Should I get this build for light web/graphic design?

[MisterIce]

Hello everyone,

 

For the last two months I'm planning to build a new budget workhorse and now I'm waiting for black friday to get some great deals.

I'll answer the standard points first:

 

1. Budget & Location 

- Europe, budget between $500-600. Items here have newegg prices +10-20% more expensive, so you can keep that in mind.

 

2. Aim

I mainly design web pages in Photoshop and do small graphic design tasks in Illustrator. My usual work is made from Chrome with lots of tabs open, Photoshop and Illustrator running non-stop and music in background. I hook up 2 monitors of 22inches and I'm planning on adding a third one. 

I don't do any 3D stuff, but I create lots of flyers, brochures, book covers + web stuff such as websites, banner ads etc. I'm an aspiring professional.

 

3. Monitors

As I mentioned, I already have 2 monitors with a third one planned.

 

4. Peripherals

I already have, no need for others.

 

5. Why am I upgrading

I'm currently using a laptop with an i3-2330M, 8GB RAM 1333mhz, 60GB SSD + 500GB HDD, AMD Radeon 6490M graphics card.

 

6. What I have in plan & my problems:

Planning to buy a desktop, but I honestly don't know what to choose between an i3 with a dedicated graphics card or an i5 and buy the graphics card later.

I will also try to fit 16GB of RAM and two 120GB SSDs if money allows it and if I get a nice deal. Small chances, but I'm optimistic. If not, I will go with 8GB of RAM and an 120GB SSD + 1TB HDD. I don't have such a big need of an HDD mainly because I already have an external one where I keep my backups + other files, but having one SSD for OS, programs, scratch disk and another one for projects files sounds good to me. Can't do RAID though.

 

So already bought this MSI motherboard and now I can't decide for a good processor that satisfies my needs. 

Please help,

 

Thanks!

 

[mwakeey]

Intel HD 4600 supports up to 3 monitors, you wont need a dedicated GPU unless you plan to game, you could go with a i5 44xx

Samsung SSD's are fast, cheap and reliable so i would also reccomend that

[mosin40]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($189.99 @ Newegg) 

Motherboard: MSI CSM-B85M-E45 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  (Purchased For $0.00) 

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($70.99 @ Newegg) 

Storage: Crucial MX100 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($69.99 @ Newegg) 

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($84.99 @ Newegg) 

Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case  ($49.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: Corsair CX 500W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($68.98 @ Newegg) 

Total: $534.93

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-21 15:56 EDT-0400

 

I didn't include GPU, but you can add one if you want. Also there is no CPU cooler, just use Intel's or buy a CoolerMaster Hyper 212 EVO if you want.

Also you can change the case if you don't like it 

 

Edit: Welcome to the forums    :lol:

Edited October 21, 2014 by mosin40

[MisterIce]

Thanks for these, I forgot to mention that I also bought a case already, a Zalman T2 . 

So basically, intel HD will do the job for my needs? I'm not looking to game, I just thought of a graphics card for better performance, if there is any...

[mosin40]

Thanks for these, I forgot to mention that I also bought a case already, a Zalman T2 . 

So basically, intel HD will do the job for my needs? I'm not looking to game, I just thought of a graphics card for better performance, if there is any...

Yes.

If you want add a GPU, just do it. More horsepower for graphic design. Go for a R9 270 or a GTX 750/750ti

[mosin40]

This is the build including GPU:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($189.99 @ Newegg) 

Motherboard: MSI CSM-B85M-E45 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  (Purchased For $0.00) 

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($70.99 @ Newegg) 

Storage: Crucial MX100 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($69.99 @ Newegg) 

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($84.99 @ Newegg) 

Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 750 Ti 2GB FTW ACX Video Card  ($129.99 @ Newegg) 

Case: Zalman ZM-T2 MicroATX Mini Tower Case  (Purchased For $0.00) 

Power Supply: Corsair CX 500W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($68.98 @ Newegg) 

Total: $614.93

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-21 16:19 EDT-0400

[MisterIce]

Thanks a ton! I suppose that graphics card will fit just right in the Zalman case.

So i5 it is and based on how deals will be, I'll include a graphic card too.

[mosin40]

Thanks a ton! I suppose that graphics card will fit just right in the Zalman case.

So i5 it is and based on how deals will be, I'll include a graphic card too.

The GTX 750/750ti are great in terms of power consumption and the card itself is small.