PC Build under $300

Austin Evans: 860K vs G3258

Timothy Kim60 said:Austin Evans: 860K vs G3258

I’ve been browsing through some benchmarks lately. I'm trying to figure out which budget motherboard would be sufficient to get everything running smoothly, paired with 8GB of RAM and a decent cooler... is there any realistic chance I can keep the total cost under $500?

Totally worth the $33 budget if you just want it done: the AS ROCK H81M HDS + LC CC 120 combo is hands down the cheapest way to go—and honestly, one of the best—if you're aiming for something like 4.5GHz.

David Sanders4 said:I'm currently scouring Benchmarks to find the most budget-friendly motherboard that can handle the CPU alongside 8GB of RAM and decent cooling. Is there any realistic way I can pull this off for less than $500?

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?t=2389948
http://www.ukgamingcomputers.co.uk/o...sets-a-60.html

So, if I were to leverage my current contact16 (given that it’s winter right now) and pick up something like g3258 ASRock H81M-DGS plus KINGSTON 8 GB DDR3 1600MHz, the whole package would run me about $440. That feels significantly more budget-friendly than hunting down a used i5-2500K paired with a motherboard and RAM, which usually sits closer to $500. That said, I can't help but wonder if 🤔
might actually be the smarter long-term play.

If you have Contac, feel free to drop the link. Even if it isn't some legendary tier product, it still outperforms the stock stuff, and most people end up doing some overclocking regardless of what they start with anyway.

Timothy Kim60 said:If you have a contact for it, go ahead and leave it. Even if it isn't some groundbreaking upgrade, it’s still better than the stock version—plus, most people end up doing some overclocking anyway, even on stock settings.

I'll have to see. I’m really only going to pull the trigger if I stumble upon an absolute steal. My current setup is actually serving me quite well, and honestly, my schedule is looking pretty packed through the spring. By the time winter rolls around, things might feel a bit more urgent, so for now, I’m only interested if the price is too good to pass up. It's certainly not a necessity right now.

My parts finally arrived: motherboard, CPU, RAM, and an HDD.
I was under the impression that I could simply migrate my existing cables—power supply and all—from the old motherboard over to this new one, but it turns out that isn't how it works at all. 😢
That old board is clearly ancient; the connectors just don't match up.

To be specific, I’m looking for a 24-pin power connector, but my old motherboard uses some sort of 20-pin setup or something similar. Since the power supply itself is relatively recent (about two years old), it was likely customized specifically for the old board when it was originally purchased (back then, I had the guys at the local computer shop handle the configuration for me). Now, there aren't any loose wires coming out of the PSU that would fit into a standard 24-pin socket on a modern motherboard.
So, what on earth am I supposed to do here???

My second issue involves the DVD drive. It’s currently using that wide ribbon cable with all those pins—is that what they call IDE? Well, my new motherboard doesn't have a slot for that anymore. Does it connect via SATA now, just like the hard drive? If so, I'll need a SATA cable. Given how old the drive is, I assume it might actually support a SATA connector as well.

There might be other compatibility headaches waiting for me down the road, too. But honestly, this power supply roadblock alone has brought everything to a grinding halt.

What is my best course of action? What can I actually accomplish here on my own? Of course, the easy way out is to just haul the whole rig down to a repair shop, pay them a premium to fix it, and call it a day.
But the real question is: what can I do myself?

Also, please accept my apologies if this isn't the strictly correct thread for this kind of inquiry. I originally came here to get advice on which components to buy (thanks again, Timothy Kim60!), so I figured I would just post this question right here in the same discussion.

Regarding the power supply—if you could snap a photo, that would be a huge help. I’m not entirely sure what the technicians at the repair shop actually did to it. Some PSUs come with a little trick where you can "split" the main connector—basically turning a 24-pin plug into a 20-pin one for older motherboards—and they usually have a little switch or a way to click it back into a full 24-pin if needed.

Since your optical drive uses an IDE connection, it means it's an older model. Most modern motherboards use SATA now, though it sounds like you might already have a SATA optical drive too? If so, your best bet is just picking up a new one at Best Buy or maybe finding a decent deal on a used one online.

