Home PC Bulild Advice

P

1. What is the purpose of the computer? What all applications and games are you going to run? (Stupid answers like 'gaming' or 'office work' will not work. Be exact. Which games? Which applications? Avoid the word 'et cetera.')

Ans: Home PC, Internet browsing, MS Office, Watching HD movies using PowerDVD, Photoshop Photo editing, CorelDraw and MS Visio based graphics.

2. What is your overall budget? If you can extend a bit for a more balanced configuration, then mention this too.

Ans: 30-35K

3. Planning to overclock?
Ans: NO

4. Which Operating System are you planning to use?
Ans: Windows 7 Ultimate , upgrade to Windows 8 later

5. How much hard drive space is needed?
Ans: 1TB

6. Do you want to buy a monitor? If yes, please mention which screen size and resolution do you want. If you already have a monitor and want to reuse it, again mention the size and resolution of monitor you have.

Ans: Want to buy 20" LED

7. Which components you DON'T want to buy or which components you already have and plan on reusing?
Ans: None

8. When are you planning to buy the system?

Ans: Aug 1st Week

9. Have you ever built a desktop before or will this be done by an assembler?
Ans: By Assembler

10. Where do you live? Are you buying locally? Are you open to buying stuff from online shops if you don't get locally?

Ans: Bangalore. Open to online stores

11. Anything else which you would like to say?

Ans: Cosidering the following:

*AMD A6 3650 Processor
*ASUS M5A88-M Motherboard
*Seagate Barracuda 1 TB HDD Internal Hard Drive (ST1000DM003)
*LG 20 inch LED - E2041T Monitor

Need advise if they look fine, and rest of components, esp the cabinet.
Also any good assembler in BLR.

Thanks

PPC

M5A88-M is an AM3+ Motherboard and A6 3650 is FM1 CPU. Both are not compatible with each other.

P

Thanks for pointing out. Infact that was there when i was considering A8 before.

Any suggestion on compatible MBO?

Thanks

PPC

M

Get These
A8 3870K Processor-6,700
MSI A75MA-G55 Motherboard-5,600
G.Skill RipjawsX DDR3 4 GB-1,700
HDD-Seagate 1TB-4,700
OpticalDrive-Hp-900
PSU-Corsair VS450 450 Watts PSU-2,100
Case-NZXT BETA EVO Classic Series-2,400
Monitor-Dell ST2220L-7,600
Total:31,700
Speakers-Creative T3100-2,300
UPS-Intex 600 VA-1,200

Here is my suggestion:
* AMD Phenom-II X4 960T -- 6.8k
* Biostar A880GZ -- 3.4k
* Corsair 4GB DDR3 Value RAM -- 1.3k
* WDC Blue 500GB -- 3.8k
* Asus DRW-24B5ST -- 1k
* CM Elite 310 -- 1.8k
* Corsair VS-450 -- 2.1k
* DELL IN2030M HD LED -- 6.1k
* MS Wired 500 combo -- 0.7k
* Logitech z103 -- 1k
* Intex 600VA UPS -- 1.2k
Total ---- 29.2k
+
* MSI HD 6770 1GB DDR5 -- 6.3k
Grand Total ---- 35.5k

WDC Blue 1TB HDD will cost you 1.5k more.

Buying a ASUS M5A88M @ 4K will be a wise choice.

P

Shortlisting the following config. Please suggest any mis-match.

Sticking to A8 as I dont plan for a separate GPU. I plan to buy most items from FlipKart.

1 MSI-A75MA-G55 Motherboard 5697
2 AMD AMD A8-3870k Processor 6784
3 Seagate Barracuda 1 TB HDD Internal Hard Drive (ST1000DM003) 5260
4 LG 20 inch LED - E2041T Monitor 6410
5 Corsair 4 GB RAM (CMV4GX3M1A1333C9) 1355
6 Cooler Master Elite-310 2035
7 Corsair VS-450 2415
8 Keyboard/Mouse 1000
9 DVD Writer 1000

Total 31956

Also, does the thermal paste come along with AMD Package or do I need to buy separately?

Thanks

PPC

M

powerpc said:
Shortlisting the following config. Please suggest any mis-match.

Sticking to A8 as I dont plan for a separate GPU. I plan to buy most items from FlipKart.

1 MSI-A75MA-G55 Motherboard 5697
2 AMD AMD A8-3870k Processor 6784
3 Seagate Barracuda 1 TB HDD Internal Hard Drive (ST1000DM003) 5260
4 LG 20 inch LED - E2041T Monitor 6410
5 Corsair 4 GB RAM (CMV4GX3M1A1333C9) 1355
6 Cooler Master Elite-310 2035
7 Corsair VS-450 2415
8 Keyboard/Mouse 1000
9 DVD Writer 1000

Total 31956

Also, does the thermal paste come along with AMD Package or do I need to buy separately?

