DIY Inexpensive Computer

My laptop is a few years old now (Hanukkah/Christmas gift in 2005) and I haven't upgraded the RAM or anything yet. Although it works just fine for my needs it begins to be a little slow during mixing and mastering of large projects. Putting together a near top of the line machine that is memory and processing heavy from commercial web sites (Dell, etc.) usually comes with tons of expensive junk that I don't want nor need (high-end video, expensive CD/DVD drives, Windows Vista, other software bundles, warrenty, etc.).

I decided to save a little money on a case (usually between $40 and $100) and went for a unique design. Mounting a computer on a piece of plywood is sort of artsy (technology vs. simple wood), looks neat, and with all of the pieces exposed the computer will stay very cool; thus will run faster.

[Click to enlarge]

Overview of building a computer from scratch:
One can easily put together a powerful computer on any number of commercial websites (Dell, etc.), but when it comes down to it building a computer from scratch is not that difficult. Seven basic pieces make up a computer these days. You'll need a motherboard to route all the signals from the various components, a processor to run calculations and to "think," CPU cooling fan that sits on top of the processor to keep it cool (do not run a computer without this or you will fry the processor), memory/RAM to provide a quick place to store calculations for the CPU to process, a hard drive to store information, and a power supply to distribute power to all of these components. Usually you'll want a CD/DVD drive as well, but even these are becoming outdated media - especially since it's possible to boot to a USB jump drive to install an operating system and other software.

Most small desktop computers have audio, video, eithernet, and USB components built into the motherboard so these are either A) not necessary to add, or B) can be added/upgraded via PCI slots. I added a firewire hub via PCI card. Audio and video upgrades won't be necessary since I will be using my mixer as the auido card (via firewire), and my needs are not graphics-heavy so I don't need to use an upgraded graphics card (usually between $40-$200 for gamers/video producers). Don't forget a mouse, keyboard, and monitor. NOW it's done.


Construction / Pricing:

Computer - $256.99 (add $20 shipping)

• Intel D945GCPE 3.0 GHz MicroATX Motherboard - $56.41
  - Onboard audio, video, eithernet, USB 2.0
  
• Intel Pentium D 925 3.0 GHz Dual-Core Processor - $73.58
  
• CPU Cooling Fan - 24.99
  
• 2 GB DDR2 RAM - $59.99
  - 2 x 1024 MB sticks
• 350-Watt ATX Power supply - $24.99
• 4-port Firewire PCI Card - $16.99
• I had a spare 80GB hard drive laying around but these are cheap (as of summer 2009, a 500GB internal SATA hard drive goes for 60 bucks. Can't beat that! [P.S. yes, you can beat that.])
  
• I also had a spare CD/DVD burner (~$40)
• Go to a local computer repair/electronics shop and pick up a soft booting power switch/restart switch, LED lights, and a small PC speaker. These plug into pins on the motherboard (illustrated very well on the motherboard's instructions sheet) and let you turn the computer on. The LED's will let you know when the machine is running, and the speaker beeps when the computer boots or has an error. These are very cheap: under $5.

Mounting - $20-30

• Plywood board (around 14" x 18" x 1/2")
  
  
• Machine screws 1 1/2"
  
• Rubber washers
• Plastic spacers
• Hex nuts
  - Mark and drill holes on the plywood where mounting screws secure the motherboard (look for the mounting holes on the motherboard)
  
  
  
  
• Drywall screws
• 4 rubber feet
  - Drill four pilot holes through the plywood
  - Drive a drywall screw (sharp point) through the hole; it should be a hand tight fit
  - Screw on the rubber stoppers
  
  
• Romex / strong gauge wire
  - The two coated wires in romex wire bundles are great for mounting the power supply, hard drive, and CD/DVD/Floppy drives to the plywood. Do not use the uncoated ground wire
  - Drill small holes through the plywood, just large enough to fit the wire through
  - Use pliers to bend the wire around squared corners to fit the component well, and to pull the wire tight on the bottom of the board
  

I added a couple more bolts/plastic spacers to help secure the drives/power box in place. Otherwise that's it. Now just add a monitor (I found a nice flat panel LCD on Craigslist for $100), keyboard, mouse, and install an operating system and you're ready to go.