Building a PC for a Friend (nick99nack): Successes, Problems, and Finality

1. The Unexpected Catalyst: A Complimentary Case

Did you ever anticipate receiving a message about a complimentary PC case procured by a friend from their workplace? I certainly didn't, nor did I foresee it becoming the impetus for an entirely new PC build endeavor.

To provide some context, it was intimated to me on April 2nd that "a custodian mentioned this morning his intention to gift me a computer case—ostensibly functional aside from a defunct fan. Apparently, his daughter encountered this issue during her PC build, received a replacement case, and the original remained." Initially, I dismissed the notion, until it resurfaced on April 8th. At the early hour of 6:24 AM, I received a direct message from Nick, complete with a photograph of the case he had indeed acquired gratis from his workplace: a Phanteks XT Pro in White. My immediate reaction was one of approbation—it's an aesthetically pleasing case. When queried about its potential use, I suggested, "Preserve it for a future build." Little did I suspect I would soon be architecting a component list around it. Admittedly, this gained urgency as component prices were poised to fucking skyrocket due to impending tariffs (thanks, current administration). Naturally, I was more than willing to assist and began posing the standard inquiries: target performance, desired Linux compatibility, budgetary constraints, and so forth.

Assuming everything proceeds favorably, this PC build should be quite formidable!

2. Architecting the Initial Component List

Constructing a parts list isn't inherently complex; the paramount concern is ensuring component compatibility. The preliminary selection comprised the following:

First Draft Build:

• CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D 4.7GHz 8 Core Processor
• CPU Cooler: ARCTIC Liquid Freezer III 360 56.3 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler
• Motherboard: Gigabyte B850 AORUS ELITE WIFI7 ICE ATX AM5 Motherboard
• Memory: G.Skill Flare X5 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL30 Memory
• Storage: Samsung 990 Pro 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive
• GPU: Gigabyte EAGLE OC ICE SFF GeForce RTX 5070 Ti 16 GB Video Card (This listing proved fraudulent, elaborated upon later)
• PSU: Corsair RM850x (2024) 850 W Fully Modular ATX Power Supply

Initially, this configuration appeared quite robust. Nothing seemed egregiously mismatched, and it represented a significant upgrade from his extant Dell Precision 7820 Tower, which housed dual Intel Xeon Silver 4110 CPUs, a substantial 176GB of RAM, and a Radeon RX 580.

Many components on the list were truly impressive. Consider the 9800X3D: arguably one of the premier gaming CPUs currently available, owing largely to its innovative 3D V-Cache technology. The liquid cooler, however? Admittedly, it bordered on excessive for the 9800X3D, a CPU not particularly notorious for thermal challenges—certainly not comparable to an Intel i9 13th or 14th generation chip. Nevertheless, overkill in cooling isn't necessarily detrimental here, provided temperatures don't dip below ambient (a highly improbable scenario). Regarding the motherboard, Gigabyte enjoys a solid reputation, although the B850 chipset represents a more modest tier. G.Skill memory was selected for its similar renown. The Samsung 990 Pro SSD offered an appealing blend of velocity and capacity, the prospective 5070Ti promised substantial performance, and an 850W PSU was chosen to power the ensemble adequately.

I presumed that would conclude the planning phase. We momentarily paused, until an unforeseen price escalation occurred with the 5070Ti, soaring from $554 to $1,052. That precipitated a state of panic.

2.1. Panic, Haste, and Procurement Predicaments

Anticipating a smooth process? You would be gravely mistaken. Alas, this was merely the prelude to further complications...

Difficulties began compounding when we observed the price surge for the 5070Ti, inflating the projected cost from approximately $1,800 to over $3,000. This induced mutual panic, and as is often the case, panic breeds haste.

that's fucking insane how fast that went up - nick99nack

Amidst the turmoil, we located what appeared to be a reasonably priced 5080, listed around $800. However, rational thought evaporates during panic. Components were acquired precipitously. A semblance of calm returned, only to be shattered upon closer examination of the GPU listing... specifically, the seller. My heart plummeted.

