Do you want to learn how to understand computer components without the help of specialists and improve your computer yourself? To do this, you will need basic knowledge of the internal structure of a PC, which you will gain by reading this article.
In the era of the 90s, when the personal computer market in Russia was just beginning to emerge, the few companies that sold computer equipment mainly offered customers already assembled system units. For the most part, they were assembled there in the office, on the knees, to the buyer’s order from components that God sent, and the quality of this very notorious assembly directly depended on the direct hands of the assembler. But did anyone pay attention to this at that time? There were practically no branded solutions on the market, and even such a homemade version of a home computer was rare and very expensive.
At the turn of the century, the situation in the computer industry changed dramatically. The active development of IT technologies has led to rapid growth of high-tech production in Asia. A large flow of all kinds of components and peripherals poured into the market, creating conditions for healthy competition, which led to a significant reduction in prices for computer hardware, and this in turn gave a powerful impetus to the mass distribution of PCs. Computer stores began to multiply like mushrooms, attracting customers with ever new types of services, among which one of the most popular was custom PC assembly. Its essence was that the buyer himself chose the components for his future computer and after an hour, an hour and a half, he picked it up from the store in assembled form.
The most advanced users have gone even further. It was during this period that assembly began to be actively practiced system unit with my own hands, fortunately there were enough publications of all kinds related to this topic. This way to get the coveted home computer was significantly cheaper than buying a ready-made solution (at least you didn’t have to pay for assembly). Another advantage of “self-assembly” is the ability to select components of a certain manufacturer and quality, without being tied to the assortment of one store. Having assembled the computer yourself, in the future you could easily upgrade it (improve it) or simply replace/add any components without fear of losing the warranty, since in this case it was for each part separately. But when purchasing a ready-made “system unit”, all the components inside it were sealed with stickers, the tearing of which, as a rule, was a reason for refusing to fulfill your warranty obligations in the event of any malfunctions.
Recently, the issue of assembling a computer with your own hands has somehow faded into the background. Firstly, part of the reason for this is the mass distribution of laptops, netbooks and all-in-one PCs, the mobility of which in the eyes of many users is preferable to bulky desktops. And secondly, at the present time ready-made solutions together with a pre-installed operating system are now often cheaper than “self-assembly” and a separate box with the OS. This is especially true for the most popular, lower and middle segments of the market.
So does a modern user of computer technology even need knowledge of its internals? In order to answer this question, I will give several situations in which knowledge of a PC, in my opinion, would be very useful to you:
- Buying a new computer yourself. I think there is no need to explain that this is a rather important moment. And if you don’t want to be deceived or at least disappointed with your future purchase, then at least a superficial knowledge of the computer’s hardware is strongly recommended. Remember that the phrase: “I need a computer for the Internet, watching movies, listening to music and sometimes playing” is clearly not enough for the seller to be able to choose the optimal solution for you. As a rule, such requirements will be satisfied by a sufficiently large number of offers and you will choose from them; in this case, it turns out that it will be the sales consultant, not you. And if so, you run a great risk of purchasing something that will not at all meet your expectations.
Surely, before purchasing, you will want to study the current prices for computer equipment in order to at least approximately understand what costs await you. Having previously studied the range of ready-made solutions in the store, on price tags, in price lists or online catalogs, the name of certain devices will most likely be presented to you, for example, in the following form:
SystemblockCore i5-2310/S1155/H61/4Gb DDR3-1333/1024Mb HD6770/HDD 500Gb-7200-16Mb/DVD+-RW/Sound 7.1/GLAN/ATX 450W
Laptop15.6”/i7-2630QM(2.00)/4Gb/GTX460M-1Gb/750Gb/DVD-RW/WiFi/BT/Cam/W7HP64
If you are not yet familiar with the internal structure of a computer, then I am almost sure that you have understood absolutely nothing in these names, which contain the most important characteristics of devices. After reading this article to the end, you can calmly understand what this abracadabra means.
Independent upgrade and purchase of components (improving a computer by adding or partially replacing computer parts). This feature is fully applicable only to system units, since in mobile devices the upgrade capabilities are limited to only two subsystems: RAM and hard drive. Therefore, when purchasing laptops, netbooks or all-in-one computers, you must immediately clearly determine the performance of the device you require, which is almost impossible to do without knowledge of the internal structure. On desktops, you can replace or add something at any time if you wish, and sell old hardware at some online auction. In general, purchasing components yourself in stores, as well as selling and exchanging them through various “hardware” flea markets on the Internet, can significantly reduce your costs aimed at upgrading your computer. But there are pitfalls here too.
The wrong choice of components when purchasing a new system unit can lead to the fact that modifying your computer will be almost impossible. And if it is possible, then only by replacing almost all components, which, as you understand, cannot be called an upgrade. And the names of components, as well as finished computers, are no less confusing and difficult for an ignorant buyer to understand.
- Do-it-yourself minor repairs. Here, as in the case of an upgrade, knowledge of the internal structure of a PC will be fully useful only to owners of desktop computers. For example, there is a power surge at your home, which is not that uncommon. The consequence of this event is often a partial failure of your computer. In order to save money, your nerves, time and effort, with certain knowledge, you can easily replace burnt components right at home. Moreover, in such cases, take your computer to warranty service practically useless, since this kind of damage is not covered by the warranty. Even if your knowledge is not enough to replace failed parts, at least you can estimate their value on the market and buy it yourself at a better price than they will offer you at the service center. In this way, it is possible not only to reduce repair costs, but also to avoid unauthorized installation of used parts passed off as new.
METHODOLOGY
We will begin our familiarization process with the PC device with a description of its main components. There are seven of them in modern desktop computers and laptops:
- Motherboard
- CPU
- RAM
- Video card
- HDD
- Optical drive
- Power supply and case
We will talk about each of them in detail, and at the end of the description we will consider examples of real names of components from the catalogs of computer hardware sellers. Thus, we will immediately learn to apply the acquired theoretical knowledge in practice. At the end of the review, for the sake of completeness, we will briefly consider additional devices installed in mobile and desktop PCs to expand their functionality.
CPU(CPU or central processing unit CPU) is the main piece of computer hardware and its computing center. Essentially, it is an executor of machine instructions and is designed to carry out complex computer programs. A CPU has several main characteristics, but for the average person, only two are important - clock speed and number of cores. The first mass-produced multi-core processors for desktop PCs were released in early 2006 and this moment almost completely replaced single-core ones.
To significantly speed up calculations, any modern processor is equipped with built-in memory with very quick access, which is designed to store data that is most likely to be requested by the processor. This buffer is called a cache and can be of the first (L1), second (L2) or third (L3) level. The fastest memory and, in fact, an integral part of the processor, is the first level cache, the volume of which is very small and amounts to 128 KB (64x2). Most modern CPUs cannot function without an L1 cache. The second fastest is the L2 cache and its volume can reach 1-12 MB. Well, the slowest, but also the most impressive in size (can be more than 24 MB) is the third level cache and not all processors have it.
Another important point is the concept of a processor socket or processor socket, called a socket, into which this processor is installed. Different generations or families of CPUs, as a rule, are installed in their own unique sockets, and this fact must be taken into account when selecting a motherboard - processor combination.
