Wife is going to buy me a new setup, what about this?

[JackoDaddy5]

I don't know much about computers, and her work has a 'computer guy', and here is a little setup he is preparing for us if we want it. Just wondering if there is any advice, or something that could be done better. I know there are obvious "upgrades" that would cost a ton more money, but for what is here, would it work well together?

INTEL Core i5 750 Quad Core 2.66GHz 8MB CPU, Motherboard and Fan
6 Gig Kingston DDR3 (i dont remember what mhz it is) MEMORY
EVGA nVidia Geforce GTX 470 1250MB PCI-E (2xDVI-I/1-HDMI)
Western Digital 500GB 16MB 7200 RPM SATA 2 Hard Drive
INTEGRATED Intel Gigabit Lan
INTEGRATED SOUND
LiteOn DVD-R/W SATA Black
Antec 650Watt Server Quality ATX Power Supply
CoolerMaster Mid Tower Case
Microsoft Windows 7 Professional w/64Bit Media

 

[wombat_tg]

What's the price?

You don't post the mobo so it's impossible to comment on if it will work well, but all the parts are fully respectable. You also don't say what you're going to use the rig for, so it's difficult to eval it that way. If all you do is surf the internet and play browser games and watch movies, the 470 is total overkill.

Given the choice of CPU and socket, the price is going to be a major factor in us telling you if it's a good value or not. That CPU + board is currently more expensive (new) then a far superior CPU+ board combo, and depending on your needs, you might even be able to forgo the graphics card entirely, further saving you money.

So please tell us what the price is on this, what board (if possible) and what you'll be using it for.

I don't know much about computers, and her work has a 'computer guy', and here is a little setup he is preparing for us if we want it. Just wondering if there is any advice, or something that could be done better. I know there are obvious "upgrades" that would cost a ton more money, but for what is here, would it work well together?

INTEL Core i5 750 Quad Core 2.66GHz 8MB CPU, Motherboard and Fan
6 Gig Kingston DDR3 (i dont remember what mhz it is) MEMORY
EVGA nVidia Geforce GTX 470 1250MB PCI-E (2xDVI-I/1-HDMI)
Western Digital 500GB 16MB 7200 RPM SATA 2 Hard Drive
INTEGRATED Intel Gigabit Lan
INTEGRATED SOUND
LiteOn DVD-R/W SATA Black
Antec 650Watt Server Quality ATX Power Supply
CoolerMaster Mid Tower Case
Microsoft Windows 7 Professional w/64Bit Media

 

[JackoDaddy5]

Price will be right around $1100 I think, might be some more discounts applicable. That first thing isn't including the motherboard? It will be used for some work stuff, and also some gaming, WoW, Rift, Elder Scrolls 5.

I know there will be better overall systems, but we just want something solid.

 

[genghiskron]

edit: $1100 is too high for the components alone, especially considering they are outdated. is he offering to build this for you and take care of everything? if so, then it sounds just about worth it. it will definitely be a solid system that will easily play those games.
for reference, this build is superior:
case:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129042
graphics:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127565
ram:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231311
os:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116754
psu+hdd:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.627707
cpu+mobo
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.631838
odd:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106289

total $906

 

[JackoDaddy5]

My price might be off, that was actually like 2 months ago on that estimate, so I'll chat with them about it again. There will also be the little extra fee for building it for us.

 

[JackoDaddy5]

Yes, he will be getting it for us, and building it as well, including a warranty with his work. Is the gtx 560ti or the i5-2500 better enough to put a bug in his ear, or is it comparable, and not that big of a deal?

 

[wombat_tg]

The difference between the 2400 and the 2500 (and the 61 and 67 boards) is one is for overclocking, one is not. For the games you've mentioned I think the 560 is total overkill. Most PC games out there do not require (nor even really benefit) from the newest hawt sexy GPU and it's sort of like having a V12 Mercedes. Do you NEED a V12? Will you ever use a V12 to its full potential grunting back and forth to work on the average 4 lane highway? Probably not.

Since you say you know nadda about computers, overclocking is probably not for you. So you can save a few bucks here. You can probably save a few bucks stepping down on the graphics card. You may even be fully satisfied with the 2400's onboard graphics and not even NEED a GPU. Even better, you can try it and see- if the on board does the job for you, great. If not, add a GPU. Literally a 5 minute procedure.

I think the ultimate question is really how much of a check you want to write. If the guy is worth his salt, he should have the machine put together < 90 minutes, start to finish. I think $100 is fully adequate for this. You're not asking him to mod anything or OC or anything fancy.

So with that in mind, just say "I want to spend $XXXX, and $XXX of that will be the building fee, what can I get with what's left" and viola, conundrum solved!

(And by the way, and I mean this honestly, if you can change the tire on your car, you can build a computer like this. 85% of the time it really is as simple as 'tab a, slot b'. Do not be afeered! )

 

[genghiskron]

id say its not really too big a deal for your needs. it will absolutely rock the games that you have mentioned, and since he is offering to take care of any problems you might have, it starts looking like a reasonable value. just be aware that its certainly not an amazing deal, and i would certainly expect better from a "computer guy" with whom i had a personal relationship. also, just to clarify, you have a monitor, and you live in the US, correct?

edit: honestly wombat, i think you could use to reread the thread...

 

[wombat_tg]

edit: honestly wombat, i think you could use to reread the thread...

What do you mean?

