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Budget build questions

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bigddybn

Supreme [H]ardness
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Nov 21, 2006
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My wife has become a bit of a closet gamer. I'd like to build her an early christmas present. She is currently using a Dell inspiron laptop. It does have an 8600M GT in it so it's not a total slouch but I'd like to build her something small with a bit more "balls" to it while keeping the credit card bills away. We are keeping her laptop as she often uses it to surf and pay bills and whatnot from the couch.

I'm trying to decide between a shuttle box or just building something small. her workspace is built around the footprint of the laptop so size is important. I've built more machines then I care to admit so the shuttle is in the mix not for simplicity but because it's probably just going to end up being smaller.

I have-

4x1GB RAM DDR2 800
SATA Burner
Hard Disk
Spare OS License
Monitor
Keyboard
Mouse
Speakers

I need-

Motherboard - Intel 775 only. Something with less then craptastic onboard sound. Don't need surround sound, just solid and clean stereo sound. Don't need raid. 4 SATA is plenty. Don't need SLI. Don't need legacy ports. I DO need 4 memory slots as I'd like to use all 4 of the sticks I have. Don't need major overclocking options but a slight tweak if possible would be nice. Under 100 would be nice.

CPU - thinking about a Q6600 as she does do some photo editing while listening to music etc. Will consider something else if the price is significantly lower. Will be using stock cooler if not doing the shuttle thing. Definitely under 200

Case - if I don't go the shuttle route I need a case with as small a footprint as possible. The place it has to go JUST DOES fit a 17" laptop laying flat. It only needs to hold 1 hard disk, 1 5.25 device and fit a standard size video card. 120mm fans make me smile. Under 100 if possible.

GPU - I'd prefer a single slot cooler if possible. No long cards either. I'm thinking an 8800gt but ATI 4850 looks promising also. Trying to keep the price down. Under 200

Shuttle - if I go this route (which I think she will prefer) then can someone suggest a specific model utilizing the above parts that apply? I don't need raid, or dual bioses, or fancy overclocking. Front panel USB and audio ports are a must. 4x memory slots would be very nice.

Thanks.
 
Effing insanely tired atm so since you're familiar with parts I won't bother with it. The SG01 and 02 are sized to a 17" laptop, similar to my past Inspiron 17" ah fck, whatever the model name was back then. 120mm not found w/o modding for our little boxes. SFF is all about compromise. Sure there will be many Shuttle owners to enlighten about them. Lanbox is beyond the size of a 17".
 
This motherboard has some great reviews by people here on the site, and is widely recommended.
For the CPU, I'd go with an E8400, because there are really no programs that can use more than two threads out here, and the E8400 has a much higher clock for clock than the Q6600.
45nm is a plus too ;)
As for a case... It's all for what you want. Some people swear by shuttle cases, other by Thermaltake Lanbox Lite's. Lanbox lites can use 120mm fans, IIRC.
For the GPU, a 4850 most definitely beats up on the 8800GT. It runs a little hot, so expect that thing to be putting out some heat.
 
1. When did that mobo ever be recommended here? Don't touch it - pcie x4. Don't touch the G45 either, same pcie x4 shit.

2. Lanbox lite will NOT EVER fit a 120mm anywhere, unless you cut the side. It is strictly 92mm front, 60mm x3 back w/o modding; 80mm top of graphics card if you cut it like I did. And it is MUCH bigger than the 17" laptop footprint the OP wants.

Quad vs. Duo, OP should have enough brains to figure it out
 
You are probably not going to find anything smaller than the Shuttle. So if smallest is key with good quality second then you need to look through the various Shuttle threads posted here. Shuttle's are very proprietary in design however so keep that in mind. If she grows out of it you'll need a whole new rig.

If you want expandability and upgradable you'll need to step up to something a bit bigger case wise which means you'll need to build it yourself to keep the prices as low as possible. Since low cost is in your plans that means no overclocking is involved I'm thinking and that's going to open up a lot more possibilities as far as selection goes for a mobo and ram and not to mention a case and psu.

At this point I'd say you need to stop and decide wether its going to be a Shuttle or not. If its a Shuttle then go and read through the many Shuttle threads in this section. If not then you need to start looking at other cases and see if they meet your needs.
 
lowteckh said:
1. When did that mobo ever be recommended here? Don't touch it - pcie x4. Don't touch the G45 either, same pcie x4 shit.

2. Lanbox lite will NOT EVER fit a 120mm anywhere, unless you cut the side. It is strictly 92mm front, 60mm x3 back w/o modding; 80mm top of graphics card if you cut it like I did. And it is MUCH bigger than the 17" laptop footprint the OP wants.

