The assembly of a PC is not witchcraft and does not require excellent craftsmanship: Install the mainboard into the case and insert the CPU, RAM and, if applicable, graphics card into the designated slots; then mount the SSD (or hard drive) and, if required, a disk drive and, then connect the data cable and power supply; install the CPU cooler, arrange the cables a bit – next, it’s on to the Windows installation.
If you look at the included documentation and perhaps consult a YouTube video here and there, you will be finished in a few hours with a PC that exactly meets your wishes and budget in all its parts. Of course, you’ll learn something and be proud of the result.
Choosing the components often takes more time than assembling the PC. Therefore, we’ve put together three sample configurations, one for a mini PC, an all-rounder and a gaming PC. Look at these solutions as ready-made shopping lists or as a basis for your own variant – whichever suits you best. Beforehand, we will give you tips for the different components.
For those who want to skip the theory, our PC configuration tips for beginners, all-rounders and gaming computers can be found at the end of this article.
Table of Contents
Mainboard
The mainboard is also called the motherboard. The motherboard connects all components of your PC with each other. It includes sockets for the CPU and the working memory, a mounting for the CPU cooler and slots for expansions, such as the graphics card. Some functions, such as sound and network adapters, are located directly on the board.
The motherboard also provides external connections, such as USB, Video and eSATA. Connectors pre-installed on the PC case are connected via cable to plug-in posts on the motherboard and only breathe life into them.
You can get motherboards from manufacturers such as Asrock, ASUS and Gigabyte. In most cases, every board has a chipset, which usually comes from the same manufacturer as the CPUs that fit on the board, from AMD or Intel.
The boards from different manufacturers with the same chipset do not differ significantly in their operating speed. Above all, look out for these points when choosing:
Dimensions
Your board has to fit into the desired case in terms of dimensions. This concerns not only length and width but also the positions of the threads in the PC case or the holes for the fastening screws in the board, for instance.
For simplification, the manufacturers have defined different standards, for example, ATX, µATX and Mini-STX. An ATX board only fits in a case approved for this format. An STX board, as the currently smallest common format, fits both in a correspondingly small case and in many larger dwellings.
Mainboard and CPU compatibility
The motherboard and CPU must be compatible with each other. For example, only Intel CPUs designed for this purpose fit into the current Intel LGA 1700 slot. The same is true for AMD’s socket AM4, where the current AMD Ryzen CPUs (except for Ryzen Threadripper) fit.
Additionally, both the chipset and the BIOS on the motherboard must be compatible with the CPU. The manufacturer’s board description indicates whether this is the case.
Consider other factors
Despite identical chipsets, the features of the various models differ, particularly in terms of ports, the power consumption in different scenarios, the warranty and support, and, naturally, the price.
You can’t go far wrong with the motherboard selection for an all-around PC. However, with a gaming PC, you may want a few additional features, for example, improved sound functions, especially easy overclocking of the CPU, improved network functions, and/or RGB lighting for the next LAN party!
CPU
The central processing unit (CPU), or main processor, forms the heart of your PC. It typically consists of several processor cores executing the various computing operations. It often also has graphics functions, which are not enough for performance-hungry games but for daily office work. In this case, it is called onboard graphics.
Intel CPUs
For a long time, the market was dominated by CPUs from Intel’s desktop CPU program. The Alder Lake series, released in October 2021, is the current one. Intel has only sold the high-priced models at the upper end of the performance scale.
Cheaper Alder Lake S models have only been available since the beginning of 2022. Therefore, even the predecessors from the Rocket Lake series can still be interesting for those looking for cheaper solutions at a corresponding price. This applies even more against the background of recurring delivery problems.
Intel offers several processor groups within each generation.
- Core i3: these processors are very cheap and sufficient for simple office applications, surfing, mail and basic games.
- Core i5: More power for a still good price. Video editing and current games are possible with Core i5 processors, although not with maximum graphic quality in exceptional cases.
- Core i7: These processors offer enormous computing power, but they only come into their own when you use programs that distribute computing operations over several processor cores. That is limited to a few special applications and is very rarely the case for surfing, emailing, working in the office and gaming.
Above these three groups is the Core i9 for extreme performance requirements. Below the Core i3 is the Pentium and Celeron for even more affordable PCs.
AMD CPU
AMD has earned the reputation of the price/performance winner with the CPUs of the Ryzen family. Still, we can’t leave it like that anymore. AMD is well aware of the performance of the current line-up and sets prices accordingly. Especially in the entry-level segment, AMD does not currently have a competitive chip on offer.