EDIT: Take a look at this picture—it shows how you can swap between the 20-pin and 24-pin configurations, assuming your power supply actually supports that kind of flexibility...

crimsonorca172, you hit the nail on the head—it looks exactly like the one you just posted. I actually just realized that this specific 4-pin adapter exists.
I am crossing my fingers that there is only one way to seat it into the slot 🙂
However, I do have another question: looking at my motherboard, the CPU power supply (the ATX 12V) uses a dedicated 4-pin connection, which seems perfectly sized for this little adapter. At least, that is what the motherboard manual claims.
So, where does everything go? Am I supposed to plug everything into the main 24-pin connector?
Or am I still required to use that separate 4-pin CPU power port? If that’s the case, I would have to use this 4-pin adapter there, which leaves me with just a 20-pin connector for the 24-pin slot. Or am I completely overthinking this and getting it all wrong?

Is it even possible for an optical drive to support both IDE and SATA, essentially having both types of connectors?

Actually, no—that big 24-pin cable serves one specific purpose, and it has absolutely nothing to do with the 4-pin CPU slot. Your power supply should have its own dedicated 4-pin connector meant specifically for the area near your processor—so just plug that in there.

As far as I know, there isn't really an "IDE-to-SATA" thing... it’s either the wide IDE connector or it's SATA (check out the photo). Basically, if you're stuck with a wide IDE drive but your motherboard only supports SATA—which is pretty much standard for all modern boards these days—you're going to need to pick up a new optical drive. You can find plenty of them on eBay, so just take a look there—just make sure you grab a SATA one.

Thank you so much! 👍

So, if I understand correctly, I should merge these two connectors into a single 24-pin connection and plug it into its designated slot.
As for that 4-pin connector, it ought to match what was on my old motherboard—I’ll have to double-check that. I just want to be absolutely certain that there isn't some specific orientation required; I'd hate to assume they're universal and end up plugging something in incorrectly. 😁

Aside from the hard drive and the optical drive (once I finally pick up a new one), is there anything else I need to worry about connecting?
The real question weighing on my mind is this: am I likely to run into any more unexpected surprises like this one, or is the hard part officially behind me? 🙂

Here’s a quick video tutorial showing how to hook up the power supply to a motherboard—might be worth checking out if you want to see the process firsthand..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8inWYUxElAs

You've got the 24-pin for the motherboard, the 4-pin for the CPU, the SATA cable connecting the HDD to the board, and then your Molex or SATA power cables coming from the PSU. It’s the same deal with the SATA power from the board and the Molex from the power supply.

By the way, you don't even need to use a burner if that isn't part of your usual workflow. You can just flash the OS via a USB drive instead.

EDIT

Check this out:

http://youtu.be/KgP25BBzf38?t=13m36s

Thanks again. I’ll definitely take a look at that.
There are still a few other cables and connections on the existing motherboard—the ones that aren't the hard drive, power, or optical drive leads. For instance, there are two cables coming from the front panel of the case, each with four wires.
I should be able to figure it out.
I don't really need the disc drive much myself, but the kids occasionally want to listen to music or watch a CD or DVD.

The wires you're talking about are called the front panel connections—they’re what make the USB ports, headphone jack, reset button, and power switch on your case actually work. You really have to be careful with - and +, though. For instance, take a look at this...

Oh, I see what you mean now—I definitely misspoke earlier when I mentioned the front panel.
What I’m actually struggling with is how to distinguish one from the other; on my specific units, I didn't notice any identical markings to help me tell them apart. Furthermore, how am I supposed to know exactly where each one needs to be connected to the motherboard? Am I expected to follow the manual step-by-step for that?

Sent from my Android using Reddit

Did you catch that video?

The manual for your motherboard explains exactly where all those tiny case cables need to go.

I’ve just finished looking through everything.
If I can manage to find some free time later today, I am going to get my PC built and set up. I will be sure to post an update once I see how it all turns out.
I truly cannot thank you enough for all the advice and the incredible help you've provided.

I finally did it! I managed to get the computer to boot up. 🙂
However, now I’ve hit a snag while trying to install Windows. I went into the BIOS to check things out, and it seems all my drives—both HDDs and the optical drive—are being recognized properly.
There is a chance I might have misaligned some of the connectors (getting the pin sequence right for the + and - terminals), though I am certain the Power Switch is connected correctly. 😁 I assume the rest are fine too.

The only real headache is that I can't figure out how to hook up the Front audio. The diagrams in the manual just don't seem to match the labels printed on my actual connectors.
On my board, I see Mic In, mic Bias, Speak (or something similar) L/R, Return L/R, and GND.
But here is what the manual shows:


Honestly, I could live without the Front audio jacks working, but since they're right there, it would be nice to have them functional.