Just how easy or difficult is it to build a computer?

i was in a similar position as you not long ago.
its sounds daunting, but i couldn't believe how easy it is.
my first build took about 4 hrs, with about 1 week of watching vids on google about the components eg. how to apply thermal paste ;) etc...

now i can do a build in around 1-2 hours,
its just a confidence thing. you need to lose your build cherry to understand :p

and i will admit, i have forgotten to turn on the power switch on the psu once, realised after 4 hrs of panic
 
theone1989 said:
I am not looking for any hardware recommendations etc.

What I'm interested is any feedback on the either the difficulty or ease of building a computer. However, I've never built anything before (Ikea coffee tables probably don't count) and I'd be looking at £1000+ of components for an all singing all dancing rig.

Is it um "wise" to attempt build that much first time? I know there's a sticky, but still. Chances of me making a catastrophic mistake likely? or not?

I had a look at custom build sites but the prices are typically several hundred quid more :( due to labour cost, not always cheapest component costs + actually paying for Windows.
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http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18224672

I built my first pc a week ago...just took reading the mobo to find out what lead went where and I asked on here for help with anything else I didn't understand....useful to have a laptop or other PC handy to get online to ask for help :)

get a camera and if you can't work out anything take a pic of it and upload it to here to let others see and help you :D
 
It's not difficult. Motherboards normally come with step-by-step instructions.... and they're usually much better written than ikea coffee table instructions.

Every pc I've ever built has worked fine. I can't say the same for flat packed furniture. That should give you a pretty good idea how much skill is involved.;)
 
Yeah, just don't rush things and you'll be fine. Apart from damaging the pins on the motherboard sockets or dropping things there's not too much that can go wrong.
 
:D Internet access.......luxury................when I were a lad............t'internet hadn't been invented.
 
theone1989 said:
I am not looking for any hardware recommendations etc.

What I'm interested is any feedback on the either the difficulty or ease of building a computer. However, I've never built anything before (Ikea coffee tables probably don't count) and I'd be looking at £1000+ of components for an all singing all dancing rig.

Is it um "wise" to attempt build that much first time? I know there's a sticky, but still. Chances of me making a catastrophic mistake likely? or not?

I had a look at custom build sites but the prices are typically several hundred quid more :( due to labour cost, not always cheapest component costs + actually paying for Windows.
Click to expand...

I started by adding components eg PCI cards, RAM, Hard Drives etc and learned how to install an operating system... its not difficult but maybe a lot to take in all in one go

My biggest fear was installing a motherboard believe it or not and it was not that hard either... but you have to be very careful especially when it comes to installing the CPU that you do not bend any pins in the motherboard socket could easily happen accidently and its hard to spot.

EDIT: Oh and troubleshooting can be a nightmare when you have no other components to test with, it can sometimes end up costing a lot of money if you are amateur at it. Internet helps but its often very hard to pin point the exact problem when taking advise on forums but without components to test with it can be tricky even for the expeirienced.

Personally I would not recommend spending a £ 1000 on components having never built a PC before, just buy a pre-built one and upgrade it... then when you want to replace just the CPU and motherboard (and perhaps RAM) it will only cost you a few hundred for those. Believe me if things go wrong during the build it may cause you a lot of stress and money to put right, unless you have friends who can help.
 
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nlel1975 said:
Personally I would not recommend spending a £ 1000 on components having never built a PC before, just buy a pre-built one and upgrade it... then when you want to replace just the CPU and motherboard (and perhaps RAM) it will only cost you a few hundred for those. Believe me if things go wrong during the build it may cause you a lot of stress and money to put right, unless you have friends who can help.
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Don't be weak like that, totally defeats the purpose of a self build.

As others have said take your time, read guides, be ready to take pictures and post them on here if anything goes wrong.

My advise, stand-offs are very important, do not forget to put them in the correct position of the case. Was a fair costly error, only a burn't out PSU, live and learn, build your own.

Good Luck, when your ready get the OcUK mob to check your spec, or make you one for the best bang for your buck.
 
iNPUt said:
Don't be weak like that, totally defeats the purpose of a self build.

As others have said take your time, read guides, be ready to take pictures and post them on here if anything goes wrong.

My advise, stand-offs are very important, do not forget to put them in the correct position of the case. Was a fair costly error, only a burn't out PSU, live and learn, build your own.

Good Luck, when your ready get the OcUK mob to check your spec, or make you one for the best bang for your buck.
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Personally I would not spend £ 1000 on components anyway... about £ 500 - £ 600 ex VAT is my limit, that will buy you 85% of the system a £ 1000 one will (if you choose the right components)

Secondly building a PC is about confidence you gotta build it up first, if it gets knocked you gotta shrug your shoulders and learn for next time.

I think its easier to build a PC these days but the first time you are faced with attaching the case wires to the motherboard can be daunting.

Mainly I advise against it in case something goes wrong, luckily I have been able to solve most problems on my own with Internet help without spending a lot in the process, its taken up a lot of my time sometimes with a few days of extreme stress trying to solve a NO POST situation.

EDIT: I am about to build my new system just waiting for components to arrive, am not daunted by the prospect as I expect nothing to go wrong but it will consume a lot of my time.
 
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I built my first two systems this year [one for me, one for a friend] I found it very simple, [other than discovering my own case was missing one of the holes for the motherboard], I'd added components to my systems over the years so I was fairly familar with the insides of a pc, it's just a matter of making sure you fit everything properly and plug in everything you can plug, you can't really plug anything incorrectly they just don't fit. I had cannibalized my only internet accessing pc [hd and dvd drives] to build my new baby but managed fine with the instruction book that came with the motherboard to get my new machine together, and at far less cost than buying a complete new machine I now have a lovely pc.
 
I think you should go ahead and build a pc because even though it does sound daunting its not actually that hard . Just take your time and try not to get too stressed out while building your pc . My first build took 4 hours to complete but i did take a fair few breaks to make sure i didn't get stressed out and now i can build a pc in about 2 hours because of all the practice i got in upgrading and building my own . If you are still nervous you could always buy a really cheap pc to practice dismantling and rebuilding .
 
Build it!!! As others have said, if you can handle lego then you can build a PC. Take your time, do not set yourself a deadline - if it takes 2 nights, it takes 2. Better that than rushing and stressing yourself or making a mistake.

Take it one step at a time and think about each step before and after you do it. CPU into motherboard, heat sink on, RAM in next, pop motherboard into case, then PSU, graphics card, hard drives and optical drives. Connect all the cables and you're done. If it's easier for your case, the drives can go in before the motherboard.

The tricky bit isn't building the hardware, that's easy. The only tricky bit is getting all the right software/drivers installed and trouble-shooting any problems. Chances are you already do that with your current/previous PCs, so building one is actually the easy bit. Enjoy! :)
 
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