First Build

[drjoe4321]

I am retired and thought that I would like to learn about building a computer. I currently have an HP M400y mcpc which I use for video editing (Adobe Premier Elements, Roxio EMC9) and photoediting (Photoshop Elements). Rendering video on a long project takes hours. The cpu is a P4630 w1gb ram and 2 200gb hdd's.

I wish that I had found this site before buying components since I would have done things differently. I went to new egg and after reading favorable reviews and low prices bought the following items:

MOBO: Abit IP-35E

PSU: Rosewill RD600N (600watts) which came with free case R604p

HDD: Seagate Barracuda's (2) 500gb

RAM: OCZ Reaper ddr2 6400 2x1gb

Monitor: Hann-G 216 16xx x 10xx 22in.

Now comes the part that has me worried. In a couple of weeks I will be going to Florida for the winter (4months). I thought It would be nice to see if the above components worked. I read on Toms Hardware Guide about overclocking an intel E2160 chip to run as fast as the E6750 for very little money so I ordered it at newegg. The mobo does not have onboard graphics so I found a $40 Radeon 1650 video card which Newegg ran out of and could not deliver! so I refused the delivery of the E2160 chip and deccided to wait untill I get back in May to complete the setup. I just saw and ordered a 3dFusion MX400 vidoe card (free after rebate) for $6 shipping. I now plan to re-order an Intel E2140 Allendale and a dvd drive to put the project together.
I also plan to look at the prices for the new Intel CPU's (Jan/Feb) and also to follow prices on the geforce 8800gt card.

If the above is confusing it is because I certainly am!

To clarify: I want to build a quadcore rig when I return home in May and to have the 8800gt geforce. I want to experiment with system building and possibly overclocking the E2140. If the 2140 lasts a few months or a year I'll be ok with it. I want to see if the components bought work before I go away.

The above is what happens when someone sets out to complete a project without benefit of expert advice. I have ordered the My Super PC book.

What do you think?

[Jamie Nixx]

It sounds very sensible to me, but it was very confusing :D

So basically, you want a cheap rig to experiment with while you are in Florida, to set you up for building a very good rig when you come back, am i following correctly?

[drjoe4321]

Thank you for the response Jamie.

Yes I am anxious to begin putting things together and learning what the pitfalls are. Since I am at ground zero in building I want to get going asap.

I think that some (all?) of my choices have been of questionable value ie the memory and power supply.

I might just stick with the E2140 for a while if it meets my needs.

[Jamie Nixx]

It depends what your needs are, do you game?

There is a pitfalls sticky in this section, you should check it out.

[drjoe4321]

Hi,

I'd like to try some gaming and have a copy of Doom from a year or so ago. Gaming is another "new" thing I'd like to try.

I will read the indicated sticky, order the E2140 chip and a dvd writer from newegg and give it a whirl.

Thanks JoeP

[Jamie Nixx]

Isit the original Doom or Doom 3 :D

The E2140 is an excellent little CPU, should be able to handle most things thrown at it, as most C2D do.

If it is Doom 3 you will need a decent GPU, at least a 7600GT.

[drjoe4321]

Jamie,
It's Doom 3, so wont be playing it til I upgrade in the spring. Since I am really just doing the current build to get some experience I am now considering one of the Intel Cedar Mill Celeron chips to get my feet wet with. Throwing away a $48.99 chip in the spring is no big deal. Am I getting stupid again?

btw I have a new copy of Win XP sp2 for the build.

Thanks again...jp

[Jamie Nixx]

If you just want a build to get you started, build yourself an AMD based computer, i priced a computer for a teacher on here for about $200 and it was a great computer.

Or, don't build anything, wait till spring and build the best computer you can build then.

[drjoe4321]

I know that you are right but on the other hand the components are sitting upstairs with the exception of the chip and dvd writer. I am antsy to do something.

Are the components I outlined in the original post so shaky that the chance of getting a working outfit are poor? I don't want an amd chip because the motherboard is for an Intel.

I read the Sticky and had I found this site prior to buying the parts woudld have done it differently.

I'll probably order a chip tonight or tomorrow and build next week, and then face the music.

Thanks again...jp

[Jamie Nixx]

I didn't realise you had bought some parts already :rolleyes:

That motherboard is really good, great choice.

But, if you want a CPU that will definately perform now, then i would go for an E4500 Allendale or something, they are very good and when you want to start gaming it will handle them quite easily.

That way you won't need to build another rig, you will just have to add a GPU if you want to play the games.

