Author Topic: PC Project  (Read 52937 times)

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Offline cospringswx

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PC Project
« on: September 05, 2012, 12:24:10 PM »
Going to build a PC and was wondering what are some good components. Not into gaming so don't need anything that would support that but I want something decent. CPU , graphics card, hard drive, cd/DVD drive, PSU, sound card. What do you recommend in my situation?Going to buy from either Newegg or Tiger Direct.

Thanks
Ryan.




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Offline SLOweather

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #1 on: September 05, 2012, 04:01:55 PM »
What are your intentions? If you want to learn how a computer goes together, go for it.

If you just want a computer, it's probably cheaper and easier in the long run to buy one off the shelf, especially if you are buying a Windows OS at retail. The one you build will have one person available for warranty and tech support. You.

I work for an IT company as Chief of Operations, working my way up from tech through Director of IT. The only computers we build anymore are some servers.
« Last Edit: September 05, 2012, 04:22:29 PM by SLOweather »

Offline SLOweather

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #2 on: September 05, 2012, 04:50:27 PM »
Yeah, that'll be a nice machine. The only thing missing is an OS. With that much RAM, make sure you get a 64 bit OS.

Offline cospringswx

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #3 on: September 05, 2012, 04:52:12 PM »
Win 7 64 bit!!!




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Offline cospringswx

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #4 on: September 05, 2012, 06:42:40 PM »
What are you going to use it for? If you really need that much power you should probably include a graphics card.

Going to use it just for whatever. It's going to be my main PC in the living room. Later down the road I'll invest in a graphics card but the one provided will suit my needs just fine. Correct?




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Offline cospringswx

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #5 on: September 05, 2012, 08:42:09 PM »
It's not listed. It's built in.

Video Video Chipset IntelŪ HD Graphics (CPU
embedded)
« Last Edit: September 05, 2012, 08:45:56 PM by hayskswx »




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Offline Bushman

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #6 on: September 05, 2012, 10:00:46 PM »
Don't go with built in video!  Get a decent  card.
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Offline C5250

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #7 on: September 05, 2012, 10:12:55 PM »
Video Video Chipset IntelŪ HD Graphics (CPU embedded)

Intel Graphics can be problematic. Frankly, I would not consider anything from Tigerdirect for anything but something to be used occasionally. The parts included are typically at the bottom end of consumer grade.
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Offline cospringswx

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #8 on: September 05, 2012, 11:34:35 PM »
Video Video Chipset IntelŪ HD Graphics (CPU embedded)

Intel Graphics can be problematic. Frankly, I would not consider anything from Tigerdirect for anything but something to be used occasionally. The parts included are typically at the bottom end of consumer grade.

They have the same products at newegg.  So I will be better off getting everything separate rather than a bundle?
« Last Edit: September 05, 2012, 11:36:55 PM by hayskswx »




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Offline Bushman

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #9 on: September 06, 2012, 12:05:21 AM »
Video Video Chipset IntelŪ HD Graphics (CPU embedded)

Intel Graphics can be problematic. Frankly, I would not consider anything from Tigerdirect for anything but something to be used occasionally. The parts included are typically at the bottom end of consumer grade.
+1 - daughter's laptop has Intel graphics.  PITA
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Offline C5250

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #10 on: September 06, 2012, 12:34:17 AM »
So I will be better off getting everything separate rather than a bundle?

That depends on what you want/expect. For a system I expect to depend upon, no bundle will cut it, but my standards are high. It will also cost more to meet my standard. For a system I expect to depend upon, my current specs are a Supermicro MB, PCP&C PSU, Hitachi harddrive(s) and the tricky part is then who makes good memory for it. Teac, or rebranded Teac CD/DVD drives have been the most reliable in my experience.

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Offline cospringswx

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #11 on: September 06, 2012, 02:27:17 AM »
Video Video Chipset IntelŪ HD Graphics (CPU embedded)

Intel Graphics can be problematic. Frankly, I would not consider anything from Tigerdirect for anything but something to be used occasionally. The parts included are typically at the bottom end of consumer grade.
+1 - daughter's laptop has Intel graphics.  PITA

Thanks for letting me know about the graphics. Decided to buy everything separate and stay away from the bundles.  Guess I'll search on newegg to find parts that's compatible.




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Offline W3DRM

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #12 on: September 06, 2012, 11:02:14 AM »
Newegg has a video tutorial (in three parts) that walks you through the process from selecting the right components to selecting the software and final assembly. Lengthy but may be useful if you haven't done this previously.


You can also just Google "build your own computer" to get tons of links and suggestions too...

BTW, my grandson (17 at the time) designed and built his own pc using newegg. He wanted a gaming machine and it simply screams. I don't remember what kind of components he used as it was a year or two ago. Things have changed a lot since then.

Good luck and let us know how your system comes out.

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Offline cospringswx

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #13 on: September 06, 2012, 01:14:03 PM »
My big decision is Intel or AMD? Suggestions?




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Offline William Grimsley

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #14 on: September 06, 2012, 01:34:33 PM »
Hi hays,

I have a gaming computer for my Flight Simulator X! Which also runs my weather station.

