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Budget Family PC Build. $500-600 + $200 LCD

A

alimoalem

Diamond Member
STICKY QUESTIONS ANSWERED

1. What YOUR PC will be used for.
Regular office use. Word processing, internet, etc. It may (unlikely) also be used as an HTPC.
2. What YOUR budget is.
$500-600 for computer, $200-300 for monitor. LESS IS BETTER. Meaning going less than $500 is ok.
3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.
USA
4. IF YOU have a brand preference.
None.
5. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.
May be able to bring DVD-burner. I'd prefer not to reuse the case + PSU (it was a no-name combo deal for $20 and has lasted for 5+ years).
6. IF YOU have searched and/or read similar threads.
Yes.
7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.
Prefer to keep it stock but may overclock if needed.


Our family PC's wireless keyboard doesn't work anymore and gave me an excuse to approach my dad to upgrade it. It has a 2.8GHz P4, 512MB ram, 180GB IDE HDD (less than half used), DVD-burner, MX-4400 GPU (i think). We built the computer like 5 years ago. The DVD-burner may cross over to the new build.

Before I go on, if I can get something pre-built that's better, let me know. The best I've found so far is this from Costco.

What we need: everything, including KB + Mouse and 20"+ LCD monitor. New speakers (cheap) wouldn't be bad.

Here's something I've come up with. Input is appreciated.

Computer
CPU: E2200 2.2GHz Allendale - $85 + Free Shipping. Can't decide between this and E2180 ($78) and E2160 ($70).
MB: Abit IP35-E or Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L - both $90 + Free Shipping. Leaning towards Abit.
RAM: Crucial Ballistix 2x1GB DDR2-800 - $65...$30AR or G.SKILL DDR2-800 2x1gb -$35. Are there any compatibility issues with these sticks? Leaning towards G.SKILL.
GPU: NVIDIA 8600GT for $75 ($55AR) from newegg. Also considering Radeon HD 3450 for $40($30AR. is this good for an HTPC?) or 8800GTS for $140 ($110AR) if I decide to make this into a gaming rig. Thoughts?
HDD: Samsung Spinpoint 320GB - $70 or Samsung HD250HJ 250GB 8MB - $70 shipped. The manufacturers can sling numbers all they want. Acoustics and thermals is where it's really at. Leaning towards HD250HJ

Other Stuff
Case + PSU: I need some recommendations. I'm thinking Antec's 380W or 500W earthwatts or Corsair's VX450 plus a decent case. I'd like it to be ~$100. Thoughts on the Sonata III + Antec EW 500w combo for $96 (after GC) at buy.com? or the NZXT Lexa Blackline? I know it's a little out of my price range (around $86 on buy.com just for a case).

Keyboard + Mouse: I'm thinking Logitech LX 710 or MX 3200. Any recommendations? Want it to be around $50.

LCD: Viewsonic Optiquest 22" - $220...$200AR. Anything wrong with this? Anything better?


Assuming only the 8800GTS rebate come through, this comes to $390 for the computer using the most expensive parts listed above. This, plus $100 for case/psu and $50 for the kb/mouse brings it to $540.

Feel free to ask questions. Your help is truly appreciated.
 
I say save $15 and get the E2160 instead. You won't really see the difference from normal use like that.
Get some cheaper memory too. The Corsair XMS is $53 - $25 mail in rebate giving you a 2x1GB kit for $28 bucks.
You could pick up a decent PSU, and find a mediocre case to go with it. You *could* risk yourself at another cheap case/psu combo.

Alternatively, check out this: http://forums.anandtech.com/me...=2165461&enterthread=y
It's a full Dell system, 24" monitor included, for just under $700 shipped.
 
delloutlet

you can get a inspiron 530 with either a e2140 or 2160, 1gb of ram 320gb hard drive for under $300 alot of the times (I have seen some at 209 even) with dvd-burner. you'll have plenty of money left over for a 8600GT or 7600GS video card to put in it.

it'll come with an OS, cant overclock it (well if you do a pin-mod to cpu you can) and they also come with a warranty too. I have both the 530 and the 531 and they are really nice systems
 
Do the Dell systems with integrated graphics come with pci x16 slots or do they have separate boards?

If I wanted to build the system myself, are there any changes you'd recommend to the system I've posted?

Also, for the products I'm unsure on (particularly case + psu), any recommendations?
 
the 530 and 531 have a pci-e x16 slot, but no power connector for the card, so you are limtied i believe to a 7600gs or 8600gt video cards, there are adapters out there for sata power connectors to turn them into the ones needed for video cards.
 
