Advise Desktop Configuration

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Greetings to Admin, Staff & Members. This is my first post on this wonderful board.
Have been using Compaq desktops all these years. This time wana adventure with custom built desktop. Please advise!

1. What is the purpose of the computer? (Note: If you are planning to say multimedia, you will have to be more specific as all types of systems are capable of doing that)
A: For Office (80% - Internet, MsOffice, Tally | 20% - Movies, Games, Corel, Photoshop etc.)
2. Are you open to alternate ideas/products giving similar better performance but offering more VFM/ sellers? If not- why?
A: Yes
3. What is your MAX budget?
A: 15-20k (Without LCD)
4. Planning to overclock?
A: No
5. Which OS are you planning to use?
A: Windows XP for 6months or so & then Windows 7
6. How much hard drive space is needed?
A: Min 320GB or 500GB
7. What resolution will the screen run at & whats the size of the screen you want?
A: Using SyncMaster 17' LCD 1280x1024
8. How would you rate your hardware knowledge from the count of 1-10? (1 being the lowest, 5 being you are somewhat in sync with the current performers and 10 being the highest)
A: 6
9. Have you ever built a desktop before or will this be done by an assembler?
A: Assembler (OS - Self)
10. When are you planning to buy the system?
A: ASAP
11. Are you one of the types looking out for "future proof" configurations?
A: Yes
12. Are there going to be any components that you don't want to include in this new rig? If yes, do mention.
A: LCD, Mouse, Keyboard, Speakers, UPS
13. Which city do you live in and are you open to buying from shops from other city/states?
A: Delhi | Yes
14. Mention any other points if deemed necessary
A: 1) Need LPT Port
2) Internal Modem for Fax
3) Internal Card Reader

AMD Athlon II x4 630 @ 4.5k
MSI 785GM E51 @ 3.7k
Kingston 2GB DDR3 1333MHz @ 2.1k
WD 500GB Blue @ 2k
LG 22x DVD @ 0.9k
FSP saga II 350W @ 1.5k
CM Elite 310 @ 1.5k
Dell 19" IN 1920 @ 5.8k

Total - 22k

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Thanks Jaskanwar Singh for your reply. Have never used AMD, would it be better than Intel E Series Processor like E7500 or Core i3?

Can I opt for Core i3 for using with Win XP SP3?

What would be a better choice MSI or Gigabyte? Do MSI MB's have GIGABYTE On/Off Charge type technology (for USB charging)?

How much would be the cost of CM 690 II? Also, what other options can I have with CM cabinets?

AMD is the best option for u now
AMD masters in value for money components
and it fits in ur budget
go for it....almost all of the members are using AMD now and are totally satisfied with it

u can go for sp3 anyday

MSI/Giga are better choices now-a-days
yes the latest boards do have this on-off USB charging technology

P

Thanks piyush120290 for your reply. 15-20k budget is without LCD.

Should I be going in for FSP Saga instead of the CM fitted PSU?

Also, can you advise on any other CM cabinet within 2k?

How much would a Intel Core i3 config fall around?

ok ..listen bro
we can make an intel i3 rig within this budget
but AMD offers 4cores instead of 2 cores (intel) at the same price range
with AMd u r rig be more future proof
trust me

even if u wanna give i3 a chance ,then jas will be able to give u a better i3 config than me

and regarding cabinet
u can go for
CM elite 310/335 (low budget) both available at 1.5k
CM elite 430 @ 2.6k (the best deal for u)

and go for FSP saga instead of pre-fitted PSUs as they are not dependable and do remember one thing:
stay away from CM extreme series

P

Thanks buddy now surely I have something to go in for AMD & will surely stay away from CM Extreme Series.

Which GIGA mobo would be advisable with this AMD processor?

take the mobo which is mentioned in jas's signature
if thats not available,then look out for my signature

also go for gigabyte 460W superb @ 2k
and u can increase ur ram to 4gb

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Thanks for suggesting CM Elite 430. Looks really cool.

What would be the price range for your or jas's mobo?

Also, will this processor be fine for some gaming as well?

Or which would be the next AMD in line from AMD Athlon II x4 630?

What's the price range for Phenom II X4?

5.6k for mobo
yes
635,640
starting from 7k upto 9k

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Gr8... then I guess I'll stick to AMD Athlon II x4 630.

Any GIGA mobo as the same price range of MSI 785GM E51?

Which HDD manufacturer provides with the best warranty support?

go for the mobo listed in our sig
they both support usb3 and sata 3

regarding HDD-dunno

P

How about the Model of DVD RW Drive?