Quad vs. Duo, OP should have enough brains to figure it out
Click to expand...

Lowteckh > Me
 
Pwnd. I blame this thread if I just flunked my test :rolleyes:. Must sleep now.. grumpy ass 9*$&(#@$ I am.
 
I think the SG02 will fit the bill nicely so let's so no to the shuttle.

The things I'm really stuck on are CPU, GPU and mobo.

4 memory slots is tough to find in a mATX board it seems and I want at least a 3 series chipset or newer. I may just buy 2x2GB sticks and be done with it though.

The more I think about it them more I'm inclined to go with a dual core CPU. Faster, cheap and likely less heat. The egg has the e8400 for 165 shipped right now.

The 4850 is obviously faster then an 8800gt but I'm wondering if it's 60 bucks faster. The last ATI card left a bad taste in my mouth with driver weirdness.

Probably looking at the following minus the above components-

WD 640GB hard drive
Antec Earthwatts PSU (would like a suggestion here though)
SG02 case
 
I'm not sure how the Silverstone Sugo cases compare next to the Shuttle cases(I'm new to SFFs myself), but I just put one together for about $450 without the RAM and HDD. Q6600 and ATI HD4850. It seems the Shuttle case/mobo combos were a little expensive to me, but I also didn't do a side by side comparison.

Anyways, this is just what I noticed, I don't have any experience with these cases themselves yet, as I just ordered the parts this weekend, and I'm constantly refreshing my account page to see if they shipped it. ;)
 
The below recommendation is based on a budget conscience build.
CPU - e7200 or e5200. Don't need 8. $80-$120
Mobo - ASUS P5E, or heck, the Intel G35.
GPU - did not specify games, tolerance to lowering resolutions + settings

Your questions regarding CPU and GPU (what to get..) can be found in the respective sections on the forum - they have been asked many many many many many many times : \
 
Case: Take a look at the Antec NSK1380:
Antec NSK1380 mATX Case with 80Plus 350W PSU - $95

Small and comes with a decent PSU.

GPU: Get the 9800GT since it's cheaper yet performs the same as the 8800GT:
PNY VCG98512GXEB GeForce 9800 GT 512MB PCI-E Video Card - $120

However for just an extra $40, you can have the faster HD4850:
Sapphire 100245L Radeon HD 4850 512MB PCI-E Video Card - $160

CPU: If she does a TON of photo-editing with Photoshop, then definitely get the Q6600. Otherwise, go with the E7200.

Motherboard:
Take a look these motherboards:
MSI G33M-FI LGA 775 Intel G33 mATX Intel Motherboard - $88
Asus P5E-VM HDMI LGA 775 Intel G35 HDMI mATX Intel Motherboard - $125
Asus P5Q-EM LGA 775 Intel G45 HDMI Micro ATX Intel Motherboard - $135
 
No not that case. No way in hell. GF's uncle has it and holy shit, the PSU fan is insanely loud and has absolutely no airflow. Very plasticky too.
 
lowteckh said:
No not that case. No way in hell. GF's uncle has it and holy shit, the PSU fan is insanely loud and has absolutely no airflow. Very plasticky too.
Click to expand...

While I think the construction of it is nice, the airflow comment is correct. Not sure about the PSU fan since I've heard from others that it's pretty quiet. Though IIRC, that case does come with a PCI exhaust fan module. Place that near the CPU and lower chance of heat buildup.
 
OP is better off with a quality case and PSU that has longevity/upgrade potential for some bucks more. SG02 = $70+s/h and a decent psu.
 
Actually that case looks great. Quite a few positive reviews on newegg. Though with the single exhaust fan (don't want to use a slot cooler) a dual slot video card may be the way to go.
 
lowteckh said:
OP is better off with a quality case and PSU that has longevity/upgrade potential for some bucks more. SG02 = $70+s/h and a decent psu.
Click to expand...

Well, up to the OP then.

@ OP
Hmmm, one thing missing from your post: do you need a PSU or do you have one lying around like the other parts?

If you do need a PSU and do not go with the NSK1380, I recommend these:
Antec Earthwatts EA380 380W PSU - $30
Antec Earthwatts 500W PSU - $50
Antec Earthwatts 650W PSU - $65

NOTE: Take a look at the shipping prices. The EA380 is a good choice as long as you don't plan on upgrading the rig any further
 
Seeing and hearing it first hand, much failness. 350w PSU for his gear is not something I'd be comfortable around. No PSU upgrade option means this case is useless if upgrade wanted. Wut's w/ all the support for this thing when much better can be had for a tiny premium? The Antec isn't even cheap : \
 
That antec 380 was what I was looking at. You didn't gain anything on the 12v rail unless you went to the 650.

