basic PC/HTPC

MRTULES

1. What is your budget? 600? cheaper the better

2. What will be the main purpose of the computer? Internet browsing, everything my 4 year old laptop can do but faster hopfully output full HD and suroundsound too?

3. Do you need a copy of Windows? yes, was going to go the software students route

4. Can you use any parts from an old computer? No.

5. Do you need a monitor? No, I will be using a 42 inch plasma at 1st

5b. If no, what resolution is your current monitor and do you plan to upgrade in the near future? current tv does 1080p? is this what your after? might get a nice 23+ inch screen or catleap after xmas :cool:

6. Do you need any of these peripherals? Mouse, keyboard cd drive

7. Are you willing to try overclocking? I would LOVE to but is there a need?

8. How can you pay? anyway you like

9. When are you purchasing? a few weeks time

10. If you need help building it, where are you based? Probably need loads of hel but really want to try it myself 1st.

U_Fig

i ordered this today..for my new htpc

Item|Price
Intel Celeron G540 Box, LGA1155|€38.66
Samsung SSD 830 64GB SATA 6GB's Paper Box|€67.19
Thermaltake Element Q, mini-ITX, 200W-Netzteil|€51.90
ASRock B75M-ITX, Sockel 1155, ITX|€82.55
4GB-Kit G-Skill PC3-10667U CL9|€18.47
Shipping|€18.99
Total|€277.76

since some of it has gone out of stock..but it should be back soon

my budget was only €300 so with double the budget you could go for a better cpu... like the intel i3 2105 or even an i5. Also you could get a better case and psu... hardwareversand website is not working at the minute so i'd take a look later at some...

sink

TBH I don't think you need a faster processor than a G540, it will only use up more power. I have the G540 in my HTPC and it runs everything perfect in 1080p. Unless you are doing transcoding or similar it is a complete waste.

There are a number of factors you need to consider that are more important than processing power.

How much space do you have? Do want an mini-ITX for it's small form factor or mATX for it's expansion slots (tv cards, sound cards etc). Do you want lots of local storage or do you have a NAS/Server? Do you want to spend big bucks on a high end case with brushed metal and a VFD display or do you want something cheap and cheerful?

MRTULES

Thanks guys.

With regards case, it will be locked away in the hub so size, looks amd noise are not a factor. I reckon big cheap and ugly is what I am after. I have no storage of any kind atm but could this PC also be used as a NAS/server?
I was looking at the G630 for an extra 15 quid.

I mean if I won a few bob I would be getting 3770k and 600T case and loads more things that I dont need but like

I suppose a decent upgrade path is very important

sink

I wouldn't recommend it the G630 is not great price-performance wise.

|G540|G630|A6-3650
Passmark|2347|2608|3563
|100%|111.12%|149.35%
Price|€38.66|€54.44|€73.00
|100%|140.82%|188.82%

You're basically paying 41% more for 11% more performance, you might as well go a little farther and get the A6-3650 which has much better integrated grpahics (not reflected in above scores).

MRTULES

Sorry I ment the G640 but Im sure there not too different. Could you link me to where I can compare cpu's like that please.
I would like to stay Intel atm.

sink

You can get all the passmark scores here http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu_list.php. Bear in mind that while it's a good indicator it is not the be all and end all as you have things like integrated graphics and over clocking potential to consider.

Eboggles

sink wrote: »

You can get all the passmark scores here http://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu_list.php. Bear in mind that while it's a good indicator it is not the be all and end all as you have things like integrated graphics and over clocking potential to consider.

It's a piece of ****e indicator.

sink

Eboggles wrote: »

It's a piece of ****e indicator.

Not doubt it is a ****e indicator for gaming performance, but for general windows tasks it's adequate. I'm talking about basic applications such as winrar.

Eboggles

sink wrote: »

Not doubt it is a ****e indicator for gaming performance, but for general windows tasks it's adequate. I'm talking about basic applications such as winrar.

It's terrible, people should just use the Anandtech CPU bench. It gives a much better indication of the CPUs strength, even if it's just WinRar.

MRTULES

Taking on board what you said I have put together the following build. I know the Mobo, PSU and ram are over kill. The thought behind this is that I could drop anything upto a 3770k in it and would be ok? Im I right or wrong on this?

Item|Price
Xigmatek Asgard, ATX, ohne Netzteil, schwarz|€32.23
8GB-Kit Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600 MHz CL9|€40.91
Samsung SSD 830 128GB SATA 6GB's Paper Box|€99.74
Super-Flower Amazon 80Plus 450W|€42.15
Intel Celeron G540 Box, LGA1155|€38.66
ASRock H77 Pro4/MVP, Sockel 1155, ATX|€81.89
Shipping|€18.99
Total|€354.57