Due to the complexity and high-tech production, the highest requirements for product quality, there are not so many competitive companies producing central processors, and for the desktop PC market there are only two - Intel and AMD. Their long-standing rivalry began in the early 90s, although over these 20 years the share of processors sold by AMD has always been significantly lower than the share of Intel. However, Advanced Micro Devices products have always had an attractive performance/price ratio with a fairly affordable retail price for its products, which gives it the opportunity to confidently maintain its market share of about 19% of the global share.
For ease of positioning in the market, each manufacturer divides its products into different families, depending on the capabilities and performance of processors. In this article, we will get acquainted only with those lines of companies that are currently relevant and are in retail sale.
- Sempron- the lowest-cost processor for desktop PCs and mobile devices and a direct competitor to Intel's Celeron processors. The main niche of this processor is simple applications for everyday work.
- PhenomII- a multi-core family of high-performance processors designed to solve any problem. It is the flagship line for desktop computers and contains processors with a number of cores from 2 to 6.
- Athlon II- a multi-core processor family designed as a very low-cost alternative to more expensive processors Phenom II series. Designed to solve everyday problems and is aimed as an option for “budget” gaming systems and PCs with very decent performance.
- A-Series- The latest quad-core processor family, which is currently the latest development from AMD to go on sale. Distinctive feature This series uses a Radeon graphics card built into the processor core.
- Celeron - a large family of low-cost processors designed for use in entry-level home and office computers.
- PentiumDual-Core - an outdated family of budget dual-core processors for low-cost home and office systems. Despite the fact that processors in this series are still sold everywhere, most users nowadays opt for the more current and cost-effective Core i3.
- Core i3 - a new generation of dual-core processors at entry-level and mid-range price and performance levels. Designed to replace the obsolete Pentium Dual-Core on the old generation architecture Intel Core 2. They have a built-in graphics processor and a built-in memory controller.
- Core i5 - a family of processors of mid-range price and performance. CPUs in this series can contain 2 or 4 cores and most of them have an integrated graphics card. An excellent solution for gaming and multimedia systems. They support TurboBoost technology, which automatically overclocks the processor under load.
- Core i7 - flagship line of processors from Intel. Installed in high-performance systems designed to solve problems of any complexity. Supports Turbo Boost, with which the processor automatically increases performance when needed.
Table of the main characteristics of desktop processor families from Intel and AMD
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Finishing this topic, finally, let's look at the price list of any computer company and let's try to figure out some item from the processor catalog, applying the knowledge we just gained. For example, let's decipher a record like:
“Processor Socket 1155 Intel Core i5 G620 (2.6GHz, L3 3Mb) BOX.”
- Socket 1155 - the processor is installed in an LGA 1155 type socket
- Intel Core i5 - the processor belongs to the Core i5 family and is manufactured by Intel
- G620 - processor model
- 2.6GHz - processor clock frequency (the higher it is, the faster the processor)
- L3 3Mb - the processor has a third level cache, which is equal to 3 megabytes
- BOX - means that the processor comes complete with a fan and has a proprietary three-year warranty (OEM - without a fan and a 1-year warranty)
RAM(random access memory RAM) - the most important part of the system, responsible for temporary storage of data and commands necessary for the processor to perform various operations. The main characteristics of memory are its clock frequency, which determines its throughput and volume.
No less important indicator for memory is the generation to which it belongs. Naturally, memory of different generations has completely different characteristics (supply voltage, power consumption, clock frequency, bandwidth, latency, etc.). As part of this review, we will not dwell on this in detail, the only thing you need to remember is that the connectors for installing memory modules are different for different generations, and this must be taken into account when choosing a combination of RAM and motherboard.
Modern desktop and mobile PCs primarily use DIMM (dual-directional memory module) or DDR (synchronous) memory. dynamic memory with random access and double data transfer speed) of three different generations. The generation number is always reflected in the name of the memory module. It should be noted that at the moment, first-generation DDR memory is already very outdated and can only be found in computers four or five years old, and second-generation DDR2 RAM is currently being actively replaced by DDR3.
Now let's see what the name of a memory module looks like in a real computer company catalog and try to figure it out. For example :
“RAM 4Gb PC3-10600 1333MHz DDR3 DIMM”.
- 4Gb - memory module capacity
- PC3 - 10600 - maximum memory bandwidth (peak amount of data that RAM can exchange with the processor per second). In this case, it is equal to 10667 Mb/sec.
- 1333MHz - memory clock frequency
- DDR3 - memory generation
- DIMM form factor of the RAM module
Sometimes RAM is sold in sets of 2 or 3 modules, for example: "RAM 4Gb (2x2Gb) PC3-10600 1333MHz DDR3 DIMM." Why is this being done? The point is that in modern computers a dual-channel (much less often a three-channel) memory operating mode is used, which in practice increases the memory throughput mode by up to 70%, which undoubtedly increases the overall system performance. For this mode to be enabled, RAM modules must be installed in pairs (triples) on the computer, and this pair (triple) must have the same characteristics.
Dual channel mode Three channel mode
That is why manufacturers already select memory modules in pairs (three) at the factory and test them for error-free operation. Modules that pass the test are packaged together and sold as a set. But this does not mean that modules sold separately will not work well together. It’s just that the possibility of any errors still exists, although it is very small. Always try to use multi-channel memory mode to improve performance by installing modules only in pairs (triples). Remember this.
VIDEO CARD(graphics adapter, graphic card, video adapter) is a device that generates a graphic image and displays it on the monitor screen. In the era of the birth of desktop PCs, graphics adapters performed only the function of displaying an image already generated by the processor on the screen. The current generation of graphics cards not only displays images, but also generates them independently.
Modern video adapters can be built-in (integrated) into the computer’s motherboard or be an expansion card that is inserted into a special slot for PCI-Express video cards (previously this slot was AGP, which is now obsolete) on the motherboard. The first group of adapters is usually used in budget decisions for working with office applications, where we are not talking about the formation of complex three-dimensional images and in general the requirements for the graphic component are small. And although many integrated solutions have recently allowed users to watch high-definition (HD) video and enjoy entry-level three-dimensional (3D) graphics, their capabilities cannot be compared with the capabilities of video cards that are released as stand-alone solutions.
Essentially, a video adapter, which is an independent expansion card, is another computer in your computer. It has its own graphics processor (GPU) or even two, video memory (GDDR), cooling system, power system, video controller and digital-to-analog converter. Such a complex video card design is due to the very high requirements for computing resources to create a realistic and dynamic three-dimensional image in real time. Therefore, in order to fully enjoy the beauty of modern 3D games, it is necessary that your computer be equipped with a graphics card of the highest level.
The main characteristics of a video card are the clock frequencies of the video processor and video memory, the number of working execution units inside the graphics processor, the width of the video memory bus (affects the amount of data transferred by the memory per clock cycle) and the amount of video memory. As a rule, modern graphics adapters have several outputs with the same or different graphical interfaces for connecting a variety of monitors and TVs. Now the most common are the analog VGA and digital interfaces: DVI, HDMI (miniHDMI), DisplayPort (miniDP). The last two, in addition to video, also transmit sound.
