Advice on upgrading non-gaming rig

U

UnitedAsOne

n00b
Joined
Dec 27, 2012
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8
Hello all:)

Right before Christmas I had a USB port stop working and take out a wireless keyboard and mouse. The very next day I was greeted with beeps when I started the PC and traced it down to the video card died.

These two events and that fact that this current PC is nearly 6 yrs old leads to me think I better start building a new rig and reuse what I can.

The current PC was built for gaming nearly 6 years ago:

ASUS P5B-E LGA 775 Intel P965 Express ATX Intel Motherboard
Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Conroe 2.4GHz
2 x Patriot Extreme Performance 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400)
LITE-ON Black SATA DVD-ROM Drive Model SHD-16S1S-05
SAMSUNG 18X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black SATA Model SH-S183L
CORSAIR HX Series CMPSU-620HX 620W
antec 900 case
Keyboard and Mouse
22 inch Samsung and 19 inch Dell monitors
Win 7 Home Prem

The original 8800GTS 640 died and for now I'm using a 8400 GS. I think by getting a new CPU/MB/RAM combo would be a good idea with updated storage.

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Mostly Photoshop/Illustrator/Corel, web browsing, music..will NOT be gaming in this rig

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
$500 to $700 -no

3) Which country do you live in? If the U.S, please tell us the state and city if possible.

Sioux Falls, South Dakota

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. The word "Everything" is not a valid answer. Please list out all the parts you'll need.
CPU
RAM
Motherboard
Video Card
Hard Drives

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
I plan on reusing the 2 DVD drives, the Antec 900 case and the CORSAIR HX Series 620W PSU, KB/Mouse and Monitors

6) Will you be overclocking?
no

7) 7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?
Samsung 2232BW - 1680 x 1050
Dell E198WFP - 1440 x 900

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
by Jan 15, 2013

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? eSATA? Onboard video (as a backup or main GPU)? UEFI? etc.
Well, not sure:) This will be a work computer and not a gamiing computer. Being a graphic designer I need a lot of space. Photoshop, Illustrator, CorelDraw are the main programs I use. Itunes for music but not an audiophile

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If so, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
I will be buying a new copy of Windows 7 64 bit(should I go pro?)


I am looking to get matching 22 inch monitors. Suggestions are welcome, under $200 each.

Thanks for the input!:)
 
I can get you these LG 22's at 165 each
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824005282&Tpk=e2211pu-bn

SAMSUNG 840 Pro Series MZ-7PD128BW 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
AMD A10-5800K Trinity 3.8GHz (4.2GHz Turbo) Socket FM2 100W Quad-Core Desktop APU (CPU + GPU) with DirectX 11 Graphic AMD ...
ASUS M5A88-M AM3+ AMD 880G SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 HDMI Micro ATX AMD Motherboard
Western Digital WD Black WD4001FAEX 4TB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
SAMSUNG 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model MV-3V4G3D/US
 
WOW..I'm so far outta touch with the new tech I did not know you could get a CPU/GPU chip...wow

Would there be a difference between 8 gigs and 16 gigs? Remember, no gaming on this rig
 
UnitedAsOne said:
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
I plan on reusing the 2 DVD drives, the Antec 900 case and the CORSAIR HX Series 620W PSU, KB/Mouse and Monitors
Click to expand...
Are those DVD drives SATA?
UnitedAsOne said:
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
by Jan 15, 2013
Click to expand...
Any chance that you can buy before January 1st?

UnitedAsOne said:
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If so, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
I will be buying a new copy of Windows 7 64 bit(should I go pro?)
Click to expand...
Whether or not you should go Pro is dependent on how likely you'll need to use more than 16GB of RAM. Some of the graphics designers that we've helped in the past have actually required more than 16GB of RAM due to all the photoshop work they're doing. In some cases, the graphics designers weren't that hardcore and were fine with 16GB of RAM.
UnitedAsOne said:
I am looking to get matching 22 inch monitors. Suggestions are welcome, under $200 each.
Click to expand...
Are those part of a separate monitor budget? Why not larger monitors? Are you planning on using the two monitors you have now with these two new monitors in the same PC?
I would not go with mdlam's build since Photoshop isn't THAT heavily multi-threaded.
 
