Business PC

[link1305]

I might be given the task of building 2 or 3 PC's for my mom's boss, at a Nationwide (insurace company) office. They have to provide their own PC upgrades, and currently they have P3 700's. They don't need Monitor/Keyboard/speakers/mouse, so I just have the basics. All they use these PC's for is word processing, Excel, and the specialized nationwide software.



REAL CASE (BLACK) 3G READY Tooless ATX Mid Tower Case with 400watt Power Supply = $45

Lite On 52x Black Cd Rom - Model LTN-526 -Full OEM PACK = $16

Seagate 40GB 7200rpm EIDE Hard Drive OEM Barracuda 7200.7 ST340014A = $57

Buffalo Technology 512MB PC2700 DDRAM Micron, Samsung or Infineon Chipset Memory Module 32X8, Part# PC270032X8-512M - OEM = $76

ASUS P4S533-MX Motherboard for Intel P4 478 DDR Retail
Specifications:
Supported CPU:Socket 478 for Intel Pentium 4/ Celeron
Chipset:SiS 651 + SiS 962L
FSB:533/400 MHz
RAM: 2 x 184-pin DIMM Sockets support max. 2GB PC2700/PC2100/PC1600 non-ECC DDR SDRAM memory
2 x 168-pin DIMM Sockets support max. 2GB PC133/PC100 non-ECC SDRAM memory
IDE:2 x UltraDMA 133/100 / 66 up to 4 Devices
Slots:1x AGP (4X) 3x PCI
Ports:2xPS2,1xLPT,1xVGA,4xUSB,1xLAN, and Audio Ports
Onboard Video: Integrated 3D graphics
Onboard LAN:10/100 Mbps Realtek
Onboard Audio:ADI AD1980 6-channel CODEC = $64

Intel Pentium 4 2.4BGHz 512K 533MHz CPU Northwood P478 Processor Retail Box = $ 164

Total is: $423

Onboard video and sound should do fine. Am I missing anything? Does anyone have any comments on the mobo or proc? I don't have much experience with P4's

Thanks a lot

 

[Fallen Phoenix]

Is it necessary to use P4s? I know this is expected but an AMD system would take some off the cost and still run all those programs fine unless the insurance software is something that would benefit from the P4s strong suits.

 

[FunkDaMonkMan]

Exactally... A barton 2500+ should perform about the same at 1/2 the price.

 

[Fallen Phoenix]

Oh yea, and it's ALWAYS good to save money for the boss man

 

[link1305]

Well I replaced the P4 with an Athlon 2500XP, and this mobo:

Biostar Micro ATX Motherboard for AMD Athlon/Athlon XP Socket A Processors,NVIDIA nForce2 IGP Chipset, Model M7NCG 400 - Retail
Specifications:
Supported CPU: AMD Athlon, Athlon XP 200 / 266 / 333 / 400MHz front side bus
Chipset: NVIDIA nForce2 IGP / MCP
RAM: 3 x 184-pin DDR 200/266/333/400 (For dual channel 128-bit performance, at least 2 modules must be installed.)
IDE: 4 x EIDE devices Ultra DMA 33/66/100//133
Slots: 1 x AGP 8x, 3 x PCI, 1 x CNR
Ports: 1 x Parallel, 1 x Serial, 1 x VGA, 2 x PS/2, Gameport, Audio In/Out, 6 x USB 2.0, 1 x SPDIF, 1 x LAN
Onboard Video: GeForce 4 MX
Onboard Audio: Realtek ALC650 6-Channel AC'97 CODEC
Onboard LAN: MCP NVIDIA MAC + Realtek RTL

Anyone have any other suggestions? Thanks so far

PS: The price is now down to 360, which is pretty good for a complete system!

 

[Fallen Phoenix]

Looks good, the onboard sound and video should be more than adequate for their needs. What about another NIC for each? Are these machines going to be on an LAN? I know when I'm online downloading I can barely use the LAN to share files, it may be important maybe not.

