How to build a PC? Documentation (Non GPU version)

 

How To Build a PC (Non-GPU Version)

Hello everybody, I hope everyone has been doing fine throughout this COVID-19 situation. Today, this blog will be a simple How to Build a PC without a GPU or Graphics card.

Firstly, to start building a PC, a Philips head Screwdriver is needed. Preferably ones that enable the switching of heads, from bigger ones to smaller ones.

Secondly, cable ties are preferred to be available as cable management usually allow for a much neater and presentable PC.

As we start off by building the PC, we need to take out the motherboard from the box. The motherboard I am using is the ASRock A320m HDV R4.0. This board is a basic board that provides the most basic for the user. As this PC is used for work and home uses, its naturally fit for this tutorial.

In order to put the CPU into the socket of the motherboard, we have to first find the triangle indicator on the motherboard.

It is shown with the red circle and you need to match it with the golden triangle located on the processor. After matching it , one just have to lift the retraction and just simply put the processor in.

As the CPU cooler that we are using doesn’t come with Thermal Paste applied, we have to apply a bit of Thermal Paste on the CPU in order to allow heat conduction to the fan to dissipate heat.

After applying the paste, we need to install the CPU Cooler. The cooler of choice today is the Wraith Stealth Cooler by AMD themselves, which is easy to install. One must remove the brackets on the brackets as indicated in the photo below (First Photo) and install the fan by screwing the screws into the board. The aftermath is shown in the second photo.

Next is installing the RAM stick. Today I will be using a simple G.skill Performance RAM 8GB 2666mhz stick as shown below.

The installation is simple as you just need to open the 2 Clips located In a Vertical Line which is located on the motherboard.

Shortly after that, one can safely install the M.2 Solid State Drive. The one I will be using today is the Klevv Cras C710 512GB Nvme M.2 SSD shown in the photo below.

Using the M.2 Screw provided in the motherboard box, we can install this onto the Ultra M.2 Slot on the motherboard. And the result of installing the RAM and SSD is shown in the next photo.

After assembling all the core components onto the motherboard, the casing was taken out of the box. The case that I am using today is the Tecware Forge M case. It has a tempered glass door like feature that should be taken out before we start working on installing the parts in the case.

The case is quite spacious and allows for space for cable management at the back. It also contains 4 case fans that help to improve airflow which is very impressive.

The power supply or PSU of choice is the FSP Hyper K 500W. As this is a work and home PC, 500W is simply enough to power everything.

After installing the PSU and the IO shield from the motherboard, this is how the case looks like.

After doing the step above, we need to figure out if stand-offs need to be installed on the motherboard and after that we need to screw the motherboard onto the PC. Below shows result of the process.

Plugging the cables in is the next thing that is needed to occur. An important advice is to slowly work your way and connect the cables. The end results are shown in the photo at the bottom.

And that is the PC all built. The next important thing is to have a Thumb Drive with Windows OS Setup on hand. You could pre-install it on the drive on your laptop before-hand or ask a friend to help you with it.

After placing all the glass and parts back to its original position, we are left with a beautiful, dark, shady PC to look at. Illuminated with my phone lights, this is how it looks like.

As we come to the end of the blog, I hope that everyone will be able to stay safe as COVID-19 is still spreading around. I also hope that this will enable the readers to be able to get some knowledge about simple PC building.

Parts list used (Prices are in SGD/CAD/AUD):

CPU- Ryzen 3 2200G (4 Core/ 4 Threads) (Used) (70)

Motherboard- ASRock A320m HDV R4.0 (Used) (40)

RAM- G.skill Performance 2666mhz 8GB (New) (45)

SSD- Klevv Cras C710 512GB Nvme M.2 SSD (New) (90)

PSU- FSP Hyper K 500W 80+ Non-Modular (New) (60)

Case- Tecware Forge M Matx Tempered Glass Case (New) (45)

Total Cost – 350 Dollars

Building stream is on this url: https://www.twitch.tv/videos/801473150

August/September 2020 Order lists and deals

 

August/September 2020 Order lists and deals

Its been awhile and I apologise for the lack of updates, I was doing a lot of overtime during the Pandemic period and I didn’t have time to update. All the package arrived in early September.

Things have started improving a lot in the recent months and I stumbled accoss multiple deals, however this time I will be talking about the order that I made during the period.

The first item which I will be talking about is the Cases that I got.

 

 

Both cases were from Tecware and both the cases are unique in their own ways.

The one on the left (the Forge M) is a case that prioritizes airflow. It has a meshed front and top that enable smooth airflow through the mesh. It also enables for easier cleaning as the mesh can be removed easily. It also comes with 4 Orbis F1 fans from tecware pre-installed. The fans are ARGB and they enable the user to have a colour changing experience during the building of the PC.

