Massively out of the loop - Spec help!

Stringy

Stringy

Stringy

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Could someone please take a look at this :) I would love someone to come up with a better spec as I haven't built a computer since 2004!

Intel Core i3 550 3.20GHz (Clarkdale) (Socket LGA1156) - Retail £115.14

Asus P7H55-M Intel H55 (Socket 1156) DDR3 microATX Motherboard £65.99

OCZ Gold 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 (1333MHz) Low-Voltage Dual Channel (OCZ3G1333LV4GK) £72.84

Hitachi Deskstar 7K1000.C 500GB SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM £30.54

Antec TruePower New Modular 550W Power Supply £69.99

Asus TA-M11 Midi Gaming Case - Black/Silver £39.99

3 x Akasa AK-191-SM Smoke Ultra Quiet 120mm Fan - 3 pin £17.58

Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-00599) £75.99

Sub Total : £415.37
Shipping : £10.50
VAT : £74.53
Total : £500.40

Points:
- Absolute maximum budget is £500.
- No Gfx card required.
- No optical drive required.
- No monitor/keyboard/mouse/speakers required.
- I'd rather not overclock if I can help it.

Things I'm unsure about:
- I need to buy Windows for it - 32bit or 64bit? I already have a retail copy of windows, can I use the OEM key with the 32/64 bit dvds I already have (so I can switch to 64 later if need be) or is the OEM key tied to one version?
- HDD + Motherboard + PSU - like I said, I'm out of the loop :)
- Are the fans overkill (the case can take them) obviously I could then shuffle money to other components.
- AMD or Intel? I understand that Intel are ahead at the moment, but by how much? Are there savings to be made here?
 
Last edited:
Hey,

looks good to me, I would go with a Seagate HDD I have had a could have Hitachi HDDs fail on me...

Stelly
 
I've looked at benchmarks for the performance difference between the i3 550 and 530, and it seems marginal - worth saving the £40? Where could it be reshuffled to?

God I've opened a dangerous can of worms on a quiet afternoon in work :D
 
Gone for Samsung hard drive, 2x Akasa Apaches instead of the 3 normal ones.

edit: £8 left to allocate (or not) where could it be shuffled?
 
I remember horror stories about cheap PSU's, are the OcUK ones regarded as being ok?

As for GPU I'm sticking with a 7900GT for now (old school) as I don't do much if any PC gaming, I'll look to upgrade in future if the mood takes me.
 
What is the computer going to be used for?

Intel vs AMD is always a tough one... For that money, your choices are really between an i3 and an AMD Phenom X4. For gaming, the i3 probably has the edge for gaming at the moment (higher speed, dual core), but the X4 would be better for other tasks (lower speed, 4 cores).

If you are using onboard graphics, grab a Corsair CX400. If you are using a card you already own, what is it?

Also, I would not recommend the OCZ Gold RAM - lots of complaints about DOA sticks.
 
Stringy said:
I remember horror stories about cheap PSU's, are the OcUK ones regarded as being ok?

As for GPU I'm sticking with a 7900GT for now (old school) as I don't do much if any PC gaming, I'll look to upgrade in future if the mood takes me.
Click to expand...

Don't swap the PSU, it will last you forever and its always good to get branded PSU

Stelly
 
From personal experience, my first Asus board for my media PC, and a similar Asus board a colleague at work bought were both DOA and needed returning.

Maybe save yourself the hassle, and spec a different board?
 
Switching to AMD and making use of special offers I've gotten it down to nearly £400, thoughts on the spec?

CPU
AMD Athlon II X4 Quad Core 635 2.90GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail £81.06
Memory
OCZ Gold 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 (1333MHz) Low-Voltage Dual Channel (OCZ3G1333LV4GK) £62.26
Motherboard
Asus M4A78LT-M LE AMD 760G (Socket AM3) DDR3 Motherboard £51.99
HDD
Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM (ST3500418AS) £31.71
PSU
Antec Basiq Plus 550W Modular Power Supply £52.99
Case
Coolermaster Elite 335 Case - Black £27.99
DVD
Sony Optiarc AD-7260S 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £13.99
Windows
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-00599) £84.99
Random fan
Akasa AK-191-BL Blue Ultra Quiet 120mm Fan - 3 Pin £5.86

Total : £412.86
 
Stringy said:
Switching to AMD and making use of special offers I've gotten it down to nearly £400, thoughts on the spec?

CPU
AMD Athlon II X4 Quad Core 635 2.90GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail £81.06
Memory
OCZ Gold 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 (1333MHz) Low-Voltage Dual Channel (OCZ3G1333LV4GK) £62.26
Motherboard
Asus M4A78LT-M LE AMD 760G (Socket AM3) DDR3 Motherboard £51.99
HDD
Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 500GB SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM (ST3500418AS) £31.71
PSU
Antec Basiq Plus 550W Modular Power Supply £52.99
Case
Coolermaster Elite 335 Case - Black £27.99
DVD
Sony Optiarc AD-7260S 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £13.99
Windows
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-00599) £84.99
Random fan
Akasa AK-191-BL Blue Ultra Quiet 120mm Fan - 3 Pin £5.86

Total : £412.86
Click to expand...

swap the psu for a corsair CX400, which is still a quality unit. your build will be closer to £400 then.
 
Going to be adding graphics later and using it as a gaming rig.
Other than that I've got money to burn and the itch for a new build!
 
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