build cheapo computer

trekkie · **Posted:** August 17th, 2012, 6:03 pm

My dad has finally agreed to build him a new computer.
So i'm not looking for a super computer from the future, I just want a computer that can stream his movies well.

my budget is between 450- 600. probably 2 harddrives so i can back up stuff. going to need a case as well, OS i'm good i have the disk.

I just need the hardware so thanks guys for any help.

Adbot · **Posted:** August 17th, 2012, 6:03 pm

KefkaticFanatic · **Posted:** August 18th, 2012, 12:13 am

Do you need a new monitor? Cause that would jack the price up by about $130.

Otherwise:

CPU: Intel i5 3550 - $210 (don't be a fool and buy garbage AMD product... you will regret it)
Mobo: ASRock Pro3 - $95 (Most well reviewed motherboards are fine... this is the first I looked at and it has plenty of good reviews with a low price)
RAM: 8GB - $45 (Any well-rated brand will do, they're all around the same price and performance)
GPU: None, ivybridge graphics should do just fine for non-gaming use, and even work for light gaming.
HDD: 2x WD Caviar Blue 500GB - $120 ($60 each... these are STILL crazy expensive from that flooding and won't be doing down for another few years...)
Case: Antec Three Hundred - $55

Total: $525

+ monitor
Samsung 19.5" - $130 at costco, slightly more elsewhere

Total: ~$660

trekkie · **Posted:** August 18th, 2012, 8:48 am

don't need a monitor. i just require items for the tower.

Bonsai99 · **Posted:** August 18th, 2012, 9:39 am

KefkaticFanatic wrote:

don't be a fool and buy garbage AMD product... you will regret it

AMD isn't garbage at all for budget builds...

Ranging God · **Posted:** August 18th, 2012, 11:58 am

Bonsai99 wrote:

KefkaticFanatic wrote:

don't be a fool and buy garbage AMD product... you will regret it

AMD isn't garbage at all for budget builds...

They are really good for budget actually... I would suggest the 3rd gen i5's for their CPU/GPU ability.

KefkaticFanatic · **Posted:** August 18th, 2012, 12:45 pm

AMD perform significantly worse than Intel processors in every way, and the only thing they even perform decent in is gaming. You will get much more mileage out of an Intel CPU. And that i5 I posted was Ivybridge..

Adbot · **Posted:** August 18th, 2012, 12:45 pm

Ranging God · **Posted:** August 18th, 2012, 1:11 pm

KefkaticFanatic wrote:

AMD perform significantly worse than Intel processors in every way, and the only thing they even perform decent in is gaming. You will get much more mileage out of an Intel CPU. And that i5 I posted was Ivybridge..

Not true. If I were to get a CPU $100 or less, it would be AMD...
Also - http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu_value_available.html

I compare all my CPU's on there, lower/mid range AMD's are also cheaper than the counter Intel chip.

KefkaticFanatic · **Posted:** August 18th, 2012, 2:29 pm

In actual use, not meaningless benchmarks....

It's well known that AMD is a cheapo 2nd rate brand.

trekkie · **Posted:** August 18th, 2012, 4:54 pm

I was hoping to get a dedicated video card. at least in the future i can upgrade it if i must.

KefkaticFanatic · **Posted:** August 18th, 2012, 9:05 pm

What would the video card be used for? The integrated Ivybridge graphics are more than enough for lightweight use like streaming HD video and photoshop. There are some low end cards you could go for but if he's not going to be playing games or anything then I don't see any reason to spend the extra ~$100-200

trekkie · **Posted:** August 18th, 2012, 10:00 pm

i want to downgrade the cpu to an i3, and put in a dedicated one. this way in the future when i want to swap out a part, i don't have to all into it.

morumska · **Posted:** August 19th, 2012, 3:39 am

my other cheapo computer i bought/built for my mother use's an i3 and that's plenty for cpu power , ram wise stay above 2gb ram with win7 and beyond ( ram is cheap anyways).
oh i added a ok graphic's card and i could play arma 2 on normal which is not bad.

*edit also put in what paul suggested secunia as the old noobie always fail to update crap lol

KefkaticFanatic · **Posted:** August 19th, 2012, 7:22 am

In that case you'll just want to follow this guide depending on what you want to spend:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gam ... ard-review,3107.html

Ranging God · **Posted:** August 19th, 2012, 8:52 am

trekkie wrote:

i want to downgrade the cpu to an i3, and put in a dedicated one. this way in the future when i want to swap out a part, i don't have to all into it.

I wouldn't suggest that.. Get the i5 (IvyBridge) then if you NEED to you can get it a GPU in the future. Really, the IvyBridge GPU aspect works pretty **** well.

trekkie · **Posted:** August 20th, 2012, 12:49 am

well then.... i wonder if i can persuade him... to spent a little more so i can do medium gaming on it

but for now, let me stay on budget.