TE PC Buying Guide (updated 21 feb 2011)

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Hi Guys,
Just assembled an AMD PC today, here are the specs :

Processor : AMD Athlon II X2 250 - Rs. 2,850/-
Motherboard : Biostar A780L3 - Rs. 2,500/-
RAM : Kingston - Rs. 1,550/-
HDD : Western Digital Green - Rs. 1,650/-
LCD : Samsung B2030 - Rs. 6,250/- (This can be replaced with a smaller monitor for about Rs. 4,500/- )
DVD RW : LG - Rs. 850/-
Cabinet+SMPS : Kingpower - Rs. 850/-
Keyboard+Mouse : Kingpower - Rs. 370/-

Replace the LCD with a smaller sized one or reduce the RAM, and you have an AMD based system in a 15k budget . Although this config does not include speakers+UPS it is more future proof (DDR3 RAM).
Rates as per Computer Empire, Nehru Place, New Delhi. Hope this helps
 
Hi DarkAngel,

I have two queries

1. Biostar TA785G3 --> 3.8k Why is this motherboard not included in the PC Guide while it was done in July PC Guide.
Actually i found it to be more VFM than Gigabyte GA-MA785GMT-US2H --> 4.6k with almost same features.
Just wondering why is it left out this time ??? :S

2. Nvidia 9800gt --> 5.5k to 6k its better than ATI 5670 and 4770 etc. It shuld hav been considered in the mid-range gaming rig.:eek:hyeah:

Anyways thanks for the great hard work. :clap: :clap:
 
WingZero said:
Also consider ASUS sabertooth for i7 rigs. Nice guide darkie:)
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sh@sh! said:
I want to make a small correction Dark Angel, in the above config, you have mentioned this GB board GA-MA74GMT-S2. This board is based on 740G platform and not 760 so it doesn't have ATI 3000 integrated GPU. but has HD 2100(DX9 base). See here
Can you confirm?
Click to expand...

Edited the guide with Sabertooth as alternate option for the X58A-UD3R :)
I have recommend the Biostar A780L3 which is a 780G mobo.

thox said:
Hi DarkAngel,

I have two queries

1. Biostar TA785G3 --> 3.8k Why is this motherboard not included in the PC Guide while it was done in July PC Guide.
Actually i found it to be more VFM than Gigabyte GA-MA785GMT-US2H --> 4.6k with almost same features.
Just wondering why is it left out this time ??? :S

2. Nvidia 9800gt --> 5.5k to 6k its better than ATI 5670 and 4770 etc. It shuld hav been considered in the mid-range gaming rig.:eek:hyeah:

Anyways thanks for the great hard work. :clap: :clap:
Click to expand...
Reg. the biostar mobo TA785G3 has only 2 DDR3 slots whereas the MSI 785GM-E51 has 4 DIMM slots and costs only 4k which makes a Bio a hard sell. Plus the new Gigabyte 880GM-UD2H is excellent VFM as it has all solid caps an costs 4.5k only

Reg. the 9800GT its a 3/4 gen old tech :) the HD4770 is more efficient and better performance than 9800GT. Its time to move on.

viralbug said:
Good guide.

A couple of typos though. Budget 26k and budget 34k PCs have 'AMD Athlon II X2 440' instead of 'AMD Athlon II X3 440'.
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Thanks for pointing out the typos :) Edited now.
 
Reg. the biostar mobo TA785G3 has only 2 DDR3 slots whereas the MSI 785GM-E51 has 4 DIMM slots and costs only 4k which makes a Bio a hard sell. Plus the new Gigabyte 880GM-UD2H is excellent VFM as it has all solid caps an costs 4.5k only
Click to expand...
Not Really, see this BIOSTAR :: TA785G3 HD :: Specification it shows Biostar TA785G3 has 4 ddr3 slots and thus makes it the best VFM mobo in that range.
 
^The Biostar TA785G3 and BIOSTAR TA785G3 HD are two different motherboards. A quick look on Prime's website shows that the 'Biostar TA785G3 HD' sells for 4800/-.