Quite a lot of companies are currently engaged in the production of video card boards, but strangely enough, the entire graphics adapter market is divided into only two main competing camps. The fact is that the graphics processor determines almost all the main characteristics of the card, on which its performance depends and is its key component. Well, in the design and production of graphics chips, as in the case of central processors, since the mid-90s, two irreconcilable rivals have been fiercely fighting for consumers - the Canadian company ATI, purchased and now owned by AMD, and the Californian NVIDIA. It is worth noting that over all these years, none of them have managed to tip the scales in their favor, and today their shares in the video processor market can be estimated as 50 to 50. All video cards for widespread use (for home PCs) manufactured by those based on graphics chips from ATI (AMD) are called Radeon, and those released on NVIDIA logic are called GeForce. These companies also have professional solutions for workstations. These lines are called Quadro from NVIDIA and FireGL from ATI (AMD).
Today on the shelves of computer stores you can find video adapters built on graphics chips of two generations at once, and in some cases even three. NVIDIA has it GeForce family GT 2XX, GT 4XX (obsolete lines and now mostly only budget models), GTX 5XX and GTX 6XX, and AMD (ATI) Radeon HD 5XXX, HD 6XXX and HD 7XXX. The principle of forming a model range of graphic cards for both companies is similar. As a rule, models in the series differ in the clock frequencies of the video chip and memory, the different number of disabled execution units and the width of the memory bus. Depending on the combinations of the above characteristics, the overall performance of the video card and its cost are determined. I think there is no need to explain that the higher the performance and capabilities of the video adapter, the higher its price. Below is a summary table of the most popular GPUs and their budget positioning in the market.
Budget positioning of GPUs
Next, it is worth mentioning such important technologies as SLI (3-Way SLI) from NVIDIA and CrossFire (CrossFire X) from AMD (ATI), which allow you to combine the computing power of two, three or even four video cards installed in one computer. The simultaneous use of several video cards in one system can be interesting in cases where it is necessary to obtain a super-efficient video system that exceeds the power of any existing single video card. There are also cases when installing two mid-range (performance) class video adapters is more economically profitable than installing one video card of the same performance. To implement these technologies, it is necessary to have two or more slots for PCI-Express video cards on the motherboard, as well as support for these same technologies by the motherboard chipset.
In order to make life easier for game and multimedia application developers, by Microsoft an independent DirectX software package was invented, which saves them from writing programs for each individual video card and makes it possible to use ready-made solutions from this library. In turn, video cards, for their part, must also support one or another version of the DirectX library, which affects the ability of the adapter to perform a certain set of functions at the hardware level. The later the version of DirectX the video card supports, the larger the set of functions and, accordingly, the wider its capabilities for creating special effects. If the game was created using a new version of DirectX, and the video card does not support it, you will not be able to fully enjoy all the video effects provided by the developers.
Modern video cards support version 11. But you need to take into account that DirectX 11 only works under Windows Vista or Windows 7; if you have Windows XP, you will have to limit yourself to version 9.0c.
And finally, let's look at a couple of examples of video card names from a real computer catalog and break them down:
Example 1: "Video card 1536MbGTX580,PCI-E, 2xDVI,HDMIDisplayPortOEM"
- 1536Mb - amount of video memory installed on the video card in megabytes
- GTX580 is a type of graphics processor of a video card, by which the manufacturer of this processor itself can be easily determined (in this case it is NVIDIA)
- 2xDVI, HDMI, DisplayPort - has two DVI outputs, one HDMI and one DisplayPort for connecting various output devices (monitors, LCD TVs, plasma)
- OEM - video card sold without box
Example 2: " Video card 2048Mb HD6950, PCI-E,VGA, DVI, HDMI, 2xmini DP Retail»
- 2048Mb - amount of video memory installed on the video card in megabytes
- HD6950 is a type of video card GPU, in this case manufactured by AMD (ATI)
- PCI-E is the type of connector in which the video card is installed
- VGA, DVI, HDMI, 2xminiDP - listing of available outputs on the video card
- Retail - the video card is sold in colorful packaging
HDD(HDD) is a data storage device based on the principles of magnetic recording. The main device in your computer on which all information is located, from the installed operating system to your personal files.
The main characteristics of this device are:
Capacity- the amount of data that can be stored on the drive. Until recently, the entire range of hard drives fell into the range from 80 to 1000 Gigabytes. But even now modern drives, thanks to perpendicular recording technology, have sizes of 3 Terabytes (3000 GB).
Physical size. Drives with a width of 3.5 inches (rarely 2.5 inches) are used in desktop computers, and 2.5 or 1.8 inches are used in mobile devices (laptops or netbooks).
Spindle speed. An important characteristic on which access time and average data transfer speed depend. The higher the rotation speed, the faster the hard drive. It is measured in revolutions per minute and generally has the following values: 5400 rpm (mainly laptops or high-capacity 3.5-inch wide drives), 7200 rpm (desktop PCs, less often laptops), 10000 and 15000 rpm (high-performance PCs or servers). Lovers of silence should remember that the noise level of the drive increases significantly at high speeds and when assembling a quiet system, choosing a drive with a speed above 7200 rpm is not recommended.
Connection interface - the type of connector and bus used to connect and exchange data with the hard drive. For a long time, the most common interface in desktop and mobile computers was Parallel ATA (aka IDE, ATA, Ultra ATA, UDMA 133) with a maximum throughput of 133 MB/sec, which used the principle of parallel data transfer. Because of this, the connection connector was quite wide and had 40 pins, and bulky 80-wire connection cables always got in the way in the case and interfered with normal cooling. And although many modern motherboards are still equipped with an IDE connector, the days of this interface are numbered, and it has long been replaced by a new standard - Serial ATA (SATA), which uses serial interface data transmission. The throughput of the modern 3rd revision of SATA III is 600 MB/sec and exceeds the capabilities of PATA by 4.5 times. Moreover, SATA uses a miniature 7-pin connector and, accordingly, a much smaller cable area than IDE, which reduces the resistance to air blowing across computer components and simplifies wiring inside the system unit.
Random access time- the average time during which the read/write head is positioned on an arbitrary section of the magnetic disk. As a rule, for disks intended for installation in desktop and laptop computers, it ranges from 8 to 16 milliseconds and is the main brake on the speed of a magnetic drive. For comparison, the newfangled solid state drives(SSD) it is 1 ms.
Buffer- intermediate memory (cache), designed to smooth out differences in read/write speed and transfer speed over the interface. In modern media it varies from 8 to 64 MB.
For curious users, in detailed descriptions of hard drives you can find additional parameters, such as: noise level, reliability, energy consumption, standby time, shock resistance and data transfer speed from the internal and external zones of the disk.
More recently, in the modern magnetic storage market, all products were represented by four manufacturers: the largest in the world Western Digital(WD) and Seagate, as well as Hitachi and Samsung. But in 2011, the situation changed, WD acquired Hitachi's hard drive division, and Seagate bought Samsung's division. Thus, to two segments of the computer market (production of central and graphic processors), a third has been added (production of hard drives), where only two competing companies are engaged in the development and production of products.
Finishing the description of hard drives, we, as usual, will look at an example of a drive name from a computer catalog and try to understand what is written there.
