[Help Needed] PC overhaul

[Creative59]

Hey there,

 

I've been using this Gateway DX since 2009. It's getting really really old. Gave me tons of trouble lately. 

I want to change and overhaul the whole thing. 

 

I mainly use my PC for Engineering Apps like Solidworks and Inventor.

 

Here's what I have in mind:

Keep the casing; it looks okay and it's working well.

Keep the monitor; 21' is just enough for me.

Use the same old graphics card for now; It's Radeon HD 5670 I plan on changing later. 

Keep the RAMs; 2x 1GB and 2x 2GB old DDR3 Samsung RAMs.

 

Change the rest.

 

So I'm looking to buy a decent processor (i5 maybe) with a good compatible motherboard. 

Buy a 64GB SSD drive and 1TB external to run along it. 

Buy a good power supply to be sufficient when I try to change my Graphics Card.

 

My budget is around 400$. Please tell me if it won't be enough.  

Can you help me through selecting the components? I will go with the list you provide to someone to install and setup everything. I'll just pay. 

[SImoHayha]

Hey there,

 

I've been using this Gateway DX since 2009. It's getting really really old. Gave me tons of trouble lately. 

I want to change and overhaul the whole thing. 

 

I mainly use my PC for Engineering Apps like Solidworks and Inventor.

 

Here's what I have in mind:

Keep the casing; it looks okay and it's working well.

Keep the monitor; 21' is just enough for me.

Use the same old graphics card for now; It's Radeon HD 5670 I plan on changing later. 

Keep the RAMs; 2x 1GB and 2x 2GB old DDR3 Samsung RAMs.

 

Change the rest.

 

So I'm looking to buy a decent processor (i5 maybe) with a good compatible motherboard. 

Buy a 64GB SSD drive and 1TB external to run along it. 

Buy a good power supply to be sufficient when I try to change my Graphics Card.

 

My budget is around 400$. Please tell me if it won't be enough.  

Can you help me through selecting the components? I will go with the list you provide to someone to install and setup everything. I'll just pay. 

pfffftttt man you are going to need more then that amount of ram....

 

This is what I got for you my friend......

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4440 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($175.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Motherboard: ASRock B85M-DGS Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($53.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Memory: Team Dark 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($59.99 @ Newegg)

Storage: Crucial V4 32GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($35.95 @ Amazon)

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($51.85 @ OutletPC)

Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply  ($14.99 @ NCIX US)

Total: $392.76

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-12-29 03:50 EST-0500

 

i5 like you wanted, assuming the case is mATX......I got you that doesn't matter if the case is ATX it will still work...got you a SDD like you wanted the cheapest one for your boot drive and HDD 1TB for tons of storage a cheap but reliable power supply and nice decent ram that is cheap and is way better then 5 GB of ram.... Ja kinda over the budget by 17$ but that should be fine...

 

 

$417.76 base total Mail-in Rebates: -$25.00   Total: $392.76  

[Charezon]

32GB SSD?  I was already thinking of suggesting the OP try his best to get a 128GB SSD.  32GB SSD is just way too small, even 64GB is imo.

[Rebelattack]

64 is barely enough for a win7 install, so 32 is to small. I dont onow the size for win 8.1. Getting a 128 GB allows for installing his apps on it too.

[Creative59]

 

pfffftttt man you are going to need more then that amount of ram....

 

This is what I got for you my friend......

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4440 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($175.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Motherboard: ASRock B85M-DGS Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($53.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Memory: Team Dark 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($59.99 @ Newegg)

Storage: Crucial V4 32GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($35.95 @ Amazon)

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($51.85 @ OutletPC)

Power Supply: EVGA 500W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply  ($14.99 @ NCIX US)

Total: $392.76

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-12-29 03:50 EST-0500

 

i5 like you wanted, assuming the case is mATX......I got you that doesn't matter if the case is ATX it will still work...got you a SDD like you wanted the cheapest one for your boot drive and HDD 1TB for tons of storage a cheap but reliable power supply and nice decent ram that is cheap and is way better then 5 GB of ram.... Ja kinda over the budget by 17$ but that should be fine...

 

 

$417.76 base total Mail-in Rebates: -$25.00   Total: $392.76  

 

WOW man,

 

Thanks a lot for the quick reply. I hope I lived in the US. I would just place the order now!

 

So I read other replies too. I think he made SSD this small based on my request.

I only found 64GB SSD available locally here in Malaysia. 

 

Bu the things is, if I update the RAM and the VGA with the SSD to 128GB I'll be way above budget! (

Which one should I put first based on my working needs; Solidworks?

[WoodenMarker]

What kind of dollars are you using?

[Creative59]

What kind of dollars are you using?

USD for the 400$ USD... around 1200 MYR

[WoodenMarker]

USD for the 400$ USD... around 1200 MYR

Hmm.. MYR. Can you link us to where you're actually shopping then?--or are you shopping in the US?

