office i3 vs a10

[Puppies04]

If his gaming requirements are nothing more than baldurs gate then stick with the intel build I can't see any reason to go with AMD on this one as overclocking shouldn't be an option on an office machine and the extra GPU power of the A10 will be irrelevant.

 

[jaydee]

You can get an A8-5600k for $90 on newegg right, the benchmark difference is about 5% for 45% more cost. Plus its still a "k" version, it will probably overclock the same, maybe even better since the GPU is slightly lower clocked, you have a little more thermal headroom.

 

[lxgoldsmith]

gaming on a office computer questionable(both are fine for casual games) but graphics-y stuff and multithreaded/ multitasking stuff, the 5800k? maybe the 5600k is a cheaper, better choice.

So how's this: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/XW21

There will be overclocking, but not right away, I'll be saving that for when it starts to get outdated.

 

[lxgoldsmith]

You can get an A8-5600k for $90 on newegg right, the benchmark difference is about 5% for 45% more cost. Plus its still a "k" version, it will probably overclock the same, maybe even better since the GPU is slightly lower clocked, you have a little more thermal headroom.

could I clock it up to the same performance as the A10 at the same voltage?

 

[monstercameron]

So how's this: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/XVWr

There will be overclocking, but not right away, I'll be saving that for when it starts to get outdated.

haven't built a system in a while
but is this a low budget htpc gaming rig or an office computer?

• down size the ssd to 64GB for bootand programs save some moneys and get a 7200 rpm hdd for files
• go for an a75 based mobo and save a few moneys
• just use the stock cooler and save a few moneys
• you can get windows 8 for $99 on newegg
• why so many case fans?
• maybe a wifi card if you cant get ethernet
• with those savings(dont know if you need it) bu a nice ips monitor

 

[lxgoldsmith]

haven't built a system in a while
but is this a low budget htpc gaming rig or an office computer?

• down size the ssd to 128GB save $50 and get a 7200 rpm hdd
• go for an a75 based mobo and save a few moneys
• just use the stock cooler and save a few moneys
• you can get windows 8 for $99 on newegg
• why so many case fans?
• maybe a wifi card if you cant get ethernet
• with those savings(dont know if you need it) bu a nice ips monitor

Office computer, but I was previously deciding between i3 and A series. and HTPC case is a small form factor that won't look like a glowing gamer's rig at an office.

I have more case fans because I can and I'm adding a dust filter to each, which lowers the air flow, so more fans and a mobo with more chassis fan connectors.

 

[lxgoldsmith]

Second-to final build: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/XWqZ

Small case, no longer HTPC, but still small.

up for review

edit: back to bigger case to ensure cpu fan compatibility

 

[Arkadrel]

@Ixgoldsmith

That looks like a really good build.
I would just say that if its for office use, make sure fans are running at low speeds.

Noise is a big thing for office usage.

 

[monstercameron]

here is my build http://pcpartpicker.com/p/XWmv

 

[frozentundra123456]

It is hard to say for sure but the AMD should perform better against the i3 (all around) in 4 years than it does now. As more and more apps make use of the gpu the overall user experience should improve more with AMD, especially since they are far more likely to keep updating the gpu drivers.

Note that the A8-5600K for $90 beats the i3-3225 on passmark by about 2%. I'm not sure why anyone would be recommending an i3. I once again have to question the motives of some people on here...

Either cpu is fine. A10 has better graphics and the i3 has better single threaded performance.
Opinions can differ. I dont think it is necessary to question the motives of someone whose opinion differs from yours.

 

[Cerb]

It is hard to say for sure but the AMD should perform better against the i3 (all around) in 4 years than it does now. As more and more apps make use of the gpu the overall user experience should improve more with AMD, especially since they are far more likely to keep updating the gpu drivers.

Note that the A8-5600K for $90 beats the i3-3225 on passmark by about 2%. I'm not sure why anyone would be recommending an i3. I once again have to question the motives of some people on here...

It's much better, as a portion of the whole PC's cost, to go with an i3, than to save money with a Pentium. That's the motive.

Nothing an office PC does will get better due to using the GPU more, nor will it make use of all the cores, or threads.

 

[lxgoldsmith]

GTG, bye, gone for the weekend

 

[monstercameron]

It's much better, as a portion of the whole PC's cost, to go with an i3, than to save money with a Pentium. That's the motive.

Nothing an office PC does will get better due to using the GPU more, nor will it make use of all the cores, or threads.

tell that to chrome with 20+ tabs open.

 

[Cerb]

tell that to chrome with 20+ tabs open.

I rarely have less than 5x that open, and while a CPU-hogging tab won't make the whole program unresponsive, typical use is nowhere close to eating up my 2 Conroe cores, including restoring a session. It's a good way to use more HW threads, but it's not going to stress them much.

