What Do I Need To Build My Own Personal Computer
Building The Computer. If you want to build your own Computer, you need to spec up your computer before making any buying decisions about computer components. The main thing you need to know is what you want to use the computer for. There is no point at all in using the cheapest components if your goal is to play World of Warcraft or any of the latest popular games. There is no need to build a computer with extreme specification if it is going to be used to type letters, play some solitaire and keep your receptionist occupied. Most people who build their own computers are either trying to save a few pennies or are wanting a computer for a specific purpose like video editing or gaming.
Now that you've got a better understanding of what goes into a computer, it's time to actually choose and buy the components you're going to use. In this lesson, I will show you how to most effectively pick out your parts. The article is supposed to be about the minimum requirements to build a working Computer. You will need:
1. The Case
If you want to buy a case, you need to know what size case you choose should match the kind of motherboard you're buying. If you're going for a very high performance computer with many drives and expansion cards, a full tower is probably overkill for most users. I recommended, Antec and Cooler master both make some of the best cases on the market.
2. The Motherboard
As you look at motherboards, you'll want to pay attention to quite a few things. Here are some of the more important features:
Socket Type: Your socket type (such as AMD's "AM2" socket, or Intel's "LGA 1155" socket) determines which processors you can use with that board. So, if you've already narrowed down the kind of processor you want, this is a good first step to narrowing down your motherboard. Look for a model with a socket type that matches your processor to ensure that the two are compatible.
Size: Motherboards generally come in three sizes: Mini ITX, Micro ATX, and full ATX. The more advanced features you need, the larger the motherboard will need to be, which will also determine the size of your case (and final machine). Generally, your motherboard will be dependent on these other factors, but if you absolutely need a super small machine, you'll want to filter your choices to reflect that.
Number and Types of external Ports: Look at the ports available on the motherboard. Do you need a lot of USB ports? You'll either want a motherboard that has them or enough PCI slots to support extra USB adapters. Do you need HDMI out? If you aren't getting a graphics card (and you're planning to use your computer with a monitor), you'll need graphics integrated with the motherboard. Do you want fast Gigabit LAN? Some motherboards only have 10/100, which won't give you fast enough speeds. Do you want any new, super fast USB 3.0 ports? If you want to take advantage of any USB 3.0 peripherals, you'll need compatible ports on your motherboard. If you're set on a motherboard that doesn't have a feature you need, you can add most with expansion cards, but life is always easier if the motherboard has them built in.
Amount of supported RAM: If you plan on having a lot of RAM in your machine, you'll need a motherboard that supports it. If you're overclocking your processor, you also want to check the top RAM speed your motherboard supports, since you'll probably have to boost your RAM speed when you overclock.
Integrated Graphics: If all you're going to do is browse the web, use Microsoft Office, and perform other simple tasks, you may be better off choosing a motherboard with integrated graphics. You only need to shell out for a separate graphics card if you're playing video games, and maybe if you're playing HD video (though some integrated graphics chips can even do that nowadays). If you're getting a separate graphics card, it doesn't really matter if your motherboard has integrated graphics or not.
Number of SATA Ports: This determines how many internal hard drives and optical drives you can have. For most builds, this is only really a concern if you plan on having a lot of drives in your computer (like if you're building a server or a NAS).
Number of PCI Slots: You can only have as many expansion cards as you have PCI slots, so if you want a dedicated video card (or two), a dedicated sound card, extra USB ports, extra LAN ports, a Wi-Fi adapter, or other expansion cards you need to make sure your motherboard has enough of them.
Chipset: Your motherboard's chipset determines a lot of the more advanced features it has. Some chipsets support overclocking, some do not. Some support SLI and Crossfire (using multiple video cards in tandem), some do not. Others are better for turning into Hackintoshes. If you didn't understand any of the things I just said, you probably don't need to pay too close attention to this but if you want certain advanced features, chipset will narrow your selection considerably.
Socket Type: Your socket type (such as AMD's "AM2" socket, or Intel's "LGA 1155" socket) determines which processors you can use with that board. So, if you've already narrowed down the kind of processor you want, this is a good first step to narrowing down your motherboard. Look for a model with a socket type that matches your processor to ensure that the two are compatible.
