Display, Case and Peripherals
With all the core components covered, all we need now is a box to hold everything, power to make it go, and a display, speakers, keyboard, and mouse so you can actually use the computer. We have several options listed, all of which should work with any of the previously covered system platforms. Given that this is a budget buyer's guide, we definitely will not be spending a lot of money getting an aftermarket power supply (with one exception). Our experience with midrange systems and below is that they tend to work fine with the cheap case + PSU combinations that you can buy. If you want to get a better power supply, you can always do that after the fact, and as usual we would put Enermax, Fotron Source, OCZ, SeaSonic, and Silverstone at the top in terms of overall quality. One good reason to upgrade your power supply - other than providing more stable power and perhaps saving on electricity costs - is to reduce system noise. Many cheap power supplies can be obnoxiously loud, whereas all five of the manufacturers we just listed tend to be much quieter. SeaSonic S12 would probably be the best of those five, and PC Power and Cooling is another company known for their high-quality power supplies. Most of the really good power supplies from any of these companies are going to be difficult to get into a budget price range, unfortunately.
| Budget Case and Accessories |
| Display |
Sceptre 19" X9WG-NagaV 8ms 1440x900 |
$194 |
| Case and Power |
Rosewill R804BK Black Steel ATX with 300W 24-pin PSU |
$39 |
| Keyboard and Mouse |
Microsoft CA9-00001 Black with Optical Mouse |
$21 |
| Speakers |
Logitech X-230 2.1 Speakers |
$32 |
| Operating System |
Linux Distro + OpenOffice.org |
$0 |
| Total |
$286 |
| Windows XP Budget Case and Accessories |
| Display |
Sceptre 19" X9WG-NagaV 8ms 1440x900 |
$194 |
| Case and Power |
Rosewill R804BK Black Steel ATX with 300W 24-pin PSU |
$39 |
| Keyboard and Mouse |
Microsoft CA9-00001 Black with Optical Mouse |
$21 |
| Speakers |
Logitech X-230 2.1 Speakers |
$32 |
| Operating System |
Microsoft Windows XP Home With SP2B - OEM |
$95 |
| Total |
$381 |
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If you are looking to keep prices down at all costs, even a few $10 upgrades can quickly add up. We still have several of those upgrades in place, but for the basic build we have trimmed things down about as far as we're willing to go. We selected a 19" widescreen monitor from Sceptre, a brand known for targeting the budget sector. 17" LCDs might be slightly cheaper, but we would rather spend the extra $12 in this instance. That gives you a widescreen 1440x900 resolution as opposed to 1280x1024, and the size of the screen is also larger. Discerning viewers might have issues with the overall quality, but if you were to put even the cheapest 19" LCD next to your typical CRT, the vast majority of people are going to think the LCD looks better. It may not
perform better, but it's hard to compete with thin and sexy when you're fat and large.
(Ed: No offense intended towards any fat or large people out there - and hey, I'm working on my gut!)
The case and power supply come from Rosewill, another brand known for targeting the budget sector. You will likely find some sharp edges within the case, and the generic 300W power supply shouldn't be used if you plan on installing multiple hard drives, higher-end graphics cards, or doing serious overclocking. If you just plan on putting the system together and running it at stock settings, however, you shouldn't have any problems. The mouse, keyboard, and speakers are also budget choices that will still work well, though if you prefer something else get what you like instead.
For the operating system, we have two options. The first is to go the free route and install Linux, OpenOffice.org, etc. The obvious benefit is the price, but you also need to know your way around Linux and you may not be able to run every piece of software you would like (even using a Windows emulator like WINE). On the other hand, this would allow you to join the elite group of people that like to make fun of Microsoft and Windows. For basic computer tasks, Linux is more than capable of doing everything you need. Advanced users will even prefer the high level of customization available.
