RFC on a new build

[Dinosaur]

I am contemplating a new build for my wife. I think I have an appropriate parts list, but since I have never actually configured a computer from scratch like this, I suddenly feel ridiculously inadequate. <sigh>

She needs a system where she can do simple browsing, email, and social media type stuff. First of all, the system will be running Ubuntu 16.04 LTS; we have declared our house to be a MFZ (Microsoft free zone). Her current computer is a 15" notebook, and the new system also needs to have small footprint. I am putting together a build using an AMD CPU using socket AM1, as follows:

AMD Athlon 5370 APU AM1 AD5370JAHMBOX (I understand there is a 1-2 month wait for this guy, but I am not in a rush!)

Asus DDR3 1600 AMD Socket AM1 SATA(6Gbit/s) Motherboard (AM1M-A) with:

• AMD Radeon R3 graphics
• 2x SATA3 6.0Gbs
• 2x USB 3.0; 2x USB 2,0
• 10/100/1000 Mb Ethernet

Samsung M393B2G70BH0-CK0 Samsung 16GB PC3-12800 DDR3-1600MHz ECC Registered CL11 240-Pin DIMM Dual Rank Memory Module Mfr P-N (Using 1 of 2 memory slots)

Samsung 850 EVO 250GB 2.5-Inch SATA III Internal SSD (MZ-75E250B/AM)

ASUS Internal 24X SATA Optical Drive DRW-24B3ST/BLK/G (Black)

Rosewill Micro ATX Mini Tower Computer Case SRM-01

EVGA 430 W1, 80+ WHITE 430W, 3 Year Warranty, Power Supply 100-W1-0430-KR

Am I overlooking anything?
Are these items compatible?
Is this overkill?

 

[P4-630]

8GB ram would be enough IMO for these purposes....

 

[Dinosaur]

8GB ram would be enough IMO for these purposes....

No doubt, especially for a Linux system. I could save a few bucks that way, but I am someone who is always worrying about some future upgrade that will probably never happen!

 

[TheoneandonlyMrK]

No doubt, especially for a Linux system. I could save a few bucks that way, but I am someone who is always worrying about some future upgrade that will probably never happen!

I think it really won't happen, the cpu wouldn't survive an upgrade ,ie the board and cpu would get swapped plus you listed ecc memory ,its more expensive than non ecc and for business use not really home so you could save more than you think here ,8Gb is fine, really.

 

[Frick]

To really save money, buy a HP Elite SFF system with a Sandy/Ivy Bridge i5. It'll be faster and cheaper.

 

[newtekie1]

I wouldn't wait on the 5370, just grab a 5350. They're the same processor, the 5350 is just 150Mhz slower. But with the ASUS motherboard you picked, it actually lets you bump up the multiplier to 21 on the 5350, so the difference would actually only be 100MHz. 100MHz is not worth the wait or the extra cost.

It would help to know your budget.

To really save money, buy a HP Elite SFF system with a Sandy/Ivy Bridge i5. It'll be faster and cheaper.

Hard to find one of those with an SSD, so it would actually feel slower in most of the uses here. Though being cheaper, it might leave budget to just replace the HDD to with an SSD.

At the same time, something like a Zotac Zbox might be a good alternative as well: https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856173128

It's only $140 for the bearbones, is going to have a much smaller footprint, is totally silent, and has extras like wifi and the SD card reader. You'd just need to add an SSD and some RAM.

Or even the AsRock Deskmini 110w for $120: https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856158048

You'd need a processor ram and SSD still with the Deskmini. But even with a 1151 Celeron processor it will be a hell of a lot faster than the Athlon 5370.

 

[m&m's]

Meh, Athlon 5370 is really slow.

Pentium G4560 + H110 or B150 motherboard would cost almost the same and perform a hell of a lot better.

And since you said you're not in a rush, might as well wait for Ryzen 3.

 

[silentbogo]

What about SoC boards?
You can probably downsize a PC to a tiny noiseless box, which you can attach on the back of the monitor via VESA mounts.
Also, drop the 850Evo and get a cheaper SSD. WD Blue is a good option, because it's essentially a SanDisk X400, but almost $20 cheaper.

Here's what I would buy instead:
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/v9P83F

Also, that motherboard has a half-mini-PCIe slot for a wireless adapter.

Performance-wise it is on-par with Athlon 5350, but requires no more than 30W from the wall (for the whole system).

 

[Dinosaur]

I think it really won't happen, the cpu wouldn't survive an upgrade ,ie the board and cpu would get swapped plus you listed ecc memory ,its more expensive than non ecc and for business use not really home so you could save more than you think here ,8Gb is fine, really.

You are quite probably correct about any future upgrade! I need to relax and eat more crawfish!
Strangely, the DIMM I listed is the least expensive one I could find! However, I suspect that if I forgot about any potential upgrade and went with 2x8GB (instead of 1x16GB), I could get some non ECC memory and cut the cost a bit. Even more if I scaled it down to 2x4GB, but that just does not feel right to me.

Thanks for your input!

 

[Dinosaur]

To really save money, buy a HP Elite SFF system with a Sandy/Ivy Bridge i5. It'll be faster and cheaper.

What would be the fun of that?!? If I wanted to buy something off-the-shelf, I would have already done so! I'll admit it is cheap, but so far, I have only found refurbished units. And even with that, we are not talking about a ton of cash - I can get the parts I listed for under $370.

There are a couple of problems with this system. I explicitly need HDMI (not VGA or display port), I have never been fond of HP, and (worst of all) this thing comes with windoze, and as I already explained this is a MFZ!

Thanks for the suggestion!

 

[newtekie1]

What would be the fun of that?!?

Kind of why I suggested the AsRock DeskMini. It is just the motherboard and case and power supply, you still get the fun of putting some things together.

Also, try not to double post, it is frowned upon here. Not a big deal, but just try to use the edit button in the future.

 

[Dinosaur]

Meh, Athlon 5370 is really slow.

Pentium G4560 + H110 or B150 motherboard would cost almost the same and perform a hell of a lot better.

And since you said you're not in a rush, might as well wait for Ryzen 3.

Does not really fit my form factor, but thanks!

 

[ne6togadno]

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/wJdGzM
+
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16856158048

 

[m&m's]

Does not really fit my form factor, but thanks!

Wut? It's the same form factor.

H110 motherboards are either mATX or uATX and so are AM1 motherboards...

This H110 motherboard is the exact same size as the Asus motherboard you mentioned in your first post. -> https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128873&cm_re=h110-_-13-128-873-_-Product

 

[Frick]

What would be the fun of that?!? If I wanted to buy something off-the-shelf, I would have already done so! I'll admit it is cheap, but so far, I have only found refurbished units. And even with that, we are not talking about a ton of cash - I can get the parts I listed for under $370.

There are a couple of problems with this system. I explicitly need HDMI (not VGA or display port), I have never been fond of HP, and (worst of all) this thing comes with windoze, and as I already explained this is a MFZ!

Thanks for the suggestion!

Just install Gentoo then and peel of the Windows sticker. And those systems are rock solid, take up small space, don't make a lot of noise and as you say be much cheaper even of you get an SSD. Get a PCIe GPU with HDMI. It'll be gold.