I'm sure you'll have no end of suggestions but some to consider... nip in the BIOS and set your RAM speed correctly (XMP/DOCP - assuming you got something like 3600mhz for Ryzen), secure boot is probabaly turned on these days by default, and also check there's not a BIOS update available. Oh, and spend 30 mins going through windows setting turning off every single 'share/report/Cortana' option you can find ;)
Yeah, itx builds are a lot less forgiving in terms of compatibility as he ran into. Cooler height, gpu size, itx motherboards, etc. kind of a pain but I love looking at itx builds since they vary so much with custom niche parts.
Great video. People like you help grow the PC community, eliminate e-waste, and showcase a new hobby, like pc building, that many other people are too scared or nervous to try. I have been watching your channel for years now, and throughout the years you have made some absolute amazing content. I am a programmer, pc builder, Rubik’s cube solver, and rock climber. It’s nice to see that every time I decide to try a new hobby, you normally try it soon after. I love that you share a majority of my hobbies, and are a creative and inspiring person. Keep it up Mike. I’ll keep watching for years to come.
After just spending a weekend upgrading my PC and doing a full custom watercooling setup for the first time, I feel the anxiety you have before turning it on for the first time and especially the shock when there's an issue! I've loved tinkering around with PCs and this interest actually landed me in my current career so it's so nice to see basically a love letter for one of my favorite hobbies.
in 9/10 cases, stock cpu coolers (ones that come with the cpu you got) tend to have thermal paste already applied (unless something changed in past 7 years since i last built my pc), so adding more at 8:40 probably wasn't strictly needed . Shouldn't be a future issue, but keep an eye out on the temperatures you are getting, if something looks concerning in 1-3 years, that would be my first guess as to why. Different thermal compounds mixed together under a fair amount of heat might behave unexpectedly (and its generally a fair shout to replace it every now and then). Edit: never mind me, you replaced it later due to height restrictions. Good job, these small factor builds tend to be the biggest pain to build
I actually destroyed the pre-applied thermal paste by peeling off the sticker and leaving it . It got covered in crap and I removed it. Next time I'll know better! Thanks for the comment though as I didn't know what it was when it arrived.
@@MikeBoyd you did yourself a service by getting rid of that stock paste And the amd stock cooler not fitting for that case. Because for some reason Coolermaster (the company that makes coolers for amd cpus) decide to use glue on that thermal paste Obviously its not glue lol But after extended period of time When you try to replace your cpu Its just stuck there I've seen more people rip their ryzen cpu clean (sometimes not cleanly and end up bending some pins) off the socket stuck to their stock cooler than i count Also pretty good choice on a third party cooler too Noctua never disappoints
@@radhisghaier6394 I had exactly that problem of my old Ryzen CPU being completely stuck to the cooler, but it was fairly easy to remove after about 30 seconds of blowing hot air on it with a hair dryer.
@@michaeltagor4238 he wasnt really. He almost adimitted to using the "hard R" on his podcast, before realising that he didnt mean the "hard R", but the slur against disabled people.
Well done Mike! You built your first PC! Pretty much everything was spot on. My biggest advice when building any PC is always consult the Motherboard manual before the builds, and few things can't be installed where they shouldnt be, so its hard to go wrong. Dont worry about the front I/O, thats always a problem when you're making a PC for the first time. Also the thermal paste, as long as its about the size of a pea, usually you're fine, even if its a little more than that, it doesnt harm anything. Also, never throw your old hardware away, either recycle or do something new with it. The amount of old kit that can be plugged into a TV as a media box, security cam, turned into a NAS or even a router is unbelieveable. At one stage I even used an old laptop to record video footage of birds on a feeder outside a flat window via movement. I also like to think as motherboard as the skull, GFX as the eyes, soundcard as the ears (thats usually built on motherboards these days) RAM & HDD as short and long term memory and the thing that brings it all together is the brain to process the information - The CPU. Case is generally the skin as well. Glad you had no problems with windows, as sometimes installing that with a legit key can be a nightmare. Looks like you were alright on that one though. Good Job!
i used to be scared of opening up my laptop even when it was totally overheated due to dust build up inside. But once, i just dare myself up and dive into it. Opened it up for the first time, and oh boy, it was so dirty. I cleaned it up with helps of tutorial videos. Closed it up, and was so happy about it that i could handle my laptop's problem myself, and was not afraid anymore to solve my own laptop's problem from cleaning to upgrading. That leads to experiment and explore even further on how to improve my laptop's performance. Skip to 3 years later, now i run a side business of hardware and software PC/laptop repair, all because of that sudden encouragement i had :)
This video made me smile so much at the end. I've always dreamed of building my own PC and I'm getting closer to doing that because of you. Thanks for all your amazing content.
