Ok new system challange. This one for the wife.

[gyrene81]

dred, i may be mistaken but i don't think that power supply will support the video card...the video card needs a +12v output of 22amps and the power supply is showing +12V1@17A, +12V2@16A...unless it will switch all power to a single 12v rail you won't have enough for that graphics card.

[DREDIOCK]

Which one? the antec or the Rosewill?
If your referring to the Antec
The roswill is only 10 bucks more. And I'd rather err on the side of more power anyway.

[gyrene81]

the antec earthwatts 430...underpowered for that graphics card.

rosewill psu? ...i have no experience with them but...it's better than logisys for sure.

[DREDIOCK]

How about the PSU supplied with this case?

http://www.rosewill.com/products/s_1601/productDetail.htm

Output    +3.3V@24A,+5V@24A,+12V@41A,-12V@0.5A, +5Vsb@2.5A

nevermind

[1701E]

How about the PSU supplied with this case?

http://www.rosewill.com/products/s_1601/productDetail.htm

Output    +3.3V@24A,+5V@24A,+12V@41A,-12V@0.5A, +5Vsb@2.5A

nevermind

From what I see that PSU doesn't even come close to those 12V readings (finding it's 15/16A but even that's not true if I am doing the formula right).  Heard bad things about Rosewill construction quality.  Still have a Logisys laying around, still works after ~2 years but I wouldn't use it again.

The 430 recommends a 300Watt minimum  Since you said it won't be gaming it shouldn't even hit peak usage (short of start-up).  Since you want 25% overhead in a PSU we'll say you'll need 300Watts for everything (way more than you'll likely use).  25% overhead would bring it to ~370 Watts.  So a PSU around 400W should be plenty.  Also, you don't want too much overhead.
Personally I'd suggest http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151072
Hopefully someone who knows PSUs better can chime in, Skuzzy may be able to help.


Quick list I've thrown together, mostly using parts I have with some cutbacks:

Motherboard: $85
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131673

CPU: $90
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103846

RAM: $47
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231189

GPU: $70
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130579

PSU: $49
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151072

HDD: $60
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136320

Total: $401  So you have room to add in DVD/Case/Card-reader/etc. with what you have left to spend on this.
This CPU/Motherboard/RAM combo works together perfectly, it's what I have with no issues.

[SectorNine50]

OOPS!  Sorry I posted the wrong one, I meant this one:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371029

They were the same price, I transposed...

Dred you'd be fine w/o a graphics card, just add one later if you really feel that you'll want to game on it.

[gyrene81]

or switch to an ati video card...they typically don't have the +12v requirements that the nvidia's do.

[DREDIOCK]

From what I see that PSU doesn't even come close to those 12V readings (finding it's 15/16A but even that's not true if I am doing the formula right).  Heard bad things about Rosewill construction quality.  Still have a Logisys laying around, still works after ~2 years but I wouldn't use it again.

The 430 recommends a 300Watt minimum  Since you said it won't be gaming it shouldn't even hit peak usage (short of start-up).  Since you want 25% overhead in a PSU we'll say you'll need 300Watts for everything (way more than you'll likely use).  25% overhead would bring it to ~370 Watts.  So a PSU around 400W should be plenty.  Also, you don't want too much overhead.
Personally I'd suggest http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151072
Hopefully someone who knows PSUs better can chime in, Skuzzy may be able to help.


Quick list I've thrown together, mostly using parts I have with some cutbacks:

Motherboard: $85
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131673

CPU: $90
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103846

RAM: $47
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231189

GPU: $70
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130579

PSU: $49
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151072

HDD: $60
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136320

Total: $401  So you have room to add in DVD/Case/Card-reader/etc. with what you have left to spend on this.
This CPU/Motherboard/RAM combo works together perfectly, it's what I have with no issues.

