re: Computer wont boot.. if it does, it freezes. Updated ***

It actually just let me run the whole windows installation without going black.. one sec

I'm actually in windows now..

I don't understand why

Maybe i was shorting myself out somewhere?

You see, when I finally got through the whole windows instillation i did it by not even screwing in my MB - just let it sit there... maybe i was screwing it in too tight and i lost connection somewhere?

No cooler - here this is my system set up - I only had like 900-1k to spend so leave me alone about the set up

Samsung DVD Burner
Asus M5A99X EVO R2.0
AMD FX-4300
I have 2 of these in here (WD Blue 1 TB A piece)
Ballistix Tactical 16 Gb Ram
SC Gtx 650 Ti Boost
Thor V2
Corsair Tx850 Watt


I could also use help OC'ing the ram.. I haven't done it yet but I'm curious how much faster and more responsive it will become

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Maybe i was shorting myself out somewhere?

You see, when I finally got through the whole windows instillation i did it by not even screwing in my MB - just let it sit there... maybe i was screwing it in too tight and i lost connection somewhere?

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DING DING DING. This is now my choice for what happened. I had it happen once, where there was one specific pattern of hold-offs and screw-downs that worked, and ANYTHING else failed, with reasonably similar symptoms to you.

Good luck.

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DING DING DING. This is now my choice for what happened. I had it happen once, where there was one specific pattern of hold-offs and screw-downs that worked, and ANYTHING else failed, with reasonably similar symptoms to you.

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Yeah, there's a trend in every chipset series of the lower-tier boards having thinner PCBs and being more prone to warping. It happens more commonly when you over-tighten an aftermarket cooler that uses a backplate for tension, or if you use a low-quality case with thin metal.

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What do you think about the set up though? What should I improve on next?

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When was it built?

The things that jump out at me the most:
- excessive RAM. If you built that a few years ago, that's even more excessive. 8GB is plenty for gaming. My system has 16GB these days, but I use it for a lot more than just gaming.

- Huge case. A full tower for a barebones stock setup with one graphics card is weird.

- Not sure what you paid for the PSU, but it's beyond excessive.

- GPU is incredibly weak compared to what you could've purchased had you properly allocated your budget.

A $1,000 budget gaming PC today ideally will be a well-rounded machine using this budget allocation as a guide:



- $200-ish CPU (like an i5 or FX-8350) and a budget aftermarket cooler like the hyper 212 evo.
- Basic motherboard that supports SLI/crossfire and overclocking, in the $100-130 range
- 8GB DDR3 1600 memory
- $250-300 video card, like the 280x, or an even better card if bought used
- 120-250GB SSD paired with a basic HDD like the caviar blue
- 80+ bronze or better 650W+ PSU from a good manufacturer (note: brand =/= manufacturer)
- Basic mid-tower case in the $50-75 range.

You won't gain any game performance with a CPU upgrade unless you're playing particularly CPU-intensive games like Civilization and other RTS games, maybe. You need a better video card. That should be your next upgrade above everything else in terms of gaming performance. It's the weakest part of your build by a mile.

If you want to upgrade the CPU along with the GPU, get the 8320 or 8350. Of course, an SSD would also be nice to add on top of that.

You should've never even considered that CPU and GPU if you built this less than a year ago.

Not here, the gaming board. That's where you'll get the most valuable help.