This video is brilliant. It reminds me so much of building my first pc, feeling like everything would explode. but its a skill I couldn't go without now, so useful!
Great job Mike, lovely to see learning new skills even outside of the sport-y realm. PC building from the physical point of view (plugging things in together) is very useful and you probably won't forget it, unless some standards change. However knowing how to put together a balanced system, within a budget, knowing where you can save money and where you should pay extra for quality, is a very different thing and if you don't stay in that tech loop constantly, by the time you need a new PC, you gotta research all that stuff all over again.
True, but if you've already learnt what questions to ask and where to look for answers this won't be very time consuming. Definitely worth it compared to watching 3 LTT videos a week (if you don't enjoy it of course)
Great job. Biggest issue, which isn't an issue is PSU size. You went with a 450w psu, and according to PC Partpicker, estimated power needed is 334w. When choosing a PSU, you don't want your needed power usage to be over 80% of the what the psu is rated for, due to inefficiencies, losses, and transient power spikes. But if you upgrade your cpu, gpu, or both, you may end up having power delivery issues, which can result in random shutdowns or freezes. What I personally do is, put all the parts in PC part picker, multiply the estimate wattage by 1.25, add 100 and then round up to the nearest 50. So 334 x 1.25 = 417.5 + 100 = 517.5, which rounds up to 550w.
Hey Mike! Absolutely love your content! I came across a callisthenics video on TikTok and saw him do a handstand push-up and immediately thought this would be a cool challenge for you! Best of luck 💪🏻
Welcome to the fold. This is an amazing hobby, and it's so much to learn. New technology almost every year. So much fun, so much anguish. Just remember to tighten the screws on your CPU cooler, like you tighten the bolts on the wheels on your car. Don't ask about the thermal paste, it's become a meme. :)
As said in this video, understanding what each part does is the key to building a PC. About 10-15 years ago I built my first PC and was so overwhelmed looking at parts. The amount of different options for each part is scary, especially since the manufacturers use the most complicated naming system for everything. It makes figuring out what to get seem impossible. If you just spend a little time understanding what each part does and understanding the seemingly random numbers they use to name them it will all start to click and be much less overwhelming. Actually building the PC is the easy part. It's just like big, expensive Legos.
I built my first pc in 2020 as well, back when I was in grade 8, and I’ve never looked back. I love learning about all the new parts and what everything does. Really cool video, and I’d love to see more computer content in the future :)
No need to apologize for not building your own, not everyone has the time nor the will to do so. I also bought a pre-built 1.5 years ago as a first PC but since then, I upgraded the CPU. Doing only that was so stressing and also so rewarding once the process was over :)
This was posted less than 12 hours after my psu randomly went bust and I had to stress for hours diagnosing it, it is indeed a daunting but valuable skill.
I remember the excitement after building my first computer in 2016, when it finally turned it on, and all the LEDs lit up my room at 1am after 6 hours of building and troubleshooting! Have built a handful of computers since for friends, family, and myself, and I still get so much excitement when it first boots to life!
I loved this video! It was cool to see the perspective of someone who is just learning about computers and building them for the first time! You did pretty much everything right, and I'm impressed that you went with a form-factor case for your first. You may already know this, but if you wanted, you'd likely be able to upgrade your CPU in the future with a quick BIOS update. AMD kept the AM4 platform into the 5000 series of processors, so if you wanted a bit more life out of it in the future you could get it
I've been building my own PC's for 30 years now, and still feel good about each one I've built. It is always good to see people trying it for the first time. Well done Mike, I'm proud of you for taking this step 🙂
It's actually possible to remove the plastic shroud of the stock amd cooler to shave off a few millimeters from the height without affecting performance. Still, great video!
