First time build - New i5 Media PC

DRose1

Hi, hoping to get some advice. I am putting this PC together for my parents and have managed to get a budget of about €550. I already have a copy of Windows 7 64 bit home premium, a DVD RW drive, monitor and speakers so none of that will be needed. I also have an external 500gb hard drive which will be used to hold all the music files etc for playback.

Spec I put together:



They would be using the PC for media playback (including HD), web browsing and general Windows work - No gaming would be done. With that in mind, I did not think there would be a need for a dedicated graphics card and the Intel 4000 on board the i5 would be sufficient?

Some of the components there are fairly high end and might seem unnecessary given what they would be used for; however, I would like to build this to give them years of use and don't mind spending a little extra now to get a quality system - Ideally there would be very little upgrades needed for the PC for the next few years, apart from possibly Windows 8 and maybe a dedicated graphics card.

Apart from advice about the general spec, is there anything else I would need to complete the build that is not in my basket - e.g Thermal paste, extra fans etc?

Any advice would be appreciated...

DRose1

Some more notes:

• I don't have a particular preference to buy from Overclockers; I just put that spec together on here so I could get advise on their forum. I am happy to buy from an Irish company, Amazon, Scan etc as long as the prices are good. I would prefer not to use that German site that is used by some on here.
• I was advised to change my motherboard to a Z77 - e.g http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=MB-391-GI&groupid=701&catid=5&subcat=2261
  Good advice?
• Someone suggested this case: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-265-CM
  Better than the one I have in the OP?

Dapics

are you sure the motherboard supports the processor? i know it has a 1155 socket but the z77 chipset is dedicated to ivy processors such as the one you've chosen which is fairly clockable. The z77 will more than likely be a more stable motherboard for your processor. Furthermore The z77 chipsets seem to be good value for money and who knows maybe you will get lucky and be able to upgrade to the new intel processors coming out in mid 2013 without getting a new motherboard
Also if you plan to clock, a good fan may be needed, ivy bridges get very hot.

DRose1

Dapics wrote: »

are you sure the motherboard supports the processor? i know it has a 1155 socket but the z77 chipset is dedicated to ivy processors such as the one you've chosen which is fairly clockable. The z77 will more than likely be a more stable motherboard for your processor. Furthermore The z77 chipsets seem to be good value for money and who knows maybe you will get lucky and be able to upgrade to the new intel processors coming out in mid 2013 without getting a new motherboard
Also if you plan to clock, a good fan may be needed, ivy bridges get very hot.

No plans to overclock and both motherboards I listed above say they support the new ivybridge processors.

Dapics

Im a bit biased i guess, so go for whatever you think is best.

I would think z77 chipsets more suited to your chosen processor.
As for the integrated graphics, i have the intel 3000 hd on my laptop and am quite dissapointed. I only found out recently that i couldn't use bios to dedicate more memory to the graphics card, was stunned.
With that in mind, if your desktop is planned for casual use and general windows work, it shouldnt be a problem.

uncle_sam_ie

-Your CPU supports Overclocking but the MB does not. If your not OC then get a non k chip. an i3 would do.
-The case is old, there are newer and better options.
-You can get cheaper RAM.

uncle_sam_ie

Item|Price
Antec BasiQ VP350|€35.01
BitFenix Merc Beta|€31.60
8GB-Kit G.Skill PC3-10667U CL9|€34.16
ASRock H61DE/S3, Sockel 1155, ATX|€57.56
Intel Core i3-2120 Box, LGA1155|€103.77
Rechner - Zusammenbau|€20.00
Shipping|€18.99
Total|€301.09
And, this too forgot it http://www1.hardwareversand.de/Solid-State-Disk/46110/Crucial+M4+128GB+SSD+6%2C4cm+%282%2C5%29.article

DRose1

uncle_sam_ie wrote: »

-Your CPU supports Overclocking but the MB does not. If your not OC then get a non k chip. an i3 would do.
-The case is old, there are newer and better options.
-You can get cheaper RAM.

Thanks for the advice. The reason I went for that i5 was for two main reasons:

1. The onboard intel 4000 could theoretically mean I would not need to get a dedicated graphics card as it would fast enough for what I want to do.
2. The K version is not that much dearer than the non-k version. If we are the sell the PC down the road it should help with the re-sale value by getting the K.

