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First off, this will not be for me but for a sibling who is not really a power user. Small, quiet and fairly cool are the most important goals in this build. I have a preliminary build at the end of the post. Let me know what you think and if you have any suggestions. Thanks!
1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Web browsing, homework (several pdf files, word files, ppt files open, internet browsers/tabs open at once), matlab (nothing too intensive), listening to music, maybe watching videos
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
~$700 with tax and shipping
3) Where do you live?
US (unfortunately, there are no Microcenter or Frys stores anywhere near me)
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
Motherboard
Ram
Hard Drive (maybe SSD--under consideration)
Case & Power Supply
Video Card
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
Not reusing parts.
6) Will you be overclocking?
No.
7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
1080p 23" monitor (not included in this budget)
For reference, this is the monitor: HP 2311x 23" LED Monitor
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
This summer, probably sooner rather than later. I may try to pick up the pieces as they go on sale since Newegg seems to run the 15% up to $10-15 off memory and HDD fairly often.
9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? eSATA? Onboard video? etc.
No SLI or Crossfire needed. USB 3.0 would be nice I guess.
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
64 bit, but both can be downloaded for free (okay, the price is included in tuition/fees
) from the University's website.
=======================
I am trying to put together a quiet and cool running computer for my sibling who will be attending University this coming fall. The focus is not on extreme performance.
I am having a difficult time finding a suitable case while staying in budget. I would like to get a small, preferably slim matx desktop sized case. The nsk2480 would have been ideal except it is not meant for standing vertically and thus does not come equipped with vertical stands If anyone can suggest another case and power supply with similar or slightly smaller dimensions and roughly the same price (~$115) please let me know! I may also consider a mini itx build if it can be done for roughly the same cost.
So as of now I am looking at the nsk3480 which seems to only have 1 problem: there seems to be a fairly common complaint about some dvd drives not fitting flush with the front of the case.
Here are the tentative specifications I have specced out:
$24.99 - Lite-on DVD Drive - the reviews on this seem to be decent with respect to the noise. I've had several DVD drives that sounds like a jet taking off and would prefer the one in this system not have that problem. Not sure if it will fit in the case.
$49.99 - WD Caviar Green 750GB - Storage drive. The green drives running at 5400rpm are quieter than the 7200rpm caviar blue drives, right?
$114.99 - Crucial RealSSD C300 64GB - Boot drive and a few programs. I'm not sure if this one or the 80GB Intel would be better/more reliable?? SSDs are silent as well, I think?
$199.99 - i5-2400s (quad-core 65w) - Still unsure whether splurge or not to get this or a dual core for less. The build could be brought down to about $600 with the dual core. The dual core would almost certainly be more than powerful enough and emit less heat too.
$88.99 - ASUS P8H67-M LX (REV 3.0) LGA 1155 Intel H67 SATA 6Gb/s Micro ATX Intel Motherboard - There are so many motherboards I have no clue what to get, but this one seemed decent and currently has a $20 combo discount with the processor. Still open to suggestions.
$69.99 - Sapphire 5670 512MB - More than enough graphics power. Not sure about the brand. I would rather spend more to get a similar powered car that ran cooler/quieter than spend it on one with more graphics power. If you can suggest one with around the same power or slightly lower power that has these features please list it! Either ATI/AMD or Nvidia is fine.
$94.82 - Antec nsk3480 case with 380W Earthwatts power supply - Power supply seems sufficient for the planned system.
$47.99 - Gskill ECO DDR3 1333 4GB(2x2 GB) - I know 8gb is only about $20 more, but I figured the $20 of extra memory that won't be used would be better spent by going with a HDD/SSD combo. The F3-10666CL9D-4GBECO model is $2 cheaper and I'm sure would work with the motherboard I have specced out, but the supported memory list had the F3-10666CL8D-4GBECO model listed so that's still up in the air.