What an incredible video Mike! I've built my own system and I agree it's such a rewarding experience. Still, there's absolutely nothing wrong with buying a pre-built if that's what you want, but I highly recommend _anyone_ that's considering it to build a PC at least once. That'll make your experience with a pre-built better too, since if anything goes wrong or you want to upgrade a component, you won't be scared to take your pre-built apart and modify it.
Well done! There isn't much that's more satisfying than putting your own PC together and watching it boot! One thing I would mention: Make sure to keep cables away from fan blades. I noticed the cable for the CPU cooler fan was sitting over the top. It will be ok, but if it happens to touch the fan the sound it makes it awful and slightly terrifying!
Finally - after watching all of Mike's other videos of skills that I don't have, I see this one - and enjoy the smug feeling of having been doing this for the past 20+ years :)
This is a really great video, I can totally relate to the feeling of not wanting to touch the PC out of confusing and paranoia. But slowly, through installing a Wi-Fi Card, repasting the Gpu and upgrading more parts, my perception of computer complexity went away!
You need to boot into the bios and set your ram speed. They run default at slower speed than the ram is rated for. This is probably the most overlooked step in PC building.
Definitely recommend building PCs, I started out about 10 years ago building my first computer, now I can't count how many I've done between upgrades to my personal PC to full builds for various friends and family. That's not even to mention that since picking up this skill I've swapped careers from marketing into IT and couldn't be happier. Learn something new, you never know where it might lead.
I built my first pc just last week! Loved the process, would definitely recommend. Pc parts picker and Linus Tech Tips how to build a pc will see anyone through to success
Welcome to the pc building club👍. since learning how to build my first pc a few years ago its allowed me to help friends and family troubleshoot,upgrade,and build new computers. As a result of all the fun ive had im pretty addicted to anything that involves compter parts now
There is SO MUCH to know about pc parts, it's not simple at all. For example when you choose the PSU you said that it was "gold rated", however if you research a little you will learn that verification is very misleading and that you need to go to trust worthy reviewers to see if the PSU is good and safe. I have been building PCs for 8 years and still learn new stuff every month. What a magic world is PC building!
Was thinking you forgot the motherboard standoff copper screws (short circuit hazard) but looks like the case had fixed standoffs, so all good! Thanks for the cool video.
This is the first generation it actually worked out more expensive to build a PC myself rather than get it built for me. Strange times. This was for the exact same components, down to the fans. The saving was £150ish on a 3.5k system to have someone else build it. Couldn't pass up on it. Sure, I might have to rip it apart when it arrives and change around a few things but still, cheaper is cheaper.
@@MikeBoyd The only ones that really matter are power LED/HDD LED. these days they usually come as a single + and a - rather than together so you cant really put them the wrong way around now if you follow whats wrote on board and the jack. That said if you put them the wrong way around nothing bad happens the LEDs just dont work :D. Fun fact its actually a standard on most boards what way they go in. Some cases such as from NZXT have a jack with all connectors on you can plug in all at once and be done. The front panel connectors are usually the thing that confuse people the most i wish all cases put them in a block like NZXT.
@@AdamsWorlds out of all of the advancements pc building has made over the past several decades, the front panel connectors has barely improved at all. it's just a bundle of wires and the labeling on mobo is ridiculously small, and it's easy for even seasoned builders to screw up.
@@JeffDeLamater yeah, no reason for it also as i said most cases and boards they are in a standard place. NZXT put them in a block together and provide an adaptor to split them into individual ones if needed. IMO this is the way forward! The other thing people mess up is the extra power connector that does not have to be used (some psu's dont have extra connector and people think they messed up), and 3 vs 4 pin fans. Most common ones i get asked about anyway. Front IO though is by far the biggest issue i see.
