Joining The Masses: Building My First Gaming PC, Part 2

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You only need to build the system and post outside the case if you have a small case or microatx or itx etc.... Where everything is crammed in tight.

In your case and in many gaming PC rigs, it's not necessary. People like myself purposely buy larger than necessary cases for futureproof expension and ease of accessibility and upgradability. If you install your components in a large case, all the components are easy to take out, the motherboard being the most time consuming but not difficult. Even then, takes me 5 minutes to take a motherboard out. Just unscrew your cards, unplug the wires, and take out the 6-8 screws holding it in, easy peasy.
 

NivenFres

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You only need to build the system and post outside the case if you have a small case or microatx or itx etc.... Where everything is crammed in tight.

In your case and in many gaming PC rigs, it's not necessary. People like myself purposely buy larger than necessary cases for futureproof expension and ease of accessibility and upgradability. If you install your components in a large case, all the components are easy to take out, the motherboard being the most time consuming but not difficult. Even then, takes me 5 minutes to take a motherboard out. Just unscrew your cards, unplug the wires, and take out the 6-8 screws holding it in, easy peasy.

I don't disagree with this, but it was his first build and probably a little paranoid. Unfortunately I've seen a few cases (not recently) where everything got in and wouldn't start, and it was because something was making contact with the case (usually a rogue screw) and causing the board to short and not POST. Plus if it is a big enough case, most stuff will slip in with only removing the expansion cards (ah the days where it tended to be more than just a video card....)
 

tical2399

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Why not? Solid foundation for a future upgrade.

Ian.

Why do people keep on with this future upgrade stuff. Unless you're upgrading one generation (which is stupid for small performance gains) there is no reason to get a board with an upgrade in mind. A h87 board takes i5s and i7s so there is no issue there. Skylake will use a new socket so there's no upgrade there. Unless the person is goinna be a big overclocker there is NO reason not to get an h87 board
 

Storm-cooled72

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great build! My eyes were going crazy over those case badges. I am one of the few that likes 'em so much, I order the silver ones off of e-bay, so they match. One thing you might consider is some cable management. It would look much better! :)
 

Shin-san

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I actually did phased upgrades, where I replaced the CPU later. However, it turns out that it put me in the minority. I was poor at the time. Now that I have money, it's better for me to do a mobo, CPU, and RAM at once
 

billybobser

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Why not? Solid foundation for a future upgrade.

Ian.

Why do people keep on with this future upgrade stuff. Unless you're upgrading one generation (which is stupid for small performance gains) there is no reason to get a board with an upgrade in mind. A h87 board takes i5s and i7s so there is no issue there. Skylake will use a new socket so there's no upgrade there. Unless the person is goinna be a big overclocker there is NO reason not to get an h87 board

Pick up a used K series i5/i7 a couple years later when the i3 struggles. Instead of trying to track down a new motherboard as well.

Used chips are pretty robust and the difference between a generation or 3 is negligible these days.
 

joex444

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If you had the PSU installed with fan side down, the cables would be much closer to the back edge of the case so all your cables would seem to be longer which would help your cable management.
 

Tempname

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Pick up a used K series i5/i7 a couple years later when the i3 struggles. Instead of trying to track down a new motherboard as well.
The problem is, an i5 or i7 will keep its value for the most part, BECAUSE they are tailored for very specific boards. So whatever upgrade that may come in the future, will have to be at pretty much full price anyway, so the question is: why not go for a properly solid foundation right now and get an i5/i7? It'll be cheaper in the long run.
 

lp231

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Some Z97 boards provides better PCIe lanes lay out, which is need if you're going to run SLI or want to run CFX in a non crippled setup like x16/x4. It also has SATA Express as well as M.2 H87 has none of that and from what I've heard, doesn't support Broadwell only H97 and Z97 supports it? For H97 the price of those board don't save that much compare to a to a Z97 board that is unless you're on a extreme budget. Skylake runs on a new socket, but I doubt he will upgrade to that. Maybe a new build will be in order after a few generations later. Besides it's his build not yours. If he wants to run a Celeron with a Maximus VII Formula then it's his choice.
 
Also about the PSU:

I'm skeptical you're getting much of a benefit of having the pull fan of the PSU inside your case. It is a bottom mounted PSU.

By mounting it in the way you have, you have shortened your cable runs(sometimes a Pro) but now you are not pulling the coolest air into your PSU and the air you are pulling from inside the case is causing a vacuum to be created against your other exhaust fans.

I think if you had a top mounted PSU, you might have a better argument since at least your pulling the hottest air out from up there.

Right now your intake fans would mostly be feeding your PSU intake, not allowing cool air to pass over your components properly.

I would argue the position of your PSU is actually a net loss in your cooling system.
 


Yes, but it can be better with aftermarket coolers. The stock cooler is good enough for stock frequencies.
 

bajkapeter

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Nice build you got there, congrats on your first build! :)

After a few times, the nervousness goes away, and it'll feel like a routine job :D
 
One thing I like to mention and a lot of people don`t know about. A good case with plenty of room is allowing a better airflow... but what you can do for an even better airflow is using your empty 5.25 inch bays for putting your HDDs/SSDs and removing your HDD cage to remove the obstruction for your front PC case fans.
 

hydac8

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" Instead of the Seagate Barracuda 1 TB HDD (7200 RPM) ...... , I bought a WD Blue 1 TB HDD "

Wise choice dude , wise choice , I have 4 blues, all OK, 2 Seagates both died in less than a month .
 
Looks good. Cable management definitely needs some improvement but in all fairness simple as it sounds, it's the most tedious compared to the rest of the build. Actually getting the wires to bend, curve and lay the way you want etc. That doesn't take into account custom sleeving if you (or anyone) decides to go that route. Even the best of internal cable management seems to go out the window once you attach cables to the i/o panel, at least for my setup. Several usb cables, video, power and so forth all up and down the i/o panel and it quickly looks like a rat's nest lol.
 
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