Build advice for friend

[tommy13]

Hello, I recently got help here picking some parts for an upgrade of mine. So I am back and seeking help for my friend who needs a new build.

He and his wife are not power users at all. They only need to run Quickbooks for his business and Photoshop for her. Does not need a video card at all, just onboard. Thank you so much.


1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Photoshop, Quickbooks, Web Browsing.

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
$900 Tax and shipping included, I have Amazon Prime. Microcenter about a hour away. Not really looking towards that.

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

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, MOBO, Case, PSU, RAM, DVD, SSD, keyboard and mouse.

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
He has a 19" monitor that he wants to keep.

6) Will you be overclocking?
No, doubt it.

7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?
I believe it is 1600x900 or something like that. He's not gaming at all.

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
This week.

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.
USB 3, SATA 6, Onboard Video(Main GPU)

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
No, need windows 8.1 64-bit.


What I was thinking:

i5 4670k
8GB G Skill
Seasonic 550w
Corsair 300R
Samsung EVO 250GB
Windows 8.1
Random DVD Burner.
Not sure which motherboard to get for them.
I'll probably just get them a logitech combo for mouse/keyboard.

Thank you in advance.

 

[tiraides]

I recommend the following instead:

$185 - Intel Core i5 4430
$68 - MSI B85M-G43
$130 - Kingston HyperX blu 2x8GB DDR3 1600 RAM
$140 - Samsung 840 EVO 250GB SSD
$59 - Seagate Barracuda 1TB HDD
$15 - Lite-On iHAS124-04 SATA DVD burner (includes $5 instant discount promo code EMCPGHB99, expires 4/3)
$86 - Seasonic SSR-550RM 550W modular power supply
$98 - Microsoft Windows 8.1 64-bit OEM DVD
$17 - Logitech Desktop MK120 wired keyboard/mouse combo

$754 - Total before taxes

I reused your choices in OS, SSD, and PSU but swapped out the i5-4670K for the i5-4430. You're not overclocking nor do you need the i5-4670K for web browsing and Quickbooks.

However, I increased the RAM amount as a way to improve Photoshop performance. (In the future, you should also consider another, smaller capacity SSD to use as a swap disk in Photoshop.) I also added a hard drive so you have space to offload non-essential programs and other files. (SSDs perform better when they're under 50% capacity.)

The MSI B85M-G43 met your needs in sticky question 9 without costing an arm or a leg. The Lite-On iHAS124-04 was the cheapest DVD burner I could find. (You shouldn't have to pay more than $25 shipped for a decent DVD burner.) I went with the cheapest Logitech combo Amazon had available, but I also found the cheapest Logitech wireless combo.

I believe that the Corsair 300R may be too much case for your friends' needs. I like the Fractal Design Core 1000 as an alternative, but you'll run into some cable management issues even with the use of a modular power supply. I'll defer the case recommendation to you.