The time I built mine, I weirdly wasn't scared (although it was extraordinarily expensive and I had waited 2 years for the right time), because I felt like I just knew how to do it. The only part I was tense about was installing my cpu, and that took me 5 mins. What was annoying, however, was the case fans and my aio. The blasted fans took 6 hours to do, but when I eventually switched it on at 3 am, it was probably one of the greatest feelings i've ever felt. (12700kf, 3080 ti, 32 gigs of ddr5, 1.5 tb's of m.2 and an ek 360mm aio)
Really good video Mike. Building a PC is nowhere near as scary as some people imagine. Plus the huge benefit, as you say, is standard parts leading to easy upgrades and repairs - which is a good reason to stay away from Dell and the like, with their proprietary motherboards etc. Still worth being on the look out for nice deals from boutique PC builders - very often they will help in the parts choice, be no more expensive that buying each part at retail cost, plus they may have a stock of components that are hard or impossible to get (e.g. a particular graphics card which is being scalped)
Yep. A lot of people don't realize that modern PC building is quite easy nowadays compared to 2-3 decades ago. We have the luxury of plug and play and that many components are standardized. Back then, it was more like plug and pray. oh, you didn't move this jumper on your motherboard? Too bad, your CPU won't work. Or Oh, you installed a buggy driver for your CD drive and your Windows 98 install is now corrupted.
If any newcomers are watching this and feel inspired to build something; even a much cheaper system I would highly recommend it. The tinkering around and building is very rewarding and being the "tech guy" in a family or friend group is a distinguished honor. Also for first time builders don't be afraid to take your time with the parts; I spent an entire afternoon building my first PC when in all honesty someone proficient could have done it in an hour or two, but the more you get used to the pieces that make your build whole, the more you understand, the less overall fear you'll have in future builds.
Started when I was 12 learning computers build my first my PC at 18 when I needed to upgrade my pre-built I had at 14 it was scary at first now I'm rocking a ryzen 7 5800x3d with a 3070ti 64gb of ddr4 3600mhz and around 7tb of storage across multiple nvme,ssd,hdd
As someone who has built tons of PCs and has done a lot of troubleshooting for people a few tips to new builders I can say are: 1. Modern PC hardware is fairly hard to break in terms of the delicacy of what you have in your hands it feels very delicate but don't be scared and its also fairly hard to Statically Discharge and fry your PC. 2. This tip I like to call "Setting the Features" which I just tell people is putting the Motherboard together OUTSIDE of the Case. (Stock Cooler, AIO, Air Cooler, CPU, RAM, NVME, and VRM Heatsinks) 3. This kind of goes back to Tip #1 and its basically don't be afraid to put a little bit of force with the components. Even firm pressure just makes everything go smoothly. 4. Invest in a good quality Power Supply this is something not to cheap out on. Think of your PSU like a Heart, if someone has a bad heart they're not going to be able to function normally and in the end give out in the long run or worse enough completely destroy all your parts. 5. If you never BIOS updated before don't panic. Most hardware from when you probably bought it to when your building has had some sort of BIOS update especially if its new hardware just watch a video and its honestly super simple. Just be sure to have another PC on the side and a USB in hand. 6. Lastly, just be patient. You went through the effort of research, watching videos, buying the parts and waiting. Enjoy your first build!
As someone who has been massing with computer’s for a bit and has drop cpus by 5ft and worst. Your have do a great job. The only problem really is the fat glob of thermal paste. But even then. Better to much then to little. ❤
If you buy prebuilt that's fine maybe you don't wanna deal with choosing all the parts and stuff or you don't have the time but man I'll tell you nothing beats the experience of building it and making it boot successfully 😌
respect for the DS3 build, not putting all into vigor and a dex build aswell! play with a bleed build once its really fun, dex goes well with it just need a good bleed weapon and some points into luck ;)
That's exactly the same mistake with the mixed up power switch cables I did 3 years ago on my first PC build. Took me way too long that I care to admit to find the issue though...
Dang I know how it is trying to run a channel from a laptop. It used to take me 8-10 hours to export a 10 min 4K video and a long time to edit. Now with a desktop I export those same videos but in 10bit 4:2:2 RAW which are larger files, in only 10 minutes or so and it’s soooo much easier to edit on a desktop.
Having been on PC gaming for a number of years and upgrading/buidling new PCs, there is always that sense of relief when you press the power button for the first time and everything works. However, if you really want to stress yourself out and give yourself anxiety over your PC... update the BIOS! Every single time i do a BIOS update I fear that i am about to create the worlds most expensive brick!!
The only hard part about picking a PC is picking all compatible parts and felling satisfied with your choices as you're making them. Once it's all put together it feels awesome though.