 

[Tamasha_Strife]

That motherboard has an onboard NIC Fallen Phoenix

Also I'm not too sure how good the AMD retail HS/HSF performs (never used it hehe) but I think you might be better off swapping it for something else that will be extra quiet but provide enough cooling so the CPUs aren't always going over 50C

 

[BaldHeadedDork]

Try this:

• Intel D845GEBV2L (845GE) Motherboard $102.00
• Intel Celeron 1.7GHz Processor (Socket 478) Retail $55.00
• Corsair Value Select 256MB PC2100 Memory $44.00
• Western Digital WD400JB 40GB Hard Drive $65.00
• Ahanix G20 Minitower ATX Case $30.00
• Sparkle FSP 250W Power Supply $25.00
• NEC 52x CD-ROM Drive-OEM $21.00
• Mitsumi 1.44MB Floppy Drive $12.00
• TOTAL: $354.00 (Including Shipping)

A few notes:

• For an office setup, stability and reliability are everything, and nothing beats an Intel house-brand motherboard. The nForce boads have greatly improved the reliability of the AMD platform, but it is still a clear step below an Intel/Intel setup.
• The 1.7 Celeron is more than enough power for office apps.
• I spent more on the hard drive and memory than your original list, but I think its money well spent. For eight bucks you get two additional years of warranty on the harddrive, and I think Corsair's reputation is worth an extra few bucks. Choosing a cheap case without a PSU and adding a Sparkle FSP is $5 cheaper than your pick if you include shipping, and the Sparkle is a much better PSU.
• I included the CD-ROM drive, but honestly I'd search out brick and mortar stores for a new, left-over 32x drive. The difference in performance won't be seen in an office environment, but the difference in noise will be huge.
• Don't forget operating systems. If you are using their existing software, make sure you document that the operating systems were permanently deleted from the old computers before being installed on the new systems. Otherwise, pony up for new copies of XP/2K or a multi-user license.
• If you want to score points and make a few bucks, offer a full cleaning of data from their old systems after they are done with them. You can easily sell this for $50 a system.

BHD

 

[Fallen Phoenix]

That motherboard has an onboard NIC Fallen Phoenix

Also I'm not too sure how good the AMD retail HS/HSF performs (never used it hehe) but I think you might be better off swapping it for something else that will be extra quiet but provide enough cooling so the CPUs aren't always going over 50C

Yep I saw that, I meant running dual NICs, one to the router and one to a hub. That way you can download with one and still have a full 100Mb to transfer files. For some reason even my lowly cable eats up my network card's bandwidth like no other.

 

[zachj]

A few things:

One- Because this is for a company, I think you should strongly reconsider OEM parts. They might be cheaper, but I think the company might be better served by a long warranty. Remember . . . you built it for them. If it breaks, and you tell them they need to BUY another one, they're going to ask you why.

Two- I think you should consider getting a name-brand PSU. Both because of noise and reliability. If their PSU breaks, it'll likely take more with it. For personal use, while a PITA, it's not THAT big a deal. For business use, they're going to lose data, and that'll ruin your day when you have to tell them you might not get it back (without paying a LOT for data-recovery by the hard drive manufacturer).

Three- I personally hate Celerons. If they're used to a PIII, they might even feel it as a downgrade. It's as fast as a P4 in some regards, and SOOOO much slower in others. They don't want a new system that has noticable lags, and no matter how you cut it, that's what they'll see if you give them a Celeron. Even a 1.6 or 1.8A P4 will be MUCH better (assuming you can find one).

Four- The more RAM, the merrier . . . That's what makes the greatest impact on performance, especially in XP. I highly don't recomend going below 384MB . . . Some say 256 is enough, but I really don't agree . . . A regular system will likely max out 256 if it's running a few apps in the background. I've not maxed out 512, and I think 384 is a happy medium.

Five- Intel has a good reputation amongst EVERYBODY, especially business users. This is in your favor. You're probably going to have to talk them into an AMD system, and they're going to hate your guts if it ever breaks, because they'll assume that Intel products would not have done that.

Six- I don't know how loud their current systems are, but you'll earn brownie points if yours are quieter. I hate loud computers, and so does everyone else. In a business environment, they don't like them at all. Shouting at a customer over the noise of a computer will not please them. I think a different heatsink for either CPU might be in order, with a good, quiet 80mm fan. That's why I suggested the new power supply.

Seven- Onboard video, while cheap, slows down computers. If, after building the machine, you think it's running slower than it should, slap in a video card and see if it improves . . . It probably will. Find a cheap one, and it will serve you fine. The onboard graphics from the NForce2 are great for businesses, as most computers are sold with these as add-on cards. Intel Extreme absolutely su**s . . . I hate it, and I wouldn't build it into any system I ever own if I can help it.

I have the M7NCG (not the four hundred, but that might be a downgrade from the regular M7NCG . . . I don't know), so if you have questions, ask.

Z