Super Cheap Desktop Build

ZeroG · 16 Aug 2015 at 11:12

My dad's 6 year Vista PC is finally on it's last legs and I'm looking to build something super cheap to replace it with.

Intel Pentium G3240 3.1GHz Dual-Core Processor
MSI H81M-P33 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
Kingston 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1333 Memory
Zalman Z3 Plus ATX Mid Tower Case
EVGA 430W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply

I've knocked up a quick spec above. Won't need a monitor/keyboard/hdd/mouse as we already have those. I have a couple of spare 120GB SSDs sitting about so I can use one of them for the boot drive.

Is there anything obvious that could be changed?

Robert_G · 16 Aug 2015 at 11:27

Looks fine for basic desktop duties.

BinnsY · 16 Aug 2015 at 11:36

You shoudl probably remove the link as you are linking to an awful lot of competitors which isn't permitted on this forum.

As a suggestion from parts at Overclockers I would go for this. It is basically the same as your build but with a nicer case.

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Pentium G3240 3.1GHz (Haswell) Socket LGA1150 Processor - Retail £52.39
1 x MSI H81M-E33 Intel H81 (Socket 1150) DDR3 Micro ATX Motherboard £34.99
1 x TeamGroup Elite Black 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C11 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (TPKD38G1600HC11DC01) £29.99
1 x BeQuiet System Power 7 350W '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £27.95
1 x BitFenix Neos ATX Tower White/Red £25.99
Total : £171.31 (includes shipping : Ex.VAT).

Brian18741 · 16 Aug 2015 at 12:14

Why not spend a tiny bit more and over clock the CPU so it will last even longer?!

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Pentium K Anniversary G3258 Socket LGA1150 Processor - Retail £55.99
1 x Asus H81M-PLUS Intel H81 (Socket 1150) DDR3 Micro ATX Motherboard £41.99
1 x Fractal Design Core 1000 Micro-ATX Case - Black £29.99
1 x TeamGroup Elite Black 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C11 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (TPKD38G1600HC11DC01) £29.99
1 x EVGA 430W 80 Plus Power Supply (100-W1-0430-KR) £27.95
1 x Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo CPU Cooler £24.97
Total : £210.88 (includes shipping : Ex.VAT).

kaku · 16 Aug 2015 at 18:04

2x4GB is better than 1x8GB since the chipset supports dual channel memory access.

Mustang · 17 Aug 2015 at 02:43

kaku said:
2x4GB is better than 1x8GB since the chipset supports dual channel memory access.

In theory yes, but in reality the difference is negligible for day-to-day use and it seems like a really bad idea to fill both slots on a two slot motherboard with only 8 GB of RAM, it'll also double the upgrade cost and leaves you with two 4 GB sticks you've paid for but aren't using.

When 8 GB sticks were rare/expensive then sure go the 4 GB route, but now they're prevalent it's a different story, I'd haven't bought 4 GB sticks for several years, so I wouldn't really recommend anyone else to do it.