Recommendations...

brycematheson712

brycematheson712

New Member
I'm building a PC for my Aunt. I know you guys get a lot of threads like these so I'm sorry for yet ANOTHER one, but any suggestions or recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

My Aunt is going to be doing NO gaming whatsoever. It's mainly a business PC. She will be doing photo editing though. I'd like to get her a decent graphics card regardless though so that she can still get a good rating in Windows Vista and just make it a good overall PC.

The total price for all of this comes out to $913. That includes all of this, plus a few fans, thermal grease, and some SATA cables AND shipping. Is this a good build? Any recommendations? Thanks guys!

LG 18X DVD±R DVD Burner Black E-IDE/ATAPI Model GSA-H54NK - OEM

COOLER MASTER Centurion 5 CAC-T05-UW Black Aluminum Bezel , SECC Chassis ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

(I'll be getting 2 of these to set up in a RAID 0) Western Digital Caviar SE WD1600AAJS 160GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM

XFX PVT84JUDD3 GeForce 8600GT XXX 256MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 SLI Supported Video Card - Retail

Rosewill RP550-2 ATX12V v2.01 550W Power Supply - Retail

(I'll get two of these also, because they're such a good price)
G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL5D-2GBNQ - Retail

ABIT IP35 Pro LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 Conroe 2.66GHz LGA 775 Processor Model BX80557E6750 - Retail
 
DVD Burner: Get SATA, like LG GSA-H62NK
MB: MSI P35 Platinum if you want RAID
HD: I don't think you need RAID0... Normal 320GB HDD is more economical.

Anyway here is my list on another thread, for your ref.
Intel Q6600 $280
GIGABYTE GA-P31-DS3L $79
CORSAIR XMS2 (2 x 1GB) DDR2 800 TWIN2X2048-6400C4 $96 MIR$40
HIS Hightech H260XTF256DDN-R Radeon HD 2600XT 256MB $100 MIR $15
Seagate Barracuda 250GB ST3250410AS $70
SAMSUNG 18X DVD±R DVD Burner, LightScribe SATA SH-S183L $30
Rosewill RCR-102 52-in-1 USB 2.0 Black Card Reader $10
Rosewill RP500-2 ATX12V v2.01 500W Power Supply $45
COOLER MASTER CAVALIER 3 CAV-T03-UK $60 MIR $20
Microsoft Windows Vista 64-Bit Home Premium OEM $112
 
Does SATA really make that big of a difference for DVD Burners versus using an IDE connection? DVD Burners aren't exactly fast so I assumed that a standard IDE connection would be fine. I could be wrong, but I'm just not saying. Plus, the PSU that I've already chosen only has 2 SATA connectors and I'm using both of those for the HD.

It says my mobo accepts RAID. What is wrong with the one I've already chosen?

My Aunt is going to be doing a lot of multitasking and I wanted to get her some pretty fast hard drives. I wasn't exactly sure that a 7200 would offer much performance so I opted for RAID. Should I not?

Again, thanks for the help!!
 
not a big difference between IDE and SATA dvd drives, i have sata and before long im sure the IDE will be about extinct. Why would you want a Bulky IDE drive over a slim SATA drive for nearly the same price?
 
There is no big different in performance. However, when you consider airflow in case, SATA is better as IDE cable is big...
Also, the PSU have 2 rail doesn't mean you have only 2 SATA connector.
There is no problem with Abit board except it is expensive. I would choose the cheaper MSI P35 Platinum or GA-P35-DS3P instead. They are both cheaper and with ICH9R. I knew RAID0 is faster, but I doubt if it is significant enough for her to notice the difference. Instead of investing on extra HDD, a better GPU/ RAM will have more noticable difference
 
Last edited:
daisymtc said:
DVD Burner: Get SATA, like LG GSA-H62NK
MB: MSI P35 Platinum if you want RAID
HD: I don't think you need RAID0... Normal 320GB HDD is more economical.

Anyway here is my list on another thread, for your ref.
Intel Q6600 $280
GIGABYTE GA-P31-DS3L $79
CORSAIR XMS2 (2 x 1GB) DDR2 800 TWIN2X2048-6400C4 $96 MIR$40
HIS Hightech H260XTF256DDN-R Radeon HD 2600XT 256MB $100 MIR $15
Seagate Barracuda 250GB ST3250410AS $70
SAMSUNG 18X DVD±R DVD Burner, LightScribe SATA SH-S183L $30
Rosewill RCR-102 52-in-1 USB 2.0 Black Card Reader $10
Rosewill RP500-2 ATX12V v2.01 500W Power Supply $45
COOLER MASTER CAVALIER 3 CAV-T03-UK $60 MIR $20
Microsoft Windows Vista 64-Bit Home Premium OEM $112
Click to expand...

Great, just like I was going to do...

Change that to ClubIT's Q6600 G0...

Change to the P35-DS3L

RAM is great...

Go for an 8600GT/S ..

SATA and IDE burners don't have much difference...

OCZ GameXStream 700W...
 
Wow, guys! Thanks for all your recommendations. Here's what I changed.

I got rid of the old mobo and got the P35-DS3L like suggested, I also got the OCZ GameXStream 700W PSU, and went for the better 8600 GTS GFX Card. I also decided to change the IDE to SATA.

