Want to build non-gaming home PC

[rcullens]

Hi all I am wanting to build a non-gaming home PC. I was wondering what would be a good combo that would keep the PC fast at a reasonable price. Thanks!

 

[lunyone]

What is your budget?
Did you have any preferences?
What are some of the tasks that your going to be doing?
Do you already have an OS or do you need to buy one?
Do you need everything (mouse, keyboard, monitor, etc.)??

 

[slomo4sho]

Well a couple of questions come to mind. First off, what is your budget? Also, what programs do you plan on running?

 

[rcullens]

I have mouse, keyboard, speakers, monitor. No preferences really, budget under $700. Just typical home use, some Photoshop, music, photos, video, office work. I am thinking about switching to Vista and drop XP.

 

[lunyone]

Well you can easily meet that budget, especially if you don't require dedicated video card, which I don't think you'll need. Might help if you do have one, but not sure if Photoshop likes the dedicated GPU or not. I haven't researched that so I'm just wondering.
Here's what I had in mind:
CPU - $190 q6600 Quad core for Photoshop tasks. This can be dropped down to a e7200 for $120 or so, but thought I'd start off with that CPU.
Mobo - $100-120 p45 based mobo. Will do pretty much anything you want and doesn't cost too much.
Memory - ~$50 4 gb's of DDR2 800 mHz. Will help out having more RAM for Photoshop tasks.
Case/PSU - ~$100-150 This will depend on budget, but will have a quality PSU and a decent case. Was thinking of Antec 300 w/at least the Antec 500w Earthwatts PSU.
HD - $70 Was thinking of Western Digital 640 gb AAKS version HD. Fast and cheap!
DVD Burner - ~$30 Just about anyone will do, just get a RETAIL version, so you get the software to read/burn DVD's with it.
GPU - ~$80 I was thinking that the AMD 4670 would be a good fit. It's not expensive and can do quite alot with little power too (no 6 pin PCI-e power connector needed!).
OS - $80 You can go either way. I think the way to go is getting Vista Home Premium 64 bit OS. That way if you get more memory later, the OS will be able to use it. XP 32 bit will only recognize about 3-3.5 gb of RAM.

Total ~$700!! Before any rebates. This would get you a very solid build and still fit within the budget!

 

[Nik_I]

cpu: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115052&Tpk=E7200

motherboard: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130185

RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227199

video card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131133

case/psu: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129024&Tpk=sonata%20III

HDD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148294

DVD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136153

this ends up being well under $700, bu there's plenty of room to improve performance. there's also room to add in a vista dvd.

 

[slomo4sho]

Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD6400AAKS 640GB

COOLER MASTER Centurion 590

OCZ StealthXStream OCZ500SXS 500W

CORSAIR 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR2 800

LITE-ON 20X DVD±R DVD Burner

BIOSTAR TFORCE TA790GX

AMD Phenom 9950 2.6GHz

Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-bit

Total: $647.92 - $55 MIR = $597.92

 

[rcullens]

Do I really need a quad core? I dont use photoshop that much. I do use multiple apps though.

 

[effel]

I'd go with a more energy efficiency processor than the one slomo4sho suggested, and change the power supply to an Antec Earthwatts 380w. Also, 4 (2x2GB) of G.Skill ram can be had for $20 cheaper. Go with the WD6400AAKS drive though, it's very speedy, and should hold plenty of media.

**Edit**

I put together a build that I think would be good. The processor is expensive, but its rated at 65w, rather than the 125w, which is a good thing. You still get the uses of 4 cores however. I'm not too sure if this is what you need, or other people's thought on this processor. Personally, I like the idea of low power usage on a home system where gaming is no concern. You'll get 4GB of ram on the 64bit OS, which should make multitasking hassle free along side the quad core. You also won't hike up the energy bill with the efficient antec power supply, and the integrated graphics on the motherboard.
http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=11618768

 

[slomo4sho]

Yes, you could always go with a AMD Phenom 9350e Agena 2.0GHz if your looking for a more power efficient CPU. The price is the same on both. You sacrifice higher performance for a greener build

The CORSAIR CMPSU-400CX 400W is actually the same price as the 380watt Earthwatts PSU recommended by effel but it comes with a $10 rebate. Its a better buy than the Earthwatts PSU.

It seems they increased the price on my recommended ram by $10

 

[rcullens]

Ok, spoke with the wife and increased the budget to $1000. I like alot of the replys. What would you change with the new budget?

 

[rcullens]

What would yall change with a $1000 budget? I figure $200 more is not much to add since I will already be spending $800.

 

[slomo4sho]

Get yourself a bigger monitor? In reality, for the tasks indicated, you should be perfectly fine with the above build.

If anything, get yourself a second hard drive and run raid 0.

Also, the PC Power & Cooling Silencer PPCS370X 370W is currently on sale for $49.99 - $15 MIR and free shipping. I would highly recommend picking up this PSU while its on sale.