Help required for first, new build please ;)

Hardware Hub Build a PC
1

- Hey guys, I'm new to PC building and I pretty much know the basic stuff about computer parts but I get lost when talking about specific models of those parts and the requirements they have for another part to fit with it (ex: Motherboard and processor). I pretty much want a good functional PC where I can game on and surf the web etc. and eventually do some video recording.

 - I already chose parts with help of some friends and different forums, but just to be sure a 100% I would hugely appreciate your help guiding me trough this.

    First of all I would like to know if the setup below I've chosen is good, if it all goes well together and if there are compatibility issues or not. People told me it's all fine, but again I prefer to ask on different forums to be sure a 100% that it is all compatible. 

    I think I will do just fine building it all into the case with help of all the building guides on the net/YouTube but I am worrying about installing the Operating System, I've chosen to go for Windows 8.1. I didn't realy manage to figure out how to install it correctly on an HDD or an SSD. I'd be glad if you could help me with that.

    After having done all that, I'd like to know how to verify if the PC is running well and if there are no errors, failures and what not, to avoid any problems in the future (corrupt data etc.).

 

                    Many thanks ! I hope you understand my text because
                                                                 English isn't my first language.


The setup I've chosen to build this gaming PC :


SSD                              Kingston HyperX 120GB 2.5" SATA Rev. 3.0 (6Gb/s)


HDD                              Western Digital Blue 1.0TB SATA/64MB Cache WD10EZEX


Processor                     Intel core i5-4670K LGA1150 3.4Ghz


Processor Cooler         Cooler Master Hyper 212EVO (support socket intel LGA1150)


Graphic's Card             MSI N770 TF 2GD5/OC  Nvidia GeForce GTX 770                                                                                1098 MHz 2048 Mo PCI-Express


Motherboard                Asrock Z87 Extreme4  ATX  Socket 1150


Optical Drive                Asus DRW-24F1ST DVD SATA


RAM                              G.Skill RipjawsX F3-12800CL9D-8GBX(Compatible with                                                                      LGA1155/LGA1150 (I have read that these are                                                                                         compatible with LGA1150))

Power Supply               be quiet! (80Plus bronze) Pure Power 730W


Case                              Corsair Graphite Series 600T ATX (CC600TWM-WHT)

2

Looks good to me.  The power supply is a bit overkill though.  A decent quality 550-600w power supply will power that all with lots of overclocking headroom to spare.

3

Hey thanks for your reply, thats awesome I'm glad it's compatible.
If ya could help me on how to install windows 8.1 & on which hard drive that'd be great ;) 

4

Install it on the SSD.  Put your most commonly used programs on the SSD if they fit.  Put everything else on the hard drive.

Boot from the windows disc, and follow the process to install.  Its fairly simple.

5

Alright so just put the windows disc in, boot with it in the optical drive choose to install in the SSD right ? And put all my programs that I use the most except games on the SSD ?
Might be silly questions but just want to make sure ^^ 

6

Generally, yes.

Also, you can throw optical drive out of the build and install windows from a flash drive, if you don't use ODD often.

Install all software on SSD and all games on HDD. I doubt that you will have enough software to run out of space on a 120GB drive. I have photoshop and a bunch of IDEs on my C: and it's not even 50 GB.

Overkill PSU is the only thing wrong with the build. Get a 550W XFX or something.

7

Alright thanks both of you guys ! :')
I have no idea how I can get windows on a flash drive so i'll get the ODD, and I casually watch dvd's so yeah ^^
I think i'm good to go then especially with 120GB ssd and 1TB hdd.

I'll repost / make a new topic if needed when the build's done and where I gotta test if theres no failures etc (which I have no idea how to do so, I'll see when it's built I guess).

Cheers guys ! 

8

To test it setup your components on the mobo box and do a test run. There's loads of video's on youtube but i will give a detailed response of what needs to be set up and what to look out for.

9

Okay great, thanks dude! Can't wait for your detailed response on how to do that ;)

10

Well, since I don't know where "that kid" went, I'll do a little list.

It's always good to do a quick test boot outside the system.  If something is DOA, it makes diagnosing and disassembling a lot easier.

Make sure everything is seated and plugged in.  I've forgotten to plug in the CPU power connector so many times.

Don't work on carpet.  Work in a less static-y/dusty environment.  If you must work on carpet, wear sandals or something, and don't rub your feet on the carpet.  Touch the case every once in awhile(even if one wood, albeit you probably don't have to touch it as much as you would if you were working on carpet), so that any static discharges to the case instead of your precious electronics.

Install motherboard standoffs correctly.  For some reason there are so many stories of people being dumb and shorting stuff out due to a misplaced standoff.

When your computer is built, raise it .5-1ft off the floor.  Reduces dust intake by loads.  Also, if you're on carpet, it will help with any fans that suck air from the bottom of the case.

Take your time.

Install all your drivers!

Can't think of anything else atm.  Hope this little list is good for now.

11

Thanks man, I'll keep that in mind when i'll be building it this weekend.
I might post something if I do end up with some couple more questions after-build for windows/drivers installation etc. I think I'm good to go with the actual assembling of the parts.
However i'm not too sure if my processor has the same chipset as my motherboard, I didn't see what chipset the processor was, I just posted these and people told me it was good to go.
Also, some friend told me I should be careful with the processor cooler, as it supports lga1155 and 1156, but it didn't say it had 1150 on it, even though I've read it can go on a lga1150 socket. Should I get one that clearly states it supports 1150 or not ?

Thanks again for your help ;) 

12

sorry havent been able to (had tons of homework) i was actually just looking for this post to answer.

Again my apologies.

13

No probs man :) 
Thanks anyways!

 

14

In general, the motherboard chipset, such as Z87, Z97, and H97, is a chip that provides features for both the motherboard and CPU.  Each chipset differs from the next, with the Z-skew chips usually being the top of the line for Intel's i-platform.  Z77/Z87/Z97 allow for overclocking on their respective CPU generations(Although Z97 is compatible with Haswells that worked with Z87).  H-skew of CPUs do not allow that nice of an overclocking experience since the multiplier for the CPU is locked.  Otherwise, it pretty much as all the features of the Z-chips.  Intel also has some B-chips, such as the B85.  These are business grade chipsets, and have a very limited amount of features.

LGA1155, LGA 1156, and LGA1150 all have the same mounting holes.  Go figure.

15

Alright guys ! I've finally built it :D. It boots properly, windows 8.1 arrives tomorrow so i'll be installing that then. THANK YOU ALL again for your precious help ! I'll post again to ask a few programs to test if the cpu doesn't make any errors and stuff :')

cheers 

16

Glad to hear that everything works!