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I built a pretty low-budget PC last year around this time, and I'm looking to update it to include some newer technologies (like USB 3.0) as well as get rid of some of the cheaper components.
Here is the build as it sits now:
Case - Thermaltake V3 Black Edition VL80001W2Z
Motherboard - Gigabyte GA-H67M-D2-B3
CPU - Intel i5-2500
Video card - Zotac ZT-50402-10L GTX 550 Ti
RAM - Corsair XMS3 (2 x 2GB)
PSU - RAIDMAX Hybrid2 RX630-SS
HDD - 2 x 250GB 7200 RPM Seagate Blue, RAID 0 for OS (SATA)
HDD - Western Digital Green 2TB for storage (SATA)
Optical - LITE-ON BD-ROM (SATA)
Optical - LITE-ON DVD-RW (SATA)
Monitor - Samsung 27", 1920 x 1080 resolution
Some of the things I don't like about it:
Case has absolutely ZERO cable management
Micro ATX board only has 2 RAM slots
PSU is not so great, I've had to RMA it once when it blew up out of nowhere shortly after I got it, plus I HATE the blue LED fan inside it.
I got a PCI-E USB 3.0 card recently, but I'd prefer an on-board solution that also supports front USB ports on the case
I'd like to replace the 2 x 250GB drives with an SSD
I'm kind of picky about my cases. The one thing I do kind of like about the case I have now is that the window on the side panel is pretty small. I don't like big, flashy cases with all kinds of LEDs and everything else.
From the sticky:
1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Web browsing, gaming (mostly Diablo 3 and WoW but I want to be able to pick up a game and play it without worrying about my PC not handling it), office programs, etc.
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
$300ish, not really firm but I don't want to spend money needlessly. If tax can be included in that number all the better.
3) Which country do you live in? If the U.S, please tell us the state and city if possible.
New Jersey, just outside Philadelphia
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.
I'm thinking a new case, SSD, RAM, motherboard and probably PSU will be needed.
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
I will probably update the video card at some point since it's not the greatest, but in the interest of keeping cost down at this point in time, I think I'll keep it for now.
Zotac GeForce GTX 550 Ti
Intel i5-2500
SATA BD-ROM
SATA DVD-RW
Western Digital 2TB HDD (for storage)
6) Will you be overclocking?
No
7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?
1920x1080, 27"
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
Next few weeks
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.
RAID, USB 3.0 (front and back if case supports it), 6Gb/s SATA
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 Professional x64
Here is the build as it sits now:
Case - Thermaltake V3 Black Edition VL80001W2Z
Motherboard - Gigabyte GA-H67M-D2-B3
CPU - Intel i5-2500
Video card - Zotac ZT-50402-10L GTX 550 Ti
RAM - Corsair XMS3 (2 x 2GB)
PSU - RAIDMAX Hybrid2 RX630-SS
HDD - 2 x 250GB 7200 RPM Seagate Blue, RAID 0 for OS (SATA)
HDD - Western Digital Green 2TB for storage (SATA)
Optical - LITE-ON BD-ROM (SATA)
Optical - LITE-ON DVD-RW (SATA)
Monitor - Samsung 27", 1920 x 1080 resolution
Some of the things I don't like about it:
Case has absolutely ZERO cable management
Micro ATX board only has 2 RAM slots
PSU is not so great, I've had to RMA it once when it blew up out of nowhere shortly after I got it, plus I HATE the blue LED fan inside it.
I got a PCI-E USB 3.0 card recently, but I'd prefer an on-board solution that also supports front USB ports on the case
I'd like to replace the 2 x 250GB drives with an SSD
I'm kind of picky about my cases. The one thing I do kind of like about the case I have now is that the window on the side panel is pretty small. I don't like big, flashy cases with all kinds of LEDs and everything else.
From the sticky:
1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Web browsing, gaming (mostly Diablo 3 and WoW but I want to be able to pick up a game and play it without worrying about my PC not handling it), office programs, etc.
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
$300ish, not really firm but I don't want to spend money needlessly. If tax can be included in that number all the better.
3) Which country do you live in? If the U.S, please tell us the state and city if possible.
New Jersey, just outside Philadelphia
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.
I'm thinking a new case, SSD, RAM, motherboard and probably PSU will be needed.
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
I will probably update the video card at some point since it's not the greatest, but in the interest of keeping cost down at this point in time, I think I'll keep it for now.
Zotac GeForce GTX 550 Ti
Intel i5-2500
SATA BD-ROM
SATA DVD-RW
Western Digital 2TB HDD (for storage)
6) Will you be overclocking?
No
7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?
1920x1080, 27"
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
Next few weeks
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.
RAID, USB 3.0 (front and back if case supports it), 6Gb/s SATA
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 Professional x64