Hard drive 3.5" 1 Tb 7200rpm 64Mb cache Western Digital Caviar Black SATA III (6Gb/ s)
- 3.5” - the hard drive is 3.5 inches wide and is designed for installation in a desktop PC
- 1 Tb capacity hard drive, which in this case is 1 terabyte (1000 Gigabytes)
- 7200rpm - spindle rotation speed, in this case 7200 rpm
- 64Mb cache - buffer size in megabytes (here it is maximum)
- Western Digital - manufacturer
- Caviar Black is the family to which the hard drive belongs. Black - WD's family of the most productive drives
- SATA III - hard drive connection interface
- 6Gb/s - maximum interface throughput, in this case equal to 6 Gbit/s (600 MB/s).
I hope everything is clear here and we can move on.
OPTICAL DRIVE- a device designed for reading, writing and rewriting information from optical storage media in the form of a plastic disk (CD, DVD, BD).
In the early 90s, the most common optical media was the compact disc (CD), which could store 700 MB of various data. That is why the first optical drives could only read and only CDs and were called CD-ROM. The next actively developing format was and is now the most common DVD. Disks of this standard could already record 4.7 GB of information, which is almost 7 times more than on a CD. Computer drives devices designed to play DVDs were called DVD-ROM, while the ability to read regular CDs on this device was retained. At the same time, the first CD recording devices began to appear on the market, which were called CD-RW. Then combined optical drives (ComboDrive or “combine”) appeared, which could read CDs and DVDs, but only write CDs. Progress, of course, did not stop there, and the next logical step was the appearance on the market of DVD recording drives that could read and write any disc. True, initially they were very expensive and for quite a long time the most popular optical device installed in home computers was the combo drive due to its affordability. But over time, DVD-RW drives have become cheaper, and this class is still optical devices is the most common on all types of computers.
Currently the maximum capacity DVD disc is 8.5 GB (dual-layer disk). But with the advent of high-definition (HD) multimedia content, this volume was not enough for its storage and distribution, and therefore in the spring of 2006, new format optical media - Blu-Ray. A single-layer Blu-Ray disc can store 25 GB of digital data, including high-definition video and audio, a double-layer can hold 50 GB, a triple-layer 100 GB, and a quad-layer 128 GB (BDXL). Modern Blu-Ray optical drives (BD-ROM) can read, write and rewrite not only new format discs (BD), but also previous ones - DVD and CD.
The main characteristics of optical drives are the speed of reading, writing and rewriting data in various formats. Previously, they were indicated directly in the drive name itself, but due to increased support various formats disks are now indicated only in the detailed description of the device. A pleasant bonus may be the presence of marking technology for specially prepared disks, which allows you to obtain an image on its reverse surface. Like hard drives, optical drives can have two connection interfaces, the legacy IDE and the modern SATA.
An example of an optical drive name looks quite laconic and contains a minimum of information: Blu-ray drive Pioneer BDR-206DBK, Black, SATA, OEM
- Blu-ray drive supports all existing optical media formats, including the latest Blu-Ray
- Pioneer - optical drive manufacturer
- BDR-206DBK - drive model
- Black - drive color
- SATA - drive connection interface
- OEM drive is sold without paint box and additional accessories (fastening screws and connection cable)
As you can see, everything is simple here, but at the same time, to understand all the capabilities of the drive, you need to study its detailed description.
Now, having become acquainted with the main components that make up a computer, it’s time to look at the part that unites it all into a single whole.
MOTHERBOARD(motherboard, mother, main board, motherboard) is a complex multi-layer printed circuit board on which the main components of a personal computer are installed (central processor, RAM controller and RAM itself, graphics adapter, controllers for connecting hard drives and optical drives, basic interface controllers I/O, sound and network card). As a rule, the motherboard also contains connectors (slots) for connecting additional cards and devices via USB, PCI and PCI-Express buses.
Within the framework of this material, to simplify perception, we will consider only motherboards for desktop PCs, without bothering ourselves with products for mobile computers. Moreover, for a general understanding of the issue this will be quite enough.
Main motherboard components
The key component of the motherboard is the chipset (system logic set) - a set of chips that connects the CPU to RAM, graphics controller and controllers peripheral devices. It is the set of system logic that determines all the key features of the motherboard, what devices can be connected to it and, in fact, all the future capabilities of your computer.
All motherboards can be divided into two main camps - motherboards for Intel processors and motherboards for AMD processors. Accordingly, they also produce system logic sets for their processors. Within these two main groups, further division is conveniently carried out along processor connectors (sockets). Today, motherboards with four types of sockets are available for Intel processors, and three for AMD. For each socket, developers have several sets of system logic, aimed at different budget segments of the market.
As can be seen from the block diagram, there are quite a lot of varieties of chipsets, and therefore motherboards built on them and their modifications. Let's see what basic characteristics of a computer can be affected by one or another chipset modification and what you should pay attention to first:
- CPU type
- Type of RAM (DDR, DDR-II, DDR-III), its bandwidth and possible maximum capacity
- The presence or absence of a built-in video adapter, and if present, possible interface connections (VGA, DVI, HDMI)
- Possibility of installing multiple video cards to enable SLI and CrossFire technologies
- Number and revision of SATA connectors for connecting hard drives and optical drives
- The presence or absence of support for RAID technology (the ability to create an array of several hard drives perceived by the system as a single whole)
- Number and revision of USB connectors for connecting peripheral devices
- Type of sound card (2, 5 or 7 channels) and the presence of its digital outputs
- Number of network interfaces
- Availability of additional outputs (e-SATA, FireWire) for connecting digital peripheral devices
- Number and types of connectors for connecting expansion cards (sound and network cards, modems, TV tuners, analog and digital video capture cards, etc.)
- Availability of outdated connectors and corresponding FDD and LPT interfaces
Finally, it is worth mentioning another important characteristic of the motherboard - the form factor. This is a standard that determines its dimensions, places of attachment to the computer case and its entire wiring (location of interfaces, ports, slots and types of connectors for power connections). The modern and most common standards are ATX (the dominant format), micro-ATX and mini-ITX.
As you would expect, the names of motherboards in price lists look very cumbersome and are the most difficult to understand, since they include quite a lot of device characteristics. Let's look at one of them using an example: Motherboard ASUS P8P67 DELUXE (B3), Socket 1155, Intel P67, 4xDDR3, 3xPCI-E 16x, 2xPCI-E 1x, 2xPCI, 4xSATA II+4xSATA III, RAID0/1/5/10, 7.1 Sound, Glan, USB3. 0, ATX, Retail
- ASUS P8P67 DELUXE (B3) - manufacturer, model and revision (infrequently indicated)
- Socket 1155 - type of socket for installing a central processor
- Intel P67 - chipset name
- 4xDDR3 - the board has 4 connectors (slots) for installing third generation RAM modules
- 3xPCI-E 16x - the board has as many as three connectors for video cards, which means it is possible to use SLI (3-WaySLI) technologies from NVIDIA and CrossFire (CrossFireX) from AMD (ATI)
- 2xPCI-E 1x - the board has two PCI-EX1 type connectors for installing additional expansion cards (sound and network cards, modems, TV tuners, etc.)
- 2xPCI - the board has two PCI slots for installing additional expansion cards (sound and network cards, modems, TV tuners, etc.)