The following differences should be kept in mind when making a choice:
- Simply put, AMD’s CPUs often come with many processor cores and can thus process many tasks simultaneously. That has advantages in video editing, virtual machines, software development, etc.
- Traditionally, Intel offers fewer processor cores, but these are clocked higher and thus complete the individual task faster. That sometimes better suits widespread use cases, ranging from office work to the Internet and games. However, the ratios have largely leveled out since the Ryzen 5000 CPUs were introduced at the end of 2020.
- In terms of future-proofing, the Intel offering is currently more attractive. We have already switched to the new socket LGA 1700 with Alder Lake. Those who buy a corresponding motherboard today will probably also be able to upgrade one or the other processor. AMD’s situation is different since its AM4 CPU socket is now five years old. The current Zen 3 architecture (Ryzen 5000) still runs on it. However, the next-generation AM5 will probably require a new socket as early as 2022.
When naming its CPU groups, AMD has taken its cue from Intel. Thus, you can compare Ryzen 3 CPUs roughly with the Intel Core i3, Ryzen 5 with Core i5 and Ryzen 7 with Core i7.
CPU cooler
CPU cooler sits directly on top of the CPU and dissipates its waste heat. In this way, it guarantees the stable operation of the CPU, which will otherwise easily overheat and then stop working.
A passive cooler only consists of a large cooling surface circulated by air, for example, using a fan installed in the case. This noise-free approach is rarely sufficient for current CPUs, however. Active CPU coolers are required, where a fan fans the heat from the heat sink. Here, it is always necessary to find the compromise between sufficient heat dissipation and noise development.
Many tried and tested models have the appropriate mounting material for various CPU sockets (LGA 1200, LGA 1700, AM4, etc.). Still, when choosing, make sure precisely that the fan fits the socket. Furthermore, it must also fit into the case, which should not be too high.
Tip: RAM components can also be so large that they get in the way of the cooler. This applies to fast memory with large cooling surfaces and RGB-lit RAM bars. Therefore, depending on how close the RAM sits to the cooler on the motherboard, it is important to ensure that all components have suitable dimensions when selecting them.
RAM
The random access memory (RAM) is where the PC stores data for a short time. The data is available much faster than if it was first loaded from the SSD or another drive. However, RAM does not store data permanently, only for as long as it is supplied with power.
DDR4 RAM
DDR4 RAM is currently the standard solution for both AMD and Intel. These modules deliver solid performance and are inexpensive. From the eleventh generation (Rocket Lake-S), Intel’s desktop CPUs support a clock rate of 3,200 MHz – at least from the Core i5 upwards. Lower, for example, the Core i3 stops at 2,666 MHz. The Alder Lake S CPUs (twelfth generation) released so far can also address RAM bars with up to 3,200 MHz.
DDR5 RAM
DDR5 RAM is available with significantly higher clock rates, currently 4,800 MHz, prospectively 8,000 MHz. This promises a lot more performance at first. However, currently, the technology’s advantages (higher speed) and the disadvantage (lower response time) largely cancel each other out. At the same time, DDR5 RAM is considerably more expensive than DDR4 and requires special motherboards. That is why we currently only recommend DDR4 RAM.
Case
There are PC cases in a wide variety of colors and shapes. The choice is not only a matter of taste, however. Formally speaking, you at least need a case that fits the motherboard, which means it has enough space and the right holes.
This is ensured via uniform standards. Pay attention to designations like ATX, µATX and Mini-STX. A Mini-STX board fits into a case approved for Mini-STX and so on. Furthermore, the dimensions of other components also play a role. For example, an elegant slim case may not have enough room for a bulky CPU cooler, or the extra-long graphics card may not fit inside.
You should also pay attention to the necessary comfort: Some cases are already puzzling about how they can be opened and closed. That should not be the case, just like sharp-edged metal sheets (risk of injury).
Useful is integrated cable management, which makes it easier to neatly lay the numerous cables in the PC and thus also prevents malfunctions. The probably most expensive cases are used in the gamer sector. Not only what’s inside counts here but also how it looks for many. However, see-through doors that allow a view of the (ideally colorfully illuminated) innards have no influence on the functionality.
Technically more interesting are the fans already pre-installed in the case, free mounting spots for additional fans and fan control on the case side. These features and functions are especially helpful when the PC gets particularly warm due to overclocking, or you want to precisely control the noise emissions.
Power supply unit
The PSU ensures the power supply of the PC. It has to deliver its performance stably and quietly at the same time. This isn’t easy; the power supply produces a lot of waste heat. The easiest solution is used for our mini-PC. We used a laptop power supply here. The term “passive cooling” in this context is a bit of an exaggeration: The PSU is simply in the open air.