Also, based on the comments I have seen on these forums and others, Gigabyte provides the best after-sales-service(in our country) and hence enjoys a much better reputation compared to the other board manufacturers.
 
Edited the DDR3 RAM prices. Its a sharp fall in the past two weeks with close to ~20% fall in DRAM prices(DDR3).

Few of the GPU prices too have dipped with HD5750 for ~7k and HD5770 for ~8k and GTX460 768MB ~ 10k. So have altered recommendations accordingly :)

--- Updated Post - Automerged ---

Source for the price cuts is SMC international :)
 
Hey mate, you stated that for 24/7 downloading rig one should use zebronics elite cabinet + psu. I want to ask that is it recommended to use cheap psu for 24/7 download rig. Actually, I was collecting stuff to make an intel atom download rig. I'm damn confused for psu. At the moment I have a cheap psu and also short of money. So what would you recommend? Should I wait till I can buy corsair cx400 or I can carry on using my cheap psu?
 
mayanksahni said:
Hey mate, you stated that for 24/7 downloading rig one should use zebronics elite cabinet + psu. I want to ask that is it recommended to use cheap psu for 24/7 download rig. Actually, I was collecting stuff to make an intel atom download rig. I'm damn confused for psu. At the moment I have a cheap psu and also short of money. So what would you recommend? Should I wait till I can buy corsair cx400 or I can carry on using my cheap psu?
Click to expand...
That recommendation was for ppl on very tight budget. If u dont have enough funds then the FSP SAGAII 350w ~ 1.5k makes a decent choice for a 24/7 DL rig. Comes with a 2 yrs warranty and FSP are major PSU OEM too.
 
just want to add that Asus M4A78LT M LE seems to be better option tha Gigabyte 74GMT-S2 for those who are willing to unlock and OC on budget.

The Asus one seems to have a better TDP support tha Gigabyte one.

also CPU support list on gigabyte lists all x6 cpus but the bios versions corresponding to those is NA (Not Supported) as per their website.

Although the gigabyte one is available for 2.3k and asus for 2.7k.

so for those who are wanting to OC and/or Unlock, asus maybe your safer bet.
 
madnav said:
just want to add that Asus M4A78LT M LE seems to be better option tha Gigabyte 74GMT-S2 for those who are willing to unlock and OC on budget.

The Asus one seems to have a better TDP support tha Gigabyte one.

also CPU support list on gigabyte lists all x6 cpus but the bios versions corresponding to those is NA (Not Supported) as per their website.

Although the gigabyte one is available for 2.3k and asus for 2.7k.

so for those who are wanting to OC and/or Unlock, asus maybe your safer bet.
Click to expand...
Both supports only processors upto 95w TDP and both have SB710 so there should be no difference in unlocking performance IINM. Only difference is the Giga is 740G based and thus will function at HT 1.0 with AM3 proccies and the Asus is 760G based and thus performs at HT 3.0

IINM PoBoy has unlocked AMD Sempron to Athlon dual core with a Gigabyte 74GMT-S2. It can also be the AthlonII X3 to AthlonII X4 as both has 95w TDP :)

Both the mobos are not advised to PhenomII X2 5xxBE unlocking as they result in PhenomII X4 with a 125w TDP.

ASUSTeK Computer Inc.

GIGABYTE - Motherboard - Socket AM3 - GA-MA74GMT-S2 (rev. 1.4)

http://www.techenclave.com/pc-buyin...ington-road-mumbai-137836-24.html#post1601323
 
^ im using an unlocked 550BE C2 which is equivalent to 955BE C2 140W

although HWmonitor shows 178W for cpu.

gigabyte board used to boot to windows but as soon as there is load, it would freeze.

im just saying that asus one seems to have a better TPD envelope (extra headroom) not talking much about which one has what officially though.
 
madnav said:
^ im using an unlocked 550BE C2 which is equivalent to 955BE C2 140W

although HWmonitor shows 178W for cpu.

gigabyte board used to boot to windows but as soon as there is load, it would freeze.

im just saying that asus one seems to have a better TPD envelope (extra headroom) not talking much about which one has what officially though.
Click to expand...
Cool :) Didnt know that the Asus can support a unlocked 555BE as the official support was only upto 95w TDP.
 
