Final pass on budget desktop build

[jallen]

Okay. Here is a final pass at a budget desktop build that I posted about a week or so ago (http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/252841-31-home-desktop-budget-build#). I appreciate all the good input, considering I'm quite a noob to current technology. I think I've narrowed it down to the final parts list. I would appreciate any input on possible incompatibilities or flaws that I may have overlooked. Keep in mind I'm shooting for ~$500. I plan on running Vista 64 bit. No gaming, just basic desktop applications, internet and such. I have a case and optical drive already and store most of my data on external drives so I have little need for a big HD.

Mobo: GIGABYTE GA-EP43-DS3L LGA 775 Intel P43 ATX Intel http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128347 - $100

CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115017 - $210

GPU: ASUS EAH3450/HTP/256M Radeon HD 3450 256MB 64-bit GDDR2 PCI Express 2.0 x16 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121230 - $35 - $10 mail-in

PSU: Antec earthwatts EA430 430W ATX12V v2.0 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371006 - $60 -$30 mail-in

HD: Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST380815AS 80GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148231 - $40

RAM: OCZ Platinum Revision 2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227139 - $49 - $25 mail-in

Appreciate your help.

 

[jpbg]

looks fine but may i suggest you go with a larger hard drive the 160gb is only 4 dollars more yet has twice the storage, you will probably regret not getting it later.
Link to it: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136075

 

[guanyu210379]

Hmmm...it looks nice.

Can you still afford a bigger RAM, let say 2x2GB? I recommend you to get one of those 2x2GB, especially if you are using 64bit OS.

Jpbg is absolutely right there mate! It is only 4 USD more but you get double the capacity.

The rest is good.

 

[th_username]

if you are not gaming why you choose quad core go with dual core to save money

 

[jpbg]

because dual core is more for gaming and quad core is more for applications but base don what he said he is using it for i agree he should just get an e7200

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115052

 

[dirtmountain]

agree on the HD
although more RAM is nice, you can always add more down the road a ways

 

[jallen]

Thanks for the advice guys.

Good pick, jpbg, on the HD. It's probably more than I need, but for the price it makes sure I don't get squeezed too soon.

I will eventually bump the RAM up to 4. 2 will get me started fine, and I'll pick up more later.

Now the difficult issue. I've been back on forth on the CPU. I started out planning on the E7200 with the idea of jumping up to a quad in a couple years (if there are still compatible ones for the mobo). In my previous post, I got a lot of push to go quad now; people said it would be more future prepared than if I waited. I'm kind of torn now. I could go either way. I'm willing to shell out for the quad, but saving money is always good. I think the E7200 should do me fine for running a few desktop apps at a time, but the Q6600 sounds really advantagous for the multitasking. My wife really hates a frozen machine when she gets two or three things going at once. Anyway, it sounds like there is not a lot of concensus yet on this issue in the community. Any other words of advice or thoughts I should consider before settling on the CPU?

 

[guanyu210379]

If you still wanna buy only a 2GB RAM, get a single slot. 1x 2GB so that it will take only one slot on your mobo. This is meant so that you can still upgrade your RAM untill 8GB (4x2GB)

 

[jallen]

If you still wanna buy only a 2GB RAM, get a single slot. 1x 2GB so that it will take only one slot on your mobo. This is meant so that you can still upgrade your RAM untill 8GB (4x2GB)

Good point. I noticed that the cost of going with a single stick is about the same as going with some of the lower priced 2x2GB kits for 4GB. Maybe I'll just bump up to that instead.

Still wondering about the Duo vs Quad issue for my situation. Anyone got any further input?

 

[guanyu210379]

Quad is stronger in multitasking and have better future, since everything in the future will go at least quad. But if you are using your computer just for word, browsing, and stuff and not gaming, movies coding/editing, and other stuffs, well...you don't really need a powerfull proc for that , E7200 is already more than enough.

 

[jallen]

Thanks guanyu210379. That helps a lot. There is a possibility that I may want to push it with a bit of video editing and coding in the future. Probably not on a large scale or regular basis, but I don't want to get caught short handed. I will probably go with the quad in this case.