Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Me? Pink? I wore black to my prom back in the Dark Ages.
Okay, have I got the right specs here?
• AMD Phenom II X6 1055T
• ATI HD 5450 512MB Card
• 4GB DDR3 1333MHz Memory
• 500GB SATA-II Hard Drive
• 24X Double DVD±R/±RW
• HIGH DEFINITION 7.1 AUDIO
• Asus M4N68T-M V2 AM3 MB
• Asetek CPU Water Cooling
• CoolerMaster HAF 912 Case
• 450Watt Dual Rail PSU
Sounds like a hard-core gaming PC to me but hey, I'm sure it would do wonders for my word processing pursuits.
Phenom II X6 is a good processor, but I think it's a bit overkill for what you need it to do even with future needs in mind. If you end up going AMD, something like a Phenom II 965BE would be more cost effective and offer plenty of horsepower. Also, even though I am an AMD guy, I think an Intel build is a better route for you. The i5 760 is a great processor that you will get many years out of.
The ATI 5450 in that build is about as low end of a video card as you can get. I don't think you need the best of the best in that department, but an ATI 5770 would be a much better choice and again will be a nice card for at least a couple years.
The RAM, hard drive and DVD are all pretty standard stuff. I would personally recommend going with at least a 1TB drive. It is actually rather easy these days to fill up 500GB if you have lots of pics and videos.
The motherboard is a nice choice and the sound they are referring to is integrated on that motherboard. If going AMD, this is as good a choice as any for motherboard.
The CPU cooler, really isn't 100% necessary. Everyone will tell you that stock coolers are crap and they are. However, they are adequate for running a system at stock settings. Treat an investment here as unnecessary, but a decent insurance policy.
That's a good case, maybe a bit of overkill.
The PSU is a little weak. If I was buying a PSU new today, I would go with one that was 80+ certified and provided 700W at a minimum. Also, I would ensure it was a modular supply so you only need to plug in the connectors you are actually using. 450W would be about the minimum needed to run that rig. It's generally a good idea to make sure you have some wiggle room on the PSU side and that it can provide ample power.
Me? Pink? I wore black to my prom back in the Dark Ages.
Okay, have I got the right specs here?
• AMD Phenom II X6 1055T
• ATI HD 5450 512MB Card
• 4GB DDR3 1333MHz Memory
• 500GB SATA-II Hard Drive
• 24X Double DVD±R/±RW
• HIGH DEFINITION 7.1 AUDIO
• Asus M4N68T-M V2 AM3 MB
• Asetek CPU Water Cooling
• CoolerMaster HAF 912 Case
• 450Watt Dual Rail PSU
Sounds like a hard-core gaming PC to me but hey, I'm sure it would do wonders for my word processing pursuits.
This build is a classic case of dazzling you with a processor, adding in useless options like "heated windshield washer basin", and then scrimping on everything else. It's not a gaming machine. A 512MB video card will barely be able to handle most of today's graphics intensive games, and the 450 watt power supply pretty much ensures you won't be upgrading anything inside of it without upgrading the PSU, as well.
This build is not a good value, in my opinion. You're going to be wasting money on water cooling that doesn't need it, and on an expensive case that does nothing but have aesthetic quality. In exchange for that, you're scrimping on storage capacity, memory expandability (because that 4 gigs is undoubtedly either a 2x2 or a 4x1 configuration), and what amounts to little more than onboard graphics. It is, as we say, all show and no go.
No, most video cards don't come with onboard graphics. You have to specifically seek one out that comes with that (the Ion board for netbooks, for example, or n+ boards). Asus's Rampage series, for example, doesn't contain them because it would drive up costs. And with Sandy Bridge and Bulldozer coming with on-the-die graphics on the processors, graphics chips on boards is going out of favour. And if you had bothered to read what he was saying, he said he wanted a machine that would tide him over for years to come, that he could be proud with, and which allowed him to do more intensive tasks down the road if he wanted. Your silly little example basically has your machine damn near pegged out and ready to page swap and you aren't doing *anything* on it
How do I know I run out of RAM? Well there's this amazing little thing called task manager, or if you want to get really fancy, memturbo. I know you'd like to believe that this or memturbo are mystical voodoo things, but they aren't. I'm a CCIE. You're a guy who's talking about ctrl-alt-dlt like it's a secret handshake. There is literally not one single little thing on this topic you know more about than I do. Just accept it and move.
Apparently you can't read what the guy's desires were, either. As to the rest of your dribble, I don't have a boss, and I don't have to do 40 hour weeks.
Xanathos - I'm sorry but your CCIE isn't doing you any favors. My 3 year old Dell laptop is not anywhere near pegged but you can't see it. If it is ready to page swap (which I disagree with) - who cares if the impact is completely unnoticable?
Did you read the first sentence of your post? Video cards don't come with onboard graphics? What does that mean?
A mainstream board today with onboard graphics uses shared memory but has a graphics processor integrated into the chipset. A good example linked below:
Me? Pink? I wore black to my prom back in the Dark Ages.
Okay, have I got the right specs here?
