Computer Questions.

[Ozhorezon]

This is my first computer being built by me and I have some questions regarding it (I have already purchased the items listed), a friend who knows a bit about computers helped me select the parts.

My main question is I keep hearing about static killing computers so I got a tool kit with a band in it and I am building it on a wooden table on a wood floor, will that be sufficient enough or should I consider getting a mat too? I don't want to spend on one if I won't need it.

The parts listed came to around $1,000, was it a good buy or no? Thanks for any feedback and help.

CORSAIR Enthusiast Series TX650 V2 650W ATX12V v2.31/ EPS12V v2.92 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Active PFC High Performance Power ...
Item #: N82E16817139020
$94.99

ASUS P8P67 LE (REV 3.0) LGA 1155 Intel P67 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
Item #: N82E16813131706
$139.99

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL7D-4GBRM
Item #: N82E16820231303
$44.99

Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I52500K
Item #: N82E16819115072
$219.99

Rosewill RTK-045 45 Piece Premium Computer Tool Kit
Item #: N82E16899261003
$19.99

SAPPHIRE 100315L Radeon HD 6850 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card with Eyefinity
Item #: N82E16814102908
$149.99

Acer S220HQLAbd Black 21.5" 5ms LED Backlight Widescreen LCD Monitor
Item #: N82E16824009316
$119.99

Western Digital Caviar Black WD5002AALX 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Item #: N82E16822136795
$59.99

Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-bit - OEM
Item #: N82E16832116986
$99.99

SAMSUNG CD/DVD Burner Black SATA Model SH-222AB - OEM
Item #: N82E16827151233
$16.99

COOLER MASTER ELITE 335 RC-335-KKN1-GP Black SECC Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
Item #: N82E16811119161
$55.98

 

[Caruda]

Sounds like you have a nice build there.

As far as static goes, the mat would be a bit overkill. In all honesty, the anti-static wrist band should be just fine. Just make sure to attach it to the metal in your case or some other grounded object whenever you plan to install a component, and you should be fine.

While static can be a problem, it's best not to over think it.

 

[Lutfij]

1| i don't think you'd need a mat as you're working on a wooden flor and a wooden table. Though if i were you i'd find a water tap and touch it so I'd ground myself and remove any static. Oh stay away from carpets w/ socks to rule any more static build up.

2| you've already bought it, its not like you can throw it back into the sea and get something better - :lol: although you could. maybe a GTX560Ti instead of the 6850 ... :/

but the build checks out fine

 

[Petrofsky]

The case is not at ground potential until you plug it in, which of course is a no-no during assembly. You really ought to ground yourself to earth ground with the strap. If you blow something up with static, you'll never know it happened. I have used the screw holding the cover plate of a wall receptacle for the ground point, but I know that mine are at ground. Some aren't. A cold water pipe is surely ground. Some say that grounding yourself is unnecessary, but you should ask them for a detailed scientific explanation of static electricity and its effects on MOS devices and see what they say. Those grounding straps exist for a reason.

 

[ukee1593]

^^ NEVER use the grounding wire of your house's electrical system. If you do, and another device in your house has a fault sending current through the earthing system IT COULD BE THE LAST COMPUTER YOU EVER BUILD.

Another way to protect your components is by building on a day which is humid, thus reducing static build up. Also making sure that there is no potential difference between you and the computer case with the anti-static wrist band will avoid any static build up. (Touching the computer case regularly works too.


Take a look at the Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152185

ITs only $5 more, and should be faster with more storage than the WD Caviar Black.

Also, I'd recommend the 6870 or the GTX 560 instead of the 6850 if you are going to game on the computer.

 

[Lutfij]

i know the WD blacks are faster than the F3's for that price...correct me if i'm wrong

 

[ukee1593]

i know the WD blacks are faster than the F3's for that price...correct me if i'm wrong

I believe that the Samsung 1Tb Spinpoint F3 is actually one of the fastest 1 TB drives : http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/HDD-6Gbit,2528-7.html

Not sure about the WD 500 GB, but $5 more and you get and extra 500 GB

 

[Lutfij]

okay, i stand corrected

 

[Petrofsky]

^^ NEVER use the grounding wire of your house's electrical system. If you do, and another device in your house has a fault sending current through the earthing system IT COULD BE THE LAST COMPUTER YOU EVER BUILD.

Current through the earthing system? What kind of talk is that? What is an earthing system? I'm not suggesting using the neutral lead of the mains but the actual earth ground run separately. The problem is that some installations use plastic boxes.

