$600 general use computer

[chrisfromalbany]

Building this computer for a friend. I was looking for thoughts. Going to install XP on the computer. She doe some art work on the computer but nothing too major. Already have a few old Harddrives to install a 200 gig and 300 gig. Wish she had more money and could get 500 7200.11 drive. Basically this is alittle more budget now but I think she can get good use of it. Weakness might be the GPU and Power supply.

-Chris

Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115018
$234.99

GIGABYTE GA-P35-DS3L LGA 775 Intel P35
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128059
$89.99

XFX GeForce 8600GT 256MB 128-bit
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150229
$94.99

CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145034
$69.00

SAMSUNG 20X DVD±R DVD Burner
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151153
$26.99

APEVIA 500W Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817148027
$39.99

COOLER MASTER ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119077
$54.99

Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound - OEM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835100007
$5.99

XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835233003
$36.99

 

[mihirkula]

Chuck the Q6600..get the E6750 instead. Its faster than the quad and a lot cheaper.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115029

Don't worry abt the GPU..its not a gaming rig..so the 8600 is fine.. get the 8600GTS though...its about $10 more than the GT and performs better.

Hmmmmnn that PSU isnt promising. The Corsair PSUs are very good... the 550VX is avail for $65 on buy.com...though its overkill...see if you can find the 450VX for a cheaper rate.

 

[guanyu210379]

Get :
1. Intel E8400 or Xeon E3110
2. HIS ATI HD 3850 256MB
3. Artic Cooling Freezer pro 7 (Thermal paste is already included)
4. Corsair 4 GB DDR2 800 CL5 (CL5 is cheaper but doesn't very too wide in performance compares to CL4 but size does matter)
5. 400W Tagan or 450W Corsair PSU

 

[chrisfromalbany]

Had a bad experience with ATI card last time and them not being supported with OS and different applications. On my own computer I have a Evga 8800 GT Oc , that works well and no driver issues.

I like the s1283 because of this..
http://www.frostytech.com/top5heatsinks.cfm

 

[einstein4pres]

You're spending $270 on processor-related stuff. Unless the artwork is pretty heavy on processor stuff, I'd suggest dropping your processor down a few notches. If you're comfortable with overclocking, I'd suggest a 2160 or so, which should reach ~3GHz with the stock cooler. That will likely be fast enough for most work.

The 8600GT is a gaming card (and not that good of one). I would suggest either moving upmarket or downmarket. A low-end GPU will still power two monitors and provide all the same colors out of the monitor, but won't help with 3D stuff. If gaming is an option, the 8800gs or 9600gt would be better choices (though they're more like $100).

I'm not familiar with the power supply brand, which isn't a great sign. Nor is it on the list of "tiered" power supplies.
http://www.xtremesystems.org/forums/showthread.php?t=108088
Unfortunately, I don't have a particularly good alternative to offer you in that price range.

The aforementioned 450VX is a good option, though. At newegg for $70-10.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139003&Tpk=450vx

 

[SuicideSilence]

The 8600GT is a gaming card (and not that good of one).

No its not, its a HTPC card.
sorry to burst your bubble.

 

[SuicideSilence]

einstein4pres is right about the PSU selection though.

 

[chuckm]

Corsair VX550 for $55 after rebate and google checkout;
http://www.buy.com/prod/Corsair-VX-550W-Power-Supply/q/loc/101/205852646.html

Go with the Xigmatek cooler, meet the new boss!

 

[oushi]

Wow... from what the OP has said for the end user's needs, you guys are going way overkill here...

Case: Cooler Master Centurion 5 - $53.99 + $4.99 shipping (add $2 if she wants the side panel window)
CPU: AMD 64 X2 5000+ (Retail, non-BE) - $89.99 + free shipping
Mobo: Gigabyte GA-MA78GM-S2H - $89.95 + $6.58 shipping
Memory: Corsair XMS2 2GB (2x1GB) DDR2 800 - $69.00 - $40 rebate + free shipping
PSU: Corsair 450VX - $69.99 - $10 rebate + free shipping
Optical: Samsung 20X DVD±RW w/ Lightscribe - $29.99 + free shipping (Lightscribe version of what you picked is cheaper with the free shipping at time of posting)
HDD: whatever you have lying around - $0
----------------------------------------------------------
Total: $402.91 - $50 rebates + $11.57 shipping = $364.48 before taxes

I would ditch the aftermarket cooler. The average user won't need a heavily overclocked system.

If this isn't a gaming machine, forget the discrete video card. 780G motherboards have the best onboard video available to date. Plenty of power for any nongamer plus you get dual monitor capability.

Just because she has a budget of $600 doesn't mean that you need to build the best machine for $600. You can get a system fit for her needs and still have money to spare. I'm sure she wouldn't mind being able to spend the leftovers on something else. Since she's an artist, the saved money could go towards a Wacom Graphire (4x5 for $99 if art as a hobby, or a 6x8 for $199 if more serious) if she doesn't already have a tablet.

@einstein: Apevia is just the new name for Aspire (tier 5).