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If you don't have any idea how to use a makefile, you're probably best off sending some money to Microsoft in order to use their operating system. You might not learn as much about computers that way, but it can also help you avoid arguments with other household members. After all, there's a reason Microsoft operating systems currently dominate the market. For single computer users, Windows XP Home is about the same as Windows XP Professional, but if you have a home network you might want to consider upgrading to MCE 2005 or XP Pro. As you can tell, the almighty dollar had its hand in our recommendation of XP Home.
| HTPC Case and Accessories |
| Display |
Existing HDTV (or other display) |
$0 |
| Case |
Silverstone SST-LC17-B Black Aluminum HTPC Case |
$141 |
| Power Supply |
SeaSonic S12-380 380W PSU |
$65 |
| Keyboard and Mouse |
Logitech Keyboard and Mouse - Wireless + Rechargeable |
$56 |
| Speakers |
Existing Home Theater |
$0 |
| TV Tuner |
Hauppauge WinTV PVR-500 MCE Dual Tuner + FM |
$140 |
| Operating System |
Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 SP2B (OEM) |
$115 |
| Total |
$517 |
One of the great uses for a budget computer, if you're the type of person that has several computers around the house
(Ed: or a computer in every room like some of us...), is as an HTPC (Home Theater PC). Why buy a TiVo or other subscription service if you can get all of their features for a simple one-time payment? You may not be able to record every single channel you get using an HTPC, but overall it offers far greater versatility. Recompress the videos you record into an MPEG-4 format, share all of your videos throughout your home network, download and/or watch movies from the Internet, burn your recordings to DVDs... you can do all of that plus other multimedia tasks with an HTPC. If you already have a really nice home theater setup, adding a computer may be the next logical step. You don't need a display or speakers most likely, so we left those out, but you probably also want something that's quiet and will fit in better with your other stereo components.
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We took the money we saved from skipping the LCD and speaker purchases and put that towards getting a nice HTPC case and a quiet power supply. We also added in a wireless keyboard and mouse and a dual TV tuner. The Silverstone case is one of the larger HTPC cases out there and it is capable of holding a full-size ATX motherboard (although it can be a pretty tight fit). It can also use any standard ATX power supply, and in order to keep noise levels down we went with a SeaSonic S12 380W power supply. An alternative power supply configuration you might want to consider is something with modular cables, as the confines of many HTPC cases are very cramped and the ability to omit unnecessary cables can be useful.
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Our HTPC configuration naturally chose to go with an HTPC operating system, Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005. MCE 2005 is a lot like XP Pro, only with video timeshifting and recording features and a 10 foot UI. Finally, our preferred TV tuner comes from Hauppauge, the WinTV PVR-500 MCE Dual Tuner + FM. While we haven't specifically reviewed any Hauppauge products in a while, they are still among the best quality analog TV tuners available. (They are also fully compatible with Linux - at least, the non-MCE versions are - so if you want to build an HTPC using MythTV you could also go that route.) The total cost of our HTPC accessories ends up being quite a bit more than any of the other configurations, considering it doesn't include an LCD or speakers. However, going with a really cheap HTPC case often brings undesirable results. We wouldn't necessarily consider this a budget selection, but depending on the other components used it could qualify as a "budget HTPC".
If you're looking for an HTPC case that is more "budget" than what we have listed here, one reader points out the Antec Solution Series NSK2400 as a good option. This case will require the use of a micro ATX motherboard, so you might lose some features, but you can save over $100 relative to the Silverstone + PSU that we've selected. Whether or not you prefer the appearance of the Silverstone or the Antec will probably play a part in your final decision as well.
(Truth be told, I was trying to find a case like this Antec NSK2400 for the article and apparently it never turned up in my searches. It is definitely a better budget choice! Thanks for the comment, "autoboy".)
| Upgraded Case and Accessories |
| Display |
BenQ 20.1" FP202W 8ms 1680x1050 |
$270 |
| Case and Power |
Cooler Master Centurion RC-534-SKR5
Silver Aluminum with 430W 24-pin PSU |
$77 |
| Keyboard and Mouse |
Microsoft Comfort Curve 2000 with Optical Mouse |
$28 |
| Speakers |
Logitech X-530 5.1 Speakers |
$68 |
| Operating System |
Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 SP2B (OEM) |
$115 |
| Total |
$558 |
 |
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The upgraded configuration of course includes more expensive - and better - components. Starting with the LCD, we upgraded from a 19" widescreen to a 20" widescreen model. While the screen isn't a lot larger, the 20" model does come with a higher 1680x1050 native resolution. We still consider BenQ more of a budget LCD brand, but we would rate them quite a bit higher than Sceptre. The case and power supply we selected are from Cooler Master, a well-known and generally respected brand. The included power supply still isn't a super high quality model, but with a 430W rating it is definitely more than enough to drive any of the budget systems we put together in this guide. We stuck with MCE 2005 as the operating system choice, even though this isn't an HTPC build (although it could be with the addition of the TV tuner). The keyboard and mouse have a few more buttons but are otherwise about the same as our basic setup - get whatever keyboard and mouse you are most comfortable with if you don't like our choice. Finally, we bumped up a notch on the speakers from 2.1 to 5.1 audio. The Logitech budget speakers all perform well for the price, so there's usually not much point in getting some other brand.
