building a new computer

[Rozesky2]

I have been asked to build a computer for a senior citizen friend
He would like an Asus MB
with probably an i7 processor
He doesn't do gaming but he enjoys tweeking around with his computer after it is built
He also runs linux on his computer and is thinking of using GNU version

I need help in picking out a solid computer components for this build.
what would be the best MB doesn't have to be top of the line but not a cheap one.
best processor
tower
ps
graphic card ---- he just needs a depends one for computer he doesn't game.
which gnu distro to download? He has use fedora for several years but wants a change.

I think I might purchase the components are Newegg or Tigerdirect.

I have only built one computer before but I feel I am up to it....with input from the great people here.

thanks in advance for anyones help

 

[SloppyMcFloppy]

What is his budget? Is it Euro dollar or U.S dollar? Does he prefer PcPartPicker.com?

 

[Exterminator]

You can get a good i5 Skylake Quad Core for about $250 USD such as this
Intel Core i5-6600K 6M Skylake Quad-Core 3.5 GHz LGA 1151 95W BX80662I56600K Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 530
I don't know how much tweaking experience he has but this CPU can be overclocked
Since he is not gaming the built in graphics would probably be enough so you could eliminate the need for a video card and put that money towards a better Heat sink/fan as well as a better MOBO.
ASUS makes a very good MOBO but with ASUS and Intel you are paying more $ I would consider a Gigabyte MOBO .You want it to be an 1151 socket with the Skylake CPU and want DDR4 memory
GIGABYTE GA-B150M-D3H-GSM LGA 1151 Intel B150 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard
Definitely look at an SSD.A Samsung is probably the best choice,this one for around $170
SAMSUNG 850 EVO 2.5" 500GB SATA III 3-D Vertical Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) MZ-75E500B/AM
8GB of memory would be adequate $55 G.SKILL Ripjaws V Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 2133 (PC4 17000) Intel Z170 Platform / Intel X99 Platform Desktop Memory Model F4-2133C15D-8GVR
However you could go 16GB $110 G.SKILL Ripjaws V Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 2133 (PC4 17000) Intel Z170 Platform / Intel X99 Platform Desktop Memory Model F4-2133C15Q-16GVR
Power supply 750W - 850W Corsair,EVGA or Thermaltake
CPU Heatsink/fan.There are many but you can find a good one(better then those included with a CPU)in the $40-$80 price range
A case is up to you.I like a roomy well ventilated one with plenty of fans but everyone is different.My preference is Therrmaltake
CD/DVD Burner/RW/Blue ray depending on what he wants most brands are the same and the price range varies by which one you get

 

[Vasudev]

@exterminator20 : I'd avoid corsair PSU and go with either seasonic or evga. Isn't it better to go with Devil's Canyon i7 4790k and save some $ but it has no further upgrade paths. Skylake's good but ddr4 is expensive at the moment considering it has higher clks with increased latency.

 

[Rozesky2]

What is his budget? Is it Euro dollar or U.S dollar? Does he prefer PcPartPicker.com?

He didnt set his budget exactly but it is in US dollars. I expect it is between 1000-1500 dollars. But it is negotiable I am sure.

 

[Exterminator]

@exterminator20 : I'd avoid corsair PSU and go with either seasonic or evga. Isn't it better to go with Devil's Canyon i7 4790k and save some $ but it has no further upgrade paths. Skylake's good but ddr4 is expensive at the moment considering it has higher clks with increased latency.

