Custom PC

In the midst of the pandemic, I set out to build my own PC before prices soared higher than they already were. I chose to pick "last generation" hardware to save money, but also modern enough that I can use the PC for years without changing out parts.

I built a parts list on NewEgg, and check part compatibility on PcPartPicker. The B550-F motherboard from ASUS gave the platform I needed to build the system while being very capable of receiving upgrades down the road. The Ryzen 7 3700X CPU, 16 GB of G.Skill RAM, and Corsair AX 850 power supply complemented those capabilities of the motherboard well. Shortly after picking out the core hardware components the Noctua U14S cooler, Fractal Meshify case & fans, and Samsung 500GB SSD completed the peripherals of the system.

However, the looming problem of acquiring a graphics card still remained. As any options of a new card were either out of stock or over priced, I went to eBay to seek out a card that would manage to do most things I needed it to. The Nvidia 1050 Ti I managed to land for a decent price worked well for me.

After a few weeks of use, I quickly realized that my Solidworks assemblies for work needed more RAM to function, and I ended up adding an additional 16GB of RAM. The storage was also tight, so a 2TB HDD was necessary as well.

A few months after using the system, I managed to win a NewEgg Shuffle. This lottery win gave me an opportunity to purchase a Nvidia 3060 Ti for a relatively low value. At least compared to the scalper prices elsewhere online.

This was a seamless transition, and should prove to be a useful addition for many years.

An upcoming aspect of this build involves overclocking and undervolting the computer's CPU, and perhaps the RAM & GPU. This combination of the two processes are called clocktuning. This will result in a lower power draw, better thermal performance, and increased computational power. Although results vary based on the quality of the chips in that specific product. As there are some minor defects in the chips, even in ones that pass quality control.

There are a variety of tools that make this tedious process easier, and I intend to use them. The most essential of these tools are the Ryzen Master utility and the Ryzen Clocktuner from 1usmus. These two tools will make the clocktunign process for the CPU a breeze.

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