The Art of Building a PC: A Step-by-Step Guide with Anna and Corsair

In today's video, we're joined by Anna, who will be building one of Corsair's fancy new DIY PCs. Anna feels pretty good about this project, having last built a PC over a year ago. However, her previous experience was marred by a fatal error that caused the PC to crash repeatedly. Fingers crossed that nothing else goes wrong this time.

The Unpacking Instructions

Anna begins by unpacking the Corsair build kit, which comes with crystal clear instructions. Despite finding it difficult at first, Anna manages to unpack the components like a pro. She then QR codes some build instructions, which leads her to an online page where she can verify that all the hardware has been received using a provided hardware checklist.

The Case and Top Sheet

Anna takes out the top sheet from the case and organizes the components on it to protect them and the tabletop. It's clear that David, a fellow builder, doesn't take this step seriously enough. His tabletop is screwed very much in place, leaving no room for protection. Anna, on the other hand, prioritizes component safety.

The Motherboard Installation

Anna discovers her nemesis – the motherboard – and sets out to install it. She follows the CPU installation instructions carefully, but soon realizes that she's dealing with a more complex system than expected. After some initial struggles, Anna manages to remove the motherboard from its packaging and place it on an anti-static bag.

The Front I/O Cable Installation

Anna proceeds to uninstall no cable, install rim, and install front I/O cables. However, her first attempt at installing these cables ends in disaster – they're all screwed down the wrong way! Undeterred, Anna quickly consults the manual and figures out the correct installation process.

The CPU Power Cable Cooler and Fan Installation

Anna installs the CPU power cable and cooler, followed by the fans onto the radiator. She explains that she likes the fact that Corsair has chosen a gaming-inspired shape for their PC. The instructions lead her to attach an Intel standoff for the motherboard socket, where she also installs the front fan.

The GPU Installation

Anna unboxes the graphics card and removes the second through fourth screws and back plates. She installs the graphics card onto the first PCIe slot on the motherboard and secures it with case screws removed earlier in the process. Depending on the model of her graphics card, Anna may need to connect a power adapter or two GPU power cables.

The Rear Panel Installation

Anna struggles with installing the rear panel, which becomes a frustratingly difficult task. She eventually manages to get it in place, but not before some tense moments.

The Final Touches

With the PC assembled, Anna sets about stuffing cables and holes into the case. The final rear panel installation is surprisingly easy after the previous struggle. However, there's one last thing left to do – flipping the switch at the back of the PC.

Will It Work?

Anna flips the switch, but unfortunately, she gets it wrong. Despite this setback, Anna is confident that her PC will work once she figures out what went wrong.

The Final System Check

With the pre-installed Windows up and running, Anna decides to put her PC through its paces. She spends some time tweaking settings to improve performance, including cranking up the graphics in Cyberpunk.

Temperature and Performance

Anna's PC performs well, with temperatures staying low and the system remaining quiet. The performance is impressive, especially considering the 1080p resolution and medium-level ray tracing.

Conclusion

Anna reflects on her experience building a PC, saying it was a fun and therapeutic process. Despite some initial fears, she feels accomplished and proud of what she's achieved.

WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: entoday's video is sponsored by Corsair where Anna will be building one of corsair's fancy new DIY  PC kids how are you feeling about that I'm feeling pretty good so the last time I built a PC was more  than a year ago and how well did the last time go there was one fatal error so the PC kept crashing  um and I think that may be the reason whybut now that I know not to forget that let's hope that nothing else bad happensthank youohthese are the unpacking instructions and with the crystal clear instructions Anna managed to unpack  the Corsair build kit available in the link in the description like a pro this be difficult  after which Anna QR coded some build instructions this is where the page where the QR code leads you  open your Corsair build kit verify you received all of the hardware using the  hardware checklist provided and Asana soon found out there was only one thing Corsair  forgot to pack what about your mama is that on that list uh so we're going to organize  and place all your components on the top sheet to protect your components and tabletop as you  can see David does not do that usually and his tabletop is screwed very much not protected yeahtimesand once inside the case Anna discovered her nemesisI don't think I'm allowed to help you here like I said don't think so  I don't know if I get the knife involved so quickly there you go I did it removed  the motherboard from its packaging and place it on the anti-static bag providedAnna Then skillfully followed the CPU installation instructions here's the little triangle  and there's the little trianglebut it didn't take Anna long to discover Nemesis 2.0yeah that's not right that's a long screwdriver but eventually  Anna figured it out and could get to some screwingokay next we're gonna uninstall no unpack and install our rimbut I screwed them all down after retrieving  the screwdriver Anna discovered the joys of front i o cable installationthat is very not correct no but a quick look at the manual and Anna figured it  out in no time next we're going to do the CPU power cable cooler and fan installation  I think it's my birthday and I like the fact that they've chosen their own gamery  shape you know so there's a cohesiveness so it said to get out the CPU oh I see CPU  install the necessary CPU power cables in the top left corner of the motherboardnext okay install the two fans onto the radiator as exhaust using the long screws is this gonna go  here I think and then this is going to go here  so we want the fans to go on this side do you ever think Okay so I'm also gonna have the  fans so that the the logo is the same and the fans are kind of oriented oh it's gonna yeahthere's something really satisfying about this  like more than I was expecting there like it would be hardso it says attach the provided Intel standoff for your socketyesso they said to remove the fan that's at the front and then we're going to replace it with theseoh look at that bank of fans nice and I got the cables out the side good the little holes here so  um this should be nice and easy for cable managementclickyourso I've just unpacked the GPU so I have to remove the second third and fourth screws and back platesinstall the graphics are on the first pcie slot on the motherboard secure the graphics card with  the case screws that were removed in step one of this section do we take the plastic off before  uh what is your gut to tell you my gut's telling me to do it nowso I've just pushed pushed little Graphics called Lippy thing down saying that this is rightdepending on the model of your graphics card you may need two  GPU power cables if your graphics card includes a power adapter connect the  adapter to the GPU then connect the GPU power cables to the adapter thank youyay that thought looks pretty neat okay that's so professional thank  you I'm actually gonna put it with a fan facing at the bottoma good time can you just shoveI can just go at the top okay that's the closest I've gotten it a whole oh ohno it's so messyhey honestly if the back panel goes on that's the only thing that matters that's  the only measurement yeah that's the only measure of success oh okay okay and after  not much time stuffing cables and holes Anna was ready for the final rear panel struggle ohah therehey hey it's on and after that surprisingly easy panel fit there  was just one thing left to do before firing it updo you think it's gonna work I do okay cool let's see okay I'm gonna  flip the switch at the back oh I I always forget to do that yeah that's a good jobcan we have flip the switch the wrong wayI love that you did end up debating new CPU installed but before we see how the  system runs after Anna set up the pre-installed Windows let's quickly admire Anna's handiworkand I decided to do some cyberpunk and we had to crank the crap out of the settings because  this is 1080p are you ready I am I don't do much driving oh yeah it's the worst car ever  and what do my clicks do nothing in the car yeah so this is with Ray tracing on medium  yeah look at the the light reflecting like the sun reflecting off of her yeah look at that carwow temperatures are very good it's nice and quiet so Anna what what was it like  it was it was a really fun experience less scary than I thought it was going  to be and it's a surprisingly therapeutic process at the end  of it I feel like I'm accomplished like yeah you did you build a species laughs