Building a rig below $400

[GhostWhere29]

building a rig for my father

uses- youtube, facebook games, surfing net.
dont need kb,mouse, monitor,speaker.
casing preferences, not too big. smaller then 18cm(height)
hdd- 500gb, how is seagate hdd?
psu- maybe fsp or cheaper and better brand
ram - 4gb
gpu- on board graphic

anw i have a new window xp professional, stated for distribution with a new Acer pc only, not sure if i can use it for the rig.
feel free for your input, and thanks in advance .

 

[ykgoh]

How about one of the mini-itx system below $400 from MyNextCom?

See: DIY System - mini-ITX - MyNeXTComOnline

But I have serious reservation about using WinXP Pro today. May have trouble with application and driver compatibility going into the future, and no more updates and patches from Microsoft makes it vulnerable to security issues.

 

[royfrosty]

That CD also cannot use. Cause it will install drivers for your PC which imo would not work properly.

$400

Asrock B75M DGS + G1610 ~ $117
ADATA 4gb 1600mhz ram ~ $43
Toshiba 500gb 7200rpm ~ $60
Sharkoon MS 140 ~ $51
HEC 300w True Power ~ $35
Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit OEM ~ $115

Total ~ $421 Can try to bargain down. Buy at tradepac. DIY

 

[GhostWhere29]

That CD also cannot use. Cause it will install drivers for your PC which imo would not work properly.

$400

Asrock B75M DGS + G1610 ~ $117
ADATA 4gb 1600mhz ram ~ $43
Toshiba 500gb 7200rpm ~ $60
Sharkoon MS 140 ~ $51
HEC 300w True Power ~ $35
Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit OEM ~ $115

Total ~ $421 Can try to bargain down. Buy at tradepac. DIY

so cfm cannot use the brand new cd uh. like so wasted . casing wise, he requested me not to have backlit, G1610 and i3/i5 got what difference? lastly what u think about seagate hdd?

 

[ykgoh]

so cfm cannot use the brand new cd uh. like so wasted . casing wise, he requested me not to have backlit, G1610 and i3/i5 got what difference? lastly what u think about seagate hdd?

For casing, maybe can consider Xigmatek Asgard Pro, Xigmatek Helios 232, Cooler Master Elite N200 or Cooler Master Elite 341. Though as matx casings they're all taller than 18cm, reaching between 36 to 40cm.

Correct me if I'm wrong.

• G1610 is dual core, with no hyper-threading. Windows report 2 CPUs.
• i3 is dual core, with hyper-threading. Windows will report 4 CPUs in Task Manager.
• i5 is faster than i3 obviously. Can be dual core or quad core with hyper-threading.

For budget build, the brand of HDD doesn't matter that much. I believe WD, Seagate and Toshiba all perform similarly in terms of speed and reliability.

 

[EatSnakeWarrior]

think can consider amd cpu are they have better on board graphics

 

[SSDLover]

Stay away from amd apu, if not later your father thought inside the com is powered by jet turbine!

 

[MoneyFace =p]

For casing, maybe can consider Xigmatek Asgard Pro, Xigmatek Helios 232, Cooler Master Elite N200 or Cooler Master Elite 341. Though as matx casings they're all taller than 18cm, reaching between 36 to 40cm.

Correct me if I'm wrong.

• G1610 is dual core, with no hyper-threading. Windows report 2 CPUs.
• i3 is dual core, with hyper-threading. Windows will report 4 CPUs in Task Manager.
  [*]i5 is faster than i3 obviously. Can be dual core or quad core with hyper-threading.

For budget build, the brand of HDD doesn't matter that much. I believe WD, Seagate and Toshiba all perform similarly in terms of speed and reliability.

There is no hyperthreading for quad core Core i5, only dual cores have. And it doesn't mean the weakest Core i5 will beat the strongest Core i3, their performance overlaps depending which SKUs are being compared.

Both Seagate and Toshiba are not enjoying great user review for their HDDs.

 

[MoneyFace =p]

think can consider amd cpu are they have better on board graphics

But their CPU performance and power consumption damn cui....

 

[MoneyFace =p]

building a rig for my father

uses- youtube, facebook games, surfing net.
dont need kb,mouse, monitor,speaker.
casing preferences, not too big. smaller then 18cm(height)
hdd- 500gb, how is seagate hdd?
psu- maybe fsp or cheaper and better brand
ram - 4gb
gpu- on board graphic

anw i have a new window xp professional, stated for distribution with a new Acer pc only, not sure if i can use it for the rig.
feel free for your input, and thanks in advance .