 

[Hubb1e]

Can I suggest that you go with a 128GB SSD for the OS? Even if you move the desktop and my documents folder to the spinner, your programs and games will install to the SSD by default and that's fine. But 60GB may eventually fill up and since this is not your PC but one that you support, I'd suggest you go with the bigger SSD for safety. You won't be able to check in on this PC constantly to make sure it's administered properly and the last thing you want is to have to make an emergency trip to his office to set it all straight simply because he's run out of space on the SSD. Your build doesn't seem like an extreme budget pick since you're going with a BD player, so this shouldn't stretch it that far. A 128Gb drive isn't that much more than your 60.

 

[bononos]

If his gaming requirements are nothing more than baldurs gate then stick with the intel build I can't see any reason to go with AMD on this one as overclocking shouldn't be an option on an office machine and the extra GPU power of the A10 will be irrelevant.

Intel integrated graphics has problems with opengl so all the old games which use it is off limits. BG EE uses opengl and says that intel integrated graphics is not supported so he has to go with the A10/8.

 

[Torn Mind]

Hmm, Baldur's Gate is a really old game and Lord of Ultima is written in Javascript, a language that doesn't take advantage of multithreading. What other games does he play?

 

[Torn Mind]

tell that to chrome with 20+ tabs open.

Chrome is a RAM hog, first and foremost, and it becomes a disk I/O hog once tabs increase. Up to a certain point, CPU speed will do little to improve Chrome's performance while making sure having enough RAM and getting an SSD will make sure Chrome performs in tip-top shape.

 

[Cerb]

I have more case fans because I can and I'm adding a dust filter to each, which lowers the air flow, so more fans and a mobo with more chassis fan connectors.

http://www.fractal-design.com/?view=product&category=2&prod=114
http://www.fractal-design.com/?view=product&category=2&prod=110
http://www.fractal-design.com/?view=product&category=2&prod=94
http://www.antec.com/product.php?id=704504&fid=6&lan=us
http://www.silverstonetek.com/product.php?pid=314 <- the one I would use, for a tower
I'm sure there are plenty more, these I just know of off the top of my head (I think Bitfenix and Cooler Master make a couple, FI).

Just get them integrated, and either use only intake fans, or make sure the intake fans produce more of the CFM than the exhaust fans (positive air pressure). A decent intake filter, and positive air pressure, will do the job. The filters are only part of the system. If you handle the cooling well, with positive pressure, you won't have nearly the need for dust filters, either, as if you do when just loading up on fans, and it will be quieter all around.

More fans will mean more air moving through the PC, which will not only allow more dust in, but significantly increase the noise level. Been there, done that, just threw out the case (for years, it had been collecting dust).

 

[Maximilian]

I would pick the A10 for better multithreading and better GPU.

But in reality for an office pc, it dosent really matter.

 

[Zap]

I'm not sure why anyone would be recommending an i3.

Sufficient performance. Low power draw either idle or loaded. Stock Intel cooler is better than stock AMD cooler (for actual performance, not mounting).

Second-to final build: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/XWqZ

Small case, no longer HTPC, but still small.

Seems pretty big for a mostly empty box.. How about this?

Silverstone SG05 case with 300W PSU
no additional fans or filters needed because it comes with 120mm fan and filter
lower profile memory
ITX mobo
slim optical drive

 

[Cerb]

For Mini-ITX, Zap's is good ($120 shipped). With lots of gamers around, Silverstone is often overlooked, but they make nice cases, even if they don't look like they came out of a scifi cartoon. Lian-Li makes nice cases for the money too, but their good ones all seem to be huge, for what they are.

 

[lagokc]

he already has a laptop, he plays lord of ultima on it ALL THE TIME.

First, desktops are much easier to upgrade and repair, especially homebuilt ones.

Second, custom build

Third, I need this experience for certain job applications, I'm trying to get a summer job in the computer industry.

Overclocking isn't really something you should put on your resume. Just take the money he would have spent on a desktop and get him a really good 27" monitor and mechanical keyboard for him to dock his laptop into. Then put on your resume you built whatever.

 

[parvadomus]

I would get the A10, there is no point on getting an i3 with inferior graphics for the same price. A10 is slighty slower in single thread benchmarks (i3 does not have turbo, and you can set a higher than stock turbo frequency for A10 @ bios if you want), and better at multi thread tasks.
But seriously for office applications you will never notice the difference between both, and you will have a proper gpu there for when you need it with the A10.

 

[RU482]

lol...overclocking dads office computer. Then you go to college, everything gets clogged with dust, and poof goes your tuition