Hello again.
My son has left me with a plie of PC components and gone to visit his mum who's working in Canada for a few months.
He was going to help me assemble it but the motherboard won't be here until the end of next week.
I have a Ryzen 5 1600, a GTX 1060 3gb dual OC GPU, 8gb Kingston Fury DDR4 memory, an MSI B350 Gaming Plus motherboard and a 600w 80+ bronze PSU.
I'm nervous about putting it all together because it's hard for me to concentrate after the stroke.
Thanks for all the help and suggestions, I'll let you know what happens.
Buying a Restricted Budget PC Dos and Don'ts.
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Don't be--putting a PC together is not actually all that difficult. The only advice I would offer is to make sure that the little metal pegs you screw in to your case to mount the motherboard on are *only* in the places that match up with the screw holes on the board--cases are generally designed to accept a range of different motherboard form factors, so they have more mounting holes than actually exist on the motherboard itself.Magnu wrote: I'm nervous about putting it all together because it's hard for me to concentrate after the stroke.
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Alan Phipps
- Moderator (English)
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- Joined: Fri, 16. Apr 04, 19:21
Echo... putting a PC together is easy, you can take as much time as you need. 1 component an hour and have a break if you like...
There are dozens of Youtube channels that show how to build, and possibly with the components you list. There's no time limit to do it, so checking, double checking, searching - is all fine. Get familiar with watching a few vids first too, so you know what everything is; have a good space for working, unpack things in advance and lay them out with order that you'll install - so you don't have to search for things (which can make it more stressful).
Aside from that - I've seen that prices are dropping on memory and solid state drives again. Since memory was 100% more expensive than a year ago for the same memory, I'm waiting longer before buying to upgrade... hoping it comes down even more.
There are dozens of Youtube channels that show how to build, and possibly with the components you list. There's no time limit to do it, so checking, double checking, searching - is all fine. Get familiar with watching a few vids first too, so you know what everything is; have a good space for working, unpack things in advance and lay them out with order that you'll install - so you don't have to search for things (which can make it more stressful).
Aside from that - I've seen that prices are dropping on memory and solid state drives again. Since memory was 100% more expensive than a year ago for the same memory, I'm waiting longer before buying to upgrade... hoping it comes down even more.
Assembly the computer on a hard floor (not a carpet) to reduce the chances of wrecking the computer with a static discharge. Keep one part of your body touching the frame to ground yourself. Don't wear stuff like a woolly sweater etc... that cause static build up.
Cpus have a direction in which they fit into the socket.
Ram also has a direction so look at the notches on the ram and align them with the notches in the ram slots. I think your mainboard has paired ram slots so ram can only go in paired slots maybe?
When you turn on the computer leave the case open and get a flash light if necessary to see that all the fans spin up. It may take a few seconds for some fans to start spinning.
The cpu should have thermal paste in some form to bridge the gap between the cpu and heatsink. Without thermal paste the cpu will eventually burn out.
After assembling the computer play a youtube on the highest quality or some other video and watch the cpu/gpu temps. If the temperatures rise very rapidly and get very hot about 90C turn off the computer. The cpu/gpu probably doesn't have thermal paste or you have dislodge the cpu fan, etc...
temperature monitoring program
https://www.cpuid.com/softwares/hwmonitor-pro.html
If you get no power to the mainboard after assembling the computer you may have grounded the mainboard to the frame. Remove the mainboard and put it on a cardboard mainboard box and try starting it that way if necessary.
Windows can't see my hard drive video. Run into this problem fairly often where windows can't see a hard drive.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsWoaVZtdkw
Cpus have a direction in which they fit into the socket.
Ram also has a direction so look at the notches on the ram and align them with the notches in the ram slots. I think your mainboard has paired ram slots so ram can only go in paired slots maybe?
When you turn on the computer leave the case open and get a flash light if necessary to see that all the fans spin up. It may take a few seconds for some fans to start spinning.
