New Desktop Advice Required

ROSS_TPO

ROSS_TPO

ROSS_TPO

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Joined
29 Oct 2012
Posts
29
Hey guys,

My PC is on it's last legs (it's struggling with the latest Java and Flash updates) so I am looking to upgrade. I've don't have any experience with building PCs so I am looking for a ready built job or one to be assembled for me.

Basically all I use my computer for it internet browsing, watching films, streaming live football games, playing Football Manager and doing basic Photoshop work. So I'm not looking for anything over the top - just a nice little system that is FAST and can handle doing more than one thing at once (which my current system can't).

I'm maybe pushing it a bit but say a £500 budget? If anyone could make any recommendations, I'd appreciate it.
 
You could get a much better rig if you could muster some man confidence and build it yourself! :p I'll add a custom spec in a moment..

For now, the best build I can find on OcUK pre-built for your budget is this:

YOUR BASKET
1 x "Primo 6200i" Intel Core i5 3450 3.10GHz DDR3 Quad Core System £384.79
- 1 x Opt Out of FREE AV Software £0.01
- 1 x Microsoft Windows 8 64-Bit DVD - OEM (WN7-00403) **FREE SHIPPING** £79.99
- 1 x No Graphics Card Upgrade £0.00
- 1 x TeamGroup Elite 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C11 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (TED38GM1600HC11DC01) £26.99
- 1 x No Hard Drive Upgrade £0.00
Total : £491.78 (includes shipping : FREE).





EDIT: For £482 with no dedicated GPU, this looks pretty good! i5-3570K IB, 120GB SSD, 1TB HDD for storage, Z77 chipset, 8GB RAM, etc. The integrated Intel HD 4000 graphics will be able to handle Football Manager. You could save £80 and get rid of the SSD if you can't justify it (although I bet you can't!) and it'll be circa £400 instead.

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £167.99
1 x Intel 330 Series 120GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive - Retail £81.98
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £79.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM 1TB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST1000DM003) £49.99
1 x XFX Pro 450W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £43.99
1 x BitFenix Merc Beta Gaming Case - Black £32.99
1 x Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX1600C9D3X2K2/8GX) £25.99
Total : £482.93 (includes shipping : FREE).

 
Last edited:
Sparx said:
You could get a much better rig if you could muster some man confidence and build it yourself! :p I'll add a custom spec in a moment..

For now, the best build I can find on OcUK pre-built for your budget is this:

YOUR BASKET
1 x "Primo 6200i" Intel Core i5 3450 3.10GHz DDR3 Quad Core System £384.79
- 1 x Opt Out of FREE AV Software £0.01
- 1 x Microsoft Windows 8 64-Bit DVD - OEM (WN7-00403) **FREE SHIPPING** £79.99
- 1 x No Graphics Card Upgrade £0.00
- 1 x TeamGroup Elite 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C11 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (TED38GM1600HC11DC01) £26.99
- 1 x No Hard Drive Upgrade £0.00
Total : £491.78 (includes shipping : FREE).





EDIT: For £482 with no dedicated GPU, this looks pretty good! i5-3570K IB, 120GB SSD, 1TB HDD for storage, Z77 chipset, 8GB RAM, etc. The integrated Intel HD 4000 graphics will be able to handle Football Manager. You could save £80 and get rid of the SSD if you can't justify it (although I bet you can't!) and it'll be circa £400 instead.

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £167.99
1 x Intel 330 Series 120GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive - Retail £81.98
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £79.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM 1TB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST1000DM003) £49.99
1 x XFX Pro 450W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £43.99
1 x BitFenix Merc Beta Gaming Case - Black £32.99
1 x Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX1600C9D3X2K2/8GX) £25.99
Total : £482.93 (includes shipping : FREE).

Click to expand...

Thanks for getting back to me :-)

I literally wouldn't know where to start when it came to building a PC. The only bit of hardware maintanence that I've done on my current system is changing over a power supply unit. But I do realise that I would get more for my money.

With the custom spec, I like the idea of the i5 but I don't have an OS so I'd have to buy software as well and that would bump the price up again.

What is the benefit to a SSD over a normal HDD?
 
Idleman said:
Do you have an OS or any sata hdd/odd you can reuse?
Click to expand...

Hey man. I don't have an OS that I could use and I believe the HDD in my current system is ribbons (it's about 8 years old so well in need of an upgrade).

Off the top of my head, my current system is a AMD Processor 2800+, 1.6 Ghz and 1GB of RAM.
 
It's like putting a jigsaw together! ;) SSD is purely flash memory, no mechanical parts compared to a hard disk drive so read/write speeds are immense. Basically makes your PC feel so much more snappier and response! It allows your PC to boot-up, shutdown, general usage, loading applications, etc to be super quick - the difference is night and day!

Have a look at this YT video -

If you can't stretch the budget a little and need the OS; you'll have to drop the SSD and invest in one at a later date. :p

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £167.99
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £79.99
1 x Microsoft Windows 8 64-Bit DVD - OEM (WN7-00403) **FREE SHIPPING** £79.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM 1TB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST1000DM003) £49.99
1 x XFX Pro 450W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £43.99
1 x BitFenix Merc Beta Gaming Case - Black £32.99
1 x Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX1600C9D3X2K2/8GX) £25.99
Total : £480.94 (includes shipping : FREE).

 
Last edited:
Sparx said:
It's like putting a jigsaw together! ;) SSD is purely flash memory, no mechanical parts compared to a hard disk drive so read/write speeds are immense. Basically makes your PC feel so much more snappier and response! It allows your PC to boot-up, shutdown, general usage, loading applications, etc to be super quick - the difference is night and day!