Thanks

PPC

PowerPc Stick with my config. monitor i have mentioned is full HD.Gskill ram i have suggested is high performance ram and A8 can make use of it.for keyboard and mouse get microsoft wireless desktop 800 for 1,100.thermal paste come along with AMD Package.
Cabinate I have mentioned is of much better Quality than cooler master.

You are from Bangalore right then buy components from S.P Road you will find much better deal.

P

Thank you.

In a second thought, do you think that Core i3 2100 or 2120 suits by requirements? I also want to use Oracle VirtualBox for running multiple VMs. I'll upgrade the memory to 8GB and later to 16GB as needed.

Regards

PPC

M

powerpc said:
Thank you.

In a second thought, do you think that Core i3 2100 or 2120 suits by requirements? I also want to use Oracle VirtualBox for running multiple VMs. I'll upgrade the memory to 8GB and later to 16GB as needed.

Regards

PPC

A8 will do the job since i3 2100 and and A8 perform similarly but intel graphics is very poor so stick to A8.
Yes, virtualbox is a very good software I am using it in my AMD phenom x4 945 and is running smoothly.A8 will most probably have amd V that will help in virtualisation.
8GB will be more than enough but make sure you use 64 bit windows 7.

Sainatarajan said:
Buying a ASUS M5A88M @ 4K will be a wise choice.

Where did you find it for 4k? I dont find it anywhere for anything less than 5k.

@ OP,
Phenom config. With a discrete GPU will perform much better actually. And is also futureproof as you can easily upgrade graphics card and processor.
If you go for Llano based config then you can't upgrade your processor and graphics. You will have to stick with HD 6670 for cross-fire.

Sorry , I was confused with the Model no.
It is actually Asus M4A88T M LE

Then can you explain me why its better than Biostar A880GZ.

P

saswat23 said:
If you go for Llano based config then you can't upgrade your processor and graphics. You will have to stick with HD 6670 for cross-fire.

Can you please tell me why it isn't upgradable? Sorry for the dumb question

-PPC

M

powerpc said:
Can you please tell me why it isn't upgradable? Sorry for the dumb question

-PPC

Actually he is telling Processor is not upgradable to trinity platform but the truth is nobody is going to upgrade processor if you have a quad core. there are some people in digit who are using Q9xxx series CPUs they are old but they have enough guts to run todays application.

It is not like graphics is upgradable you can upgrade it to even 7 series graphics card but you can't crossfire it with A8 graphics the maximum allowed is 6650 or 6670 I don't exactly remember.

P

Minion said:
Actually he is telling Processor is not upgradable to trinity platform but the truth is nobody is going to upgrade processor if you have a quad core.

Yes, I figured it later. I dont think I will ever upgrade the processor, my primary use would be as lab machine running Oracle VirtualBox. A8 had AMD-V support as well.

Next main use is occasional photo/video editing, and HD movies.

Gaming is least important to me.

I guess this will serve the purpose for quite some time, say 7-8 years.

-PPC

Can you suggest a good motherboard for AMD Phenom-II X4 960T? It should be with USB3.0 and memory upto 16GB min.

This is for my friend. He's not into games, and not planning for a GPU. Will the native graphics sufficient for occasional HD viewing and basic games?

He wants a quad core as he's into some CPU heavy apps.

-PPC

M

Get this for your friend
ASUS M5A88-M Motherboard-5,300
See link
ASUS M5A88-M Motherboard | Motherboard | Flipkart.com
Gigabyte GA-880GM-USB3-5,000
See link
Gigabyte GA-880GM-USB3 Motherboard | Motherboard | Flipkart.com

Yes,ATI 4250 graphics is sufficient for basic games and HD viewing.