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jonp - Thursday, November 16, 2006 - link
Hmmm...I can't find that the LiteOn SHW160P6S05 supports DVD-RAM. It is not listed on newegg nor Liteon nor zipzoomfly web sites as having DVD-RAM capability...
BurnItDwn - Friday, October 27, 2006 - link
1. The Antec Overture II doesn't look as nice as the case selected, but it comes with a decent Antec power supply, and it is a very nice case (fits just fine in my stereo cabinet.)2. I don't understand why Media Center XP is being recommended when MythTV is free and can do so much more. (AT has even done several write-ups about it.) Seems stupid to waste money on an unnecessary OS when there is a free alternative that does things better.
JarredWalton - Saturday, October 28, 2006 - link
The idea is that you can do more with MCE 2005 - like run all of your Windows apps. HTPC doesn't mean that you don't do any normal PC stuff, at least to me. Naturally, you can also go the Linux + MythTV route. If you want to build *just* an HTPC that will do nothing else, I would recommend MythTV, get a case that you like (preferably something that will be quiet), get the Hauppauge PVR-500 (non-MCE), and then basically get a cheap motherboard, processor, and 512MB of RAM. Add in a DVDR, and then stuff in as many large hard drives as you feel the need to use. A couple 320GB drives would be a great place to start....Operandi - Thursday, October 26, 2006 - link
Low bottom lines are nice but if you have to resort to low quality components that are likely to fail (Rosewill) what’s the point?Ok, so a case is essentially just a "box" to put all your hardware in but the power supply is a very important piece of hardware. Rosewill is about 2-3 out of 10; I wouldn't count on them hitting their rated power and I certainly wouldn't count on them being very reliable.
For under $50 (not including shipping) there is wide selection of http://www.newegg.com/Product/ProductList.asp?Subm...">InWin case/PSU combinations. The cases are very solid; heavy steel, and quality plastic, no cheap junk here. The PSUs are also of decent if not great quality, and about 100x better then Rosewill units at any rate.
JarredWalton - Thursday, October 26, 2006 - link
As always, power supply aficionados love to rip on anything that doesn't cost upwards of $50 for the case+PSU, and even then those PSUs are "junk". You have to step back and look at the intended system. Would we recommend the cheap Rosewill PSUs for a midrange config? No, though they'll almost certainly still work if you get the higher 400W+ PSUs. I bought a couple crap cases and PSUs last year just to see how they do with budget systems. They are both still running fine, nearly 12 months later, even with overclocking.I've recommended Inwin in the past, and they're still good. I don't like using the same case month after month, and plenty of people have no issues with Rosewill units. Read the Newegg reviews -- which granted can be skewed -- and you still will see very few writeups scoring any Rosewill case lower than 4/5. Why? Because the people using them are probably building budget systems.
I will state this once again: a budget system with one hard drive, IGP or lower end GPU, typically 1GB or less RAM, one DVDR, and a lower spec CPU will come nowhere near the stated power output of even cheap PSUs. A Pentium D 805 with 7600GT http://www.anandtech.com/guides/showdoc.aspx?i=279...">maxed out at 256W; dropping to IGP would reduce power requirements at maximum by a good 30-50W I would say. Take away the Pentium D and put in a single core Athlon 64 or Sempron, and the maximum power doesn't even break 170W. Average load is going to be around 125W (or less). For the upgraded configurations, they will be faster than the Pentium D 805 but still use less power, so they will also work. I think if you're going to spend $1000 on a system, spending at least $50 on the power supply starts to make sense, but when you're already cutting out higher performance graphics, CPUs, memory, etc. do you really need to get a more expensive, "better" PSU?