On the other hand, the power supply is cooled by a fan when installed on the PC. These power supplies should work efficiently according to the motto “little heat, little noise”. To make it easier to distinguish such high-quality devices from cheap power supplies, the so-called 80-Plus certification exists.
Put simply, power supplies with at least 80 percent efficiency are labeled as such. 80 Plus certification comes in Bronze, plus Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum and Titanium levels, with “Titanium” power supplies being the most efficient.
When selecting a power supply, ensure it comes with enough plugs in the right formats so you can plug in all the devices you want. Plan for where each device will sit in the case. The cables must be long enough, and the plugs must be in the right place on the cable.
You can adjust individual plugs to your devices via adapters, which can be found in specialist shops. With Ryzen 5000, depending on the model, you need to ensure that there are two 8-pin cables for the CPU (1x 8x or 2x4x each).
SSD and hard disk
OS, applications and data – your PC reads all this from (at least) one hard drive when booting and during its work. In all of our pc configurations, we use SSD (Solid State Drive) drives, which are much faster than the hard disk due to the lack of moving parts. In modern PCs, hard disks are only tolerated as a slower but less expensive alternative to SSDs when storage needs are high.
There are enormous performance differences between SSDs as well. However, that is not only due to the performance of different manufacturers but primarily due to the connection via which the SSD is connected to the motherboard.
SSDs in the largely standardized 2.5-inch format are the most common, which hardly differ visually from a hard drive of the same format. Those drives are connected to the motherboard via a SATA port. Because of the limits set by the aging SATA port, rates above circa 600 MB/s are not possible.
Up to 4000 MB/s are possible with the much more compact M2-SSDs. However, this is only true for models connected to the motherboard via PCI-Express 3.0 x4 and transfer data via the NVMe protocol (Non-Volatile Memory Express). PCI-Express 4.0 even increases the throughput to 7,000 MB/s, whereas up to 8,000 MB/s is technically possible.
While AMD has been PCIe 4.0-capable since the Ryzen 3000, the interface has only been offered by Intel since Rocket Lake-S and is only unrestricted from Alder Lake-S onwards. Importantly, M2-SSDs with the slow SATA port hit the same limit as their counterparts in the 2.5-inch format.
Since the prices for M2-SSDs are continuously decreasing, it is less and less worthwhile to reach for the SATA-SSDs, which are barely cheaper. Moreover, M2-SSDs are also gaining in use outside extreme requirements (for example, in video editing) due to new technology.
This is particularly true because of Microsoft’s DirectStorage (with Windows 11, via online update in Windows 10) and Nvidia’s RTX IO. Both technologies utilize the NVMe standard more effectively and thus relieve the CPU of the computing effort associated with data transfer. Nice, too: M2-SSDs do not need any additional cables.
Important: If you choose an M.2 SSD, ensure that the M.2 slot on the motherboard is connected via PCIe. If it is connected via SATA, this will slow down the M.2 SSD accordingly.
Graphics card
There is hardly a component that has such a big impact on the price of your PC as the graphics card. The rule of thumb: for office work and graphically less demanding or older games, onboard graphics, which are part of most CPUs, are sufficient.
Suppose you value 3D computing power for professional applications and a PC that doesn’t immediately go to its knees even with the latest games, on the other hand. In that case, an additional (“dedicated”) graphics card is required.
AMD and NVIDIA dominate the graphics card market. GPUs (Graphic Processing Units) are found on most graphics cards, regardless of the manufacturer. Graphic cards with the same GPU are also always similarly fast.
Differences are mainly in details like the memory equipment, the cooling system, the design, the building height, etc. Only if you go deeper into the matter as a passionate gamer do the small performance differences, for example, achieved by factory overclocking, become important for the purchase decision.
Which specific card you choose depends on the objective and the budget. The frame rate at a certain resolution is the primary concern when gaming. However, it’s important to know that the more pixels the GPU processes, the more finely the image can be drawn with a high-performance fps value (frames per second).
In addition, image quality plays a major role, which expresses itself, for instance, in the computation of textures (important for representing surfaces, for example, fog, water, textiles) and smooth edge gradients. A high frame rate with negligible graphics quality in online action games is primarily important. If you get more frames per second, you might be ahead of the opponent by the decisive milliseconds. In addition, it jerks less.
Tip: Ensure that your display also supports the resolution offered by the graphics card. If not, investing in a particularly powerful graphics card is a waste of money. These three parameters (resolution, quality settings, refresh rate) are dependent on each other. Sometimes, you lower the resolution a bit in favor of the refresh rate; at others, you increase the quality settings and give up a few frames per second. Which settings you choose depends on the game and your taste.
