Low end build advice

[zCypher]

Hello,

I'll be doing a build soon that's replacing a dying laptop. Instead of getting another laptop, they want an actual PC. The usage will be office & accounting software, web and multimedia.

A friend recently built a cheap AMD system. However, after a glance at NCIX I can find plenty of low end Intel chips in the $70-90 range.

Does the AMD X3 450 stack up to the Intel E6700? Both can be had for about CDN$90.
I am hoping to find a mATX MSI or Asus board for this build with 4GB RAM.

Also, what is a decent sound card these days? They really want their PC to serve as a sound system. Is it worth getting an actual sound card?

 

[jamesmcuk]

IMO the on board sound will be good enough unless they have spent 1000's on a high end AMP, speakers, interconnects and cabling.

 

[mnewsham]

Or you are like me and own several pairs of $300+ headphones...

 

[zCypher]

IMO the on board sound will be good enough unless they have spent 1000's on a high end AMP, speakers, interconnects and cabling.

No it would be a simple setup, plug the computer into whatever decent computer speakers can be had.

I have a stupid question about the motherboard. When they say DDR3-1333 (O.C.), does that mean it's overclocking to get 1333 and may not necessarily support any DDR-1333, or does it mean something completely different?

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

The AMD X3 does better in multi threaded tasks but, for "office & accounting software, web and multimedia," the E6700 might have a slight lead. I think it comes down to preference rather than performance at this level.

As far as the sound card goes, are they audiophiles? If not, onboard sound is just fine.

 

[mnewsham]

No it would be a simple setup, plug the computer into whatever decent computer speakers can be had.

I have a stupid question about the motherboard. When they say DDR3-1333 (O.C.), does that mean it's overclocking to get 1333 and may not necessarily support any DDR-1333, or does it mean something completely different?

I think it just means it isn't standard but it is possible.

 

[zCypher]

The AMD X3 does better in multi threaded tasks but, for "office & accounting software, web and multimedia," the E6700 might have a slight lead. I think it comes down to preference rather than performance at this level.

As far as the sound card goes, are they audiophiles? If not, onboard sound is just fine.

I wouldn't say audiophile, but not oblivious to utterly horrible quality either. I guess I'll start them with the integrated (they are coming from a laptop after all) and we'll see from there.

 

[zCypher]

I think it just means it isn't standard but it is possible.

Hmmm. In my own system I went with DDR2-800, but none of the super cheap boards supported DDR3, at least not at the time. Now I am seeing a $60 Asus that does support DDR3 but says (O.C.). The only configurations that don't say that are 667/800 (DDR2). Maybe I should just stick with that to be safe.

 

[DominionSeraph]

Either will do.
DDR3 is $15 cheaper than DDR2 in the States, which is a nod to the AMD.

 

[jamesmcuk]

Or you are like me and own several pairs of $300+ headphones...

Showoff LOL

 

[mnewsham]

Showoff LOL

Lol the girl friend is trying to fix that habit, and I haven't bought a single pair in 4 months

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Hmmm. In my own system I went with DDR2-800, but none of the super cheap boards supported DDR3, at least not at the time. Now I am seeing a $60 Asus that does support DDR3 but says (O.C.). The only configurations that don't say that are 667/800 (DDR2). Maybe I should just stick with that to be safe.

The industry in general is moving towards DDR3 as the "norm." Since they aren't overclocking or benchmarking, the relative speed differences mean zip, zero, nada. Find the cheapest ram on your chosen boards QVL and go with that.

 

[DominionSeraph]

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/ComboDe...t=Combo.581126

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/ComboDe...t=Combo.581135

 

[zCypher]

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/ComboDe...t=Combo.581126

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/ComboDe...t=Combo.581135

Wow that board looks interesting for that price! I don't know about Biostar though, how are they in comparison to Asus and MSI?

About the CPU, am I reading that right? 1.5MB L2 cache? My E5200 only has 2MB of cache if I'm not mistaken. Would this build exhibit some disadvantage with only 1.5MB or would that be negligible?

 

[jamesmcuk]

Lol the girl friend is trying to fix that habit, and I haven't bought a single pair in 4 months

Sorry for the thread hijack OP but is there any you recommend as I have a pair of Ultimate ears 5 "in Ear type" but I doubt they are as good as the over ear types. If you have any recommendations I would love to hear in PM.

thanks

J

 

[DominionSeraph]

Wow that board looks interesting for that price! I don't know about Biostar though, how are they in comparison to Asus and MSI?

Customer reviews are in the same range.

About the CPU, am I reading that right? 1.5MB L2 cache? My E5200 only has 2MB of cache if I'm not mistaken. Would this build exhibit some disadvantage with only 1.5MB or would that be negligible?

