Build Recommendation for Father-in-Law

[Clocker]

Time to build my father-in-law a new machine. I'm looking for some advice! He'll be running my old (legit) WinXP license since I have finally jumped to 64-bit Vista Ultimate (hey it works fine for me since I don't have time to really do serious computing anymore ).

I have 2x1GB of DDR2800 I plan on letting him have.

He will NEVER be gaming. This needs to be just a quiet and reliable machine for office apps and web browsing. He's using a 19" LCD with wireless logitech mouse and keyboard. Plextor PATA burner.

If there are any no-brainer no-vcore tweaking required overclocks out there I would like to have that option but I don't plan on OCing from the get-go. I'd like the machine to have enough guts to nicely run Vista with Aero .....if he ever does decide to transition away from WinXP.

Nothing high end, I would call this a budget Vista capable build but with an emphasis on quality parts.

Thanks,
C

 

[Will Rickards]

mac mini?

 

[Bozo]

Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L $89.99
Intel Celeron E1200 1.6GHz 512KB L2 Cache LGA 775 65W Dual-Core Processor $49.99
MSI RX1550-TD128EH Radeon X1550 $26.99
WD800JD $40.99

Bozo :joker:

 

[Stereodude]

Was that the sub $250 build parts list?

 

[ddrueding]

Other than the WD drive and the proc, Bozo's list looks pretty good.

The faster-clocked single-core will likely do better for a basic user (35W!)

Samsung makes a much faster drive (16MB cache, higher density) for $20 more.

 

[Clocker]

I need a quality case too.

Thanks!

C

 

[ddrueding]

Antec NSK6500 w PS

 

[Stereodude]

The faster-clocked single-core will likely do better for a basic user (35W!)

I don't know about that... After having used a machine with hyperthreading way back in the day (when it first came out) I've never happily gone back to a single core machine, even for very casual use. Hypertheaded machines and later the dual core machines are just much more snappy even for the casual non power user.

 

[Bozo]

I need a quality case too.

Thanks! C

Antec Minuete 350

Bozo :joker:

 

[Bozo]

I don't know about that... After having used a machine with hyperthreading way back in the day (when it first came out) I've never happily gone back to a single core machine, even for very casual use. Hypertheaded machines and later the dual core machines are just much more snappy even for the casual non power user.

Agreed! Dual cores are the way to go. Moving between a P4 3 GHz with hyper threading and a Core-2 Duo is like night and day. It might have something to do with the archecture, along with dual cores, but the dual cores are much quicker in day to day use.

Bozo :joker:

 

[ddrueding]

I suspect the architecture has more to do with it, Bozo. Even going from a higher-clocked A64 X2 to a C2D made for a snappier experience. I've been keeping my task scheduler on my second monitor for about a month now, just seeing what uses more cores and what doesn't. 99% of the time, those cores are idle. Even while launching apps and having multiple apps open, it is very unusual to see a blip on more than one CPU.

 

[mubs]

That's weird. Even if the app is multi-core unaware, Windows is supposed to utilize available processors / cores to run apps. No matter what MS says, perhaps XP is unable to utilize more than two processors / cores.

 

[Stereodude]

The key is that while an app or task might be pegging a single core momentarily the other core is free to keep doing what you're doing, so you don't get the momentary pauses or freezes that a single core machine delivers. I loved that about my P4 with Hypertheading. Obviously the dual and quad core machines of today are even better at it than the P4 with HT was, but it got me hooked.

 

[Bozo]

Antec Minuete 350

Bozo :joker:

Opps...That is for a micro atx motherboard.

Bozo :joker:

 

[Fushigi]

Antec NSK6500 w PS

I'm using this for my main PC. Works well. The only issue I had was when I replaced the PSU. Due to the large CPU heatsink I am using I had to dismount the motherboard to make room for the PSU to maneuver out of the case. It would have been nicer if the support crossbar was hinged/removable.

My other nit is common to many cases, which is that the front panel jack pack (USB etc.) should be closer to the top as the ports are too close to the floor. After all, comparatively few mid-tower systems reside on top of a desk.

BTW I replaced the PSU with a higher capacity unit as my new 3870 video card recommended a 450W minimum. The supplied 430W unit never failed and I would have considered sticking with it if I wasn't maxing my power consumption all the time by Folding on both the C2Q and the 3870.

 

[Bozo]

The last build I did, I used an Antek NSK4480B. The power supply comes out the top of the case.
http://www.antec.com/us/productDetails.php?ProdID=94002#

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129032

Bozo :joker:

 

[paugie]

the last thing I built for a client was:

Intel E2180 dual core
MSI 945GCM7F motherboard w/ on-board everything
Samsung 160Gb (8mb cache)
Samsung 20X SATA DVD writer w/ lightscribe (there was no non-lightscribe available)
2 Gb PQI DDR2-800
Generic 450W PSU on Generic Casing

It cost less than $250. It is earmarked for office use and is so much faster than the older Sempron 2600 S-754 256mb they are using and are still happy with. Of course it helps that they are on Win2K. This will replace P2-400 machines they got from Germany.

 

[ddrueding]

The last build I did, I used an Antek NSK4480B. The power supply comes out the top of the case.
http://www.antec.com/us/productDetails.php?ProdID=94002#

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129032

Bozo :joker:

That looks like a good layout.

 

[Clocker]

That is a nice case but I don't think my father-in-law will digg having a door.

