newbuild assistance on basic system

B

BobbyD1120

Geek Trainee
hello, my parents ask that I build them a new computer. they dont need anything fancy since all they ever do is check email, browse the web and do some stuff in MS office. Also, they have alot of digital pics that they print and keep. I want to keep the price under $500 MAX and maybe a little lower if possible.

they have a CRT from the old computer they can use with the new one, and also have a PS2 mouse/kb they can reuse. I also have a 350 GB IDE drive a can give to them if I cant find one that is not too expensive.

here is what I have from newegg.com. Let me know if it all looks ok and what I need to change.

* board & processor 105.99 ECS 761GX-M754 (3.0C) w/XP-M2800+ AMD Athlon XP Mobile 2800+ Micro ATX Motherboard/CPU Set - Retail at Newegg.com

* memory 47.99 each (2 512s) Crucial Technology 512MB 184-Pin DDR SDRAM System Memory - OEM at Newegg.com

*dvd burner 34.99 LITE-ON 16X DVD±R DVD Burner W/5X DVD-RAM Write Black ATAPI/E-IDE Model SHM-165P6S - OEM at Newegg.com

* dvd rom 19.99 SONY Black IDE DVD-ROM Drive Model DDU1615/B2s - OEM at Newegg.com

* case 33.99 XCLIO 3060WH White/Silver Computer Case - Retail at Newegg.com

PSU 18.99 ATADC PSLP6100D-PU 400W Power Supply - OEM at Newegg.com


TOTAL with shipping 443.47
 
I'd be tempted to go for 2GB memory for digital imaging, the files can be quite big for hi res photos. Perhaps a PSU from a more reputable manufacturer (antec never failed me). Although your system is low spec a bad PSU can still cause problems.

Good luck.
 
Not famuilliar with the American market -
How about a Celeron M laptop?

Nifty and takes little space.... With a little stretch maybe you can get the DVD-RW and an external enclosure for your IDE drive?

Just a thought...
 
I don't think that 2gigs of RAM would be needed for looking at and printing. :confused: Maybe if they were planning to edit them in Photoshop or something i'd consider it, but otherwise 1gig should be plenty. Also, unless they're planning to copy DVD's or CD's, I doubt it's necessary to have 2 drives. Also, you haven't included an Operating System, so unless you use Linux (which if they're using MS Office I doubt), that'll be more on top.
 
thomas234 said:
I don't think that 2gigs of RAM would be needed for looking at and printing.
Click to expand...

I agree that it's not needed, but depending on how many photos you're messing with and what software you're using it can be desirable. :)
 
Most of it's not too bad, but there's a couple of problems
1.)That CPU mobo combo includes a Socket 754 motherboard and a Socket A (462) CPU.
2.)I have no idea what quality power supply that is, but you can get something better and still have money left over.

Example, with all prices off Newegg:

Motherboard: MSI K8NGM-V $55.99 (ship. $6.67)
CPU: Sempron64 2600+ retail $63.00 (ship. free)
RAM: Patriot 1GB PC3200 $79.99 (ship. $4.99)
Hard Drive: Samsung 250GB SATA $74.99 (ship. $5.46)
Optical: Pioneer DVR-111D $35.99 (ship. $5.46)
Power Supply: FSP Group AX450-PN 450W $51.50 (ship. $8.69)
Case: SkyHawk BAX5602SL $14.99 (ship. $12.38)

Total: $376.45
Shipping: $43.65

Total: $420.10
(Tax if you live in CA, NJ)

While going with 2 sticks of RAM to get 1GB might normally be a good idea, the Socket 754 CPU's do not have a dual-channel memory controller. Given the low-budget market we're looking at, occupying as few RAM slots as possible is a good idea. You can always add another 1GB later on, but that's a great place to start.

For most people, I don't think it's necessary to have 2 optical drives, unless they want to do a lot of copying from one drive straight to another.
 
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