My effort to get a perfect PC

[fais7]

I'll get to the point directly.
I'm planning to get a pc assembled with hardware that I would require to meet my requirements. But the problem I instantly faced was to what hardwares does my requirements translate into. There are soo many things in the market that its quite disturbing trying to figure out what is good for what. So here I am for help..

My requirements...

• Surfing the net while listening to music, downloading, multiple window[for surfing], cahtting, transfering data to my MP3 player etc...I should be able to do this all without my pc freezing.
• Gaming is not of high importance. I would just like a VGA card that will deal with every high end game in the genre[if possible] of Racing, sports, simulators, sims etc... Not such a fan of games like GTA, warcraft.
• But I want a VGA card with a TV out so that I can connect the TV to the CPU. A remote would be a added advantage.
• Speed is important but more important is a stable HDD. A SATA HDD will be enough if it has less chances of crashing.

Now this is what I think I require.
atleast 1gb ram, 160gb HDD [one 160 or two 80], 256mb VGA card should be enough.

Things I'm completely lost with is the processor & motherboard. What would I need to be satisfied.

Now remember, I live in the Middle east where unfortunately my choice is quite limited to the international market. Plus Its pretty hot here, so I need hardware that dont heat up, or have better cooling system.

In the end, I'd like you to advice me for a power box cause my old pc's power box kept dying.

Cheers
Thanx

 

[fais7]

I forgot to mention...I've got a budget of about $600-700

 

[Brinson]

The basic CPU/MB for a Brisbane X2 3600+ runs about $150, add in 250gb HD for $70, $50 for RAM, and about another $150 for case and psu, then $30 for a DVD burner and you're looking at a quite nice $450 ystem.

Spend the rest on a nice winTV card or graphics card.

If you're not gaming I wouldn't spend more than $100 on a video card. What kind of inputs does your TV have? Dvi?

 

[b1gapl]

Hey fais7,
Welcome to T.F.!!

Looks like this will be a mid-range budget PC. Heres a list of parts, that I would suggest:

CPU - This would depend on your budget. You don't need a powerful CPU, to do music, download, having multiple Windows opened. So either an AMD Athlon X2 3600+ or an Intel Dual-Core E2140, will do the job. Which ever is cheaper, go for it.

Motherboard - If you are going for the AMD Athlon X2 3600+, than I would suggest either the Biostar TForce 550 or the Biostar TF7025. They're great budget boards.

If you are going for the Intel Dual-Core E2140, then look for the Gigabyte P35-DS3L or the S3L version. Again, these are both great budget boards.

Memory - DDR2-800 RAM is not as expensive as it was before, so the brands to look for are G. Skill (NQ models, they're red in color) or Crucial Ballistix. If they're not cheap where you are, then OCZ, Corsair XMS2, or Patriot will do.

Power supply - This is the most important part of the system. And I would suggest reliable brands like FSP (Fortron), Corsair, SeaSonic, HIPER, XClio, etc...

Graphics - It seems you're not going to be playing demanding games, so a 7900GS can suffice. It's inexpensive, and can play most games on reasonable settings.

Hard drive - You want to look only at Seagate or Western Digital hard drives, as they are the most reliable brands. Seagate is more preferred because they have the least failure rate, which you want, and they have the best warranty. Look for Seagate 7200.10 models, as they are one of the faster 7200rpm drives out there.

I hope these ideas helped.

 

[fais7]

Right now I'm at work so I'll get back to you about that connecton on my TV

I was looking at a seagate/maxtor HDD of capacity 160GB. More like two 80GB cause I have heard 2 HDD are better than one at the time of failure of one. WD...did not know they were a good brand. Will look for them also.

I'm looking for an Intel, not an AMD. Just a Old Intel user so would prefer sticking to it.

Those RAM companies I've never heard of... :|
Are Kingston good??

The power supply units, I know the old pc used to have 4 connectors...would I need more??

 

[Vaanish]

Those RAM companies I've never heard of... :|
Are Kingston good??

The power supply units, I know the old pc used to have 4 connectors...would I need more??

Kingston are an excellent manufacturer of RAM. They are actually the world's largest distributer. But, all of the ones that b1 suggested are well known, high performance modules also.

All of the PSUs that b1 listed will power your system just fine. They will have all of the connectors that you will need to use, and probably more besides.

 

[maroon1]

Intel Core 2 Duo E4400
Newegg.com - Intel Core 2 Duo E4400 Allendale 2.0GHz 2M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 Processor - Retail

1GB ram (Get two of those to have 2GB ram)
Newegg.com - CORSAIR ValueSelect 1GB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) Desktop Memory - Retail

GIGABYTE GA-945GCMX-S2 LGA 775 Intel
Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GA-945GCMX-S2 LGA 775 Intel 945GC Micro ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

250GB Western Digital HDD with 16MB cache
Newegg.com - Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD2500KS 250GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM

Rosewill R604-P SL Case comboed w/ Thermaltake TR2 430 watt
Newegg.com - Rosewill R604-P SL 120mm Fan ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail

LITE-ON Black 20X DVD
Newegg.com - LITE-ON Black 20X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 20X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 24X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache E-IDE/ATAPI DVD Burner with LightScribe Technology - OEM

Microsoft Mouse/Keyboard
Newegg.com - Microsoft CA9-00001 Black 103 Normal Keys 3 Function Keys PS/2 Standard Basic Keyboard and Mouse Included - OEM

8600GT
Newegg.com - MSI NX8600GT-T2D256E OC GeForce 8600GT 256MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail



If you want to save $50 then get E2140 instead of E4400
Newegg.com - Intel Dual-Core E2140 Allendale 1.6GHz 1MB L2 Cache LGA 775 Processor - Retail

 

[maroon1]

And if you want to save another $25 then get 7600GT
Newegg.com - EVGA 256-P2-N615-TX GeForce 7600GT 256MB 128-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 SLI Supported Video Card - Retail

 

[fais7]

HOw much of a difference does it make...betweem the E2140 & E4400

 

[b1gapl]

HOw much of a difference does it make...betweem the E2140 & E4400

I'd say theres a good differential between them. It's a matter of how much, you're willing to spend.