Advice for first time build with used parts for children

hfullwood

hfullwood

hfullwood

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10 Jan 2025
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United Kingdom
Hello,

I'm a complete newbie but I've been looking to buy my children a PC for school work and mild gaming (Fortnite). I've been doing some research and thought why not build one ourselves. I've searched the forum but haven't had much luck of understanding what's best.

I'm thinking roughly £500 budget, and have absolutely nothing at the moment (happy to buy a monitor in addition to the £500) and wondered if you could suggest what parts I'd be best buying? Used parts please as I'll hopefully get more for my money.

Thank you in advance for reading my message
Hayley
 
it's a bit hard to recommend used parts as prices tend to fluctuate somewhat

but in general for £500 or so, used parts, this is what i would get if it were my money:

cpu: ryzen 5600, or intel 12400f
cpu cooler: thermalright assassin king 120 se (this is £17 new, not on ocuk, a quick google will suffice)
mobo: any am4 board for ryzen, or intel b660/b760 board
ram: 32gb (2x 16gb) ddr4 3200mhz
gpu: rx 6600/xt or rtx 3060
ssd: a reputable 1tb nvme m.2 ssd
psu: a reputable 650w psu
case: any case to your/their liking
 
Thank you all, really helpful.

How do I know which RX 6600/xt is best? Theres a couple of used ones on ebay, one MSI Radeon 8GB for £180 from what seems like a reputable seller, or another for £100 which is an AMD Radeon 4GB.

I'm sorry for the simple questions, I'll try and do as much research so I don't bother you too much.

Thank you!
Hayley
 
hfullwood said:
How do I know which RX 6600/xt is best? Theres a couple of used ones on ebay, one MSI Radeon 8GB for £180 from what seems like a reputable seller, or another for £100 which is an AMD Radeon 4GB.
Click to expand...
The 6600 or 6600xt is 8gb
The 4gb is the 6500xt

Any of the 6600 or 6600xt is fine I wouldn't worry
 
Thanks for all your tips, I wondered if there was any basic guide/video you'd recommend watching to support the build process? Will I need anything else except from a monitor and operating system?

I've purchased all the following, I hope it's all compatible:
CPU: Ryzen 5600
CPU cooler: Thermalright assassin king 120 SE
MOBO: MSI B450 Gaming Plus Max
RAM: Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 32GB (2 x 16bb)
GPU: MSI Radeon RX 6600/xt
SSD: Western Digital SN350 NVMe SSD 1TB
PSU: Corsair CX650 80 Plus 650W
Case: Kolink Observatory MX Glass ARGB Midi Tower Case

Thank you
Hayley
 
Last edited:
hfullwood said:
Will I need anything else except from a monitor and operating system?
Click to expand...
monitor mouse keyboard speakers (headset if you need too)

hfullwood said:
I wondered if there was any basic guide/video you'd recommend watching to support the build process?
Click to expand...
they use a similar thermalright cooler so literally just follow the build

hfullwood said:
I've purchased all the following, I hope it's all compatible:
CPU: Ryzen 5600
CPU cooler: Thermalright assassin king 120 SE
MOBO: MSI B450 Gaming Plus Max
RAM: Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 32GB (2 x 16bb)
GPU: MSI Radeon RX 6600/xt
SSD: Western Digital SN350 NVMe SSD 1TB
PSU: Corsair CX650 80 Plus 650W
Case: Kolink Observatory MX Glass ARGB Midi Tower Case
Click to expand...
yes they are all compatible, nice build :)
the only thing is just to make sure that the motherboard has an updated bios to run the cpu (i assume you bought this used, so check with the seller)
 
Last edited:
hfullwood said:
I've purchased all the following, I hope it's all compatible:
CPU: Ryzen 5600- MOBO: MSI B450 Gaming Plus Max
Click to expand...
The motherboard mite need a bios update to get the CPU working this can be done with the bios flash button on the motherboard.

So if it doesn't boot it's probably that.
 
