NWill Posted August 19, 2016 Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 I'm looking for.. 16gb RAM Windows 7, 8, or 10 SSD for quick startup Don't care about HD. Whatever is cheap at Microcenter That's about it. It will be a garage PC to run my CNC. I just need to run the software and browse the internet. Nothing else Can I buy a $200 refurb and upgrade? Start from scratch? ...? Thanks! I built my current one so that's not an issue, just not good with all the specs and latest hardware Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffro Posted August 19, 2016 Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 Buy prebuilt system with a good case(Something that has extra bays and PCI slots) and decent specs at microcenter. Wipe the OS that came with it then reload it yourself. Manufacturers get discounts on parts that is unbeatable if you try to piece one together yourself. You should be able to use the key on your case when reinstalling windows. Windows alone is like $100. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWill Posted August 19, 2016 Author Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 Do I need a certain speed processor or whatever to upgrade them RAM on those refurbs? I haven't build one in 5 years and I just had the guys at MC tell me what to do when I did ...little out of date on this stuff Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Not Brian Posted August 19, 2016 Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 Building is definitely more fun. It's not terribly difficult, either. Just reference the pinouts in the mobo's manual. However, sounds like any craigslist special will work for what you need. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeffro Posted August 19, 2016 Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 Do I need a certain speed processor or whatever to upgrade them RAM on those refurbs? I haven't build one in 5 years and I just had the guys at MC tell me what to do when I did ...little out of date on this stuff Certain processors/motherboards can only handle so much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robochan Posted August 19, 2016 Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 Built this for basically nothing. http://imgur.com/a/kgtah Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EssFo Posted August 19, 2016 Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 Unless you WANT to build one you can get good deals on refurbed PC's for dirt cheap. I watch Woot all the time. I've bought a few laptops off there and threw some RAM in them after the fact. The only time building is better is around custom/gaming PC's. Sounds like you just want a basic PC though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWill Posted August 19, 2016 Author Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 I'll browse CL for some outdated gaming PC that's 10x more than I need. Otherwise I'll check out the refurbs at Microcenter and ask what I can cram into one. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unfunnyryan Posted August 19, 2016 Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 Get a HP Z800 off ebay. Dual quad cores or single hex core should be nice. Also FB-DIMM memory is dirt cheap on ebay as well. Will make a hell of a cad machine for the money. Just toss in a small/cheap SSD and you'll love it. http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2050601.m570.l1313.TR12.TRC2.A0.H0.Xhp+z800.TRS0&_nkw=hp+z800&_sacat=0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWill Posted August 19, 2016 Author Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 So the license on the case still works? Like to switch over to a SSD for the OS? That's what I'd want for quick boot up times right? Since it's a garage PC I don't want it powered on all the time. But I don't want to wait for it to power on either.... I can deal with it but if it's an easy fix then why not Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unfunnyryan Posted August 19, 2016 Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 So the license on the case still works? Like to switch over to a SSD for the OS? That's what I'd want for quick boot up times right? Since it's a garage PC I don't want it powered on all the time. But I don't want to wait for it to power on either.... I can deal with it but if it's an easy fix then why not thats going to vary by seller "--Operating system is not included. Please note that you must install your own copy of Windows." Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Not Brian Posted August 19, 2016 Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 Anything non-SSD is stone age. Make that a priority. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWill Posted August 19, 2016 Author Report Share Posted August 19, 2016 thats going to vary by seller "--Operating system is not included. Please note that you must install your own copy of Windows." That's fine too. Windows 7 goes for like $40 anymore. Not even worth trying to download. Anything non-SSD is stone age. Make that a priority. That's what I thought. Cool Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unfunnyryan Posted August 20, 2016 Report Share Posted August 20, 2016 Somehow I mixed up CNC with CAD. While the Z800 I linked would be awesome for a budget CAD machine, it's probably crazy overkill for CNC work. That said, buy one anyways Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NWill Posted August 20, 2016 Author Report Share Posted August 20, 2016 The software I'm using is CAD/CAM/CNC in one. I'll be using the CAD mainly on my office PC but the garage PC still needs to run everything. Basically, it's not a $20 PC running XP and Mach3. The company I'm using recommend 8gb. That's why I said 16gb Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unfunnyryan Posted August 20, 2016 Report Share Posted August 20, 2016 The software I'm using is CAD/CAM/CNC in one. I'll be using the CAD mainly on my office PC but the garage PC still needs to run everything. Basically, it's not a $20 PC running XP and Mach3. The company I'm using recommend 8gb. That's why I said 16gb 8 cores/16 threads and 24gb ram for $340 shipped. Oh, and the GPU is intended for CAD work too as a bonus. http://www.ebay.com/itm/hp-Z800-2x-Xeon-E5520-2-27GHz-24GB-300GB-HDD-Quadro-FX1800-Win-7-Pro-/272344597645?_trksid=p2141725.m3641.l6368 edit: or this http://www.ebay.com/itm/HP-Workstation-Z600-2x-QC-Xeon-E5520-2-27GHz-16GB-RAM-500GB-HDD-ATI-FireMV-2250/351796687884?_trksid=p2047675.c100005.m1851&_trkparms=aid%3D222007%26algo%3DSIC.MBE%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D37579%26meid%3Dbab63261b222462b91b0f89560564340%26pid%3D100005%26rk%3D4%26rkt%3D6%26sd%3D272344597645 tons of great deals on ebay, used workstations are a bargain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dtbeedy Posted August 20, 2016 Report Share Posted August 20, 2016 https://www.kinguin.net/category/19429/windows-10-professional-oem-key/ $30 Windows 10 keys Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grudes Posted August 21, 2016 Report Share Posted August 21, 2016 IMO a pre-built is sometimes cheaper but building is defintley more fun. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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