Budget Home Pc

M1k3H

M1k3H

M1k3H

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6 Jul 2010
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Building a home pc for a friend, just doing some basic browsing with the occasional movie, has a 22inch TV 1360x768 screen, so don't think will need even a discreet gfx. think i've decided on these so far:

AMD Llano A8-3850 2.90GHz (Socket FM1) APU Processor (AD3850WNGXBOX) £103.99
(£86.66) £103.99
(£86.66)
Asus F1A75 AMD A75 Chipset (Socket FM1) DDR3 Motherboard Asus F1A75 AMD A75 Chipset (Socket FM1) DDR3 Motherboard £84.98
(£70.82) £84.98
(£70.82)
Antec High Current Gamer 520W '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply Antec High Current Gamer 520W '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £66.98
(£55.82) £66.98
(£55.82)
OCZ Agility Series 30GB 2.5" SATA-II Solid State Hard Drive (OCZSSD2-1AGT30G) OCZ Agility Series 30GB 2.5" SATA-II Solid State Hard Drive (OCZSSD2-1AGT30G) £46.99
(£39.16) £46.99
(£39.16)
Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C8 1333MHz Dual-Channel (CMX4GX3M2A1333C8) Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C8 1333MHz Dual-Channel (CMX4GX3M2A1333C8) £34.99
(£29.16) £34.99
(£29.16)
Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (WD5000AAKX) Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (WD5000AAKX) £32.99
(£27.49) £32.99
(£27.49)
Akasa AK-CC4005SP01 Venom Nano CPU Cooler (Socket LGA775/LGA1155/LGA1156/LGA1366/AM2/AM3) Akasa AK-CC4005SP01 Venom Nano CPU Cooler (Socket LGA775/LGA1155/LGA1156/LGA1366/AM2/AM3) £19.98
(£16.65) £19.98
(£16.65)
Xigmatek 120mm Crystal White LED Fan Xigmatek 120mm Crystal White LED Fan £7.14
(£5.95) £7.14
(£5.95)
Sub Total : £331.71
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £10.00
VAT is being charged at 20.00% VAT : £68.34
Total : £410.05

I'm still in need of a case, need something discreet, no fancy gaming cases.
Anyone has any build to suggest that will come around this price, is welcome.
 
It would be cheaper to go Athlon II / 880G and put the money towards a nice Lian Li case. You also don't need 520w PSU nor a solid state drive. Nor a CPU cooler (unless she's overclocking).

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Knock 80 quid off the price if she already has a copy of Windows.
 
Last edited:
looks good, i suppose she doesn't need the newer lliano's, an athlon will do as well. I put a cooler because she hates noise and stock fans are very noisy, and the SSD to give the system a little go.
an athlon II would be a lot better than her current 4500+ right? I think it's a sempron
 
M1k3H said:
looks good, i suppose she doesn't need the newer lliano's, an athlon will do as well. I put a cooler because she hates noise and stock fans are very noisy, and the SSD to give the system a little go.
an athlon II would be a lot better than her current 4500+ right? I think it's a sempron
Click to expand...

Yeah, the Athlon II is better. You could also swap the Athlon II for the Phenom II 955. It's quad core, has L3 cache, higher clock speed, is cheaper than and outperforms the Llano in just about everything. The AMD 880G onboard graphics will be more than enough for her video playback.
 
How about an i3 Sandy Bridge for a similar price. No discreet graphics card so don't expect to play any games but for general use will be spot on. If occasional gaming is important then AMD Llano is probably the best bet. Includes Windows 7 with the 500GB HDD in a bundle.

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i3-2120 3.30GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - Retail £89.99
1 x Microsoft Windows 7 Bundle - Home Premium 64 Bit £68.40
1 x Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (WD5000AAKX) £32.99
1 x MSI H67MA-E35 Intel H67 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Micro-ATX Motherboard - (Sandybridge) **B3 REVISION** *WITH FREE MSI GRENADE* £59.99
1 x Silverstone SST-PS03B Precision Midi Tower Case - Black £40.84
1 x OCZ StealthXStream 2 500W Power Supply £39.98
1 x Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX4GX3M2A1600C9) £29.99
1 x Gelid Tranquillo CPU Cooler (Socket 754/939/940/AM2/AM2+/AM3/LGA775/LGA1155/LGA1156/LGA1366) £25.99
1 x Sony Optiarc AD-7260S 24x DVD±RW SATA Lightscribe ReWriter (Black) - OEM £16.98
Total : £420.14 (includes shipping : £12.50).