 

[JackoDaddy5]

Genghiskron, If you honestly think the links that you posted are of better value, and would serve better purpose for the value of new tech compared to the older stuff, then I will definately look into it, and discuss it with him.

I do have a monitor, not sure on the specifics, it's a 22inch HD monitor, and live in the US.

 

[genghiskron]

wombat, we're comparing the i5-750 to the i5-2400/2500. the i5-2400 and i5-2500 are both not for overclocking. the i5-2500k is for overclocking. no one has mentioned that board in this thread. (please dont take this the wrong way, im not upset, im just trying to clarify) there is no question that even the i5-2400, which is the cheapest of the new i5 cpu's, is better than the i5-750, and yet for some reason the i5-2400 is cheaper than the i5-750.

i fully agree that the 560ti is overkill for his needs. i suggested it for comparison because it is the one nvidia card that is both cheaper and faster than the gtx 470.

sometimes its hard to decide whether you want a cheaper, slower component, or a more expensive, faster component. i chose the i5-2400 and 560ti as counterexamples to his build because they are both cheaper and faster than the i5-750 and gtx 470, which makes the decision obvious.

 

[wombat_tg]

Ah, I made the mistake and forgot to put the "k" behind the 2500. Just a brainfart on my part! I was confused why you were disagreeing with me, now I see why.

I think you and I are on the same side of this argument.

 

[JackoDaddy5]

I wont be doing any overclocking... haha, for sure.. And there wouldn't be any reason to order the i5-750, if the i5-2400 is superior, and cheaper, or even the same price.

I understand from what you two are saying, is that the gtx470 is actually probably overkill for what I'm going to be using it for, but if that's what is offered, and the gtx 560ti is going to be cheaper, or relative to the same price, then I would absolutly get the upgrade.

And that's why I'm here. To help me see from your guys' knowledge if it is worth spending the little amounts of money on the upgrade, or if I should settle on something else, or something better.

 

[JackoDaddy5]

The combo deal that you have listed here, is that because I don't have a motherboard listed at all in that setup above? I thought the 'computer guy' had one listed somewhere, or had an idea about one, but maybe he forgot. Here is your link for quick reference.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.631838

 

[genghiskron]

its all good wombat, i apologize for being so nit picky the i5-750 uses the socket 1156 motherboards, which are now obsolete (meaning they wont make any new cpus that fit into that socket). an additional advantage of going with the i5-2400 is that it uses the new socket 1155 motherboards like the one i linked in the combo. this motherboard should allow you to upgrade your cpu in the future, if intel doesnt decide to change the socket again. keep in mind that the H61 mobo i linked lacks features like usb 3.0 and sata 6gb/s. there are slightly more expensive ($15-20) H67 mobos that have these features, but i dont think youll miss them. Both H61 and H67 are socket LGA 1155 (so is P67 but thats for overclocking).

Your computer guy has chosen some sort of socket 1156 mobo for your build.

i5-750- Socket 1156 - H55, P55
i5-2400 - Socket 1155- H61, H67, P67

 

[JackoDaddy5]

So how important do you think that usb 3.0 and 'sata 6gb/s' (I have no idea what this is or what for) are? Is there another motherboard I should be looking at, or one that has key features that I really should have? Or are these features no big deal?

 

[genghiskron]

you really dont need em.

 

[JackoDaddy5]

Sooo.... if you were to pick one of the two setups, the one I listed above, with a 3 year parts warranty, and 1 year tech service warranty, OR the one you listed, with just whatever parts warranty comes with them, which would you guys choose?

 

[erunion]

The main difference between the hardware is age. The parts genghiskron listed were generally newer successors to some of the parts you listed.
(e.g. The 470 was the second tier card of the last generation 4xx series, while the 560 is one step down (80 vs 70 vs 60) of the current generation 5xx.)

Unless this coworker is planning on selling you a computer from parts he already owns, there shouldn't be a problem in asking him to make a LGA 1155(i5-2400) setup instead of LGA 1156 (i5-750) that you listed. (Yes, the 1155 is newer than the 1156)




I've built a system pretty similar to Genghiskrons on cyberpowerpc.com. That price includes windows 7 and 3-year warranty but not shipping or tax (if in CA) http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/saved/1D62J1

I used the Gamer Xtreme 1000 configuration as the starting point, it produced the cheapest total of the several that I tried.(If you build the same setup with a different configuration as your starting point you'll get a different total)

 

[JackoDaddy5]

This is the response the comptuer guy gave me when we sent him the link to this page. Is he crazy, or what do you guys think about what he is saying?

HIS:

Lighted case for $99 that will sit under your desk?

Add a 2 TB drive for $127???? You will never use more than 500 Meg so why spend the money. An SSD drive for the OS would make more sense!

Spend the extra money on a good power supply, better CPU or more memory.

Tell me what your budget is and Jay will get the best specs for your money

 

[JackoDaddy5]

So I guess my question is, is the power supply sufficient, or is there a better one that I could use, or CPU?

Is he partially correct, or is he one of those guys who thinks his company is always right?

 

[genghiskron]

honestly jackodaddy, i have no idea what he is talking about. where did anyone mention a $99 case or 2tb hard drive? if hes talking about cyberpower, hes talking about options that werent chosen. yes, cyberpower suggests that you spend your money in stupid ways, but it does not force you to.

 

[JackoDaddy5]

Best answer selected by JackoDaddy5.