I want to build my first ever computer, in 15-45 days, and want your advice. I figure it is something every guy should do at least once in his life. I understand all of the basics, and was looking for specific advice on what to buy and where the sweet spots are value wise in the tech market right now.
I want to spend about $700 (I know it will end up higher than that) not including the monitor.
I don't play video games, so this is strictly a productivity machine, that being said, I want it to multitask really well and to handle lots of photos and such with ease.
Some general thoughts:
1) Should I go with the AMD quad processor's I see priced around $220?
2) What is a good value motherboard that offers USB3.0, sound support, and HDMI out? Do I also need a graphics card if I am not a gamer? I want to watch movies on it though?
3) Dual 22" monitors or one nice 24", I can't decide?
4) I am thinking I want to run with a 64GB SSD drive, and a 1TB media drive, I am guessing it is pretty straight forward to set-up?
5) My biggest confusion is over power supply and cooling, I want something that runs quiet and cool but am not sure how to work that all out in a high value scenario?
6) I love RAM, how much do I really need though?
I think that is it.
I know some of you are brilliant at this, any thoughts are much appreciated. As are links to build-websites or retailer-websites. I generally use memory express or NCIX?
1) For $220 you could get the new 6 core processor, but it depends on what you are doing with it. For a general productivity machine though I'd probably still go with Intel i5 750.
Applications like video encoding and offline 3D rendering show the real strengths of the Phenom II X6. And thanks to Turbo Core, you don't give up any performance in less threaded applications compared to a Phenom II X4. The 1090T can easily trump the Core i7 860 and the 1055T can do even better against the Core i5 750.
You start running into problems when you look at lightly threaded applications or mixed workloads that aren't always stressing all six cores. In these situations Intel's quad-core Lynnfield processors (Core i5 700 series and Core i7 800 series) are better buys. They give you better performance in these light or mixed workload scenarios, not to mention lower overall power consumption.
2) Not sure about motherboards, but ASUS is good, and I like Gigabyte motherboards as well. Intel chipsets for Intel chips. And I'd probably go with an ATI card to get video acceleration and audio for movies and such, something like this: http://www.memoryexpress.com/Product...2%28ME%29.aspx
ETA: This also gives you high def audio decoding for Bluray movies.
3) Dual monitors are better overall for productivity, though I wouldn't give up my 24" monitor.. do a 24" and a 22"
4) Yup, should be very easy to set up, Windows 7's concept of libraries makes adding directories on other drives to your documents or videos folders easy.
5) Well I just got this case and it's great and very quiet, but probably not conducive to a budget machine. There are some good cheaper cases that will be quiet though. I've had Antec Sonata cases before and they're quite good and quiet for the price. I'm VERY picky about noise though and to get a truly near silent computer you do have to put out extra $$.
A good CPU heatsink with a good fan is also important and can really reduce the noise.
6) 4GB is probably fine for most people (ensure you have 64 bit Windows to take advantage of it), or if you get a Core i5 I think you can actually have 6GB to take advantage of the tri-channel setup to get a speed boost. I upgraded to 8GB recently and it made a huge difference for me, but I'm not a typical user.
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The newest big thing is Eyefinity from ATI which allows you to drive 3-6 monitors from a single card for an extra wide display which is great for desktop work as well as gaming. Would you be interested in doing that? You said you don't play games but you get a great amount of monitors for desktop and professional work off one video card.
Last edited by Hack&Lube; 05-06-2010 at 01:27 AM.
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Here's something I put together a couple of days ago on this site.
This is just a suggestion to maybe get you started. For myself I 'd probably spend a little more and go with the i5 or i7 processor or the new six core ATI.
Quote:
Exp:
Here's a couple of sites to do your price matching with.
It seems like no matter how I build it I end up (sometimes waaaay) above $1000 to get a $700 machine? I know the individual components might be better but it is a big price range?
The best buy desktop is something that can be had for cheaper. Although the memory would be somewhat expensive, it doesn't have a dedicated video card so it's sharing the memory of the system.
The cost consideration is like this, with a custom system, upgrade paths can be followed more often, and upgrades can done piecemeal. There's also the consideration that a custom system depending on which parts are chosen, can be closer to an expensive workstation than a 700$ desktop with shared video memory and crapware out the wazoo.
One of the newer cost cutting measures is the non-inclusion of media for the operating system / office programs. Getting media after the fact is difficult and time consuming (thus creating a barrier to entry making prices lower yada yada yada)
Otherwise if you don't want the headache of judging which particular components are necessary, I would suggest getting an Apple Mac Product.
When building a computer, what are the most important parts (like listed from #1-12), if you want it to multi-task basically all the time (music + what ever), and you're awaiting Diablo 3?
Processor, Video Card, and Memory?
And what are all the components anyway?
- processor
- ram
- video card
- sound card
- case
- cd/dvd drive
- hard drive
- motherboard
- network card (?)
- power supply
- cooling of some kind (?)
Last edited by 3 Justin 3; 05-09-2010 at 05:05 AM.
It seems like no matter how I build it I end up (sometimes waaaay) above $1000 to get a $700 machine? I know the individual components might be better but it is a big price range?
Claeren.
This is a good question that I have been wondering myself. I've always been of the opinion that there isn't too much in the way of immediate cost savings by doing it yourself compared to buying a package from a Dell or HP. Perhaps, if you are able to transfer parts from an old computer to the new one? The main advantages that I see are a sense of control over the parts that end up being in your machine. But, perhaps this would allow you to upgrade at a later point instead of having to buy a whole new machine?
