PC for my Dad

chino

chino

chino

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20 Oct 2002
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387
Location
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Right...

I'm currently speccing a PC for my dad to replace the ageing amalgamation of spare parts which currently makes up his PC. This is what I've come up with so far:

MSI 965P NEO (Socket 775) PCI-Express DDR2 Motherboard £64.99
Samsung SpinPoint T HD401LJ 400GB SATA-II 16MB Cache £82.95
Samsung SH-W163 16x16 DVD±RW Serial ATA DVDRW (Black) £23.95
Antec Sonata II Piano Black Quiet Case - 450W Smart Power PSU £66.99
Samsung SM-920N 19" LCD Monitor - Silver/Black £134.99
Intel Core 2 DUO E6400 "LGA775 Allendale" 2.13GHz (1066FSB) £142.99
GeIL 1GB (2x512MB) PC5300 667MHz Value DDR2 Dual Channel Kit £79.99
Logitech Cordless Desktop EX-110 - Retail £17.99

Subtotal £614.84
Shipping £12.95
VAT £109.87
Total £737.66

No graphics card is required as I already have a PCI-e 6800 GS sitting around. Budget is around that price, preferably no more. Mainly to be used for interweb browsing and music. Main considerations are that it needs to be quiet and have lots of storage, hence the 400GB hard drive.

Ok, so onto the questions:

1. Thoughts on the spec? anything anyone would change?
2. How loud is the heatsink which comes with that processor?
3. Will the power supply be enough? (no overclocking)
4. Any glaring omissions?

Cheers :)

Phil
 
1. Thoughts on the spec? anything anyone would change? Maybe a E6300 instead
2. How loud is the heatsink which comes with that processor? I can't hear it, but then I do have 30+Db fans
3. Will the power supply be enough? (no overclocking) It will be fine
4. Any glaring omissions? Nope
 
Quite possibly.

It also needs to last a long time. Might be some games playing also.

Edit: Cheers CR, I'll think about downgrading the processor. The noise really is the main issue, the graphics card has a quiet zalman cooler on it, the case is pretty quiet and the motherboard has passive cooling...

What about an AMD system AM2?
 
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I've been insulted numerous times for suggesting a Celeron based rig, but here goes!

2.5G Celeron £30
865 chipset MB £40 (onboard graphics)
2x256MB PC3200 £30

Is 400G really necessary? How about a 250G?

250G Samsung P120 £50

Total saving of around £220

I've built several rigs like this, and they work very well for all but the most demanding of tasks.

I don't believe it is economical to buy high end gear to future proof a PC, better to upgrade when necessary.

Zalman coolers are superb, and near silent! I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them.
 
Thanks Micheal, I will look into your suggestions. I did actually look at celeron first but decided to go for the core 2 duo for no real good reason...

A 400GB hard drive is unfortunately necessary, my dad has a bit of a habit of taking a lot of photos. As an example, he managed to take over 400 photos on a 4 day holiday last week :eek: (on a 7MP camera that's about 1GB of photos).

Also, 1GB of RAM is a necessity - It makes windows noticeably faster.
 
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