new PC...saving some money...

danmon_81

danmon_81

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Hi all....

I've been trawling through the 'which pc' threads and still cant decide on my new desktop. I've been looking at the highly recommended chillblast builds and a few on play....

in the interests of saving some cash (towards new monitor, Ext HD, new lenses etc) are these any good? I know im after i5> and 8gb minimum.....to be used for editing, multi tasking....

http://www.play.com/PC/PCs/-/3230/2...ows-7-Home-Gaming-PC/ListingDetails.html?ob=4

Would need windows 7
http://www.play.com/PC/PCs/-/3230/2...gb-Desktop-Gaming-PC/ListingDetails.html?ob=4


any of these below £450:
http://www.play.com/PC/PCs/-/3230/2497/3-/Refine.html?ob=4&searchfilters=ae36{FTS}%2b

any help would be great!!
 
Those PC's at play look a bit iffy to me, probably just the case and power supply choice (they're like £30 in total which is a big no no for me).

Have a look at Aria PC instead, you might not have heard of them but they're a large online retailer and have excellent service.

E.g. similary specced PC as to what you picked out:
http://www.aria.co.uk/Systems/Home+...ronto+3450+Quad-Core+Home+PC+?productId=49894

The integrated graphics will be fine for your uses, maybe even better. As you have a bit of space in your budget, you could include a SSD drive which is an ultra fast drive that you install windows and other programs. My PC starts in about 30 seconds due to one :P.

Plus you can just give the sales team a call and they can make up to 3 changes to a pre built PC.

If you're unsure on the site, I'm an active member of the forums there and have bought everything computery on their site and am yet to have an issue with an order.
 
almost at the 'click to order' point with this:

EZCool A200D Basic Case
Intel Core i5 3570K Processor Overclocked to up to 4.5GHz
Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro Rev 2 CPU Cooler
Asus P8Z68-V LE Motherboard
8GB PC3-10666 1333MHz DDR3 Memory (2 x 4GB sticks)
Chillblast NVIDIA GeForce GTS 450 1024MB Graphics Card
Hard Drive 1000GB 7200RPM Hard Disk - 6Gbps
Sony 24x DVD-RW Drive
EZCool Basic 650W PSU
Onboard High Definition Audio
17 in 1 3.5" Internal Card Reader
Windows 7 Home Premium 64 bit

coming in at £573...any last minute yey or ney's???? Value for mullar??

cheers

Dan
 
I'm running a phenom x6 vibox that is currently selling for ~£350 (minus OS) from their ebay store. It was spec'd to run CFD software for my university project (heavy loads for long periods of time i.e. 30 days non-stop simulation) but I now use it as my editing machine.

It'll comfortably run LR and PS at the same time and I'm often transcoding video in the background (+ downloading). I've used it for editing 5d mk II footage without a single problem.

Do you really need all that power? My only complaint would be that its a little noisy, but my last PC that was nigh on silent at a similar power didn't last all that long.
 
No, not much value for money there at all.

You don't need a graphics card if you're just editing photos, the onboard Intel will do fine and the way its designed, it can do some of the processing on its own (google Intel Quick Sync)

The system I linked above will do the job fine. Phone up the sales team and they'll advise and can install Windows 7 for you.
 
RAM prices fluctuate and currently is still low. However, nand (flash memory) production is to be be slowed now due to over supply. Things like SSDs and RAM will probably start to rise soon. Now is a good time to buy as large a capacity SSD as you can, and as much DDR3 ram as you can afford. I would suggest a 128gb SSD and 16gb DDR3.
 
Honestly, if you can use a screw driver, build your own, save mucho moneys, and get to choose whats in it and where.
 
SimonUK said:
Honestly, if you can use a screw driver, build your own, save mucho moneys, and get to choose whats in it and where.
Click to expand...

Is this still the case? With people building custom PCs and using ebay stores, last time I bought there was so little in it that I went for a custom build made by someone else.
 
neil_g said:
Ditch the basic psu
Click to expand...

Ok will look to upgrade..

Sarky said:
No, not much value for money there at all.

You don't need a graphics card if you're just editing photos, the onboard Intel will do fine and the way its designed, it can do some of the processing on its own (google Intel Quick Sync)
Click to expand...

this was one of the areas i was going to look at saving some money but theres no reduction in cost with a basic GC.

clicktor said:
RAM prices fluctuate and currently is still low. However, nand (flash memory) production is to be be slowed now due to over supply. Things like SSDs and RAM will probably start to rise soon. Now is a good time to buy as large a capacity SSD as you can, and as much DDR3 ram as you can afford. I would suggest a 128gb SSD and 16gb DDR3.
Click to expand...

