My son wanted to build his own customized gaming PC and I wanted to upgrade my AI/ML capabilities at home so we went for a joined investment ;-).We built it during the weekend and I am leaving this post here so that he can follow it alone next time he goes for either an upgrade or a new build (hopefully because of the AI/ML side of things ;-). So here it goes son, remember ...
Start by selecting your motherboard (I suggest to look for a motherboard that supports as latest as possible CPU and graphic cards and where the BIOS can be upgraded using USB) and from there select *compatible* CPU, memory, SSD, and graphics card. Then you need to find a proper power supply that will handle the power consumption of all the parts and finally the case chasis where such motherboard and power supply will fit.
Here are the choices we made for the PC parts based on best in the market performance and lowest possible budget as of February 2021. We were able to find all of it in Amazon.
- Motherboard: ROG STRIX X570-E GAMING, BIOS ROG-STRIX-X570-E-GAMING-ASUS-3402
- CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 3rd Gen Processor
- Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX CMK32GX4M2D3200C16, 16GBx2, DDR4
- SSD: WD_BLACK SN850, SSD, 1TB GEN4, 7000MB/s
- Graphics Card: ASUS TUF Gaming GeForce GTX 1650 OC Edition 4GB GDDR6 Video Card
- Power supply: Nox Urano VX 650W NXURVX650BZ
- Case chasis: White Corsair 275R Airflow - Semi-tower ATX Inteligent Gaming (Lateral Crystal Panel, Three fans)
Place the CPU in the motherboard making sure that enough silicon paste is placed on its top to guarantee good heat dissipation.
Place the cooler with heat pipe on top of the processor by securing the fixed strap on one end.
Place the other adjustable strap by pushing down the cooler.
Rotate the handler to tighten the cooler.
Make sure the handler ends in a secure resting position.
Install memories as explained in the motherboard manual (position matters).
Install SSD. In this case the installation cases (2 SSD supported in this motherboard) are accessible only after removing a center covered tighten by two screws. Look for more details in your motherboard manual.
Mount the motherboard into the case chasis and tight it using the screws. Do not bend the motherboard. It must fit nicely without using any force. Do not tighten screws more that just what is needed to make sure the motherboard is not having a lose ground connection to the chasis. Place the led and button connectors first.
Install the rest of the connectors: Power, audio, USB etc. Make sure you match each connector with the positions listed in the motherboard manual.
Place the graphics card.
Connect the wifi exterior antenna if any.
Close the case. I suggest that you buy a chasis that comes with a glass window from where you can see things like 7-led screen rendering status code, motherboard status leds and/or decorative lighting.
Insert your USB stick with your preferred Operating System. Power on and enjoy your new *expensive* toy.
IF NEEDED: You might have to reset your BIOS to factory settings. If that is the case, turn off, diconnect power suply completely, wait 1 minute, open the case, and short circuit the BIOS jumper per your motherboard manual.
IF NEEDED: You might have to reset your BIOS to factory settings and the jumper might not do the trick alone. In such case you will need to turn off, diconnect power suply completely, wait 1 minute, open the case, remove the CMOS battery, short circuit the BIOS jumper per your motherboard manual and put the battery back.
IF NEEDED: You might have to reset your BIOS to factory settings and the battery plus jumper instructions might not do the trick at all. In that case you will need to update the BIOS following the instructions from the motherboard manual. This will demand you to follow specific instructions to download files and prepare a USB stick as it is the case of the motherboard used in this post.
