Advice and recommendations for a 785g-/790gx-based sff build? :)

[Mushu]

Hullo!

As you can see, this is my first post on these forums... I'm looking for some advice and recommendations for my very first computer-building project 🙂

Specifically, I'd appreciate advice on compatibility and on whether or not it might be worthwhile to wait a month or so for any given component (since I'm not in a major hurry). And of course recommendations for reliable components!

Oh, and since this is my very first build... any of those small details that first-timers are likely to overlook 🙂

So...

Usage/requirements/constraints

Surfing, HD movies, lots of reading and writing, music, occasionally photoshop. I tend to have several programs open at the same time, and very many tabs in whatever browser I'm using.

Would like for it to be as quiet as possible (or within reasonable limits) when it's being used for reading, writing and surfing.

Should be able to handle the first Guild Wars (which shouldn't be a problem since my 4-y-o laptop can manage that).

Will be playing GW2 on this but that's a while away...

Should be able to handle either Ubuntu or Mint as well as Windows 7 right from the start.

I won't be using a discrete video-card at first. I'll initially use this board with the cheapest low-power dual-core AM3 processor I can find (any advice??), and switch it out for a triple-core or quad-core processor when I feel the need, which likely won't be for several months yet. I'll likely toss in a Radeon 5750 or its equivalent at the same time.

I won't be using crossfire, nor will I be doing any overclocking in the foreseeable future.




I've decided I want a small and attractive black case, and am leaning towards "Da Box 100" from Lan-Gear as it looks like a hassle-free and attractive sff-case in my price-range.

I've also decided I want a 785g-based motherboard (micro-ATX, AM3, DDR3, sideport memory).

Would it be better to go with a 790gx? Tweaktown compared the two and recommended the 785g. All the 785g micro-ATX boards I've found seem to have the SB710, and I'm wondering if I'd be better served by getting one of the 790gx motherboards that feature the SB750 instead.

Which model would you recommend as being reliable as well as hassle-free in terms of setup? 🙂




I want to use DDR3-RAM in this build, and I'm not sure what I need to think about wrt compatibility.

I gather support for DDR3-memory depends as much on the processor as on the mobo, in AMD's case?

Anything in particular I should think of when deciding which RAM I should get?



Finally, I can't figure out what PSU I should get. I'd obviously like a good value reliable PSU that won't make much noise, but I haven't been able to narrow the playing field down much!



To summarise:

SFF-build, looking for advice on AM3 mobo with IGP and DDR3 support, recommendations and advice on mobo-makes and RAM, dito for PSU!

Any and all input will be greatly appreciated 🙂

 

[Decembermouse]

Your first build! Wow, that's exciting! I'd love to help out 😀

Go with the 785G. It runs at 500MHz and is pretty nice compared even to the 790GX, which is at 700MHz. It also uses less power than the 790GX.
Make sure it has SB710, for Advanced Clock Calibration. Don't bother with SB750, the only thing it adds is support for RAID 5.

For CPU, get either an Athlon II X4 620 (around $100), which runs at 2.6GHz and is easily (and safely) overclockable for more free performance. It only runs at 95W which is nice for a quad-core.
Or, get a Phenom II X4 925 for $140 ish. This is 2.8GHz stock, but don't worry about that as the Athlon can easily match the Phenom for clock speeds. The main thing the Phenom adds is 6MB of L3 cache. The Athlon II X4 doesn't have that. In general the Athlon is about 80% as fast as the Phenom. I would say it's worth $40 more for the Phenom if you can swing it. It'll also be more able to keep up with a discrete video card when you put one in.

Personally I love the 785G. My brother's been running one for a while and somehow manages to do a lot of gaming on it. I think he overclocked the Radeon 4200, which is pretty darn easy btw. Go into the BIOS, raise the NB voltage slightly, and you can go to 700MHz no problem. Some people have hit 1GHz. In fact, my brother never even ended up buying the discrete card he'd always talked about getting. The Radeon 4200 can do HD video, decent gaming, all that fun stuff.

Get a good power supply, make sure it's 80+ (or even 80+ Bronze or Silver) certified and get some recommendations. I'm not an expert in those, but Antec, Seasonic, PC Power & Cooling, OCZ are good makes.

For RAM, get a dual channel kit, two sticks of 2GB each, and make sure you put them in the correct slots so the system can use it as dual channel. These bad boys:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820227478
it says recommended for Intel but they'd work fine. Nice, low latency too. Shoot for 7-7-7-21 if you can. There's also 8-8-8-24 and 9's, but get some tasty low-latency stuff.

 

[Mushu]

Hey, thanks for the suggestions! 😀

Good to know the differences between the 785g and the 790gx are small... I certainly don't think the support for RAID 5 will have any bearing on my satisfaction 🙂

Also good to know about this 80+ rating! As for the RAM, I was happy to find that kit for less than I'd expected to pay for RAM here in Sweden =) but what is it about that kit that makes it especially suitable for intel's processors rather than AMD's?



Re. the CPUs, I think the ones you've recommended are rather overpowered for my initial requirements! I'll be replacing the CPU soonish, most likely before summer (and probably with a quad-core Phenom II 🙂) and put the "old" one into a fairly low-power build that'll be used mostly by my mum and occasionally by my sister almost exclusively for surfing and for watching movies. I want to put it in as small a case as I can get away with and I want it to run fairly cool quiet and cheap... so for the first CPU I'm really def. looking for a low-power dual-core creature that fits in an AM3 socket and can manage DDR3 RAM 🙂

If such a CPU doesn't exist then that's another matter... :-S

PS. Yeah this is quite exciting 😀

Also kudos to your bro... I wouldn't be surprised if I don't feel the need to switch to a discrete video card for a year 🙂 I mean, I'm quite satisfied with my old laptop after all!

 

[Decembermouse]

It was a bit of a surprise to everyone, but Intel's i7 processors are unable to handle DDR3 with 'standard' voltage. It can make them burn out. This forced companies to make lower voltage DDR3 so as to not endanger the dainty i7's (lol). Higher voltage makes for some easier overclocking, but the low voltage stuff has gotten pretty good now and is perfectly suitable for any build. You can change the voltage in the BIOS if you want.

Get an Athlon II X2 240, it's 2.8GHz and the same K10.5 architecture as all AMD's new stuff. It'll be great for now, all that media stuff, and more than adequate for your sister and mom's needs, so you can save some money by getting the 240 then get a sweet upgrade later.

Cheers!

 

[Mushu]

Well now, knowing that about today's RAM certainly makes it easier to find a good deal! But can I expect totally reliable performance from those intel-appropriate sticks when they're paired with an AM3 processor running at stock voltage?? If so then sweet 😀





I'd ignored the Athlon II processors when researching processors, but I'm beginning to think one of those may be just what I'm looking for at this point. The X3 425/435 parts seem to be the best Athlon II deals in Sweden atm, and I think I'll get one of those in the sales after Christmas.

While they're rated at a higher TDP than the X2 processors, I'm guessing idle power-consumption should be similar and neither I nor my family are likely to max out all three cores simultaneously with normal use.

How closely do I need to look at the processor I buy? Is it enough just to know that it's eg an Athlon II X3 435, or do I need to dig deeper?

Also, any details in particular I should pay attention to when selecting a motherboard??