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Thank you for the replies, I have mouse, keyboard etc, just meant for the build itself.

I ended up buying all new components as second hand ones weren't much less. The motherboard was new too so I assume isn't updated. I'll download the latest driver onto usb and attempt to update it when the motherboard arrives. Thanks again
 
hfullwood said:
Thank you for the replies, I have mouse, keyboard etc, just meant for the build itself.

I ended up buying all new components as second hand ones weren't much less. The motherboard was new too so I assume isn't updated. I'll download the latest driver onto usb and attempt to update it when the motherboard arrives. Thanks again
Click to expand...
Try it first then update it if needed , check the bios notes as it may need to be done in a specific order
 
hfullwood said:
The motherboard was new too so I assume isn't updated. I'll download the latest driver onto usb and attempt to update it when the motherboard arrives
Click to expand...
it may already have a more recent bios, if you're not too familiar with updating bios i'd give building it a go first before trying an update
 
I had this task in front of me before Christmas. My neighbor approached me and asked for help, so I did.

I built two towers:

  • One with a £30 two-fan intake
  • Another was a £45 fish tank-type case
Parts list:

  • Ryzen 3600 and 3600X CPUs - £40 each
  • 2x B550 motherboards - £45 each
  • 2x EVGA SuperNOVA 750W PSUs - £40 each
  • GPU 1660 - £40, fully working
  • RX 5700 XT - £25, not working (I fixed it since I can do component-level repairs)
  • 2x RAM kits, 16GB DDR4 3200 - £33 each
  • Basic £15 256GB SSDs (just enough space for Fortnite, Minecraft, and school stuff)
I might be forgetting something, but overall, I spent £250 on one tower and £255 on the other.

No matter how low the specs were, the smiles on their faces on Christmas Day were priceless.
Wifi cards also costed extra.
 
Hi all,

It might have taken me many hours and lots of research but I think I've just about completed the build, however I don't dare turn it on right now until I'm confident it's right.

I have one fan cable which I can't seem to figure out where it goes. Most of the case fans are connected to each other in series and connect directly into the power supply via the SATA cable. The fan on the back isn't connected the same and is a 3 pin connection (size of a 4 pin but one pin is missing) with a VDG (for the LED) which doesn't fit into the B450 motherboard.

The motherboard also came with two SATA cables, do I need to connect these? I have powered the motherboard directly from the power supply.

Thanks in advance for your help.
Hayley
 
hfullwood said:
I have one fan cable which I can't seem to figure out where it goes.
Click to expand...
Where is the fan, case or CPU cooler?

hfullwood said:
The fan on the back isn't connected the same and is a 3 pin connection (size of a 4 pin but one pin is missing) with a VDG (for the LED) which doesn't fit into the B450 motherboard.
Click to expand...
Think that will be ARGB, you motherboard does not support this so do not plug it in. (can someone else please confirm this)

hfullwood said:
The motherboard also came with two SATA cables, do I need to connect these?
Click to expand...
If the only SSD is the WD SN350, you do not need the cables. they are for either 3.5" hard drives or 2.5" SSD's/HDD's.
 
freddie64 said:
Where is the fan, case or CPU cooler?


Think that will be ARGB, you motherboard does not support this so do not plug it in. (can someone else please confirm this)


If the only SSD is the WD SN350, you do not need the cables. they are for either 3.5" hard drives or 2.5" SSD's/HDD's.
Click to expand...
Thank you, the fan is in the case itself, I have plugged in the CPU cooler.
 
hfullwood said:
The fan on the back isn't connected the same and is a 3 pin connection
Click to expand...
hfullwood said:
Thank you, the fan is in the case itself, I have plugged in the CPU cooler.
Click to expand...
Just plug this into the motherboard fan header (the 3 pin is compatible with the 4 pin)

It'll look like this:
FqYbARG.jpeg


Don't plug in the vdg as this is an old, defunct connection that isn't used anymore.
 
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