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11-09-2008, 03:04 PM
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#1 |
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Member (6 bit)
Join Date: Jan 2007
Posts: 45
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General purpose build
A friend has asked me for assistance in doing the specs for a general purpose PC for his family. Typical kid usage - email, internet, games, etc. No heavy duty gaming.
My build comes in at $660 by cutting a few corners here and there, or $750 with a few more bells and whistles. Feel free to provide alternate parts - I'd be open to saving money for the same performance, or increasing performance at the same price. But no room in the budget for higher spending. One thing I'd love a recommendation on is the CPU. I think the Core 2 Duo is the better deal, but not certain. Thoughts? Also, can I get away without a sound card? BUILD: Case: ($45) COOLER MASTER Centurion 5 CAC-T05-UW Black Aluminum Bezel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811119068 Motherboard: ($85) ASUS P5K SE EPU LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131278 CPU: ($190) Intel Core 2 Quad Q8200 2.33GHz 4MB L2 Cache LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Processor - Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115055 OR ($190) Intel Core 2 Duo E8500 Wolfdale 3.16GHz 6MB L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor - Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115036&Tpk=e8500 PSU: ($78 after $20 mail-in rebate) CORSAIR CMPSU-550VX 550W ATX12V V2.2 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817139004 Video Card: ($37) SAPPHIRE 100234VGAL Radeon HD 3450 512MB 64-bit GDDR2 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814102757 Memory: ($46) Kingston 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820134582 Hard Drive: ($50) Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3250310AS 250GB 7200 RPM 8MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive – OEM http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148261 DVD: ($27) LITE-ON Black 20X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 20X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA DVD Burner - Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106057 Keyboard: ($7) LITE-ON SK-1788/BS 2-Tone 104 Normal Keys PS/2 Wired Standard Keyboard - Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16823107120 Mouse: ($5) Rosewill RM800P Black 3 Buttons 1 x Wheel PS/2 Wired Optical 800 dpi Mouse - OEM http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16826193001 Operating System: ($90) Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition SP3 English for System Builders 1 Pack CD - OEM http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16832116511 OR ($90) Microsoft Windows Vista Home Basic SP1 64-bit English 1pk for System Builders DSP OEI DVD - OEM http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16832116483 TOTAL: $660 Upgrades: Sound Card: ($27) =+$27 Creative Sound Blaster Audigy SE SB0570LPVP 5.1 Channels 24-bit 96KHz PCI Interface - OEM http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16829102010 Hard Drive: ($80) = +$30 Seagate ST3640323AS 640GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s - OEM http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148335 Video Card: ($70) =+$33 MSI R4650-D512 Radeon HD 4650 512MB 128-bit GDDR2 PCI Express 2.0 x16 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814127384 Total with all upgrades: $750 |
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11-09-2008, 03:56 PM
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#2 |
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Member (12 bit)
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Illinois
Posts: 3,557
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Looks good...I would go with the E8500 CPU for what they will be using the PC for.
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11-09-2008, 06:42 PM
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#3 |
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I like me
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Tejas
Posts: 7,332
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You can get an asus p5kpl-cm for less money.
Could save even more money by getting an e7200. Slower, but for general use like you describe, they probably wouldn't notice. I don't really like kingston ram. I would change it to corsair, g.skill, a-data, crucial, mushkin. this hd: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148288 and stick with onboard audio. What sort of games do they play? Cause you might be able to get by with onboard video.
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It's coming....just you wait. |
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11-10-2008, 10:09 AM
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#4 |
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Member (10 bit)
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: Maryland
Posts: 785
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The less expensive CoolerMaster cases are pretty weak for the expansion board slots (screwless design isnt' very sturdy). I moved up from a Centurion to a Mystique and found the expansion slots much sturdier. If the Mystique is a little too fancy, I'm sure they have something more plain at $70-80, but I'd stay in that price range for CoolerMaster cases.
__________________
1: HTPC: Intel BadAxe2 / Intel Core2 Duo E6600 / Corsair XMS2 DDR2 800 2GB + TeamElite DDR2 800 1GB / Galaxy GT430 / Seagate 320GB SATA3.0 7200.10 / LG DVD-RW / Seagate 250GB UltraATA100 / Samsung FDD / PC Power & Cooling Silencer 610 / Cooler Master Centurion 534 / Vizio 55" LCD / Win 7 Ultimate 2: Gigabyte GA-970A-D3 / AMD Phenom II X4 955 / Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600 8GB / Asus ATI Radeon EAH3850/G / Seagate 500GB SATA3.0 7200.11 + 1 GB 7200.12 / Samsung DVDRW / Asus DVD-ROM / Sony FDD / Corsair 550W PSU CMPSU-550VX / Cooler Master Mystique Case / HannsG 19" LCD / Klipsch Pro Media 2.1 / Windows Vista Ultimate |
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11-10-2008, 11:09 AM
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#5 |
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Member (9 bit)
Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: UK
Posts: 443
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I would also get Windows Vista Home Premium 32 or 64bit it costs $10 more though. Windows Vista Home Basic well is very BASIC..
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11-11-2008, 06:32 PM
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#6 |
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Member (6 bit)
Join Date: Jan 2007
Posts: 45
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Thanks all. I took the advice to heart and made a few changes to case, memory and hard drive. I've used Lian Li in the past, so I decided to spend a few extra bucks to get a decent case - might as well use what I trust myself. Dropped the sound card and went with the lower end video card (Radeon 3450). Final build came in at $700 on the nose, $100 under his maximum price.
Thanks for all the pointers!  Case: ($80) LIAN LI PC-7B plus II Black Aluminum ATX Mid Tower Computer Case http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811112099 Memory: ($25 after $30 mail-in rebate) CORSAIR 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820145184 Hard Drive: ($70) Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 ST3500320AS 500GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148288 |
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11-12-2008, 09:32 AM
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#7 |
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Member (12 bit)
Join Date: Jul 2002
Location: Illinois
Posts: 3,557
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Looks good and you saved $100!
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