Is LG better than Samsung or HP?

^^I think they all r same!!I'm using 2 DVD writers now : 1 LG n other 1 Samsung!Both write n read well!!No probs so far!!But with Samsung 1 I didn't get any CD n manual whereas with LG I got a CD n manual tho I dun think its gonna make any difference!!

ssb1551 said:
^^I think they all r same!!I'm using 2 DVD writers now : 1 LG n other 1 Samsung!Both write n read well!!No probs so far!!But with Samsung 1 I didn't get any CD n manual whereas with LG I got a CD n manual tho I dun think its gonna make any difference!!

Samsung is reported to be having the tray problems after few years by many of my friends and also my HW Engineer. LG not so.

P

Thanks ssb1551 & vwad for your replies.

Also, pls advise speakers for 1k price range.

^^^ Logitech Desktop speakers System Z103

for 1.2k

buy from here

Theitdepot - Logitech Desktop Speakers System Z103

X4 635
ASUS M4A88T-M ASUSTeK Computer Inc.
2x2GB DDR3 1333MHz
500GB HDD
DVD writer
FSP saga II 400W
CM Elite 310
Total- approx 20K

from pegasus' rig change psu to fsp saga II 500w..its just 200 bucks costlier at 2.2k.
also get Gigabyte GA-880GMA-UD2H @ 5.5k as asus got service issues. get ram from kingston, g.skill, corsair..avoid transcend and other cheap brands.

Jaskanwar Singh said:
from pegasus' rig change psu to fsp saga II 500w..its just 200 bucks costlier at 2.2k.
also get Gigabyte GA-880GMA-UD2H @ 5.5k as asus got service issues. get ram from kingston, g.skill, corsair..avoid transcend and other cheap brands.

Regarding this jas bhai, the DDR3 modules available online are not in support list for almost all of MSI / GB boards, will it be a problem, though I see you using the same not supported combo very well yourself, so I am totally confused about which modules to advise for.

^^they are totally compatible

piyush120290 said:
^^they are totally compatible

Thanks.

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Thanks guys for all your support specially Jas as have gone for his config apart from minor upgrades. ;-)

But dint get the FSP Saga II, had to settle with CM 400W PSU. Here's the rig:

AMD Athlon II x4 635
GA-880GMA-UD2H (Combo @9.2k)
WD 1TB Carviar Green @2.8K
Kingston 2GB DDR3 1333 @ 1.9k
LG H55N 22x DVD RW @ 0.85k
CM Elite 335+CM PSU 400W @ 3.3k
Internal Card Reader @ 0.15k
Internal Modem @ 0.25k
PCI I/O Card @ 0.25k

Total Cost: 18.7K

Howzat!!!

But one thing gone wrong this guy offered assembling & loading of Windows (My CD-XP SP3) for 200 Bugs. I got tempted & asked him to go ahead with three partitions of 200GB, 400GB & 400GB. Now when he has loaded the OS, the partitions are being shown as E:, F: & G: & the Removable Disk (which is the card reader) is being shown as C: Drive. :?:

Any advise where did we go wrong?

have u already bought the rig?

P

Yes piyush120290, just got back. ;-)

Something wrong???

Any ideas why HDD is not showing as C Drive?

ParryD said:
Thanks guys for all your support specially Jas as have gone for his config apart from minor upgrades.

But dint get the FSP Saga II, had to settle with CM 400W PSU. Here's the rig:

AMD Athlon II x4 635
GA-880GMA-UD2H (Combo @9.2k)
WD 1TB Carviar Green @2.8K
Kingston 2GB DDR3 1333 @ 1.9k
LG H55N 22x DVD RW @ 0.85k
CM Elite 335+CM PSU 400W @ 3.3k
Internal Card Reader @ 0.15k
Internal Modem @ 0.25k
PCI I/O Card @ 0.25k

Total Cost: 18.7K

Howzat!!!

But one thing gone wrong this guy offered assembling & loading of Windows (My CD-XP SP3) for 200 Bugs. I got tempted & asked him to go ahead with three partitions of 200GB, 400GB & 400GB. Now when he has loaded the OS, the partitions are being shown as E:, F: & G: & the Removable Disk (which is the card reader) is being shown as C: Drive.

Any advise where did we go wrong?

If you properly know how to just format your HDD using WinXP CD or WIN7 DVD and then create the partitions...if your DVD Drive is D then read note...

NOTE: You may have to unplug your card reader until you format your HDD...i guess the assembler might have inserted the card reader and the DVD Drive before the HDD...