The case isn't anything too fancy and that was actually something I was looking at when I bought one. It is pretty big though and you could easily get away with a smaller mATX case.
 
ok I've taken some considerations from your builds above and this is how it is now:

AMD Phenom II X4 Quad Core 850 "95W Edition" 3.30GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail £79.99
(£66.66) £79.99
(£66.66)
Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-00599) Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-00599) £79.99
(£66.66) £79.99
(£66.66)
Western Digital Caviar Black 750GB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (WD7502AAEX) Western Digital Caviar Black 750GB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (WD7502AAEX) £59.99
(£49.99) £59.99
(£49.99)
Asus M4A88T-M AMD 880G (Socket AM3) PCI-Express DDR3 Motherboard Asus M4A88T-M AMD 880G (Socket AM3) PCI-Express DDR3 Motherboard £59.98
(£49.98) £59.98
(£49.98)
OCZ StealthXStream 2 500W Power Supply OCZ StealthXStream 2 500W Power Supply £39.98
(£33.32) £39.98
(£33.32)
Fractal Design Core 1000 Midi Tower Case - Black Fractal Design Core 1000 Midi Tower Case - Black £35.99
(£29.99) £35.99
(£29.99)
Corsair Value 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 1333MHz Low Voltage Dual-Channel Kit Corsair Value 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 1333MHz Low Voltage Dual-Channel Kit £29.98
(£24.98) £29.98
(£24.98)
LG GH22NS70 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM LG GH22NS70 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £16.99
(£14.16) £16.99
(£14.16)
Antec Kuhler Shelf High Performance CPU Cooler (Socket LGA775/LGA1156/LGA1366/AM2/AM2+/AM3) Antec Kuhler Shelf High Performance CPU Cooler (Socket LGA775/LGA1156/LGA1366/AM2/AM2+/AM3) £16.99
(£14.16) £16.99
(£14.16)
Sub Total : £349.90
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £12.50
VAT is being charged at 20.00% VAT : £72.48
Total : £434.88


I've seen the case and it seems very nice and simple, and she'll like it, the cooler seems exceptionally cheap haven't read any reviews yet, at work at the moment, but seems nice, also I'd rather go with a phenom since it is on offer the low watt one, which should have lower temps and noise, which is a plus since now it's 42 degrees here.
Any other suggestions are welcome
 
M1k3H said:
also I'd rather go with a phenom since it is on offer the low watt one
Click to expand...

Just so you know, that is actually an Athlon II. It lacks L3 cache, which is what makes the distinction really between Athlon II and Phenom II... However it could be possible to unlock the L3 cache on it.

I've no idea why AMD branded them as Phenom IIs. They did the same with the 840 @ 3.2GHz.
 
Brian8bit said:
Just so you know, that is actually an Athlon II. It lacks L3 cache, which is what makes the distinction really between Athlon II and Phenom II... However it could be possible to unlock the L3 cache on it.

I've no idea why AMD branded them as Phenom IIs. They did the same with the 840 @ 3.2GHz.
Click to expand...

oh just seen that.. guess i'll go for the black one since its the cheapest one then
 
id switch the cpu cooler to hyper tx3 imo same price(ish) and welll its got decent reviews/rep, not so sure same can be said for the kuhler.

Asus + budget mobo maybe not best of mixes,
corsair 430w PSU, better brand/warranty etc.

Using the integrated graphics on the mobo should be fine at low res on that tv you mention.

any need for wifi? maybe add a usb dongle

whats price diff between this amd x4 build and the cheaper llano? only looks like £30 might be worth it for better graphics if you think you might go HD or higher than currentyl resolution anytime soonish.
 
Okay, after convincing her dad that the old computer needs to be changed, I've made a few considerations. I will be ordering most likely tomorrow, just posting to see if everything is ok and will fit inside a fractal design core 1000(which is an m-ATX case)

Intel Core i3-2100 3.10GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - Retail Intel Core i3-2100 3.10GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - Retail £91.99
(£76.66) £91.99
(£76.66)
Microsoft Windows 7 Bundle - Home Premium 64 Bit Microsoft Windows 7 Bundle - Home Premium 64 Bit £68.40
(£57.00) £68.40
(£57.00)
Options applied to the above product:
Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (WD5000AAKX) £29.99
(£24.99) £29.99
(£24.99)
Gigabyte H61M-S2V Intel H61 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard Gigabyte H61M-S2V Intel H61 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £43.98
(£36.65) £43.98
(£36.65)
Corsair Builder Series CX 430W V2 ATX '80 Plus' Power Supply (CMPSU-430CXUKV2) Corsair Builder Series CX 430W V2 ATX '80 Plus' Power Supply (CMPSU-430CXUKV2) £39.98
(£33.32) £39.98
(£33.32)
OCZ Platinum 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C7 1333MHz Dual Channel Kit (OCZ3P1333LV4GK) OCZ Platinum 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C7 1333MHz Dual Channel Kit (OCZ3P1333LV4GK) £26.39
(£21.99) £26.39
(£21.99)
LG GH22NS70 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM LG GH22NS70 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £16.99
(£14.16) £16.99
(£14.16)
Cooler Master Hyper TX3 CPU Cooler (Socket 754/939/940/AM2/AM3/775/1155/1156) Cooler Master Hyper TX3 CPU Cooler (Socket 754/939/940/AM2/AM3/775/1155/1156) £15.98
(£13.32) £15.98
(£13.32)

