Getting a job, finally gonna build.

I'm getting a job over the summer, and Im finally gonna get to be able to build a computer, and I've been looking over parts yet again. Quite a time killer, lol I asked my friend for help and he got too confused.

I need a little help to make sure I'm not wasting too much money, or if I could save a little bit more without sacrificing any of the power.


Here's what I've got so far, in the order that Newegg listed it in my cart :3

Hard Drive: Samsung by Seagate

Mobo: ASRock 880GM-LE FX AM3+ AMD 880G Micro ATX AMD Motherboard

Networking: Premiertek PT-H10DN-1W USB 2.0 Speedy2 Wireless LAN Adapter
(My room is where the router is, my crap is in my dads room where my brother can't bother me....sharing a room sucks)

Thermal Paste: Tuniq TX-2 Cooling Thermal Compound
(Even though the heatsink should come with some, I read reviews and when somebody says somethings crappy, I believe them XD, and some say this stuff is better than Arctic Silver, plus the fact that it's not conductive so I shouldn't accidentally fry my first build.)

RAM: Kingston 4GB 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1066 (PC3 8500) Desktop Memory Model KVR1066D3N7/4G
(I have 2 in the cart...even though they have a product that contains two of these, the one with 2 has a worse rating, and less reviews. I'm a picky boy, and it's straight off the MoBo's QVL, and 5 eggs :3)

Processor: AMD Phenom II X4 955 Deneb 3.2GHz Socket AM3 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor HDX955WFK4DGM - OEM
(Because somebody said that the stock heatsink sucked.)

Heatsink: COOLER MASTER Hyper N 520 RR-920-N520-GP 92mm Sleeve CPU Cooler Intel Core i7 compatible
(Probably a stupid question, but AMD3+ and AMD3 have the same mounts, and this one should fit, right? Thanks)


SATA Cable: OKGEAR 18" SATA 6 Gbps Cable, Straight to Right Angle W/Metal Latch, UV Blue
(Because no matter how many times I'm told, I keep forgetting whether or not a motherboard is gonna come with one, let alone the screws I'll need >.>)


I'll be looking for a PSU myself, but if you wanna gimme some suggestions, please and thanks Also some suggestions on cases too, never was sure about them.

The MoBo has integrated graphics, as crappy as they may or may not be (If you can, let me know how crappy, please and thanks :D) so I'm not going to buy a GPU until later, I don't quite game on computers but I like to be able to play something stupid like The Sims. I'm trying to make it a nice cheap build while still being able to watch HD movies and play Bloons Tower Defense :3 so easily amused I am.

Which reminds me, I still gotta find a disk drive, and a media drive, and maybe a sound card, because I don't quite trust integrated sound. My laptops makes noises if there isn't sound playing. Very quiet noises, but still noise. I think my dad's desktop does too.

Any help, advice, suggestions, are very very welcome. If you're bored and feel like making somebody feel stupid, gimme your best shot I'm up for a laugh
I'm gonna check my links to be sure they're all correct.
Thanks!

To start of this, do you have a budget? And the SATA cable it not necessary as the motherboard comes with it.

To start of this, do you have a budget? And the SATA cable it not necessary as the motherboard comes with it.

Thanks for letting me know...lol i think this is the 3rd time YOU have told me XD Although I will need one for a disk drive and I just found the perfect one

ASUS 24X DVD Burner

My budget is around 450, but I wanna see how cheap I can make it without buying anything crappy...Basically I wanna build those crappy computers they sell for 6-800 dollars but make it better for cheaper XD If I make any sense at all of course.

Also, does anyone in here know whether the rate of DOA items is actually as high as it seems (for certain items of course) or is human error a big fault?

Case: COOLER MASTER Elite 311 - $40

Power Supply: CORSAIR Builder Series CX600 V2 600W - $70

Optical Drive: ASUS 24X DVD Burner - $18

Total: $486 excluding shipping, taxes, Tuniq thermal paste and SATA cable.

I can work with that, Thanks Killer

Do you think I should stick with the aftermarket cooler, or go with the stock cooler and not be so picky? I think I'd be able to save some money from that, but I don't want it to run hot because I know this room gets real hot in the summer.

You need that aftermarket cooler since the CPU you chose is an OEM.

Oh I know that but I could always go back and choose the one that isn't OEM. Do you know anybody that has used this CPU with the stock cooler, otherwise I'm taking the Reviewers word for it and sticking to the OEM one.

I had that CPU with an OEM cooler, it's not great, or quiet, but gets the job done. I then upgraded to the FX-8150 and bought a better cooler to better thermals and quieter operation. I use a very close cousin to the XIGMATEK Gaia SD1283. If you're going to go with on-board grahpics, might I suggest one of AMD's APU's instead. Those graphics are leaps and bounds ahead of what you're getting with that old 880G motherboard. Seriously, the graphics on that motherboard are simply bad.

Here's a suggestion:

Motherboard: BIOSTAR A75MH FM1 AMD A75 - Much more up-to-date but uses the FM1 socket and thus, will not take any of the newer AM3+ CPU's. However, the motherboard does have SATA 6 and USB 3.0 along with a PCI-E X16 slot should you decide to get a dedicated graphics card. $70

CPU/GPU: AMD A8-3850 Llano 2.9GHz - This is essentially a Phenom II X4 part clocked at 2.9 GHz. paired with a Radeon 6550 all on one CPU. This is much better than what you've chosen above. $109

Overall, these two parts are marginally more expensive than what you've already got and should offer better graphics performance in a newer package.

