PC upgrade for <500e

littleredspot

Hi, I've decided to upgrade my current PC and would love some advice please.

1. What is your budget? Preferably under 500

2. What will be the main purpose of the computer? Internet, and media server. I have a huge music library and want to stream both music and HD video around the house. Some photo editing. I always have a few programs open at once. NO gaming or video editing. I would like it to be as quiet as possible.

3. Do you need a copy of Windows? No, have Windows 7

4. Can you use any parts from an old computer? Not sure which bits are worth salvaging

PSU: A no name 650w one

Motherboard: ASRock 4CoreDual-VSTA (PCIe- AGP8x-SATA-I) (this has only 2 SATA connections.

CPU: INTEL Core 2 Duo E6400 2x 2,13Ghz (with a Zalman cooler)

GPU: PCI-e 256MB NVidia GeForce 7600-GT TD Triple-XXX TV-out

Can't check the RAM but I think it's DDR2 2x 2gb

I have a DVD drive

I also have a Soundblaster Soundcard (which I wouldn't mind upgrading)

I'd also bought a PCI card with 4 SATA connections with the intention of setting up a RAID system to protect my media library (this is important)

I've have a few internal SATA HDs for storage and would like to get a SSD for Windows

5. Do you need a monitor? No

5b. If no, what resolution is your current monitor and do you plan to upgrade in the near future? I run 2, a DGM L2249WD which is 1680x1050 and a Flatron L1917s which is 1280 x 1024. Don't feel the need to upgrade but am open to opinion.

6. Do you need any of these peripherals? A front/top mounted card reader would be handy as would some front/top mounted usb ports

7. Are you willing to try overclocking? If there's an easy/ reliable way to do it, then yes.

8. How can you pay? Either

9. When are you purchasing? Asap

10. If you need help building it, where are you based? Dublin city center, but willing to travel.

I'm happy to give assembling it all a shot and I'm happy to buy on-line/ second hand.

This is what I've come up with:

Total build cost: €427.21 + €30 shipping
BitFenix Shinobi Midi-Tower black Window, ohne Netzteil €59.15
Intel Core i5-2500K Box, LGA1155 €185.73
8GB-Kit Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600 MHz CL9 €36.70
ASRock P67 Pro3 (B3), Sockel 1155, ATX €81.59
OCZ Vertex Plus 60GB SSD SATA 6,4cm (2,5") €64.04

(Mods could you close my other thread please so as to avoid confusion. This one is simplified. Thanks)

Serephucus

If it's just a media server/HTPC, a 2500K is muchos overkill. An i3-2100 would do fine. Also, I don't think the IGP will allow dual monitors. Are they actually connected directly to this, or will this just be a box?

Anyway...

Item|Price
Total build cost: €384.72 + €30 shipping
Intel Core i3-2105 Box, LGA1155|€112.65
ASRock Z68 Pro3-M (B3), Sockel 1155, mATX|€96.89
Crucial M4 64GB SSD 6,4cm (2,5")|€95.54
8GB-Kit GeIL Enhance Corsa PC3-10667U CL9-9-9-24 (DDR3-1333)|€31.28
BitFenix Shinobi Midi-Tower black, ohne Netzteil|€48.36


I've given you an i3 2105 processor. It's an i3, but it uses Intel's HD 3000 graphics (versus the 25K's 2000), so you've got more power there if the onboard will do dual monitors. It also has a 65W TDP versus the 95W the 2500K puts out.

I've given you 8GB of RAM, Shinobi case, and a Z68 board, to take advantage of AVX instructions if you do any media converting or the like. I should mention that the P67 board you had wouldn't have let you use the onboard graphics at all, so you'd need a dedicated card.

I've also included a faster SSD, though that's not strictly necessary; the one you had was perfectly fine for what you want.

I've also just realised there's no PSU in there. I'd be careful picking this. Which such a low power machine, the PSU will affect your ESB bill the most.

littleredspot

Hi, Thanks for the reply.

The PC is the main household PC not a dedicated media server, I'd like it to be snappy but don't need to go mad for speed. I'm currently running 2 screens off the PCI graphics card. I'll be running at least 4 hd's which I'd imagine would affect the choice of PSU. I currently have a 650w one. Lower ESB bills would be great though!