General Purpose Home Machine + Casual Gamer (Budget 26k)

Components Description Price (INR)
Processor AMD Athlon II X3 440(3Ghz, 3 cores, 1.5MB Cache) 3600
Motherboard Biostar A780L3/Gigabyte GA-MA74GMT-S2/Asus M4A78LT-M LE 2500/2700
RAM Kingston 2GB DDRIII 1333MHz 1450
HDD 500GB Seagate 7200.12 1750
GPU Sapphire 512MB DDR5 HD5670 4700
Monitor Dell IN2020 6600
Cabinet Zebronics Bijili w/o SMPS 1100
PSU/SMPS FSP SAGAII 400w 1850
Key Board Logitech SET - Optical Blk Mouse+ MMKB 700
Mouse NA -
ODD L.G./Samung/ SOny OEM SATA DVD-Writer 950
Speakers Logitech R20 2.1 850
Total 26050-26250
Click to expand...

@ DarkAngel: Can you suggest me a kick ass CPU config for 20K? I have a 19" screen + KB & Mouse combo and JBL Speakers. Just want to know what best could I get for 20k? I play games like Counter Strike, COD and FIFA only, so if it can get any cheaper, better!
 
awesome job man. it was Darkangel who helped me for the first time on TE. Till then i didn't even know there was a hidden member's market section in TE :p
 
Small price drops for AMD processors and good price cuts for X58 mobos. Updated accordingly :)

Source : TheITWares - One Stop for all Gizmos!TheITwares Ecommerce

Computers Hardware, Peripherals, Cameras, Laptops, Gaming Equipment Tech Heaven, Thin client Lamington Road, Mumbai

creative420 said:
@ DarkAngel: Can you suggest me a kick ass CPU config for 20K? I have a 19" screen + KB & Mouse combo and JBL Speakers. Just want to know what best could I get for 20k? I play games like Counter Strike, COD and FIFA only, so if it can get any cheaper, better!
Click to expand...
Components Description Price (INR)

Processor AMD Athlon II X2 250/ AMD AthlonII X3 440 2700/3500

Motherboard Asus M4A78LT-M LE 2700

RAM GSkill 2GB DDRIII 1333MHz 1450

HDD 500 GB Seagate 7200.12 1800

GPU Sapphire 512MB DDR5 HD5670 4700

Cabinet Zebronics Bijili w/o SMPS/CM Elite 310 1100/1600

PSU/SMPS FSP SAGAII 400w 1900

ODD L.G. GH22NS50 OEM SATA DVD-Writer 950

Total 17300/18100/18600

This config would suffice for ur requirements. If u cant get the 512MB version of the HD5670 then get the 1GB version from DVDStore in dealers section as it costs 5.25k+shipping. All prices quoted are from SMC Intl and TheITWares. Both are dealers in TE.

U can also consider going for a 1TB Seagate 7200.12 as it costs only 2.8k and just spending 1k more would result in doubling of capacity.

I would suggest u to go with the X3 440 coz if u are lucky u might unlock it to a quad core(equivalent to the AthlonII X4 640 :D)
 
How's the (VIA) audio on Asus M4A78LT-M LE ? And, (Atheros) LAN ?
I stuck to Giga MA74GMT because I was unsure of the above.
 
PoBoy said:
How's the (VIA) audio on Asus M4A78LT-M LE ? And, (Atheros) LAN ?

I stuck to Giga MA74GMT because I was unsure of the above.
Click to expand...
TBH not sure about how good the audio and LAN are. As this is a budget segment board i guess it should be good enough for the target audience. I think many other mid range Asus mobos too use the VIA audio but the reviews haven't mentioned anything -ve about them.
 
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