Are those DVD drives SATA?

Yes the drives are SATA

Any chance that you can buy before January 1st?

I wish lol...Money comes by the 15th

Whether or not you should go Pro is dependent on how likely you'll need to use more than 16GB of RAM. Some of the graphics designers that we've helped in the past have actually required more than 16GB of RAM due to all the photoshop work they're doing. In some cases, the graphics designers weren't that hardcore and were fine with 16GB of RAM.

Well, I'd rather play it on the safe side and have the option of adding more down the road if needed. I'd rather opt for PRO now.

Are those part of a separate monitor budget? Why not larger monitors? Are you planning on using the two monitors you have now with these two new monitors in the same PC?
I would not go with mdlam's build since Photoshop isn't THAT heavily multi-threaded.

For now I'll use these 2 monitors, any monitor(s) purchase will be separate from this list. I want to get the rig set up before moving on to better/bigger monitors. I was just asking for monitor suggestions:)

In the end it would be nice to have a 3 monitor setup, but 2 is a must have:)
 
UnitedAsOne said:
I wish lol...Money comes by the 15th
Click to expand...
In that case, please come back when you actually have the money on hand as our hardware recommendations can sometimes change weekly and monthly. As such, planning a build now really wouldn't help you that much. You'll get more up-to-date build advice and the ability to act on our recommendations (for deals and such) quickly during the time you have the money on hand.

UnitedAsOne said:
In the end it would be nice to have a 3 monitor setup, but 2 is a must have:)
Click to expand...
Ok, let me ask that question again diferently: Once you get those two new monitors, what's the likelihood of you using the other two monitors you have now with the new PC? We have to know since a dual monitor setup is a tad different from from a quad monitor setup.
 
I doubt I'd ever go quad monitors, squeezing in 3 would take effort:)
Dual monitors for sure.

Thanks for the input so far and I'll certainly post when I have money in hand Danny Bui. If I'm lucky it may be by the 5th:)
Being so far out of the tech loop I am looking for suggestions even though prices may rise and fall.

The one place to ask for advice is here and I know I'll get good tips on what to avoid and what to look for. I figure being a non-gaming rig will influence the buying decisions.

Thanks for the help, it's greatly appreciated!
 
UnitedAsOne said:
Being so far out of the tech loop I am looking for suggestions even though prices may rise and fall.!
Click to expand...
Pricing plays a bigger role in our recommendations than you think. If a price of a part is relatively too high for what it's worth, we'll recommend a different part altogether. Not to mention availability of said parts.
 
Hey all,

I'm ready for current suggestions and ready to buy.:):)

This will be a non gaming semi-build reusing some still usable parts. Basic everyday use and work computer. Surfing, iTunes... mainly for PS/Illustrator/Corel/graphic design work.

I'd like targeted suggestions aimed at the graphic design side. I think a good SSD and a secondary HD for storage would work well?

I'd like to know if the vid card is a factor(in graphic design), should I get something better than the 8400 GS? I use dual monitors. I didn't realize when I got the 8400 gs(replacement for the 8800 GTS that died) wasn't dual DVI..I had to dig out and old VGA cord lol

Thanks for the input!

:)
 
Here's a prelim build:
$185 - Intel Core i5-3470 CPU
$111 - MSI Z77A-G43 Intel Z77 ATX Motherboard
$72 - 2 x Corsair XMS3 CMX8GX3M1A1333C9 8GB DDR3 1333 RAM
$193 - Crucial M4 CT256M4SSD2 2.5" 256GB SSD
$102 - Seagate ST2000DM001 Barracuda 7200RPM 2TB Hard Drive
---
Total: $663 plus tax and shipping.

As to whether or not the video card is a factor is largely dependent on which version of Photoshop you have. CS5 and above would require a decent video card.
 
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Thank you Danny:) I don't see getting CS5 anytime soon lol

Sorry to sound outdated...could I run one monitor off the motherboard and the 2nd off the 8400 GS card?

Thnx for the help!
 
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