[drjoe4321]

That sounds like a great idea. The Allendale E4xxx was featured on Tom's Hardware's mid price gaming rig I think I'll give it a try!

Thanks for the good advice. I'll check back next week when I will be starting the build since more good advice and handholding will be greatle appreciated.

Thanks again...jp

[drjoe4321]

Well, I started the build using a Celeron 420 chip, and a geforce MX4000 vga card.

The Rosewill RD600N PSU has two SATA connectors and I have three devices (2 Seagate 500 gb hdd's, one Samsung DVDRW). How do I connect?

[The Wise Monkey]

The PSU should have come with some extenders, or you can use the standard 4-pin molex connectors for most SATA devices.

[drjoe4321]

Thanks, I'll take a look. Since I am brand new at this I really don't know an extender, from a 4-pin moles, but then this (learning about building) is why I started out to build my own unit in the first place.

Thanks again. jp

[The Wise Monkey]

A 4-pin molex plug is the standard thing that all PSUs have - looks like a trapezium with four pins. These come in either male or female versions - the male is recessed with four pins and the female sticks out with four holes.

This is a female molex connector:
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/31/Molex_female_connector.jpg/800px-Molex_female_connector.jpg

An extender is a separate cable that you can use to extend the length of the PSU cables. It usually contains one male and one female molex connector, but can contain several more.

The best way is, as they say, learn by doing though. :)

[drjoe4321]

Sorry for being so thick. Perhaps because I bought oem units I have no way to connect the four pin molex connectors, of which the psu has many, to the sata connections on the drives other than the two sata connectors on the one line of the PSU.

Thanks again jp

[The Wise Monkey]

Hmm, most SATA drives I have used in the past have had the ability to be powered using the molex connectors.

You can buy 4-pin molex to SATA converters:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812123119

This should be good for what you need.

[drjoe4321]

Perfect!!! I really appreciate your help ...jp

[The Wise Monkey]

No worries. :)

[drjoe4321]

Well so far so good. I think. This mb (abit IP-35E) doesn't seem to have an onboard speaker so there was no beep---but on pressing del key I arrived at the BIOS setup utility where I followed Rob's instructions from the book.
Next installed the sata dvdrw and two hdd's and rebooted.

Next is to either follow the "Second boot with SATA HD" instructions and set the advanced BIOS features, and then to proceed to instaling the WinXP Home (OEM) OS.....Or to Load the installation cd from Abit....or to go to the Abit downloads page and get the updated bios.

At some point the bios update should be done, but I havent a clue as to how to actually do this. The system double boots at power-up and this is cured by an update not really a big problem right now.

What to do next...please help...thanks..jp

[drjoe4321]

ok...while awaiting reply I went to Abit webpage and downloaded the BIOS update and instructions onto another computer. The file is zipped and I dont have a floppy drive but I can write it to a cd.

It seems to me that I should continue to follow Robs directions from the book which will be somewhat different since I have SATA drives. Next to load the WinXP OS and then use to Abit provided disk for drivers and whatever else is on it. I also have installation cd from Seagate to install.

Sounds like a plan.

[The Wise Monkey]

Cool, keep us posted about how you get on. :)

[drjoe4321]

It's hard to believe but everyhing, except for the bios update, is installed and working properly. I just built a new computer...and it works. Rob's book was a great help, and your advice was invaluable. Probably more than anything else was the knowledge that if I ran into trouble there was a place (here) to get me out of trouble. Thank you.

Bythe way while I was on the phone with the cablevision tech I mentioned that this was a new computer that I had just built. He said that he would like to build his own and I was able to explain how Rob's book, this forum and a little common sense pute this goal within the reach of most people.

I'll enjoy this for a while, edit some photo's and video, then write them to dvd to check performance of the system.

If I have time I'd like to try some mild overclocking. Any suggestions for a reference in this area?

Thanks again---Happy Thanksgiving---jp

[The Wise Monkey]

I've posted a link to an overclocking guide somewhere on this forum already - its been stickied...

I think its in the Overclocking section. :D

[The Wise Monkey]

Sorry for double post, but Edit wasn't working... :S

Here is the thread: http://forums.mysuperpc.com/showthread.php?t=759

[drjoe4321]

Nice article! I had looked at a few others which either assumed too much experience or were writen poorly. This one was rather clear.

I still have to flash the bios update. The automatic mode of the Abit software didn't seemm to work so I'll have to do it manually. Abit has a utility that should be of help once I understand what I will be trying to accomplish with the overclock.

Thanks again...jp