Is it supposed to refer to the width and not height? Can we have the dimensions of that PC compartment?

 

[GhostWhere29]

Is it supposed to refer to the width and not height? Can we have the dimensions of that PC compartment?

my apology, < height 38cm, width 18cm

 

[GhostWhere29]

i notice that the casing is more expensive than psu, how about upgrading psu slightly and casing get cheaper one?

 

[Felfirez]

i notice that the casing is more expensive than psu, how about upgrading psu slightly and casing get cheaper one?

That's as good as it gets for your budget. For casing wise, you can just choose some generic $20-$30 case they display on the shelves.

 

[ykgoh]

i notice that the casing is more expensive than psu, how about upgrading psu slightly and casing get cheaper one?

PSU is worth getting a good one. Btw, I think the recommended HEC 300W is decent enough, since your build won't include a high-powered graphics card.

Case-wise, your possible choices will be very limited for casings below $50. However, TradePac lists some unbranded ATX casings for $20, and a micro atx case with PSU for $45. Not sure what you'll get though for that amount of money.

 

[MoneyFace =p]

Your CD most likely is a Windows XP restoration CD with all the Acer's customisation done, but let say if it also do come with an unused COA sticker and product key, you still might have a chance to use it...

 

[GhostWhere29]

That's as good as it gets for your budget. For casing wise, you can just choose some generic $20-$30 case they display on the shelves.

PSU is worth getting a good one. Btw, I think the recommended HEC 300W is decent enough, since your build won't include a high-powered graphics card.

Case-wise, your possible choices will be very limited for casings below $50. However, TradePac lists some unbranded ATX casings for $20, and a micro atx case with PSU for $45. Not sure what you'll get though for that amount of money.

dont get me wrong, i never heard of HEC but since u guy said it decent, i am fine. casing, any good recommendation without backlit, height lesser than 38cm, width roughly about 18cm. imptly the main board and stuff must be able to squeeze in

 

[GhostWhere29]

Your CD most likely is a Windows XP restoration CD with all the Acer's customisation done, but let say if it also do come with an unused COA sticker and product key, you still might have a chance to use it...

it look something like that

http://www.google.com.sg/imgres?client=firefox-a&hs=TFU&sa=X&rls=org.mozilla:en-USfficial&biw=1920&bih=986&tbm=isch&tbnid=Db3tC5zsvXPAKM:&imgrefurl=http://www.ebay.com/itm/Microsoft-Windows-XP-Home-Edition-Version-2002-for-ACER-PC-ONLY-NEW-UNOPENED-/281174952479&docid=NU4W_JzLwHR-DM&itg=1&imgurl=http://i.ebayimg.com/t/Microsoft-Windows-XP-Home-Edition-Version-2002-for-ACER-PC-ONLY-NEW-UNOPENED-/00/s/MTI3MlgxNjAw/z/jfsAAMXQGQRSBkn3/%2524%28KGrHqJHJCYFH2oGe0QpBSBkn3HyVg~~60_35.JPG&w=300&h=238&ei=CFfJUp3CG8GJrQfXvYCYBg&zoom=1&ved=1t:3588,r:28,s:0,i:171&iact=rc&page=1&tbnh=189&tbnw=235&start=0&ndsp=42&tx=137&ty=46

 

[localITguy]

even if it does install, windows xp is about to end its support, so you install also useless. once the support is gone, your Computer will on its on. no patches whatsoever. not safe to use. might as well install Linux or ahem and find the OS

 

[MoneyFace =p]

it look something like that

Google Image Result for http://i.ebayimg.com/t/Microsoft-Windows-XP-Home-Edition-Version-2002-for-ACER-PC-ONLY-NEW-UNOPENED-/00/s/MTI3MlgxNjAw/z/jfsAAMXQGQRSBkn3/%24(KGrHqJHJCYFH2oGe0QpBSBkn3HyVg~~60_35.JPG

Any screenshot of the backing of your own copy?

I would also suggest climbing mountain to 7.....

 

[GhostWhere29]

Any screenshot of the backing of your own copy?

I would also suggest climbing mountain to 7.....

i think the only problem now is u are afraid that i cant do any patches if i am using win xp right, well if its that case, i directly hoot win 7