Custom PC Builds

[Paq70]

Hey guys, thought i'd put this up on the forum to see if anyone needed any help with creating a build. If you need a build just post the budget and if you need any peripherals or windows or a DVD drive included with it so i can accurately build you a PC so you have a guide line as to what to build.
Thanks Guys,
Paq70

 

[Jacob McIntosh]

It's usually the other way around. Someone else posts their budget for a PC, and you reply to them with a PCPartPicker list. Good luck in the forums!

 

[Paq70]

It's usually the other way around. Someone else posts their budget for a PC, and you reply to them with a PCPartPicker list. Good luck in the forums!

Yea ik, but i've had a bit of down time and i thought why not start a thread where people can just go to and post their budgets, instead of making a whole new thread, and thanks!

 

[benfct]

Hey guys, thought i'd put this up on the forum to see if anyone needed any help with creating a build. If you need a build just post the budget and if you need any peripherals or windows or a DVD drive included with it so i can accurately build you a PC so you have a guide line as to what to build.
Thanks Guys,
Paq70

Great. I need new pc to function as the server/workstation for at least two other clients. Some sensible folks at another site suggested they should all be on Win 7, vs. the XP I have been using. Security issues. They recommended refurb'd dual cores for the client machines: $200 each. That makes sense to me. Does it make sense to you? If that's not your expertise, just say so.

Background:
Now, on to the new server/workstation. This is a business--MS Office, Adobe Acrobat, Quickbooks, OCR, periodic Paint Shop Pro (dumb Photoshop, or we could make dumb use of Photoshop. Very remedial uses. At maximum untilization, let's say that each of the three computers would have 15 shared files open, and be on two browsers simultaneously, and get email notification on the desktop. In fact, let's say I add another client with the same needs.

Objective: Stability, durability, performance. I want the components least likely to fail for 5 years. I want an CPU that will still be pretty zippy for the next 5 years, I don't want a lot of waiting around on any of the three computers for things to open or calculate, or in moving around the internet. I'm interested in speed so long as it doesn't meaningfully reduce reliability and durability, and so long as I'll even notice it in what we do, and in the way business computing is likely to evolve in the next 5 years.

For the server, I think my component needs are:

Windows Pro 64 bit
DVD writer (one backup tool)
fast wireless/wired network capability
enough RAM so there is no waiting.
500 GB HDD (we now use about 150 GB)
a sturdy and speedy MB and CPU
We use a lot of USB connections, so if USB 3.0 is a lot faster (is it?), then why not have 4-6 of those?

I'm not sure what to do about an SSD. It has occurred to me to run the entire business on an SSD, and just copy the data once or twice a week to the HDD. There are indications that SSDs may not be as stable as HDDs, but it's mostly about power loss, which a UPC with shutdown software would seem to solve. But is that correct?

I could go as high as $900-$1,000 if the business on an SSD route is advisable. I could get a smaller SSD for programs only, and probably cut $100-$150 from the budget, reducing it to and go $750-$850. I could skip the SSD if it's simply not going to add productivity in a noticeable way or be stable enough for the business, and cut the budget to $550-$650.

It's not an investment in fun, so I want it to prudent and forward thinking. Why spend $1,000, when $550 will do just as well to meet current needs and foreseeable needs for 5 years? Why hold the budget at $550, when $1,000 really will provide better functionality that I would notice in my business? And just to repeat, the goals are stability, reliability, and noticeable performance. I would spend more to materially improve any of them.

Helping with these kinds of judgments may not be at all what you had in mind. But it never hurts to ask.

 

[Paq70]

Hey guys, thought i'd put this up on the forum to see if anyone needed any help with creating a build. If you need a build just post the budget and if you need any peripherals or windows or a DVD drive included with it so i can accurately build you a PC so you have a guide line as to what to build.
Thanks Guys,
Paq70

Great. I need new pc to function as the server/workstation for at least two other clients. Some sensible folks at another site suggested they should all be on Win 7, vs. the XP I have been using. Security issues. They recommended refurb'd dual cores for the client machines: $200 each. That makes sense to me. Does it make sense to you? If that's not your expertise, just say so.

Background:
Now, on to the new server/workstation. This is a business--MS Office, Adobe Acrobat, Quickbooks, OCR, periodic Paint Shop Pro (dumb Photoshop, or we could make dumb use of Photoshop. Very remedial uses. At maximum untilization, let's say that each of the three computers would have 15 shared files open, and be on two browsers simultaneously, and get email notification on the desktop. In fact, let's say I add another client with the same needs.

Objective: Stability, durability, performance. I want the components least likely to fail for 5 years. I want an CPU that will still be pretty zippy for the next 5 years, I don't want a lot of waiting around on any of the three computers for things to open or calculate, or in moving around the internet. I'm interested in speed so long as it doesn't meaningfully reduce reliability and durability, and so long as I'll even notice it in what we do, and in the way business computing is likely to evolve in the next 5 years.

For the server, I think my component needs are:

Windows Pro 64 bit
DVD writer (one backup tool)
fast wireless/wired network capability
enough RAM so there is no waiting.
500 GB HDD (we now use about 150 GB)
a sturdy and speedy MB and CPU
We use a lot of USB connections, so if USB 3.0 is a lot faster (is it?), then why not have 4-6 of those?