Now, I'm not saying cheaps PSUs are great. They usually have poor heatsinks and compensate by using higher RPM, louder fans. They will often fail if you push their power output by overclocking, using multiple HDDs, a higher-end GPU, etc. If you just plan on running a low-end configuration, though, it's really doubtful that you will have problems -- heck, I've even had high-quality power supplies fail or arrive DOA.
Anyway, just FYI, Rosewill is basically a Newegg brand as far as I'm aware. Concerning power supplies, according to information I've received, there are only about three manufacturers in Asia that actually put together power supplies. They will build to the specifications that a company sends, but they are pretty much all coming from the same places. The names on the outside of the power supply are often pretty meaningless.
Operandi - Friday, October 27, 2006 - link
My statements come from experience; I'm not some power snob that thinks every system should have a $200 500 watt PCP&C unit. I haven't been building and working with PCs for a particularly long time but over the course of 5 years I've replaced probably 5-6 (at least) Deer, L&C PSUs (as well as one or two others). Deer, L&C, and other similar manufactures are known for making junk, most of them fail after 1-2 years. Also keep in mind all of them were lower-end budget systems, Duron CPUs, 256MB of RAM, one hard drive, one optical, ect; I don't have to tell you the power requirements were very low.On the other hand I've only had to replace one PSU from a known good manufacture; a mATX Delta that was clogged full of dust. I've also personally put into service 20+ systems powered by cheap ($30-40) FSP (Forton-Source) units; all of them are still going, some of them approaching 4.5-5 years.
Running a couple of "crap" units for 12 months is hardly conclusive. As I've already stated I've replaced a lot of junk, yet I know for fact some of that junk is still running after 2-3 years. Of course if you do the math it comes out to be a failure rate of about 30-40% (within 24 months) for Deer & L&C units; maybe you find that to be expectable but I don't.
A low load dose not mean a cheap, low-quality, crap, junk whatever you want to call it PSU going to be OK. It will almost certainly last longer, but how long is anyone's guess. There is also the safety factor; a well designed (slightly more expensive) unit will protect the hardware it's protected the hardware it's connected to in the event of a failure. (very) Cheap units often designed just to work and lack such features.
Cheap PSUs are designed to work, not to last and that’s what most of them do. They do use smaller heatsinks and use louder fans but they are often designed with cheap and sometimes inadequate components. This means shorter life span, low efficiency/more heat, higher ripple, and poor voltage regulation
Newegg reviews don't hold much of any value when it comes to PSU. The majority of those reviews are dealing short durations and even worst units will last at least several months unless you stress them really hard. I'm willing to bet very few come back after 1, 2 or 3 years later to complain about failure. There is also no tangible user benefit from a poor unit working poorly and a good unit working properly. There is no application to measure DC ripple, and no real accurate way of measuring voltages, but the affects of high ripple and poor voltage regulation are very real in the form of instability and decreased component life. If it turns on it gets 5, if it’s a DOA it gets 0, that’s hardly a complete picture.
Back to Rosewill. I know they are Newegg's house brand, and they don't actually manufacture anything. Rosewill's PSUs come from a variety of manufactures non I would consider to be good; according to jonnyGURU the list includes ATNG, Youngyear and Solytech; you can check the “Rosewill brand experience?” thread in the forums http://forums.anandtech.com/messageview.aspx?catid...">here if you want to educate yourself further on the subject.
yyrkoon - Friday, October 27, 2006 - link
I cant speak for Rosewill (although, I would neither reccommend, nor put one in any of my own systems), but I just replaced another no name PSU for a customer today. The thing is, he just bought this other PSU TWO DAYS ago, from another 'PC repair' shop. The PSU had Kate loon fans in it, was a no name brand (couldnt find a single identification, number, or company name on it, that google knew of . . .), and was SUPPOSEDLY a 550W PSU. I Say SUPPOSEDLY, because the PSU which I replaced it with, was a 380W wariant (another in-expencive PSU brand 'TRU-Power'), and it only had 3 amps less on the 12V output. In other words, this '550W' PSU had all its power rated on the 3.3v output(atleast the majority of it).There are a few exceptions when it comes to buying in-expencive parts from any one, for anything, but when you're 'playing' with your buisnesses name sake, its not a very good idea reccomending parts that you are un-sure of. I will guess, that some of, or possibly even a lot of these people putting down 'lesser brand ' PSUs, are kids, who have read bad information on a web site, or forum somewhere, and basicly havent a clue, however, this doesnt mean this is entirely false. Hell, I've read the user reviews on newegg, concerning Antec PSUs, and its not always good, but, again, readers judgement/experience will let you know who is full of it, and who is a complete idiot, when putting PCs together.
