Wanting to build a new PC (another thread)

[Master_Craig]

Hey everyone. I've made threads before about wanting to buy/build a new PC but this time, I'm serious about it as I have the bloody funding for it.

I'm looking to buy and build a new desktop PC. My budget is between $1,500 - 1,700 AUD (about $1,013 - $1,148 USD) and my overall goal is to play modern day, AAA games on high/ultra settings, at 60 FPS, with 1920 x 1080 resolution. I would also like to have the capability for media stuff (video editing and such). I am not interested in VR gaming as I do not have the space for it, nor am I interested in 4K gaming as my current monitor cannot handle that.

From my old desktop PC (bought in 2012 as a pre-built PC via GR-Tek.com.au), there are a couple of things I can remove and salvage, including:

• DVD disc drive;
• 1 TB SATA HDD;
• 3 TB SATA HDD;
• Monitor;
• Speakers and headphones/microphone;
• Keyboard and mouse.

Everything else, I would need to sort out from scratch:

• Case;
• Power supply;
• Motherboard;
• Processor (CPU);
• CPU cooling;
• Graphics card;
• Sound card;
• SSD;
• RAM;
• Operating system;
• Wireless LAN.

I guess the biggest problem I have is, I don't quite know what brands to get, or what specifics to get.

 

[Master_Craig]

Okay, I did it. I bought a new PC.

The parts should arrive in one to two business days, so hopefully by the end of the week on Friday. Being realistic, I imagine it'll probably be here by Monday. Here's what I got:

Case: Fractal Design Core 2300 Mid Tower Case Black
Graphics card: XFX Radeon RX 5700 XT 8GB
Power supply: Thermaltake Toughpower Grand Sync RGB Gold 650W Power Supply
RAM: Corsair Vengeance LPX CMK16GX4M2D3600C18 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4
Motherboard: MSI B450M Mortar Motherboard
Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 3600 with Wraith Stealth
SSD: Intel 660p Series M.2 NVMe SSD 512GB
Operating System: Windows 10 32/64-bit Home USB

All up, including postage, this set me back $1,881.00 AUD ($1276.75 USD).

Due to postage and operating system, I went a tad bit over my planned budget, but I'm so excited to try and put this together!

 

[Master_Craig]

My PC arrived today but I probably won't be able to properly sort it out until later this week.

 

[Master_Craig]

So, building a PC was for me, quite a stressful experience and it took me several hours. Unfortunately, my PC did not boot after putting it all together. My power supply works a treat (as evident by the fan and light) but the rest of my PC does not work.

I noticed that my motherboard is displaying a single, bright red light. I've heard of compatibility issues with my brand of motherboard and CPU, but prior to building the PC, I connected the motherboard to the power supply and performed a BIOS flashing via USB and pre-downloaded update.

I'm going to have another look at it tonight or tomorrow, but I suspect:

1 - I may have incorrectly plugged in the front panel connections into the motherboard,

2 - I may have incorrectly plugged in the power supply to the CPU,

3 - I may have in general, incorrectly plugged in particular cables into the motherboard.

So, long story short, I f***ed up, but it should be a fixable issue.

I'm also going to look into lowering my graphics card. I may have installed it a tad high.

 

[Master_Craig]

The PC is now alive!

A mate of mine came over last night. I dismantled the PC in five minutes (so much easier than putting it back together) and we re-built most of the PC outside of the case. We determined the problem, it wasn't the CPU, it was because insufficient power, as one or two of the cables was incorrectly used.

I felt like a massive idiot, but my friend reckons that for someone inexperienced with building PCs, it's not hard to miss, and he himself (a PC enthusiast with a lot of building experience) missed it the first time, too.

Now all I have to do is partition my 3TB Seagate SATA HDD that we installed into it last night and it should be good to go.

Edit - Oh, my monitor (a 24" LED Acer) isn't compatible with my computer, as my new graphics card has only HDMI and display ports. I should be able to resolve this issue if I buy a DVI/VGA to HDMI adaptor.

 

[avensis david]

Hi, congratulations for building your computer personally I do not think I could do it.

 

[Ivory_Soul]

I recommend upgrading your monitor when you can. Not having display port means it's probably 60hz and 1080p. I'm glad you finally got a decent gaming PC!