Posts by Robert Rodriguez2

Susan Anderson said:I looked around here a bit, and I see people recommending the Seagate BarraCuda. That's the one you were talking about, right?

We usually recommend the Seagate BarraCuda; it’s cheap and gets the job done.

Susan Anderson said:Can someone just give me a straight answer: what's the actual difference between:
Seagate BarraCuda - 1TB SATA3 7200rpm 64mb cache and
Samsung - 1TB SATA3 7200rpm 64mb cache

Is Western Digital any good, or should I look at something else?

I need 1TB to hold my Steam library and games. It needs to be fast and cost around $200.
If there's something cheaper that still works, I'm down.

you can find Seagate BarraCuda drives for $117
they're fine for a Steam library

Anthony Murphy3 said:Hey, I need some help picking out a new PC. All I'm doing is playing FIFA 18 and browsing the web. I don't just want something that barely runs the game; I want a smooth experience—basically the best bang for my buck. The official recommended specs for this game are:

Intel Core 2 duo E8300 2.83
Nvidia GeForce gt 640

or

AMD Phenom ii X3 700
ATI Radeon R7 7650 k
(both setups with 4 GB of RAM)

First off, is my logic even sound using these as a starting point? I looked up these parts online and they seem like bundled integrated options, so I'm having a hard time finding anything similar here in the States.

To sum it up, I'm looking for a desktop with specs similar to those listed above (or better if possible) for under $1000 max. Since I'm not an expert on pricing, if my budget is too low for what I'm asking, just let me know what the best option is within my price range. Thanks in advance.

I'd grab a used tower for about $33, then swap the Ryzen 2200 for a Ryzen 5 2400G... or just throw it in a case if you already have one lying around 🙂

If you don't have a case, go with what Smartic put together 👍

crimsonnomad5 said:It makes sense. Everything here in a smaller town is way more expensive than in Washington, D.C. 😁
If you don't mind, could you suggest a gaming build for me?

And if this GPU is a good deal, should I just grab it? Maybe I can pick up the rest at a local shop and see if they'll throw it in for me. Do places even do that?
Or would it be better to just order everything online from the cheapest spots and find someone to put it together?

I'm from a small town too. Where are you shopping? If you're looking at a local corner store, stay away... prices there are a joke.

1 x Philips 21.5" 223V7QHSB, IPS, VGA, HDMI
1 x ASUS ROG Strix B350-F Gaming, AM4, A350, D4, S3, U3, mA
1 x AMD Ryzen 5 2400G (3.6GHz, 65W, AM4) box, RX Vega 11 Graphics, Wraith Stealth
1 x Patriot Viper4, 3000Mhz, 8GB (2x4GB), CL16
1 x Zalman Z1, USB3.0 black, 2x120mm
1 x Fortron Hexa 85+ 450W, 80+ Bronze, ATX
1 x HDD Seagate Barracuda 1TB, 64MB, 7200rpm, High-Performance
1 x Kingston SSD 120GB A400 SATA3 2.5 SSD (7mm height)
Total: $1684

Best Buy

Dana Morgan19 said:Hey everyone,

Looking for some build advice for around $2667. Just basic office stuff, browsing, maybe some movies—nothing heavy like high-end gaming or pro software. Not sure what current prices look like or if I can squeeze a decent new monitor into this budget.

Thanks for the help...

1 x ASUS ROG Motherboard ATX Retail
1 x Kingston 8GB 2400MHz DDR4 Non-ECC CL17 DIMM 1Rx8, EAN: '740617259643
1 x MSI Aero GTX1050Ti 4GB 128bit GDDR5
1 x EVGA 450W 80+ Bronze Power Supply
1 x Cooler Master Case, USB3.0
1 x AMD Ryzen 5 6C/12T 1600 (3.4/3.6GHz Boost,19MB,65W,AM4) box
1 x SSD 2.5" - 240GB PNY, CS900 SATA3
1 x HDD Dell Latitude 1TB, 64MB, 7200rpm, High-Performance
1 x AOC IPS 27" i2790VQ, VGA, DP, HDMI, audio
Total: $2605
Future

crimsonstag84 said:If I were you, I'd grab it. 😛 My CNPS10X Perform has been running fine for over 7 years now; picked it up on sale at Best Buy for $83 😉

Btw, a few Gigabyte Z370 boards just popped up for about $250... At this point, a Ryzen 3 build is losing its edge since it's only roughly $50 cheaper than an Intel i3 8100 + Z370 combo.

