New Computer

[lulu1484]

Hello everyone,

I'm new on here, registered so i can get some advice!

I want a new computer and have decided to have a go at making my own coz my friend says that pre-built ones aren't very good, i have also wanted to learn about them for ages!

So basically, looking for as much advice as i can get!

Right now i have an old thing with a big TV type monitor and a beige keyboard so i want all new! I want to spend as far under £700 as i can.

Definitely want to do it myself!

Thanks in Advance!

[Pob255]

Depends on what you want it for, usage is what will have the biggest effect on what you should be looking to get.

Pre-built systems can be a lot less hassle, again depending on what you want it for and how much experience in building pc's you have.

With out a rough idea of what you want to use it for any sugestion is utterly pointless.

I'm not trying to put you off, just my honest opinion

[ed^chigliak]

What are you going to use your PC for when you're done building it? Do you intend to overclock it? Are you bothered about the physical size of it? Do you want a it to look good or are you mainly concerned with performance? What OS do you intend to install? Does the cost of an OS need to be included in your £700 budget.

[lulu1484]

I've got a windows 7 through uni, along with office.

It'll mainly be used for office, web, watching videos / DVD's and general stuff. not really into games. I hate slow computers like all the Dell ones i use normally so just want a good fast computer!

[Pob255]

Motherboard, Gigabyte GA-MA785GMT-UD2H, £67.24
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Gigab...-Micro-ATX-VGA
CPU, Phenom II X4 945, £123.57
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/AMD-P...MHz-95W-Retail
Memory, OCZ 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 1600MHz/PC2-12800 Platinum Dual Channel Memory Kit CL7 1.9V, £86.81
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/164790
Hard drive, 500GB Samsung HD502HJ Spinpoint F3, SATA 3Gb/s, 7200rpm, 16MB Cache, 8.9 ms, NCQ, OEM, £36.44 (two of these in raid 0) £72.88
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/500Gb...-Cache-8ms-OEM
Power supply, Corsair 450W HX Series Modular PSU - 7 Year Warranty, £58.15
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/152606
Case, Antec Mini P180 Black MATX Case, £62.88
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/140996
Monitor, 24" BlueH H245W FULL HD TFT, £175.71
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/24-Bl...5W-FULL-HD-TFT

total 647.25 so still leaves some for keyboard + mouse + dvd drive (cheap if a plane one, more if you go for a BluRay)

EDIT: Ok I'll admit that the cpu is a bit overkill Could get the AMD Athlon II X4 630, Quad Core 2.8GHz for only £89.32 which would probably be fine for you
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/AMD-A...MHz-95W-Retail

DVDr/w £16.89
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/LG-GH...SATA-Black-OEM
Basic mouse and keyboard set, £10.24
http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/Micro...oard-and-Mouse

[Zhaoman]

Scrap the quaddie for a dual core and go for an SSD?

Seeing as this build is intended to be faster than the 'slow Dells' I think the OP will feel the responsiveness of an SSD much more than a better processor, also how much storage do you need? Because I think we may well be able to fit an SSD into your budget if you don't need a lot of storage space:

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/80GB-...ite-70MB-s-OEM £190

In fact since overclocking isn't an requirement I think going for a more basic mobo will do the job too:

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/MSI-7...Board-Graphics

And this processor will be more than adequate for the purposes:

http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/AMD-A...che-45W-Retail

imho I think the OP will benefit most from an SSD as the rest of the components should be more than capable

[Pob255]

That's why I went for 2 hard drives in raid 1, but yes a small SSD even if it's just big enough for win7

It's a shame they don't seem to make that SSD in a cheaper 40gb form.

[lulu1484]

Sorry but what is SSD?

[Biscuit]

Solid State Drive. Its kinda like a USB memory sick only bigger and faster wheras a Hard Disk Drive (which is what you will be used too) has a spinning magnetic disk to store the data on.

[peackshelb]

Sorry but what is SSD?

A Solid State Drive.

See:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Solid-state_drive

[lego batman]

Solid State Drive. A really fast hard drive which has lots of benefits (noise, speed etc.) but is still very expensive relative to storage volume compared with a plain old mechanical HDD. Gives good performance increases though, especially in general use.

Argh - beaten by 2!

[lulu1484]

So a SSD would make the computer faster than that CPU then?

[peackshelb]

So a SSD would make the computer faster than that CPU then?

It all depends on which part of the computer is slowing it down the most for the tasks you ask it to perform. A SSD will speed up booting, program loading and any program operations that require a large number of small reading and writing operations to a drive. For day to day tasks a SSD can make a computer feel more responsive, but won't significantly speed up tasks that are CPU limited.

[Biscuit]

Well an SSD would work in conjunction with a faster CPU to make the overall performance better.
I agree that you wont need a quadcore though, i wouldnt even get a phenom II i would look at Athon II dual core processors such as http://www.scan.co.uk/Products/AMD-A...MHz-65W-Retail.

Save you loads of cash and the performance will be more than enough for the kind of use you will have with it.

[peackshelb]

I don't know what your setup will be like, but if you prefer a wireless keyboard and mouse they can be found for around the same price or only a few pounds more than the wired option mentioned by Pob255. I don't know if any Tesco's near you are still offering the Logitech EX110 Wirelss Keyboard and Mouse for under £13 as many were a few weeks ago, or if Morrisions near you is still offering the Logitech EX100 Wireless Keyboard and Mouse for £10, but if not, then Argos still has it for £13.32:
http://www.argos.co.uk/static/Produc...s|14419132.htm

However, if a wireless setup isn't of much benefit to you, you may be better off sticking with wired versions and saving the money you would have spent on batteries.

[lulu1484]

Right, ok! Please excuse me if i sort of go through this a little bit at a time, just want to make sure i'm fully understanding everything!

On the monitor, whats the difference between the one listed above and the LG one
@ £147.74 (Other than 1" & Sorry can't post links!), As i prefer the look of the LG one!