Home PC Toast time to rebuild (looking for suggestions)

[Lazybones]

So I shutdown my desktop pc before the last thunder storm however it will not power up again after ward... I suspect that the PSU or MB have had it ether from a power fluctuation or simply coincidence since I don't shut that PC down often. At any rate it is very old now so it makes more sense to replace it.

I don't follow desktop parts like I used to so recommendations would be great. Since this was an unexpected replacement this will need to be a budget PC... and I am only looking to replace the main PC, no monitor or external accessories..

Just playing around the budget is set with a max of $1000, but should be less if possible.

Here is a rouge outline, I am looking for suggestions:

CPU
- Intel i5 Sandy Bridge 2 or 4 core (depends on budget for other parts)

RAM
- 8GB
- Should be clocked match the CPU for performance

Mother board
- Should support large amounts of ram up to the maximum clock of the CPU
- Onboard audio
- Onboard Gigabit
- Unless the onboard video supports DirectX 11, onboard video should be avoided

Video Card
- Best bang for the buck DirectX 11 card
- Dual monitor
- DVI
- VGA
- HDMI

Hard-drive
- SSD / Hybrid
- Minimum 120 GB (I store everything on my NAS so performance is more important)

OS
- Windows 7 64bit (probably home premium)

Ideally all parts would be stocked by NCIX as it is the best local store in my area.

Since my requirements are really basic I would even consider an off the shelf branded PC if it covered most of the basics well under budget. However things like large amounts of ram and SSD drives are unlikely in those systems.

[Mr. Analog]

I'm out of the loop myself, my current main machine is cobbled together from Fraga prizes (heh)

I'm having some problems with the Intel DX48BT2 (namely it doesn't want to run with 8 GB of RAM (4 GB seems fine though, which is odd) BIOS boots but Windows 7 64 bit chokes on it. But free is free so I can't complain too much

Oh yeah, the point, after having done some reading on the subject it turns out some Intel boards from the last couple of years having power distribution problems depending on your config, so... not that you were probably interested in running an Intel mobo but I for one can say I've had issues.

[Mr. Analog]

Also, time for a new surge protector I'd say...

[Tom]

So I shutdown my desktop pc before the last thunder storm however it will not power up again after ward... I suspect that the PSU or MB have had it ether from a power fluctuation or simply coincidence since I don't shut that PC down often. At any rate it is very old now so it makes more sense to replace it.

I don't follow desktop parts like I used to so recommendations would be great. Since this was an unexpected replacement this will need to be a budget PC... and I am only looking to replace the main PC, no monitor or external accessories..

Just playing around the budget is set with a max of $1000, but should be less if possible.

Here is a rouge outline, I am looking for suggestions:

CPU
- Intel i5 Sandy Bridge 2 or 4 core (depends on budget for other parts)

RAM
- 8GB
- Should be clocked match the CPU for performance

Mother board
- Should support large amounts of ram up to the maximum clock of the CPU
- Onboard audio
- Onboard Gigabit
- Unless the onboard video supports DirectX 11, onboard video should be avoided

Video Card
- Best bang for the buck DirectX 11 card
- Dual monitor
- DVI
- VGA
- HDMI

Hard-drive
- SSD / Hybrid
- Minimum 120 GB (I store everything on my NAS so performance is more important)

OS
- Windows 7 64bit (probably home premium)

Ideally all parts would be stocked by NCIX as it is the best local store in my area.

Since my requirements are really basic I would even consider an off the shelf branded PC if it covered most of the basics well under budget. However things like large amounts of ram and SSD drives are unlikely in those systems.

I like your CPU choice its nice and speedy, just get which ever one fits your budget best. I'll bet that one of the i3's would actually work for you, since you don't often even use that machine much (at least you didn't).

Ram is very unimportant, its all dirt cheap, just get some DDR3 @ 1333 or possibly 1600, it isn't much more expensive than 1333.

SSD Wise, the 120G SSDs are still quite expensive. Though maybe not that bad. An OCZ Agility 2 is  only like $200. Per GB its quite expensive, but for an SSD its not bad at all.