Have a look at this YT video -

If you can't stretch the budget a little and need the OS; you'll have to drop the SSD and invest in one at a later date. :p

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £167.99
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £79.99
1 x Microsoft Windows 8 64-Bit DVD - OEM (WN7-00403) **FREE SHIPPING** £79.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM 1TB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST1000DM003) £49.99
1 x XFX Pro 450W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £43.99
1 x BitFenix Merc Beta Gaming Case - Black £32.99
1 x Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX1600C9D3X2K2/8GX) £25.99
Total : £480.94 (includes shipping : FREE).

Click to expand...

A jigsaw is a lot easier if you have a picture to look at for reference :-p

Haha, that video is ace. That's the kind of fast I was talking about. I want programs to open when I click on them, not three days later.

Do OcUK build PCs to specs? If so, any idea how much we are talking?
 
I believe they do, yes! But you'll have to call their Sales line tomorrow when they are open or you could probably drop them a web note via the website. If you tell them the parts you want and ask how much it would be for them to build it for you, they'll give you a quote.

Just search on YT how to build a PC, lots of 'em. :)

 
Sparx said:
I believe they do, yes! But you'll have to call their Sales line tomorrow when they are open or you could probably drop them a web note via the website. If you tell them the parts you want and ask how much it would be for them to build it for you, they'll give you a quote.

Just search on YT how to build a PC, lots of 'em. :)

Click to expand...

Thanks very much for all your help mate.
 
 
AMD for a little light gaming and better onboard graphics. Also included an SSD for the OS.

YOUR BASKET
1 x AMD A10-5800K Black Edition 3.80GHz (Socket FM2) APU Trinity Quad Core Processor (AD580KWOHJBOX) £95.99
1 x Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-02050) £83.99
1 x Gigabyte F2A75M-D3H AMD A75 Chipset (Socket FM2) DDR3 Micro ATX Motherboard £69.98
1 x Intel 330 Series 60GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive - Retail £52.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM 1TB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST1000DM003) £49.99
1 x Antec High Current Gamer 400W '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £40
1 x GeIL EVO Leggera 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-17000C11 2133MHz Dual Channel Kit (GEL38GB2133C11DC) £39.95
1 x Zalman T1 Mini Tower Case - Black ** OcUK Exclusive ** £24.98
1 x Samsung SH-S222BB/BEBE 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £13.99
Total : £484.46 (includes shipping : £10.50).

 
Idleman said:
AMD for a little light gaming and better onboard graphics. Also included an SSD for the OS.

YOUR BASKET
1 x AMD A10-5800K Black Edition 3.80GHz (Socket FM2) APU Trinity Quad Core Processor (AD580KWOHJBOX) £95.99
1 x Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-02050) £83.99
1 x Gigabyte F2A75M-D3H AMD A75 Chipset (Socket FM2) DDR3 Micro ATX Motherboard £69.98
1 x Intel 330 Series 60GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive - Retail £52.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM 1TB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST1000DM003) £49.99
1 x Antec High Current Gamer 400W '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £40
1 x GeIL EVO Leggera 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-17000C11 2133MHz Dual Channel Kit (GEL38GB2133C11DC) £39.95
1 x Zalman T1 Mini Tower Case - Black ** OcUK Exclusive ** £24.98
1 x Samsung SH-S222BB/BEBE 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £13.99
Total : £484.46 (includes shipping : £10.50).

Click to expand...

Thanks for that. Would you say the AMD is better than the i5 for my needs?
 
YOUR BASKET
1 x Gigabyte HD 7770 OC 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card w/ FARCRY3 & 20% MOH WarFighter PC Games £99.95
1 x Intel Core i3-3220 3.30GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £89.99
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £79.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 2TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST2000DM001) £66.66
1 x Intel 330 Series 60GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive - Retail £52.99
1 x Xigmatek Asgard Pro Gaming Case - Black £32.99
1 x OCZ CoreXtreme 500w '80 Plus' Power Supply £32.99
1 x Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX1600C9D3X2K2/8GX) £25.99
1 x Samsung SH-S222BB/BEBE 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £13.99
Total : £509.64 (includes shipping : £11.75).



You could use Win8 preview for a few months(90 days), until you can buy an OS.

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/jj554510.aspx
 
rishy said:
Have a look here also

http://forums.overclockers.co.uk/showthread.php?t=18046396
Click to expand...

^^Certainly worth a read! If anybody asks me about building a PC from scratch I always point them to this thread for reference.

Idleman said:
YOUR BASKET
1 x Gigabyte HD 7770 OC 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card w/ FARCRY3 & 20% MOH WarFighter PC Games £99.95
1 x Intel Core i3-3220 3.30GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £89.99
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £79.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 2TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST2000DM001) £66.66
1 x Intel 330 Series 60GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive - Retail £52.99
1 x Xigmatek Asgard Pro Gaming Case - Black £32.99
1 x OCZ CoreXtreme 500w '80 Plus' Power Supply £32.99
1 x Kingston HyperX Genesis Grey 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (KHX1600C9D3X2K2/8GX) £25.99
1 x Samsung SH-S222BB/BEBE 22x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM £13.99
Total : £509.64 (includes shipping : £11.75).



You could use Win8 preview for a few months(90 days), until you can buy an OS.

http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/evalcenter/jj554510.aspx
Click to expand...

I think this would be your best bet :) 90 days is more than enough time to save a bit for extra cash for an OS, and you get to try out the new Win8 instead of jumping right into Win7! Best of both worlds!

You'll certainly get more for your money if you build it yourself though - I took the plunge a few years ago and now can't stop! - You can't really go far wrong! Its like Lego!
 
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