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Can a 13 Year - Old Build a Gaming PC?

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  • Tom's Hardware
  • Build
Last response: in Systems
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May 18, 2014 5:59:57 PM

I was looking to build a gaming pc for my birthday, I have my parts selected and all, but can I do it? I have been watching build guides and tutorials on how to do it all. After all I am much more concerned on how my selected parts (http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3MDaF) will perform when it is all put together and ready to go.

Here are the specs;

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 760K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($84.74 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus F2A85-M PRO Micro ATX FM2 Motherboard ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.24 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 750 Ti 2GB FTW ACX Video Card ($169.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 450D ATX Mid Tower Case ($119.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $778.91

My set budget was $800, is this configuration a good use of my budget? Let me know

More about : year build gaming

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May 18, 2014 6:11:49 PM

this is a good build, but i would change 2 things: get an fx 6300 and am3+ mobo, it will be faster, overclock better, and you can upgrade to an 8xxx chip. and there is no reason a 10 year old couldnt build a computer as long as you are careful and know what you are doing. just follow a guide on youtube from linus, ncix (still linus) or neweggtv. my tip would be to make sure you are careful putting in the mobo and make sure you plug the fron panel led light, usb/audio, etc in properly.
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May 18, 2014 6:31:36 PM

Danbuscus25 said:
this is a good build, but i would change 2 things: get an fx 6300 and am3+ mobo, it will be faster, overclock better, and you can upgrade to an 8xxx chip. and there is no reason a 10 year old couldnt build a computer as long as you are careful and know what you are doing. just follow a guide on youtube from linus, ncix (still linus) or neweggtv. my tip would be to make sure you are careful putting in the mobo and make sure you plug the fron panel led light, usb/audio, etc in properly.


ok, thanks for actually responding to someone as young as me
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May 18, 2014 10:10:45 PM

Some 13 year olds can. Since you formulated this post you most likely will have no major issues.
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May 18, 2014 10:58:34 PM

I think you can still do better with that budget than getting a GTX 750Ti. The case you chose is kinda pricy. I would recommend you to spend a bit more on the gpu. 270X> 750Ti

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-6300 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($118.49 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3P ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.24 @ Amazon)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 270X 2GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($182.94 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($60.74 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $745.36
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-05-19 01:58 EDT-0400)

Also age is just a number.


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May 18, 2014 11:05:12 PM

Even a 9 year old can build a PC. I built my first PC back in 2006 when I was 11, using a pentium 3, 400 MHZ ram even though it sucked even at that time it was still fun to build. I still have the original Pentium 3 box lol :p 
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May 18, 2014 11:32:12 PM

CAaronD said:
Even a 9 year old can build a PC. I built my first PC back in 2006 when I was 11, using a pentium 3, 400 MHZ ram even though it sucked even at that time it was still fun to build. I still have the original Pentium 3 box lol :p 


Pentium 3 were actually pretty fast. They were faster than Pentium 4 clock for clock
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May 19, 2014 7:42:53 AM

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD FX-8320 3.5GHz 8-Core Processor ($142.99 @ NCIX US)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.94 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus M5A97 R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($77.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($72.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($56.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 270X 2GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($182.94 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 431 Plus (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($59.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSB0 DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $768.78
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-05-19 10:39 EDT-0400)

i think this is about the best you can do, and this will actually perform very well. i was able to put in a 8320 and a good cooler, a high quality psu, a 270x, faster ram, and after the mail in rebates it is only $770 so you could go buy a game or 2 with that money :p 
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May 19, 2014 7:51:16 AM

this should also be a pretty easy build to put together, its just plugging stuff in for the most part. a couple more tips, do not ever take apart your hdd, or psu, if you ever replace the thermal compound, dont put much on it, as the more you have the hotter the cpu will run, dont try to put the 8 pin pcie connector into the cpu power socket, they look very similar, but will kill your mobo and whatever is in it if you do that, and read the mobo manual before you build, especially the part for the front panel connectors, those can be very confusing.
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