=====
Current total: $667.55 with MB/CPU combo+tax+shipping+$15 newegg discount applied
I hope I didn't bore anyone with my rambling.
And once again, thanks for any help.
1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Web browsing, homework (several pdf files, word files, ppt files open, internet browsers/tabs open at once), matlab (nothing too intensive), listening to music, maybe watching videos
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
~$700 with tax and shipping
3) Where do you live?
US (unfortunately, there are no Microcenter or Frys stores anywhere near me)
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
Motherboard
Ram
Hard Drive (maybe SSD--under consideration)
Case & Power Supply
Video Card
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
Not reusing parts.
6) Will you be overclocking?
No.
7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
1080p 23" monitor (not included in this budget)
For reference, this is the monitor: HP 2311x 23" LED Monitor
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
This summer, probably sooner rather than later. I may try to pick up the pieces as they go on sale since Newegg seems to run the 15% up to $10-15 off memory and HDD fairly often.
9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? eSATA? Onboard video? etc.
No SLI or Crossfire needed. USB 3.0 would be nice I guess.
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
64 bit, but both can be downloaded for free (okay, the price is included in tuition/fees
) from the University's website.=======================
I am trying to put together a quiet and cool running computer for my sibling who will be attending University this coming fall. The focus is not on extreme performance.
I am having a difficult time finding a suitable case while staying in budget. I would like to get a small, preferably slim matx desktop sized case. The nsk2480 would have been ideal except it is not meant for standing vertically and thus does not come equipped with vertical stands
If anyone can suggest another case and power supply with similar or slightly smaller dimensions and roughly the same price (~$115) please let me know! I may also consider a mini itx build if it can be done for roughly the same cost.So as of now I am looking at the nsk3480 which seems to only have 1 problem: there seems to be a fairly common complaint about some dvd drives not fitting flush with the front of the case.
Here are the tentative specifications I have specced out:
$24.99 - Lite-on DVD Drive - the reviews on this seem to be decent with respect to the noise. I've had several DVD drives that sounds like a jet taking off and would prefer the one in this system not have that problem. Not sure if it will fit in the case.
$49.99 - WD Caviar Green 750GB - Storage drive. The green drives running at 5400rpm are quieter than the 7200rpm caviar blue drives, right?
$114.99 - Crucial RealSSD C300 64GB - Boot drive and a few programs. I'm not sure if this one or the 80GB Intel would be better/more reliable?? SSDs are silent as well, I think?
$199.99 - i5-2400s (quad-core 65w) - Still unsure whether splurge or not to get this or a dual core for less. The build could be brought down to about $600 with the dual core. The dual core would almost certainly be more than powerful enough and emit less heat too.
$88.99 - ASUS P8H67-M LX (REV 3.0) LGA 1155 Intel H67 SATA 6Gb/s Micro ATX Intel Motherboard - There are so many motherboards I have no clue what to get, but this one seemed decent and currently has a $20 combo discount with the processor. Still open to suggestions.
$69.99 - Sapphire 5670 512MB - More than enough graphics power. Not sure about the brand. I would rather spend more to get a similar powered car that ran cooler/quieter than spend it on one with more graphics power. If you can suggest one with around the same power or slightly lower power that has these features please list it! Either ATI/AMD or Nvidia is fine.
$94.82 - Antec nsk3480 case with 380W Earthwatts power supply - Power supply seems sufficient for the planned system.
$47.99 - Gskill ECO DDR3 1333 4GB(2x2 GB) - I know 8gb is only about $20 more, but I figured the $20 of extra memory that won't be used would be better spent by going with a HDD/SSD combo. The F3-10666CL9D-4GBECO model is $2 cheaper and I'm sure would work with the motherboard I have specced out, but the supported memory list had the F3-10666CL8D-4GBECO model listed so that's still up in the air.
=====
Current total: $667.55 with MB/CPU combo+tax+shipping+$15 newegg discount applied
I hope I didn't bore anyone with my rambling.
And once again, thanks for any help.
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