- 4xSATA II+4xSATA III - the board has 4 SATA interface connectors of the second revision and four thirds for connecting hard drives and optical drives.
- RAID0/1/5/10 - the motherboard supports the technology of combining multiple hard drives and makes it possible to create arrays of the 0th, 1st, 5th and 10th levels
- 7.1 Sound - there is a built-in 7-channel sound card
- Glan - there is a gigabit network card on the motherboard
- USB 3.0 - the board has connectors of the new USB3.0 standard
- ATX - motherboard form factor
- Retail-motherboard is sold in a box and equipped with connecting cables, software and installation instructions
So, the hardest part is over and we are reaching the finish line.
POWER SUPPLY AND CASE
power unit(BP) - designed to supply computer components with direct current electrical energy, as well as convert the mains voltage to the required values. To some extent, the power supply can perform the functions of stabilizing and protecting computer components from minor voltage surges.
The main characteristic of a power supply is its power, which in modern products varies from 300 to 1500W (Watt). As a rule, a power of 400 - 450 W is sufficient for an office computer, but for advanced gaming systems with several video cards installed, a very powerful power supply may be required, since at peak load the power consumption of such a system can reach from 700 - 1000 W.
It is necessary to take into account the fact that it is worth choosing the power of the power supply with a margin of the calculated peak load, because in this case it will heat up less, which means that its cooling system will work more quietly. A gentle regime will also have a beneficial effect on service life. Do not forget that over time, due to various facts, the power ratings of the power supply may drop by 15-20% of the nominal.
As a rule, the more powerful the power supply, the more connectors and their modifications for powering various computer components it contains. True, in most cases the number of these same connectors is excessive, and in order to compactly lay a large volume of wires in the case, you have to spend a lot of effort. That is why many manufacturers produce power supplies with detachable cables, where you can connect only the connectors you need.
Beware of buying cheap low-quality power supplies from unknown manufacturers. All computer components are powered low voltage(+3, + 5 and +12 V) and in order to disable any board, a discharge of static electricity from an electrified sweater is enough. What can we say if the power supply allows even a slight voltage surge to pass through itself or produces abnormal values. The consumer qualities of these devices are not high either. As practice shows, the real power value of such products is much lower than what is stated on the labels, and their service life is short.
As a rule, in component catalogs the names of power supplies are some of the most capacious and short, for example: Block ATX power supply 1000W OCZ Z1000M-UN
- ATX is a motherboard power connector standard that is the main one for desktop PCs
- 1000W - power supply power
- OCZ - power supply manufacturer
- Z1000M-UN - power supply model
It's as simple as that, but don't think that choosing a power source is a trivial task. Quite the contrary, this is the case when the title contains practically no useful information and you must definitely study its detailed description, where you can find out about the number of different power connectors, its efficiency (efficiency), the presence of overvoltage protection, overload protection and much more. Right choice A good power source is the key to long and uninterrupted operation of the hardware components of your computer.
Let's say a few words about power supplies for laptops. They are usually used to charge batteries, as well as to provide the laptop with power bypassing the battery. By type of design, the laptop's power supply is an external unit. Power supplies for mobile devices are produced under specific model(series), have different characteristics and power connectors, and therefore there is no single standard for them, and the power supplies themselves are usually not interchangeable. When purchasing a new unit for a laptop, you have no options other than to purchase exactly the power supply that is designed for your model of mobile device.
Frame(system unit) - protects the internal elements of the computer from external influences and mechanical damage, maintains internal temperature conditions and shields electromagnetic radiation. The main characteristics are its type (vertical Tower or horizontal Desktop) and size (small Mini, medium Midi, large Big). The most common format is Midi Tower, because such cases are designed to install motherboards of the most popular form factor - ATX. Also, when choosing a case, you should take into account the number and location of external USB ports, audio outputs, the presence of FireWire outputs on the external panel, the number of internal fans and their size.
Cases and power supplies for desktop PCs can be sold either separately or together as a set. As a rule, for office solutions, entry-level and mid-range home computers, it is more profitable to buy a kit. True, then you will most likely have to put up with a mediocre case design and an average power supply. Well, if you decide to collect powerful system or a computer with a unique design, then you only need to select these components separately, in accordance with the appetites of the selected hardware and your tastes.
OPTIONAL EQUIPMENT
So we looked at all the main components that make up a desktop computer. Of course, this is an incomplete list of components that can be located inside the system unit, but only those that are required to be installed in any computer. To complete the picture, let's still touch on the remaining components, but only briefly:
Floppy drive(FDD) - floppy disk drive with a physical size of 3.5 inches. With the advent of flash drives, these media have almost completely lost their relevance, and the drives themselves can only be found on very old computers.
Card reader- a device for reading all kinds of memory cards used in digital and mobile devices. As a rule, in modern computers it is installed instead of a floppy drive.
TV tuner- a device designed for receiving, reproducing and recording a television signal on home computer. Most modern tuners can also receive signals from FM radio stations. According to the method of connection to the computer, they are divided into internal (for desktop PCs, connection via PCI and PCI-Ex1 connectors, for laptops via the CardBus connector) and external (USB and FireWire).
Controllers- boards that expand the interface capabilities of the motherboard. If necessary, using the controller card you can add additional USB, SATA, FireWire, IDE and LPT interfaces (connectors). They are usually installed in PCI and PCI-Ex1 slots.
Sound card- additional equipment for a personal computer that allows you to process and output sound. Provide the user with additional capabilities and quality compared to integrated solutions. They can be either internal devices (installed in PCI and PCI-Ex1 slots) or external (connected to USB, and for laptops PCMCIA).
Network adapter- a device that allows a computer to communicate with other devices on the network. Can be wired (Ethernet) or wireless (Wi-Fi). Based on the method of connecting to a computer, they are also divided into external and internal. On all modern motherboards, wired network adapter already built-in and therefore practically no longer used as additional equipment.
CONCLUSION
Now let's go back to the beginning of the article, where as an example the real names of computer equipment (system unit and laptop) that you can encounter in any computer store were given. Definitely, without basic knowledge of PC devices, it is almost impossible to understand at least something about them. But if you carefully read the previous material, then now understanding these abbreviations will not be difficult. Let's check it out. Let's start with a description of the system unit:
System unitCorei5-2310/S1155/H61/4GbDDR3-1333/1024MbHD6770/HDD 500Gb-7200-16Mb/DVD+-RW/Sound 7.1/GLAN/ATX 450W
If you look carefully at this inscription, you can guess that the various components of the system unit are indicated through a slash; try to determine which ones yourself first, and then you can check our answer.
- Core i5-2310 - Processor from Intel of the Corei5 family. By its model number (2310), you can find out that its clock frequency is 2.9 GHz.
- S1155 - processor socket on a Socket 1155 type motherboard
- H61 is a motherboard chipset from Intel.
- 4Gb DDR3-1333 - the amount of installed third-generation RAM is 4 GB. Memory clock frequency 1333 MHz.
- 1024Mb HD6770 - Radeon video card from AMD/ATI (clear from the HD index) with a video memory capacity of 1024 MB. The index 6770 tells us that the graphics adapter belongs to the middle class.
- HDD 500Gb-7200-16Mb - the hard drive has a capacity of 500 GB, a spindle speed of 7200 rpm and a 16 MB buffer.
