Low power office machine - AMD seems to be the winner!

[nerp]

Check my wish list

** UPDATE: I bought the components. Total price: 259. Complete system! I'm suddenly in love with AMD again.

***

Can you possibly produce a similar, low powered Intel box with comparable graphics for the same price? I've been searching for a few days now and trying to get some good alternatives but this AMD rig seems to dominate in terms of price, performance, power usage, etc.

I DO NOT want to have to install a video card. The case is slim, so I'd need a half-height card and that would be a pain.

I don't care about crazy performance OR overclocking. I already have an intel beast at home for gaming, plus a dual opty for MCE and single opty for WHS not to mention a simple laptop. This build is primarily going to be used for light office work and some very basic stuff. I think it looks pretty darned fantastic on a number of levels; the chipset is mighty good in terms of graphics performance, the CPU is as efficient as it gets for AMD and should run nice and cool. . . .

I'd like to see if there's a cheaper route or if there's an Intel route here that doesn't require me buying a video card or changing my case selection.

Feedback is appreciated. I'm about to pull the trigger on this.

 

[heyheybooboo]

AMD 740g

Basically a 690g with sb700 (and PCIe x16 2nd Gen)

AMD Athlon 64 X2 4600+ Windsor 2.4GHz AM2 65W would save you a few bucks and run your DDR2 800 at spec 800MHz.

With C&Q enabled won't suck that much more power

 

[nerp]

Originally posted by: heyheybooboo
AMD 740g

Basically a 690g with sb700 (and PCIe x16 2nd Gen)

AMD Athlon 64 X2 4600+ Windsor 2.4GHz AM2 65W would save you a few bucks and run your DDR2 800 at spec 800MHz.

With C&Q enabled won't suck that much more power

Hmm. Well, how much of a step down is the 2100 as opposed to the 3200 igp on the two different boards? Part of the appeal of 780G was its superior graphics chipset.

 

[nerp]

Well, I bit the bullet and bought what's in that updated wish list. I think for the price, it's a damn fine office machine with a huge upgrade potential in the future. This could be migrated into an HTPC role or used as an upgrade for my girlfriend's aging Barton 3200+ when I move on from this job.

Now I just need to know if this PSU is any good. Are there any small form factor PSUs out there with 80 Plus certification?

 

[Winterpool]

I don't have much experience with small form-factor systems, but apparently your case uses a 'Flex' power supply, and Silent PC Review did cover this '80 Plus' Sparkle power supply last year. But it's only 220 W. Theoretically your system would only use about 100 W most of the time, but I suspect 220 W might prove too confining.

I don't seem to be able to find any Flex power supplies on Newegg available outside a case.

 

[AmdInside]

Given you would still need to purchase a DVD drive, hard drive, keyboard,mouse, Windows copy, would it have been cheaper to just buy a cheap OEM system, especially since it is for office use?

 

[nerp]

Originally posted by: AmdInside
Given you would still need to purchase a DVD drive, hard drive, keyboard,mouse, Windows copy, would it have been cheaper to just buy a cheap OEM system, especially since it is for office use?

Already have all those components. I also have a spare copy of Vista. I realize that if I had to buy _everything_ it would cost more, but I could probably have gone on the cheap with that and gotten a 160GB HD for $35 or so, kb/mouse for $20 locally ($9 shipping for a $9 keyboard on newegg isn't worth it) and a DVD burner for $20. Total cost would have been just over $300 not counting the Vista license. I see your point.

 

[Zepper]

Seasonic has a TFX that is 80+ and Enhance has a couple of Flex size that are also 80+. You'll have to find out the exact measurements of the OEM PSU to see which one will fit. The mounting screw pattern may also be important. There are cases just a bit (an inch or so) taller than the one you bought which would give much more options in a replacement PSU. Always wise to avoid weird form-factor PSUs whenever possible.

.bh.

 

[Zepper]

Seasonic has a TFX that is 80+ and Enhance has a couple of Flex size that are also 80+. You'll have to find out the exact measurements of the OEM PSU to see which one will fit. The mounting screw pattern may also be important. There are cases just a bit (an inch or so) taller than the one you bought which would give much more options in a replacement PSU. Always wise to avoid weird form-factor PSUs whenever possible. Those companies make 80+ PSUs in weird form factors - finding a place to actually BUY one is another story... eWiz stocks some Enhance as does Directron, lots of places stock Seasonic, but those particular models???

.bh.

 

[nerp]

Thanks for the information, Zepper. I guess buying a case like this poses interesting issues in terms of PSU options. I'll pull the unit out at some point and do some measuring. Maybe I'll take some pics and post them here for you guys to dissect and tell me what you know about it. It's surprisingly solid and seems well made. I'm beginning to wonder if an 80-plus model would be all that much more efficient. I do think that I should buy a unit that fits properly just as a backup in the event that I encounter a blown PSU while I'm on deadline. This is a work machine, after all.

In any case, all the parts have arrived and I got the machine off the ground today. It's a lovely little unit. The case is surprisingly sturdy and well made. Whoever Rosewill contracted for this one did a fine job. The construction is very solid and pieces slide and snap into place with firmness and a sense of quality. Everything fit nicely and with some room to spare. The old Seagate 7200.10 isn't one of the newer slim types and I had to put it in the 3.5 inch floppy bay. The internal bay seems designed for smaller drives.

The top exhaust fan included with the case is quite loud. I ended up disconnecting it because of the already super-low temps I'm seeing. The CPU and board don't seem to generate much heat at all. I might replace the fan with a low rpm or quiet model at some point.

The case is a bit longer that I expected. It's still quite slim and pretty slick looking.

The chipset/cpu combo is really impressive. I haven't yet fired up CS:S so I can't say how it rates for basic gaming, yet, but in terms of Vista and getting my basic work apps installed and instaling the slew of updates, I'm really impressed.