Cheap build for my dad

[goobernoodles]

1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing.

Nothing too demanding. Word processing, email, etc.

2. What YOUR budget is. A price range is acceptable as long as it's not more than a 20% spread

~$600 little bit of flex room.

3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.

USA, from preferably one vendor. Newegg or something else.

4. IF you're buying parts OUTSIDE the US, please post a link to the vendor you'll be buying from.

^^

5. IF YOU have a brand preference. That means, are you an Intel-Fanboy, AMD-Fanboy, ATI-Fanboy, nVidia-Fanboy, Seagate-Fanboy, WD-Fanboy, etc.

None.

6. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.

No need for optical drive or data drives. Want an SSD for the OS.

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.

Stock.

8. What resolution, not monitor size, will you be using?

21" CRT. Unsure of res.

9. WHEN do you plan to build it?

ASAP.

I'm looking to build my dad a computer. Will need to figure in Win 7 pro price. I need a case that can hold an SSD and two 1tb SATA drives. Quieter and smaller the better, but he's using a mid-sized case right now so no big deal. If it's a matter of <~$150 or so, I might buy a few of the components for him, so if it's really worth it to splurge a little, let me know. $600 budget as a starting point.

 

[DSF]

Are you deadset against going prebuilt? This may be one of those times where it's the best strategy. He'd get the OS included, probably a new monitor, and tech support.

 

[Charlie98]

Easy enough... $600 should be plenty.

Intel Pentium G3220, $70
ASRock B85M-HDS mobo, $55
Team 2x 4GB 1600 RAM, $63
Corsair CX430 PSU, $25 (AR)
Win 7 Pro, $140
Fractal Define Mini, $100

Total: $453

You didn't mention if he already has the SSD, but if not...

Crucial M500 120GB SSD, $75

New total $528....

The Define Mini case is a little expensive at $100, but it is a very quiet case and fairly small for mATX. It also has a USB 3.0 port that might be handy if he uses any external drives. An alternate to save money would be the Fractal Core 1000 ($40) or Antec VSK-3000 ($35, no USB 3.0) or the Thermaltake Urban S1 ($45)

The G3220 Pentium is fine for a general purpose PC; I went with 8GB RAM because you said he will be word processing, but you would probably be OK with a set of 2x 2GB.

 

[goobernoodles]

Are you deadset against going prebuilt? This may be one of those times where it's the best strategy. He'd get the OS included, probably a new monitor, and tech support.

No, I'm not. But it would need to include an SSD, and have room for two 3.5" HDDs.

 

[mfenn]

Why Windows 7 Pro? Are there any specific Pro-exclusive features that he needs?

 

[goobernoodles]

Why Windows 7 Pro? Are there any specific Pro-exclusive features that he needs?

That's a good point. Home premium should work fine for him.

E: Would it be worth it to try and go the AMD route in order to get more cores or how would AMD's offerings in the $70-$120ish range compare to the G3220?

 

[mvbighead]

Here's my shot at it:

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3fzZx
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3fzZx/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3fzZx/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i3-4130T 2.9GHz Dual-Core Processor ($134.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H81M-S2PH Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($48.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Kingston Black 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial M500 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($69.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Apex PC-389-C ATX Mid Tower Case ($29.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 430W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($19.99 @ Micro Center)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($84.98 @ OutletPC)
Monitor: Dell S2240M 60Hz 21.5" Monitor ($119.99 @ Micro Center)
Keyboard: Logitech MK520 Wireless Ergonomic Keyboard w/Laser Mouse ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $601.89
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-03-24 11:51 EDT-0400)

New monitor and new KB/Mouse may be unneeded, but what the heck.

 

[monkeydelmagico]

Here's my shot at it:

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3fzZx
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3fzZx/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3fzZx/benchmarks/

.

Nice build! Don't think OP is near a microcenter (seattle?)

Couple alternatives:

i3 4130 for $120.- free ship
MSI mATX for $45.- free ship
Xigmatek mATX case $29.- free ship
Thermaltake PSU $25 AR

 

[Charlie98]

3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.

USA, from preferably one vendor. Newegg or something else.

I was honoring his request to use one vendor... but it's true you can save a little loot if you shop around, the big trick is to watch for free shipping, as Monkey pointed out. I don't hardly order anything unless I can get free shipping on it...

 

[ascalice]

Just buy it. Go to Dell.com or Hp.com and buy one. The OS costs $100, the peripherals cost $100.

 

[mvbighead]

Ah, I missed the single vendor bit... here is something fairly close:

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3g8nI
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3g8nI/by_merchant/
Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3g8nI/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i3-4130 3.4GHz Dual-Core Processor ($119.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI H81M-P33 V2 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($54.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Kingston Black 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($64.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Crucial M500 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($74.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Apex PC-389-C ATX Mid Tower Case ($29.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Antec Basiq 430W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply ($39.99 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($113.03 @ Amazon)
Monitor: Acer S220HQLAbd 21.5" Monitor ($109.99 @ Amazon)
Keyboard: Logitech Wireless Combo MK270 Wireless Standard Keyboard w/Optical Mouse ($17.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $625.95
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-03-25 09:34 EDT-0400)

 

[mvbighead]

Just buy it. Go to Dell.com or Hp.com and buy one. The OS costs $100, the peripherals cost $100.