- DVD+-RW - the computer has an optical drive with the ability to read, write and rewrite CDs and DVDs.
- Sound 7.1 - has a built-in seven-channel sound card
- GLAN - there is a wired built-in network card with a data transfer speed of 1 Gbit.
- ATX 450W - a case designed to install an ATX form factor motherboard and a power supply with a power of 450 Watts.
See how much information about a product can be gleaned from its name with a certain knowledge of computer hardware. Now, to consolidate the material, let's decipher the typical name of a laptop. And although its name has some meanings that may not be clear to you, after our decoding you will be fully armed.
Laptop 15.6”/i7-2630QM(2.00)/4Gb/GTX460M-1Gb/750Gb/DVD-RW/Wi-Fi/BT/Cam/W7HP64
- 15.6” is the diagonal size of the laptop screen.
- i7-2630QM(2.00) - This entry should already be clear to you. Processor from Intel of the Corei7 family with a clock frequency of 2 GHz (indicated in parentheses). True, the clock frequency and other characteristics of the processor can always be determined by knowing its model, which is always indicated after the family. In our case it is 2630QM.
- 4Gb - amount of RAM. As you can see, it is listed here without any details about the type of memory and its bandwidth.
- GTX460M-1Gb is a GeForce video card with an nVidia graphics processor (this can be understood by the abbreviation GTX) and 1 GB video memory. Based on the GPU model (GTX460), we see that this graphics adapter belongs to the class of performance solutions. The letter “M” in the name of the video chip indicates that it was produced for mobile devices.
- 750Gb - hard drive with a capacity of 750 GB.
- DVD-RW - the laptop has an optical drive with the ability to read, write and rewrite CDs and DVDs.
- Wi-Fi - the laptop has a wireless network adapter installed.
- BT - laptop equipped with technology wireless communication BlueTooth (bluetooth), now used mainly for connecting peripheral devices (mice, headphones, etc.) and mobile phones.
- Cam-laptop has a built-in webcam - a digital video and photo camera capable of capturing images in real time for further transmission over the network.
- W7HP64 - as a rule, at the end of the laptop configuration, the operating system preinstalled on it is indicated. In this case, it is Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit.
With this, allow me to finish our educational program on internal structure personal computers. I hope this material will be not only educational for you, but also a good help if you independently purchase a new computer and components or upgrade your home PC.
To check the possibility of installing certain software, it becomes necessary to clarify the models, assemblies, and characteristics of the components (hardware, hardware) of your computer. There are four main ways to determine components using the operating system’s own means:
- Using the System Properties information window.
- Using the Msinfo32 utility.
- Using a command handler.
- Using the dxdiag utility.
Most popular third party software:
- Everest;
- CPU-z.
Step 1. Open any folder on your computer. In the right frame, find the “My Computer” link and click on it. At the bottom of the window you will see brief information about the name of your computer, the domain in which it is included, the amount of RAM and information about the processor.
Step 2. Using the context menu, enter computer properties.
Step 3. In the window that opens, find information about the name and manufacturer of the CPU, its operating frequency, and the amount of RAM. This information is sufficient to install most software products.
On a note! You can enter properties in other ways.
Step 1. Open Control Panel and switch to Large Icons mode.
Step 2. Open the data page using the System menu icon.
However, the fastest way to log in is to use the keyboard shortcut “Win” + “Break” (“Pause/Break”).
Retrieving data usingMsinfo32
Step 1.
Step 2. Type the command “msinfo32” in the box, then press “Enter” or “OK”.
Step 3. By opening the necessary lists of the utility that has started, collect information about the components of your computer.
Important! Please note that the utility provides access to large arrays. For example, on the start page you will find information about the motherboard, processor, and RAM. Information about the video card is located in the “Components” list, “Display” section. Data about network cards– “Components”, section “Network” subsection “Adapter”.
The utility is fully adapted for Windows 10.
Retrieving Data Using a Command Handler
Step 1. To enter the Run environment, use the keyboard shortcut “Win” + “R”.
Step 2. Type the command “cmd” in the box and press “Enter” or “OK”.
Step 3. In the Windows command processor, type "systeminfo" and press Enter. The handler will display information about your system, including information about both hardware and software Windows systems.
Receiving data viadxdiag
Step 1. To enter the Run environment, use the keyboard shortcut “Win” + “R”.
Step 2. Type the command “dxdiag” in the box, then press “Enter” or “OK”.
Step 3. When the utility starts, the “System” tab contains information about the motherboard model (the “Computer Model” line), the central processor and RAM.
Step 4. By switching between sections using the “Next Page” button, you can find information about the video card and monitors connected to the computer.
On a note! Please note that you can save all information using the appropriate button. The data will be saved in text format (.txt).
Everest
The application requires a paid license, but has a thirty-day trial period.
On a note! There are more a new version programs - "AIDA." If necessary, purchase full version, opt for the latest versions.
Step 1.
Step 2. Using the drop-down lists, find the data blocks you need. For example, to get information about the motherboard, expand the "System board" list.
Step 3. Click on the “Motherboard” sub-item located in the left frame of the window, while the right frame will display the name, manufacturer and ID of the hardware component you are interested in.
Important! Previously stated software, in addition to technical data, provides a selection of Internet pages where you can find more complete descriptions of components, as well as related software (drivers, firmware, testers). In addition, the application has the ability to test individual hardware components.
Receiving data through a software productcpu-z
This application is free and is provided on an “As Is” basis.
Step 1. After installation is complete, launch the main software interface applications.
Step 2. Using the subsections, find the information you are interested in. For example, to get information about the motherboard, open the “Mainboard” tab.
Video - How to view the motherboard model on a laptop or computer
Conclusion
This article reveals the nuances of six different ways to obtain information about your hardware. Four of the techniques are components of the operating system, two involve the use of third-party software. All methods work on the version of the Windows 10 operating system. The evaluation of all methods is provided in the summary table.
| Intelligence | Command line | Msinfo32 utility | CPU-z | dxdiag utility | Everest | Properties of the system |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| License | Delivered with Windows | Delivered with Windows | Free | Delivered with Windows | Paid | Delivered with Windows |
| Russian language | Depending on Windows version | No | Depending on Windows version | Depending on version | Depending on Windows version | |
| Processor information | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| RAM data | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Video card information | No | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | No |
| Motherboard Information | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| Network card information | Yes | Yes | No | No | Yes | No |
| Interface convenience (from 1 to 5) | 4 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
We bring to your attention a selection of, in our opinion, the best YouTube channels dedicated to computer components and accessories - eight Russian-language and two English-language.
Our hit parade opens with the hotlinevideo channel, which is worked on by the editors of the largest Ukrainian IT site ITC.ua. The iron-related video published here has an optimal balance of accessibility and depth, so it will be equally interesting to beginners and experts.
GECID.com (formerly called easycom.com.ua) is an old and respected site specializing in computer hardware. Text and video reviews of GECID.com stand out from competitors with a serious approach to testing and a huge database of benchmark results, collected over the years.
The F.ua channel was created under the patronage of the Ukrainian online store of the same name (the old name was Fotos.ua). The permanent presenters of this channel - Max Shelest and Rudi Ruslanenko - cheerfully talk about gaming accessories and computer components, respectively.