See if that solves the prob..otherwise contact the assembler and ask him y he messed up???

nothing much..........but u should have gone for corsair if FSP was unavailable

anyways ...if u dont have any important data in ur HDD,then u can use partition manager to sort out that problem

and congrats..

P

keviv219 said:
If you properly know how to just format your HDD using WinXP CD or WIN7 DVD and then create the partitions...if your DVD Drive is D then read note...

NOTE: You may have to unplug your card reader until you format your HDD...i guess the assembler might have inserted the card reader and the DVD Drive before the HDD...

See if that solves the prob..otherwise contact the assembler and ask him y he messed up???

Coz of short on time had to leave today, otherwise would have got the issue sorted by the man.

He inserted the HDD, then Card Reader & then DVD Drive and for the formatting & partitioning he did was fine. Now should I re-format the HDD with card reader unplugged or use Partition Manager as suggested by piyush 120290?

P

piyush120290 said:
and congrats..

Thanks Buddy, any issues with CM PSU 400W???

ParryD said:
Thanks Buddy, any issues with CM PSU 400W???

which series is it?
if it is of extreme series,then make sure u dont make heavy upgrades in future using this PSu
and u'll be fine

P

piyush120290 said:
which series is it?

Its Cool Master Elite Power 400W Product No. RS-400-PSAR-J3.

ParryD said:
Coz of short on time had to leave today, otherwise would have got the issue sorted by the man.

He inserted the HDD, then Card Reader & then DVD Drive and for the formatting & partitioning he did was fine. Now should I re-format the HDD with card reader unplugged or use Partition Manager as suggested by piyush 120290?

ok...I'm not sure partition manager can solve this prob as u'll be using your HDD while running the partition manager...In PM it will ask u to change drive letter but the options will be excluding C,D,E,F,G as they have already been used...so if the drive letter really annoys you then u'll have to Format your HDD...

ParryD said:
Its Cool Master Elite Power 400W Product No. RS-400-PSAR-J3.

to tell u honestly
dont go for any more upgrades

or will u do some tweaking in future?

P

keviv219 said:
so if the drive letter really annoys you then u'll have to Format your HDD...

Yes it surely would & since its a new HDD & system. But now when I go in for formatting & reloading of OS, should I first unplug the card reader & refit the HDD & Drive cables?

P

piyush120290 said:
to tell u honestly
dont go for any more upgrades

or will u do some tweaking in future?

Upgrades as in Hardware? If yes, then why so? Whats the issue with CM PSU's?

You too seem to be using one of CM PSU's. What's your experience?

ParryD said:
Upgrades as in Hardware? If yes, then why so? Whats the issue with CM PSU's?

that PSU has not more than 70% efficiency
so 70% of 400W is 280W
that means u cant use more than 280 W from this PSU
and that 70% is under certain temperatures readings
thats why

P

piyush120290 said:
that PSU has not more than 70% efficiency

Hmmm...

Now since its already there can't do much. Let's keep fingers crossed for its good performance.

What do you advise for the C Drive issue am facing?

ParryD said:
Hmmm... Now since its already there can't do much. Let's keep fingers crossed for its good performance.

What do you advise for the C Drive issue am facing?

hey dont feel down
its OK until u dont do heavy upgrades

i calculated u wattage requirement
if we take ur PSU efficiency to be 70%
then ur output would be 280W

and ur setup requires 210W
so u are in the safe zone right now
u even van add a low end-less power hungry graphics card to ur PC
enjoy

and regarding ur HDD problem
i only know one way to solve it and thats PM

P

Where else on the board you would suggest I post my HDD problem for advise?

^^ur help is on ur way

ParryD said:
Thanks Buddy, any issues with CM PSU 400W???

piyush120290 said:
that PSU has not more than 70% efficiency
so 70% of 400W is 280W
that means u cant use more than 280 W from this PSU
and that 70% is under certain temperatures readings
thats why

baba you are completely wrong here..
that psu has 70% efficiency means that it will consume almost 571w from the wall socket to deliver 400w.

efficiency = output/input for anything.
output = 400w.
efficiency = 70% = 70/100
input = output/efficiency = (400/70)*100 = 571.

to be more specific here -
Efficiency = DC power / AC power

as psu converts ac power to dc power to supply to the pc.

also higher efficiency means less power draw from the wall and saving on electricity bills.suppose it had 80% efficiency. then it would have pulled 500w from the wall. also lower efficiency means more off the excess wattage being converted to heat. for eg. in your case - 571-400=171w is converted to heat. higher efficiency means cool system too.

also a psu is designed to deliver rated efficiency at a certain load. eg-corsair vx450w delivers 86% efficiency at 40-60% load on it.

