Office computer specs - Approx £300 build, with solid single core performance? HELP!

[pandaking]

Hi,

I'm trying to spec up some new computers for my work. The current computers aren't up to scratch anymore.

For info the current PC's are:
Intel Pentium E5200 (2.50GHz) & 2GB RAM
Intel Pentium E2180 (2.00GHz) & 1GB RAM

Requirements:

• ■ Support dual monitor setup
  ■ Good single core performance - We use a website that uses Silverlight technology and it takes ages doing some tasks. From looking in task manager it would seem to just be using one core of the current dual core processor (uses solid 50% cpu whilst calculating)
  ■ Budget of approx £300
  ■ Have an SSD (120GB should suffice)

My specs:
http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/p/1KxsJ

CPU:
AMD Athlon II X4 760K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor

Mobo:
MSI FM2-A75MA-E35 Micro ATX FM2 Motherboard

RAM:
G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory

PSU:
Corsair CX 430W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply

Case:
Cooler Master NSE-200-KKN1 MicroATX Mid Tower Case


Couple of big queries:

• ■ I'm concerned about noise and this CPU looks like a hot one. Can anyone confirm if this is indeed the CPU to go for, and if so does it need a new cooler on it?
  ■ I've used corsair PSU's in the past and loved them. Is this a good quiet budget PSU?
  ■ Does this mobo support dual screen? I can see it's got both DVI and VGA but not sure if it can output from both.

Any other suggestions greatly appreciated. Many thanks!


I would be grateful for any suggestions, or alternatives you think would be more suitable.

 

[Deemo13]

You might also be able to part out your old computers for the hard drives. Also, if they have video cards, you might be able to use those as well.

The Corsair power supply is good. Very efficient. You should be fine with the stock cooler. It might be a tad noisy, but it does the job.

I'm not sure if the motherboard supports dual screen.

 

[pandaking]

Hi Deemo13, thanks so much for the response.

OK, so I might need to also purchase a cheap graphics card. Does anyone know either way?

Also any recommendations on cheap cooler if the stock is too noisy? Or perhaps I should go with a newer CPU which runs a bit cooler?

For info the current CPU's are:
Intel Pentium E5200 @ 2.50GHz
Intel Pentium E2180 @ 2.00GHz

We also have 2GB and 1GB of RAM so the spec listed above should give a very noticebale improvement in performance!

Any other suggestions on spec alterations very grateful.

 

[Deemo13]

The motherboard might be able to support dual-monitors, but I would research it to make sure. I would also build with the stock fan to see how it sounds. If it is too loud, it can be replaced.

The quad-core with the SSD will make a huge difference.

 

[ScrewySqrl]

just a note: the 760K REQUIRES a dedicated GPU. you might consider an A8 instead.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD A8-5500 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor (£68.80 @ Amazon UK)
Motherboard: MSI FM2-A75MA-E35 Micro ATX FM2 Motherboard (£43.21 @ Dabs)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory (£52.99 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Sandisk Ultra Plus 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk (£69.98 @ Amazon UK)
Case: Cooler Master NSE-200-KKN1 MicroATX Mid Tower Case (£32.15 @ Amazon UK)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 430W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply (£38.39 @ Amazon UK)
Total: £305.52
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-10-04 12:18 BST+0100)

This is just just a little more, but included the GPU you need. the A8-5500 has the dual monitor capability, more than enough GPU and cpu to handle silverlight.

 

[pandaking]

just a note: the 760K REQUIRES a dedicated GPU. you might consider an A8 instead.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD A8-5500 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor (£68.80 @ Amazon UK)
Motherboard: MSI FM2-A75MA-E35 Micro ATX FM2 Motherboard (£43.21 @ Dabs)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory (£52.99 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Sandisk Ultra Plus 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk (£69.98 @ Amazon UK)
Case: Cooler Master NSE-200-KKN1 MicroATX Mid Tower Case (£32.15 @ Amazon UK)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 430W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply (£38.39 @ Amazon UK)
Total: £305.52
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-10-04 12:18 BST+0100)

This is just just a little more, but included the GPU you need. the A8-5500 has the dual monitor capability, more than enough GPU and cpu to handle silverlight.

That's fantastic. Thank you so much for your help!
Now I just need to pick some nice IPS monitors.

Thanks again everyone.

 

[Deemo13]

just a note: the 760K REQUIRES a dedicated GPU. you might consider an A8 instead.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD A8-5500 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor (£68.80 @ Amazon UK)
Motherboard: MSI FM2-A75MA-E35 Micro ATX FM2 Motherboard (£43.21 @ Dabs)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory (£52.99 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Sandisk Ultra Plus 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk (£69.98 @ Amazon UK)
Case: Cooler Master NSE-200-KKN1 MicroATX Mid Tower Case (£32.15 @ Amazon UK)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 430W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply (£38.39 @ Amazon UK)
Total: £305.52
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-10-04 12:18 BST+0100)

This is just just a little more, but included the GPU you need. the A8-5500 has the dual monitor capability, more than enough GPU and cpu to handle silverlight.

Did not know that at all. Learned something new today.