Is this build ok?

[Hicks12]

Well my mates dad needs a new pc, doesnt need to be able to run cad etc just normal home and office stuff(word etc). My mate will game on it a bit but nothing major so a ok gpu is needed.

Heres my spec:

CPU: e5200
Mobo:Asus P5QL IP43
GPU: ati 4830
Ram: 4gb corsair ram
Case: CoolerMaster RC 331 Elite
HDD: 640gb AAKS (any alternatives?)
PSU: 650W Xclio (overkill i know but its cheap but good)

Any changes that i should consider? His budget is £500 but cheaper is better of course, ill get it ordered soon if its all alright.

[Hawker1986]

Looks fine to me mate, I wouldnt make any changes particularly.

Hawker

[staffsMike]

Looks good. Ocuk are selling OCZ modextremes for reasonable money. £50 for a 400W modular isn't bad by todays standards

Personally though I would swap to AMD, get a 7750 X2 and Asus M3A78-EM for about £120 together and you get a nice system for now and it will be a good HTPC later if such a thing appeals.

One of these with a couple of 120mm fans will be nice too
http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showpr...id=7&subcat=29 same at ebuyer if you prefer
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/129891

I like uATX towers, they do it all with quiet slow fans and they dont take up a lot of room either.

[Sputnik]

Personally though I would swap to AMD, get a 7750 X2 and Asus M3A78-EM for about £120 together and you get a nice system for now and it will be a good HTPC later if such a thing appeals

I was going to suggest that myself but, I predicted you would !

[adder]

Yup AMD way would be much better, at this moment.

[Hicks12]

This the same mobo? http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Asus-...SATA-RAID-uATX

And is the 340 much different than the 330?
Xclio PSU seems to have gone, any recommendations on PSU which is around 500W but cheap enough(<&#163;50 at least).

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

I would also go for the AMD X2 7750+ as it is faster than a E5200 when both are compared at stock speeds. The E5200 has more overclocking potential though.

I would go for this motherboard:

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/150278

The EM is better than the CM as it has all solid capacitors and a few extra features for a similiar price!!

The Corsair VX450W is around £50 and is a good power supply:

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/450W-...PLUS-certified

Another good value for money PSU is this OCZ one:

http://www.ebuyer.com/product/135159

The best value for money is this 650W Xigmatek modular power supply:

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/650W-...92-QUAD-SLI-PS

[dagwoood]

Re PSU's, the Today Only deal on Scan for the 700W FSP700-80GLN @ £35 is a cracking deal.

[Pob255]

Situation as I see it between AMD and intel at the low end. ie e5200 vs x2 7750BE
At stock the 7750be is better, however the e5200 can be overclocked by a large amount and will out perform it by a good chunk (when at 3.5gb+)
However not everyone will be happy to push there chips that high and you are never garrantied to get that high an overclock.
So the cpu's by them selves are too closely matched to call.
Which means it comes down to the motherboards.
Now AMD definitely has the upper hand for mATX boards with both the excellent 780G and 8200 chipsets which are not that expensive.
For ATX boards it's a harder call, as the AMD 790 boards come in around the same cost as the p41/p45 (note I'm personally not that keen on the p41 boards, the best ones seem to be a couple of the Asus models but they all have the really bad placement of the 24pin connector in the middle of the board)

If Scan have got the FSP700-80GLN on today only again, Grab it now! it doesn't look fancy but it's basically there old Epsilon unit inside, with OEM outsides.

[Hicks12]

OK so new buikld will be:
CPU: AMD 7750BE- &#163;65
Mobo:ASUS M3A78-EM, whats the dissadvantages of mATX boards? Ive only worked with ATX boards before tbh .- &#163;63
Case: Coolermaster Elite 340/Difference from 330? its &#163;3 more - &#163;32.30
GPU: ati 4830- Is this one any good? http://www.ebuyer.com/product/151393...roduct_reviews Reviews seem to say its not loud so might get this one- &#163;90
Ram: 4gb- Crucial ballistic 4GB (2X2GB Cas4 for &#163;46 or OCZ 4GB (2x2GB) Cas5 for &#163;39.99, think OCZ better buy, doesnt need overclocking.
HDD: 640gb AAKS- Ok not on ebuyer but there is a 640gb samsung f1 for only &#163;49, better than the aaks?.
PSU: Coolermaster 460W eXtreme Power Plus PSU - 20+4pin 4+4 ATX12v 4x SATA 6pin, any good? Its &#163;37 and its CM so it should be fine.

Total:&#163;378. Any places that are cheaper in other places?

[staffsMike]

If you are getting that PSU you might as well buy this
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Coole...60W-PSU-Fitted

Same bits for less.

I would get the OCZ modextreme if it was me, my OCZ gamexstream is standing the test of time

all you lose with uATX is a bit of chipset cooling (which doesnt matter really since the chip has an unlocked multi for overclocking) and a couple of PCI slots. I think they are great these days.

[Hicks12]

Ok, same as before apart from the OCZ Stealth Xtream 500W PSU will be the new one, pushing it up to &#163;387 which is well within budget . So anything i need to look into with mATX? And would it be better to get this board instead... http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Biost...-SATA-RAID-ATX its out of stock atm but would it be better?.

[staffsMike]

Both good boards tbh..

The 790GX chipset is a sort of.. pimped 780G. Overclocked IGP etc.. which doesn't really matter here.

Personally I would take advantage of uATX's since and go for the 780G I have the 780V -CM board and it's great.

[Sputnik]

I don't think the Biostar has all solid caps. I have a J&W Extreme 790GX board on order but, If it takes too long I'll probably cancel and get the asus matx.

The 790GX boards have slightly better on-board graphics due to the sideport memory.

[CAT-THE-FIFTH]

The X2 7750+ is under &#163;60 at Scan now!! The Xigmatek 650W for &#163;57 is good value if you want to get a modular PSU but it is a tad too powerful for your proposed system.
Unless your overclocking a huge amount I would think that the Asus motherboard will be more than enough!!

[Singh400]

Well my mates dad needs a new pc, doesnt need to be able to run cad etc just normal home and office stuff(word etc). My mate will game on it a bit but nothing major so a ok gpu is needed.

Heres my spec:

CPU: e5200
Mobo:Asus P5QL IP43
GPU: ati 4830
Ram: 4gb corsair ram
Case: CoolerMaster RC 331 Elite
HDD: 640gb AAKS (any alternatives?)
PSU: 650W Xclio (overkill i know but its cheap but good)

Any changes that i should consider? His budget is &#163;500 but cheaper is better of course, ill get it ordered soon if its all alright.

The only thing I would change is the PSU. Anything in the 300-400W range from Corsair should be fine. Don't skimp on the PSU!