The cpu should have thermal paste in some form to bridge the gap between the cpu and heatsink. Without thermal paste the cpu will eventually burn out.
After assembling the computer play a youtube on the highest quality or some other video and watch the cpu/gpu temps. If the temperatures rise very rapidly and get very hot about 90C turn off the computer. The cpu/gpu probably doesn't have thermal paste or you have dislodge the cpu fan, etc...
temperature monitoring program
https://www.cpuid.com/softwares/hwmonitor-pro.html
If you get no power to the mainboard after assembling the computer you may have grounded the mainboard to the frame. Remove the mainboard and put it on a cardboard mainboard box and try starting it that way if necessary.
Windows can't see my hard drive video. Run into this problem fairly often where windows can't see a hard drive.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PsWoaVZtdkw
A couple of added comments to the above:
Both CPU and RAM will only fit one way. The CUP has a corner-cut that will match with the socket. (Unless design has radically changed in the past decade.) The RAM will have a notch cut out of it that matches a tab in the slot.
Before assembly, examine every component for faults. All of them. All pins should be exactly straight, all board tabs should be clean-cut and all contact points should be shiny and spotless with no wear at all evident. Examine all slots on the motherboard to be sure they are clear of debris, dust, packing material, etc. All components should have been shipped individually packaged in original packaging. (Sometimes, RAM "sticks" are shipped in only a static bag. But, they should be individually packaged, at the least. And, if they're supposed to be new, they should be in mfr packaging, not in some OEM-lot packaging.)
The CPU should simply slip right into the socket with no pressure required. If it doesn't, check the pins on the chip. DO NOT BEND THEM! They should all be straight. If they aren't, then return the CPU to the distributor/mfr. Do not attempt to straighten any pins as, once bent, the pin is permanently damaged.
Once inserted, moving the locking arm down and securing it, usually under a tab, will engage the CPU and lock the pins into place on the motherboard.
RAM, however, usually requires a bit more force, much like any card-slot requires to accept the card. Whenever one is dealing with slots on the motherboard, always, always, always, provide rigid support beneath the area experiencing stress as you push a card into place. That means either having the whole board on a rigid, flat, surface or, lacking that, placing your hands/fingers beneath the area. This is to prevent stressing/cracking the motherboard's connections. You can even cause hairline cracks not easily seen, but which disrupt the circuits. In any case, no card should require undue pressure to insert. If you think you're using too much pressure, you probably are... Back it out and check for obstructions, especially cabling you may have already installed that is catching on the card's components, preventing it from going in smoothly.
In my experience, and since form-factors and connectors have somewhat changed, that experience may be dated a bit, the most difficult thing to connect to a motherboard is the power cabling. It's always tight, difficult to secure, and requires a lot of pressure to get the tabs to lock into the board securely. And, on top of that, power is usually connected last, once the motherboard has been seated and secured to the case. Because of these issues, if it is possible and doesn't cause problems with handling, connect the power cabling before seating the motherboard. That is only so you can be sure to support the board well as you're connecting the difficult-to-connect power cabling. If you can't do that, then try to get your hand down in there to support the back of the board with your fingers as you're making the final power connection.
Cracked boards during assembly are a common "first-time-fault-on-boot." One has to do what one can to prevent that.
PS - Ribbon cabling: Check ribbon cabling carefully for pinch marks. Those are tiny little divot/bend marks that may only cover an area as small as one of the wires in the cabling. These can be caused by something laying on them, like the corner of a box, and the like. If the cabling is not free from those defects, then don't use it. Thankfully, cabling is cheap, so you can just grab a cable from a local store. But, if you can't then return it. They're usually pretty robust, but even a ding/dent in a cable can cause issues that are difficult to diagnose since the real damage to the wiring underneath isn't easily seen.
Both CPU and RAM will only fit one way. The CUP has a corner-cut that will match with the socket. (Unless design has radically changed in the past decade.) The RAM will have a notch cut out of it that matches a tab in the slot.
