Building system for Mum & Dad

Bundy · Mar 7, 2008, 03:45 AM

I'd appreciate some feedback on my selections for a new machine for my parents. I've got some difficulties ahead, they are aged 66 and 70, and have never used a computer before. Now they want that broadband thing everyone talks about.....

I was thinking the following
Case: Coolermaster elite + 350W PSU
Ram: Corsair val select PC 5300 2GB
Drive: Samsung HD161Hj 160GB
processor: my current E6320
Screen: AOC 22"with inbuilt speakers
OS: Vista home premium

I have three mobo I'm looking at, all Gigabyte with integrates graphics

GA-31M-S2L
GA-PVM-S2H
GA-G33M-DS2R

What is better, Intel 3100 or Geforce 7100? Will they run a 22"screen? If any games are played, it will be solitare...

Thanks in advance

[I.R.A]_FBi · Mar 7, 2008, 03:54 AM

PSU on the small side ...

Bundy · Mar 7, 2008, 04:18 AM

yes, it's 'economical'. Do you think I should definitely change it?

Paulieg · Mar 7, 2008, 04:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by [I.R.A]_FBi

PSU on the small side ...

I always question the quality of power supplies that come with cases, but a 350w psu will be fine on a budget "mom and dad" rig, with onboard video.

Paulieg · Mar 7, 2008, 04:21 AM

You can always get a psu later, if it does die. Oh, and the Geforce 7100 is better onboard graphics, and will be fine for solitaire on that monitor.

TrainingDummy · Mar 7, 2008, 04:24 AM

Do you think they need 2GB of RAM?

Paulieg · Mar 7, 2008, 04:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TrainingDummy

Do you think they need 2GB of RAM?

The 2GB is worth it, considering the price of RAM right now. If he goes with 1GB, then wants to upgrade it in a year, finding DDR2 for a decent price may be a lot harder, since DDR3 will be the new standard by then.

craigo · Mar 7, 2008, 04:31 AM

A quick google for those graphics solutions....the nvidia option seems to be the better solution
the intel seems only to have vga not dvi connection..i gather your getting the coolermaster elite 340 (micro atx)...looks awesome...the psu included will be fine...try and use sata hdd and cd/dvd to keep it neat...great little build.

Bundy · Mar 7, 2008, 04:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TrainingDummy

Do you think they need 2GB of RAM?

probably not but where I buy from, the prices are

512Mb = $35
1GB = $35
2GB = $59

I couldn't see there was much benefit in cutting the RAM back. I'm also unsure whether the on board graphics will want to use some of the RAM

Paulieg · Mar 7, 2008, 04:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bundyrum&coke

probably not but where I buy from, the prices are

512Mb = $35
1GB = $35
2GB = $59

I couldn't see there was much benefit in cutting the RAM back. I'm also unsure whether the on board graphics will want to use some of the RAM

They WILL want to use the RAM. Money well spent here.

Bundy · Mar 7, 2008, 05:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by craigo

A quick google for those graphics solutions....the nvidia option seems to be the better solution
the intel seems only to have vga not dvi connection..i gather your getting the coolermaster elite 340 (micro atx)...looks awesome...the psu included will be fine...try and use sata hdd and cd/dvd to keep it neat...great little build.

Yes - that case looks exactly what I had in mind and a tidy price too. $62AUD
and yes, I'll be going SATA. Might even try and do the cables tidy as well (if I can get better than 5/10 from tk, I'm on the right track)

Nitro-Max · Mar 7, 2008, 06:59 PM

Can i just say if you buy a psu thats 600watt it will still be as economical as a 350watt because it will only use 600watt if the systems hardware needs it. Its also better to buy a slightly bigger psu than the system requirements "even if its cheap" because it puts less strain on the psu and stops it from overheating which should give it a longer life too.