MB based onboard graphics is pase now. And you may actually want SandyBridge's onboard graphics to handle video decoding while your discreet card is handling a game or video or something else.

I don't really have much of an opinion on GFX cards atm, unless you want to mine bitcoins (go for a radeon HD 58xx, 59xx, 69xx).

I can probably try putting something together on NCIX later tonight or tomorrow if you don't mind waiting. Little busy today though.

[Lazybones]

Well the home PC has been getting more use since I have been playing TF2 again and I hate lugging my work laptop home... I am not looking for a gaming PC just a PC that can game and has longevity.. The current PC lasted a really really long time for me.

Thinking forward I am probably going to want to play the Next Diablo so having a capable PC around is important.

Since I am not involved in building PCs any more picking a good stable reliable, Motherboard / Chipset is really important to me, my last one was great and even allowed a far amount of future proofing, I purchased it with the lowest CPU it supported at the time, then after about 2.5 years I put the fasted it supported in... It really made the system stretch its usefulness out.

Past experience shows that too many on-board components can be a bad thing on a main board if they are from different vendors, where as complete chip-sets seem to be more stable, also make driver selection much easier.

I have no need for SLI, RAID, or onboard video really, unless the onboard video covers current tech at a reasonable performance level. DX11 support is my current target.

[Mr. Analog]

You can still TF2 with your Mac though right?

I really like playing with people I know heh...

[Tom]

Well the home PC has been getting more use since I have been playing TF2 again and I hate lugging my work laptop home... I am not looking for a gaming PC just a PC that can game and has longevity.. The current PC lasted a really really long time for me.

Thinking forward I am probably going to want to play the Next Diablo so having a capable PC around is important.

Since I am not involved in building PCs any more picking a good stable reliable, Motherboard / Chipset is really important to me, my last one was great and even allowed a far amount of future proofing, I purchased it with the lowest CPU it supported at the time, then after about 2.5 years I put the fasted it supported in... It really made the system stretch its usefulness out.

Past experience shows that too many on-board components can be a bad thing on a main board if they are from different vendors, where as complete chip-sets seem to be more stable, also make driver selection much easier.

I have no need for SLI, RAID, or onboard video really, unless the onboard video covers current tech at a reasonable performance level. DX11 support is my current target.

Your best bet MB wise right now is a SandyBridge compatible board, with a higher end X68 chipset (the H and P tend to be slower and suck, and the boards with the X chipset tend to have better discreet components). And even if the board comes with RAID that isn't Intel Matrix Raid (thats part of nearly every intel chipset for the past decade), it can be disabled so it shouldn't be a huge issue.

The sandybridge video will NOT cover DX11 games decently. But it will do video decoding, and encoding rather decently. And do it along side whatever else your cpu and discreet GPU are doing.

Discreet GPU wise, the Geforce GTX's are supposed to be the best for games right now. I haven't looked into it deeply.

SSD wise, yet again, the intel chipset for Sandy has a new SSD caching feature, that will use an SSD as a cache for a larger HDD. It supposedly can beat the performance of the SSD alone. Its something you might want to try out. Get a 30-60G SSD, and a 1-2 TB HDD. Lots cheaper, and just as fast, with more space.


Correction: its the Z68 chipset. :-x

[Lazybones]

Thanks for the tips on the chip-sets, do you have a link about the SSD caching feature and what is needed to support it?

I don't want to do a tiny SSD boot drive since windows it self will chew up something like 40G alone there is no point if you can't install your apps and games to make them faster, hence the 120/128GB SSD size requirement... That is a fairly safe size for application installs, keeping data on the SAN or Bulk drive.

[Tom]

Thanks for the tips on the chip-sets, do you have a link about the SSD caching feature and what is needed to support it?

I don't want to do a tiny SSD boot drive since windows it self will chew up something like 40G alone there is no point if you can't install your apps and games to make them faster, hence the 120/128GB SSD size requirement... That is a fairly safe size for application installs, keeping data on the SAN or Bulk drive.