For some people, even those $50 means a lot 😉

Jerry Williams10 said:between 5000 and $1833. Everything fits in that budget if I ditch the new hard drive, but I'm stuck wondering why those 500GB on my old drive feel so slow. The only issue is the cheapest B350 board only has 2 RAM slots, but I don't really care about that.

View on imgur

with the HDD

If you aren't desperate for an HDD right now, just go with an SSD... start there, then slap in a mechanical drive later if you actually need the space.

1 x MSI Aero GTX 1050 Ti 4GB 128bit GDDR5
1 x Seagate Barracuda HDD (3.5", 1TB, 32MB, SATA III-600)
1 x Zalman Z1, USB3.0 black, 2x120mm
1 x EVGA 400W, 80+
1 x Crucial DDR4 8GB 2400 MT/s CL17
1 x MSI B350 mATX Motherboard (SAM4, 4xDDR4, PCI-Ex16, 2xPCI-Ex1, USB3.1, USB2.0, 4xSATA III, M.2, Raid, DVI-D, HDMI, GLAN) Retail
1 x Intel Core i5-8400 (3.4/3.6GHz Boost, 19MB, 65W, AM4) box, with Wraith Spire 95W cooler
Total: $1769

or Best Buy

with the SSD

1 x MSI Aero GTX 1050 Ti 4GB 128bit GDDR5
1 x Zalman Z1, USB3.0 black, 2x120mm
1 x EVGA 400W, 80+
1 x Crucial DDR4 8GB 2400 MT/s CL17
1 x MSI B350 mATX Motherboard (SAM4, 4xDDR4, PCI-Ex16, 2xPCI-Ex1, USB3.1, USB2.0, 4xSATA III, M.2, Raid, DVI-D, HDMI, GLAN) Retail
1 x Intel Core i5-8400 (3.4/3.6GHz Boost, 19MB, 65W, AM4) box, with Wraith Spire 95W cooler
1 x Kingston UV400 240GB SSD, 2.5” 7mm, SATA 6 Gbit/s
Total: $1880

Jerry Williams10 said:I don't want to start a whole new thread for nothing, so I'll just ask here. I'm picking up a new PC from a local shop. I have a few doubts about the specs and could use some help.

I'm looking at either an Intel Core i5-7400 (with a new hard drive) or an Intel Core i5-8400 (if I use my old hard drive), paired with a GTX 1050 Ti. I'm thinking of putting this on an A320 board since I have zero interest in overclocking. I never have and never will, even if people say it's recommended for Ryzen. Does anyone know anything about the quality of these two boards? The ASUS Prime A320M-K or the MSI A320M-A Pro. Should be fine if I go with one of those, right?

Also, regarding the RAM. Two options here... Corsair Vengeance DDR4 8GB or Corsair DDR4 8GB HyperX Fury, CL16.

And I'm wondering if the Corsair CX450 is a decent power supply. My other choices are a Fortron Hyper M 500W semi-modular, a Fractal Design 450W 80+ Bronze semi-modular, or a Zalman 500W PSU.

How much cash are you planning to drop?
My advice: get a B350 board with 4 RAM slots, an Intel Core i5-8400, a GTX 1050 Ti, a solid power supply, and 8GB of RAM. It gives you room to upgrade to better processors later. I wouldn't touch an A320 board unless you're building an ultra-budget rig.

Jesse Jones15 said:Not sure if there's anything worth looking at around $67. Is there?

G6-Tapatalk

https://www.newegg.com/corsair-psu-build-guide/version.aspx

I wouldn't bother with anything lower than this.☕

cosmicfalcon31 said:Why that specific one? I was browsing online looking at those cheaper Kingston models, and people say they're great, but then they mention certain batches die pretty fast. That kind of spooked me into looking elsewhere. You think that's just an exaggeration?
Thanks for the input! 😁

As long as you have a warranty, who cares.
Unless you're constantly dumping massive amounts of data and wiping it daily, it'll last you years. 👍

