Stupid build mistakes to avoid

allewellyn

allewellyn

allewellyn

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Joined
29 Jan 2011
Posts
52
Hey guys,

Firstly, a massive thank you to everyone who chipped in helping me spec up this machine in the first place.

All my parts finally came through today (good old dpd) and I'll be putting the thing together tomorrow.

Now, it's a first time build for me, and I know I'll end up doing something wrong at some point, but I was hoping to pick your brains for easy mistakes to make to watch out for.

Any other tips you may have would be most helpful too. If I'm in a carpeted room am I going to have to be more careful about static when I put it together? Is there anything I should do first, like installing the CPU and heatsink before putting the mobo in the case? That kind of stuff.

Build is as follows by the way:

Windows 7 Home Premium
AMD Phenom II X4 Quad Core 955 Black Edition "125W Edition" 3.20GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail
FX ATI Radeon HD 5670 1024MB GDDR3 PCI-Express Graphics Card
Coolermaster Elite 430 Windowed Case - Black (with 500w Elite Power PSU)
Gigabyte GA-880GM-UD2H AMD 880G (Socket AM3) microATX DDR3 Motherboard
Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM (HD103SJ)
OCZ Special OPS 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C8 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (OCZ3SOE1600LV4GK)
LiteOn IHAS124-19 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM
 
do not put the motherboard in the case before you attatch the cpu/heatsink.
I nearly snapped my motherboard!!
Make sure you plug both power cables in to the motherboard

Edit- almost forgot, do not put any components in your mouth:)
 
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Make sure you put the motherboard risers in, and in the correct layout before you put the motherboard in. So only put the number of risers in that align with the number of holes in the motherboard.
 
also, you might have to persevere with the heatsink. i have the same cpu on an am3 mobo and at one point i didn't think the heatsink would go on, i really had to force it.
 
Key thing if its your first time is to set aside enough time so that you don't rush things.

Lay it all out on a table if you can, double check all connections, main thing is take your time and don't worry, you can always ask on here if u are unsure of anything.
 
Pighardia said:
also, you might have to persevere with the heatsink. i have the same cpu on an am3 mobo and at one point i didn't think the heatsink would go on, i really had to force it.
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I knew it would probably be tricky when I unboxed it and it looked like the latch had come off a circa 1980s suitcase

Thanks for the heads up :)
 
Try and mount the heatsink flat against the core of the CPU. You don't want to crush a corner of your CPU when you put some real pressure on the clamp!

You should also take proper ESD precautions.
 
allewellyn said:
Such as? I know you can get bracelet things, perhaps I should have ordered one, but never mind.

What ESD precautions can one take without any purpose-bought equipment?
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I have always managed by only holding the PCBs by their edges and trying not to touch any components on the boards. Try to touch the case while you put the components in, so they are at (roughly) the same potential.

I've never damaged a component this way.
 
Wear shoes and avoid wool and shell suits and you'll be fine in regards to ESD. I take no precautions whatsoever in regards to ESD and I haven't killed a piece of hardware yet.

Edit: I also man handle hardware grabbing it whichever way I like. Without any gloves or anything. They're electrical components. Not cupcakes. Though if they were cupcakes, building a computer would be a delicious past time.
 
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Brian8bit said:
Wear shoes and avoid wool and shell suits and you'll be fine in regards to ESD. I take no precautions whatsoever in regards to ESD and I haven't killed a piece of hardware yet.
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+1 hardware these days can take a bit of a beating but as quoted shoes avoid putting things on carpet and you will be fine if you do feel unsafe screw the PSU into the case plug it in but don't turn the switch on and every now and then touch a metal bit of the case.


Freddie589
 
apart from having a large rubber mat and earthing myself by touching bare metal on the radiator next to where i build i don't take any other esd precautions nowadays either. i cant remember the last time i had my wrist strap on.
 
i think all i can add to this is that the anti static wrapping that some of the components will come in is very useful as a place to put them when you are mid build
 
also, an obvious point i know, but do not throw away any of the packaging, espacially the anti-static wrapping. If you, for some reason, need to send something back, they will come in handy.

I had to send my gpu back about 3 weeks after i got it, and like an idiot, i threw away the packaging!;)
 
just make sure to ground yourself firts and do what i do when building a new pc lay a white sheet out so you can allways see what you have put down,
Also in the more complicated wiring parts i have been known to colour code molex connectors so i know where they attatch onto (i can loose track if i get ****ed off)
dont use any magnetic screwdrivers either.
 
loose assembly first

Just assemble the basics, (MB CPU and 1 stick of ram and GPU) on top of a cardboard box and test for Booting up OK.If everything is OK then assemble properly in the Case. That way you will know that if you have a problem booting when its in the case its not the components.
 
sychnant said:
Just assemble the basics, (MB CPU and 1 stick of ram and GPU) on top of a cardboard box and test for Booting up OK.If everything is OK then assemble properly in the Case. That way you will know that if you have a problem booting when its in the case its not the components.
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+1 I do it on the anti static bag ontop of the motherboard box
 
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