I just upgraded my desktop with the same i5 Skylake since I am not gaming and 16GB DDR 4 memory
The i5 Skylake 6700K rocked in benchmarks and it is about $260 USD where the Devils canyon i7 4790K is around $340 USD
If you are set on an i7 then why not go with this one for $30 USD more than the i7 Devils Canyon
Intel Core i7-6700K 8M Skylake Quad-Core 4.0 GHz LGA 1151 95W BX80662I76700K Desktop Processor Intel® HD Graphics 530
Since your budget seems more than fair and you are building a new machine I personally would suggest going with the latest unlocked Skylake.
DDR4 memory is a little more money but not outrageous($55 USD for 8GB) and since he really does not need a video card you have freed up that money to put into other areas.When I upgrade or build a PC I never sacrifice getting the latest CPU to save a few dollars.
AS for the PSU,Case and CD/DVD drive just made some suggestions as there are many options and all are ruffly similarly priced.
Same thing with a Heat Sink/Fan as you just want something that will keep the CPU cool(better than the stock one).Once again these are ruffly all around the same price.
I am pretty sure you could come in under $1000 USD.Newegg has some good combo's also,they might have a CPU/MOBO combo with one of the Skylakes

 

[Vasudev]

I just upgraded my desktop with the same i5 Skylake since I am not gaming and 16GB DDR 4 memory
The i5 Skylake 6700K rocked in benchmarks and it is about $260 USD where the Devils canyon i7 4790K is around $340 USD
If you are set on an i7 then why not go with this one for $30 USD more than the i7 Devils Canyon
Intel Core i7-6700K 8M Skylake Quad-Core 4.0 GHz LGA 1151 95W BX80662I76700K Desktop Processor Intel® HD Graphics 530
Since your budget seems more than fair and you are building a new machine I personally would suggest going with the latest unlocked Skylake.
DDR4 memory is a little more money but not outrageous($55 USD for 8GB) and since he really does not need a video card you have freed up that money to put into other areas.When I upgrade or build a PC I never sacrifice getting the latest CPU to save a few dollars.
AS for the PSU,Case and CD/DVD drive just made some suggestions as there are many options and all are ruffly similarly priced.
Same thing with a Heat Sink/Fan as you just want something that will keep the CPU cool(better than the stock one).Once again these are ruffly all around the same price.
I am pretty sure you could come in under $1000 USD.Newegg has some good combo's also,they might have a CPU/MOBO combo with one of the Skylakes

Here in India, ddr4 pricing is terrible & also skylake components are costly too than D.Canyon.

 

[Rozesky2]

I read everyone advice and it was great to have it. I agress that for him it is better to go with
Devils Canyon and ddr3 ram. Also, for what he does I think the i5 process will be find. Here is what
I am going with so far. He does want a graphics card so I will get one of those. Still unsure of
the Power supply , should I go modular?

Asus sabertooth Z97
Intel core i504690k Devil's canyon
Quad core, intel graphics 4600
Cooler Master Hyer 212 evo- cpu coooler
coboc Model sc-sata 3 10" 90 degree silber cable
coboc Model sc-sata3 10" cable
G. Skill ripjaws 16 gigs rams
Arctic silver 5 high -density thermal compound
Western Digital Blue 1 TB 7200 rpm HD
Asas drw-24x dvd burner (he wants 2)
Evga geforce GTX 750 Ti 2gb 128 bit GDDR5 Pci express 3.0
video card
Cooler Master r4-s2s-124K-gp fans
Rosewill Gaming Comuter Case-Blackhawk-ATX mid tower

All from Newegg.

Let me know if something is not good. Also I need to find a good
card reader to install.

Thanks in advance

 

[Exterminator]

I still think you could eliminate the video card since you have the i5 with integrated Intel HD graphics.This wouldn't work for gaming but desktop work and videos should work just fine. You can always add a video card if you find you need one for heavier graphics.However tweaking around,browsing & videos will probably never make use of the video card with the built in graphics on newer CPU's.
He is not a gamer so this is really a cost you could into other hardware or just cut the cost of the build.
Here is a decent power supply Rosewill Photon-750, PHOTON Series 750W Full Modular Power Supply, 80 PLUS Gold Certified, Single +12V Rail, Intel 4th Gen CPU Ready, SLI & Crossfire Ready - Newegg.com

 

[Vasudev]

I read everyone advice and it was great to have it. I agress that for him it is better to go with
Devils Canyon and ddr3 ram. Also, for what he does I think the i5 process will be find. Here is what
I am going with so far. He does want a graphics card so I will get one of those. Still unsure of
the Power supply , should I go modular?