High-end graphics cards for 2K and 4K gaming
“2K gaming” means playing games with 2,560 x 1,440 pixels (WQHD) resolution, usually with high-quality settings. For this, your choice should be a GPU from the upper class. If you lower the quality settings a bit, you can even use “4K gaming”, which means a resolution of 3,840 x 2,160 pixels (UHD).
Of course, low resolutions like 1,920 x 1,080 pixels (FullHD) work as well. Our favourites are AMD’s Radeon RX 6700 XT and NVIDIA’s GeForce RTX 3060 Ti. Even though they are not yet the upper class, these models currently cost $700 to $1000 per graphics adapter.
Hardware with unlimited 4K capabilities, like the Radeon RX 6800 XT and the GeForce RTX 3080, currently easily break the $1000 mark. Still, the prices fluctuate strongly again and again. Currently, it might still take months until the current cards are available in significant quantities and at the RRP.
Mid-range graphics cards for 1080p gaming
1080p gaming is gaming with Full HD resolution (1,920 x 1,080 pixels) at high-quality settings. On smaller displays (approximately up to 20 inches), this pixel amount is still sufficient for a high-quality display.
However, the image sharpness suffers on larger displays. However, appropriate cards still allow switching to the 2K resolution. However, you will have to sacrifice quality and/or frames/second depending on the title. NVIDIA’s GeForce RTX 2060 Super is currently the most affordable, and AMD’s Radeon RX 6600 XT is also less affordable.
Entry-level graphics cards for frugal gamers
Even a cheap, devoted GPU is clearly ahead of the onboard graphics. Current models are sufficient for 1080p and, according to the title, also 2K gaming. They run out of steam sooner, however, because they often have little working memory.
Thus, you have to expect that you will have to lower the quality settings for current titles in 2K further than with the mid-range models. NVIDIA’s GTX 1650 is a good choice in this range. These devices cost a maximum of $150, but rather from $250 due to the current market situation.
Pc configurations: Entry-level, midrange and gaming
In this section of our PC assembly article, we will introduce three different PC configurations, one for entry-level, one for midrange and one for gaming PCs. Stay tuned!
Compact entry-level PC
A mini-PC that doesn’t take up much space can also be sufficient for office work or internet browsing. Nearly ready-to-use complete systems like Intel’s mini PCs from the NUC series sell like hot cakes. Here, you only need to install the RAM and drive, which is fast and easy. But they are more expensive, components can only be replaced to a limited extent, and an upgrade path to a discrete GPU does not exist.
In that respect, having our own compact PC for well under $550 has its raison d’être. As a basis, we decided on ASRock’s B660M-ITX/ac motherboard. It supports Intel’s current socket LGA1700, the favorable DDR4 RAM and HDMI 2.1 with 4K at 60 Hz. ASRock has also included Intel Gigabit Ethernet, WiFi 5 and a PCIe Gen4x16 slot on board. Those who value particularly fast USB 3.2 Gen 2 will find the more expensive Gigabyte B660I AORUS PRO DDR4 an alternative.
For the processor, we recommend Intel’s Core i3-12100 (quad-core with up to 4.3 GHz). The model went on sale in January 2022. It easily handles office work, Internet, video streaming, and simple games and costs about $140.
We chose a compact case in mini-ITX format with the Cooler Master MasterBox NR200P. The case saves space on or under the desk and can still be easily mounted thanks to its clever design. You can even stow a full-fledged, discreet GPU in the compact case later on if needed.
- CPU: Intel Core i3-12100
- Motherboard: ASRock B660M-ITX or Gigabyte Aorus B660I PRO DDR4
- SSD: Crucial P5 Plus M.2 SSD 500 GB
- RAM: G.Skill RipJaws V 2×4 Gigabyte RAM
- Case: Cooler Master MasterBox NR200P
- PSU: Chieftec Compact CSN-550C 550W power supply unit
All-rounder PC
Our all-around PC allows you to do more than just the usual office work. 4 gigabytes of RAM are considered the minimum for Windows 11. Still, we have given the all-around PC 16 gigabytes. This means it can handle heavier loads, such as editing RAW digital photos and has sufficient reserves for the next few years. The all-round PC offers you all possibilities in the CPU and graphics area:
However, we recommend the combination of AMD Ryzen 5 5600X and one of the aforementioned entry-level graphics cards starting at about $250. Thus equipped together, it will cost from $900.
