The parent build

D

Derfnofred

Gawd
Joined
Dec 11, 2009
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617
1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
General net surfing and photoshop. No games.
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
My dad didn't really give me a budget, but given their moderate needs let's say around 400-500 for the parts they need.
3) Where do you live?
Portland, OR (Fry's local)
4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. Please be very specific.
CPU, mobo (mATX, due to case), ram, gfx card (unless in mobo), sound, hdd, dvdr, and psu. Basically, I have the case and cooler they'll be using. A small modular PSU would be awesome (if the price is right)
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
Silverstone GD04 case and scythe big shuriken (kind of a package deal)
6) Will you be overclocking?
Conservatively, if at all--not much thermal headroom on the given case/cooler combo
7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
I'd love suggestions for a decent 24-26 photo-friendly monitor that's not cost prohibitive. My parent's eyes are getting old and all, so big is good.
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
ASAP
9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.
Integrated video and sound would make life a lot easier and hit the price objective.
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If so, what OS? 32bit or 64bit?
Own a copy of Windows 7 64bit home to use on system.


So I was trolling around other peoples lists, but didn't have a chance to package one up myself. I'll try and come back and edit what I'm thinking. I don't know what AMD has to offer exactly, but I think they're going to hit the price number better, especially since Photoshop wants cores.

Basic premise
Quad Athlon + mobo combo
4gb ram
Samsung F3 500gb
?? PSU
?? DVDR

Thanks guys,
Daniel
 
Thanks shadowsong! I'll see if anyone else has another good idea (or minor tweak), but that looks to hit all talking point nicely.

Much obliged.
 
It's reporting unavailable at my nearest Frys... I started trolling that as soon as I read it. Killer deal, though and I will keep checking to see if it comes in stock.

Thanks Danny
 
I'm solely bumping it to make sure I didn't miss any changes in deals before I make the order this morning. Otherwise, another quick thank you.
 
Derfnofred said:
I'm solely bumping it to make sure I didn't miss any changes in deals before I make the order this morning. Otherwise, another quick thank you.
Click to expand...

Wait, what the current build list? Shadowssong's build?
 
Derfnofred said:
Yeah--I haven't been able to do better than that at the moment.
Click to expand...

$100 - AMD Athlon II X4 630 CPU
$67 - Biostar A785G3 AMD 785G mATX AMD Motherboard
$94 - A-Data AD3U1333B2G9-DRH 2 x 2GB DDR3 1333 RAM
$56 - Western Digital WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
$23 - LG GH22NS50 DVD Burner
$55 - Corsair 400CX 400W PSU
---
Total: $395 shipped.

Slightly faster but $55 cheaper than Shadowssong's build. I highly doubt your parents will need more than 4GB of RAM so the two RAM slots of the above mobo should be fine. The WD 500GB drive is just as the Samsung (assuming that you get the single platter version) and since you're just conservatively overclocking, that DDR3 1333 RAM will be enough.
 
If you want to wait for Fry's to re-stock, I think they do so on Tuesdays. Call to confirm. ;) Doubt they'll restock that combo, though. :(
 
Awesome, thanks guys! I agree with all points about memory and overclocking (minimal if at all, gotta go look and see what would materially help) That and the NEC 23" deal that's going down should make for an overall killer combo.

Couple questions:
Why the caviar blue over the samsung F3? Reliability? Warranty? They're the same price--so I'm just curious

Rut roh--biostar is out of stock... how about this guy?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...1609R&cm_re=785G_ddr3-_-13-131-609R-_-Product

I'm going to abandon the mega-awesome Fry's deal since it's out of stock and it would require motivating my mom to go and buy it, which will, um, not happen ;-)

Peace,
D
 
Last edited:
It's all good, I went with danny's last build rec, but had to substitute in the TA785G3 for the A785G3 b/c it was OOS
 
Derfnofred said:
Why the caviar blue over the samsung F3? Reliability? Warranty? They're the same price--so I'm just curious

Rut roh--biostar is out of stock... how about this guy?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...1609R&cm_re=785G_ddr3-_-13-131-609R-_-Product
Click to expand...

Supposedly the Caviar Blue is quieter. Reliability and warranty is virtually the same. I trust WD just a tad more than Samsung.

It's a used mobo. I personally don't recommend used mobos. I recommend this mobo instead:
$65 - Asus M4A78LT-M LE AM3 AMD 780L mATX Motherboard
 
Just bumping back in to say that I built up the computer (very close to Danny Bui's build, used the TA785G3 mobo) with the present NEC 23" IPS panel deal. Runs beautifully stock clocks (for the moment) and wanted to say thanks to all ya'll

Best,
Daniel
 
The only significant difference between the A785G3 and the TA785G3 is that the latter can be set to overclock the memory to "1600" speed whereas the BIOS on the A785G3 doesn't go high enough. Personally, it might not be worth the $5 to $10 difference. But if the owner is satisfied with its basic performance, then more power to that person.
 
E4g1e said:
The only significant difference between the A785G3 and the TA785G3 is that the latter can be set to overclock the memory to "1600" speed whereas the BIOS on the A785G3 doesn't go high enough. Personally, it might not be worth the $5 to $10 difference. But if the owner is satisfied with its basic performance, then more power to that person.
Click to expand...

Well, we'll see if I do anything to the computer. My folks are pretty risk adverse when it comes to any overclocking stuff, and they're happy, so I can't fault the build too much.

My choice to substitute the TA785G3 for the A785G3 was purely based on availability--namely what newegg had in stock.
 
Derfnofred said:
Just bumping back in to say that I built up the computer (very close to Danny Bui's build, used the TA785G3 mobo) with the present NEC 23" IPS panel deal. Runs beautifully stock clocks (for the moment) and wanted to say thanks to all ya'll

Best,
Daniel
Click to expand...

No prob!

No pics of the PC though?
 
Danny Bui said:
No prob!

No pics of the PC though?
Click to expand...

I was so preoccupied getting this system up and running that I forgot! Whoops. Well, I'll be back in July, so I can get some photos then so people can get an idea of the case layout and such.

Moral of the story:
Silverstone GD04 is a great case for a HTPC setup when used with a low-power cpu and the Scythe Shuriken. It was an easy, clean build that I can't fault in any way. Looks great, stays cool and all that jazz.
 
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