Looking for advice on a new build for a friend

fjjbnjn

fjjbnjn

Member
My friend came to me to put together a good PC for him. I have some experience in building computers, but I in no way claim to be an expert on it. So I always come back here for advice and review of any systems I'm looking to build before I make any big purchases.

Here's the build I have for him currently:
http://pcpartpicker.com/list/8w47Yr


He's looking on doing some light to moderate gaming on it, and he claims he has all the peripherals taken care of, but I've made the build a little under his $600 budget just in case. I also have some extra case fans for him to use, and he can borrow my optical drive to install the OS.

Personally I think the build seems pretty good, but you guys on this forum seem to do a pretty good job with the finishing touches. Should I include a better PSU? Is the stock CPU cooler going to suffice? Really any advice would be much appreciated.

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Reworked the build a bit based on the suggestions given. It's a little more expensive, but it's got some SERIOUS bang for the buck. It's still under the budget he gave me, so this will probably be his build as long as he's into it. Here it is:
http://pcpartpicker.com/list/mj3PxY
 
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I don't know about moderate gaming with only a 950. What games specifically is he wanting to play?
 
johnb35 said:
I don't know about moderate gaming with only a 950. What games specifically is he wanting to play?
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He really hasn't given me any specifics on gaming (I'll ask), but it seems to perform fine when I test the system on game-debate.com.

This is the result testing Black Ops 3, and I doubt he'd even be playing games this resource intensive:
http://www.game-debate.com/games/index.php?g_id=23183&game=Call+of+Duty:+Black+Ops+3&p_make=AMD&p_deriv=Athlon+X4+860K&gc_make=Nvidia&gc_deriv=GeForce+GTX+950+2GB&ram=8&screenRes_width_FPS=1920&screenRes_height_FPS=1080&checkSubmit=#systemrequirements
 
Does he have a timeframe he's looking to buy? I don't think I would buy fm2 at this point, am4 boards and apu are right around the corner and will give a much longer usable service life (either that or a skylake board with an i3).

Do you happen to live near a microcenter?
 
beers said:
Does he have a timeframe he's looking to buy? I don't think I would buy fm2 at this point, am4 boards and apu are right around the corner and will give a much longer usable service life (either that or a skylake board with an i3).

Do you happen to live near a microcenter?
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He didn't give me a time frame, but I'd imagine he doesn't want to wait too long. Would these new boards be any more expensive, or cause the fm2 boards to be less expensive?

And I'm about an hour away from a microcenter. Also, I'm not going to be using any apu so why would that matter?
 
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Hmm I've seen some rumors that the boards and new APU should drop sometime the next month or two, but then would be socket upgradeable to Zen down the line. You could also weigh APU performance against the 950 before buying the card . Waiting sucks balls though.

fjjbnjn said:
And I'm about an hour away from a microcenter.
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Sweet, there's a skylake i3 bundle for around $135 + tax that'd be a better investment I think.

http://www.microcenter.com/site/brands/intel-processor-bundles.aspx

They also have AMD bundles where you can get the 8 core FX on am3+ for about the same price with a 8320E

http://www.microcenter.com/site/products/amd_bundles.aspx
 
beers said:
Hmm I've seen some rumors that the boards and new APU should drop sometime the next month or two, but then would be socket upgradeable to Zen down the line. You could also weigh APU performance against the 950 before buying the card . Waiting sucks balls though.


Sweet, there's a skylake i3 bundle for around $135 + tax that'd be a better investment I think.

http://www.microcenter.com/site/brands/intel-processor-bundles.aspx

They also have AMD bundles where you can get the 8 core FX on am3+ for about the same price with a 8320E

http://www.microcenter.com/site/products/amd_bundles.aspx
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damn, those are some good savings. Might have to rethink the build a bit
 
Reworked the build a bit based on the suggestions given. It's a little more expensive, but it's got some SERIOUS bang for the buck. It's still under the budget he gave me, so this will probably be his build as long as he's into it. Here it is:
http://pcpartpicker.com/list/mj3PxY
Contrary to what partpicker says, the grand total including tax and shipping is $575.86, not including the $40 in rebates available. Hopefully he takes advantage of those.

Thank you all for the suggestions, is this new build okay?
 
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fjjbnjn said:
gave me, so this will probably be his build as long as he's into it. Here it is:
http://pcpartpicker.com/list/mj3PxY
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I too, am looking for a new build, but am more after speed (Internet) than graphics. (No interest in games). I like the specs of the MoBo, and I see that the setup includes a display board. What would be a better choice if no games are involved? (assuming that a standard build in VGA display would have been sufficient?)
 
EINREB said:
I too, am looking for a new build, but am more after speed (Internet) than graphics. (No interest in games). I like the specs of the MoBo, and I see that the setup includes a display board. What would be a better choice if no games are involved? (assuming that a standard build in VGA display would have been sufficient?)
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You'd still need some sort of GPU since the FX does not include an integrated one. Any relatively modern lower end card should be suitable for 2d environments and 1080p playback.

If you went either the APU route or the Intel route then you could save the expense and just use the integrated video at no extra cost. You might also be able to change the motherboard to one that contains an integrated graphics chipset if you are set on the FX line.
 
Too late, I just ordered the MoBo + processor. I found, however, an old Graphics card in my parts box with DMI-VGA outputs, but I can not figure out what Model it is.
It is an ASUS, and it has all kinds of markings on it. First a label - with B2CVCM124795 and ENGT430/DI/1GD3(LP) printed on it.Than some white printing on the PC Board - MSO-C1071P(B), C1071P rev.1.01. Any comments, somebody?
 
beers said:
Sounds like a GT 430 with 1 GB of DDR3.
Click to expand...

That is what it is. I found a picture of it on the ASUS website. Tnx. Question: what does it use such a large amount of memory for? It seems rather excessive for a ordinary GI, (as I see it) or am I missing something?
 
EINREB said:
That is what it is. I found a picture of it on the ASUS website. Tnx. Question: what does it use such a large amount of memory for? It seems rather excessive for a ordinary GI, (as I see it) or am I missing something?
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1 GB isn't a huge amount anymore. A lot of lower end cards are puffed up with additional RAM as a marketing gimmick (example, there are 4 GB variants of the 430). Even older games like Battlefield 3 can break the 2 GB VRAM barrier on max.
 
beers said:
1 GB isn't a huge amount anymore. A lot of lower end cards are puffed up with additional RAM as a marketing gimmick (example, there are 4 GB variants of the 430). Even older games like Battlefield 3 can break the 2 GB VRAM barrier on max.
Click to expand...

But to answer my question (See posting #13), can I use this board instead of the one listed originally in the list of parts if I have no interest in playing games?
(The one listed is $200, the ASUS I have already)
 
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