Maksym Kovtun1... okay this is NOT HELPING - nick99nack

This discovery immediately raised numerous fucking red flags, particularly considering the improbability of a legitimate 5080 being offered at such a low price point. Fortuitously, no funds had been transferred, as further investigation confirmed the listing was unequivocally a scam. I urged Nick to cancel the order for the damn GPU immediately; its suspicious nature stood in stark contrast to all other listings. Naturally, I felt like a complete fucking idiot for my oversight—come on, Lyra, diligence is paramount in these matters! We pivoted to a Radeon 9070 sold by XPC, who appeared reputable and subsequently proved to be a legitimate vendor.

It proved quite vexing that certain components—namely the GPU, cooler, and PSU—arrived with surprising celerity, while the CPU experienced the most protracted delivery time, ironically originating from Amazon. Nevertheless, confirmation that all procured parts were authentic provided some solace. Now, let us proceed to the assembly experience itself.

3. The Final Configuration and Assembly Tribulations

Eventually, all components were delivered. The assembly stream was scheduled for April 25th (God damn, the wait felt interminable). Unfortunately, this plan was scuppered when my air conditioning unit's relay decided to fucking expire, necessitating an overnight hotel stay and a return to an oppressively hot and humid building. This disruption postponed the stream, which encountered further delays owing to subsequent issues. C'est la vie. For now, let's examine the final parts manifest:

Final Build:

• CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 9800X3D 4.7GHz 8 Core Processor
• CPU Cooler: ARCTIC Liquid Freezer III 360 56.3 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler
• Motherboard: ASRock X870 Pro RS ATX AM5 Motherboard
• Memory: Crucial Pro Overclocking 64 GB (4 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL36 Memory
• Storage: Samsung 990 Pro 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive
• GPU: Sapphire PULSE Radeon RX 9070 16 GB Video Card
• PSU: be quiet! Pure Power 12 M 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply

At long last, all components were on hand and ready for assembly—a substantial enhancement over his existing Precision tower!

Fucking finally, it took so goddamn long to arrive but at least it's finally here

Most components arrived intact, with notable exceptions: the GPU package was regrettably left exposed to rain by the UPS courier, and while the processor itself was unharmed, its packaging sustained a dent. Unfortunate incidents, but thankfully, no critical damage occurred.

God damn you UPS! Fucking assholes left a $900 part in the rain, and fuck you too USPS for denting the box.

When the time arrived for system assembly, the second streaming attempt commenced successfully... only to be abruptly halted by a leaking cooler.

Well shit... the fucking cooler is leaking... off to Amazon returns we go.

The standard procedure ensued: contact Amazon, acquire a return label, dispatch the defective item. The replacement cooler arrived the following Friday, mercifully free of leaks. I understand that manufacturing defects occur—shit happens, as they say—but it remained an inconvenient setback. The only other significant hurdle involved the motherboard initially exhibiting POST errors when populated with all four RAM modules. (This troubleshooting occurred off-stream, discussed privately with Nick.) After some persistence, the system successfully posted. Subsequently, a BIOS update resolved most of the memory compatibility issues. Now *THIS* is progress!

Now THIS is EPIC, it's really finally done, after almost a whole goddamn month.

4. Post-Assembly Performance and Resolution

I won't bore you with the minutiae of the Windows installation; the process is universally familiar. No, no, I perceive what truly piques your interest~ You desire those performance metrics, don't you~? Good boy/girl~ XD

What can I articulate, other than proclaiming it an awesome build? While we didn't capture exhaustive metrics, anecdotally, game performance was commendable, devoid of any significant FPS fluctuations. In the LLM benchmark utilizing LLaMa 3.2 3b (Q4_K_M quantization), performance mirrored my laptop's at approximately 143 Tokens/second. Notably, this was achieved using the Vulkan backend, whose efficacy on AMD hardware was initially uncertain but demonstrably proficient. Ultimately, I am simply gratified that the system is operational, fully assembled, and finally ready to be enjoyed.

A significant source of satisfaction stems from knowing he now possesses a more potent machine. It's not that his previous PC was inadequate, merely that this new build surpasses it—save for the RAM capacity and 10Gb Ethernet, where the predecessor retains its advantage.

Well, finality has been achieved. The PC stands complete, the majority of issues have been rectified, and contentment prevails. Despite the considerable amount of shit we navigated, I would assert the endeavor was ultimately worthwhile in this instance. Congratulations to you, dear reader, for persevering through my admittedly shitty prose. Your attention is genuinely appreciated~