."
Ceadderman
February 15, 2010 at 3:31pm
Got my case a couple days ago, decided there is just way too much silver visible. Went to the Home D. and picked up a rattle can of Satin Black, electrical tape and longer screws to double up feet to get it off the ground a bit w/o using the wheels. Sorry but unless their beefy, I don't want static producers on my case. The tape is primarily to cover the bare spots that CM didn't take into account regarding upper drive components. $.50 cent fix.
Anyhow... spent all of last nite tearing it down to prep my HAF case for spray. There is absolutely nothing but steel and rivets on the frame now. Today (weather permitting, since I'm in the Northwest) I hope to lug it outside and give it a make over...
Sprayed it. Every bit of silver that is visible is now black except to the PSU tray. Looks almost professional too. No runs or drips inside. The back was also sprayed(don't understand how CM could let it go without doing this but...) and now looks really good. Has a few errors there but nothing too noticeable. All in all the fun part was setting the standoffs on the MoBo tray and then wrapping each one of them with masking to keep the holes free of paint. So now just waiting for the gear. Though I'm going to spring for 3 UV caths to mount on behind the motherboard tray. $30 added.
Got my OCZ PSU and Sabre KB today. Intalled the PSU fan up to cut down on the dust intake. Unfortunately my MoBo is on back order. Kind of to be expected however since ASUS MoBos are in high demand. So I get to figure out the 9 key programmable layering system on this Sabre KB. It may not be a Logitec board but if you can get your hands on one for substantially less than the MSRP, I definitely reccomend it. There are INFINITE settings for this thing. Newegg and OCZ teamed up to basically PAY me to get it. After my rebates come in its $68 bucks w/ a free ModXtreme 500w PSU. Unfrotunatelty the combo deal is over and it looks like Newegg will not be stocking this KB in the future. Removed every hint that they ever had it in their Warehouse.
Will update soon hopefully. Everything seems to be working in my favor other than the MoBo setback.
"If at first you don't succeed... Shoot the summabiotch. Problem solved."
Phantazmagoria
February 10, 2010 at 4:01pm
If there's anyone who's building this, and talking up the build, I'd really like to hear your views on how well this handles the latest releases of games. I'm most curious about the Battlefield: Bad Company 2 demo. My current computer is too outdated to play the games from that past few years, and when I get to building my newest rig, albeit a poor budget rig, I want to be able to play at least BC2. Tall order, I know... but can this machine do it, especially with this mobos fsb? Thanks for the input!
Legolas813
February 14, 2010 at 9:50pm
The newest game I have played is Oblivion, and it runs great even at max settings. I have not tried Battlefield.
I built the computer exactly to the Maximum PC specs, except I added an additional fan to the side of the case ($10 from Best Buy). I love the computer. I did not expect it to perform this well, but so far it is really fast and plays games well. And I love Windows 7!
This was my first build and I was a little nervous, but it turned out well.
