Please review budget build...

M

MooN

Limp Gawd
Joined
Sep 14, 2005
Messages
150
Hello all,

I'm in the process of putting together a system for my parents. The system will mostly be used for surfing the web and doing minor things in Word and Excel. Photo's will be uploaded and stored on the computer, won't be much photo editing taking place. Home videos will also be watched, no editing. The only things that I need to purchase are cpu, motherboard, ram, and vid card. So here are the components I was thinking about purchasing:

E2160
IP35-E
2gb of Corsair DDR2 800
8400gs low profile

I will be overclocking on the stock cooler, I've read that the e2160's can reach 3ghz on stock volts, with stock cooling. I also chose the 8400gs low profile, since I want the system to be pretty silent.

Total will cost me right around $200 AR.

What do you guys think?
 
Looks good. By low profile do you mean one like this? There are a couple that don't have a fan so it'll be silent, as long as you have enough airflow going through your case.

If you're able to overclock that without any problems they'll have a sweet little computer.
 
Pretty good man. But, for better results get the Arctic Freezer Pro 7 cooler. The stock coolers are pretty wimpy actually.
 
looks pretty solid right there. if you manage to get the processor to 3.0ghz at stable temperatures then like Citizen86 had said, "they'll have a sweet little computer".
 
Thanks guys. That was actually the exact card I was looking at. I was trying to avoid adding more cost to the system by using the stock hs/fan... I wanted to try and reach 3ghz without having to purchase an aftermarket cooler. If it doesn't work, then I'll just take a trip to Microcenter to pick one up.

Stable temps for an e2160 is under 70's load, right? I'm hoping I don't get the older stepping...
 
Looks good. :)
I personally would up to a 8500GT or 8600GT, but if that doesn't meet your budget, then the 8400GS should be fine.
 
Yea, I was looking at the 8500gt as well, but my parents don't really do anything graphics intensive at all. Figured that I'd spend as little as possible on the graphics... With the extra $25 I save from that, I can probably put it to an aftermarket hs/fan if needed.

Anyhow, I went ahead and ordered. AR's, total is about $190. Awesome jump for my parents, they're coming from an AMD XP 2600 at 2.1ghz. I'll enjoy putting the system together and tweaking it.:D
 
Solid. 8400GS is enough for anyone who is not into pc gaming.

MooN said:
Yea, I was looking at the 8500gt as well, but my parents don't really do anything graphics intensive at all. Figured that I'd spend as little as possible on the graphics... With the extra $25 I save from that, I can probably put it to an aftermarket hs/fan if needed.

Anyhow, I went ahead and ordered. AR's, total is about $190. Awesome jump for my parents, they're coming from an AMD XP 2600 at 2.1ghz. I'll enjoy putting the system together and tweaking it.:D
Click to expand...
 
Are you absolutely sure they will not be editing any video at all?

How future proof are you looking for? 5 years?

looks good to me :D
 
Yea, the only videos they mess with are ones taken from a digital camera. The system will probably be good for 5 years for them. I can always upgrade the CPU if they need more. But hopefully I can get it running at 3+ghz....
 
BTW, does anyone know how much more faster the e2160 will be vs a P4 3.2ghz? 3+ghz e2160 vs stock P4 3.2... is the difference substantial?
 
It will be substantial, due to the fact you have a second CPU core available to offload the work. Today's CPU are designed to be more efficient than the earlier generations. (However, I can't offer firm "numbers" for you to compare.)

There is a sticky in the Overclocking & Cooling forum that explains how to overclock an Intel dual-core processor. Just make sure that you have good CPU cooling (like the Freezer 7 Pro) and you'll be fine.
 
Sweet, thanks.

Man, I got the parts in yesterday, looks like I got the L2 stepping.:mad: I'm going to call Newegg and see if I can return it.
 
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