An office PC/budget gaming PC build for a friend
Posted: Sat Sep 10, 2022 12:02 pm
My good friend and former client, who needs three or more new office PCs, and asked me for a recommendation from Dell. I told him that I could not, in all honesty, recommend a Dell Optiplex anymore, since Dell has decided to go down the proprietary power supply route.
I started pricing boutique maker PCs, with standard parts, and then decided to do some research on a DIY build. He's tech savvy and I can easily show him how to build a PC, and I'd help him out anyway.
I wanted a 12th gen Core i5-12400, for futureproofing, and no nonsense with old BIOS's, or Win11 compatibility issues. This is the same CPU that comes in the current Core i5 Dell Optiplex 5000.
I picked the mobo PcPer.com recommended for their budget gaming PC. Their picks have always been reliable. Onboard video is good enough for an office, and onboard supports up to 3 monitors on this mobo with a VGA, HDMI and two DisplayPorts.
Price came out to $640 for a system with the same CPU, but double the memory and storage than the Dell (which costs $950), and of course, everything is stock and easily replaceable, and better quality. Moreover, if he has some Windows 7 keys on laying around, as he likely does, he can save the $140 for Windows 10 Pro (yes, MS still allows you to use an old Win7 OEM key to activate a Win 10 or 11 install, as long as that key has not been used for an upgrade previously).
Not top of the line parts - target was a budget, but good quality PC.
I got to thinking that you guys might appreciate this recommendation. I upgraded this list to make it more of a gaming PC (cheaper non-onboard "F" version of the CPU, bigger SSD, better cooler, bigger PSU).
If you want to make it an office PC, with onboard video, then change the CPU to the 12400 non-F, downgrade the 1TB Crucial P2 M.2 SSD to a 500Gb, and use the stock cooler. I also added an exhaust fan because the case doesn't come with it, but any spare 120mm or 140mm fan will do the job.
I picked an inexpensive but quality case - I like Fractal Design cases. No window, and it does have a couple of external drive bays if you need a DVD.
The 650w PSU will be fine for an RTX 3060 or 3070. I didn't price a video card because I figure most people will put their old card in there for now if you're gaming. But if you need a budget card, the Zotac Twin Edge RTX 3060 is a good card for the money for $420: https://www.amazon.com/ZOTAC-GeForce-Gr ... B08W8DGK3X
Nuby has the white version of this card.
If you have the money to spare, the Western Digital Black SN750 is a faster SSD for more money.
Parts list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/ztnpFg
I started pricing boutique maker PCs, with standard parts, and then decided to do some research on a DIY build. He's tech savvy and I can easily show him how to build a PC, and I'd help him out anyway.
I wanted a 12th gen Core i5-12400, for futureproofing, and no nonsense with old BIOS's, or Win11 compatibility issues. This is the same CPU that comes in the current Core i5 Dell Optiplex 5000.
I picked the mobo PcPer.com recommended for their budget gaming PC. Their picks have always been reliable. Onboard video is good enough for an office, and onboard supports up to 3 monitors on this mobo with a VGA, HDMI and two DisplayPorts.
Price came out to $640 for a system with the same CPU, but double the memory and storage than the Dell (which costs $950), and of course, everything is stock and easily replaceable, and better quality. Moreover, if he has some Windows 7 keys on laying around, as he likely does, he can save the $140 for Windows 10 Pro (yes, MS still allows you to use an old Win7 OEM key to activate a Win 10 or 11 install, as long as that key has not been used for an upgrade previously).
Not top of the line parts - target was a budget, but good quality PC.
I got to thinking that you guys might appreciate this recommendation. I upgraded this list to make it more of a gaming PC (cheaper non-onboard "F" version of the CPU, bigger SSD, better cooler, bigger PSU).
If you want to make it an office PC, with onboard video, then change the CPU to the 12400 non-F, downgrade the 1TB Crucial P2 M.2 SSD to a 500Gb, and use the stock cooler. I also added an exhaust fan because the case doesn't come with it, but any spare 120mm or 140mm fan will do the job.
I picked an inexpensive but quality case - I like Fractal Design cases. No window, and it does have a couple of external drive bays if you need a DVD.
The 650w PSU will be fine for an RTX 3060 or 3070. I didn't price a video card because I figure most people will put their old card in there for now if you're gaming. But if you need a budget card, the Zotac Twin Edge RTX 3060 is a good card for the money for $420: https://www.amazon.com/ZOTAC-GeForce-Gr ... B08W8DGK3X
Nuby has the white version of this card.
If you have the money to spare, the Western Digital Black SN750 is a faster SSD for more money.
Parts list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/ztnpFg