First ever PC build

[Maxiaid]

Not really a "project" anymore, but wanted to share. First ever PC build. Coming from a 10yo entry-level MSI laptop with a GTX 850M. I went balls to the wall.
For at least half that time I longed for this moment, but was too broke to afford anything decent and didn't want to settle for a mid system. I spent months saving money and researching every part, since I didn't have much knowledge about components to begin with, but had it clear I didn't want a prebuilt. In the process I fell in love with this hobby.
Last summer it was finally time to live the dream.

Spoiler: Specs

Case: Corsair 2500X (black)
Motherboard: MSI B650M Project Zero
CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
GPU: MSI GeForce RTX 4090 GAMING X SLIM
RAM: Corsair Vengeance RGB 64GB DDR5 6000MT/s CL30
SSD 1: Samsung 990 PRO 4TB
SSD 2: Acer Predator GM7 4TB
PSU: Corsair RM1200x Shift
AIO liquid cooler: Corsair H150i Elite LCD XT
Intake fans: 2x Corsair SP120 RGB Elite, 2x Corsair AF140 RGB Elite, 1x Corsair AF120 RGB Elite
Exhaust fans: 3x Corsair AF120 RGB Elite (radiator), 1x Corsair SP120 RGB Elite

Rest of the setup:
Keyboard: Corsair K65 Pro Mini 65%
Mouse: Corsair Darkstar Wireless
Headset: Corsair HS80 Wireless
Main monitor: Corsair Xeneon 27QHD240 (27", 2560x1440, 240Hz, OLED)
Auxiliary monitor: Elecrow DIS85101D (10.1", 1280x800, 60Hz, IPS, touch)
Sensor panel display: GeeekPi EP-0170 (7", 1024x600, 60Hz, IPS)
Macro board: Stream Deck XL
Mouse mat: TitanWolf XXL (900mmx400mm, Planisphere and Wolf)
Chair: SecretLab Titan Evo (fabric, arctic white)

Spoiler

 

[jak_2456]

Congrats on your first build; it looks great! It must have been really awesome to assemble the build of your dreams. Enjoy it.

 

[Maxiaid]

Congrats on your first build; it looks great! It must have been really awesome to assemble the build of your dreams. Enjoy it.

Appreciate it! If I'm honest, the whole process brought me a lot of anxiety, I felt uneasy knowing that I could mess something up - but the feeling when I first booted it up, all the RGB started flashing and it finally went into BIOS was something I can't describe with words.
Faced quite a few problems, even had to go through RMA to replace the first AIO I installed since it developed pump failure, but now it's running like a charm.

 

[Why_Me]

Nice looking build ^^

 

[bonehead123]

Looks nice & congrats on your 1st sucessfull & rewarding build !

However, & not to rain on your parade, but without a parts list, it's really hard to tell if it meets the "balls to the wall" description, especially since a lot of us here have built rigs that are truly exquisite & superb, both in appearance & performance, myself included

 

[Maxiaid]

Looks nice & congrats on your 1st sucessfull & rewarding build !

However, & not to rain on your parade, but without a parts list, it's really hard to tell if it meets the "balls to the wall" description, especially since a lot of us here have built rigs that are truly exquisite & superb, both in appearance & performance, myself included

I find your distrust understandable, my good sir. You'll find a list with the parts in the provided spoiler dropdown, but I'll list them here for quicker reference.

Case: Corsair 2500X (black)
Motherboard: MSI B650M Project Zero
CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
GPU: MSI GeForce RTX 4090 GAMING X SLIM
RAM: Corsair Vengeance RGB 64GB DDR5 6000MT/s CL30
SSD 1: Samsung 990 PRO 4TB
SSD 2: Acer Predator GM7 4TB
PSU: Corsair RM1200x Shift
AIO liquid cooler: Corsair H150i Elite LCD XT
Intake fans: 2x Corsair SP120 RGB Elite, 2x Corsair AF140 RGB Elite, 1x Corsair AF120 RGB Elite
Exhaust fans: 3x Corsair AF120 RGB Elite (radiator), 1x Corsair SP120 RGB Elite

It is my belief that, for an ex GeForce Now user, this quite fitly complies with the "balls to the wall" standard.