Mar 7, 2008, 03:45 AM	#1
Bundy Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Caboolture, Australia Posts: 1,070 (0.53/day) Thanks: 189 Thanked 165 Times in 141 Posts System Specs	Building system for Mum & Dad I'd appreciate some feedback on my selections for a new machine for my parents. I've got some difficulties ahead, they are aged 66 and 70, and have never used a computer before. Now they want that broadband thing everyone talks about..... I was thinking the following Case: Coolermaster elite + 350W PSU Ram: Corsair val select PC 5300 2GB Drive: Samsung HD161Hj 160GB processor: my current E6320 Screen: AOC 22"with inbuilt speakers OS: Vista home premium I have three mobo I'm looking at, all Gigabyte with integrates graphics GA-31M-S2L GA-PVM-S2H GA-G33M-DS2R What is better, Intel 3100 or Geforce 7100? Will they run a 22"screen? If any games are played, it will be solitare... Thanks in advance

System Name:	Dads computer
Processor:	Q6700 @ 3.4GHz, 1.35V
Motherboard:	Gigabyte X48 DQ6
Cooling:	Thermalright ultra-120 extreme lapped
Memory:	8GB Corsair Dominator 1066 5-5-5-15
Video Card:	Gigabyte 5850 x2
Hard Disk:	2 x seagate 320MB raid 0
Optical Drive:	lite-on
CRT/LCD Model:	AOC 210V 22"
Case:	coolermaster stacker
Sound Card:	on board spdif out
PSU:	coolermaster real power pro 850w
Software:	Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit
Benchmarks:	3dmark 06 - 15300 - 8800 Ultra 3dmark 09 - 18353 - 5850 x 2

Mar 7, 2008, 03:54 AM	#2
[I.R.A]_FBi Eligible for custom title Join Date: May 2007 Location: c:\programs\kitteh.exe Posts: 6,152 (2.81/day) Thanks: 724 Thanked 556 Times in 461 Posts System Specs	PSU on the small side ... __________________ Rig 1+1 Athlon XP 2200+, MSI KM2M Combo, ATI 9200SE 128 MB DDR, 2 X 512 MB DDR333, 250GB + 80 HDD? “try intel cpu, amd is only good for going to nude sites” -firehawkxd “go for the 5850 now and play games while the nvidiots wait for the ceo to show an actual working product” -W1zzard “An MSI logo? This offends my retina. I await your apology.” -MRCL www.autolounge.com.jm

Processor:	C2Q6600 @ 1.6 GHz
Motherboard:	Anus PQ5
Cooling:	ACFPro
Memory:	GEiL2 x 1 GB PC2 6400
Video Card:	MSi 4830 (RIP)
Hard Disk:	Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 320 GB Perpendicular Recording
Optical Drive:	Lite On 16X SATA Burner
CRT/LCD Model:	Dell 17'
Case:	El Cheepo
Sound Card:	7.1 Onboard
PSU:	Corsair TX750
Software:	MCE2K5

System Name:	Dads computer
Processor:	Q6700 @ 3.4GHz, 1.35V
Motherboard:	Gigabyte X48 DQ6
Cooling:	Thermalright ultra-120 extreme lapped
Memory:	8GB Corsair Dominator 1066 5-5-5-15
Video Card:	Gigabyte 5850 x2
Hard Disk:	2 x seagate 320MB raid 0
Optical Drive:	lite-on
CRT/LCD Model:	AOC 210V 22"
Case:	coolermaster stacker
Sound Card:	on board spdif out
PSU:	coolermaster real power pro 850w
Software:	Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit
Benchmarks:	3dmark 06 - 15300 - 8800 Ultra 3dmark 09 - 18353 - 5850 x 2

Mar 7, 2008, 04:18 AM	#3
Bundy Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Caboolture, Australia Posts: 1,070 (0.53/day) Thanks: 189 Thanked 165 Times in 141 Posts System Specs	yes, it's 'economical'. Do you think I should definitely change it?

Mar 7, 2008, 04:21 AM	#5
Paulieg The Mad Moderator Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Wherever I can find the iron. Posts: 11,448 (5.02/day) Thanks: 2,519 Thanked 3,054 Times in 2,098 Posts System Specs	You can always get a psu later, if it does die. Oh, and the Geforce 7100 is better onboard graphics, and will be fine for solitaire on that monitor.

