Ebay seller offering custom builds...what do you think of this build? (no flames pls.

[rising_suns]

Hello,
I am an owner of a small business, and am looking for a workhorse machine to run multi threaded processes all day. I know most people here probably build custom machines for gaming, but this machine I just need solely as a workhorse to continually run in the background with multiple processes. My main requirements are reliability, expandability (for future upgrades), and good stock speed (with perhaps a conservative OC).

I am new to custom builds, and do not exactly have the technical know-how to build a machine myself. But I did find a seller on ebay who is offering custom built machines (he has 100% feedback with over 14,000 sales--which I've never seen before--so people are apparently happy with him). This is the basic machine I am looking at;

INTEL I7 860 2.8GHZ QUAD DDR3 CUSTOM BAREBONES PC NEW - eBay (item 370423056618 end time Aug-31-10 15:40:37 PDT)

Components:
-Intel Core i7-870, or Intel Core i5-760
-Gigabyte P55M-UD2 P55 DDR3 m/b
-GeForce GT 210 512MB, PCI EXpress 16X dual head, HDMI
-Super Talent 4GB (2x2GB) PC10600 DDR3 1333 Dual Channel
-Coolermaster GeminII S Fan/HS
-Logisys 480W ATX Power Supply
-PowMax Black Mid Tower ATX Case w/ Front USB
(I have my own DVD + Hard Drives)

TOTAL PRICE: $642(i5) / $732(i7)


Your thoughts would be appreciated.

 

[Slaymate]

Re: Ebay seller offering custom builds...what do you think of this build? (no flames

Build it yourself or buy one from a reputable PC Manufacturer.

The animated guide to Building a PC. Learn to build a PC from scratch with PCitYourself!

 

[KSoD]

Re: Ebay seller offering custom builds...what do you think of this build? (no flames

You could order the parts and we could easily walk you through the process. Better than every going through any fleabay dealer.

 

[rising_suns]

Re: Ebay seller offering custom builds...what do you think of this build? (no flames

Hello, thank you for the replies.

If I build it myself, would you say that the components above would be a good start? My price range is in the $600 ballpark (I already have monitor, Win XP, HD, and optical drive....)

Also, I noticed on one test that the Super Talent DDR3 RAM scored very poorly on timings. Is this really a big deal?

And do you think I can just get by on an integrated GPU, since this computer will only be used for data processing (the most graphic intensive work we do is use photoshop batch processing, which is merely opening and closing JPG images, and applying filters).

Thanks again for your help.

 

[Slaymate]

Re: Ebay seller offering custom builds...what do you think of this build? (no flames

For $600 you should be looking at a AMD based system. I would avoid an integrated gpu, you can pick up a low cost video card for less than they charge for an integrated one.

 

[rising_suns]

Re: Ebay seller offering custom builds...what do you think of this build? (no flames

Thanks for the info. I would prefer not to use AMD, since the $600 ballpark will afford me an Intel i5 or i7. As I mentioned above, I already have a monitor, OS, hard drive, and DVD drive. All I think I would need is CPU, PSU, Case, Heat Sink/Fan, MB, and RAM. After doing a quick search on Newegg, I was able to put together this list for $659 total (I would post the newegg list, but it is not public yet). Hopefully I am not an idiot and this will work together;

-Intel Core i7-870 Lynnfield 2.93GHz LGA 1156 95W Quad-Core Processor
-GIGABYTE GA-P55-USB3 LGA 1156 Intel P55 USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
-G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666)
-SeaSonic S12II 520 Bronze 520W ATX12V... Power Supply
-Antec Three Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
-COOLER MASTER Intel Core i7 compatible Hyper N CPU Cooler

Knock off about $90 with the i5-760 instead of the i7-870, would put my down at $569.

What I am most concerned about however, is that everything will work together. Since I don't have experience, I am just going by reviews. I tried to read the reviews on newegg to confirm what components other had success with, but I of course am still a newbie at this and there probably are things I may have missed.

Also, I believe the Gigabyte m/b has an integrated graphics, so I do not need an aftermarket GPU at this point, not for doing photoshop batch processing at least (I don't think).

Perhaps I should make a new post with this suggested build?

Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

 

[Muffin Man]

Re: Ebay seller offering custom builds...what do you think of this build? (no flames

Also, I believe the Gigabyte m/b has an integrated graphics, so I do not need an aftermarket GPU at this point, not for doing photoshop batch processing at least (I don't think).

no p55 boards support integrated video.

only h55 and h57 boards support using the integrated video but the gpu isn't on the board itself, it's found only on certain cpus, the i3's and i5 6xx series cpus.

so as your build stands now, you would still need a dedicated gfx card.

 

[Slaymate]

Re: Ebay seller offering custom builds...what do you think of this build? (no flames

Is this the mobo your looking at?
Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GA-P55-USB3 LGA 1156 Intel P55 USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
It does not have an integrated gpu, actually none of the Gigabyte mobo's I see have built-in gpu's. This mobo does have a HDMI output if you buy an Intel cpu with built-in Intel HD Graphics.
Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GA-H55-USB3 LGA 1156 Intel H55 HDMI USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard
All the new Intel cpu's with built-in Intel HD graphics are Dual-Core cpu's. This is the fastest one available and it isn't worth the money imho.Your paying more for the video and getting less cpu power. You'd be better off buying a cheap $50 video card.
Newegg.com - Intel Core i5-680 Clarkdale 3.6GHz 4MB L3 Cache LGA 1156 Dual-Core Desktop Processor BX80616I5680

 

[rising_suns]

Re: Ebay seller offering custom builds...what do you think of this build? (no flames

Good catch. Since I need the quad core Intel, it looks like I do need a dedicated GPU.
In that case, how does this sound for a basic no-frills GPU for a business machine (on the same Gigabyte GA P55);
Newegg.com - MSI N8400GS-TD512 GeForce 8400 GS 512MB 64-bit GDDR2 PCI Express 2.0 x16 Video Card

Thanks again.

 

[mattk1045]

Re: Ebay seller offering custom builds...what do you think of this build? (no flames

IMHO you don't need a quad-core CPU. For what you are doing a dual core would be more than enough. You are actually spending more money then you need. If you are not watching multiple videos while playing games and browsing the internet you will have way more CPU power then required. Any GPU will work for you. You are not gaming, you just need a dedicated card since the board you want doesn't have one.
I think you should step that processor down to an i5, and get the cheapest GPU that works. Also you really won't need a seperate CPU cooler, the stock one should be fine unless you really plan to overclock to max settings.
Save your money man. This is not a gaming system so don't waste when you don't need to.