1.5MB is fine.
Either any of these processors is going to be overkill. My main rig is a X2 5200+ and it's fast as all hell. These are like 30% faster than that.

Really it's the storage subsystem and crapware that slow down an internet PC.

 

[BoomerD]

Hello,

I'll be doing a build soon that's replacing a dying laptop. Instead of getting another laptop, they want an actual PC. The usage will be office & accounting software, web and multimedia.

A friend recently built a cheap AMD system. However, after a glance at NCIX I can find plenty of low end Intel chips in the $70-90 range.

Does the AMD X3 450 stack up to the Intel E6700? Both can be had for about CDN$90.
I am hoping to find a mATX MSI or Asus board for this build with 4GB RAM.

Also, what is a decent sound card these days? They really want their PC to serve as a sound system. Is it worth getting an actual sound card?

I don't see the e6700 in the benchmark comparisons, but the Athlon II 450 does quite a bit better than the e6750:

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/189?vs=60

 

[zCypher]

I don't see the e6700 in the benchmark comparisons, but the Athlon II 450 does quite a bit better than the e6750:

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/189?vs=60

Ah, that's interesting. The E6700 at NCIX is 3.2GHz though, the AnandTech article shows a 2.66GHz E6750. That's a bit strange.

 

[zCypher]

Ok here's my list so far, pricematched at NCIX using Shopbot.ca to find the lowest prices.

$164.99 - Samsung E2320X
$59.99 - NZXT Beta Evo Mid Tower
$94.99 - Corsair TX750W
$46.99 - Gigabyte GA-M68MT-D3
$68.87 - AMD Athlon II X2 250
$54.99 - Corsair 4GB DDR3 (CMZ4GX3M1A1600C9)
$79.99 - Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 7200rpm 64MB

Total of $570.81. What do you think so far? I still have to find them some speakers.

 

[mnewsham]

Ok here's my list so far, pricematched at NCIX using Shopbot.ca to find the lowest prices.

$164.99 - Samsung E2320X
$59.99 - NZXT Beta Evo Mid Tower
$94.99 - Corsair TX750W
$46.99 - Gigabyte GA-M68MT-D3
$68.87 - AMD Athlon II X2 250
$54.99 - Corsair 4GB DDR3 (CMZ4GX3M1A1600C9)
$79.99 - Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 7200rpm 64MB

Total of $570.81. What do you think so far? I still have to find them some speakers.

PSU should be 400 watt max

 

[jamesmcuk]

PSU should be 400 watt max

Just a question and I am not contradicting you in anyway but why would you not get a PSU with good capacity (more than you need) in case you add more drive or bigger GPU's in the future. I mean the price difference is small.

 

[BoomerD]

Just a question and I am not contradicting you in anyway but why would you not get a PSU with good capacity (more than you need) in case you add more drive or bigger GPU's in the future. I mean the price difference is small.

With good quality PSU's the only reason would be the initial purchase price. However, many PSU's, even some of the better ones, aren't very efficient at lower loads.

 

[Davidh373]

$164.99 - Samsung E2320X
$59.99 - NZXT Beta Evo Mid Tower
$94.99 - Corsair TX750W
$46.99 - Gigabyte GA-M68MT-D3
$68.87 - AMD Athlon II X2 250
$54.99 - Corsair 4GB DDR3 (CMZ4GX3M1A1600C9)
$79.99 - Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 7200rpm 64MB

umm... uhh... 750W? Try a 380W for this build

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-033-_-Product

As far as the HDD goes, get them a Samsung F3 1TB. The two drives perform virtually the same and you can save $10 on newegg, or $20 on Amazon.

EDIT: The case is REALLY ugly man... I'd pop the $10-$20 I saved on the HDD for an Antec 300. Turn all the fans down to low and you'll hardly hear it (bonus).

 

[mfenn]

Ok here's my list so far, pricematched at NCIX using Shopbot.ca to find the lowest prices.

$164.99 - Samsung E2320X
$59.99 - NZXT Beta Evo Mid Tower
$94.99 - Corsair TX750W
$46.99 - Gigabyte GA-M68MT-D3
$68.87 - AMD Athlon II X2 250
$54.99 - Corsair 4GB DDR3 (CMZ4GX3M1A1600C9)
$79.99 - Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 7200rpm 64MB

Total of $570.81. What do you think so far? I still have to find them some speakers.

Holy overkill PSU Batman! Get a good quality ~400W like this Silverstone. Also, I would try to get a motherboard with an AMD 880 chipset like the Biostar A880G+ originally recommended.

Just a question and I am not contradicting you in anyway but why would you not get a PSU with good capacity (more than you need) in case you add more drive or bigger GPU's in the future. I mean the price difference is small.

Efficiency, like Boomer said. Also $50 is a significant fraction of a $400 build.

 

[zCypher]

Is the Silverstone of comparable quality to Corsair and Antec?