Mar 7, 2008, 04:24 AM	#6
TrainingDummy Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Oakland, CA Posts: 151 (0.07/day) Thanks: 18 Thanked 45 Times in 35 Posts	Do you think they need 2GB of RAM?

Processor:	AMD Opteron 1212 @ 2.1GHz
Motherboard:	ECS K8M890M-M
Cooling:	stock HSF, 120mm intake, 92mm exhaust
Memory:	2GB (2x 1GB) A-DATA PC2 6400
Video Card:	EVGA 9800GTX
Hard Disk:	400GB SATA II / 80GB IDE
Optical Drive:	Philips DVD-ROM
CRT/LCD Model:	23" LG FLATRTON W2361VG (1920x1080)
Case:	Rosewill R6425-P SL Silver
Sound Card:	Realtek AC'97 to Onkyo TX-SR500 2.1 set-up
PSU:	Antec Smart Power II 500W
Software:	vLite Vista x64 Home Basic SP1

Mar 7, 2008, 04:31 AM	#8
craigo Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Australia Posts: 535 (0.21/day) Thanks: 108 Thanked 56 Times in 46 Posts System Specs	A quick google for those graphics solutions....the nvidia option seems to be the better solution the intel seems only to have vga not dvi connection..i gather your getting the coolermaster elite 340 (micro atx)...looks awesome...the psu included will be fine...try and use sata hdd and cd/dvd to keep it neat...great little build. Last edited by craigo; Mar 7, 2008 at 04:32 AM. Reason: spelling

System Name:	max
Processor:	Ming Mecca
Software:	Torah
Benchmarks:	884509627386359275033751967 943067599621731590401694134 434007629683591574337516791 1976157334751953

Mar 7, 2008, 06:59 PM	#12
Nitro-Max Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Great Yarmouth, United Kingdom.{East Anglian Coast} Posts: 1,722 (0.70/day) Thanks: 340 Thanked 249 Times in 222 Posts System Specs	Can i just say if you buy a psu thats 600watt it will still be as economical as a 350watt because it will only use 600watt if the systems hardware needs it. Its also better to buy a slightly bigger psu than the system requirements "even if its cheap" because it puts less strain on the psu and stops it from overheating which should give it a longer life too. __________________ MY RIG http://www.techpowerup.com/gallery/1346.html Heatware http://www.heatware.com/eval.php?id=66464 I hate people that take drugs... Customs Officers for example!!

System Name:	Hells Core.
Processor:	Q6600 Go @ 3.6ghz 24/7 1.360v stable.
Motherboard:	Asus Rampage Formula.
Cooling:	Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro (lapped). 1x120mm Akasa fan 2x80mm akasa fans (variable speeds)
Memory:	OCZ Reaper HPC 4GB 2x2 gigs pc2-6400 latency 6-6-6-15 @1100mhz. D9,s
Video Card:	2 x HIS HD5870's Crossfire
Hard Disk:	WD Caviar SE 160GB 7200RPM SATAII 8MB Cache / Samsung 7200RPM SATAII 16mb Cache.
Optical Drive:	Pioneer dvdrw 215bk sata DL
CRT/LCD Model:	22" Benq True LED/HD.
Case:	Inwin IronClad Gaming case
Sound Card:	Sound Blaster X-Fi™ XtremeMusic EAX 5.0.2
PSU:	Hiper 880W Type-M Quad sli crossfire certified. 85% Efficiency Rated.
Software:	Windows 7 Home Premium
Benchmarks:	"3dmark06 23995" Q6600@4.3ghz 3870x2 GPU @900mhz MEM @1000mhz-OS XP. "The Current TPU Champ"

Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Thermaltake Bigwater 760i	t_ski	Reviews	47	Sep 27, 2008 11:17 AM
Gigabyte 3DMercury	Frederik S	Reviews	5	Apr 7, 2008 08:30 PM
Violate the laws of physics:Windows Vista DRM	SpoonMuffin	General Software	43	Jan 19, 2007 02:46 AM
GIGABYTE Launches Liquid Cooling System	mixa	News	0	Jul 9, 2005 11:52 AM
I need help	serat	General Hardware	6	Apr 8, 2005 07:15 PM