Actually with  the Os it brings it up to 500 even. Plus tax

2 questions. I see that motherboard is a micro ATX. Unless I can get that board to fit in a mid sized ATX case. Then Im buying a case too

Second. is there any real benifit with that CPU
AMD Phenom II X2 555 Black Edition Callisto 3.2GHz Socket AM3 80W Dual-Core Desktop Processor - C3 Revision CPU: $90
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103846

Over the one I had picked out
AMD Athlon II X3 450 Rana 3.2GHz Socket AM3 95W Triple-Core Desktop Processor ADX450WFGMBOX   $79.99

[SectorNine50]

The Phenoms have more cache than the Athlons, but really, that's about the only difference.  That and the clock multiplier on the Phenom Black Editions are unlocked, but unless you're overclocking, that should pretty much mean squat to you.  The cache does help performance, in certain applications.  Tom's Hardware has a pretty good write-up on it:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/cache-size-matter,1709-8.html

Micro ATX boards are really meant for compact builds, but should perform just as well.  The big thing you'll notice is the lack of PCI slots on micro boards.

Heads up though, the MicroATX ASUS posted above has only 2 RAM slots, which leaves future upgrades to be a little more expensive.

[1701E]

Actually with  the Os it brings it up to 500 even. Plus tax

2 questions. I see that motherboard is a micro ATX. Unless I can get that board to fit in a mid sized ATX case. Then Im buying a case too

Second. is there any real benifit with that CPU
AMD Phenom II X2 555 Black Edition Callisto 3.2GHz Socket AM3 80W Dual-Core Desktop Processor - C3 Revision CPU: $90
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103846

Over the one I had picked out
AMD Athlon II X3 450 Rana 3.2GHz Socket AM3 95W Triple-Core Desktop Processor ADX450WFGMBOX   $79.99

Most full sized cases should fit lower sized Board, but that was just a quick throw together.  I use Micro (as mentioned those parts was mostly what I use) so I just listed that one, that and I know it works together well with the other parts. D'oh, just noticed I I posted wrong, there isn't a full ATX of the board like I had mentioned, just Micro with 4x RAM slots
It has less PCI/RAM slots compared to a Full board, but it's a personal choice on what is needed.  As mentioned, yes it has 2 RAM slots, but that holds up to 8GB max and an average user shouldn't need more than 4GB.

As for the CPU, there won't really be any noticeable difference for a normal user.  The Phenom does use less power (80W vs 95W) and has L3 cache, but less L2 cache due to having 1 less core.  Phenoms are normally gaming and Athlon for normal use, didn't even think about that.

[gyrene81]

Phenoms are normally gaming and Athlon for normal use, didn't even think about that.

*ahem* makes you wonder how we built really nice gaming systems before the phenom cpu's came out don't it? 

(sorry, couldn't resist)


dred, the full atx mobos are great if you want more flexibility for upgrades add-ons etc...and you can get them without built in graphics chips...whereas the micro boards don't offer near the expansion capabilities and finding one without a built in graphics chip is nearly impossible.

[DREDIOCK]

*ahem* makes you wonder how we built really nice gaming systems before the phenom cpu's came out don't it? 

(sorry, couldn't resist)


dred, the full atx mobos are great if you want more flexibility for upgrades add-ons etc...and you can get them without built in graphics chips...whereas the micro boards don't offer near the expansion capabilities and finding one without a built in graphics chip is nearly impossible.

Actually I was leaning toward a board with the graphic capability anyway as I could at least for now forgo the vid card which is something I can always add on later as I upgrade my own. Thats why I was thinking of dropping the board in my original build specs and just upping the ram from 4 to 8 gig to make up any difference. Cost savings would be around $30

How about Asrock boards?

I am leaning to ASUS because I like their boards. Just seem easier to mess with then Gigasbyte. Not that there is anything wrong with Gigabyte. I use one in my My AH rig.

[SectorNine50]

I have an ASRock running my 775 Core 2 Duo as a server at the moment, but it used to be my gaming computer.

I had no issues with it, other than it had a VIA chipset that didn't overclock all that well (probably due to the amazing flexibility that board had).  Had it not been able to run a Socket 775 on either DDR or DDR2, AND be able to run an AGP card and/or a PCI-E card (amazing set-up for the upgrade path I was on), I probably wouldn't have picked it.  It didn't have solid state capacitors, and was just generally a cheap board.

Some of their higher-end stuff is supposedly not bad, one of the biggest things I look for personally is solid state capacitors, as failing capacitors are usually the cause of premature motherboard deaths.