Computer Shopper - UK (2021-01)

ISSUE395|COMPUTER SHOPPER|JANUARY2021 69

(SSD)for storage.
Farfaster than a
harddisk, SSDswill
makeyour computer
bootfaster andfeel
moreresponsive.
If your computer
supports an M.2
NVMedrive,then
buy this type. A
minimum of 256GB
as abootdriveis
recommended, but
buy as bigadriveas
youcan afford.
Mechanical hard
disks areuseful if
youwanttohavea
load of cheap
storage, say forfiles,
but theyare alot
slower. If youcan
go all-flash,you’ll appreciatethe speed
increase andreduced noisethat youget;
however,gowhereyour budgetwill allow
and getthe rightamountofstorage.

MINI-ITX

Finally,should youbuild amini PC with
Mini-ITX components? If youdo, youcan
getamuchsmaller computer,not much
bigger than agames console. However,
the build tends to be tougherasyou’ll
haveless room to work in,and youmay
need to buy moreexpensivelow-profile
components suchaspower supply units
and CPU coolers. With this kindofbuild,
opting foranM.2 SSD makesalot of
sense to save space.
Ultimately,Mini-ITX computers area
great waytosavespace, but youhaveto
makecompromiseselsewhere.Inthisguide,
we’vefocused on putting together a
traditional PC (ATX and microATX),
although many of the tips apply to building
aMini-ITXcomputer,too.

Y

our PC’scasewillholdeverythingthat

you’vebuilt, so it makessense to start

here, preparing it to house your computer.

At this point,it’sworth talking about static

and the danger it poses to your computer.

Staticelectricity canfry delicate

components. Although this isn’tcommon,

it’ssomethingtowatch outfor andprotect

against. At the minimum, makesurethat

youdischargeany staticbytouchingthe

metalpartofyour case before youtouch

anycomponents.Ananti-staticwristband is

agood, and cheap, wayofprotecting your

components, too.

TAKETHESIDEPANELSOFF

Youshould remove both of the side panels:

one gives youaccess to wherethe main

components go,the otherisfor cable

routing andmay be usedtohouseadrive

bay or two.

Most cases will havethumbscrewsatthe

back. However, somemodels havescrews

hidden behind the frontpanel,soyou may

need to remove that first.Oncethe screws

areout, thepanels slideback andcan be

liftedout of the way. Youshould storethese

somewheresafewhile youwork on the

insideofyour computer,

and youwon’t need these

again until the end. 1

ORGANISE

DRIVEBAYS

Inside the case,look at

howmanydrivebaysyou

have. Youshould have

5.25in bays foroptical

drives, 3.5in baysfor

regular harddisks and

2.5in bays forSSDs. The

latterwill be availableina

modern case butcould be

providedfor by adaptors

that fit into 3.5in bays if

you’reusing an old case.

Theremay be drivebays,

often2.5in ones, around

the back of the case, too.

PREPARETHE CASE

These arehandy forkeeping SSDsout of

the wayand maximising airflowthrough

the mainpart of thecase.

Somedrivebaysmay be removable,

usually by undoing athumbscrew –check

your case’s manual first. If removing optional

baysleaves youwith enough baysfor your

drives, then it’s worthtaking outthe extra

ones. This givesyou moreroom to work

inside thecaseand helps improve airflow.

REMOVEBLANKINGPLATES

If youwanttoinstall an opticaldrive, now’sa

good time to remove the blanking plate.

Locate thetopmost 5.25indrivebay and

push from the inside of thecase outwards

until the plastic blanking platedrops out;

youmay need to squeezethe retainingclips

slightly.Afair bit of forceisusually required

to getthe blanking plate to popout.

LAYTHECASEDOWN

Forthe next bit of work, you’ll need to have

the case lying flatonits side. Make sure

that the larger cavity is facing upwards.

The other sideofthe case, pointing

downwardsnow,won’t need to be

accessed forawhile. 2

TOP TIP

Lookoutfortheboxof

accessories,whichis

oftenslottedintooneof

the 5. (^25) indrivebays.
You’llneedthis,asitwillcon
s tainallthe
crews,blankingplatesand
y thelikethat
ou’llneedtocompleteyour
build.

1

2

ABOVE:AMini-ITX PC is console-sized, but you
may need to compromise on components

LEFT:An M.2NVMe

drivesaves spaceand

delivers the best

performance

BUILDYOURDREAMPCFROM SCRATCH