Thoughts: is the OCZ gonna live up to impress me? only used Corsair so far.
Will the PSU and CPU cooler fit inside the case?
Would I need an 8pin power expansion cable so it won't run through the middle of the motherboard?
Have you spotted anything better/cheaper? Total comes to 333 pounds, so I've saved 33pounds going for an i3 instead of a phenom AM3.
 
it will all fit inside the case. not sure about the cooler though. i would be very surprised if it didnt but im not sure

however, ive made a few changes, some of which were just to save a few pennies:

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i3-2100 3.10GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - Retail £91.99
1 x Microsoft Windows 7 Bundle - Home Premium 64 Bit £68.40
1 x Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (WD5000AAKX) £29.99
1 x MSI H67MA-E35 Intel H67 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Micro-ATX Motherboard - (Sandybridge) **B3 REVISION** £59.99
1 x Corsair Builder Series CX 430W V2 ATX '80 Plus' Power Supply (CMPSU-430CXUKV2) £39.98
1 x OCZ Gold 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 1333MHz Low-Voltage Dual Channel Kit (OCZ3G1333LV4GK) £22.99
1 x Sony Optiarc AD-5260S 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £15.98
Total : £329.33 (includes shipping: FREE).

removed the cooler as you cant overclock the i3 2100 (and the standard intel cooler isnt bad, its the AMD standard cooler that was made by jet engine enthusiasts)

changed the motherboard to give you SATA 6GB/s and USB3 support


if you were going to add something to that, i would strongly suggest an SSD. it will give you a much bigger performance boost than anything else with just general use. get a decent sized one though so you can fit windows, and all of your common programs on it (might be best to wait until funds are better, because SSD's are EXPENSIVE)
 
M1k3H said:
Ah, was looking at the slow dual channel DDR3 where the corsair is 34! Got em for 26! thanks! any reason about the mobo?
Click to expand...
not really much point when H series motherboards doesnt support over 1333Mhz anyway. might as well save a few pennies and get the OCZ gold
 
Reaper 392 said:
it will all fit inside the case. not sure about the cooler though. i would be very surprised if it didnt but im not sure

however, ive made a few changes, some of which were just to save a few pennies:

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i3-2100 3.10GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - Retail £91.99
1 x Microsoft Windows 7 Bundle - Home Premium 64 Bit £68.40
1 x Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB SATA 6Gb/s 16MB Cache - OEM (WD5000AAKX) £29.99
1 x MSI H67MA-E35 Intel H67 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Micro-ATX Motherboard - (Sandybridge) **B3 REVISION** £59.99
1 x Corsair Builder Series CX 430W V2 ATX '80 Plus' Power Supply (CMPSU-430CXUKV2) £39.98
1 x OCZ Gold 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 1333MHz Low-Voltage Dual Channel Kit (OCZ3G1333LV4GK) £22.99
1 x Sony Optiarc AD-5260S 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £15.98
Total : £329.33 (includes shipping: FREE).

removed the cooler as you cant overclock the i3 2100 (and the standard intel cooler isnt bad, its the AMD standard cooler that was made by jet engine enthusiasts)

changed the motherboard to give you SATA 6GB/s and USB3 support


if you were going to add something to that, i would strongly suggest an SSD. it will give you a much bigger performance boost than anything else with just general use. get a decent sized one though so you can fit windows, and all of your common programs on it (might be best to wait until funds are better, because SSD's are EXPENSIVE)
Click to expand...

reason for cooler is the 42-45 degrees celcius that the temperature is 5 months of the year with the lowest being 13. she wants it as silent as possible so a few pounds for peace of mind is not bad. I've seen the mobo you both linked me and I'm going for that. Also the Dvd-rw saving me a total of 1 pound was added as well! I'm gonna check the case dimensions and such for the cooler and If it's ok I'm ordering tomorrow If i manage to go the bank in the morning.
 
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