Tom's Hardware > Forum > Homebuilt Systems > New System Build > [Solved] Why pay more? ~$300 complete build BASIC NEEDS

[Solved] Why pay more? ~$300 complete build BASIC NEEDS

Forum Homebuilt Systems : New System Build - [Solved] Why pay more? ~$300 complete build BASIC NEEDS

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Best answer from pepperman.

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So i have been intrusted to build a family pc for a friend, and want to do it as cheaply as possible for them. It doesn't make sense for them to go and buy a crap computer from best buy for $499, b/c I think I can beat any of best buy's cheapest computers for around $300-$350. Here's the skinny...

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: Within next month
SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Web surfing, music playing, light gaming (i.e. sims)
PARTS NOT REQUIRED: keyboard, mouse, monitor, speakers, OS.
PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: newegg/zipzoomfly/frys
PARTS PREFERENCES: none
OVERCLOCKING: NO SLI OR CROSSFIRE: NO
MONITOR RESOLUTION: 19" nothing
ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: the cheaper the better!!!

Here's what I'm thinking so far, and it seems like a really decent build...

CD/DVD Drive: Sony Optiarc Black 24X - $33
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6827118030

Case: cooler master RC-534 - $40
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811119104

HDD: WD 160 blue - $40
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6822136075

PSU: Corsair 400w - $40
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817139008

Memory: Crucial 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) - $34
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820146526

MOBO: GIGABYTE GA-G41M-ES2H LGA 775 Intel G41 HDMI Micro ATX Intel Motherboard - $70
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813128396

CPU: Intel Pentium E5300 2.6GHz - $70
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819116074

TOTAL comes to $327 plus shipping

Mobo has integrated graphics, will it be enough for light gaming on a crap monitor?

Will 2.6Ghz be enough processing to last 5-10years?

Please advise on any less expensive and equally reliable parts! I can go AMD but I just don't think the Athalon64's x2 can provide more value than the E5300 at $70

For any one who cares i'm rocking the PII-720/ HD4870 / 750w / 4gb / 640WD black

EDIT: ADDED MISSING PRICES

Message edited by mountie on 10-05-2009 at 09:17:29 PM

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I think in this case, AMD would be the better way to go, if only because the integrated graphics is stronger. The Athlon II 240 performs on par with the E5300 BTW.
http://en.inpai.com.cn/doc/enshowc [...] ageid=5058

For $128, get the Athlon II 2.8 GHz with HD4200 GPU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Comb [...] mbo.270985

For $1 less, get the faster RAM
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820161030

Since you want this to last a few years, why not a bigger hard drive for $10 more?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6822152181

Those are just my recommendations, your build looks good, but with my recommendations, the longevity will be increased. The price will go down $3.

Best answer

Reply to pepperman

Going to have to agree with pepperman on this one. AMD out performs and the samsung HDD is a good one.

Reply to scubba85

Pepperman - Thanks for that combo deal... I like that mobo's graphics

Reviews on that RAM look to be pretty mixed-up, plus the one I picked has free shipping, so may still be cheaper option.

This family had a 80GB hard drive for 7 years and couldn't fill it, plus I can make their old one into an external if they really run into space problems....

Is it worth waiting for a mobo combo to pop up on the egg? I think i ended up getting my old one for free after waiting...

Reply to mountie

AMD 780g / 785g integrated gfx are substantially better than any intel offering at this time so +1 to peppermans suggestion

Reply to Outlander_04

The HD recommendation has more to do with speed than capacity. That old 160GB drive is considerably slower than the very fast F3 500GB drive. IMO getting a much faster drive with 340GB more storage for $10 more is a no-brainer, regardless of whether they need the extra capacity.

Message edited by shortstuff_mt on 10-05-2009 at 09:34:28 PM

Reply to shortstuff_mt

Alright, alright, you sold me on the better hard-drive, mainly b/c free shipping!

Looking at that AMD series kind of opens things up a little more... Better processor with similar mobo for $3 more...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Comb [...] mbo.271175

The biggest difference between Pepperman's mobo is the 128M side-port graphic memory. Will they see a difference?

Message quoted 1 times

Reply to mountie

For what you are looking at the AMD offerings are WAY better. The AMD boards also tend to have MUCH MUCH better onboard video. The ATI HD4200 or even 3300 is far far better than an intel onboard chip.

Reply to jay2tall

mountie wrote :

Yes, that one would be better. The lack of a sideport will affect it some, but not much; it's still a lot better than the intel mobo, and the faster cpu would probably make up for it.

Reply to pepperman

Dude, no way. You can do better than those chips.

Check it out, 153 gets you the Athlon 2 quad core with a biostar motherboard.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Comb [...] mbo.271179

Reply to ohiou_grad_06

If he wants to spend more, then yes, he could get the quad, and for 20 more than that he could get the triple core unlocked, etc. From my understanding he is looking for cheap value. For the everyday user, a slower quad core isn't the way to go. I'm guessing his clients don't do rendering.

Reply to pepperman

Yeah, but you are only talking about 20 bucks more. They probably don't need the triple core with it being more, but most people are going to have more programs running, like antivirus, web browsing, maybe some audio apps, etc. For the 20 bucks I think it is worth it. Realistically, with quads that cheap, I don't think I personally would want anything less than at least a tri core. Unless I were looking for a laptop or something. But that's just my opinion.

Message edited by ohiou_grad_06 on 10-06-2009 at 04:33:30 AM

Reply to ohiou_grad_06

OhioU - In all honesty, peppreman has it correct, I would more likely go for a single core if it was going to save me $50, then up to a quad for $20 more. Quad core is WAY overkill for this build, you mention anti-virus (once a week) and web browsing and music for most people simultaneously, as far as I can tell 2 cores will handle that with relative ease.

I guess I just need help finding a decent combo deal from the egg for all these (or similar) components. I just saw the 400w corsair psu just got free shipping and an extra $20 rebate so I may snag that today.

Any suggestions for a OS? I was just going to re-use their Windows XP Pro to keep things simple, but might put a temp copy of the Win 7 trial on a separate partition, for them to try out...

Reply to mountie

Any in that family still in college?...$30 for Win7.
http://windows7.digitalriver.com/s [...] ayHomePage

Reply to falkun

Falkun - Thats awesome!!! I could definately find someone who would be willing...

Reply to mountie

I am starting to worry about the onbaord graphics... I noticed it was pretty low on the latest charts. Out of curiosity, should I be concerned about anything the integrated graphics will not be able to do? Even at lowest settings?

Thanks in advance.

EDIT: Found the charts...

Message edited by mountie on 10-07-2009 at 07:02:20 PM

Reply to mountie

For the price range you're looking at, the HD 3200 is the best you can get; it will be fine for light gaming, and just plain computing. Granted, you won't be able to play many games on high settings and high res, but you can play on medium and get decent frames.

Reply to pepperman

All of my prices have gone up!! Build is about $50 more than orignally planned....

Should I jump on this deal?

DDR3 Ram for $38?:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] _-20148194

I don't fully understand DDR3 memory... Would i be better of getting a faster version of DDR2? like:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820211066

Reply to mountie

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[Solved] Why pay more? ~$300 complete build BASIC NEEDS

Forum Homebuilt Systems : New System Build - [Solved] Why pay more? ~$300 complete build BASIC NEEDS