Young, but already pretty popular channel PRO Hi-Tech tries to cover all current IT topics: mobile gadgets, photographic equipment and, of course, computer hardware. The face of the channel is the cheerful bearded man Ilya Korneychuk, ex-editor of CHIP magazine, and now editor of the Game World Navigator and vocalist of the industrial band Tesla Coil.
The main idea of the channel “Good choice!” – help you choose the best computer hardware in terms of price and quality. That is why reviews of budget and mid-price components are published here, which other channels rarely pay attention to.
The most interesting videos on Techno-Kitchen are, perhaps, comparative tests of processors and video cards. For example, the authors of the channel compared the performance of Intel Core i3 and i5 processors in the twenty most resource-intensive games. No one else is doing anything like this in the Russian-language segment of YouTube.
Computer enthusiast Igor Morozov publishes video reviews of finished PCs, assembled for a given amount of money. There are both relatively inexpensive computers - up to $500 - and real gaming monsters for $1000 and even $2000.
The CompsMaster channel is hosted by an experienced computer technician working in a service center. Therefore, the channel publishes not only reviews of devices and tips for assembling a PC, but also instructions for eliminating typical failures and breakdowns.
For last, we saved a couple of English-language YouTube channels about computer hardware. The first of these is Tek Syndicate, with an extravagant host and a simplistic style of presentation, more like a friendly conversation than a review.
The world's largest YouTube channel about computer hardware is LinusTechTips - at the time of writing, 1.4 million subscribers (this completely refutes the assumption that few people are interested in computer hardware these days). I’m sure even fans of tongue twisters will envy the fast speech and clear diction of the presenter of this channel. It is worth noting high quality video shooting.
What channels about computer hardware do you subscribe to? Write in the comments.
“Hardware” (computer slang) is a term used to describe components (hardware) for computers and laptops. A laptop is a portable computer, and this leaves an imprint on its hardware, since it is necessary for the laptop to remain mobile for a long time without recharging. The main hardware components of a laptop or computer are: RAM, processor, hard drive, screen matrix, video card, I/O ports, disk and USB drives, keyboard.
Modern laptops are equipped with a fairly large amount of RAM, which is not inferior in characteristics to regular RAM. desktop computer. It is advisable that the laptop's RAM be at least 1-2GB.
The processor of a laptop is responsible for its performance. Different laptops have different power processors depending on their purpose. If a laptop or computer will be used to access the Internet and to work with email programs and office applications, then a processor with average performance is sufficient. But if the PC is intended for games, then it requires very powerful processor, able to withstand heavy loads. Today, the most popular processors for laptops are AMD or Intel.
The hard drive, despite its rather small sizes, has quite a decent volume and it’s good if it has a high data transfer speed. But not all manufacturers install fast hard drives on laptops, as this affects the internal temperature of the laptop.
The laptop screen matrix is a real LCD monitor. Today, manufacturers offer excellent quality matrices: with high contrast, excellent clarity, high brightness and good color rendition.
The video card, one might say, shows what the laptop is intended for. What the user can do depends on what video card is installed: work only with various applications or play games and create 3D graphics.
Laptops and computers are equipped with COM and LPT I/O ports, but such ports are already outdated, and today fewer and fewer external devices are being sold that require connection via COM and LPT ports. But the USB port is very popular today. Through it you can connect a mouse, flash drive, scanner, printer and other devices.
The keyboard of laptops and computers is produced using special technologies, thanks to which it is only a few millimeters thick.
Like any equipment, hardware sometimes breaks down, and then repair of laptops or computers is required.
There are many common PC hardware problems. One of the most common is hard drive failure. The failure of the hard drive is accompanied by periodic clicks inside the case, this means that urgent repair of the laptop is required, therefore, as soon as clicks appear, you must immediately save all important information from laptop hard drive to external media. The hard drive cannot be repaired; after a breakdown, it is replaced.
Also, the source of hardware problems can be the strong heating of laptops and computers during their operation. To find out the reason, you need to contact service center, in which diagnostics will be carried out. Typically, an increase in temperature occurs due to a clogged cooling system or a broken fan.
Laptop screen repair is often required. It happens that the image on the laptop screen is very poorly visible, and the screen itself begins to show unclearly and becomes very cloudy, in which case the backlight lamp needs to be repaired. There are often situations when the matrix cable comes off and subsequently the monitor begins to “blink.”
I will consider this topic from the point of view of a PC builder, discarding marketing and brand popularity. This is my subjective opinion based on long-term experience. This post will be useful even to those who are familiar with computers.
Computer composition
Motherboard;
- Processor + cooling system;
- RAM module;
- Video card;
- ROM (HDD, SSD);
- Power unit;
- Frame.
Motherboard
A motherboard (English motherboard, MB; also mainboard, slang for “mother”, “mother”, “motherboard”) is a complex multi-layer printed circuit board, which is the basis for building a computing system (computer). This is the nervous system of the computer; the overall functionality, capabilities, speed and reliability of your (or our) personal computer depend on the choice of motherboard.
Major PC motherboard manufacturers: ASRock, ASUS, GIGABYTE, Supermicro, MSI
AsRock - subsidiary ASUS company for the release of budget motherboards, lower prices are achieved by lower quality components.
ASUS is one of the best manufacturers and board configurators. This manufacturer has the widest range of solutions, including for embedded systems and workstations. Around 2008, cheap Asus motherboards started having problems with south bridge, or rather with a power controller. The p4p800 board was widely known to fail for this reason. In 2011, I decided to abandon this brand as my main one due to frequent warranty cases when using cheap power supplies. In 2015, at the Asus conference, I asked the technical specialists a question, where they told me that the problem was practically solved, new power protection systems prevent the board from dying, but it is not recommended to use it with cheap power supplies.
GIGABYTE is the main competitor of ASUS, the most reliable motherboards according to statistics of warranty cases from our production for 2012-2015. The optimal choice, they outlive the warranty period with cheap power supplies. Yes, sometimes these have to be installed according to the customer’s requirements and budget. I give a warranty for such PCs not for 3 years, but for a year.
Supermicro - this company makes boards for servers, but now you can find solutions for ordinary office PCs. Such boards are not common in the desktop segment due to their high price, but, perhaps, they are among the most reliable.
MSI - high quality boards and performance, a good brand, we use it often.
Motherboards come in different sizes and with different specifications. Main form factors (dimensions):
- large XL-ATX and E-ATX
- standard ATX
- medium microATX
- small Mini-ITX
There are others, but they are specific or not widespread.
The rear wall has connectors for connecting devices; you can select a set of ports to connect external devices and save on expansion cards. A socket is a socket for a processor, the type of which determines the model range of supported processors.
CPU
Central processing unit (CPU; also central processing unit - CPU; English central processing unit, CPU, literally - central processing unit) - an electronic unit or integrated circuit(microprocessor) that executes machine instructions (program code), the main part of the hardware of a computer or programmable logic controller. Sometimes called a microprocessor or simply a processor.
Frequency (mhz), number of cores, cache memory.
Compatibility options:
Motherboard socket
Major PC processor manufacturers: Intel and AMD
Intel is a leading processor manufacturer, many years ahead of its competitors.
