Cheap AMD build

[spiral out]

My friends abit nf7-s motherboard has died so i am putting togther the cheapest build i can for him using amd, I need a new processor, motherboard, RAM and graphics card.

He will be mainly using it to browse the web, to listen to music and burning cds and dvds.

I was thinking i could get a motherboard with onboard graphics. Could you point me the direction of a decent cheap motherboard please.

Also out of these two processors which is the best?

http://www.scan.co.uk/product.aspx?ProductId=22628

http://www.scan.co.uk/product.aspx?ProductId=21477

[SiM]

The BE processors are designed for low power consumption. Unless you specifically need a low power processor get the A64 4400+

Personally, I would spend an extra £10 and get a higher clocked one. Small price difference, but should give sizeable speed improvements...

[staffsMike]

The BE might be sought after later for low power HPTC's though, so it might be easy to shift at a half decent price when he is done with it. Plus it's a Brisbane which means 65nm agaisnt 90nm of the windsor.

This is what i would have though
http://www.scan.co.uk/product.aspx?ProductId=24807

It's available on scan today only for a couple of quid less

For the motherboard, I have an Asus M2A-VM which i got from scan for £35. It's got DVI and VGA, and is capable of most things including blu ray as long as it has a decent processor to lean against (whether either of the above two qualify I don't know).

£50 gets you a 780G based board which has the best IGP of any motherboard out there. Capable of light gaming and Blu Ray etc.

[MadduckUK]

For the motherboard, I have an Asus M2A-VM which i got from scan for £35. It's got DVI and VGA, and is capable of most things including blu ray as long as it has a decent processor to lean against (whether either of the above two quality I don't know).

using one right now, its my MCPC / backup. generally a good mobo but quirky.. have you managed to install windows xp on it from a sata/usb cd drive? i ended up having to turn my old usb cd drive into IDE by way of forced entry to get it to stop BSOD'ing. on the plus side its got an overclocked 9850 sitting in it and there is no fire

£50 gets you a 780G based board which has the best IGP of any motherboard out there. Capable of light gaming and Blu Ray etc.

i would go this route

[staffsMike]

Yeah installed straight from a sata dvd drive, a samsung one. XP disc was a home made one from an MSDN download thing through my uni.. if that makes a difference lol

[DanceswithUnix]

I would get the 4400, no hesitation.

I have a low power CPU, it just means it undervolts which in turn means you need better voltage control than my motherboard provides to overclock it decently.

The real world power consumption doesn't seem any better.

[spiral out]

Thanks for the replies so far, the ASUS M2A-VM looks to be a good board for him, He really is tight.

Will i have any problems with this power supply if i buy a 20-24pin adapter?

http://www.scan.co.uk/Product.aspx?WebProductId=468725

[staffsMike]

Probably better the spend the extra £5 or so on this
http://www.scan.co.uk/Product.aspx?WebProductId=696393

but the fsp should be fine (it's £16 on today only )

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Sorry should have said he already has the power supply, we are just using all the old bits he had from before, which is the case, PSU, IDE hard drive and a cd writer i think.

[staffsMike]

Oh I see, yeah it should be fine, certainly enough power.

[s3ds]

one thing with ram and amd is try to use 1.8v or 1.9v ram
Kingston Value Ram is my preference for AMD but i have used this before

http://www.scan.co.uk/Product.aspx?WebProductId=255300

if im using onboard with XP i would always use 2GB

and as above i would go with the chip with the higher speed

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/134571

[spiral out]

I was looking at getting that RAM as it's on today only for £28 and i also need to get the processor from Scan but they don't seem to have the 4800 in stock unfortunately so i will stick with the 4400 i think.

Do the AM2 boards use the same heatsink and fan as the 939 boards as i have a spare heatsink i could use which would save a few quid as the OEM 4400 is a far bit cheaper.

[staffsMike]

AM2 fitting is different I'm affraid.