Those who only attach little importance to gaming should go for the AMD Ryzen 5600G, which comes with the GPU and thus makes purchasing an additional graphics card superfluous. Then the price of the all-around PC drops to about $650. If you want more power for games, buy a more powerful GPU than the ones mentioned above.
MSI’s MPG X570 Gaming Plus is based on AMD’s latest high-end chipset X570. It brings you plenty of fast USB ports (1x HDMI 1.4, 1x USB-C 3.1, 1x USB-A 3.1, 4x USB-A 3.0, 2x USB-A 2.0, 1x Gb LAN), enough PCI Express lanes for additional data carriers and doesn’t slow down a potent GPU to boot.
The board is also future-proof, thanks to PCIe 4.0 and a three-year warranty. With a price of around $150, MSI’s MPG X570 Gaming Edge WiFi is currently one of the cheaper boards with an X570 chipset. Undoubtedly, there are less expensive Ryzen mainboards based on older chipsets, yet the price advantage melts away.
The operating system and programs are stored on a fast SSD from Samsung. It impresses with price and power and offers storage space for pictures, music and other large data collections with 500 gigabytes.
The case “Be quiet! Pure Base 500” is available in many variants, namely in black, gray and white, each with and without a viewing window. Compared to other midi towers, it is compact, with a volume of just under 50 liters. The chassis has room for up to five SSDs and two hard drives. Even a large graphics card fits in if required. Insulation mats and cable management are also part of the equipment.
Generally, the chassis offers a lot of room for future expansions. One fan slot equipped with ex-works is accompanied by five additional free slots. Even a large cooling tower fits on top of the CPU if needed. Four USB ports (2x USB 3.0, 2x USB 2.0) and a headset port on the top of the case mean you can access essential functions without having to crawl under the desk.
- CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 5600X or AMD Ryzen 5 5600G
- Motherboard: MSI MPG X570 Gaming Plus
- RAM: G.Skill Flare X 16GB kit
- SSD: Crucial P5 Plus M.2 SSD 500 GB
- Case: be quiet! Pure Base 500
- PSU: be quiet! Pure Power 11 80+ Gold 400W
Gaming PC
Given the state of the graphics card market, assembling a gaming PC is a thankless task. Vast deviations from the manufacturers’ recommended retail prices make it difficult to calculate. For example, while Nvidia recommends a price of $300 for the relatively “small” RTX 3060 to retailers, street prices fluctuate between $500 and $800. It looks even more blatant in the upper class: The Nvidia RTX 3090 is recommended by the manufacturer for $1500. Meanwhile, retail prices are up to $3500.
Therefore, the GPU price is no longer included in the price quote for our gaming PC. Our suggested basic configuration costs a good $900. You can combine it with a graphics card of your choice according to your needs and budget. You can find suggestions for that in the graphics card section on the previous page.
AMD’s Ryzen 5 5600X is one of the gamers’ favorite CPUs thanks to its attractive price-performance ratio. This 6-core CPU is clocked at 3.7 GHz and jumps up to 4.6 GHz when needed. Those looking for even more performance can go for the AMD Ryzen 7 5800X for about $100 more.
However, they are both compatible with fast DDR4-3200 RAM. With this in mind, we also selected the RAM and opted for two eight Gigabyte G.Skill Flare X DDR4-3200. It often runs stably even at 3600 MHz and thus speeds up the CPU a bit more.
As for the motherboard, we selected a board based on AMD’s upper-class chipset X570. This guarantees compatibility with the current Ryzen processor, provides plenty of performance, and is future-proof. Specifically, the choice fell on the Gigabyte X570 Aorus Master. It features 2.5 Gigabit LAN and an additional Gigabit Ethernet port, WiFi 802.11ax and six SATA ports. No less than three individually cooled PCIe 4.0 M.2 slots leave room for the later leap to NVMe SSD.
The USB section offers one USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type C port, triple USB 3.1 Gen 2 Type A and four USB 2.0 ports. Bluetooth 5.0 and a generous audio department based on Realtek’s ALC1220-VB HD round out the offerings. That the board comes from the same manufacturer as the graphics card should not hurt compatibility.
- CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 5600X or AMD Ryzen 7 5800X
- RAM: G.Skill Flare X 16GB kit
- Motherboard: Gigabyte X570 Aorus Master
- Case: Sharkoon TG6 RGB
- PSU: be quiet! Straight Power 11 550W
- CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U12S
- SSD: Crucial P5 Plus M.2 SSD 500 GB
Have you ever assembled a computer before? What do you thing about our PC assembly ultimate guide? Did you found out any of our suggested PC configurations interesting? Let us know in the comments section below and please share this article with your friends and family.
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