First PC build!

[SVX]

I've had many a fantasies, wishlists, high expectations - but finally it's going to happen. Originally I was going to upgrade an old i7 2600 ex-lease, or an older i7 2600k former-gaming desktop, but then a great deal popped up locally and I couldn't resist. However, this isn't a complete build I got, instead more of the bulk of the parts.

https://nz.pcpartpicker.com/user/subiesvx/saved/vMfnnQ Here's what I got for my money (excluding the PSU, but that's on it's way thanks to @Korza).

As it can be established, I still need a case, hard drive and GPU. I've made an ideal finished build here - https://nz.pcpartpicker.com/user/subiesvx/saved/N326XL though, I am still debating to whether I'll go SSD or not, or another HDD.

My curiosities are around what case I should get, and if I need any further cables and stuff. Here's some photos:

​

As for the case, I was looking at a Zalman R1, but the very questionable quality leaves me concerned.

https://nz.pcpartpicker.com/product/VHNypg/silverstone-case-sstps11bq
https://nz.pcpartpicker.com/product/7d648d/silverstone-case-sstps11bw

These are what I've shortlisted. I'd ideally like to keep around this budget (NZD). I'm not big on LEDs, windows, and all that jazz, nor bright colours that makes it look like a cyborg.

Thanks a lot in advance!!

 

[NLxAROSA]

Looking good so far @SVX 👍 Go SSD if you can for your OS drive, 256GB minimum (128GB is really tight with Windows + room for updates + temp space, etc.). Keep the other HD to store games/data on. As for case: as long as it's sturdy enough and there's enough airflow (e.g. spots for at least one intake and one outtake fan) I think you'll be fine. Since you're already covered on the PSU and you're not worried about looks, just go with whatever's cheapest with those requirements.

 

[TB]

I am still debating to whether I'll go SSD or not, or another HDD.

If you're anything like me, both. SSD for the OS, a 1TB drive for games and programs and a 2TB (almost full) drive for my movies.

My curiosities are around what case I should get

According to PCPartPicker, it doesn't look like it's available there but personally I'd look at something like the Corsair 200R.

I need any further cables and stuff.

One power and one (presumably) SATA for each device and you should be good.

Good luck!

 

[SVX]

According to PCPartPicker, it doesn't look like it's available there but personally I'd look at something like the Corsair 200R.

I had a look around, and I did find it. They come at about $130~ NZD here, which is a little high but it does look nice. https://nz.pcpartpicker.com/product/VHNypg/silverstone-case-sstps11bq I really liked this one, and it's cheap.

One power and one (presumably) SATA for each device and you should be good.

What do you mean specifically by device? I assume they are pretty cheap cables to buy?

 

[dr_slump]

@SVX @TB
As far as I know, the mainboard package includes two SATA data cables, there's no need to buy any separately (unless SVX decides to use more than one HDD and ODD). In case of the SATA power connectors, the power supply offers more than enough of those.

 

[TB]

$130~ NZD here, which is a little high but it does look nice.

Holy crap. It's on sale for $40 (regularly $60) which is why I threw it out there.

What do you mean specifically by device?

Each hard drive, Bluray drive, etc. Will need a SATA* cable.

unless SVX decides to use more than one HDD and ODD

That's what I was trying to get him to think about. The last thing I'd want would be to start setting this up and be missing a $.50 cable.

*That autocorrected to SATAN.

 

[SVX]

Here's how it's looking now:

https://nz.pcpartpicker.com/user/subiesvx/saved/vMfnnQ

@NLxAROSA - 240 GB should be close enough, yeah?

 

[NLxAROSA]

Yes, 240GB is fine. 👍

 

[Rallywagon]

The only thing i would suggest differently than what others have said is to do SSD for your games too. If its in your budget, it helps significantly with load times.

 

[Flex0r]

The only thing i would suggest differently than what others have said is to do SSD for your games too. If its in your budget, it helps significantly with load times.

^this

If it's indeed within your budget get a SSD for your most demanding games as well.
I have a 256GB SSD for OS and a 1TB SSD for the most demanding/performance needed games, other stuff and less demanding games are on a 3TB WD Black HDD.
It makes loading so much faster.

 

[SVX]

The only thing i would suggest differently than what others have said is to do SSD for your games too. If its in your budget, it helps significantly with load times.

^this

If it's indeed within your budget get a SSD for your most demanding games as well.
I have a 256GB SSD for OS and a 1TB SSD for the most demanding/performance needed games, other stuff and less demanding games are on a 3TB WD Black HDD.
It makes loading so much faster.

Thanks for the comments. An SSD for the gaming side of things is something I might look at doing down the line as an additional thing. As of now it doesn't really fit in budget, but as the technology cheapens over time it might be worth while a year or two down the track.