*www.corsair.com/_images/charts/vx450w_efficiency.jpg

@ op
congrats
i dont know much about software and all but AFAIK just reinstall the windows. choose your own partitions making windows as primary c partition.

Jaskanwar Singh said:
efficiency = output/input for anything.
output = 400w.
efficiency = 70% = 70/100
input = output/efficiency = (400/70)*100 = 571.

to be more specific here -
Efficiency = DC power / AC power

as psu converts ac power to dc power to supply to the pc.

also higher efficiency means less power draw from the wall and saving on electricity bills.suppose it had 80% efficiency. then it would have pulled 500w from the wall. also lower efficiency means more off the excess wattage being converted to heat. for eg. in your case - 571-400=171w is converted to heat. higher efficiency means cool system too.

.

Looks like u are gonna top your Subject...hehe...BTW u r right..

Jaskanwar Singh said:
baba you are completely wrong here..
that psu has 70% efficiency means that it will consume almost 571w from the wall socket to deliver 400w.

efficiency = output/input for anything.
output = 400w.
efficiency = 70% = 70/100
input = output/efficiency = (400/70)*100 = 571.

to be more specific here -
Efficiency = DC power / AC power

as psu converts ac power to dc power to supply to the pc.

also higher efficiency means less power draw from the wall and saving on electricity bills.suppose it had 80% efficiency. then it would have pulled 500w from the wall. also lower efficiency means more off the excess wattage being converted to heat. for eg. in your case - 571-400=171w is converted to heat. higher efficiency means cool system too.

also a psu is designed to deliver rated efficiency at a certain load. eg-corsair vx450w delivers 86% efficiency at 40-60% load on it.

[

man!!!!!!!!!!!!
and i thought it was this way
i was carrying this info for a long period of time
curse me!!!

and thanks a lot jassy
at least now i clearly know the scene out there about PSUs
thanks a million times bro............

Jaskanwar Singh said:
asus got service issues.

Jas-

ASUS Unveils the Bigger & Better - E.L.I.T.E. 2.0 Service for Motherboards

E.L.I.T.E. 2.0 - India's Largest Service Network for Motherboards Now Offers Burnt & Corrosion Warranty on All ASUS Motherboards & Expands Reach to 798 Indian Cities
...
E - Ease of service - Customers can simply call the toll free number and get a sms within 1 hour of logging the call.
L- Commitment of Lowest TAT (Turn-Around-Time) in the industry.
I - Instant Swap / In 24 hours repair facility* (This facility also includes DOA replacement for motherboards for up to 60 days from distributor invoice date and is available only at ASUS Service centres).
T - Toll Free Number and total absence of charges for organizing the pick and return service.
E - Expansive list of 798 cities covered by this service making this the largest network in India for Motherboards.
...

ASUS Unveils the Bigger & Better - E.L.I.T.E. 2.0 Service for Motherboards

One guy got a new and much better USB3 mobo with full 3 years warranty in replacement for an older AMD motherboard.
Another guy was offered credit note of 7K (full refund i think) or a P7P55D (more expensive i think) mobo in replacement for an older socket 775 mobo.
These are just a few cases i have heard of.

piyush120290 said:
^^ur help is on ur way

yep and now here it is

ParryD said:
Thanks guys for all your support specially Jas as have gone for his config apart from minor upgrades.

But dint get the FSP Saga II, had to settle with CM 400W PSU. Here's the rig:

AMD Athlon II x4 635
GA-880GMA-UD2H (Combo @9.2k)
WD 1TB Carviar Green @2.8K
Kingston 2GB DDR3 1333 @ 1.9k
LG H55N 22x DVD RW @ 0.85k
CM Elite 335+CM PSU 400W @ 3.3k
Internal Card Reader @ 0.15k
Internal Modem @ 0.25k
PCI I/O Card @ 0.25k

Total Cost: 18.7K

Howzat!!!

But one thing gone wrong this guy offered assembling & loading of Windows (My CD-XP SP3) for 200 Bugs. I got tempted & asked him to go ahead with three partitions of 200GB, 400GB & 400GB. Now when he has loaded the OS, the partitions are being shown as E:, F: & G: & the Removable Disk (which is the card reader) is being shown as C: Drive.

Any advise where did we go wrong?

This a known and common problem of windows Xp.
You have 3 workarounds to solve it :

1. Install Windows Vista or Win 7

2. Disconnect the card reader and install a fresh copy of windows XP and then reconnect the card reader after windows installation

3. proceed with normal windows installation - during the partition selection part of text-mode Setup delete all existing partition and create a new hard disk partition.

you may see the drive letter assigned to the primary hard disk partition is E or a letter that follows E.

