When the postie comes, I’ll be building a PC for the first time in years. What are the do’s, don’ts and tips nowadays?
Obviously classics like RTFM, plan ahead and retrieve any dropped screws are evergreen.
Things I believe are true: tighten your CPU cooler screws evenly (like putting on a car tyre), all screws should be no more than finger tight, build in a dust-free environment.
What about grounding yourself? I remember reading that the danger of this was way overstated and e.g. anti-static wrist straps were a waste of money. Is building in a case that’s plugged in (but powered off) enough?
I’ve seen recommendations to build outside of the case first to test components - is this good advice?
Anything else?
These probably aren’t new tips depending how many “years” since your last build, but good reminders anyway:
nvme SSDs should be installed with one end on a stand off of some kind (this will be preinstalled on the board 99% of the time) so that it is parallel to the motherboard when it’s plugged in and secured down. The SSD should not be angled downward.
If you’re not using every RAM slot, make sure to check which slots to use (usually the 2nd and 4th slots counting from closest to furthest from the CPU)
Make sure to check that the appropriate standoffs for your size of motherboard are installed and no extras are in place.