Building computer for parents.

I am building a computer for my dad. His current computer is an AMD 2200 or something...i dunno...it's like 6-7 yrs old.

I"m trying to stay relatively cheap. He's got some extra towers lying around that we can salvage parts from...such as disk drives and he took my power supply(cause the one he wants to replace crapped out on him).

Anyways, I don't really follow the cpu/gpu benchmarks and reviews unless i am upgrading my computer...then i'd keep track of it over time and wait til the newest stuff comes out. He wants a new computer pretty soon so i'm not able to fully research some things and it would be great if i could get some suggestions.

AMD or Intel? Would any of the cheap Intel processors (ie e5200/e6300 ect) be good for the price or should i just get a phenom 2 X3for $99? ...in other words. I'm looking for best processor that is cheap, futureproof, and well worth the money. Would a phenom 2 x3 be an option as far as processor or would it be pretty much overkill? I believe all my dad does is look on the internet and does the occasional app every now and then. Or would a low price dual core be more efficient and make more sense?

any suggestions would be great. I haven't made an AMD machine yet, so i'm gonna leaning towards trying an amd cpu....how are the Phenom 1s?

I would try to go with a Phenom II either the X2 550 (what I'd choose for that purpose) or an X3, and about 2GB or RAM will be a good amount. You can probably also make do with onboard graphics since it looks like it's never gonna get used for gaming.

If you have *some* money to spend, I'd suggest these:

Combo: $154.00 + $0.00 shipping - $20 MIR = $134.00
AMD Phenom II X3 710 2.6GHz Socket AM3 95W Triple-Core Processor Model HDX710WFGIBOX - Retail
Item #: N82E16819103648

CORSAIR DOMINATOR 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model TWIN2X4096-8500C5D - Retail
Item #: N82E16820145214

Combo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Comb [...] mbo.199146 - $137.98 - 2x $10.00 MIR + $?.?? shipping

ASUS EAH4670/DI/512M/A Radeon HD 4670 512MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
199146ASUS M4A78 Plus AM3/AM2+/AM2 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail


Whole deal ends up being right at $300.00 for me. Would be different for you cause of shipping.


Now if you have very limited funds, I suggest these:

MB+CPU Combo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Comb [...] mbo.200060 = $129.98 + s/h

AMD Athlon 64 X2 7750 Kuma 2.7GHz Socket AM2+ 95W Dual-Core black edition Processor Model AD775ZWCGHBOX - Retail
BIOSTAR TA760G M2+ AM2+/AM2 AMD 760G Micro ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail

Memory: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820220335 = $58.99 + $0.00 shipping - $25.00 MIR = 33.99

Patriot Viper 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model PVS24G6400LLKN - Retail

So you can get out of that with $163 setup which has built-in video.

Oh, and for either setup don't forget the HSF and the thermal paste!

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6835103031 : COOLER MASTER RR-CCH-L9U1-GP 92mm Hyper TX2 CPU Cooler - Retail
Price: $26.99

and get ya some AS5 thermal paste too...$8.95


So you can get out for about $200.

Caveat: I did this in a rush at work...my work may be flawed...if anyone sees a problem with it SHOUT

/facepalm

Whatever you do, don't buy a dedicated graphics card, especially something as powerful as a 4670. Find a nice 780G board and a 45nm dual/tri core and youll be good to go. As said earlier, it may be advisable to get a new hard drive as well, considering that they have gotten much faster over the last 3-6 years.

ah thanks guys so much...i'm not really worried about gpu. I have a ati 800x just lying around that he could use...least it's something. I don't know what else i'd do with it.


so a phenom 2 huh? Alrighty...i'll see what i can do...


and jcknouse thanks for all the suggestions

No problemo. There's lots of good people here that give good advice. I started reading here years ago, and Tom's is an invaluable assets for anything PCs (although I wish they'd put more into updating their charts...hint hint Tom's lol)

I just figured the 4670 would give him enough juice depending on what OS you put on there. Vista with Aero isn't exactly known to be resource-friendly

But they're right...if you load Vista then turn Aero options off and make Vista look like KDE 3.5 (linux desktop) and you'll be set

Good luck with that. Hope your dad enjoys it. (btw...I build my mom PCs every year or so. My dad won't touch a computer...just the TV remote )