Your expert opinions needed....

TrevT

TrevT

TrevT

Associate
Joined
27 Dec 2010
Posts
2
Hi - please forgive me joining up and immediately picking your collective brain. Not really sorry but, maybe, a tad rude so thought I'd better say "Hi" first and introduce myself. I used to build my own pc's but have drifted away for the last couple of years. Now that I need to build another those couple of years feel like a lifetime! :D
I have a Intel P4 with HTT based desktop in a very nice case. Unfortunately it developed a fault with the M/B meaning it loses the HDD at a whim. As such it has sat in a dusty cupboard for a while. However it has saved my life when my laptop crashed and it was the only thing I could use to get online - meaning I could recover a years worth of photo's and music.....

I've decided it's time to upgrade but have a very limited budget at the moment..

Your opinion:

I need:
new M/B
new (quiet) HDD
new (very quiet) CPU cooling fan

It would also seem to make sense to upgrade the CPU at the same time. I'm not fussed whether it's AMD or Intel based, only used P4 as it was best for video editing at time.
The most strenuous activity for the PC will be video editing home movies to send to relatives on DVD, apart from that mostly used more as a media centre (DVD player, music store and downloaded films) (without media centre OS!!!) and internet browsing. It will have external HDD's connected for additional backup of important pictures etc.

I have around £200, but less is better, to spend and want to concentrate on the M/B (pref with onboard graphics & sound) and CPU. The m/b needs to have firewire.

I know I don't want much!!!! But what CPU & M/B combo would you recommend? And best 500GB - 1 TB internal HDD? I have 2 GB DDR2 RAM which would prefer to reuse but......

Ultimately I will add graphics, sound and upgrade other bits as I go along (and have more cash to spare).

Any thoughts gratefully appreciated.
 
hi trev...£200 seems like an ambitious budget to me but im sure the guys on the forum will sort you out

it sounds like you need a full upgrade almost which would include ddr3 and windows7?
 
Gigabyte GA-MA78LMT-US2H 760G (Socket AM3) DDR3 Motherboard £49.98
(£42.54) £49.98
(£42.54)
AMD Athlon II X2 Dual Core 250 3.00GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail £42.99
(£36.59) £42.99
(£36.59)
Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM (HD103SJ) £38.29
(£32.59) £38.29
(£32.59)
Akasa Nero V2 CPU Cooler (Socket 775/1156/1366/AM2/AM2+/AM3) £29.99
(£25.52) £29.99
(£25.52)
2x Corsair Value 2GB (1x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 1333MHz Low-Voltage Single Channel Module (VS2GB1333D3) £18.99
(£16.16) £37.98
(£32.32)

Sub Total : £169.56
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £9.50
VAT is being charged at 17.50% VAT : £31.34
Total : £210.40

How's that look to you?
 
I just don't see how this is possible - these components are ghetto and still over budget.

I also wouldn't re-use the PSU from a system that old.

Antec TruePower New Modular 650W Power Supply [76134] £69.99 inc VAT
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-117-AN&groupid=701&catid=123&subcat=1088

Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit - OEM (GFC-00599) [GFC-00599] £82.24 inc VAT
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=SW-127-MS&groupid=33&catid=1555&subcat=

Samsung SpinPoint F3 500GB SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM (HD502HJ) [HD502HJ] £31.98 inc VAT
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HD-081-SA&groupid=701&catid=14&subcat=940

Intel Core i3 540 3.06GHz (Clarkdale) (Socket LGA1156) - Retail [BX80616I3540] £82.24 inc VAT
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-312-IN&groupid=701&catid=6&subcat=1671

Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C8 1333MHz Dual-Channel (CMX4GX3M2A1333C8) [CMX4GX3M2A1333C8] £54.99 inc VAT
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MY-257-CS&groupid=701&catid=8&subcat=1516

Gigabyte GA-P55-USB3 Intel P55 (Socket 1156) DDR3 Motherboard [GA-P55-USB3] £88.36 inc VAT
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-248-GI&groupid=701&catid=5&subcat=1495

Gainward GeForce 8400GS "SILENT" 512MB DDR2 PCI-Express Graphics Card [426018336-1244] £29.99 inc VAT
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=GX-140-GW&groupid=701&catid=1914&subcat=1833

Belkin Firewire 3-Port PCI Card (F5U503VEA1) [F5U503VEA1] £12.98 inc VAT
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CC-004-BE

You'd probably be better off with a ghetto pre-built thing like this:

"Primo Ignition" Intel Core i3 540 3.06GHz DDR3 System
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=FS-270-OK&groupid=43&catid=1078&subcat=
 
Last edited:
Take Redmint's otherwise great spec and...