 

[Lord Paulus Cobris (LPC)]

Hello Max!
Congratulations on your first build, and welcome to the "master PC Race" community!

I completly understand the anxeity part of the build (and the moment where we press the power button and hope for the best).
I have been building systems for 20 years now, and i still have the "anxious" moment when i finish an expensive build and i double and triple check everything...

But like you said, the first time we build our own system is a very special moment!
I have check you parts list, and you have there a good and very capable system.

I see that you are a Corsair fan! Im a NZXT and ThermalRight fan.

I can now just wish you the best and enjoy that fine build you did!

Best Regards,

LPC

 

[Maxiaid]

Hello Max!
Congratulations on your first build, and welcome to the "master PC Race" community!

I completly understand the anxeity part of the build (and the moment where we press the power button and hope for the best).
I have been building systems for 20 years now, and i still have the "anxious" moment when i finish an expensive build and i double and triple check everything...

But like you said, the first time we build our own system is a very special moment!
I have check you parts list, and you have there a good and very capable system.

I see that you are a Corsair fan! Im a NZXT and ThermalRight fan.

I can now just wish you the best and enjoy that fine build you did!

Best Regards,

LPC

Truly appreciate the warm words. Not really a fan of any brand in particular, I chose Corsair because I think their branding has a sleek look... and to be honest, simply because I like the logo. I also wanted to condense all of my RGB/peripherals under one ecosystem to avoid unnecessary bloatware having to run in the background.

Would love to see a picture of your current system!

I see you're from Portugal. We could say we're almost vizinhos. Muito obrigado, velhote!

 

[Lord Paulus Cobris (LPC)]

Hello!
Yes im from Portugal! And i live in Elvas, close to Spain Border and the Spanish town of Badajoz!

Portanto somos mesmo quase vizinhos!

Yes it makes sense to have all the rgb software under one software and not many.

You can check my build log on this link:

- https://www.techpowerup.com/forums/threads/lpc-project-dark-knight-ii.332531/

Hope you like it!

Best Regards,

LPC

 

[r.h.p]

Hey dude good choice of parts good job. Is this how it happened?

 

[_roman_]

Nice - Good Job.

I would have covered the fan specifications with a sticker or I would have used two reverse fans instead.

 

[Jtuck9]

Looks nice & congrats on your 1st sucessfull & rewarding build !

However, & not to rain on your parade, but without a parts list, it's really hard to tell if it meets the "balls to the wall" description, especially since a lot of us here have built rigs that are truly exquisite & superb, both in appearance & performance, myself included

Coming from an entry-level MSI laptop with a GTX 850M those are probably cases of "Ships not seen"

 

[SirKeldon]

Really nice build, great components and I'm sure the result translates into an astounding performance, not to mention the satisfaction you get when you build your own rig, I miss the feeling from that first one.

"No hemos reparado en gastos" as John Hammond from Jurassic Park would say, well done bud! Enjoy it

*typo

 

[kilo]

It looks way better than my first PC, but I won't show my age

You might want to check your manual though, I'm seeing this for DIMM setup:

You might not be getting dual (quad for ddr5) channel working right with your current configuration. Check in CPU-z before and after.

 

[SirKeldon]

It looks way better than my first PC, but I won't show my age

I can relate to this, my first custom build was based on the AMD 64 Athlon 3200+, and 100% agree with you, it didn't look as this beauty, how times have evolved!

 

[bonehead123]

I find your distrust understandable, my good sir. You'll find a list with the parts in the provided spoiler dropdown, but I'll list them here for quicker reference.

Case: Corsair 2500X (black)
Motherboard: MSI B650M Project Zero
CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 7800X3D
GPU: MSI GeForce RTX 4090 GAMING X SLIM
RAM: Corsair Vengeance RGB 64GB DDR5 6000MT/s CL30
SSD 1: Samsung 990 PRO 4TB
SSD 2: Acer Predator GM7 4TB
PSU: Corsair RM1200x Shift
AIO liquid cooler: Corsair H150i Elite LCD XT
Intake fans: 2x Corsair SP120 RGB Elite, 2x Corsair AF140 RGB Elite, 1x Corsair AF120 RGB Elite
Exhaust fans: 3x Corsair AF120 RGB Elite (radiator), 1x Corsair SP120 RGB Elite

It is my belief that, for an ex GeForce Now user, this quite fitly complies with the "balls to the wall" standard.

