Gaming rigs contain powerful hardware.
Computers intended for gaming must contain powerful hardware. Buying a computer gaming rig from a store can be very costly, so those with a little bit of tech savvy can save a lot of money by building their own rigs. Doing so is not terribly difficult, so long as all of the correct components are purchased. These components include a computer case, power supply, motherboard, processor, video card, random access memory chips, CD/DVD-ROM drive, hard disk drive and operating system.
Instructions
1. Purchase the required components as they are listed in the "Things You'll Need" section. Be sure to do your research to find the best prices possible. To make a good gaming rig, you'll need high-end components; as of the time of this writing, you should buy components with these minimum specifications:
Power supply: 550 W
Motherboard: Enabled for dual core processors (preferably quad core), SATA compatible, onboard sound
Processor: Dual core above 2.4 GHz
Video card: 1 GB of designated video RAM
Random access memory chips: 4 GB total
Hard disk drive: 500 GB of storage space, SATA
Operating system: Windows 7
2. Unfold and display the instructions that came with your motherboard; these will be invaluable during the assembly process.
3. Open the computer case by taking off its side panel, and mount the motherboard into it according to the instructions.
4. Install the processor onto the motherboard; follow the instructions specific to your motherboard for doing so. You may need to press harder than you think for this step, Don't worry about breaking the hardware, as it's stronger than you think.
5. Mount the power supply into the computer case at the designated slot, which is usually on the back side of the case toward the top. DO NOT plug in the power supply until everything else is hooked up.
6. Insert your RAM chips and video card into the designated slots on your motherboard. If the video card requires a direct line to the power supply, hook it up to a compatible cable now.
7. Mount the hard disk drive and CD/DVD-ROM drives into their brackets toward the front of the computer case.
8. Run wires from the power supply to the motherboard and disk drives as detailed in the hardware pieces' instruction manuals.
9. Connect the proper cables from the hardware pieces to the motherboard as instructed by the motherboard's manual.
10. Check all of your connections one last time, close the computer case, plug in external hardware (mouse, keyboard, monitor, etc.) and turn on the computer.
11. When it is fully powered up, insert your operating system disc into the CD/DVD-ROM drive and follow the instructions that are displayed to install the operating system.
Tags: computer case, disk drive, power supply, your motherboard, access memory, access memory chips