I'm not really up on SSD...i dont understand them (apart from they are quick to boot) and they have less capacity than a HD ( i assume you just run the OS from them?).

SimonUK said:
Honestly, if you can use a screw driver, build your own, save mucho moneys, and get to choose whats in it and where.
Click to expand...

I just havent got the time and do you really make enough saving by doing it this way??


cheers for the advise guys big help!! (still not hit buy)
 
I use a 64gb SSD in mine (older i5 760 and 4gb ram) and it makes a decent improvement, not just in boot-up. I paid £47 for the SSD at the time but now you can get 128gb for not much more.

With Win7 installed and LR & PS etc only 20gb is used on my SSD.

They can take a bit of fiddling to setup in order to get the best from them and make them last, but there are plenty of guides, let me know if you go this way and need help.

Btw your links didn't save your altered spec, I think you'd need to copy/paste text or take a screenshot to share it.
 
cheers simon...here's the spec:

Case STYLISH PIANO BLACK ENIGMA MICRO-ATX CASE + 2 FRONT USB
Processor (CPU) Intel® Core™i5 Quad Core Processor i5-3470 (3.2GHz) 6MB Cache
Motherboard ASUS® P8H77-M: M-ATX, DDR3, USB 3.0, SATA 6.0Gb/s, CrossFireX™
Memory (RAM) 8GB SAMSUNG DUAL-DDR3 1333MHz (2 X 4GB)
Graphics Card INTEGRATED GRAPHICS ACCELERATOR (GPU)
Memory - 1st Hard Disk 120GB INTEL® 330 SERIES SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (upto 500MB/sR | 450MB/sW)
2nd Hard Disk 2TB 3.5" SATA-III 6GB/s HDD 7200RPM 64MB CACHE
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive 24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Memory Card Reader INTERNAL 52 IN 1 CARD READER (XD, MS, CF, SD, etc) + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT
Power Supply 450W Quiet 80 PLUS Dual Rail PSU + 120mm Case Fan
Processor Cooling INTEL SOCKET LGA1155 STANDARD CPU COOLER
Sound Card ONBOARD 8 CHANNEL (7.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Facilities WIRELESS 802.11N 300Mbps PCI-E CARD (£16)
USB Options 4 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL (MIN 2 FRONT PORTS) AS STANDARD
Modem NONE, I WILL BE USING BROADBAND
Operating System Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit w/SP1 - inc DVD & Licence

i'm looking at £660 (or less if i reduce the SSD)...i'll be running win 7, PS, LR off the SSD
 
That should certainly do what you want, £660 is a fair sum though.
Depending on how much they're charging, consider adding the SSD yourself for £50, I.e.
http://www.ebuyer.com/309694-kingston-128gb-v200-ssd-sv200s37a-128g

You would need w7 DVD and product key to install.

An SSD plus the aria system that Sarky linked is also worth considering (but no bluray)

At the end of the day any PC will do what you want, just at slightly different speeds, so it's difficult to advise on. Just decide what you can afford! But as I said an SSD does make a real world difference - to me anyway.

Let us know how you get on!
 
danmon_81 said:
cheers simon...here's the spec:

Case STYLISH PIANO BLACK ENIGMA MICRO-ATX CASE + 2 FRONT USB
Processor (CPU) Intel® Core™i5 Quad Core Processor i5-3470 (3.2GHz) 6MB Cache
Motherboard ASUS® P8H77-M: M-ATX, DDR3, USB 3.0, SATA 6.0Gb/s, CrossFireX™
Memory (RAM) 8GB SAMSUNG DUAL-DDR3 1333MHz (2 X 4GB)
Graphics Card INTEGRATED GRAPHICS ACCELERATOR (GPU)
Memory - 1st Hard Disk 120GB INTEL® 330 SERIES SSD, SATA 6 Gb/s (upto 500MB/sR | 450MB/sW)
2nd Hard Disk 2TB 3.5" SATA-III 6GB/s HDD 7200RPM 64MB CACHE
1st DVD/BLU-RAY Drive 24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Memory Card Reader INTERNAL 52 IN 1 CARD READER (XD, MS, CF, SD, etc) + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT
Power Supply 450W Quiet 80 PLUS Dual Rail PSU + 120mm Case Fan
Processor Cooling INTEL SOCKET LGA1155 STANDARD CPU COOLER
Sound Card ONBOARD 8 CHANNEL (7.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Facilities WIRELESS 802.11N 300Mbps PCI-E CARD (£16)
USB Options 4 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL (MIN 2 FRONT PORTS) AS STANDARD
Modem NONE, I WILL BE USING BROADBAND
Operating System Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit w/SP1 - inc DVD & Licence

i'm looking at £660 (or less if i reduce the SSD)...i'll be running win 7, PS, LR off the SSD
Click to expand...