The one on the right (the Void M) is a case that looks more stylish with the tempered glass front penal. Its more of a showcase PC that shows others the awesome interior of the PC along with the parts. Similarly, like the Forge M, it comes with 3 Orbis F1 fans from Tecware Pre-installed.

 

The second item is the Zotac RTX 2060 OC Edition (Picture shown below).

The graphics card comes in a typical box like how Zotac package their graphics card. However, opening it reveals an awesome sight as shown in the photo below.

The front shroud is greyish gunmetal like with black places at locations. It was similar to the Zotac GTX 1660S , however the card comes with a backplate that helps to dissipate heat easily and with Zotac’s Icestorm technology, the card runs cooly.

 

The Third Product that I ordered is a processor, specifically the Ryzen 7 3700X.

This processor is one of the best price to performance CPU in the market. With 8 Cores and 16 Threads, one will be able to multi-task easily and still able to stream and play games with ease. It has a base clock of 3.6Ghz and a boost clock of up to 4.4Ghz. With the B550m boards being released, future proofing is so much easier and overclocking it to 4.1Ghz or 4.2Ghz on all cores helps to increase the performance by a huge margin.

 

Pairing up with the 3700X is a B550 board of course. It’s the B550m Steel Legend from ASRock.

Packing a (8+2) Power Phase design, it helps to provide efficient power transfer for the CPU. The board looks super amazing with the addition with an M.2 heatsink which is made of metal to dissipate heat easily. The heatsink on top of the VRMs allow smooth heat transition away to enable cool temperatures. It’s a good buy overall for a combo with the 3700X.

The next photo will showcase a budget motherboard for the last project I would be doing in the future.

Enter the ASRock B450m Pro4. It is a board that packs a (3+3) Power Phase design and its great for budget builds and people who are starting off in PC building. It also has 4 RAM slots for future upgradability and it even has a M.2 slot for an Nvme M.2 SSD for fast boot up speeds.

 

Next on the list is a couple of Nvme M.2 SSDs. Below are the Klevv Cras C710 512GB Nvme M.2 SSDs

These pair of SSDs are the most bang for your buck. Costing as low as 50dollars for the 256GB ones, they give out a good read and write speed of 1950Mb/s read speed and 1250Mb/s for write speed. They load up windows as fast as 8seconds, so it really helps the owner to start doing their work or playing their games quickly.

 

Here comes one of the more unique things in the order for the month. Its case fans, specifically the Tecware Orbis F1 set.

These set of fans comes with a controller that can be synced to all motherboard programmes. Be it Asus Aura Sync, MSI’s Mystic Light or ASRock’s Polychrome Sync, it all works as long it is connected to the ARGB header on the motherboard. As it is ARGB (addressable RGB), colours are interchangeable. Hence, it allows for more unique, fun, and interesting building experiences for the user.

 

Connectivity is also an issue with certain customers, so in the order list , there are 2 sets of Intel AX200 Pcie Wifi Kit.

This Wifi Kit enables the user to not just use any of their Wifi at home, but the 5Ghz variant of the Wifi. Also known as Wifi 6, the speeds of the Wifi enable fast download speeds and a stable gaming experience. Not only does it come with wifi, but it comes with Bluetooth too. It allows the user to connect their Bluetooth Devices such as their wireless earpiece to their PC for an awesome experience.

When there is a good CPU and Motherboard combo, one must be prepared to have a cooler to enable smooth airflow to vent heat out from the CPU quickly. So here are they, the ID-Cooling SE224XT V2 ARGB.

This cooler has 4 Heatpipes that allows for smooth heat dissipation. It also comes with an ARGB fan that synchronizes with the rest of the PC if one is using motherboard Sync. It also comes with a 120mm fan that dissipate heat from the heatpipes quickly.

It will not be an order list without power supplies. So, the ones that I picked out this time is the same as the ones I ordered back in April. It’s the FSP Hyper K 600W Non-Modular PSU.

Do not let this random box fool you. It is a 600W PSU with a 5year warranty. The 600 Watts is sufficient for a standard entry to mid end PC and it supplies enough power to all the parts. Hence, this PSU has been a standard pick for me in all these years.

 

This is apparently the last item on the list. So, I am going to summarize all the parts and how much I got them below. Prices varies depending on the shops and where one gets it from.