Size: Motherboards generally come in three sizes: Mini ITX, Micro ATX, and full ATX. The more advanced features you need, the larger the motherboard will need to be, which will also determine the size of your case (and final machine). Generally, your motherboard will be dependent on these other factors, but if you absolutely need a super small machine, you'll want to filter your choices to reflect that.
Number and Types of external Ports: Look at the ports available on the motherboard. Do you need a lot of USB ports? You'll either want a motherboard that has them or enough PCI slots to support extra USB adapters. Do you need HDMI out? If you aren't getting a graphics card (and you're planning to use your computer with a monitor), you'll need graphics integrated with the motherboard. Do you want fast Gigabit LAN? Some motherboards only have 10/100, which won't give you fast enough speeds. Do you want any new, super fast USB 3.0 ports? If you want to take advantage of any USB 3.0 peripherals, you'll need compatible ports on your motherboard. If you're set on a motherboard that doesn't have a feature you need, you can add most with expansion cards, but life is always easier if the motherboard has them built in.
Amount of supported RAM: If you plan on having a lot of RAM in your machine, you'll need a motherboard that supports it. If you're overclocking your processor, you also want to check the top RAM speed your motherboard supports, since you'll probably have to boost your RAM speed when you overclock.
Integrated Graphics: If all you're going to do is browse the web, use Microsoft Office, and perform other simple tasks, you may be better off choosing a motherboard with integrated graphics. You only need to shell out for a separate graphics card if you're playing video games, and maybe if you're playing HD video (though some integrated graphics chips can even do that nowadays). If you're getting a separate graphics card, it doesn't really matter if your motherboard has integrated graphics or not.
Number of SATA Ports: This determines how many internal hard drives and optical drives you can have. For most builds, this is only really a concern if you plan on having a lot of drives in your computer (like if you're building a server or a NAS).
Number of PCI Slots: You can only have as many expansion cards as you have PCI slots, so if you want a dedicated video card (or two), a dedicated sound card, extra USB ports, extra LAN ports, a Wi-Fi adapter, or other expansion cards you need to make sure your motherboard has enough of them.
Chipset: Your motherboard's chipset determines a lot of the more advanced features it has. Some chipsets support overclocking, some do not. Some support SLI and Crossfire (using multiple video cards in tandem), some do not. Others are better for turning into Hackintoshes. If you didn't understand any of the things I just said, you probably don't need to pay too close attention to this but if you want certain advanced features, chipset will narrow your selection considerably.
Brands Recommend : ASUS, GIGABYTE, and MSI are probably the biggest name in motherboards. However, BIOSTAR and ASRock are well known for good budget boards, if you're trying to keep the cost down.
3. The RAM
Memory (RAM) in today's world a minimum of 2 GB is essential, 4 GB or 8 GB is better. You can buy for 2 GB first if you are trying to keep the cost down. You can upgrade your system memory then if you have budget. If you are buying RAM, the first thing you do is look at the motherboard's spec list. Most RAM nowadays is "DDR3", which is the latest generation of RAM. Popular Brands for the best RAM on the market are Crucial, Corsair and Kingston. You won't find a huge difference between brand.
4. The Graphics Card
If your motherboard does not have it on board a Graphics card will be required. Brands recommended : NVIDIA and ATI (now branded as AMD). MSI and ZOTAC are also popular choices, as are ASUS, and Sapphire.
5. The Hard Drive(s)
Hard Drive, A range of hard drives from 250 GB to 3 TB are available at present. Brands to recommend: Western Digital, Seagate, Hitachi, Samsung, and Toshiba are all good choices.
6. The Optical Drive
Optical Drive, in old school tech the CD drive, today you will be looking at DVD Writers or Blu-Ray. Brands recommend : Samsung, Sony, and LG are all great manufacturers.
7. The Power Supply
The power supply is actually one of the most important choices in your build. This is not an area you want to skip. Reviews on the net are rarely useful, either, with the exception of a few reputable sites like Jonnyguru.com. The best you can do is buy from a good brand.
8. Keyboard and Mouse
9. Monitor
The components above will give you to build a working PC, to add sound a set of speakers and a sound card if the motherboard does not have one on board.
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Computer Tips,
Hardware
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