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Most of the forums for computer building are very specialised.. hardocp for real geeks, silentpcreview for quiet computers, etc.
I think the knowledge you'd find here would be as good as any dedicated forum though.
Plus I bet there are guys here to frequent all those other forums so they would basically be able to distill the information you need to you. I probably visit HardOCP even more than CP.
When building a computer, what are the most important parts (like listed from #1-12), if you want it to multi-task basically all the time (music + what ever), and you're awaiting Diablo 3?
Processor, Video Card, and Memory?
And what are all the components anyway?
- processor
- ram
- video card
- sound card
- case
- cd/dvd drive
- hard drive
- motherboard
- network card (?)
- power supply
- cooling of some kind (?)
For general use and basic gaming, most computers are equal to the task these days aside from the videocard. That's the most important part if gaming is important to you. Go for one of the current DX11 supporting videocards from ATI or Nvidia in the $150-$300 range.
For multitasking, any multicore processor will do. For ram, you shouldn't need any more than 4GB.
Sound/Network cards are irrelevant these days for most people. All motherboards have great sound and networking built in.
CD/DVD drives burners can cost as little as $30. I don't even have one. I don't see a need for them anymore. I buy all my programs as digital downloads. If I needed to burn a disc for someone, I have an external USB burner that can be shared with a netbook if neccessary.
Harddrives are all large capacity these days and pretty fast. I would consider investing a little extra money into a small SSD (40-60GB) to install your operating system and games on. Then get a 1TB or 2TB standard harddrive to store all your files like movies/music, etc. The SSD will make a huge difference to how fast and responsive your computer seems.
The powersupply you choose will be dependant on what components you use and your overall power draw. Never cheap out on this. A cheap no-name PSU can damage your whole system if it chooses to die.
Most decent cases will include good cooling. You have some choice here as to what you want. You can go with a smaller form factor like microATX which will give you a smaller, more portable computer. A standard case will give you more space for expandability and more components but most people don't need like 8 harddrives in a case. Choosing an aluminum vs steel construction case will also make the computer more lightweight and portable. You should not need to spend any additional money on cooling unless your case's included fans are inadequate or if you want to overclock. Overclocking is another whole bag of worms but can be worth it's price in gold. My processor is overclocked by 50%.
It seems like no matter how I build it I end up (sometimes waaaay) above $1000 to get a $700 machine? I know the individual components might be better but it is a big price range?
Claeren.
They actually balance out these days because the cost of mass manufacturing something and overworking and paying some poor Chinese worker pennies to do it (http://www.nlcnet.org/reports?id=0034) along with the cheaper costs involved in mass orders and wholesaling is so low.
Building your own computer really offers you choice. Choosing a prebuilt computer may leave you stuck with the choices they offer you, often with parts you may or may not want in addition to the added costs of a bundled OS. Building your own computer is cheaper if you already own an OS or if you can find the lowest prices for the parts that you need. Make sure you are visiting www.shopbot.ca when checking for the lowest prices on any components in Canada. Memory Express often has inflated prices and will pricematch most sites you find on shopbot.
Building your own computer will give you more choices and options to either pick higher quality or even lower quality parts. There's also the secondary used parts market which is where the real bargains are to be found. Many of my components are actually used, there are a lot of enthusiasts that like trying out new things and then end up selling their old parts. I have the equivalent of a $2000 PC for about $1000. Don't be afraid to buy something from the previous generation. Like new cars, the latest things are often very expensive but work just as well as a model from last year.
For the average user who does not play games or do anything intensive like encoding, etc. I would actually recommend a store bought computer. You may also recieve better support/warranty from the store/OEM but you often end up paying for this as part of the bundled cost or some cheesy extended warranty plan. That said, there are times when building your own PC actually gets you much better warranty terms. IE: there are many computer parts that are warrantied from manufacturer for up to 2-5 years with no additional cost to you. Some even have lifetime warranties (many videocards from certain manufacturers).
Hey, I'm in the process of building my first computer too! I just ordered it a couple minutes ago from directcanada. It also looks like we picked the same processor and video card, haha.
Without RAM and OS it comes to $789.96 after taxes, with free shipping.
I'm just going with CoolerMaster as my friend recommended them and their stuff is highly rated on newegg too.
Last edited by BananaPancakes; 05-10-2010 at 12:37 AM.
This is a great gamer case with umpteen fans with great ventilation and should accommodate all video cards without having to go to a full tower case. I like it just for the good ventilation. $100
Here's a power supply. It's 750 watts and you would probably be happy with a 650 watt but I didn't see any I could recommend off the top of my head from this sale. Just get a name brand with 80%+ efficiency and you should be good. A 650 watt should be good for two HD 5770s in Xfire if you ever go that route or decide to upgrade your video card. Also look for PSUs with modular connections to cut down on the clutter and look for the number of PCI-e connectors. This one has two 6-pin and two 8-pin connectors, so you should never be limited in video card choices.
and don't forget to price match and check the sales page on NCIX on Wed. evening as that's when the new sale comes out and the good deals are often gone if you wait. I believe ME also comes out with the new deals on Wed.
I'd also suggest the Western Drive Black version Hard Drive, it's faster but a little louder.
Help me build a desktop computer...
