General Purpose Desktop Advice

D

Dice2121

Member
Hello,

I am in need of some advice towards a new desktop computer that I will be building in the coming months. Time is not so much of an issue, so no rush or pressure. I would like your thoughts on the components I choose, any recommendations you may have, that sort of thing. Thanks in advance.

Purpose/Uses:
This computer will be used primarily as a general purpose desktop. Accessing the Internet, reading e-mails, word processing, etc.



Case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119193

Optical: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135204

CPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103903

Motherboard: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813186205

RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820226092

Hard Drive: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136770

PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817171046



Others:

Audio: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16836121013

Keyboard: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823107128

OS: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116986


One question I had was if the Core Unlocking deal is legitimate. Does it actually work?

Otherwise, let me know what you think. Any suggestions are welcome. Thanks again.
 
really for thius price a prebuilt will give you better value, but the core unlocker only works on cpus that have dissabled cores, which this doesn't, i think the x3 might, and the phenom x2 555 does, but idk which other do anywhere near this price. also look at bestbuy and fry's for the hdd as they have almost if not less than half the price for some reason (flooding at the manufacturers plants causing a shortage causing prices to sky rocket).
 
Yup. It costs more. But besides all the added features, this quality is much better and that's important for mb.

GIGABYTE GA-880GMA-USB3 AM3+ AMD 880G SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 HDMI Micro ATX AMD Motherboard

1600 for the same $.
　
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL

Another quality concern. Go for XFX/Seasonic/Corsiar/Silvertone/PC Power&Cooling/Antec.
Wattage/Amps > Brand > Price would be last determining factor.

CORSAIR Builder Series CX430 V2 430W ATX12V v2.3 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply

There are some ifs to core unlocking. Best thing to do is buy the # of cores you need/want, then if it unlocks/is stable it's like a bonus.​
 
jonnyp11 said:
really for thius price a prebuilt will give you better value, but the core unlocker only works on cpus that have dissabled cores, which this doesn't, i think the x3 might, and the phenom x2 555 does, but idk which other do anywhere near this price. also look at bestbuy and fry's for the hdd as they have almost if not less than half the price for some reason (flooding at the manufacturers plants causing a shortage causing prices to sky rocket).
Click to expand...

Well, I have done some looking around and found some desktops at Bestbuy that have surprisingly similar parts to the ones I choose. The one that is near exact is this Dell Inspiron 570 for $330 compared to my $460. The step up is this Inspiron 620 for $450. I see where they do have slightly better parts compared to mine for a better value. So these PC's would be your recommendation?

Benny Boy said:
Yup. It costs more. But besides all the added features, this quality is much better and that's important for mb.

GIGABYTE GA-880GMA-USB3 AM3+ AMD 880G SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 HDMI Micro ATX AMD Motherboard

1600 for the same $.
　
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL

Another quality concern. Go for XFX/Seasonic/Corsiar/Silvertone/PC Power&Cooling/Antec.
Wattage/Amps > Brand > Price would be last determining factor.

CORSAIR Builder Series CX430 V2 430W ATX12V v2.3 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply

There are some ifs to core unlocking. Best thing to do is buy the # of cores you need/want, then if it unlocks/is stable it's like a bonus.​
Click to expand...

Your suggestions have been noted. I now understand the core unlocking feature better now. At this point a dual core is all I think I will need, correct? So if I perhaps buy the Phenom II that has a chance of unlocking the extra cores, that would be a slightly better choice?

Also, anyone's opinion on the pre-built Dell desktops is welcome. I am leaning towards that direction now, since they can make a computer with better parts cheaper than I can. Would it be a smart idea considering all the unnecessary software that tags along with it?
 
The Phenom II x2's are good processors. But in that price range an Athlon II x3 costs less, and a true x4 not much more.

Here' an example build.
I didn't include a sata hdd because you can probably find a Samsung F3, Western Digital Black, or Seagate Barracuda w/ 7200.12 firmware, in your local area for less than what NE wants. Any of these are a little better for c:\ than a green or blue drive.
You can be well under $500. Esp if you count any promo's or rebates.

AMD Athlon II X2 270 Regor 3.4GHz Socket AM3 65W Dual-Core Desktop Processor ADX270OCGMBOX

GIGABYTE GA-880GMA-USB3 AM3+ AMD 880G SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 HDMI Micro ATX AMD
($10 mir)

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL

SAMSUNG 22X DVD Burner Black SATA Model SH-222AL/BSBE LightScribe Support - OEM

CORSAIR Builder Series CX430 V2 430W ATX12V v2.3 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply
$20 mir)

Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-bit - OEM
($90 w/promo)
+ Free 4gb flash drive.

This case doesn't have much for cable management. I picked it because it has bottom mount for ps and comes with enough fans. And it's only $38 shipped w/ promo code.

Rosewill DESTROYER Black Gaming ATX Mid Tower Computer Case, comes with Three Fans-1x Front Blue LED 120mm Fan, 1x Top 120mm ...

$405 before promos/mir's/shipping. w/o hdd.
$353. after promos/mir's. w/o shipping or hdd.

You have to be signed up for NE emails to use the promo codes.
 
Thanks for everyone's advice, but I think I'm going to go with the Dell I 620. It has some better parts than those that we have been looking at for just about the same price. I am a little disappointed that we were not able to build a custom one, but money is tight these days.

Thanks again for your help.
 
If you have the technical abiltie you should build your own, imo you should never buy prebuilt componants are often suppar, with your own you can buy higher qulaity parts and spend less overall, I would make a build for you but I havent get the time atm.

For example if you look at the specs of the: http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=1419363&CatId=4928#

There is not note of the brand of the the PSU, meaning that it will be generic and bad quality, this is a very important part and a bad low quality psu can blow out your whole computer.
The ram is advertised a 8Gb but with not mention of brand, meaning you cant really check the quality of the product, but it will just be generic ram and again not mention of the motherboard meaing that it is prob just a sup par manufacturer. In all of these examples there will be generic parts that will maybe last as long as the year or so warranty just so the company can keep profits as high as poss while keeping build cost as low as poss.
 
Just to update this thread and bring an end to it, I decided to buy the Dell. In the end, it was more economical. If I could have the option to build my own, believe me I would have, but this is just how stuff works out sometimes.
 
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