Building Work/Home Computer

[tsho44]

I am going to build my parents a computer as their old dell has now crashed, and I recommended getting a new one, rather than fixing an outdated junker.

Anyways, they just need a tower, keeping it under 800.

On a side note, this computer will be used for some heavy photoshop work. It doesn't need to be ridiculously powered.

So, I was thinking - A new intel processor or stick with a quad (at the time of building mine, I was told to stay away from the new ones.)
Motherboard???
I will probably put atleast 6 GB of ram in it.
This case? - I have the exact same one, not sure but I think my power supply is burned up, I think its a good case though.
And the video card? Help me out here

I can do the DVD drive and HD stuff.

Thanks a ton, I appreciate any responses.

[glc]

Excellent case choice.

If you can budget it, I'd recommend an Intel i7-860 on an Asus P7P55D motherboard. If you have to cut costs, go with a i5-750. I'd start with a 2x2 kit of DDR3-1333 ram, you can add another one later if needed.

For a video card, you can save some money by going with something like an ATI 4650 or 5450 card.

Note that for Photoshop, multiple hard drives are recommended. I'd use a WD Black for OS and apps and a WD Green for data. A third drive for dedicated scratch is recommended, but you could partition one of the drives to cut costs.

[tsho44]

Originally Posted by glc Excellent case choice. If you can budget it, I'd recommend an Intel i7-860 on an Asus P7P55D motherboard. If you have to cut costs, go with a i5-750. I'd start with a 2x2 kit of DDR3-1333 ram, you can add another one later if needed. For a video card, you can save some money by going with something like an ATI 4650 or 5450 card. Note that for Photoshop, multiple hard drives are recommended. I'd use a WD Black for OS and apps and a WD Green for data. A third drive for dedicated scratch is recommended, but you could partition one of the drives to cut costs.

Thanks for the response, Graphics card wise, I am not sure about DDR2 DDR3 DDR5 etc.... Should I go with DDR3?

[Dave in Houston]

If you have a Fry's store nearby, they have that case/PSU on sale for $99.99 - $20 rebate = $79.99. In fact, I think it will work on the web site as well.

Fry's sales end on Thursday night, new sale starts Friday morning.

[Doom]

I don't believe you need to worry about the DDR type on your graphics card. It's all about 1) what fits in your budget, 2) the amount of memory and 3) the connection to your mobo (e.g. PCI-2, PCI-1, PCI, etc). The DDR type on your graphics card is all about the communication between the GPU ram and chip.

The only time you have to look at specific types of DDR is for the RAM going on your mobo.

For example, I recently went from a DDR3 based video card to a DDR5 card...all while working off a mobo that requires DDR2 RAM.

[glc]

You don't need to worry much about video card specs - it's just Photoshop works a lot better with a dedicated card instead of onboard video. A $50 card is plenty good enough.

[tsho44]

Originally Posted by glc You don't need to worry much about video card specs - it's just Photoshop works a lot better with a dedicated card instead of onboard video. A $50 card is plenty good enough.

Thanks for all the responses.

How is this all looking?
Antec Sonata III 500 Black 0.8mm cold rolled steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 500W Power Supply
Western Digital Caviar Black WD5001AALS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
SAPPHIRE 100292L Radeon HD 5450 (Cedar) 1GB 64-bit DDR2 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Low Profile Ready ...
LITE-ON Black SATA DVD-ROM Drive Model iHDS118-04 - OEM
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL8D-4GBRM
ASUS P7P55D-E LGA 1156 Intel P55 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
Intel Core i5-750 Lynnfield 2.66GHz LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80605I5750
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit 1-Pack for System Builders - OEM

Thanks a lot guys

[orbrit]

There's been some reports of issues with G.Skill RAM recently. Go with the Corsair XMS3 instead.

the rest looks great!

[quartet-man]

Believe me, avoid G skill memory with that board or you'll be sorry. I was and others here have been too.

Great choices on the other parts. IF you think you might want to use Lightscribe media at some point, could pay a few extra bucks and get this drive:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...D=3865134&SID=

I never noticed if your optical comes with software or not, but the one above has the basic version of Nero.