Secret page

Right, this is meant as a reference for people who have some idea what they're doing.

If you get stuck or have no idea, post in the forum as people will be able to help you better than this generic guide to everything.

Hardware

Processors

Manufacturers

AMD Vs. Intel - Current best of each, and best overall (also best perf/£)

Intel, AMD and VIA (most common in mini-ITX motherboards)

Sockets

Most recent sockets that you're still likely to find.

• A (AMD)
• 423 (Intel)
• 478 (Intel)
• LGA775 (Intel)
• 754 (AMD)
• 940 (AMD)
• 939 (AMD)
• AM2 (AMD)

Cores

Number of cores, performance effect

Temperatures

Ideally the max temp of any CPU should be below 70 degrees, with below 60 being ideal.

More info in the cooling section.

Memory

Types

(obsolete)

• SDRAM (168-pin modules)

Getting old now, still turns up in older Socket A, Socket 423 and some older Socket 478 Motherboards.

• PC-66: SDR at 66 MHz
• PC-100: SDR at 100 MHz
• PC-133: SDR at 133 MHz

• RDRAM (RIMM)

Old, very rarely used, very pricey nowadays, was mainly used in some Socket 423 and Socket 478 Motherboards.

(current)

• DDR (184-pin modules)

Used in Socket 754, 939, 940 and Intel 478 Motherboards.

• DDR2 (240-pin modules)

Used in Socket 775 and AM2 Motherboards.

(future)

• DDR3

Not yet used.

Speeds

DDR

• PC-1600: DDR at 100 MHz using DDR-200 chips
• PC-2100: DDR at 133 MHz using DDR-266 chips
• PC-2700: DDR at 166 MHz using DDR-333 chips
• PC-3200: DDR at 200 MHz using DDR-400 chips
• PC-3500: DDR at 216 MHz using DDR-433 chips*
• PC-4000: DDR at 250 MHz using DDR-500 chips*

DDR2

• PC-4200: DDR2 at 266 MHz using DDR2-533 chips
• PC-5300: DDR2 at 333 MHz using DDR2-667 chips
• PC-6400: DDR2 at 400 MHz using DDR2-800 chips
• PC-8000: DDR2 at 500 MHz using DDR2-1000 chips*
• PC-8500: DDR2 at 533 MHz using DDR2-1066 chips*
• PC-9600: DDR2 at 600 MHz using DDR2-1200 chips*

*These are non-standard, generally manufacturers making memory faster than specified (mainly for overclockers)

Heatsinks (ramsinks)

Ramsinks do /not/ help the memory cool, but they can help keep temps stable which can help with system stability.

Generally don't bother unless they came fitted on your memory

Motherboards

Sockets

See CPU Socket Guide

Multi-GPU

Specific technologies will be covered in depth in the graphics card section.

For a motherboard to be able to support a multi-gpu technology it has to specifically made to do so, this usually requires The motherboard to have;

A Chipset which supports your chosen technology (either Nvidia's SLI or ATI's Crossfire) A pair of Physical PCI-E 16x Slots (often only the primary slot will be 16x electronically, with the secondary being 8x electronically)

Layouts

Motherboards are often laid out similarly, but there are Differences with the placement of the cable connections, often these differences can make some motherboards unusable with some cases, also certain placements of cables can restrict airflow and impede cooling.

Heatpipes

Some makers use heatpipes for cooling components on the motherboard,

However the heatpipes used often do not work as well if the motherboard is used flat or upside-down (as in lian li v1000 etc)

Optical Drives

Types

• CD
• DVD
• HDHVD
• BluRay

Interfaces

Optical drives will talk on PATA or SATA (the latter being less common, but now coming down in price)

Hard Drives

Types

• 2.5" (Laptop)
• 3.5" (Desktop)

longitudinal perpendicular

Interfaces

PATA, SATA, Blah

Cache

2,8 or 16MB

Speeds (RPM)

Common speeds are

• 5400rpm
• 7200rpm
• 10000rpm

RAID

Redundant Array of Inexpensive Disks

Most common RAID levels:

Common problems

Death

Interfaces

pata/sata (maybe warrants a section?)

Video Cards

Multi-Card Solutions

SLI vs. Crossfire

Pictures and how they go together

Brands

For gaming graphics cards come down to nvidia vs. ATI - The majority of graphics cards will just be repackaged reference boards from nvidia or ATI with a few small tweaks (usually just a different sticker, heatsink or a minor overclock.)

Memory

Beware low end cards bearing masses of memory.