Select the newly created partition and delete the partition.

Select the unpartitioned space again and then create a new primary hard disk partition.

now you can see the drive letter assigned to the primary hard disk partition is C but if the primary hard disk partition is not C the drive letter should be displayed correctly on the next system reboot.

BTW, congrats for your new rig.

For all devices:

Efficiency is ratio of : output / input.

Works the same for PSUs. Many guys confuse it with how much out it actually delivers. The crux is "how much power will the unit draw from the socket to deliver".

People may ask where the energy goes, will it is converted to heat and sound due to component resistance and various conversion losses.

P

Thanks guys for your replies & info. Finally was able to sort the problem of C: Drive yesterday by disconnecting the card reader & then formatting C: Drive & reloading XP SP3.

Jaskanwar Singh said:
that psu has 70% efficiency means that it will consume almost 571w from the wall socket to deliver 400w.

efficiency = output/input for anything.
output = 400w.
efficiency = 70% = 70/100
input = output/efficiency = (400/70)*100 = 571.

@ op
congrats
i dont know much about software and all but AFAIK just reinstall the windows. choose your own partitions making windows as primary c partition.

So whats your take/ review on the PSU I got installed.

topgear said:
yep and now here it is

This a known and common problem of windows Xp.
You have 3 workarounds to solve it :

1. Install Windows Vista or Win 7

2. Disconnect the card reader and install a fresh copy of windows XP and then reconnect the card reader after windows installation

3. proceed with normal windows installation - during the partition selection part of text-mode Setup delete all existing partition and create a new hard disk partition.

you may see the drive letter assigned to the primary hard disk partition is E or a letter that follows E.

Select the newly created partition and delete the partition.

Select the unpartitioned space again and then create a new primary hard disk partition.

now you can see the drive letter assigned to the primary hard disk partition is C but if the primary hard disk partition is not C the drive letter should be displayed correctly on the next system reboot.

BTW, congrats for your new rig.

Thanks topgear. I would have loved to install Windows 7, but since this is for my office; need XP SP3 for some softwares like Tally 7.2 etc.

When I removed the card reader & came to the disk partition option while installing XP, the partition were showing as C:, D: & E:. I just formatted the C: Drive & installed the OS. After installation attached the card reader to the mobo & it showed as Drive G:.

I hope it was okay not to format D: & E: drives. They are showing as un-formatted drives in the windows explorer. Will format them through Disk Management.

^^ that was the most simple way to correct the driver letter issue - glad to know that you've sorted it out - you are right - you now need to format D and E through Disk Management

BTW, if you need to re-fromat again someday with the card reader connected then use the method No. 3 I've described on the earlier post.

here's a review for your PSU
Cooler Master Elite Power 400 W Power Supply Review | Hardware Secrets

P

Thanks once again topgear for all the assistance.

Have formatted the D & E through Disk Management. D: I did a normal format & since it being a 350GB partition it took about 70mins. Hence, quick formatted E: Drive which just took 5mins, hope its okay?

As far as the review is concerned - looks no gr8, but can't do much now.

As they say in Kurkure's Ad: Teda Hai Pur Mera Hai!

ParryD said:
Thanks once again topgear for all the assistance.

Have formatted the D & E through Disk Management. D: I did a normal format & since it being a 350GB partition it took about 70mins. Hence, quick formatted E: Drive which just took 5mins, hope its okay?

As far as the review is concerned - looks no gr8, but can't do much now.

As they say in Kurkure's Ad: Teda Hai Pur Mera Hai!

Digit Har Tedhe Ko Seedha Kar Deta Hai

After all, man made computer and not vice versa

@ ParryD - man - you really have a lot of patience - 70 mins to format a partition - what were you doing during that time ?

A quick format just removes the files from a partition but don't check that partition for bad sectors.

don't compare it with zero filling though and that's why you can get your data back after a regular/quick format - A zero filling writes zeros in every possible sector of disk and data recovery becomes somewhat impossible. You need to use some 3rd party app for that too.

A regular format checks the the partition for bad sectors as well - so it takes that much time. ( don't use it too much though )

Try to use quick format always and if you have some doubts about HDD use chkdsk /r command to check for bad sectors or use 3rd party programs like HDtune.

As your disk is new it's OK to use quick format.

I always have admired the easiness in Windows Bootable CD/DVDs for the procedures of hard disk partitioning