Poor value for money there mate. Again, have a look at the link I posted in the first reply, very similar spec for nearly £200 cheaper.
 
Sarky said:
Poor value for money there mate. Again, have a look at the link I posted in the first reply, very similar spec for nearly £200 cheaper.
Click to expand...
But yours comes with no OS.... Plus the motherboard isn't quite as good (less extensible for memory for example).
 
Hadn't noticed that W7 doesn't come with it, +£76 if you want the legit copy.

I wouldn't say it's poor value, just doesn't feel like good value...!

Have you looked for similar spec Dells on their site or Dell Outlet? They may be a bit more £ I'm not sure
 
arad85 said:
But yours comes with no OS.... Plus the motherboard isn't quite as good (less extensible for memory for example).
Click to expand...

I know but they can be added on top if you ring up their customer services.

Also the motherboard may not be as good but its cheaper and has very similar features, has USB3 and SATA6. I doubt OP will need anymore than 8GB RAM anytime soon either.

@Danmon that Zoostorm PC doesn't look that bad actually, although it doesn't have USB3 or SATA6. Depends if you want these features.
 
ram is cheap, personally id always over spec (or have the option to easily add on later) on it for the sake of a few extra £10 notes. especially if photoshop is involved, thatll eat as much memory as it can (providing 64 bit).
 
Last edited:
i got to stalk Sarky for a change. :D

i haven't got a link for best value PC, but i do have a list of thing you should be looking at for maximum value:
-USB 3 and SATA 6Gbps ports on the motherboard
-Intel i5 quad core at very least, Lightroom knows how to take advantage of the extra cores
-SSD it's amazing how much it improves with one
-8GB memory as minimal, and must be 2 sticks to allow cheap and easy expansion later
-a branded, reliable PSU. all those PC you've linked have poor unbranded power supply, those will not last. i personally would always go for Seasonic built power supply, that means high end Corsair models. my 7 year old legendary Corsair Hx620 is still going strong.


what you probably wouldn't need:
-Graphics cards. unless you are gaming or video editing, a graphics cards are not needed.
-without graphics cards, P and Z series motherboards are useless to you. you should be looking at H series motherboards.
-Intel K series CPU (eg i5 2500k, 3570k) are not needed they are expensive for overclocking.
-don't be hang up by adverts such as HDD size or HD audio, former is easily and cheaply expanded, latter is standard on all computers
 
Cheers Wuyan.....

ok latest:

Specifications:

• Cooler Master Classic Black Midi Tower Chassis
• 500W OCZ CoreXStream 80PLUS Power Supply
• Intel Core i5-3450 3.10GHz (Ivy Bridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor
• 8GB 1333MHz DDR3 (2x4096) Memory
• DVD +/- RW Drive
• 1TB (7200rpm) SATA III Hard Drive
• Graphics: Intel HD 2500 DirectX 11 Graphics
• Intel H61 DDR3 Motherboard w/ SATA 6GB/s & USB3.0
• Resource DVD(s) (Diagnostic & Drivers)
• Cable 2 Meter Power Cord - UK
• Standard Warranty 1 year Collect & Return Hardware Support included with your PC

Additional:

OCZ Vertex 4 128GB 2.5" SATA-III Solid State Hard Drive
Windows 7

£578.29

spare money for a new ext HD
 
Last edited:
Yup... only 2 memory banks.

Neil had no end of trouble with his H61 based board.

I'm with wuyanxu - I'd pay some more notes for decent motherboard, although he's got it wrong that P & Z mobos are no good as they improved their abilities when IvyBridge came out.

Is that an Aria system you have quoted? If so, give them a ring and say you'd like a better motherboard that has 4 channels of RAM in and video out onboard. They will be able to spec you something similar fdor a few more notes.
 
Only has a a single 6GB/s (SATA 3) HDD socket too, plenty of standard HDDs in 1TB and larger sizes in the 6GB/s format available now so why put a slower HDD in the system?
 
danmon_81 said:
few quid more with this one ^^^

total £585

anything else before i drain the card??!! :D
Click to expand...
You're with either DVI or analogue 15 pin connection to your monitor?

Otherwise OK ;)
 
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