IrishMetalhead

TBH I think what you originally posted there is perfect as it is

littleredspot

Do ye think its worth the extra few quid for the faster SSD in the original setup? About how long does HWVS take to deliver?

MakeNine

littleredspot wrote: »

Do ye think its worth the extra few quid for the faster SSD in the original setup? About how long does HWVS take to deliver?

My order arrived in 6 days (including a week end) and I think the SSD is worth it unless you choose a very large one. I have a 64DB SSD and installed windows on it, boots up really fast it's great. Programs installed on it are also noteceably faster.

Monotype

If it was a question of SSD or no SSD, I'd get the vertex plus. It will still be much faster for general internet/office use and the price is very good (as in thinking of any SSD, not that particular model). Luckily this model doesn't suffer from the Vertex 2's missing 5GB. The M4 will give you much speeds, but you probably won't notice it unless you're moving files and opening programs continuously. The M4 also has the extra 4GB. The biggest issue is reliability. OCZ's track record in reliability (and honesty) hasn't been very good so if you go down this route, be certain to have the latest firmware and backups (which you should do with the M4 too anyway).

I think that you should get a new PSU. Some no name PSU could be running at very poor efficiency and might not be the most stable.

littleredspot

Sounds like it'll be worth going for the M4 so. Speed, stability and size for 30 quid extra.

Any recommendations for the PSU? I'll be running at least 4 HD's but am unlikely to ever be upgrading the graphics card. I'll give overclocking a shot too. Assuming the PC is on for about 16 hours a day will my choice of PSU have a big affect on ESB bills?

Thanks for the help so far.

Cork24

you can buy a upgrade Set for like 300 or more on Komplette

Monotype

When it's on for 16 hours a day, it will start to add up alright. Cheapish PSUs are often around 70% efficient.
If you want to keep the cost of building down, go for the 450W amazon.
http://www2.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=30074
If you want to step up the efficiency a bit further, you could get something like
http://www2.hardwareversand.de/articledetail.jsp?aid=41092

Even if you're only saving 10-20W, it still adds up.
http://www.esb.ie/esbcustomersupply/residential/energy_efficiency/appliance_calculator.jsp

littleredspot

Cork24, Thanks for the suggestion but I'm going for a new SSD and case too, HWVS seems to be the most recommended.

Monotype. That's a really handy calculator. Note to self: put in standby more often! I think with the rapid boot time of the SSD I can turn it off more often too. How does the wattage and efficiency of the PSU affect the energy usage?

Monotype

The efficiency comes into play in converting the alternating current we get in our wall sockets at about 230V to the direct current at 3.3, 5V and 12V that PCs use.

Suppose a PC needs 200W and is 80% efficient. That means that it will need to draw about 250W from the wall. 50W goes to waste, mostly in heat. So if the PC has a PSU that is 85% efficient, it will need 235W, so you'd save 15W from the previous efficient PSU.

If you get an 800W PSU, it won't draw 800W, it will take whatever it needs. However, PSUs don't keep the same same efficiency at all levels - it follows a curve. Efficiency is usually highest around the centre load on the PSU. This doesn't mean that you buy a PSU that's exactly double your needs because your PC will be idle most of the time and will draw low power.
You can see this in the 80+ rating page (hold the mouse over each icon to see what each one signifies).
http://www.plugloadsolutions.com/80PlusPowerSupplies.aspx
You can see efficiency highest at 50% and dropping off at 20% and 100% loads. Efficiency can really dip below 20% loads so that's why you shouldn't buy ridiculous PSUs for a low power system.

littleredspot

Ok, thanks for explaining that, I've always wondered.

So, I think this is what we're all agreed on. A bit over budget but seems to be a solid, fast, reliable build, so I'll stretch to it. Last chance for changes


Total build cost: €522.68 + €30 shipping
BitFenix Shinobi Midi-Tower black Window, ohne Netzteil €59.15
Intel Core i5-2500K Box, LGA1155 €185.73
8GB-Kit Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600 MHz CL9 €36.71
ASRock P67 Pro3 (B3), Sockel 1155, ATX €82.61
Super-Flower SF450P14XE Golden Green Pro 80plus gold €62.94
Crucial M4 64GB SSD 6,4cm (2,5") €95.54