Before assembly, examine every component for faults. All of them. All pins should be exactly straight, all board tabs should be clean-cut and all contact points should be shiny and spotless with no wear at all evident. Examine all slots on the motherboard to be sure they are clear of debris, dust, packing material, etc. All components should have been shipped individually packaged in original packaging. (Sometimes, RAM "sticks" are shipped in only a static bag. But, they should be individually packaged, at the least. And, if they're supposed to be new, they should be in mfr packaging, not in some OEM-lot packaging.)
The CPU should simply slip right into the socket with no pressure required. If it doesn't, check the pins on the chip. DO NOT BEND THEM! They should all be straight. If they aren't, then return the CPU to the distributor/mfr. Do not attempt to straighten any pins as, once bent, the pin is permanently damaged.
Once inserted, moving the locking arm down and securing it, usually under a tab, will engage the CPU and lock the pins into place on the motherboard.
RAM, however, usually requires a bit more force, much like any card-slot requires to accept the card. Whenever one is dealing with slots on the motherboard, always, always, always, provide rigid support beneath the area experiencing stress as you push a card into place. That means either having the whole board on a rigid, flat, surface or, lacking that, placing your hands/fingers beneath the area. This is to prevent stressing/cracking the motherboard's connections. You can even cause hairline cracks not easily seen, but which disrupt the circuits. In any case, no card should require undue pressure to insert. If you think you're using too much pressure, you probably are... Back it out and check for obstructions, especially cabling you may have already installed that is catching on the card's components, preventing it from going in smoothly.
In my experience, and since form-factors and connectors have somewhat changed, that experience may be dated a bit, the most difficult thing to connect to a motherboard is the power cabling. It's always tight, difficult to secure, and requires a lot of pressure to get the tabs to lock into the board securely. And, on top of that, power is usually connected last, once the motherboard has been seated and secured to the case. Because of these issues, if it is possible and doesn't cause problems with handling, connect the power cabling before seating the motherboard. That is only so you can be sure to support the board well as you're connecting the difficult-to-connect power cabling. If you can't do that, then try to get your hand down in there to support the back of the board with your fingers as you're making the final power connection.
Cracked boards during assembly are a common "first-time-fault-on-boot." One has to do what one can to prevent that.
PS - Ribbon cabling: Check ribbon cabling carefully for pinch marks. Those are tiny little divot/bend marks that may only cover an area as small as one of the wires in the cabling. These can be caused by something laying on them, like the corner of a box, and the like. If the cabling is not free from those defects, then don't use it. Thankfully, cabling is cheap, so you can just grab a cable from a local store. But, if you can't then return it. They're usually pretty robust, but even a ding/dent in a cable can cause issues that are difficult to diagnose since the real damage to the wiring underneath isn't easily seen.
From what I've seen, Ryzen doesn't work that way--there's more of a "lid" (with a hole in the middle for the cooler) that closes over the CPU and is then screwed down. It's possible to snap the screw if you over-tighten it, so you have to be careful about that.Morkonan wrote: Once inserted, moving the locking arm down and securing it, usually under a tab, will engage the CPU and lock the pins into place on the motherboard.
Hello.
Thanks for all the help, it encouraged me to continue when I was struggling.
Everything is up and running without too much trouble, although connecting the front panel cables to the motherboard was a battle.
I have a problem with the “Game Boost” feature in the bios. It only increased the clock speed by 200Mhz so I turned it off because I wanted to manual overclock, but although the Bios indicates the CPU speed has returned to 3.20Mhz, CPU Z tells me otherwise. It even shows a max speed of 3.7.
I don't know which one to trust and whether or not to reset and re-flash the bios in the hope it will fix everything.
Any advice?
https://pasteboard.co/Hh9aEYD.jpg
https://pasteboard.co/Hh9btkm.bmp
Thanks for all the help, it encouraged me to continue when I was struggling.