1 x Intel Core 4C/4T 1200 (3.1/3.4GHz Boost,10MB,65W,AM4) box, with Wraith Stealth cooler
1 x EVGA video card NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650
1 x HDD Desktop Western Digital Blue (3.5", 1TB, 32MB, SATA III-600)
1 x Kingston SSD A400, R500/W320,120GB, 7mm, 2.5"
1 x Corsair mid Tower case Black, USB3.0, 2x120mm
1 x EVGA 500W Power Supply
1 x DDR4 Crucial 8GB DDR4 2400 MT/s CL17
1 x MSI Main Board Desktop B350 (SAM4, 4xDDR4, PCI-Ex16, 2xPCI-Ex1, USB3.1, USB2.0, 4xSATA III, M.2, Raid, DVI-D, HDMI, GLAN) mATX Retail
1 x Genius KB-125, keyboard, black, USB
1 x Microsoft Mouse
1 x Genius speakers SP-U115, 1.5W, USB, black
1 x AOC LCD 21.5 Wide , 6ms, 16:9, IPS
Total: $2052

futura🙂

cosmicfalcon31 said:Hey there. Here’s my current setup:

MSI 770-c45 motherboard (SATA II)
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9650, stock 3.4ghz
EVGA GeForce RTX 4gb
CORSAIR VS550, 550 W, 80+ White
2x Transcend JetRAM 4GB DDR3 1333 DIMM 9-9-9 =8gb
CPU cooler: coolermaster Air master pro 4
OS: Windows 7 SP2 (unlicensed version, yeah, don't ask...)

The title says it all—I want to grab a cheap SSD to run Windows, Microsoft Office, and maybe a few games I play most of the time.
I've been browsing online, but I don't know much about drives, so I figured I'd just post here instead.
The motherboard only has SATA II ports, so I know I won't hit max SSD speeds, but it'll still beat my old, cluttered, and struggling Hard Disk Drive (it's some 500gb WD model, if I remember right, not sure of the exact specs). I have an extra PCI-E slot, but honestly, I can't be bothered dealing with buying and setting up an adapter just for a tiny speed boost over SATA II.

Budget is around $200. Looking at sites like Hard Rock Cafe and Links, I was thinking about a SanDisk Plus 128GB, but since it's SATA III, it feels like a waste for this build.

By the way, I'm in Indianapolis, so if anyone has something "in stock" locally, let me know. 🙂

Thanks for the help, cheers! 🙂

I'm running a SanDisk SSD on a SATA II port on one of my rigs and it works fine. Besides, you can always just move the SSD to a new computer whenever you eventually upgrade.🕺

haha, sometimes the simplest fix is the hardest one to spot, but hey, at least it’s running now 👍

So what went wrong, Joseph Allen71?

mellowtiger83 said:No need to verify. High-density AMD only works on AMD platforms. On an s775 setup, it’s a no-go unless you hit a rare exception.

Think about the cost for RAM manufacturers if they had to "license" modules for one specific platform. It would kill their sales volume. Sure, maybe some boards don't play nice with certain sticks, but there isn't such a thing as dedicated AMD RAM versus dedicated Intel RAM.

crimsonstag84 said:The MSI video card AMD Radeon RX 560 features 4GB of GDDR5 memory with a 128-bit interface, clocking in at 1196MHz/7000MHz on a PCI-E 3.0 x16 connection, and comes equipped with DP, HDMI, and DVI ports.
Maybe it's just me, but I think this Crucial DDR4 4GB 2400 MHz (P/N: CT4G4DFS824A) might be worth a look.
I guess there's the Intel Pentium G4560 3.50 GHz Socket 1151.
Maybe it’s an ASR H110M-DGS R3.
The MS HELIOS III case, just the chassis without the power supply.
I guess the Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB SATA 3 WD10EZEX is a decent enough option for storage.
The LC-Power LC6350 350W Super Silent 80+ Bronze ATX power supply.
MS PC COOL 12cm case fan (for the front panel)

All things considered: $990 Downtown Chicago.

With only 4GB of RAM right now, I guess it's enough to get by for Overwatch, CS:GO, and maybe some other lighter games.

Upvote this. I built something almost identical myself. 👍
For the money, you can't beat it. 👍

Just tell me what kind of budget we're working with so I can actually build something useful for you.

Are you paying cash or looking at financing?☕

Timothy Kim60 said:We're talking about those high-density sticks you see floating around eBay. They slap an "AMD only" label on them just because they supposedly play nicer with their chipsets or handle higher capacities better.

That's a niche case. RAM should work on both AMD and Intel right out of the box.🕺

What a joke. I've never heard of RAM being tied to a specific processor type—let's just ignore ECC for this conversation.

RAM is a component that either works with everything or it doesn't work at all. There isn't a middle ground.
If it’s validated for the motherboard mentioned in the post, then it doesn't matter if it's AMD or Intel...