Somehow your videos never seem to stop amazing me, good job on this one! Btw, a few ideas for a future video if you ever come around to it, try finger-boarding I find it really amusing, and maybe you can try making your own electric skateboard, it's actually not that hard if you find the parts. You can also try riding the one wheel or maybe even frisbee throwing. There is also writing with your left hand... I'm just throwin these out there... Good luck on your future endeavours, I hope you succeed in everything you're trying to accomplish :)
I was so proud when i simply just restarted the BIOS of my pc and re-installed windows. Might be one of the best things i`ve felt. (My little brother somehow overclocked the GPU so much the powersupply couldn`t support it and the pc just kept on restarting)
Dude I swear I'm slowly becoming my own version of you lol haven't seen one of your vids in a minute, and have been thinking about learning about building a pc and there you are 👊😂 If that's a focusrite solo gen 3, and audio technicas it's over 😂
I'm so thankful i grow up in poor ass country , i had to do everything myself to save some cash, i learned this at 15, and just grew up with development of tech, im 31 now still can build high end pc :D
I have built many PC from leftover scraps, and I still have many of them. I have also upgraded and replaced bad parts on a few. I still have never had the opportunity to buy the parts and actually build my own.
I watched that video because of your comment... and he was an idiot who ignorantly bought a computer with mechanical HDDs and no NIC because he didn't even pay attention on the "Configure" page, except to CPU, GPU, and RAM... and then blamed the working-properly-as-configured-by-him PC and Dell for his ignorance and incompetence. He keeps saying that he ordered a broken PC and Dell sent a broken PC, but that's a lie: he ordered configured in a specific way, and Dell sent it with BIOS tailored to that stupid configuration, and he didn't change the BIOS during his attempts to upgrade, he just futzed around with settings, which is why it wouldn't recognize the new NIC or the first aftermarket drive or the expensive ripoff Dell drive. The rest of the failures and frustrations were from coof restrictions on 3rd party repairmen, international calling issues, him not knowing the return window was 14 days (even though it wasn't broken or defective AS CONFIGURED), and the maze of different departments that could have all been avoided if he had read ONE configuration guide or learned anything more than "get a great processor and video card and lots of ram and storage" OR had paid ANY attention at all to the Configuration options and read the options and descriptions. Even below a basic level of consumer understanding of computers would have avoided all of the trouble and he would have had an overpriced but good and working PC from the start, just like he wanted.
@@stevealford230 He never said he ordered a broken pc, just one that he didn't know he needed to opt into the aspects he needed, and he admits to his stupidity in the video. While you are partially correct, I feel you took a very different message then the one he was trying to say. I hope you a good day.
@@bird6708 at 33:20 he says "however you slice it, I ordered a bad PC and Dell sent me one." (He's Irish: "bad" there means "broken.") Multiple other times he talks about how things are "wrong" with it, like how it wouldn't recognize new hardware, CLEARLY saying that it was defective or broken, but it wasn't, it just had a BIOS tailored to his stupid build, because he made a special order from the Enterprise department (for corporations with IT Departments that flash BIOS to fit their builds) instead of a Consumer department build that is designed for Plug&Play.
@@stevealford230 You are correct in that he does say that, and that he the explain his frustration because the computer didn't have what he wanted, but the entire video is him saying how stupid he is, and how he should have checked for these things when buying. He isn't criticizing the Dell or the computer, he's criticizing himself and the human failures he made along the way in an admittedly complicated field. You are correct, but not for his intentions. Have a nice day.
NVM-e SSDs need extra cooling! You have to put a small SSD heatsink on all non SATA m.2 SSD-s if the motherboard doesn't have a heatspreader. Without it the controller chip will die really fast. Doesn't have to be too fancy, anything cheap will do, but you should never use a PCI-e SSD without a heatsink or really strong direct airflow (like in a server with air ducts and 6000RPM fans).
Very cool to see, also not a very difficult skill imo. I upgraded the ram in my laptop cause it was slow, only came 4 gb, and spotted that there was room for a hard drive in the process in addition to the ssd it came with. Which I have never needed to actually add one, but useful to know.