• AMD Phenom II X6 1055T
• ATI HD 5450 512MB Card
• 4GB DDR3 1333MHz Memory
• 500GB SATA-II Hard Drive
• 24X Double DVD±R/±RW
• HIGH DEFINITION 7.1 AUDIO
• Asus M4N68T-M V2 AM3 MB
• Asetek CPU Water Cooling
• CoolerMaster HAF 912 Case
• 450Watt Dual Rail PSU
Sounds like a hard-core gaming PC to me but hey, I'm sure it would do wonders for my word processing pursuits.
I suggest the water cooling is completely unnecessary. A good aftermarket cooler (air only) will be quieter than the stock one. A unit like the Xigmatek SDT-1283 is inexpensive and very good. Other good ones from Scythe, Arctic Cooling, and Thermalright (not Thermaltake). The cooler that comes with the cpu will get the job done but it will be noisier because it uses a higher speed fan.
Size your power supply using a calculator. You don't need to guess.
Use that calculator, assess its first answer and change a few things such as the video card to see how much capacity you might need in the future. Whatever answer it gives - I'd upsize by 25-33%.
Xanathos - I'm sorry but your CCIE isn't doing you any favors. My 3 year old Dell laptop is not anywhere near pegged but you can't see it. If it is ready to page swap (which I disagree with) - who cares if the impact is completely unnoticable?
Learn to read, please. I was talking about your theoretical system, not your actual system. Go back and read the posts.
Quote:
Did you read the first sentence of your post? Video cards don't come with onboard graphics? What does that mean?
Again, go back and read. You're talking up onboard video chips that are actually capable of performing some cycle-intensive tasks. I pointed out (entirely correctly) that most motherboards don't come with the onboard graphics that you're talking about (and provided 2 examples of the types of boards that do, and an example of the type of board that doesn't).
You're just chasing your own tail trying to dig yourself out. You'll never cop to the fact that you're wrong (and that I'm far from the only one who's pointed it out), so let's just leave it at that, and you can have your delusion.
Okay, with the dizzying array of component choices out there and the excellent suggestions I have already received, I am ready to put my list together for constructive criticism. However, I'll toss out one last wish list to build a new PC that I stumbled on at Amazon:
Okay, with the dizzying array of component choices out there and the excellent suggestions I have already received, I am ready to put my list together for constructive criticism. However, I'll toss out one last wish list to build a new PC that I stumbled on at Amazon:
The motherboard is a solid choice and that is a great processor that you picked. Both may be overkill for what you are going for. You could drop the processor back to a Phenom II 965 BE and save $50 or so. The 965 is a quad core, versus the 6-core you selected, it will however offer nearly equal performance in all but the most demanding applications (like video rendering and encoding). The nice thing with the AMD solution is that if you do find yourself needing a 6-core in the future, you can just swap the processors out. With the various Intel platforms that isn't always possible and most upgrades require buying a new motherboard as well as a processor. So, solid choices, but you could save some money there.
You have two power supplies listed, one from Corsair and one from CoolerMaster. Both are solid, but I would give the edge to the Corsair as the more proven brand and go with that one.
You also have two video cards selected, one from EVGA and one from MSI. The price difference is tied to the amount of RAM on the card. In this case, unless you are planning on using a massive monitor or multiple monitors, the cheaper MSI card will serve you just fine.
The Western Digital blue drive is a decent choice. It's not as performance oriented as the black drive, but it strikes a nice balance between performance and power consumption. I would however suggest going with a larger 1TB drive at a minimum.
The RAM you selected is a good choice spec wise, but is not the right package for an AMD system. The RAM you selected is geared to being used with an Intel build that has triple channel RAM, hence why you have 3 2GB modules for a total of 6. On an AMD build, it uses dual channel RAM and you want to have something like 2 2GB modules for a total of 4 or 2 4GB modules for a total of 8. I wouldn't recommend going with 4 2GB modules to get 8 as that will limit your future upgrades as the board only has 4 total slots.
What you are missing off the list is a DVD drive and a case.
Learn to read, please. I was talking about your theoretical system, not your actual system. Go back and read the posts.
Again, go back and read. You're talking up onboard video chips that are actually capable of performing some cycle-intensive tasks. I pointed out (entirely correctly) that most motherboards don't come with the onboard graphics that you're talking about (and provided 2 examples of the types of boards that do, and an example of the type of board that doesn't).
You're just chasing your own tail trying to dig yourself out. You'll never cop to the fact that you're wrong (and that I'm far from the only one who's pointed it out), so let's just leave it at that, and you can have your delusion.
You're really kinda funny. I re-read this entire thread and though there are several credible opinions and recommendations different than mine - only you have disagreed with me at a personal level. I never said to use a motherboard without a graphics processor. I said a microATX board with onboard graphics is sufficient. And any modern AMD or Intel board with "onboard graphics" means it is a graphics processor integrated with the chipset. Any board with a HDMI connector is likely to have more than enough video power to process HD video.
I have no problem if someone believes that a separate video card is a better choice. I said it is not required to meet the OP's intended use. The majority of HTPCs today are built with microATX boards with onboard graphics. And these PCs happily process HD video including Blu-Ray DVDs.
Newegg lists 38 AMD microATX boards with the ATI HD4250 graphics chip from $59 to $105. If you want a full ATX with the same graphics chip then you can choose from 9 boards from $77 to $120. I have no argument if someone wants the expandability of an ATX board. But you don't need a PCI slot for a card reader.
Don't most card readers use an internal USB connector?
All the ones I've seen do.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
