My First Computer Build

I’ve always wanted to build my own computer. My transition to semi-retirement seemed a good opportunity to do this, especially with the uncertainty over future computer part pricing because of the tariffs. After a couple of months of researching computer part capabilities and compatibilities, I ordered lots of different parts on 2 May 2025 and worked on the build between 11 May and 16 May. I’d describe it as a midrange desktop computer. Here are some of the technical specs:

• It is a microATX format factor build, and the case is a Lian Li A3
• The processor is a AMD Ryzen 5 9600x
• It has a MSI Nvidia GeForce 3060 graphics card with 12 GB of video memory
• I put in 64 GB of RAM, and for storage it has both a 500 GB and 2 TB SSD drive
• It’s running Linux Mint 23.1 XFCE

I’m very happy with how the project turned out. I would definitely build another, now that I understand the process. But I’m not sure when I will need to! I anticipate this computer will last a long time, and a major reason to build one’s one computer is that if you can build your own computer, you can repair it too. It’s satisfying to get away from electronic devices that are sealed black boxes, with no ability to tinker with them or fix things if a part fails.