 

[NLxAROSA]

Adding another 512GB or even 1TB worth of SSD is going to inflate the budget a lot. With the 240GB you're good with OS (+updates) and a game or two (unless those two are FM7 ).

I've got a laptop with i7/16GB/GTX1070 and a fast nvme SSD (Samsung 951 Pro) and while it's definitely *a lot* faster in loading games than my i7/16GB/GTX970 desktop that uses a Seagate 2TB 7200RPM HD, I don't think it's worth going 250-500 over budget for it. Just start with this and save up and expand later.

 

[Darla Starch]

I have a 256GB SSD for OS and a 1TB SSD for the most demanding/performance needed games, other stuff and less demanding games are on a 3TB WD Black HDD.

You're a smart man for going with the three storage drive solution. 👍

 

[Saidur_Ali]

@SVX Have you thought about getting a smaller case soon as you have a mATX motherboard already. I personally prefer compact form factors. I used to have a SilverStone TJ08-E cased PC, thinking about downsizing from my current SilverStone GD08 case to something like a SG12 when I next upgrade my PC.

Regarding storage, would you prefer less noise? I've stopped using 3.5" drives in my PC and moved to 2.5" drives as they are so much quieter. Link to 2TB 2.5".

For a budget SSD, I would recommend going for higher capacity one as it should be quicker and more reliable, 240GB can go quite quickly. The 480GB one can be had for not too much more and should have DRAM cache over the 240GB model: Link.

You might need to get a 2.5" to 3.5" bracket depending on what PC case you get.

 

[SVX]

@SVX Have you thought about getting a smaller case soon as you have a mATX motherboard already. I personally prefer compact form factors. I used to have a SilverStone TJ08-E cased PC, thinking about downsizing from my current SilverStone GD08 case to something like a SG12 when I next upgrade my PC.

I did think about a smaller case, but I wanted the opportunity to expand if needed, and not to run into size issues just in case. In fact, my case actually arrived today! I went with a Silverstone PS11 B-Q.

Regarding storage, would you prefer less noise? I've stopped using 3.5" drives in my PC and moved to 2.5" drives as they are so much quieter. Link to 2TB 2.5".

Hmm, I don't think it will be an issue at this point, something to think about though, thank you.

For a budget SSD, I would recommend going for higher capacity one as it should be quicker and more reliable, 240GB can go quite quickly. The 480GB one can be had for not too much more and should have DRAM cache over the 240GB model: Link.

An extra $100 is sort of a hit on a barely out of school wage, and it's a bit of a less essential upgrade as it's not really something I'd use for awhile (for reference I have been on a 120gb SSD *only* for the last three years ). The price is intriguing though, thanks for that link too.

 

[Flex0r]

You're a smart man for going with the three storage drive solution. 👍

Woohoo



When I tried to run Fallout4 on the same SSD as the OS on my previous build and saw the performance go belly up, so I decided that the three drive setup would be in the next build.
So far very pleased with it.

 

[Watchman]

 

 

[SVX]

I've been quietly plugging away and getting the rest of the things I needed. Sussed an MSI GTX 980 4G (yet to arrive) for the GPU side of things, and due to issues with the memory, I got a whole new set of 4x4GB Corsair Vengeance.

However, despite this, it still isn't going.

The PC is getting insanely finicky about how it will turn on. With the new RAM, it goes into a boot cycle and won't start, however it will start with one stick- except it refuses to display output to the monitor. It does not turn on with one stick in the last two RAM channels though. The same happens with the other sticks of RAM I had that the PC came with, except in the first two, one single stick will boot the PC up *but* also boots it up into BIOS.

I keep on pouring money into this thing but I still get no where closer, and if I'm honest I'm so close to selling the whole thing! Help would be appreciated.

*Update, I updated the BIOS which got the PC to boot on the Corsair. However still nothing on the channels beside the fan.

 

[Flex0r]

I've been quietly plugging away and getting the rest of the things I needed. Sussed an MSI GTX 980 4G (yet to arrive) for the GPU side of things, and due to issues with the memory, I got a whole new set of 4x4GB Corsair Vengeance.

However, despite this, it still isn't going.

The PC is getting insanely finicky about how it will turn on. With the new RAM, it goes into a boot cycle and won't start, however it will start with one stick- except it refuses to display output to the monitor. It does not turn on with one stick in the last two RAM channels though. The same happens with the other sticks of RAM I had that the PC came with, except in the first two, one single stick will boot the PC up *but* also boots it up into BIOS.

I keep on pouring money into this thing but I still get no where closer, and if I'm honest I'm so close to selling the whole thing! Help would be appreciated.

*Update, I updated the BIOS which got the PC to boot on the Corsair. However still nothing on the channels beside the fan.

