Anyone fancy speccing me a non-gaming machine?

[Gray]

Hi,

Budget around £400.

Not to be used for gaming but I want it future proof-ish. Something like:

3GHz cpu
4GHz RAM
500GB hard disk
DVD rewriter
22" monitor
About 6 USB ports on mobo (or maybe just 4 on mobo, 2 on case)
Nice compact case, not a big one
Don't need an OS

Is it doable?

 

[PhoenixUK]

4Ghz RAM? , you'll have to wait a few years yet for that !

What the rig will be mainly for ? Just basic use?
Isn't your current rig fast enough for that?

Trust me, YT videos aint gonna look any better on quad than on your dual.

 

[R088ieS86]

Intel Route:

Iiyama ProLite E2208HDD 22" Widescreen LCD Monitor - Black £114.99
(£97.86) £114.99
(£97.86)
Intel Core i3 540 3.06GHz (Clarkdale) (Socket LGA1156) - Retail £85.99
(£73.18) £85.99
(£73.18)
OCZ Gold 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 1333MHz Low-Voltage Dual Channel (OCZ3G1333LV4GK) £58.74
(£49.99) £58.74
(£49.99)
ASRock H55M-LE Intel H55 (Socket 1156) DDR3 microATX Motherboard £55.21
(£46.99) £55.21
(£46.99)
Samsung EcoGreen F2 500GB SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM (HD502HI) £29.99
(£25.52) £29.99
(£25.52)
OCUK EZCool NA-705 Case - Black (500w PSU) £21.98
(£18.71) £21.98
(£18.71)
LiteOn IHAS124 - DVD±RW (±R DL) / DVD-RAM drive - Serial ATA - 48x (CD) / 16x (DVD) 48x (CD) / 24x (DVD±R) /12x (DVD±R DL) 32x (CD) / 6x (DVD-RW) / 8x (DVD+RW) / 12x (DVD-RAM) - Internal - Black £12.91
(£10.99) £12.91
(£10.99)
Sub Total : £323.24
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £11.75
VAT is being charged at 17.50% VAT : £58.62
Total : £393.61

AMD Route:

Iiyama ProLite E2208HDD 22" Widescreen LCD Monitor - Black £114.99
(£97.86) £114.99
(£97.86)
OCZ Gold 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 PC3-10666C9 1333MHz Low-Voltage Dual Channel (OCZ3G1333LV4GK) £58.74
(£49.99) £58.74
(£49.99)
Asus M4A78LT-M 760G (Socket AM3) DDR3 Motherboard £48.99
(£41.69) £48.99
(£41.69)
AMD Athlon II X2 Dual Core 250 3.00GHz (Socket AM3) - Retail £41.99
(£35.74) £41.99
(£35.74)
HIS ATI Radeon HD 5450 1024MB GDDR3 SILENT Low Profile PCI-Express Graphics Card (H545HR1G) £41.11
(£34.99) £41.11
(£34.99)
Samsung EcoGreen F2 500GB SATA-II 16MB Cache - OEM (HD502HI) £29.99
(£25.52) £29.99
(£25.52)
OCUK EZCool NA-705 Case - Black (500w PSU) £21.98
(£18.71) £21.98
(£18.71)
LiteOn IHAS124 - DVD±RW (±R DL) / DVD-RAM drive - Serial ATA - 48x (CD) / 16x (DVD) 48x (CD) / 24x (DVD±R) /12x (DVD±R DL) 32x (CD) / 6x (DVD-RW) / 8x (DVD+RW) / 12x (DVD-RAM) - Internal - Black £12.91
(£10.99) £12.91
(£10.99)
Sub Total : £315.49
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £11.75
VAT is being charged at 17.50% VAT : £57.27
Total : £384.51

I stuck the Grpahics card in the AMD one because the next wave of internet browsers are going to use (apparently) GPUs to render graphics. Should ease the load on the CPU.

 

[rchads89]

If its for general use i would count intel out and just get a good budget amd machine as above

 

[PhoenixUK]

Why would you put GPU on AMD setup and not Intel setup?
The AM3 chipset HD4200/4290 is BETTER than the i3 inbuilt GPU.

I don't see any reason why it wouldn't handle browsers if it can handle games on low res just fine.

Also this GPU isn't much better than the onboard one so no point in buying it ( it's only there for people which don't have onboard GPU or want eyefinity ).

I wouldn't use eco drive as main HDD, even if it's for basic use.
Also swap the x2 250 for x3 440/445, it's only around tenner extra and you get up to 50% more performance.

 

[R088ieS86]

The F2 drive is actually quite a nice drive. i have one on my media PC and its quiet and doesn't feel sluggish at all. If you don't need to worry about boot or load times it won't cause you any problem at all.
I didn't include a GPU because it would have stuck him even further over budget than i already went.
Also the i3 out performs the X2 in everyway and beats the X3s in almost all tests as well so any boost you can give the system would be welcome.

It was only a guide to what the OP could get. To answer their question: it is possible.

 

[angela]

Hi,

Budget around £400.

Not to be used for gaming but I want it future proof-ish. Something like:

3GHz cpu
4GB RAM -- !!!
500GB hard disk
DVD rewriter
22" monitor
About 6 USB ports on mobo (or maybe just 4 on mobo, 2 on case)
Nice compact case, not a big one
Don't need an OS

Is it doable?

Hi, if you need simply good machine, no point for new i3/i5/i7 builds!

as to 3GHZ CPU, it's not always up to GHZ, but chip itself, for example 3ghz P4 will be slower than E8500 2GHZ!

-Get LGA775 build: E8400/E8500/Q9550 GPU (I believe E8400 will be more then enough for you)

-500GB WD Black HHH

-Good motherboar: something like Asus P5Q series (with OC ability)

-I'd stretch little bit and get 24" monitor : http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MO-001-HG&groupid=17&catid=1120&subcat=

sometimes this monitor is £120 on special!

-any DVD-Rom with light scribe

 

[Gray]

Whoops! It isn't for me, it's for my mate's Dad. I've built loads over the years, but this year has been a real quiet one for PC builds, and stuff moves so quick. I know you guys here keep on track of all the latest gear so I thought who better to ask?

 

[Lemin]

Primo Drone" AMD Athlon II X2 Dual Core 250 3.00GHz DDR3 System
This Week Only Offer
was £255.37 inc VAT
£235.38 inc VAT
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=FS-265-OK&groupid=43&catid=1078&subcat=

He will get a 1y warranty from OCUK for this & oldies like warrantys