Everything is up and running without too much trouble, although connecting the front panel cables to the motherboard was a battle.
I have a problem with the “Game Boost” feature in the bios. It only increased the clock speed by 200Mhz so I turned it off because I wanted to manual overclock, but although the Bios indicates the CPU speed has returned to 3.20Mhz, CPU Z tells me otherwise. It even shows a max speed of 3.7.
I don't know which one to trust and whether or not to reset and re-flash the bios in the hope it will fix everything.
Any advice?
https://pasteboard.co/Hh9aEYD.jpg
https://pasteboard.co/Hh9btkm.bmp
I cant remember exactly now, and i dont know if it applies to AMD processors too, but i think there was one option that when needed push the cpu clocks till it reach certain temps, or something like that.
Im sorry but i cant really remember now.
If you want to really check it, make a stress test of the cpu and see how high it gets, that should be the "real configured top" i think.
Im sorry but i cant really remember now.
If you want to really check it, make a stress test of the cpu and see how high it gets, that should be the "real configured top" i think.
Recent AMD processors have a feature called Turbo Core, which will automatically overclock the CPU if it's running within the capabilities of the attached cooling system. I believe in the case of the Ryzen 5 1600 this can take the CPU from its base 3.2 GHz up to 3.7, which sounds like what you're seeing. There may be an option to disable Turbo Core in the BIOS, look for that.
However, I really wouldn't be looking at overclocking this CPU yourself just yet. That's something I tend to reserve for when I've encountered something I can't run decently and I can't be bothered with the faff of upgrading my PC.
However, I really wouldn't be looking at overclocking this CPU yourself just yet. That's something I tend to reserve for when I've encountered something I can't run decently and I can't be bothered with the faff of upgrading my PC.
Magnu wrote:Hello.
Thanks for all the help, it encouraged me to continue when I was struggling.
Everything is up and running without too much trouble, although connecting the front panel cables to the motherboard was a battle.
I have a problem with the “Game Boost” feature in the bios. It only increased the clock speed by 200Mhz so I turned it off because I wanted to manual overclock, but although the Bios indicates the CPU speed has returned to 3.20Mhz, CPU Z tells me otherwise. It even shows a max speed of 3.7.
I don't know which one to trust and whether or not to reset and re-flash the bios in the hope it will fix everything.
Any advice?
https://pasteboard.co/Hh9aEYD.jpg
https://pasteboard.co/Hh9btkm.bmp
Don't flash your bios unless you really need to. If anything reset it.
AMD Ryzen Master Utility
https://support.amd.com/en-us/kb-articl ... -FAQs.aspx
It can give you a lot of useful information about the underlying hardware.
https://support.amd.com/en-us/kb-articl ... -FAQs.aspx
It can give you a lot of useful information about the underlying hardware.
Open Rights Group - Is your site being blocked
Electronic Frontier Foundation - Online Censorship
The Linux Foundation - Let’s Encrypt
Check if your Email account has been pwned
Electronic Frontier Foundation - Online Censorship
The Linux Foundation - Let’s Encrypt
Check if your Email account has been pwned
Thanks again for the links and advice.
Some of the advice I ignored and attempted some overclocking with varying success. I took the CPU in 100Mhz steps all the way to 4Ghz but I got a blue screen after 40 minutes of a stress test so I dropped it to 3.90 and it's been stable for a couple of hours now at 1.30 volts.
I've learned more about computers in the last few weeks than I did in the previous 30 years and I'm starting to feel a lot better after the health issues. it's been fun.
Some of the advice I ignored and attempted some overclocking with varying success. I took the CPU in 100Mhz steps all the way to 4Ghz but I got a blue screen after 40 minutes of a stress test so I dropped it to 3.90 and it's been stable for a couple of hours now at 1.30 volts.
I've learned more about computers in the last few weeks than I did in the previous 30 years and I'm starting to feel a lot better after the health issues. it's been fun.