All Prices are in SGD/CAD/AUD

Ryzen 7 3700X - $390

ASRock B450m Pro4 - $125

ASRock B550m Steel Legend- $220

Klevv Cras C710 512GB Nvme M.2 SSD - $92

Zotac RTX 2060 OC Edition - $455

Intel AX200 - $50

Tecware Void M / Forge M - $86 / $76

Tecware Orbis F1 Fan set - $32

ID-Cooling SE224XT V2 ARGB - $46

Chelsea the Blue Club of the Wind

 Chelsea: The Blue Football Club

This PC Build is kind of long overdue, but I must blog it anyway. Enter, Chelsea, the Blue and White PC. The inspiration of the PC comes from the buyer himself, whom is a huge Chelsea fan.

 

This build is made for an artist that really loves Chelsea FC. He has been supporting Chelsea since late 2005. Recently at the end of English Premier League or EPL for short, Chelsea got a 2-0 win over Wolves that secured their Champions League spot. Hence, he really wants to dedicate this PC and name the PC after them.

The Photo above shows the parts used for the PC which I will be giving a price breakdown at the end of the blog.

 

 

Firstly, we will talk about the motherboard. The motherboard of choice is the Asus TUF B450 Plus Gaming. This motherboard is an ATX Motherboard and it has room for future upgradability if the user wishes to upgrade in the future. The motherboard has a 4+2 Power Phase Design and it has also 4 RAM slots for future upgradability. It also has an M.2 slot for M.2 SSDs, however the SATA 1 slot will be disabled in the process. The board also has connectors for RGB strip header which will be used for the system in the process.

 

 

Next, is the processor which is the silver colour chip located in the middle of the motherboard. The processor which I had chosen is the Ryzen 7 2700X. It is an 8 Core 16Threads Processor which will enable the user to multi-task and work efficiently. Part of the reason why I chose this CPU is because the user is an artist and he do a lot of Digital Art works. It also enables him to stream while working on his artwork as it will allow smooth rendering and stable frame rates.

 

 

For the RAM, I selected a pair of Corsair Vengeance RGB RAM Clocked at 3000mhz. It’s a 16GB Kit (8GB x2) and the speed of the RAM will enhance the performance of the Ryzen Processor and it will help the user to get higher frames when gaming.

 

 

For the CPU Cooler I decided to go with the AMD Stock Prism Cooler as it has 4 heat-pipes. It is also easy to install and it cools the processor easily. It also comes free with the processor too, so there is no money spent on the cooler.

 

 

The case used for this project is no other then the Tecware Forge ATX version. It comes with 2 200mm case fans at the front and 120mm case fan at the back.

Both are Tecware Orbis fans that are ARGB and they can be sync with the controller by the user. The front, top and bottom have mesh to prevent dust from going in easily and it enables for easy cleaning by the user.

After putting the motherboard into the case, this is what it looks like.

 

 

After wiring all the wires and attaching them to the motherboard, this is what it looks like

 

The Graphics card/Video card I have chosen is shown below.

 

It’s the Power-Colour RX570 8GB which I had bought in the Previous Loot Blog. It is a budget to Mid-range card that is readily available in the market. It can play most AAA games on medium settings and it has good heat dissipation too.

 

 

After putting everything together, this is what it looks like. The interior looks spacious and it allows for good cable management. I did not show the process, but the system comes with a 256GB SATA SSD and a 1TB Hard drive to store games.

 

After switching the system on, I was greeted with a flash of blue and pinkish lights, however, I quickly set it to white in the interior as it should be needed for the Chelsea theme.

 

 

This is how the system looks like after setting the lights. It really looks like Chelsea’s home kit which is Blue at the top and White at the bottom. It’s amazing to see how it appeared and I am excited to when the owner will receive it the following day.

 

This is what the system looks like before its being delivered.

 

I am grateful for everyone who came here to read the blog and I really wish everyone would take care as the pandemic is still going on. Do wear your masks out as it will prevent the disease from spreading and it will control the situation around the world. Do take care and stay safe.

All Credits to Jarrod (Jarmix) for allowing me to take photos while building Chelsea.

Do visit him on his twitch channel: https://www.twitch.tv/jarmix

Or His Instagram ‘Art’: https://www.instagram.com/_jarmix_/

Instagram ‘Comic’: https://www.instagram.com/jarmix_comics/?hl=en

 

 

PC Parts List (All Prices are in SGD/CAD/AUD):

CPU- Ryzen 7 2700X (8Core/16Threads) (220) (Used)

Motherboard- Asus TUF B450-Plus Gaming (115) (Used)

RAM- Corsair Vengeance RGB White (8GB x2) 3000mhz (120) (Used)

GPU- PowerColor Red Dragon RX570 8GB (130) (Used)

PSU- FSP Hyper K 500W Non-Modular (65) (New)

SSD- Lexar NS100 256GB SATA SSD (62) (New)

HDD- Toshiba 1TB 7200rpm P300 (57) (New)

Case- Tecware Forge ATX (99) (New)

Case Fan – ID Cooling ZF-12025 RGB Trio Type 3 (New)

Total Cost - 933

Big Chonk , The epitome of assistance

Big Chonk, the epitome of assistance

This blog has been somewhat overdue - however, I hope that everyone will like this new PC I have built in early July! The reason for the name Big CHONK is because the CPU cooler was huge, and it took up a lot of space. The photo shown below consists of the parts that I used to build the PC. The parts list will be provided at the end of the blog post.