I definitely think I will go with a dual core CPU. I'm having a hard time going for the lowest of the low Celeron. Maybe an E2160 instead. I'm still up in the air for a case. That Antec NSK6500 looks like a nice deal as it includes a PSU. Maybe I'll see what is on the shelf at Microcenter.

Now....a nice passively cooled graphics card... hmmm.

 

[ddrueding]

Gigabyte 8500GT w/512MB?

 

[Clocker]

Seems like a decent case for the $:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147030

 

[Clocker]

Gigabyte 8500GT w/512MB?

You hit on one of my selections. I'm not sure if I should be hung up on getting a 128-bit card though. There are a lot of passively cooled 64-bit cards to choose from.... Here's another one I was looking at:

http://www.newegg.com/product/product.aspx?item=N82E16814102080

 

[ddrueding]

That card is several generations older, and doesn't support DX10. Not that that matters much, but I would choose the faster card if Aero is in it's future.

 

[Clocker]

I'm thinking this is what I might go for. I'm going to just give my father-in-law an old X300 PCI-E video card I have in addition to the 2GB DDR2-800. Hopefully, I can find a better price on the case/psu locally:

https://secure.newegg.com/NewVersio...?WishListNumber=7556431&WishListTitle=lugs+pc

 

[Fushigi]

Micro Center is not normally cheaper than Newegg but they have the NSK4480B for $60 + $17 s/h while Newegg wants $100 + $20 s/h.

Clocker, which case were you talking about having a door? Your reply is right below the mention of the NSK4480B but it doesn't have a door covering the drive bays. You mentioned hitting a local Micro Center; you can check out the 4480 there.

 

[Bozo]

Seems like a decent case for the $:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147030

A $49.00 case with power supply. Makes me wonder about the quality of the power supply.
From one of the reveiws: "Cons: Power Supply weighs about half that of a Fortron, Antec Ect... draw your own conclusions"

Bozo :joker:

 

[Fushigi]

Agreed on the bundled PSU/cheap case. Last year I picked up an Ultra case with PSU - 400 or 450W; I don't recall which - and the PSU lasted about a month. It was never overloaded but was just cheap.

Thankfully when it died it didn't take anything with it. Still, I consider myself lucky and take the lesson at face value: don't use a cheap power supply.

 

[Clocker]

Micro Center is not normally cheaper than Newegg but they have the NSK4480B for $60 + $17 s/h while Newegg wants $100 + $20 s/h.

Clocker, which case were you talking about having a door? Your reply is right below the mention of the NSK4480B but it doesn't have a door covering the drive bays. You mentioned hitting a local Micro Center; you can check out the 4480 there.

Mcenter is local for me...

 

[Fushigi]

Ditto; I've one by the office. I stopped by this afternoon & they were out of the 4480s. Makes sense since it's a sale price & the sale ends Sunday.

 

[Clocker]

I ended up getting everything at Microcenter. The E2180 was actually cheaper than newegg and the NSK6580 was cheaper after shipping was accounted for. The motherboard was just about a wash after shipping cost was added. I could not find a really cheap 250GB hard drive there so I got a 320GB for $70.

Decent!

C

 

[ddrueding]

That sounds like a solid office machine. Let us know how the build goes.

 

[Clocker]

Will do. Due to space concerns, I'm probably going to get him an NSK4480B case instead of the NSK6580. I think it's a good deal at $60 with 380W 80+ Earthwatts PSU. It's 1/2 the price of the 6580 too.

HOW DO YOU GUYS LIKE THE NSK4480? Is it pretty quiet?

 

[ddrueding]

dupe

 

[ddrueding]

It is quite standard Antec; it works well. The side panels on most of Antec's cases are a bit on the thin and wobbly side, though. If you stick a piece on Dynamat on the door panel, it should help. Just get the one made for a license plate, that should add enough mass to calm any fan vibrations down.

 

[Bozo]

It is quite standard Antec; it works well. The side panels on most of Antec's cases are a bit on the thin and wobbly side, though. If you stick a piece on Dynamat on the door panel, it should help. Just get the one made for a license plate, that should add enough mass to calm any fan vibrations down.

Ditto: Easy to work on, has the Earthwatts power supply standard. If I remember correctly, the rear fan is a 3 speed unit. If you use an adapter to plug it into the motherboard, set the fan speed to 'high', then the motherboard will control the fan speed. Nice and quiet. (check the BIOS for fan settings)

Bozo :joker:

 

[Clocker]

Thanks for your input guys! The motherboard fits nicely in this thing then? I know on the old man's SLK1600 the lower DVD drive would contact the memory if installed in the lower 5.25" bay (not that that's a big deal I just use the upper bay anyway). Just wondering. Looks like 4480 has the same overall dimensions as the SLK1600.

 

[Clocker]

Ditto: Easy to work on, has the Earthwatts power supply standard. If I remember correctly, the rear fan is a 3 speed unit. If you use an adapter to plug it into the motherboard, set the fan speed to 'high', then the motherboard will control the fan speed. Nice and quiet. (check the BIOS for fan settings)

Bozo :joker:

Nice. I need to check on getting an adapter. I wonder if the 120mm fan will pull too much juice from the motherboard header?

 

[ddrueding]

Nice. I need to check on getting an adapter. I wonder if the 120mm fan will pull too much juice from the motherboard header?

No need to worry about that. The headers are rated quite high; any quiet fan will pull a much smaller amount of power.

 

[Clocker]

Hmm. I think the only fan controlled by the BIOS is the CPU fan. :-(