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New possible $500 build

M

mevon

n00b
Joined
Jul 29, 2012
Messages
3
Everyone,

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
streaming/recording/editing(home movies) HD video, web browsing and some light/casual gaming

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
$500 not including tax and shipping

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

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget?
CPU, motherboard, power supply, RAM,

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing?
19" LCD 1440x900 Dell monitor
Windows 7 Ultimate 64 bit
Cooler Master Centurion 5 case with window side panel
Keyboard/Mouse
Logitech USB stereo speakers

6) Will you be overclocking?
May consider some light overclocking, nothing extreme

7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?
1440x900 19" Dell

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
2-3 weeks, unless you feel I should wait until the new CPU models come out later this year.

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.
SATA 6Gb/s, USB 3.0

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
Yes, Windows 7 Ultimate 64 bit


I'm a 30 year old electrical engineer and I've been wanted to build my own PC for awhile. My current PC is a Dell E521 AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+. I've been doing a lot of research and I can't decide on which platform to go with. I'm mainly going to use the pc for streaming/recording HD video, web browsing and some light/casual gaming. I have a PS3 to do most of my gaming on. I wouldn't mind doing some light overclocking to increase performance. I want the most bang for my buck.

I have been trying to decide between AMD A8-3850/3870K, AMD FX-4100/6100, and Intel i5-3570K. My wife would like me to keep this build under $500. I can always add more items to the build later (Christmas list). I eventually want to get a tv tuner that I can use to record and watch on this PC. I want the main items to be reliable and last 4 -5 years. Could you give me some recommendations based on my needs. Maybe one of each platform and give me the benefits of each? I really appreciate your help with this.

I'm located in North Carolina. Would be ordering from Newegg and/or Amazon in probably 2-3 weeks unless you feel it would be better to wait for upcoming CPUs to be released. Thanks again.

mevon
 
In 3-4 days, please bump up this thread for a full build list. By then we'll know what Newegg's August combo deals will be and therefore help save you money (and not get killed by your wife :)) However in the meant time we can definitely narrow down the platform for you.

Now the main problem is that any of those platforms would fit your basic needs just fine. So we're gonna have to narrow down some things:

1) Were you planning on using onboard video or a dedicated video card? If dedicated video card, which one?
2) What matters more? Video editing/recording performance or gaming performance?

With that said, drop the Core i5 3570K now since you're only planning on doing light overclocking. As such, you should be fine with the $30 cheaper Core i5 3450.
 
1) Were you planning on using onboard video or a dedicated video card? If dedicated video card, which one?

I wouldn't mind starting out with onboard video, since I can add a graphics card later. Maybe I can ask my wife for one for christmas.

2) What matters more? Video editing/recording performance or gaming performance?

HD video streaming/recording tv > gaming performance > video editing
 
What games are you planning on playing?
What hard drives are you planning to reuse?
Are the DVD drives you're planning on reusing SATA or IDE?
Are you ever planning on upgrading your monitor?

Oh and you're looking at a new case as well: That Coolermaster case won't provide sufficient cooling for a modern system. Or at least, it won't be able to without being loud as hell and/or extensive modification.

As for the "HD video streaming/recording tv", honestly you don't need heavy duty specs for that. It's the last two usages that do.
 
Last edited:
What games are you planning on playing? Dirt3, Dirt Showdown, Batman Arkham City, Sports games. I don't plan on playing any games online or any multiplayer games or any subscription based games. I'm not really into any first person shooters.

What hard drives are you planning to reuse? none

Are the DVD drives you're planning on reusing SATA or IDE? none

Are you ever planning on upgrading your monitor? Yeah, but probably not until middle of next year.

I got the case off of a coworker for $15, it looked like it was a decent case. What do you suggest I do with this cooler master case if I'm not going to be using it now?

I think that I will probably be able to get my wife to push the budget to at most $600.
I will mainly be using this to stream sports in HD over the cable so my wife can watch her shows on the livingroom tv and we can be in the same room. I have another tv in a spare bedroom, but she doesn't like it when I'm not in the same room with her in the evenings. And I would like to play some games at decent settings. It doesn't have to be the highest settings possible, just better than the Wii's graphics and close to the PS3's.

Down the road, when we start having a family, we plan on getting an HD video camera, so we'll be doing some HD video editing. Probably not until late next year at the earliest.

My wife will just be using this to browse the web, check her email, online banking, and watching tv shows and movies on HBO Go, Hulu.

I won't be buying the parts until after August 9th.
 
mevon said:
What games are you planning on playing? Dirt3, Dirt Showdown, Batman Arkham City, Sports games. I don't plan on playing any games online or any multiplayer games or any subscription based games. I'm not really into any first person shooters.
Click to expand...
How soon would you be able to save the $130 or so for a new video card?
mevon said:
Are you ever planning on upgrading your monitor? Yeah, but probably not until middle of next year.
Click to expand...
Do note that you will have to upgrade your GPU when that happens.
mevon said:
I got the case off of a coworker for $15, it looked like it was a decent case. What do you suggest I do with this cooler master case if I'm not going to be using it now?
Click to expand...
Sell it on Craigslist.
mevon said:
I won't be buying the parts until after August 9th.
Click to expand...
Then please come back and bump up this thread on that date.
 
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