need hyper-v homelab

[Mr.Pernod]

I am considering getting some hardware to set up a home lab for hyper-v / server 2012.
end purpose is to get some MCSE certificates to complement my MCSA 2012.

already have an iSCSI storage available and still some 1TB sata disks on the shelve for local storage, so all I need is some basic system hardware.
I am looking at the following config:

- chieftec CT-01B case with a 350w PSU at € 56
- AMD A8-6600K at € 107
- ASRock FM2A85X Extreme4-M at € 68
- Kingston ValueRAM 16 GB DDR3-1600 Kit (2*8GB) at € 123
- used Intel Pro/1000 PT dual port PCI-e x4 NIC at € 50

which comes to € 404 for a system excluding shipping.
I will most likely get 2 of them so I can play with clustering as well.

will this make me happy or are there better suggestions in this price range?

[edit]
dropped the cpu down from an a10 to the a8-6600k, don't need the iGPU performance that badly
[/edit]

 

[Mr.Pernod]

changed the original idea, as I don't think I need the iGPU performace the A10 has, which saves me around € 40.

alternative is a Core i3-3220 with an ASUS P8B75-M, which, keeping the other components the same, will cost me € 405 per system (excl. shipping)

a Haswell i5 system is no option, starting at a price that is close to 20% higher than the A8 or i3 system.

so, which shall I choose....

 

[Child of Wonder]

Just get an AMD quad or six core, 32GB of RAM, and at least 4 network ports per host (2 for iSCSI, 2 for everything else) and you're good to go.