This is a good and productive processor for gaming computer 5 years ahead.
High quality, stable operation, and fault tolerance remain with Intel processors.
AMD - until last year, AMD was an outsider, but the Ryzen architecture has greatly strengthened the position of this company. Unfortunately, the architecture is young, and our corporate customers are not eager to switch to it. Besides, creating a “zoo” is also not interesting. But for home use worth considering.
You can find the performance table at the link below:
http://www.nix.ru/hardware-review/cpu-benchmark-performance.html
RAM
Random access memory (English: Random Access Memory, RAM, random access memory; RAM; computer jargon “memory”, “RAM”) is a volatile part of the computer memory system in which input, output and intermediate data are temporarily stored; processor programs.
Performance parameters:
Memory capacity, Frequency (mhz)
Compatibility options:
Generation DDR, connector type Dimm or SO-dimm
There are many memory manufacturers, let's look at the most worthy ones: Corsair, Kingston.
Corsair - this company produces high-performance memory running on high frequencies(ahead of its time), unfortunately, the resource of such memory is not high, choose Corsair memory with a lifetime warranty.
Kingston is the best option for choosing memory, excellent quality. Solutions bearing the HyrexX logo have a warranty of approximately 10 years. The company does not produce the chips itself, but it has the strictest quality control. As a rule we use them.
There are other good producers, but I don’t like the “zoo” either.
Storage System
Now there are 2 current types of ROM:
1) Solid-state drive (English solid-state drive, SSD) - a computer non-mechanical storage device based on memory chips. In addition to them, the SSD contains a control controller.
There are two types of solid state drives: those based on RAM and those based on flash memory. SSD has a high speed of data processing, the write/read speed is an order of magnitude higher than classic HDD. The disadvantage of this technology is the cost per volume.
Performance parameters:
Memory capacity, read and write speed, external bandwidth, memory type
/
Compatibility options:
Interface, form factor
To choose an SSD, you should consider three manufacturers: Intel, Samsung and Plextor
Intel - the best performance of processor and logical systems, quality, speed.
Samsung is the optimal solution in terms of performance/price, the fastest SSDs are not inferior in reliability.
Plextor - good performance and fault tolerance, average price. They have proven themselves when working in rooms with high temperatures and humidity, for example in kitchens.
Corsair - very productive drives in m2 format. A decent choice for a gaming PC. They require cooling because working temperature without it above 70°C.
Due to frequent shortages, I have had to use other brands, but the most reliable ones are listed above. We can also mention Transcend, but we don’t have much statistics on them.
At the same time, the market is constantly changing, SSD technology is already more refined, and the percentage of warranty cases for all manufacturers is not high.
Also pay attention to the type of memory, TLC is cheaper memory with a low rewriting resource. We only recommend reliable MLC memory.
Should be installed on SSD operating system and applications requiring high storage performance.
2) Hard drive magnetic disks or HDD (English hard (magnetic) disk drive, HDD, HMDD), hard disk, in computer slang “hard drive” - a random access storage device (information storage device), based on the principle of magnetic recording. It is the main data storage device in most computers.
Performance parameters:
Memory capacity, read and write speed, external bandwidth, cache memory, number of revolutions per minute.
Compatibility options:
Interface, form factor.
Here I will note only two manufacturers: WD (Western Digital) and Seagate.
These manufacturers have many disks and series; the only problematic disks were WD blue, when used in a POS-PC, but in any case, they have the highest percentage of warranty failures.
power unit
Computer block power supply unit (PSU - power supply unit, PSU) is a secondary power source designed to supply computer components with DC electrical energy by converting the mains voltage to the required values.
This is a component that cannot be skimped on; the service life of all components depends on the stability of the output voltage. The power supply must provide protection for overload, short circuit, and overvoltage in the network. If you are not building a cheap PC, then the power supply must have active power factor correction (Active PFC).
Performance parameters:
Power.
Compatibility options:
Form factor, number of connection interfaces.
Let's consider worthy manufacturers of power supplies: FSP, Thermaltake, Seasonic, Inwin
FSP are good power supplies, the model range includes the cheapest power supplies with Active PFC, there are also Aurum models (not currently on our market), which are highly reliable
Thermaltake are decent power supplies, they were leaders in quality 7 years ago, a good warranty of 5 years.
Seasonic - power supplies are designed for reliability; there are models with power redundancy and specialized models, for example silent ones.
Inwin are the simplest power supplies that are sold together with inwin cases. Very good reliability indicators for this segment, the lowest failure rate among power supplies supplied in a housing. Now the in-win company sells cases with Powerman PSUs; they are cheaper and less reliable.
In any case, I recommend using voltage stabilizers when connecting your PC to power.
Frame
The case is not just a box where components are placed, it is part of the interior of the room. The case also has its own properties: cooling of components, sound insulation, dust insulation.
Performance parameters:
Cooling system, dust filters.
Compatibility options:
Supported form factor of motherboards, supported form factor of expansion cards and supported number of expansion cards, maximum length of a video card, maximum height of a CPU cooler, ability to install a CBO.
The housing is selected for a specific task and a specific configuration.
Our choice:
Gaming PC - Cooler Master;
Quiet PC - Cooler master, Silencio series;
Office PC - Cooler master, N series, inwin.
Multimedia computer - Cooler master, Thermaltake;
Compact system units - Inwin.
I also use others.
Video card
Video card (GPU, also video adapter, graphics adapter, graphics card, graphics card, graphics accelerator, 3D card) - electronic device, which converts a graphic image stored as the contents of computer memory (or the adapter itself) into a form suitable for further display on a monitor screen. The first monitors built on cathode ray tubes worked on the television principle of scanning the screen with an electron beam, and required a video signal generated by a video card for display.
Modern processors have a built-in video card that can handle all tasks except games and professional graphics work.
At the moment I am not inclined towards any manufacturer, I like MSI for overclocking, EVGA for low temperature and price. But because of the miners, sometimes you have to make do with what you have.
Rating of warranty cases
This data is very difficult to collect and is not distributed by manufacturers. They are outdated, now everything may be different, but as my practice shows, I made the right choice, and high-quality brands remained high-quality.
Motherboards:
- Gigabyte 2.33% - 2010, 2.36% - 2009;
- MSI 2.44% - 2010, 2.54% - 2009;
- ASUS 2.49% - 2010, 3.05% - 2009;
- ASRock 2.71% - 2010, 2.21% - 2009.
Memory:
- Kingston 0.30% - 2010, 0.37% - 2009;
- Crucial 0.93% - 2010, 0.78% - 2009;
- Corsair 1.41% - 2010, 1.66% - 2009;
- G.Skill 2.73% - 2010, 1.53% - 2009;
- OCZ 6.76% - 2010, 2.76% - 2009.
Hard disks:
- Western Digital 1.45% - 2010, 0.99% - 2009;
- Seagate 2.13% - 2010, 2.58% - 2009;
- Samsung 2.47% - 2010, 1.93% - 2009;
- Hitachi 3.39% - 2010, 0.92% - 2009.
SSD:
- Intel 0.59% - 2010;
- Corsair 2.17% - 2010;
- Crucial 2.25% - 2010;
- Kingston 2.39% - 2010;
- OCZ 2.93% - 2010.
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