P

Thanks. Finalizing the two:

For me:

1 MB MSI-A75MA-G55 Motherboard
2 Processor AMD AMD A8-3870k Processor
3 HDD Seagate Barracuda 1 TB HDD Internal Hard Drive (ST1000DM003)
4 Display LG 20 inch LED - E2041T Monitor
5 Memory G.Skill RipjawsX DDR3 4 GB
6 Cabinet Case-NZXT BETA EVO Classic Series
7 PSU Corsair VS-450
8 KBD Keyboard/Mouse
9 DVD DVD Writer
10 UPS UPS

For my friend:

1 ASUS M5A88-M Motherboard
2 AMD 3.5 GHz AM3 Phenom II 970 Processor
3 Seagate Barracuda 1 TB HDD Internal Hard Drive (ST1000DM003)
4 LG 20 inch LED - E2041T Monitor
5 G.Skill RipjawsX DDR3 4 GB * 2
6 Case-NZXT BETA EVO Classic Series
7 Corsair VS-450
8 Keyboard/Mouse
9 DVD Writer

Can you verify all looks fine? Also, can you recommend any low-cost GPU (Rs2000 - 3000 range, if it will do justice) to mate with Phenom Config, in case we find the graphics is struggling?

-PPC

M

Get corsair value ram for your friend.cost you 1.2k for 4GB.Tell you friend to go with 4GB ram and save 1k invest this 1k with GPU.

Get Amd 5670 from sapphire,msi or powercolour.it will cost him 3.9k.

Your config. looks good to me but why are you interested in that Lg monitor get dell ST2220L its a very good monitor and is full HD.

P

Minion said:
Get corsair value ram for your friend.cost you 1.2k for 4GB.Tell you friend to go with 4GB ram and save 1k invest this 1k with GPU.

Get Amd 5670 from sapphire,msi or powercolour.it will cost him 3.9k.

Your config. looks good to me but why are you interested in that Lg monitor get dell ST2220L its a very good monitor and is full HD.

Thank you @Minion. I am not keen on LG, i didnt remove from the list yet. Will go with Dell.

Any reason G.Skill not needed for Phenom Config? He's keen in more memory for some app requirements. I thought 'faster' G.Skill would help.

Thanks for GPU advise.

-PPC

M

Your friends system is not compatible with g.skill ripjaw memory module the maximum it can support is 1333 Mhz while g.skill is 1600 Mhz.
Since your friend will be having discrete GPU try it with 4gb if he is not satisfied with performance he can always opt for another 4GB memory module of same brand and same type.

Is it incompatible or will the speed be the lower value between the cpu and the ram ?

The Speed will be lowered to 1333 Mhz even IF buy 1600 Mhz .

P

Are Phenom II 960T and 970 vanishing from the market? I can see it in Flipkart not on other online stores. Would it be wise to order and keep, while I shop for other components at peace?

-PPC

They wont vanish overnight. Online sites mostly prefer stocking items that are newer and sell faster. Some may not even restock an item.
Safer to start a config thread a week before the actual purchase.
Ask about your procs locally.
Buying them and working on the other components sounds safe but it restricts your choices if you decide on some other config later.

P

The final config, for both of us. Decided not to go with APU.

Bought the following stuff.

ASUS M5A88-M Motherboard
AMD 3.5 GHz AMD Phenom II x4 970 Processor
Seagate Barracuda 1 TB HDD Internal Hard Drive (ST1000DM003)
Corsair 4 GB RAM (CMV4GX3M1A1333C9) x 2
Corsair VS-450
ASUS DVD Writer

Now confused over the cabinet/ Mini or Mid tower? What are the restrictions if I go with a Mini tower, say CM Elite 360? (pleas consider a moderate GPU in future) I am not a fan of huge cabinets that takes up lot of space

U

Please suggest your budget for gpu??

P

That will be done later, may be after a year. Does it make sense to set a budget now?

If you are looking for a model and its size, I am interested in a 6770 as of today (eg MSI AMD/ATI R6770-MD1GD5 1 GB GDDR5)

Get HD 7750 ....
almost same performance but highly power efficient.

P

That's the future. The current question is about the cabinet

Choose a cabinet based on budget, future components and the ventilation inside it.
A spacious well ventilation cabinet will keep your stuff cool inside. Cooler things perform better and have a longer lifetime. Try for at-least a front and rear fan system in the cabinet.

P

Thanks! Looking at my config, do you think CM335 fits?

U

You can get the Cooler Master Elite 310, 311 and 430 for 1.8k, 2.2k and 2.5k respectively.

P

Thank you everyone for your advises. Finally system is built with the following configuration:

1 ASUS M5A88-M Motherboard
2 AMD 3.5 GHz AM3 Phenom II 970 Processor
3 Seagate Barracuda 1 TB HDD Internal Hard Drive (ST1000DM003)
4 Dell IN2030 20" LED
5 Corsair Value RAM 4GB
6 Cooler Master Elite 311
7 Corsair VS-450
8 Microsoft Combo 600
9 Asus 24x DVD Writer

Installed with Windows 7 Ultimate 64 bit. Did the assembling ourselves.

Thanks once again.