Anyhow, where our buisness is concerned here, we will not play around with the random off-branded PSU, and only use those in-expencive parts that WE KNOW will work, but I still reccommend atleast an Antec to each customer, explain to them why, and let them make the final choice.
For my own PCs, nothing less than an Antec, ever. Why do you ask ? 13 years of building PCs, the majority of which I have used in-expencive PSUs in my own systems, and getting tired of the random oddity, like the PC randomly shutting down on its own, BSoDs, or a system that plain ole, wont boot, period :)
Frumious1 - Friday, October 27, 2006 - link
I have had bad luck with Antec the past three years. Every single Antec power supply I have used has failed within two years. Most were cheap 350W power supplies that came with the case, but I even had a couple truepower 380W power supplies fail (Antec Sonata case).Consider this: Rosewill IS Newegg. What is Newegg known for? Providing some of the best prices on computer hardware on the Internet. They are also known for having very good customer support. Others have already mentioned that there really aren't that many Asian companies who actually manufacture power supplies. Why does brand X cost more than brand Y? In some cases it is because they use higher-quality components. In other cases, it's because company X is just trying to make more of a profit. I would be willing to bet that most of the people who bash on Rosewill have never actually owned or tested one of their power supplies. In fact, the next time I need a higher-quality power supply (for example if I'm building an SLI or CrossFire system) I think I'm going to go out and buy one of the more expensive Rosewill offerings and see how it does. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82...">This one looks interesting!
JarredWalton - Friday, October 27, 2006 - link
"Check the 'Rosewill brand experience' thread in the forums here if you want to educate yourself further on the subject."That thread was about as useless - actually more so - than Newegg reviews. A bunch of people called them crap, but not one of those people said "I bought unit X, ran hardware Y, and it Z..." Again, I'm not saying they're great, but what's better:
A $39 Rosewill case and 300W PSU *shipped* that's flimsy but will still run okay and looks fine, and the PSU might fail in a year or two (at which point you can go out and buy a Fotron Source for another $40 *shipped*), or go and get an InWin with 300W PSU that starts at around $65 shipped, has a slightly better PSU that will likely still fail within 3 years if you never clean the dust out of your case, at which point you again buy a new $40 PSU?
Yes, the InWin is built better, but for people that put the system together and then never open it again unless something fails, does it really matter how easy or hard the case is to work with? We're not talking about cases that are likely to go to LAN parties here, and most likely they will sit on the floor or desk for years. If I'm building a cheap computer for someone, they are almost always FAR more concerned with what the case looks like then whether it's flimsy or not. I had three Antec SLK-1650 cases with failed PSUs in the past two years... I built five systems using that case during that time period. The Raidmax case I built 3 years ago for another friend is still going strong, as is another Raidmax from 5 years back.
Oh yeah, the 10+ PSUs I've had fail over the last three or four years have not once managed to take out any other component. None of those were Rosewill, but there's just too many anecdotal "the PSU destroyed my system" stories floating around when I have experienced that sort of problem exactly once during my 20+ years of using computers. (That was back in the days of the Celeron 300A; I've be used an old AT power supply with an extremely cheap motherboard that was supposed to be Baby AT compatible.)
Operandi - Saturday, October 28, 2006 - link
The thread contains information regarding the manufactures of Rosewill PSUs. If you really want know what your dealing with that’s probably the most important information there is.We agree that the InWin is better, but your “slightly better” assumption is based on what?, the slightly higher price? InWin has always had a reputation for making well built cases with decent included PSUs. They used to outsource FSP for all of their PSUs; very good units making them probably the best value out there for case/PSU combos. Recently InWin started manufacturing their own units, they have been by tested by http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/other/display/inw...">X-bit and found to comparable to the FSP units. I’ve opened a few up and checked them out and found the design and components to be decent (in my non-expert opinion) so it looks like the value is still there.
Rosewill's PSUs on the other hand come from manufactures known for producing some of the lowest quality cheapest units around. Rosewill might not have bad reputation yet but the units that are built by the same manufactures do.
Isn’t $15-20 more worth the piece of mind of reliable PSU and better built case?