I would've mounted the noctua cooler rotated 90 degrees from how you've done it, since the blades of the cooler (not the fan, but the metal) are now facing into the ram, causing the air to flow that way, heating up the fan and giving the air less space to go, increasing fan speeds.
ive said it for years. pcs are just expensive adult legos. nothing is really complicated the hardest part is wiring which even if u mess up is not a big deal in most cases. like the power button in this video all is fine
my original PC was a HP prebuilt pc. i upgraded the parts little by little, even the case at some point. now my PC doesn't have a single part from that prebuilt. i guess the only thing that remains from the prebuilt bundle is my current monitor. edit: also reminds of that ship of theseus paradox.
Hey Mike! I've had a few NASes in the past and at times came to some great trouble because I set them up wrong or worse used the wrong kind of drive (desktop drives instead of NAS drives). Your NAS caught my eye because I used the exact same case but used WD RED Pluses instead. In the past I used up to 4x Seagate Barracudas and I can't tell you the pain of losing so much footage and personal stuff that is still stuck on a raid that can't be retreived (yet). Anyway, just my 2 cents as I'd hate for you to go through what I did, and btw, for 1080p, I'm running TrueNas, ZFS and 2.5G or 10G ethernet from the Nas to two edit drives and I can edit directly from the nas with no problems :) something to consider.
Half way through the video, loving it, but the thermal compound you used is a bit subpar, especially on a Mini ITX build where thermals play a big role, loving to see more people get into the custom pc space :) Edit: you used the stock AMD cooler initially, these come with thermal compound pre applied, so there was no need to put your own, when you switched it to the noctua low profile cooler, i really hope you used the noctua thermal compound that usually comes in the box...
@@MikeBoyd using different thermal compound (I recommend Noctua NH-T1) will help improve thermal transfer from the CPU to the cooler, and therefore improve the overall thermals of the system.
@@MikeBoyd it'll make a difference, but proper application is more important. If there's no pad on the cooler already, then you only need the equivalent of a grain of rice
@@MikeBoyd Yeah, its somewhat evident by the consistency... I personally like to use Arctic MX5, but some people have other preferences, there's no need to go for something exotic like liquid metal, Here are some of my recommendations: Arctic MX5, Thermal Grizzly Kryonaut, and Noctua NT-H1 Side note: PC components are more resilient than most people think :)
@@matthudsonau Well it's been trued and tested that too much thermal paste wont do much harm except for the cleaning... Obviously some thermal compounds are conductive or capacitive so that's something to keep in mind...
If you have a pc with an AMD Ryzen 3000 processor (like the 3600XT Mike used) and it doesn't want to start even though the fans are spinning, just let it run for a bit. On mine it took several minutes until it finally posted. I was sweating bullets haha
Looks alright. You only did two things not wrong but not perfectly. 1. Little too much thermal paste 2. Don't screw the heatsink in fully 1 by 1 but rather tighten all 4 in a X-Pattern little by little. That way the thermal paste will be more even and pressure on the CPU is also mroe even which can sometimes cause issues. Also one thing, you can just throw another HDMI cable in there and actually play dark souls on your TV with your bigger PC :)
Lol I was very worried that you spent 1000 on the pc, but thankfully, (but also sadly) it was built in 2020. Good job for the most part, maybe a bit too much thermal paste, but not to worry, its better to have more than less.
More people need to not be afraid of picking up a screwdriver, instead of giving it to a local repair shop that will absolutely rip them off with prices and the work done
lets gooo dark souls 3 my guy and btw iv been playing pc games for almost a decade now and havnt build my own pc, i hope one day it will happen soon anyways xd and when i get the money lol
I build my 1st pc a week ago :D Even though i tried a month ago. (I broke the motherboard and tried to get a coupon for a new one) PC specs AMD 7700x 32GB RAM Radeon 6800XT 1TB SSD
where do you even find a 3600xt anymore? I feel like they were sold for such a brief amount of time and then disappeared at least where I live. I can't even find one second hand
built my first pc ever this christmass and i had been reasearching for 2 ytears i was so so scared to break things that i didnt eve nget the satisfaction fo the clicks cuz it was so slow that it didnt click
It literally took me 2 whole years to build my PC, 1 year for learning and another for getting the funds for it while still learning. Powered on first try somehow
Is it possible that the mini-itx and components was not the right thing to do? If you bought a different TV stand could you have bought a bigger case and mobo, then had more room for expansion/upgrade in the future? Do components for mini-ITX and small cases cost more money?