Swap out the cooler for this -

Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro Rev 2 CPU Cooler (Socket 939 / AM2 / AM3 / 775 / 1156 / 1366)

It's more than capable and will run silent.

Swap out the memory for

OCZ Gold 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 1333MHz Low-Voltage Dual Channel (OCZ3G1333LV4GK) [OCZ3G1333LV4GK]

Running 4x1GB isn't great. Much better spending the extra £2.

I believe that should be about £200 with delivery?
 
A little over, two of the options are on today only.

Your basketProduct Name Qty Price Line Total
AMD Athlon II X4 Quad Core 630 2.80GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail £75.19
(£63.99) £75.19
(£63.99)
Asus M4A78LT-M 760G (Socket AM3) DDR3 Motherboard £48.99
(£41.69) £48.99
(£41.69)
Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX4GX3M2A1600C9) £38.76
(£32.99) £38.76
(£32.99)
Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM (HD103SJ) £38.29
(£32.59) £38.29
(£32.59)
Sub Total : £171.26
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £9.50
VAT is being charged at 17.50% VAT : £31.63
Total : £212.39


Edit:

With Firewire:

Product Name Qty Price Line Total
Gigabyte GA-880GM-UD2H AMD 880G (Socket AM3) microATX DDR3 Motherboard £69.98
(£59.56) £69.98
(£59.56)
AMD Athlon II X2 Dual Core 250 3.00GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail £42.99
(£36.59) £42.99
(£36.59)
Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX4GX3M2A1600C9) £38.76
(£32.99) £38.76
(£32.99)
Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM (HD103SJ) £38.29
(£32.59) £38.29
(£32.59)
Sub Total : £161.73
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £9.50
VAT is being charged at 17.50% VAT : £29.97
Total : £201.20
 
Last edited:
The Halk said:
Take Redmint's otherwise great spec and...

Swap out the cooler for this -

Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro Rev 2 CPU Cooler (Socket 939 / AM2 / AM3 / 775 / 1156 / 1366)

It's more than capable and will run silent.

Swap out the memory for

OCZ Gold 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 1333MHz Low-Voltage Dual Channel (OCZ3G1333LV4GK) [OCZ3G1333LV4GK]

Running 4x1GB isn't great. Much better spending the extra £2.

I believe that should be about £200 with delivery?
Click to expand...

Read the spec more carefully, mine's 2x2GB not 4x1GB.
 
Aha! It is. I saw you had picked 2 2GB packs so I misread the 1x2GB as 2x1GB. He's better off with your memory then as it's £2 quid cheaper, and timings will make no odds to him.

He's still better off with the cooler I suggested, or even the stock cooler I think though.
 
Assume I have linked to the correct board, I can't see Firewire unless I'm being stupid - Not the first time though :eek:

http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=3668#sp

1 x 24-pin ATX main power connector
1 x 8-pin ATX 12V power connector
1 x floppy disk drive connector
1 x IDE connector
5 x SATA 3Gb/s connectors
1 x CPU fan header
1 x system fan header
1 x North Bridge fan header
1 x front panel header
1 x front panel audio header
1 x CD In connector
1 x S/PDIF In/Out header
3 x USB 2.0/1.1 headers
1 x parallel port header
1 x serial port header
1 x chassis intrusion header
1 x power LED header
1 x clearing CMOS jumper
Back Panel Connectors 1 x PS/2 keyboard port or PS/2 mouse port
1 x D-Sub port
1 x DVI-D port (Note 3)(Note 4)
1 x HDMI port (Note 4)
1 x optical S/PDIF Out connector
1 x eSATA 3Gb/s port
6 x USB 2.0/1.1 ports
1 x RJ-45 port
6 x audio jacks (Center/Subwoofer Speaker Out/Rear Speaker Out/Side Speaker Out/Line In/Line Out/Microphone)
Click to expand...
 
I've had a rethink....

He needs a motherboard, and it should have integrated graphics and firewire. It should be DDR2 so he can use that 2GB he has already.
He needs a CPU to go with it.
He can get a retail CPU and use the stock cooler.
He can probably scrape by with his old PSU, but it is less than ideal - what kind of PSU is it OP.
He can use the 2GB of DDR2 he has already. Replacing it with 4GB of DDR2 is on the upgrade list, but it's not essential to do it now. Having said that I don't expect prices to go any lower on it.
The cooling fan I recommended further up - the Arctic Cooling Pro 7 rev 2 is the best choice for him. It's very inexpensive. I'll leave the option to the OP to either get that cooler, or to get a retail CPU which will have a noisier cooler - but quite possibly quieter than what he's used to as they've come on a lot since P4 times.
For the hard drive there's a concensus about the Samsung Spinpoint. I'd also like to chuck in a very high quality drive at a low price the WD RE2 500GB at £25. That's a better buy I feel than the Samsung.