[Creative59]

Hmm.. MYR. Can you link us to where you're actually shopping then?--or are you shopping in the US?

Yeah I'm shopping from this list for now

http://www.jayacom.com.my/pricelist/diy/D.I.Y%20hardware.pdf

 

Most of the shops in that mall have similar prices. So i'm taking this shop as a guide for now. I'm shopping in MY

[WoodenMarker]

Hmm--is there any reason why you'd be getting a 1TB external drive instead of an internal?

[Creative59]

Hmm--is there any reason why you'd be getting a 1TB external drive instead of an internal?

Nothing particular in mind....

[Creative59]

So I've worked out this setup so far.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i5-4440 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($175.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-B85M-D3H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($70.95 @ SuperBiiz) 

Storage: Kingston HyperX 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($139.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: Cooler Master GXII 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($59.99 @ Newegg) 

Total: $446.92

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-12-29 04:32 EST-0500

 

it will cost around 1300RM a bit expensive and doesn't include storage for DATA like internal HDD. Any other suggestions?

Am I pushing it too hard with the PSU? 

Any places where I can cut costs?

[WoodenMarker]

Nothing particular in mind....

I'd recommend something like this instead: 

 

Intel G3258 _213

Gigabyte H97m-d3h _309

Kingston HyperX Fury 8GB _259

Seagate sshd 1TB _265

 

Total 1046

 

Cooler Master V550S _295

 

It's a bit more balanced and not skimping on other parts. When oc'ed, the G3258 fast single thread performance can compete quite well with an i5 for much of Solidworks and Inventor.

The psu upgrade is not needed until you get a graphics card but the v550s is an excellent unit if you have more money afterwards.

[Creative59]

 

I'd recommend something like this instead: 

 

Intel G3258 _213

Gigabyte H97m-d3h _309

Kingston HyperX Fury 8GB _259

Seagate sshd 1TB _265

 

Total 1046

 

Cooler Master V550S _295

 

It's a bit more balanced and not skimping on other parts. When oc'ed, the G3258 fast single thread performance can compete quite well with an i5 for much of Solidworks and Inventor.

The psu upgrade is not needed until you get a graphics card but the v550s is an excellent unit if you have more money afterwards.

 

Thanks so much for taking the time to look into this huge PDF I sent. I appreciate it.

I've watched the benchmark that Linus made of G3258. How about when not over clocked? Will it still be on the same level or even close?

The thing is I don't have the time to worry about OCing and the cooling system will cost money too.

[WoodenMarker]

Sure he saves money by buying the Pentium but 2 threads seems pretty low and I'm not too sure overclocking would be best as I don't think Creative59 is really much of a tinker not to mention the he runs the risk of bottlenecking his GPU when he goes to upgrade it, sure it probably wont be a huge bottleneck but skimping out on a CPU is not exactly the best idea.

It isn't that difficult to dial in an oc for the g3258. A quick and dirty 4.4ghz can probably be done in under 2 minutes with 1.3v.

The OP didn't mention anything about gaming. The G3258 is hardly going to bottleneck anything.

Thanks so much for taking the time to look into this huge PDF I sent. I appreciate it.

I've watched the benchmark that Linus made of G3258. How about when not over clocked? Will it still be on the same level or even close?

The thing is I don't have the time to worry about OCing and the cooling system will cost money too.

It''s not really a chip worth paying attention to when not oc'ed. 

[Creative59]

It isn't that difficult to dial in an oc for the g3258. A quick and dirty 4.4ghz can probably be done in under 2 minutes with 1.3v.

The OP didn't mention anything about gaming. The G3258 is hardly going to bottleneck anything.

It''s not really a chip worth paying attention to when not oc'ed. 

How about Fusion Drive. will it save any money? I have a 750GB SATA drive that is very old. I think it gave way already too many times to screw me up and drop OS.

I think I might just use it for data for now, but I'm not sure if it will work properly. 

 

And the PSU is quite expensive, 295RM, Do i really need that much? Can we dial it down a bit?

[WoodenMarker]

How about Fusion Drive. will it save any money? I have a 750GB SATA drive that is very old. I think it gave way already too many times to screw me up and drop OS.

I think I might just use it for data for now, but I'm not sure if it will work properly. 

 

And the PSU is quite expensive, 295RM, Do i really need that much? Can we dial it down a bit?

Fusion drive can be useful but you'd be better off just using a large enough ssd for your OS + programs instead. I'd check your current drive's health with CrystalDiskInfo to see if it's still worth using.

The psu is really overkill but I did mention it was a possible future purchase when you are upgrading your graphics card. It's unnecessary for your system upgrade atm. 

[Creative59]

Fusion drive can be useful but you'd be better off just using a large enough ssd for your OS + programs instead. I'd check your current drive's health with CrystalDiskInfo to see if it's still worth using.

The psu is really overkill but I did mention it was a possible future purchase when you are upgrading your graphics card. It's unnecessary for your system upgrade atm. 