Anything else? Again, MUCH thanks.
 
daisymtc said:
There is no big different in performance. However, when you consider airflow in case, SATA is better as IDE cable is big...
Also, the PSU have 2 rail doesn't mean you have only 2 SATA connector.
There is no problem with Abit board except it is expensive. I would choose the cheaper MSI P35 Platinum or GA-P35-DS3P instead. They are both cheaper and with ICH9R. I knew RAID0 is faster, but I doubt if it is significant enough for her to notice the difference. Instead of investing on extra HDD, a better GPU/ RAM will have more noticable difference
Click to expand...

So you think I should just get rid of the extra hard drive and invest some more in the GFX Card or RAM? I've always thought that RAID would provide a pretty noticable difference. That's not true?

What is ICH9R? Is that chipset?
 
brycematheson712 said:
So you think I should just get rid of the extra hard drive and invest some more in the GFX Card or RAM? I've always thought that RAID would provide a pretty noticable difference. That's not true?

What is ICH9R? Is that chipset?
Click to expand...

Nope, it will not provide an difference if at all...

Get an better GFX... for the $$$...

HDD = SATAII always..

RAID is not setup for performance. Performance are the Western Digital Raptors... RAID is made for backup/other stuff, not for "performance/speed"...
 
Could you recommend maybe a better graphics card than I have now for about the same price range? I don't want to go too much lower than I've already chosen.
 
$150 is a fine price. And that is a pretty decent graphics card? Again, I said that my aunt isn't going to be doing any gaming at all, but I still want her to have a nice one in case she feels like she wants to do something more.
 
Alright, well, after doing a TON of research, looking at benchmarks, and learning a TON I've revised the build just a little bit. I've only got about a week left until I order the parts for this build so I want to make sure that it is PERFECT. I'm mainly worried about the little things such as the thermal grease, SATA Cables, and the fan. Let me know.

SATA Cables (2): http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812189153
DVD Burner: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106055
Case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119068
Hard Drive: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148286
Video Card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814186013
PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341002
Thermal Grease: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835100007
RAM (2) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820211066
Motherboard: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128059
CPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115029
Case Fan: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835150007

Total Price w/ shipping: $902.90 (I'd like to stay around there if possible)

In this revision the RAM is a bit different. I preferred the G.Skill stuff, but it just barely ran out of stock, because it was such a good price. How is A-Data? Also, what about that Thermal Grease? And that fan, also? I just sort of picked one for the case. I already own a 120mm fan so I'll use the one that I've already got for the rear of the case. I changed the Samsung DVD Burner to a Lite-On DVD Burner because of LiteScribe capabilities and it being cheaper.

I also switched the 8600GTS that someone recommended to a 7900GS because |OMEGA| recommended it and said it would perform better. Any other comments about this build would be very helpful. Thanks guys!
 
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daisymtc said:
8600GT=> 8600GTS => 8800GT
This is the cheapest 8600GTS, see if you can stretch the budget.
MSI NX8600GTS-T2D256E-OC GeForce 8600GTS 256MB
Click to expand...

brycematheson712 said:
$150 is a fine price. And that is a pretty decent graphics card? Again, I said that my aunt isn't going to be doing any gaming at all, but I still want her to have a nice one in case she feels like she wants to do something more.
Click to expand...
Thats a decent price, however if you can spend an additional $110, you can get the 8800GT, which will blow it away!

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814133205
 
As much as I would love to, I'm not so sure my aunt would appreciate me telling her that I spent $300 on something she explicitly told me not to spend money on. The 7900GS will be fine for her though, correct?
 
You do realize that the Centurion 5 comes with fans, right? If your looking to replace them, I don't know how much improvement you'll see (seriously, I have no Idea). If your looking to add more, I think you'll have to mod the case, and it most likely won't be worth it (unless she plans to do a lot of overclocking :P).
 
Last edited:
brycematheson712 said:
Alright, well, after doing a TON of research, looking at benchmarks, and learning a TON I've revised the build just a little bit. I've only got about a week left until I order the parts for this build so I want to make sure that it is PERFECT. I'm mainly worried about the little things such as the thermal grease, SATA Cables, and the fan. Let me know.

SATA Cables (2): http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16812189153
DVD Burner: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106055
Case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119068
Hard Drive: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148286
Video Card: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814186013
PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817341002
Thermal Grease: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835100007
RAM (2) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820211066
Motherboard: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128059
CPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115029
Case Fan: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835150007

Total Price w/ shipping: $902.90 (I'd like to stay around there if possible)

In this revision the RAM is a bit different. I preferred the G.Skill stuff, but it just barely ran out of stock, because it was such a good price. How is A-Data? Also, what about that Thermal Grease? And that fan, also? I just sort of picked one for the case. I already own a 120mm fan so I'll use the one that I've already got for the rear of the case. I changed the Samsung DVD Burner to a Lite-On DVD Burner because of LiteScribe capabilities and it being cheaper.

I also switched the 8600GTS that someone recommended to a 7900GS because |OMEGA| recommended it and said it would perform better. Any other comments about this build would be very helpful. Thanks guys!
Click to expand...

Motherboards include cables... look for the $27.99 DVD drive with free shipping... Securemart has the Antec900 for $75... http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822152052... http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820145590...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128062...
http://www.clubit.com/product_detail.cfm?itemno=A1938452...
Case fan not needed
 
What does that mobo have over the one that I've already selected? Also, what is the difference in RAM? It's the same speed and capacity...is it just name brand? I'm fine with going with an off-brand and getting twice the capacity for just a little bit extra than one of the corsair...unless theres some reason not to.
 
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