Would this Coolermaster case be a better one to go for?

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-265-CM

What 8gb ram set would you recommend?

Thanks.

Dapics

DRose1 wrote: »

Thanks for the advice. The reason I went for that i5 was for two main reasons:

1. The onboard intel 4000 could theoretically mean I would not need to get a dedicated graphics card as it would fast enough for what I want to do.
2. The K version is not that much dearer than the non-k version. If we are the sell the PC down the road it should help with the re-sale value by getting the K.

Would this Coolermaster case be a better one to go for?

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-265-CM

What 8gb ram set would you recommend?

Thanks.

In response to part 1. :

As long as you dont plan on using this desktop for gaming then the integrated graphics should be able to last a good year and as you stated your willing to get a dedicated one sometime down the line.

I am getting a cooler master haf 912 myself for my next gaming desktop build. It's able to store my chosen specs.
It will defo be able to store yours seeing as you dont seem to be planning on using a fan. Then again most cases are the same, the only difference really is that as they get more expensive, they get more reliable and tend to have better air circulation to cool down your specs.

Im not that great with hardware so i wont answer for your ram. I may suggest corsair though. They are usually good value for money and are reliable. Then again ram nowadays is at an all time low so it really depends on what your looking for in your ram.

Tij da feen

If you really don't want to use HWVS then here's a dabs.ie build.
Item|Price
Corsair 430 Watt CX430 V2 Builder Series 80 Plus Power Supply|€40.50
ASRock S1155 Intel H61 DDR3 mATX|€42.74
Intel Core i3-2125 3.3GHz LGA1155 3MB|€125.85
Kingston 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3 1333MHz DIMM 240-pin CL9|€41.77
Crucial 64GB m4 SATA 6Gb/s 2.5" Solid State Drive|€80.83
XIGMATEK Asgard III Case|€35.41
Shipping|Free!
Total|€367.10

If it's for films and music an i5 is not needed. Drop down to an i3 with Intel HD 3000 graphics. It will easily support what you need to be doing.

DRose1

Tij da feen wrote: »

If you really don't want to use HWVS then here's a dabs.ie build.
Item|Price
Corsair 430 Watt CX430 V2 Builder Series 80 Plus Power Supply|€40.50
ASRock S1155 Intel H61 DDR3 mATX|€42.74
Intel Core i3-2125 3.3GHz LGA1155 3MB|€125.85
Kingston 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3 1333MHz DIMM 240-pin CL9|€41.77
Crucial 64GB m4 SATA 6Gb/s 2.5" Solid State Drive|€80.83
XIGMATEK Asgard III Case|€35.41
Shipping|Free!
Total|€367.10

If it's for films and music an i5 is not needed. Drop down to an i3 with Intel HD 3000 graphics. It will easily support what you need to be doing.

I have had mixed experiences with Dabs support, but its a build worth considering. Thanks.

DRose1

Apart from what I listed above, is there anything else I would need to buy for my first build?

e.g Thermal paste, any extra case fans etc?

uncle_sam_ie

I used Komplett.ie for most of my build and found them to be excellent but, hardwareversand is very good too. I wouldn't worry about using them. You wont need thermal paste as it's pre applied to the heatsink.

DRose1

uncle_sam_ie wrote: »

I used Komplett.ie for most of my build and found them to be excellent but, hardwareversand is very good too. I wouldn't worry about using them. You wont need thermal paste as it's pre applied to the heatsink.

Thanks.

Is the stock heatsink with the i-series processors decent or would I be better buying an OEM CPU and buying a separate heatsink?

Considering my spec above, would the stock fans that come with most cases be enough for cooling?

uncle_sam_ie

DRose1 wrote: »

Thanks.

Is the stock heatsink with the i-series processors decent or would I be better buying an OEM CPU and buying a separate heatsink?

Considering my spec above, would the stock fans that come with most cases be enough for cooling?

No, stock heatsink is fine. For a media PC the fans are fine for cooling but, if you want you could go for some quiet fans. http://www.quietpc.com/products/casefans