Browsing/Streaming/Light Gaming - Please Critique

[reynolds1g]

I put together a proposal for a build. It is quite cheap, but my needs are not great: general web browsing, facebook, youtube, netflix, and minecraft for the kids.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/md9ff7

My budget is around $500. I have had my current build(e6300, 7300GT, 4GB ram) for 8+ years and it's time to move on.

Any feedback is appreciated. Thanks!

 

[cdebbie]

For the described needs, the parts you've picked up are pretty good. I'd go for that without a doubt.

 

[lehtv]

I would definitely switch out that power supply. Thermaltake TR2 is not that good. GT730 is also a bit pointless, it's not a lot better than the integrated GPU. If you're going to pay for a dedicated video card, pay for a good one.

Let me see if there aren't other parts worth changing as well...

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-4150 3.5GHz Dual-Core Processor ($93.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-B85M-GAMING 3 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($47.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Value 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($51.99 @ Newegg) (leaves a slot open for adding a second module in the future)
Storage: PNY CS1111 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($51.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R7 260X 2GB Video Card ($88.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Cooler Master N200 MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Antec EarthWatts Green 380W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($32.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $402.91
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-04-29 17:22 EDT-0400

I'm slightly worried about the 120GB SSD - it's fine if you have a hard disk you can use for storage, but if you don't then I'd buy a bigger SSD or add hard disk to this build.

Ultra Plus 256GB $90 or WD Blue 1TB $55

 

[reynolds1g]

Thanks for the feedback! In terms of storage, I have a few HDD that I can reuse from my old system (multiple TB). The SSD would be explicitly for the OS.

If I were to go with a single stick of ram would I lose any performance with dual channel? I know I would leave myself possibility for expansion, but given my use I don't know if I would. But if there is no performance loss it doesnt really matter.

 

[lehtv]

If I were to go with a single stick of ram would I lose any performance with dual channel?

a few percent, you'll never notice anything. Dual channel is important mostly if you need integrated video to perform at its best, e.g. if using an AMD APU for gaming.

 

[reynolds1g]

Thanks a lot for your input. I pretty much just ordered your list. I think its going to be a major improvement over my current build.

Appreciate the time to put together the list of components.

 

[lehtv]

You're welcome 🙂