This build was made for a speedrunner in the Singapore community, as he had reached 1200 followers a few weeks before I built the computer, so I decided to surprise him.

First, the build starts off with the Motherboard shown above. The motherboard is an ASRock Z390m Pro4. It's one of the entry-level boards available due to budgeting required for the other parts. It has 10 Power Phases and It allows for simple overclocks to improve the performance of Intel’s K CPUs by a little. After placing the motherboard on the box that it came with, I decided to place the processor on the board.

The Processor I selected is an I7-8700K, the best 8th Generation (or coffee lake) Intel CPU available. Its base clock is clocked at 3.7Ghz and it can turbo up to 4.3Ghz on 1 core. The CPU is still good for this period and it's able to play most AAA titles well.

For the RAM, I picked out a pair of G.Skill Sniper X RAM (8GB x2); clocked at 3600Mhz. The reason why I picked out this RAM is because it is able to clock at fast speeds at 3600Mhz. This enables me to XMP it to its current settings which is good for the user of the PC.

The CPU Cooler of choice is a Cooler Master Hyper 212 X air CPU Cooling fan. It's able to remove heat quickly from the CPU due to its 4 heat-pipes that it has. It will enable me to do a mild overclock on the CPU to improve the performance slightly.

The case of choice as shown above is a Tecware M3+. It has 3 120mm fans provided inside as cooling solutions and it is a little spacious to enable me to wire all wires neatly.

This is how the PC looks like after inserting the motherboard into the PC and the wiring is completed. I am quite happy with all the wiring I had done as it looks neat. The dark interior looks amazing when seen from the outside and none of the parts stood out among the others.

Last but not least it is the GPU or graphics card. The card of choice is the Zotac GTX 1070 Twin Fan. Even though it is used, it still has a warranty of 3 years and it can run most AAA games on High settings at 1080p.

After placing all the parts together, this is what it looks like.

The interior looks dark and none of the parts stood out. However, the case has an RGB setting that allowed the user to change the colours of the case whenever he wants.

Overall, I was happy with the outcome and I decided to run a few tests to check the average temperatures and stats of the PC.

When pitting this system against Psyras’s score, it is quite amazing to see the difference between an Intel 6Core/12Thread system against an AMD system.

Psyras’s specs (Short version):

CPU- Ryzen 5 2600 (Stock)

MB- ASRock B450m Steel Legend

16GB of ram at 3000mhz

Zotac GTX 1660 Super Twin Fan

 

Cinebench R20 Scores:

CHONK at stock – 3371

CHONK at 4.8Ghz OC – 3750

Psyras at Stock – 2825

 

Cinebench R15 Scores:

CHONK at stock – 1293

CHONK at 4.8Ghz OC – 1503

Psyras at Stock – 1270

 

Geek Bench 5 Scores:

CHONK at 4.8Ghz OC- Single Core (1318), Multi Core (7008)

Psyras at Stock- Single Core (1001) , Multi Core (4834)

Other benchmarks:

3D Mark Fire-strike Normal: GPU – 18432, CPU – 20243

3D Mark Fire-Strike Extreme: GPU - 8660, CPU – 20280

Geek Bench 5 GPU Test – 46854 (OCL)

Thank you to all who have been journeying with me so far, reading my blog posts and enjoying my content. I hope everyone will stay safe as the pandemic is still ongoing and things are not going too well in the world. I also hope I can be more punctual in releasing more new content for you.

Special Thanks to Justin or Juh0rse for allowing me to take photos during the building process.

Do check out his content at : https://www.twitch.tv/juh0rse

PC Parts List (All Prices are in SGD/CAD/AUD):

CPU- I7 8700K (6Core/12Threads) (Used) (200)

CPU Cooler- Cooler Master Hyper 212X (Used) (30)

Motherboard- ASRock Z390m Pro4 (New) (189)

RAM- G.skill Sniper X (8GB x2) 3600mhz (Used) (100)

SSD- Lexar NM610 Nvme M.2 SSD 500GB (New) (113)

HDD - Seagate Barracuda 1.5TB 7200rpm (Used) (50)

PSU- FSP Hyper K 600W Non-Modular PSU (New) (79)

Case- Tecware M3+ TG MAtx Case (New) (63)

GPU- Zotac GTX1070 Twin Fan (Used) (240)

Total Cost: 1074