Like I said, I know that my earth is earth, so I can use it, but even if I had a stroke and mistakenly connected my wrist strap to the high side of the AC, nothing would happen to me. The resistance of the grounding strap is over one megohm.

 

[ukee1593]

Most electrical sockets have three wires. Wire one is the Active which goes between +/- 110 Volts 60 times a second ... or +/- 240 Volts 50 times a second depending on where you live. The second wire is the neutral which stays at 0 volts, and the third wire is the earth or ground which is also at zero.

The earthing network in a house's wiring connects all of the third wires from each power socket, and each wired electrical device and connects them to a copper stake driven into the ground. If a fault occurs in an electrical device, EG power surge, there may be current conducted through the house's earthing system. The earthing system is used in case of power surges and lightning strikes so excess electricity can be conducted away from the device.

 

[Petrofsky]

No it isn't. Earth ground is there at the fixtures so that nothing the user touches can ever be at any potential above earth, and the user can therefore never get a shock. Also, if there does happen to be a short to a case, it will arc and spark, tripping the breaker, opening the circuit. It wouldn't matter if there was current through the wire connecting the fixture to ground, because the resistance from anywhere in the building to the ground stake is negligible, and therefore there is no potential difference, what people call "voltage". The ground wire doesn't magically conduct "excess electricity" anywhere. There is always current in the neutral wire when the AC is being used, and that wire is what has current in it when a surge protector kicks in, not the ground wire. The ground wire is of a much lighter gauge than the conductors because it isn't meant to carry current for more than the short time it takes for the fuse to blow or the breaker to trip.

The neutral wire goes to the same bus bar as the ground wire at the service box, by the way. Anyhow, the strap has such high resistance that you can't get a shock from it.

 

[Ozhorezon]

Ok, thanks for the input but I think we got a little off topic, if I put the computer together with the anti-static band attached to the case while assembling it on a wood table on wood floors, should I be fine?

 

[Lutfij]

yeah, but touching a water faucet or a stair railing would ground you.

 

[Petrofsky]

Ok, thanks for the input but I think we got a little off topic, if I put the computer together with the anti-static band attached to the case while assembling it on a wood table on wood floors, should I be fine?

No. You have to be attached to earth ground. Simply touching ground would allow static to build up between touches, and grounding yourself to the chassis would only make it so that you and the chassis had the same static charge. We're talking about imperceptible static, not the kind that stands your hair up and draws a two-inch blue snapping arc when you go to turn off the light. It's the voltage that kills MOS devices, not the current. But like I said, if you do destroy something with static, you'll never know it happened, so best take precautions.

 

[aaab]

No. You have to be attached to earth ground. Simply touching ground would allow static to build up between touches, and grounding yourself to the chassis would only make it so that you and the chassis had the same static charge. We're talking about imperceptible static, not the kind that stands your hair up and draws a two-inch blue snapping arc when you go to turn off the light. It's the voltage that kills MOS devices, not the current. But like I said, if you do destroy something with static, you'll never know it happened, so best take precautions.

Personally first I install my PSU and plug it in! (make sure its switched off at the wall). Then I connect my anti static wrist band to some metal in my case. Even when a wall plug is switched off it's still grounded.

 

[Petrofsky]

Personally first I install my PSU and plug it in! (make sure its switched off at the wall). Then I connect my anti static wrist band to some metal in my case. Even when a wall plug is switched off it's still grounded.

Are you UK? Very few American wall sockets are on a switch. But, yes, that would work as long as it wasn't the wrong end of a three-way with the high side at the plug, which would be dangerous. You only get one chance with bombs and electricity.

 

[aaab]

Are you UK? Very few American wall sockets are on a switch. But, yes, that would work as long as it wasn't the wrong end of a three-way with the high side at the plug, which would be dangerous. You only get one chance with bombs and electricity.

Ah yes, Not the UK but somewhere similar (Go the All Blacks!!!). Excuse my ignorance I had no idea that American wall sockets have no switches Oo

As everyone has already said, the anti static wrist band is useless unless it's connected to ground.

 

[Ozhorezon]

So what in a modern home would I attach the wrist band to in order to ground myself? Is there a list of things?

 

[Petrofsky]

So what in a modern home would I attach the wrist band to in order to ground myself? Is there a list of things?

The only sure thing is a metal cold water pipe. You can run as much wire as you need to reach one and connect your strap to the wire. Any wire will do.

 

[Ozhorezon]

Should I just aasemble this in my basement? Lol.

 

[Petrofsky]

Should I just aasemble this in my basement? Lol.

That's what I do.

 

[Ozhorezon]

That's what I do.

Alright, thank you. I can just attach the cord to some pipes overhead.