How to Build Your Own Desktop PC

First read this (please!)

1. Do not keep a woolen or synthetic carpet in the assembly room - cotton is fine.

2. Do not wear woolen or synthetic garments in the assembly room - wear only cotton clothes.

3. Do not assemble on the carpet, assemble always on a wooden table or floor (if synthetic top, spread newspapers on it).

4. Check the ground of the wall outlet before removing any computer parts from their protective coverings.

5. When connecting the power cord - first one end to the power supply (must be already installed in the case), then the other end into the wall outlet.

6. Connect anti-static wrist wrap to wire grid of fan of power supply (especially if power supply or case is painted - but do not forget to remove it before turning on PC) and wear it on your left wrist if you are right-handed, or vice versa.

7. Keep touching your bare (left) arm or forearm to unpainted part of power supply or case before proceeding further.

8. Take the motherboard in the anti-static wrap, and position it to get where the stand-offs are to be attached. Attach the stand-offs. If the I/O plate needs to be replaced or attached, do it now.

9. While keeping yourself grounded, remove the antistatic wrap of motherboard, and position the motherboard in the case so that the ports fit nicely in the I/O plate.

10. Using a magnetic screw driver (so that you do not have to touch the motherboard to remove dropped screws), attach all the screws on the motherboard loosely, then tighten all of them gently - do not over-tighten.

11. Connect the power-supply connectors to the motherboard *Note there are two (2) --forgetting this step may damage the motherboard.

Repeat the safety procedures for the drives (do not touch pins or printed circuit) and the cards (hold by the metal portion only - do not touch circuit part).

Standard Components

This article will guide you through each step of successfully building your own PC. Of course, this article assumes that you know how to properly handle electronic components, that you know how to use tools, and, perhaps most importantly, that you take pleasure in this kind of tinkering. As we are going to introduce a large spectrum of PC components, users who only want to upgrade individual parts can skip certain sections in this guide.

If you aren't yet used to buying a PC in individual components, it can't do any harm to draw up a list of everything you need before doing anything else. That said, a complete PC system requires the following items:
 

PC case

Processor

 

Motherboard

Fan



 Memory

Hard Drive

Video/Graphics Card

Optical Drive

 

Safety Notice: The destructive potential of electrostatic

Walking across a floor dragging your feet will create friction, which charges us with energy. Once you stop moving, the soles of your shoes insulate you, but you're still carrying around a different voltage potential than your environment. Everyone's felt the sudden shock from a static spark, which is particularly common with plastic floors and thick, rubber-soled shoes. This electromagnetic phenomenon can have dangerous consequences for electronic components. Although the current from a static discharge isn't very high, the voltage difference may briefly peak at tens of thousands of volts. That much voltage can easily destroy sensitive components such as memory chips.

The most important thing to do before getting down to work is to ground yourself. Ideally, you'll have an antistatic armband, as used in industry. But unless you're a real electronics whiz, you're unlikely to have one. So, try this instead: before you come into contact any of your PC's components, simply touch something metal (a radiator, the protective contact on a plug or the PC case). This will ground you properly.

Drawing Up a Plan

Before you start the actual assembly, familiarize yourself with the case and components. Unpack all the parts and keep them nearby, but not so close that they interfere. Most cases don't come with instructions, so you should first check which screws and parts go where, and what each is for - and whether you may have to remove anything from the case before you can install the drives. Get yourself a proper lamp before starting, especially if you work at night. The ceiling light in your workroom is usually not bright enough.

Finally, consider where you want to put each drive. There are only a few rules for drive placement, but valuable ones to follow when in doubt:

  • If the PC is under your desk, it makes sense to place the CD-ROM/ DVD drive as high up as possible so that you don't have to bend down so far.
  • Always check to make sure that the ribbon/round cable is long enough.
  • Some components get warm or even hot when operating. Always make sure that there's enough air circulating for the heat to dissipate. That's especially important for modern graphics cards and hard drives.
  • If you're intending to put in two hard drives, make sure that there's enough room between them. Otherwise, they may overheat, leading to a shortened life span and instability.
  • Make sure that neither cables nor other components can get caught in a fan.
  • All cables must be run so that no air vents or openings are completely blocked.

The Case

The price of a case is a good indicator of its modularity and build quality. Cheaper cases often force you to assemble the PC in a specific order, are made of softer and/ or thinner metal, and may contain sharp edges. Expensive cases provide clever design features, a more solid construction, better finish, and are often fitted with more capable power supplies.

You may want to consider several factors when choosing a pc case. First would be the form factor, among the choices are Micro, Flex, Cube, ATX or Mid Tower and Full Tower. When choosing a case for high end gaming you definitely want to consider size for maximum heat removal and future upgrades. Functionality vs looks, power supply, quality, design, material, noise levels and so on.

When you have opened the case by removing the side panels, you will see what accessories the case manufacture has supplied. A power cord and screws should always be included, and you will also often find a set of case feet.

Power supply

When buying a case, take a very close look at the built-in power supply. Most motherboards now have a 24 pin main power connection. In addition to the 24 pin connector some motherboards require an auxiliary power connector.


Power Supply Connectors

You may also want to have several Y junction connectors for connecting extra case fans.

Y junction with Molex plugs


*Note: The only fan you should connect to the motherboard should be the  CPU fan. All other fans need to be powered through the power supply.

*Note: Do not use a Y junction to power the Video Card.

Always make a point of asking about assembly materials: are all the screws, spacers and other accessories included with the case? A small bag of assembly materials is usually stuck to the inside of the case. Always be wary of cheap offers!

Always make sure you have spacers and mounts to secure the motherboard. A few screws for the case won't hurt either, as they are generally also used to anchor plug-in boards. The screws for mounting drives (hard drive, CD-ROM, etc.) have a finer thread. You need at least four for each drive, but it's always a good idea to have a handful of replacements. By the way, you're barking up the wrong tree if you start looking for these screws at the hardware store. Go to your local computer store - they won't have to look far for the screws you need, and they're bound to be the right size.

 

Build Your Own PC Page 2