I'm not sure what to do about an SSD. It has occurred to me to run the entire business on an SSD, and just copy the data once or twice a week to the HDD. There are indications that SSDs may not be as stable as HDDs, but it's mostly about power loss, which a UPC with shutdown software would seem to solve. But is that correct?

I could go as high as $900-$1,000 if the business on an SSD route is advisable. I could get a smaller SSD for programs only, and probably cut $100-$150 from the budget, reducing it to and go $750-$850. I could skip the SSD if it's simply not going to add productivity in a noticeable way or be stable enough for the business, and cut the budget to $550-$650.

It's not an investment in fun, so I want it to prudent and forward thinking. Why spend $1,000, when $550 will do just as well to meet current needs and foreseeable needs for 5 years? Why hold the budget at $550, when $1,000 really will provide better functionality that I would notice in my business? And just to repeat, the goals are stability, reliability, and noticeable performance. I would spend more to materially improve any of them.

Helping with these kinds of judgments may not be at all what you had in mind. But it never hurts to ask.

Hey, so first of all, getting an SSD is a great idea for your OS and any drivers that you need installed on your system, however because therer is no solid disk inside of an SSD this means everytime you write a piece of imformation onto it, it reduces it's lifespan. If you were wanting to go the SSD route it may increase your chances of failure. The way around this problem is quite expensive because you would need to set up 2 or more SSD's in a raid configuration so that they would copy any information that is on one drive over to the replacement if you end up needing one. While this solution can end up costing quite a bit more than a simple 1TB HDD, it also can speed up your system notably.

Now your question about the refurbed dual - cores i dont know too much about, but it sounds reasonable to me, but don't take my word for it, maybe do some more digging around to figure out the best answer.

For the actual system are you saying that you're going to need this system to be a dedicated server as in you have a seperate PC that your going to use to connect to it? or is it just a standard PC that your going to run a server software on through portforwarding and such.

If I am correct, your looking for a workstation, not a gaming rig and your going to need things accordingly. This means a warkstation class graphics card, motherboard, and processor. These three things are essentially what identifies a workstation from a gaming/enthusiast PC. The graphics card doesnt necessarilly worry about raw power in a workstation where as it focuses on stability and performance. The motherboard typically ends up having more PCI-E slots as to allow for more cards to be plugged in like sound cards, raid controllers, extra USB ports, and even dual graphics cards in cases where people might end up needing more GHz for things like video editing and other graphically intensive programs. However these cards typically run in the higher end of the price spectrum so putting one that is actually worth it in this build would supercede your price limit. So in this case i'd see it fitting to put a "normal" graphics card in it that doesnt break the bank.

Here is a list I put together:

CPU
-Intel Core i7-3770 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor
$299.99 $20 off with promo code EMCPFPW27 at newegg

CPU Cooler
-Gelid Solutions CC-SiberianP-01 68.3 CFM CPU Cooler
$18.98 OutletPC

Motherboard
-Gigabyte GA-H77-DS3H ATX LGA1155 Motherboard
$95.97 OutletPC

Memory
-A-Data XPG V1.0 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory
$129.99 TigerDirect

SSD
-A-Data Premier Pro SP600 32GB 2.5" Solid State Disk
$44.29 Amazon

HDD
-Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
$59.98 $5.00 rebate at OutletPC

Video Card
-Asus Radeon HD 7770 2GB Video Card
$134.99 $10.00 mail-in rebate at Newegg

Case
-NZXT Source 220 ATX Mid Tower Case
$44.99 TigerDirect

Power Supply
-Corsair Builder 500W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply
$49.99 $20.00 mail-in rebate at Newegg

Optical Drive
-Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer
$19.99 $5.00 off with promo code EMCPGHB99 at Newegg

OS
-Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit)
$94.98 $10.00 mail-in rebate at OutletPC

Base Total: $994.14
Promo Discounts: -$25.00
Mail-in Rebates: -$45.00
Shipping: $5.92
Total: $930.06

 

[benfct]

Thank you. I have a couple of questions:

(1) Why even one video card? Does a tiny finance business need more than on-board video for Office, Adobe Acrobat, Quickbooks, OCR, and 10 hours per YEAR of photo retouching?

(1) As you inferred, the server is not dedicated. Should I seek to move beyond simple MS Windows file sharing for a computer network with all files on one computer, and 2-3 other computers using those files? Windows XP file sharing is what we have done. Is there a better OS than Win 7 Pro for that functionality among 3-4 computers? How is that OS better?

(2) Do all MBs permit 6 USB ports? We won't exceed that. Should we aim for more USB 3.0 vs. USB 2.0, or will that defeat using all the old mouses, the scanner, etc.?

(3) Does RAID require hardware? Do all MBs for i7 have slots for it, or only the rare one?

(4) As I said, our uses are remedial: three computer using MS Office, Adobe Acrobat, Quickbooks, OCR, periodic Paint Shop Pro (dumb Photoshop, or we could make dumb use of Photoshop...at maximum utilization, let's say that each of the three computers would have 15 shared files open, and be on two browsers simultaneously, and get email notification on the desktop. In fact, let's say I add another client with the same needs." I take it that you think the 16 MB of RAM will noticeably improve function over the 8MG for those uses?

(5) I know it costs more to use SSD, but it's 250 GB for $140. That's 100 GB more than we use right now. If it would seem so much faster, it would be worth it to me if the SSD lasted 3-4 years, and I could arrange automatic daily backup to the HD.