# BEFORE YOU START A NEW BUILD THREAD  - PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU READ THIS...



## Tatty_One (Mar 20, 2019)

Some of this info has been taken from other stickies and threads..... yes because I am lazy!

*Before you start your own exciting new build thread, please think about*...…………………

Consider what you will be using this system for - if its for everyday home use, such as searching the internet or doing word processing, you wont need a top of the line graphics card, you can suffice on integrated. If you plan on using programs such as photoshop and video editors often, you'll be wanting higher amounts of RAM, a more powerful processor and possibly a mid level GFX card. Just consider this before purchasing parts!

Right, first things first, before you even consider looking up all those expensive CPU's & GPU's

1. Your budget. Try and set yourself a maximum budget and stick to it, or else you could find yourself buying things that cause you to scrimp out on other, possibly more important items later on. e.g you spend an extra 20 - 30 on a graphics card, then end up having to cut 30 or so on a cheaper quality PSU...…. DONT RISK IT! Some items you might get away with, *that is where the advice here will help*.

2. Do as much research as you possibly can in advance of posting here - research until your keyboard works no longer if you must.

3. Price search - you'll never begin to imagine the bargains you'll find if you hunt about, and everyone wants to save some penny's. Just think, if you find the RAM you were after cheaper, you can put that towards a better CPU or something.  Just don't go buying cheaper quality to save money, it'll cost more in the long run should something go wrong.

Items you may be considering:

*CPU *(Usage?  Gaming, Productivity, Video editing, modelling etc)
*Motherboard* (do you need an overclockable model?, what connectivity and ports do you need?  Is it compatible? Is it the right size for the case?  Are you using it's onboard sound? etc)
*Graphics Card* (if gaming, will it play the games you want at the resolution & FPS your monitor and you need?)
*RAM* (New builds will almost always require DDR4.....Minimum of 8GB, recommended 16GB, high intensity productivity, encoding etc possibly more)
*SSD's/HDD*'s (Size? - Speeds? Reliability, connectivity etc)
*Case* (Size, airflow, watercooling, racks, colour, windowed etc)
*PSU *(Don't skimp, especially when overclocking, this is integral to the functionality of your build, consider size for SFF builds, output obviously, modular etc)
*Monitor* (Size, resolution, refresh rate, connectivity, if gaming these things need to be matched with graphics card)
*Operating System *(factors such as Windows edition etc)
*Peripherals *(Mice, keyboard, soundcard, speakers etc)
*Cooling *(CPU, GPU, Case etc, Water/air, overclocking?)

This list is not exhaustive by any means but you get the idea.

So, when you do feel ready to step inside here, you need to have some idea of both what you want and therefore what you are already considering, MUST HAVE's for the community to help you quickly & easily are:

BUDGET (and country you are buying them in)
PURPOSE OF THE BUILD
ITEMS YOU NEED/ALREADY HAVE
OVERCLOCK OR NOT?

*If you are not at the point where you know these 4 things then you probably are not ready to start in here just yet.*


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