I believe the OP is best choosing an AMD CPU which means the motherboard should be the GA-MA78LMT-US2H 760G as it has graphics and firewire (I don't think there's many if any boards without sound).

That leaves him with the CPU choice and I think Redmist again got it right with his choice of the cheapest available CPU. It also comes with a retail cooler. The OP will find the CPU to be remarkably capable, and it can later be replaced with a 6 core processor for an inexpensive upgrade as long as he does it before the AM3 platform vanishes completely.

So that means on the essential list...

Gigabyte GA-MA78LMT-US2H 760G (Socket AM3) DDR3 Motherboard
AMD Athlon II X2 Dual Core 250 3.00GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail
Western Digital RE2 500GB SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM (WD5000YS)

Total including delivery £128.25

After that he can choose to get a cooler

Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro Rev 2 CPU Cooler (Socket 939 / AM2 / AM3 / 775 / 1156 / 1366) £19
More memory 2 of Corsair Value 2GB (1x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 1333MHz Low-Voltage Single Channel Module (VS2GB1333D3) [VS2GB1333D3] total of £38

If he wants/needs to replace the PSU he'll need to say and I'll give him advice on that too.

He can add a graphics card later if he feels he wants to - he hasn't listed anything that really requires one.

His old case must be suitable or he'd have mentioned it.
 
RJC said:
Assume I have linked to the correct board, I can't see Firewire unless I'm being stupid - Not the first time though :eek:

http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=3668#sp
Click to expand...

That's quite a concern RJC. Good spot!

The OcUK site lists it, but the Gigabyte doesn't. I had assumed OcUK would have the correct info. I've downloaded the manual from Gigabyte and it seems it DOES NOT have firewire as the only mention is not to plug in a 1394 cable into a USB header.

Edit : There is no suitable 700 series board with graphics, sound and firewire, meaning the step up to the Gigabyte GA-880GM-UD2H AMD 880G (Socket AM3) microATX DDR3 Motherboard as pointed out earlier by RJC needs to be taken. It's the same cost stepping up to that as it is going for the add-in firewire card. There's no real comparison as the 880 board is better than the 700 board, and add-in I/O cards I've found can be problematic frequently.
 
Last edited:
I had to re-do my spec above above with a different Gigabyte board.

Ocuk may of copied and pasted a spec form another board with similar specs.

Not one the easiest spec me thread :p

Product Name Qty Price Line Total
Gigabyte GA-880GM-UD2H AMD 880G (Socket AM3) microATX DDR3 Motherboard £69.98
(£59.56) £69.98
(£59.56)
AMD Athlon II X2 Dual Core 250 3.00GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail £42.99
(£36.59) £42.99
(£36.59)
Corsair XMS3 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (CMX4GX3M2A1600C9) £38.76
(£32.99) £38.76
(£32.99)
Samsung SpinPoint F3 1TB SATA-II 32MB Cache - OEM (HD103SJ) £38.29
(£32.59) £38.29
(£32.59)
Sub Total : £161.73
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £9.50
VAT is being charged at 17.50% VAT : £29.97
Total : £201.20
 
Last edited:
I'm almost in complete agreement with RJC here.

I'd grab the bargain WD RE2 500GB drive instead, which would push you under budget.

Only concern is the PSU. I'd like the OP to find out what PSU he has to make sure he's ok. The kit selected won't be a huge drain on it, so even if it's an old one it should be ok.

Edit : Please note OP that switching to the better board has meant switching to DDR3 memory which means upgrading the memory now rather than leaving it until later. RJC has of course noticed and accounted for this in his spec, but I don't want you skipping the memory to upgrade later and finding you have no suitable memory for your upgrade.
 
Last edited:
Guys

Fantastic - many thanks.

Think I've got the recommended spec:

Gigabyte GA880GM - UD2H
Athlon II dual core CPU
Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB Sata II HDD (or the Western Digital as a lower cost option)
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7
2 x Corsair Value 2GB DDR3

I have a Thermaltake Tenor ATX case that is still good for this PC, the PSU is Meridian XClio-400BLP - 400 watt max. Given you guys are suggesting min 450 watt suspect that needs to change or could I squeeze a couple of months out of existing before upgrading?

Take it you didn't think much of the i3 build suggestion (haven't costed it so that may be the answer).
 
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