Yep, that's a pretty nice rig IMHO, and yea, I think you nailed the description too

Good luck & happy computin with it !

 

[Maxiaid]

Hey dude good choice of parts good job. Is this how it happened?

They call me Max for a reason

Nice - Good Job.

I would have covered the fan specifications with a sticker or I would have used two reverse fans instead.

I looked for some stickers but in the end said fuck it, I don't find it much of an eyesore. I could peel them off as well, but for now they're staying.

Really nice build, great components and I'm sure the result translates into an astounding performance, not to mention the satisfaction you get when you build your own rig, I miss the feeling from that first one.

"No hemos reparado en gastos" as John Hammond from Jurassic Park would say, well done bud! Enjoy it

*typo

"No hemos reparado en gastos" indeed, la broma entera me costó como 7 mil pavos
Thanks a lot!

It looks way better than my first PC, but I won't show my age

You might want to check your manual though, I'm seeing this for DIMM setup:

View attachment 385874

You might not be getting dual (quad for ddr5) channel working right with your current configuration. Check in CPU-z before and after.

They're seated on DIMMA2 and DIMMB2, that's just the perspective.

Spoiler

Yep, that's a pretty nice rig IMHO, and yea, I think you nailed the description too

Good luck & happy computin with it !

 

[Sithaer]

Thats a good looking system and grats for your first build!
There is nothing like when you first boot up your new build, I've been building my own PCs since 2008 which is not that old 'I'm in my mid 30s' actually but even today it gives me that 'rush' that the damn thing is alive and I have a new toy to play around with.

 

[Maxiaid]

Thats a good looking system and grats for your first build!
There is nothing like when you first boot up your new build, I've been building my own PCs since 2008 which is not that old 'I'm in my mid 30s' actually but even today it gives me that 'rush' that the damn thing is alive and I have a new toy to play around with.

I just turned 29.

 

[bug]

Appreciate it! If I'm honest, the whole process brought me a lot of anxiety, I felt uneasy knowing that I could mess something up - but the feeling when I first booted it up, all the RGB started flashing and it finally went into BIOS was something I can't describe with words.
Faced quite a few problems, even had to go through RMA to replace the first AIO I installed since it developed pump failure, but now it's running like a charm.

Congrats. You now officially have the virus. Enjoy this and many other future builds. PCs are fun.

 

[l1CappYl1]

Nice work. Very clean looking build. In future builds you may want to consider reverse blade fans if you prefer all fans facing the same direction in the case.

 

[DirtyDingusMcgee]

Pretty nice for a first timer. Be sure all your power plugs are plugged up good and snug.

Not much to add. well done.

How does it run?

Let's have a picture of the backside with the panel off. I haven't used one of those project zero boards yet and i'd like to see it in action.

 

[Maxiaid]

Nice work. Very clean looking build. In future builds you may want to consider reverse blade fans if you prefer all fans facing the same direction in the case.

I actually like how the stator vanes in the back of the fan look!

Pretty nice for a first timer. Be sure all your power plugs are plugged up good and snug.

I appreciate it! Double and triple-checked that.

How does it run?

Go figure. Coming from a cheap-ass laptop, I'm discovering the Americas here.

Let's have a picture of the backside with the panel off. I haven't used one of those project zero boards yet and i'd like to see it in action.

I'd rather not publicly show the atrocious mess I call "cable management" on the back of my case, thank you. But I can show you a couple pictures from the building process.

Spoiler

Spoiler

 

[DirtyDingusMcgee]

I'd rather not publicly show the atrocious mess I call "cable management" on the back of my case, thank you. But I can show you a couple pictures from the building process.

I'm not looking to judge you. I want to see one of these motherboards in place. We've seen worse.

 

[Maxiaid]

I'm not looking to judge you. I want to see one of these motherboards in place. We've seen worse.

I know, I'm just currently out of town and have no pictures taken of it. And that is for a reason – when I say "atrocious" I don't say it lightly.