My specs are:

Core i7 950 @ 3.2 Ghz
6GB RAM
ATI Radeon 5770 HD Graphics Card
Air Cooling
Windows 7 64-bit

So that should get you a nice powerful computer :)

Thanks

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Offline vreihen

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #15 on: September 06, 2012, 01:51:02 PM »
If you are building from parts and don't need a lot of disk storage, my $0.02 is to go SSD in place of a rotating hard disk.  I have one in my 4-year-old home notebook, and have to fight the urge to put my fist through the screen of my brand new office notebook with a 7200 RPM hard drive because it is so slow.....
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Offline Cienega32

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #16 on: September 09, 2012, 02:12:56 PM »
I would suggest the SSD for the system and a spinner for the rest.

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Offline Lefty

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #17 on: September 11, 2012, 10:35:54 AM »
My big decision is Intel or AMD? Suggestions?

Depends upon your budget and performance requirements. Here's my general rule:

Performance: Intel Core i7 9xx
Budget: Intel Core i5 or AMD Phenom

When I built my system a couple years ago, I went with AMD since the i7's were insanely expensive and the Phenoms were the next-best processor at a MUCH lower price. I think these days, the i5s and Phenoms are roughly the same price (it's been a while since I've looked at processor prices). Also, spend some time learning about the different motherboards. There are vast differences between different mobo's that are designed to support a given processor type.

Also agree that you should forget the on-board graphics and go with a separate board. You have the option of going cheap\reliable to crazy-fast and expensive.

And I agree with Pat, be sure to go SSD for the boot drive. The boot speeds will amaze you and they are roughly the price of a good hard drive these days.
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Offline cospringswx

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #18 on: September 11, 2012, 01:08:21 PM »
 Here is what I decided on...

Intel Core i5-3550 Ivy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo) LGA 1155 77W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 2500 BX80637I53550

Corsair Carbide Series 500R White Steel structure with molded ABS plastic accent pieces ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

GIGABYTE GA-Z77MX-D3H LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard

Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-bit - OEM

CORSAIR Builder Series CX600 V2 600W ATX12V v2.3 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply

G.SKILL Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-1600C9D-8GAB

LITE-ON Black 18X DVD-ROM 48X CD-ROM SATA DVD-ROM Drive Model iHDS118-04 - OEM

LG DVD Burner 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM Black SATA Model GH24NS90 - OEM

APEVIA Model CVTCSPK 2" Case speaker cable for computer cases that connects to the motherboard

 Western Digital AV-GP WD10EUCX 1TB IntelliPower 16MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive - OEM

 Crucial M4 CT128M4SSD2 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)



 




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Offline Lefty

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #19 on: September 11, 2012, 01:40:25 PM »
Looking good ! I think you'll like the i5 processor with that RAM and SSD.

Two things that came to mind, tho:

What are you doing about cooling that processor ? You may want to consider upgrading from the stock cooler as it is "adequate" at best. You can get some pretty nice processor coolers at decent prices these days ($25 - $50).

Also, are you sure your mobo doesn't already have a speaker or other hardware interface on it ? That case speaker cable just does the hardware\POST beeps. I've been overclocking my processor for years and have never felt the need to have the speaker, but my mobo (MSI) does have a little LED light that signals what is happening during POST\boot.
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Offline cospringswx

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #20 on: September 11, 2012, 02:07:33 PM »
My mobo doesn't come with that speaker the main reason why I got it is mainly for the test boot. You know the old screwdriver method. So I will load win 7 on the SSD and use the WD 1tb for storage. No plans on oc as I think the stock CPU fan will be fine . Going to build this weekend. All parts are coming in tomorrow. I'll post pics off the build. Google my case. Corsair carbide series 500r. Great case with excellent cable management.
« Last Edit: February 24, 2014, 09:36:32 PM by hayskswx »




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Offline C5250

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #21 on: September 11, 2012, 11:32:43 PM »
Current AMD coolers seem to be OK, the stock cooler on my 6 core Phenom has been adequate, although noisy. I found the the stock cooler for my Core2Quad to be far from so. I was often getting overtemp alarms for awhile, even when it was doing virtually nothing, until I replaced the stock cooler with a Xigmatek cooler.



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Offline cospringswx

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #22 on: September 12, 2012, 01:03:07 AM »
Current AMD coolers seem to be OK, the stock cooler on my 6 core Phenom has been adequate, although noisy. I found the the stock cooler for my Core2Quad to be far from so. I was often getting overtemp alarms for awhile, even when it was doing virtually nothing, until I replaced the stock cooler with a Xigmatek cooler.





What about Intel? The one I'm getting is Intel Core i5-3550 Ivy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo) LGA 1155 77W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 2500 BX80637I53550




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Offline Lefty

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #23 on: September 12, 2012, 09:42:51 AM »
Current AMD coolers seem to be OK, the stock cooler on my 6 core Phenom has been adequate, although noisy. I found the the stock cooler for my Core2Quad to be far from so. I was often getting overtemp alarms for awhile, even when it was doing virtually nothing, until I replaced the stock cooler with a Xigmatek cooler.





What about Intel? The one I'm getting is Intel Core i5-3550 Ivy Bridge 3.3GHz (3.7GHz Turbo) LGA 1155 77W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 2500 BX80637I53550

That's what a Core2 is. Although the i5 is a completely different beast than the Core2, so I suspect you'll end up with a different CPU cooler. You can always start off using the stock Intel cooler and if you start running into overheating issues, upgrade to a better cooler at a later time.
« Last Edit: September 12, 2012, 09:46:49 AM by Lefty »
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Offline cospringswx

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Re: PC Project
« Reply #24 on: September 12, 2012, 11:00:17 AM »
That's my plan




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