I do think I'll stick to the silverstone. It's a good point about the PSU. If the unit in the antec box pops then I'm pretty much SOL without antec's help.

How does this look. I have the RAM, Optical and OS covered.


SILVERSTONE SUGO SG02B-F Black ABS / SECC Steel MicroATX Desktop Computer Case - Retail
Item #: N82E16811163112
$69.99

Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD6400AAKS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive -OEM
Item #: N82E16822136218
$74.99

Antec earthwatts EA380 380W ATX12V v2.0 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply - Retail
Item #: N82E16817371005
$29.99

MSI G33M-FI LGA 775 Intel G33 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
Item #: N82E16813130120
$87.99

Intel Core 2 Duo E7200 Wolfdale 2.53GHz LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor Model BX80571E7200 - Retail
Item #: N82E16819115052
$119.99

HIS Hightech H485F512P Radeon HD 4850 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail
Item #: N82E16814161235

$164.99 - $30 MIR


Subtotal: $547.94
Shipping: $34.65


Grand Total: $582.59
 
Firewire, a newer chipset, possible higher resale value if it comes to it. G33 feels so old and .. expensive. My AMD 780G was just $85 for a feature-full Gigabyte. Meh, seems so expensive compared. Whatever, your money.

Names don't matter, it's still a wolfdale.
 
lowteckh said:
Firewire, a newer chipset, possible higher resale value if it comes to it. G33 feels so old and .. expensive. My AMD 780G was just $85 for a feature-full Gigabyte. Meh, seems so expensive compared. Whatever, your money.

Names don't matter, it's still a wolfdale.
Click to expand...

I have no need for firewire and care little about resale value. Comparing an AMD board is pretty pointless.

What do I give up running the G33 board?
 
Wow. Good catch on the rebate thing. It was the only reason I picked that card. There is both an ASUS and a Sapphire card in the same price bracket.
 
Gurly ASUS sticker (which could work in your favor), but you get your rebate. Can't say that for my 2 Sapphires.
 
bigddybn said:
How about http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130376

159.99 after rebate from a reputable company. I'd take this card and give her the 8800gt in my rig :) I'd prefer an nvidia card to be honest anyway.
Click to expand...

My friend just bought one of those, it barely fits in his full ATX case.
You might want to reconsider.
I've got a Visiontek 4850, it was $150 at best buy during the sale, and it comes with a lifetime warranty (it doesn't look like the crappy [looking] one newegg has though)

edit: 4850
 
I dont want to muddy the water or confuse the OP more than he already is but that Antec 380 is going to limit any future video upgrades more than likely considering how power hungry these video cards can get. I know its cheap in price but there's a trade off that comes with that small of psu. Bare minimum I'd put in there is a 450w unit but I'd personally go with a 500w unit to cover any future cards and components. Either a corsair HX520 or Silverstone's modular 500w unit. It's worth the extra cost and they arent that expensive anyway when taken in the grand scheme of things.

Lowtech was correct in pointing out a good quality case and psu is the fundamental building block of a good build for any and all future upgrades. Budget build or not. :)
 
12v 34A combined is quite a bit I'd think. Hell the wiring would probably melt if it actually ever saw a 34A load.
 
bigddybn said:
12v 34A combined is quite a bit I'd think. Hell the wiring would probably melt if it actually ever saw a 34A load.
Click to expand...

No it has a combined total of 27A on the +12V rail. You don't add up the rails to get the combined total. You divide the total amount of wattage on the +12V rail by 12 in order to get the combined total amperage.
 
I'm still hung up on a motherboard. Are there any actual performance differences between the various chipsets? I understand that I give up SATA ports and Raid with the various included southbridge chips but will a newer chipset make any meaningful difference?
 
bigddybn said:
I'm still hung up on a motherboard. Are there any actual performance differences between the various chipsets? I understand that I give up SATA ports and Raid with the various included southbridge chips but will a newer chipset make any meaningful difference?
Click to expand...

In outright performance? No. In energy usage? Slightly.
 
So any reason not to buy http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813186110 and put the extra cash toward a faster GPU?

It has 4 memory slots to use the existing RAM
4x SATA which is plenty.
Gigabit Lan
ESATA
Firewire (which isn't needed but why not)
RAID (see firewire comment)
Plenty of USB on the back and plenty more built in.
Onboard video (which won't be used but could prolong the life of the board down the road)
Dual slot card won't block a PCI slot.

What am I missing?
 
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