Will definitely check how healthy my drive is. 

Never mind future updates for now. I think I will settle with a Macbook after I get over with my internship where I'll use Solidworks a lot. YES i know Macbook & SW just don't go at all; I don't think I'll need it a good system anymore. I will just be a casual user. 

 

So let's tone down the PSU to Cooler Master Extreme I series of 350W for 109RM

Then pump up the processor slightly to i3-4150 for 358RM

Sounds balanced?

[WoodenMarker]

So let's tone down the PSU to Cooler Master Extreme I series of 350W for 109RM

Then pump up the processor slightly to i3-4150 for 358RM

Sounds balanced?

The G3258 when oc'ed can outperform the i3 or i5 for a good chunk of Solidworks and Inventor. I'd stick with it unless you can get an i5 without skimping on the rest of the system.

The Cooler Master Extreme is mediocre and isn't worth upgrading to--you'd want to get at least a cx500 or something of similar quality. 

[Creative59]

The G3258 when oc'ed can outperform the i3 or i5 for a good chunk of Solidworks and Inventor. I'd stick with it unless you can get an i5 without skimping on the rest of the system.

The Cooler Master Extreme is mediocre and isn't worth upgrading to--you'd want to get at least a cx500 or something of similar quality. 

Ok if I OC it, do I need a fancy cooling system? How will it work? Just a normal fan? 

[WoodenMarker]

I wouldn't think so, not too sure what you'd get with the stock heatsink but I'd think it would be alright.

Ok if I OC it, do I need a fancy cooling system? How will it work? Just a normal fan? 

The stock cooler is fine for that. http://www.digitalstormonline.com/unlocked/intel-pentium-g3258-review-and-overclocking-benchmarks-idnum298/

You're very persistent on convincing him to get a G3258, Up to him tho.

His budget's kind of tight and other options would call for skimping on other parts.

[Creative59]

The stock cooler is fine for that. http://www.digitalstormonline.com/unlocked/intel-pentium-g3258-review-and-overclocking-benchmarks-idnum298/

His budget's kind of tight and other options would call for skimping on other parts.

If it's a simple as isntalling an app and tweaking the voltage, then I'm up for it. 

 

How about the PSU, Should we keep the same V550 or should we drop a bit?

[WoodenMarker]

If it's a simple as isntalling an app and tweaking the voltage, then I'm up for it. 

How about the PSU, Should we keep the same V550 or should we drop a bit?

You don't install an app but instead update the bios and tweak/test settings. A rough oc can be achieved by just choosing a rough oc like 4.2-4.4 ghz and using 1.2-1.3v for core voltage but testing is what allows for higher oc's with lower temps. 

The cx500 is a bit cheaper than the v550s but is significantly worse. I'd put aside getting a new psu until you can get a something like the v550s or a cx500 at a cheaper price. 

[Creative59]

You don't install an app but instead update the bios and tweak/test settings. A rough oc can be achieved by just choosing a rough oc like 4.2-4.4 ghz and using 1.2-1.3v for core voltage but testing is what allows for higher oc's with lower temps. 

The cx500 is a bit cheaper than the v550s but is significantly worse. I'd put aside getting a new psu until you can get a something like the v550s or a cx500 at a cheaper price. 

Ok so till now here's what we got,

 

G3258 for 213RM

H97M-D3H for 309RM

120GB SSD HyperX fury for 259RM

Cooler Master V550s for 295RM

total of 1076RM W/O HDD and 1341RM with 1.0TB SATA Drive included. I will check my HDD first. 

I'll couple with with 4GB of RAM DDR Samsung. 

Radeon HD 5670

21' screen

 

Any beginner's guide on the OC process?

AND this chip will it be slower at Multitasking like iTunes and Inventor/SW? Sorry I made very little sense of the numbers in the link you gave.

[WoodenMarker]

Ok so till now here's what we got,

 

G3258 for 213RM

H97M-D3H for 309RM

120GB SSD HyperX fury for 259RM

Cooler Master V550s for 295RM

total of 1076RM W/O HDD and 1341RM with 1.0TB SATA Drive included. I will check my HDD first. 

I'll couple with with 4GB of RAM DDR Samsung. 

Radeon HD 5670

21' screen

 

Any beginner's guide on the OC process?

AND this chip will it be slower at Multitasking like iTunes and Inventor/SW? Sorry I made very little sense of the numbers in the link you gave.

That looks good if your current hdd is healthy.

The G3258 is fine for light to medium multitasking as long as you don't throw multi-thread reliant things at it like livestreaming a game.

 

As for oc'ing, this is what I do:

Start with a core voltage of 1.2v and see how high you can push the clock speed with that. 

From there, add 0.01-0.02v increments and see how high you can push the clock speed until ~1.3-1.35v (whichever is most comfortable to you).

Make sure to mark down your results and you should be able to see a curve of diminishing returns. 

Make sure temps stay below ~80-90c at load and you can determine where your most comfortable oc is from the curve.