So you can enter the BIOS, in what mode is the memory according to the BIOS?(single channel or dual channel)
Does the BIOS have different preset i.e. performance mode
Try and set it in a lower mode, altough it should always start with a default basic mode.
Just to be sure, you installed the dimms in the slots with the same color? (dimm1 in a black slot and dimm2 in a black slot)

"Dual Channel Memory Configuration
This motherboard provides four DDR3 memory sockets and supports Dual Channel Technology. After the memory is installed, the BIOS will automatically detect the specifications and capacity of the memory.
Enabling Dual Channel memory mode will double the original memory bandwidth.
The four DDR3 memory sockets are divided into two channels and each channel has two memory sockets as
following:
Channel A: DDR3_2, DDR3_4
Channel B: DDR3_1, DDR3_3
Due to CPU limitations, read the following guidelines before installing the memory in Dual Channel mode.
1. Dual Channel mode cannot be enabled if only one DDR3 memory module is installed.
2. When enabling Dual Channel mode with two or four memory modules, it is recommended that memory
of the same capacity, brand, speed, and chips be used and installed in the same colored DDR3 sockets. For optimum performance, when enabling Dual Channel mode with two memory modules, we recommend that you install them in the DDR3_1 and DDR3_2 sockets."

It can indeed be quite finicky when you have dimms that are not on the Qualified Vendors List of the mainboard manufacturer.
Had the same issues a few years back with a HTPC I build.
That does not mean that dimms that aren't on the QVL won't work.

 

[SVX]

So you can enter the BIOS, in what mode is the memory according to the BIOS?(single channel or dual channel)
Does the BIOS have different preset i.e. performance mode
Try and set it in a lower mode, altough it should always start with a default basic mode.
Just to be sure, you installed the dimms in the slots with the same color? (dimm1 in a black slot and dimm2 in a black slot)

"Dual Channel Memory Configuration
This motherboard provides four DDR3 memory sockets and supports Dual Channel Technology. After the memory is installed, the BIOS will automatically detect the specifications and capacity of the memory.
Enabling Dual Channel memory mode will double the original memory bandwidth.
The four DDR3 memory sockets are divided into two channels and each channel has two memory sockets as
following:
Channel A: DDR3_2, DDR3_4
Channel B: DDR3_1, DDR3_3
Due to CPU limitations, read the following guidelines before installing the memory in Dual Channel mode.
1. Dual Channel mode cannot be enabled if only one DDR3 memory module is installed.
2. When enabling Dual Channel mode with two or four memory modules, it is recommended that memory
of the same capacity, brand, speed, and chips be used and installed in the same colored DDR3 sockets. For optimum performance, when enabling Dual Channel mode with two memory modules, we recommend that you install them in the DDR3_1 and DDR3_2 sockets."

It can indeed be quite finicky when you have dimms that are not on the Qualified Vendors List of the mainboard manufacturer.
Had the same issues a few years back with a HTPC I build.
That does not mean that dimms that aren't on the QVL won't work.

I forgot to update this. Weirdly enough, the dual channel for this motherboard works in opposite colours according to the manual. However, I determined it was a faulty motherboard, so I bought another of the same type. Put the RAM in and booted it up - nothing. The old configuration the old motherboard came with worked, and one stick at a time of my new RAM would work, too. However, upon going into the BIOS, I noticed it was only clocked at 1333 MHz on auto, which I thought was weird for a 1600 MHz set. I manually clocked it to 1600 MHz, and put all four sticks in. Volia, it worked first time. I have no idea why an underclocked set would prevent it with starting. I've asked around and everyone else is confused too.

 

[Flex0r]

I forgot to update this. Weirdly enough, the dual channel for this motherboard works in opposite colours according to the manual. However, I determined it was a faulty motherboard, so I bought another of the same type. Put the RAM in and booted it up - nothing. The old configuration the old motherboard came with worked, and one stick at a time of my new RAM would work, too. However, upon going into the BIOS, I noticed it was only clocked at 1333 MHz on auto, which I thought was weird for a 1600 MHz set. I manually clocked it to 1600 MHz, and put all four sticks in. Volia, it worked first time. I have no idea why an underclocked set would prevent it with starting. I've asked around and everyone else is confused too.

Good to hear you got it working.
Weird indeed, I also ran into some strange behavior with the memory in my most recent build.
Xmp enabled kept messing up the speed multiplier of the cpu, so I decided not to use it.
As far as I know xmp should not cause such behavior, never researched what might have been the cause as the system has been running fine since.

 

[SVX]

Ran into a few issues, a massive wait for the for the GPU and keyboard but everything is setup and I'm loving it. Thanks a lot for everyone's help!