[SOLVED] Workstation Build

larsv8

Distinguished
My dad's birthday is up, and I want to replace his workstation.

He has a 12 year old Dell on its last leg. He is retired doesn't do much but browse, email, youtube, and turbotax.

Looking for something bang for my buck, compact, must have SSD (512 probably enough)
 
Solution
A slightly cheaper build.


PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 3 2200G 3.5 GHz Quad-Core Processor ($84.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B450M-HDV R4.0 Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($59.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Team T-FORCE VULCAN Z 8 GB (2 x 4 GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($38.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Team GX2 512 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Silverstone ML03B HTPC Case ($85.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Silverstone 400 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $364.93
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-01-13 15:44 EST-0500
PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3400G 3.7 GHz Quad-Core Processor ($144.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B450M PRO4 Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($78.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: Team T-FORCE T1 8 GB (2 x 4 GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial BX500 480 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($54.93 @ Amazon)
Case: Fractal Design Focus G ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: EVGA BR 450 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($39.99 @ Walmart)
Total: $403.87
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-01-13 01:51 EST-0500
 

larsv8

Distinguished
PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5 3400G 3.7 GHz Quad-Core Processor ($144.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B450M PRO4 Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($78.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: Team T-FORCE T1 8 GB (2 x 4 GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial BX500 480 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($54.93 @ Amazon)
Case: Fractal Design Focus G ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: EVGA BR 450 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($39.99 @ Walmart)
Total: $403.87
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-01-13 01:51 EST-0500

First off, thank you!

I don't think he would like the case, he would probably prefer something console style and black.

Do you think there would be a notable difference between 8 and 16gb of ram?
 
A slightly cheaper build.


PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 3 2200G 3.5 GHz Quad-Core Processor ($84.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock B450M-HDV R4.0 Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($59.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Team T-FORCE VULCAN Z 8 GB (2 x 4 GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($38.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Team GX2 512 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Silverstone ML03B HTPC Case ($85.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Silverstone 400 W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $364.93
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-01-13 15:44 EST-0500
 
Solution
If you have a Microcenter near you then you can probably get some of the necessary hardware a bit cheaper. Watch out for the power supplies though. You probably don't want anything they sell in house. Usually they have either extremely cheap crappy (But seemingly good looking, so in this case, do not judge the book by it's cover) power supplies OR good ones, that are not well priced. But if you can find a decent quality 400-450w unit for a decent price then go for it. Otherwise, maybe look to buy that online.

The Microcenter house brand power supplies, which are the "Powerspec" brand, should probably be avoided. I've seen nothing but problems with them for the most part.

Recommended models by brand can be found here:


Aside from that, even if you don't go with the exact same parts, these two builds should give you a good idea of what to look at. The Ryzen "G" model CPUs are the ones with integrated graphics and they are about twenty times more capable than any integrated graphics that were available at the time that 12 year old Dell was new. These days, you can even get a fairly decent 1080p gaming experience (IF you were so inclined) on one of them and don't mind turning down settings, and are MORE than capable enough for any video watching even at 4k resolutions.

The rest, will be more than enough for what he uses his system for based on your information. Probably even overkill but should last him another 12 years in terms of capability. Whether the actual hardware lasts that long will depend on what you end up going with and probably also how decent the quality of the PSU is so that the hardware doesn't face high levels of ripple or out of spec voltage regulation over the course of it's lifespan.