I will agree to go with that APU, thanks DJ, but I'm not too partial to that board. I know I'm probably being picky and paranoid, I just don't wanna take that chance. I'll look at them though, let you know which I choose.

Instead of that A8, i'll be going with an OEM A6-3650 and a COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus RR-B10-212P-G1

I just better get one of the jobs I've applied for -.-

I chose the A8 due to the slightly better graphics. The lower clock of that A6 shouldn't be too bad. FYI, that CPU cooler, and the Xigmatek I chose, both are HDT coolers and for best performance you should use a different thermal compound application method instead of the traditional "Dot-in-the-middle" method.

I didn't plan on using that dot method, although i don't quite know what how i was planning to apply it. suggestions on that?

Oh, and Im going with the Evo model instead of the plus. my friend showed me it so i decided to choose it.

just remembered the actual reason I went with AM3 and not FM1, was because of the fact that there are more boards with better ratings...

Of course there will be more boards, the FM1 socket is about a year old whereas the AM3 socket is three and even then, it is only an evolution of previous sockets. Ratings on most consumer sites are very hit or miss on most things unless you get a large number of reviews. With motherboards, the rating doesn't matter in terms of the socket, so get a good board for the socket you want. Quality, however, does range from good to poor with motherboard manufacturers and then on individual models themselves. By the way, the 880G chipset is also old and even though the 880G motherboard can take AM3+ CPU's, it isn't officially supported by AMD and should you decide to upgrade to an FX CPU later, only a 900 series chipset can use all the features. Additionally, 900 series boards are almost guaranteed to be able to use upcoming FX/Bulldozer II/Piledriver/whatever-AMD-calls-it CPU's whereas previous chipsets may not be able to.

Since this isn't a gaming PC and you're going with an integrated graphics solution, the APU still wins with being more practical and more powerful in the GPU department. Here's a page on applying thermal compound to an HDT cooler. In short, with an HDT, you will want to put two small lines on the non-copper portion.

I'm in the process of picking out parts for a relative who will be needing a similar PC later this year. The below build can give a few ideas.

Case: Antec New Solution NSK2480 - The relative moves about once every year or so, so a small case does the trick. The integrated power supply is sufficient given that no add-in graphics card will be used. The downside to this case is that every add-in card will need to be low-profile. $117

Motherboard: BIOSTAR A75MH FM1 AMD A75 - This is the same one as above, it has the better of the FM1 chipsets, the A75. It's up-to-date and is on par with the 970 chipset, only this one allows for FM1, not AM3+. The on-board sound is good enough for most users. Unless you have really good speakers or headphones, along with all your music being ripped in Lossless, you should not tell the difference. The only time you will is if the motherboard is cheap and the components interfere. Even then, there are options with inexpensive sound cards. I stay away from Creative but like cards based on the C-Media chips, like Asus' Xonar line. Note: AMD should be releasing FM2 CPU's later this year, sometime around August, and there is no guarantee they will be backwards compatible with FM1. $69

CPU/APU: AMD A8-3850 Llano 2.9GHz Socket FM1 - This is the least expensive APU that has a Radeon 6550 GPU, which is pretty good. This is all my relative needs, even then, it is still probably overkill. $109

RAM: AMD Entertainment Edition 4GB 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 - I'm getting two of these. Although a QVL is nice for RAM, almost no one uses it. If the RAM you get meets the specifications for the motherboard, the RAM should work. All a QVL does is say from the manufacturer, "This motherboard was tested with this specific hardware," that's it. I always put the RAM through a memory diagnostic overnight just to be safe. $25 per stick.

HDD: Crucial M4 CT128M4SSD2CCA 2.5" 128GB SATA III - My relative will not be filling up the drive with tons of games and movies, so this is enough. The fast speed of an SSD (Especially with SATA 6), combined with no moving parts, make this a durable component. I will recheck closer to build time to see if a larger drive can be had for just a little bit more. $168

ODD: Sony Optiarc 24X DVD Burner, Bulk Package Black SATA Model AD-7280S-0B - I did consider getting a Blu-Ray drive, but this PC will most likely not be near a TV and besides, until you get a screen about 46 inches or larger in size, you really cannot tell much of a difference with 1080p content. $18

Other Hardware I: Nippon Labs SATA Adpater Molex 4-Pin PC power cable - Given what I read about the case's power supply and SATA connections, I'm not sure if I will be able to connect two SATA devices without this. At such a low price, it isn't a big deal if I don't need it. $5

Other Hardware II: BYTECC Bracket-35225 2.5 Inch HDD/SSD Mounting Kit For 3.5" Drive Bay or Enclosure - Most SSD's are of the 2.5-inch size so this is needed to put them into desktop PC's if the SSD doesn't already come with one. $5

OS: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit OEM - This is just a placeholder for Windows 8 as I will be building this after launch. I'm going to enjoy watching my relative learn W8 after coming from XP, it should be quite entertaining! $99

Sorry I haven't been able to reply, my older brother has been here all day with his daughter, so I'm a tad preoccupied. DJ, I'll probably end up getting that mobo and memory, thanks for your suggestions

I don't know how stupid this is going to sound, but could I spread the thermal grease evenly using just a q-tip before putting on, or is that not recommended? Just going out on a limb, otherwise I'm sticking to that 2 line method that looks like it pretty much did the job.

Didn't mean to double post, It's getting too late for me to think, again XD sorry. and I suppose, good night too, cuz I'm off for now. Be back tomorrow of course

Do not spread the thermal compound, the pressure from locking the heatsink and fan will spread it out. Just follow the directions and you should be good.