I can't really find a clear link that explains it all. But all you need to do afaict is turn on the Intel Matrix Raid stuff, and tell it to use your SSD as a cache for the HDD, and it'll automatically take up to 64GB of your SSD and use it as a cache. The rest will be visible as another drive letter. Its supposedly all automatic.

Since it'll be a cache, your most used files will be saved to the cache, and be fast, so parts of the OS may not even be on the SSD saving valuable SSD space. It also completely bypasses the @%&#ty Windows ReadyBoost stuff, so it really will be rather fast. At the very least, it cant hurt to test it. And if it doesn't work, just reinstall

[Mr. Analog]

If you can find a link for this because I have an SSD I'd love to use as cache, again I'm using an Intel DX48BT2, it has Matrix RAID support

[Melbosa]

I've had great experiences with the Hybrids from Samsung, which are a lot cheaper than the SSD and gives you more space for $$$.  I use them without RAID and am very happy with their performance.

Your i5 choice is good, but make sure your MB supports the latest i7 (which I'm sure it will).  As you said, then down the road you can upgrade it. Asus and Gigabyte are still good choices for MBs.  The ones I have built for my clients have been very happy with both brands.  I also recommend at least 2 USB 3.0 (if you can get now) ports on the desktop MBs - more devices are coming or rely on this now.  Some tablets don't even charge unless you have a USB 3.0 connected.

RAM - Cosair is still one of the best, or Kingston for reliability.  Had terrible results with Mushkin and Patriot lately - DOA or 1-2 weeks life.  I have no experience with GSKILL.

Graphics wise, I would go with nVidia myself as well at the moment.  AMD is very focused on their APU side and seem to have let the HD Radeon lines slip for now - although you can get some real cost savings going with AMD at the moment.

Case and PSU is completely up to you, although the Antec series cases are still very popular, but their PSUs are only OK.  I typically go with Corsair or FSP now.

On the flip side... for me the Desktop is dead.  I would spend $1500 on a laptop myself which will last me 3 years than a desktop.  But I have means to pay and the need for portability.  Gaming lappies are so much more cheaper than they used to be.  But I understand this isn't what you are looking for... although I would just look at them for kicks just to see as a comparison.

[Tom]

If you can find a link for this because I have an SSD I'd love to use as cache, again I'm using an Intel DX48BT2, it has Matrix RAID support

Its Z68 only I think at this point. The technology is called Intel Rapid Storage Technology (RST). Look for that, if its there, it'll have an option in your bios. And it'll let you add a cache to the drives after the fact.


One thing I wanted to mention, spend extra on a high quality motherboard and PSU. They are probably the two most important things when it comes to reliability. Anything that uses solid state caps, and thicker copper layers, etc. Electrolytic capacitors ftl.

[Melbosa]

One thing I wanted to mention, spend extra on a high quality motherboard and PSU. They are probably the two most important things when it comes to reliability. Anything that uses solid state caps, and thicker copper layers, etc. Electrolytic capacitors ftl.

I would guess Lazy knows that already, but good advice.

[Mr. Analog]

If you can find a link for this because I have an SSD I'd love to use as cache, again I'm using an Intel DX48BT2, it has Matrix RAID support

Its Z68 only I think at this point. The technology is called Intel Rapid Storage Technology (RST). Look for that, if its there, it'll have an option in your bios. And it'll let you add a cache to the drives after the fact.


One thing I wanted to mention, spend extra on a high quality motherboard and PSU. They are probably the two most important things when it comes to reliability. Anything that uses solid state caps, and thicker copper layers, etc. Electrolytic capacitors ftl.

Okay, when I'm done work I'll take a boo at the BIOS (I'm pretty sure I remember it support that feature, but I'll find out)

Yes, cannot stress good PSU enough! I bought a cheapy and had power problems up the wazoo (didn't help that the mobo already has some distribution problems), I bought a much better one and so many problems went away.

[Mags]

Some parts that MaximumPC is recommending right now if your on a budget:

Intel 3.3GHz Core i5-2500k

Asus P8P67 Deluxe motherboard

Radeon HD 6850

OCZ Vertex 2 100GB