Build Check for Gramps

Darren

Darren

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Staff member
My grandfather is on the prowl for a new machine and I mentioned to him I could build him one. He liked the idea after learning about being able to customize it. This is what I came up with. His uses are exactly what you'd expect out of an elderly man. Internet browsing and photo storage essentially. Also wanted a card reader, all for under 650.

CPU and Mobo Combo
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.2342060

Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147166

PSU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817194090

HDD
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148840

SSD and RAM Combo
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.2331051

Card Reader
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820130013

Windows 8.1
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832416776

DVD Writer salvaged from last machine.

I know I could fairly easily drop the CPU to a Pentium or similar but he stressed that he wanted it "fast" and I still haven't hit his budget. Any suggestions? I'll ask him if he wants the blue LED fan or not with the case, but I'll probably stick with that one unless there's a better suggestion. I've been impressed with Rosewill cases from a budget standpoint as they're decent quality for the price. I can swap that fan with some spares I have laying around.

Total comes to 563 before shipping and tax, all from Newegg for simplicity sake.
 
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go for AMD instead?

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD FX-8320 3.5GHz 8-Core Processor ($135.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock 970 Pro3 R2.0 ATX AM3+ Motherboard ($56.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($97.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.75 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GT 730 1GB Video Card ($62.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Antec One ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Corsair CSM 450W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($26.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($86.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $601.65
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-05-27 04:47 EDT-0400
 
beers said:
Any chance on running to our fancy OP Microcenter?
Click to expand...

I would but I'm in Wichita now so not really worth the trip. I've been travelling enough as it is the past week or so. :D

I think I've pinned down a solid list. AMD is a thought but I don't really see the need for the extra 4 threads of the i3 vs the 8320 and extra temperature and electricity consumption aren't really desired.

This is what I'm about to order. Wanted a case with more working room and space since he will have 2 HDD's, an SSD, a card reader, and a DVD drive. Swapped PSU for something cheaper.

i3 4160 and GIGABYTE GA-B85M-DS3H
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.2342060

Samsung 850 EVO 250GB SSD and 8GB DDR3 1600MHz GSKILL Ares
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.2331051

1TB Seagate Barracuda
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148840

Rosewill 400w PSU. Junky, but cheap and build is very low powered
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182074

Rosewill Galaxy 02 Case. Kind of flashy for him but needed the space and features. Rosewill cases are excellent for the price. He said he didn't care how it looked.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147184

Card Reader
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820130013

Windows 8.1. Teaching him this will be rough.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832416776

Total $576 shipped in 3 days.

It's odd doing a build that isn't for a gamer, because that's what all of my builds have been so far.
 
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Will u consider getting z97 mobo?
purely because it support next gen CPU. But if ur grandad not going to upgrade, no point.

Personally will get corsair csm450, but it's up to u if u don't want the hassle of mir

I am not familar with rosewill PSU, but 80+ evga 430w worth getting if u look for budget psu
 
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Oh dang I should have grabbed that EVGA unit. I did a power search for PSU's and that one should have shown up in it. Already ordered the Rosewill. The whole system is going to be pulling 100 watts at most so I'm not all that fussed about it. Oh well. Should I be inherently worried about the Rosewill I ordered? I know full well it's kind of a piece of junk but given the extremely low power draw of the machine, I didn't think it would matter all that much.
 
Will he be using a dedicated video card at any point? If not, you should be fine. I'm just leary of the low end 2 rail units.
 
Yeah I'm just using onboard video, 2 HDD's, 1 SSD, 1 ODD, and 1 Card reader. Shouldn't pull too much power. I doubt he'll ever even flex the i3.
 
Darren said:
Yeah I'm just using onboard video, 2 HDD's, 1 SSD, 1 ODD, and 1 Card reader. Shouldn't pull too much power. I doubt he'll ever even flex the i3.
Click to expand...

What about an APU? Not sure how justified an A8 would be compared to this.. at one point I had a simple $200 parts list for a internet browser.
 
The onboard 4400 is more than enough video power for really anything outside of gaming, and maybe some higher resolution stuff. That and the i3 would probably be a good bit faster than the APU. He told me price wasn't a huge issue and I was still decent below his budget.
 
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