Original thread! Check out my proposed spec please :)

acrebo

acrebo

acrebo

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Hi all, if some of the spec-experts could check out the spec of a system I'm looking to buy it would be much appreciated.

The system isn't an OC one, but I can't seem to get near the spec for my budget unfortunately. I'll happily consider OC-supplied parts if the money works. Also, I cannot find any confirmation that the Vista supplied is 64bit... I'd need 64bit to support the 4gb of memory, no?

Budget of £700:

Intel Core 4 Quad Q9550
'Intel Deluxe' Motherboard (!?! I've been informed that this is fully supportive of modern Quad Core processors and could handle reasonable overclocking)...
4096MB Corsair DDR II Memory
500GB SATA II Seagate Ultra Fast Hard Disk Space
nVidia GeForce 9500GT 1024MB
NEC 7200 Multi Format DVD/CD ReWriter
Microsoft Windows Vista Home
10/100 Ethernet LAN
8x USB2 Ports
Hanns G 22” Widescreen TFT 5MS HDMI Flat Panel
Logitech Wireless Multimedia Keyboard
Logitech Wireless Optical Mouse
Logitech S220 2.1 Speaker System

Cheers :)
 
The main thing is what would be your uses for the PC?!

And yes your right, 64bit is needed to gain use of 4GB of memory
 
Day-to-day would be internet, office functions, listening/watching media but there'll also be some light gaming.

I'd say the main priority is for it to be able to run a number of programs all very quickly as I tend to 'flick' a lot!
 
It all looks good to me, I just couldnt be sure about the mobo? Link?

And if it was within your budget, i would get something like an ATi 4850 as your GFX, as a 9500GT won't be able to play many modern games, if at all
 
I would be very dubios about the motherboard. I would want to know exactly the make and model. "Intel Deluxe" is'nt good enough. Try to find out.

If it's a 32bit Vista then you would get to use around 2.75Gb of that ram, if you are lucky, due to the 1Gb 9500Gt. Push for a 64bit version. The 9500Gt really is'nt that good a card either. 1Gb of memory is wasted on it.
 
Cheers for the honest opinions guys - it's these things that I simply don't know so it's good to learn. I've emailed the retailer to ask about the mobo and have just had a waffly reply saying it's a modern 'premium Intel' motherboard that is designed for newer processors. I won't link as I understand that people are generally a bit funny about referring to other suppliers on here...

With my original spec in mind, would anyone be able to try and spec a similar system from here? I'd like a monitor (19" minimum), but the other peripherals can be ditched.

:)
 
Tried google as you can get a decent i7 rig for that amount...

I was tempted to get, but gonna give a few months, see what AMD might pull out the hat...

That and you say spec above is not for oc'ing, yet you believe your mb is reasonable for doing so???
 
I would'nt be happy with the sellers answer about the motherboard. If he can't give you a make and model then he is probably using some cheap and nasty or outdated chipset motherboard. I certainly would'nt be happy about buying without knowing exactly what i will be getting.

Just had a go at speccing and a comparable system with monitor and 64bit OS from here is well over £800 and that's without the peripherals. Why do you need a quad for your useage though?
 
@DireEmblem: Sorry mate, that's just what I've been told by the retailer when I asked what the MB was. I didn't request the need for OC'ing - I think he was just trying to justify it as being a decent MB.

Decent i7 rigs for £700? Feel free to PM...

Pastymuncher: I don't need the Quad tbh, just trying to get the 'best' possible for my budget. Please feel free to recommend anything else that would be of a similar standard.
 
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Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 LGA775 'Wolfdale' 3.00GHz (1333FSB) - Retail £129.99

Sapphire ATI Radeon HD 4850 512MB GDDR3 TV-Out/Dual DVI/HDMI (PCI-Express) - Retail (102-B50102-00-AT) £119.99

Hyundai Blue H H224W 22" Widescreen LCD Monitor - Black £111.99

Asus P5Q Intel P45 (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard £89.99

Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium SP1 64-Bit - OEM (66I-01939) £76.99

Antec 300 Three Hundred Ultimate Gaming Case - Black (No PSU) £45.99

OCZ StealthXStream 400w Silent SLI Ready ATX2 Power Supply £36.99

Samsung SpinPoint F1 320GB SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM (HD322HJ) £33.99

OCZ 4GB (2x2GB) PC2-6400C5 Dual Channel Vista Gold Series DDR2 £29.99

Samsung SH-S223F/BEBE 22x DVD±RW SATA Dual Layer ReWriter (Black) - OEM £13.99

Total : £810.62

I could probably stretch to £800 - opinions?
 
Seems alright, cant pm you btw as you dont have an add in your cp.

What is the general use for this pc? that way we could poss advise on parts.

For starters I take this is a complete new build, you dont any parts you are going to use already?

And the prices you have above are all before VAT.

For above, I would be tempted to swap the MB for
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-125-GI&groupid=701&catid=5&subcat=1155
saving you £17, which could allow you to up your ram to
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-033-KS&tool=3&groupid=701&catid=8&subcat=817

Thus making your price below now ~804ish if your total inc vat.
 
It's best to consider a completely new build - I've an old PC which is dead so the only thing 'possibly' salvagable and decent enough to be used would be the old small SATA HDD - possibly install the OS on that and use a new larger HDD for storage?

The main uses are office functions, internet, a lot of media / music use and occasional gaming. From what I've read, it seems the CPU is more important than GPU for my uses...?
 
There are some good XPS core i7 deals out there if you have a look, cant comment on the OCZ tbh, never had one so I cant comment.

Would he really need as much as a 470w PSU? I thought they were most efficient at 80% capacity, and dont htink those components will need that much?

Tried the weekly build thread?

Edit: Oops, just noticed i put 8 rather than 80%
 
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Right, I'm up to this now:

pc.jpg


I had a look at the XPS range, but I think I'd have to compromise on too many other components in order to get the i7.
 
Hmm, as above but with a Western Digital Caviar 500GB HDD, Antec 300 case and 'a' 500W PSU - any in particular around the £40 mark?
 
acrebo said:
Right, I'm up to this now:

pc.jpg


I had a look at the XPS range, but I think I'd have to compromise on too many other components in order to get the i7.
Click to expand...

Ditch the kingston memory and get this, no need for 1066 memory with the quad.

I'd also go for Vista home premium over basic.
 
Cheers chaps - minutes after posting I looked around and decided to downgrade the memory slightly!

With regards to Vista, I need to buy 'a' Windows OS, so may as well get the cheapest Vista 64bit available. What features does Premium have over Basic?
 
Differences between vista versions can be found here as you can tell from that chart Basic is an extremely cut down version and home premium is definately worth the extra 20 quid.
 
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