This makes pretty much 0 sense. The OS costs 100, the periphs cost 100? Not if he follows your second statement and buys a Dell. Then it is 99% of the time included with the package.

 

[lehtv]

This makes pretty much 0 sense. The OS costs 100, the periphs cost 100? Not if he follows your second statement and buys a Dell. Then it is 99% of the time included with the package.

Also, peripherals don't cost $100. If talking about keyboard and mouse, they cost $25. If talking about all peripherals, i.e. monitor, keyboard, mouse, mouse mat, speakers, they cost more like $200 minimum.

 

[goobernoodles]

Ended up going with Amazon because I remembered I had a prime membership. Had to substitute some things but ended up going with:

-Fractal Design Arc Mini R2
-Corsair CX430
-Gigabyte GA-H81M-S2PH
-Kingston Hyper X Blu 2x4gb DDR3 1600
-Intel I34130T
-Crucial M500 240Gb
-Windows 7 Home Premium

$712.58 with tax.

Went significantly over budget, but he decided he wanted to spend the extra for 240gb, and I figured it was worth it to get the i3. I should have mentioned he already has a monitor, keyboard, mouse, speakers. The seller of the Define Mini wasn't "prime verified" so I chose the Arc 2 midi since it's the case I have and I know it's good.

 

[ascalice]

Ended up going with Amazon because I remembered I had a prime membership. Had to substitute some things but ended up going with:

-Fractal Design Arc Mini R2
-Corsair CX430
-Gigabyte GA-H81M-S2PH
-Kingston Hyper X Blu 2x4gb DDR3 1600
-Intel I34130T
-Crucial M500 240Gb
-Windows 7 Home Premium

$712.58 with tax.

Went significantly over budget, but he decided he wanted to spend the extra for 240gb, and I figured it was worth it to get the i3. I should have mentioned he already has a monitor, keyboard, mouse, speakers. The seller of the Define Mini wasn't "prime verified" so I chose the Arc 2 midi since it's the case I have and I know it's good.

IMO, I would of spent the extra $20-$30 to get the Intel i3-4330. But, the i3-4130 is still a beast CPU but not the fastest i3.

 

[mvbighead]

IMO, I would of spent the extra $20-$30 to get the Intel i3-4330. But, the i3-4130 is still a beast CPU but not the fastest i3.

Considering budget was the OP's goal, the 4330 was unneeded.

http://www.cpu-world.com/Compare/407/Intel_Core_i3_i3-4130_vs_Intel_Core_i3_i3-4330.html

Not to mention, this site suggests you're getting a much better price/performance ratio.

All in all, an end user will not feel a marginal difference in CPU speed unless doing heavy gaming that squeezes every last bit of juice. I'd say the OP did pretty darned good.

 

[Charlie98]

-Intel I34130T

Please tell me you didn't go with the T CPU...

Other than that, the only real obstacle I see is the case and mobo combo... that mobo doesn't have a USB 3.0 header, both the front USB ports on the Arc Mini R2 case are 3.0... which means you will need an adapter card to use those ports at all.

 

[ascalice]

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=Build+a+PC+for+$600 :biggrin:

 

[VirtualLarry]

Please tell me you didn't go with the T CPU...

That's what I was wondering. Was there some reason for the "T" model? They are clocked lower, such that they can be TDP-limited. Was there a need for limited TDP? It doesn't sound like it, from the PSU and case you picked out. Were you aware that the T model is clocked lower? You might need to return it and get a regular i3-4130 model. Unless the T model was significantly cheaper for some reason (generally, the TDP limited T and S models are more expensive).

 

[mfenn]

http://lmgtfy.com/?q=Build+a+PC+for+%24600 :biggrin:

Useless post is useless.

IMO, I would of spent the extra $20-$30 to get the Intel i3-4330. But, the i3-4130 is still a beast CPU but not the fastest i3.

The slightly faster IGP, extra meg of L3 cache, and 100 MHz clock speed difference aren't going to be noticeable in normal desktop tasks. I wouldn't pay extra for them unless I was running benchmarks all day.

 

[sm625]

Get a $379 prebuilt, look on slickdeals. Get a 128GB SSD. Clone the prebuilt's OS onto the SSD. Make the old HDD into a secondary drive.

 

[VirtualLarry]

Get a $379 prebuilt, look on slickdeals. Get a 128GB SSD. Clone the prebuilt's OS onto the SSD. Make the old HDD into a secondary drive.

If only it were that easy... with Win8/8.1 pre-builts, they use UEFI and Secure Boot. The UEFI actually stores the boot info. Meaning, you can't just clone HDD to SSD and expect it to boot. You have to store the boot vector to the SSD back into the UEFI.

 

[goobernoodles]

The T version of the CPU was a mistake. I think I'll probably return it and get the normal version. Thanks for pointing that out. My dad is currently using 2x 1tb drives, one for an OS and one for Data. He's only using <200gb on the data drive, so I'm going to back up his data and profile and throw them into a RAID-1 array since he's using nowhere near 1tb anyway.

Sucks about the front USB ports. I might just go to Fry's and pick up a card for him.

 

[goobernoodles]

Returning the 4130T and getting a 4130. Ordered a USB 3.0 card, but just realized this case has an alternative 2.0 connector for motherboards like this.

Damn.

 

[ascalice]

Once you return the 4130T and the USB 3.0 Card, that will be a pretty beast PC. No, not for gaming but for day to day topics.