Often you'll be far better off with a higher end card sporting 256Mb of memory, than a mid range card with 512mb of memory as a less-powerful card will not be able to use the memory efficiently enough to warrant the extra memory.

TV out

Looks like shite on older CRT televisions, often not worth the time and effort taken.

Looks pretty decent on HDTVs but redundant as they'll often have VGA, DVI or HDMI connections which allow for high enough resolutions without excessive cable shuffling

Connectors

The most common connectors on Graphics cards are DVI, D-sub, HDMI (on some newer cards) and an 8-pin din plug component/composite for TV out.

• labelled photos*

Sound Cards

Soundcards are another oft overlooked component of mid-range computers for reasons we'll cover below.

Onboard vs. Soundcard

Onboard sound can be a great feature for family desktops and non-gaming machines.

However, as onboard sound uses the CPU for Processing sounds there is a risk of gameplay affecting performance issues when using onboard sound.

Also onboard sound can often pick up noise from interference on the motherboard which can sound like very quiet pops and clicks, this is often only a problem on headphones as speakers aren't sensitive enough to pick them up and any digital outputs aren't prone to the interference, but is worth a mention nonetheless.

Soundcards use a dedicated processor to process sound information with negligible load on the CPU, this improves overall performance including higher framerates.

Recommended cards

audigy/audigy 2, SBlive.

Surround, digital etc.

Surround is an area where onboard sound can excel in the price/performance field as many onboard sound systems support 5.1 or 7.1 surround over analogue and digital

You can also run a full analogue or digital surround system on your onboard sound for media purposes, while keeping a soundcard dedicated for gaming.

Power Supplies

General

Power Supplies (PSUs) are the most often overlooked and underspecced component in a computer.

Often a poor PSU will cause system instability, unexpected problems and can lead to component damage.

Wattages

Before we get into how many watts a PSU needs, we need to understand the ways it can be measured

Wattage on a PSU is usually quoting peak output, or sustained output.

Peak output (what most cheap PSUs are measured in) refers to the peak wattage a PSU can put out for a short period of time (seconds) often these will be fine for a while, then will develop issues (from being overloaded) and die horribly, potentially killing other components

Sustained output (nice PSUs) refers to the output the PSU can give all day every day without issue, sometimes a PSU that has a sustained output will also mention a peak somewhere such as "650W (710W peak)"

How big a PSU do i need?

If you're running a single GPU system, you'll need a 450W PSU max.

If you're running a dual GPU system, you'll need a PSU around the 550-600W Mark

PSU Calculator

Modding

*DANGER*

Anything within this section will probably kill you and your family if you fuck up

Fan Speed mod (also fan replacement)

Cable sheathing (pffft. sheath)

Case replacements, just don't, bad chav.

Cases

Types

• Standard ATX

ATX is your bog standard form factor from the past few years. Chances are if you own a computer it's living in an ATX case

• Upside down ATX (notes about not BTX)

Some ATX cases mount the motherboard upside-down as it can allow for better cooling and cleaner airflow.

These cases are often Called BTX cases by people who don't know better, BTX is a separate standard covered below, Upside down ATX cases adhere to all the ATX standards, but hold the motherboard upside down.

• BTX

BTX is a new form factor designed to replace ATX while offering better cooling and better designs for components

• SSF

SSF is not a form factor, but is a terrm used to describe cases such as shuttles.

• Mini-ITX

Is a very compact form factor designed by via, often used for in-car PCs and home-theater PCs as they're low noise, very low power consumption and heat output.

Materials

alu,steel

Layouts

where stuff goes in standard and common but weird cases

Modding

windows, lights, stealthing.

Monitors

LCD Vs. CRT

Pros/cons of each

connectors

DVI,D-sub, tv stuff.

Peripherals

Keyboards

simple cheap keyboards

nice expensive keyboards

Mice

gaming mice

Wired vs. Wireless

pros, cons, blah blah blah

Joysticks

eurgh (yes, that's what she said)

Gamepads

Unfortunately for PC gamepads your choices are pretty limited these days, often all you'll get are nasty Playstation controller clones.

If you own a PS2, Xbox or Xbox360 you may do well to buy a suitable controller > USB adaptor such as This for the PS2.

Adaptors and connectors

how to make plug A go into socket B (generally a bigger hammer)

Graphics Tablets

wacom, NEXT!

Card Readers

handy.

Overclocking

Potential of given types, risks and gains, low-cost options

FSB

overvolting (list of standard voltages for cpus?)