If you aren't gaming, consider an AMD 3800x2 AM2 CPU and a 790G chipset motherboard -- combined with the cheapest ram deal you've got the major computer components for around $100 total. That should be plenty of oomph for office work, video playback and net surfing. A decent case & PSU for $100ish, HD and optical and you're at around $350 total. I believe Microcenter is still shipping OEM Vista home for $50 bringing your grand total to a bit over $400 with OS. If you skimp on the case and PSU you could slide in at around $375 -- but at the risk of losing it all to a PSU failure.

For your stated usage you simply don't need a highly overclockable core2, overclocker motherboard and entry level 3d card. And yeah, a dell box may be cheaper overall.
 
Originally posted by: accguy9009
Check out this card. It would be a great choice if you decide to use the system as a HTPC.
You will not have any power issues either.


http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16814102725


If you are going with 2 GB of system memory I would look at this one


http://www.newegg.com/Product/...x?Item=N82E16820231098
Click to expand...

Thanks for the posts everyone. Sorry for the late reply.

accguy9009, I wasn't able to find any benchmarks on the HD 3650. Do you happen to have a link to one? How does it compare to the 8600GT or GTS? Also, thanks for the RAM link. I may go with that. It has a lower base cost than the Crucial and I hate dealing with rebates.

JWade, just making sure, so all Dell 530 or 531 desktops have at least 1 pci-e x16 slot on their motherboards?

Roguestar: SHHHH!! I want the new computer lol.

v8envy: Nice recommendation. I can't find any 790G boards below $90 on newegg, though...is there something I'm missing? Also, we already have the OS and we'll probably be reusing the DVD burner from the previous build.

s44: I'd rather spend the money on other parts than on an extra 2gigs we won't be using. Unless there's a 4gig kit for like $50 w/out rebates.
 
UPDATE: I have updated the OP. Here is what the changes are:


Computer
CPU: E2200 2.2GHz Allendale - $85 + Free Shipping. Can't decide between this and E2180 ($78) and E2160 ($70).
MB: Abit IP35-E or Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L - both $90 + Free Shipping. Leaning towards Abit.
RAM: Crucial Ballistix 2x1GB DDR2-800 - $65...$30AR or G.SKILL DDR2-800 2x1gb -$35. Are there any compatibility issues with these sticks? Leaning towards G.SKILL.
GPU: NVIDIA 8600GT for $75 ($55AR) from newegg. Also considering Radeon HD 3450 for $40($30AR. is this good for an HTPC?) or 8800GTS for $140 ($110AR) if I decide to make this into a gaming rig. Thoughts?
HDD: Samsung Spinpoint 320GB - $70 or Samsung HD250HJ 250GB 8MB - $70 shipped. The manufacturers can sling numbers all they want. Acoustics and thermals is where it's really at. Leaning towards HD250HJ

Other Stuff
Case + PSU: I need some recommendations. I'm thinking Antec's 380W or 500W earthwatts or Corsair's VX450 plus a decent case. I'd like it to be ~$100. Thoughts on the Sonata III + Antec EW 500w combo for $96 (after GC) at buy.com? or the NZXT Lexa Blackline? I know it's a little out of my price range (around $86 on buy.com just for a case).

Keyboard + Mouse: I'm thinking Logitech LX 710 or MX 3200. Any recommendations? Want it to be around $50.

LCD: Viewsonic Optiquest 22" - $220...$200AR. Anything wrong with this? Anything better?


Assuming only the 8800GTS rebate come through, this comes to $390 for the computer using the most expensive parts listed above. This, plus $100 for case/psu and $50 for the kb/mouse brings it to $540.
 
I would probably go with the Gigabyte if they're the same price, but that's just because of their reputation and my good history of reliability with their products, so someone else might anecdotally counter that 🙂.
 
if it were me for a basic non gaming system really on reason not to get a dell. remember seeing one a few days ago for 400 with 2gb of ram E 2180 and a 19in Widescreen (could upgrade to 20 for not much more) for under 400. if you need a VC down the line you can always ad one. and still be cheaper than where your at. While I'll prolly always build my personal computer for other peoples computers that I have to support I just recomend waiting for a hot dell deal and getting that because it saves the headache and is usually cheaper anyway for what they need.
 
Originally posted by: Elstupido
OP, di you not like the link to the Enlight I suggested?
Click to expand...

I actually missed your post altogether 😛 my bad.

I agree, it does look plain, and not in a bad way. And it's definitely in a price range my dad would find more favorable. We'll consider it. You don't happen to know any B&M's that have it on display?
 
Not sure of any B&M's that have it on display, however this case was mainstream 5 years or so ago, there is, or was, a ton of these cases out there. Can't argue with success. I think folks are looking for more in the way of flash and looks now. this case is pure function, and it does it very well.
 
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