Asus sabertooth Z97
Intel core i504690k Devil's canyon
Quad core, intel graphics 4600
Cooler Master Hyer 212 evo- cpu coooler
coboc Model sc-sata 3 10" 90 degree silber cable
coboc Model sc-sata3 10" cable
G. Skill ripjaws 16 gigs rams
Arctic silver 5 high -density thermal compound
Western Digital Blue 1 TB 7200 rpm HD
Asas drw-24x dvd burner (he wants 2)
Evga geforce GTX 750 Ti 2gb 128 bit GDDR5 Pci express 3.0
video card
Cooler Master r4-s2s-124K-gp fans
Rosewill Gaming Comuter Case-Blackhawk-ATX mid tower

All from Newegg.

Let me know if something is not good. Also I need to find a good
card reader to install.

Thanks in advance

I read everyone advice and it was great to have it. I agress that for him it is better to go with
Devils Canyon and ddr3 ram. Also, for what he does I think the i5 process will be find. Here is what
I am going with so far. He does want a graphics card so I will get one of those. Still unsure of
the Power supply , should I go modular?

Asus sabertooth Z97
Intel core i504690k Devil's canyon
Quad core, intel graphics 4600
Cooler Master Hyper 212 evo- cpu coooler
coboc Model sc-sata 3 10" 90 degree silber cable
coboc Model sc-sata3 10" cable
G. Skill ripjaws 16 gigs rams
Arctic silver 5 high -density thermal compound
Western Digital Blue 1 TB 7200 rpm HD
Asas drw-24x dvd burner (he wants 2)
Evga geforce GTX 750 Ti 2gb 128 bit GDDR5 Pci express 3.0
video card
Cooler Master r4-s2s-124K-gp fans
Rosewill Gaming Comuter Case-Blackhawk-ATX mid tower

All from Newegg.

Let me know if something is not good. Also I need to find a good
card reader to install.

Thanks in advance

Since your friend don't need PC for gaming you could ditch NV GPU and consider investing money on i7 since it will serve your friend's needs.
Problem arises when if your friend find that intel gpu suck at casual gaming at medium to high presets. Why buy old NV 750 ti when 950/960 seems a better buy. Also, you could go for r9 3xx which is cheaper than NV but offers more performance per $.
IMO stick with modular PSU as it will serve you better in the long run and you can pull out unneeded cables for better cable management.
Seasonic, evga are good ones, still if you're confused about psu to choose here's the link FAQ: Recommended Power Supplies

 

[Rozesky2]

well I read all the replies to my new computer build
here is what I ended up ordering. I agreed with not ordering the video card.
I also went with the modular psu
here is what I ordered....I may have questions about putting it together if I get
stuck on something
Asus sabertooth Z97
Intel core i504690k Devil's canyon
Quad core, intel graphics 4600
Cooler Master Hyer 212 evo- cpu coooler
coboc Model sc-sata 3 10" 90 degree silber cable
coboc Model sc-sata3 10" cable
G. Skill ripjaws 16 gigs rams
Arctic silver 5 high -density thermal compound
Western Digital Blue 1 TB 7200 rpm HD
Asas drw-24x dvd burner
rozewill phonton -750 750 W modular
Cooler Master r4-s2s-124K-gp fans
Rosewill Gaming Comuter Case-Blackhawk-ATX mid tower
Tek Republic card reader


Also, He has been using Fedora for the OS, but he would like to try GNU or Debian maybe
any suggestions on what Linux to run. He doesnt think he want Ubuntu or Mint

 

[Vasudev]

I use Xubuntu 14.04.3, BTW there are lot of distros like Zorin etc and I'm sure your friend will likely stick with Latest version of Fedora since all apps are updated to latest version automatically which is not provided by Ubuntu's repos.