Ars Technica System Guide: Bargain Box, April 2014

The Bargain Box is the most basic box in the hierarchy of Ars System Guide rigs. It has no intent beyond a minimalist goal—creating a solid, affordable, basic computer. Think of it as the basic “office” box or “mom/dad/grandparent” box, if you will.

Unfortunately, this places it squarely against the cheap, pre-built boxes from the big OEMs. Dell, HP, Lenovo, and their ilk all benefit from vast economies of scale that the individual builder could never hope to emulate. By the time the big OEMs add up hardware discounts alone, building a cheap computer yourself is at best a so-so idea in terms of value. Add in the cost of the operating system, and this really goes out the window.

Factor in setup time and…well, those worrying about setup time, of course, probably aren’t those looking at building their own Bargain Box. Build-enthusiasts are likely ready to sacrifice a bit of value as well. They already know the cost and have done the math, which gets into the real reason to build one’s own Bargain Box…

Because you can.

This means the Bargain Box has different users in mind beyond that distant relative who could benefit from the end product. We’re aiming for those who have a specific, favorite motherboard, to those who have a specific preference for every single component they want inside, to those who simply prefer to build instead of buying their own computers… those are who the Bargain Box is really for.

Bargain Box Basics

As the lowest-end box in the Ars System Guide, the Bargain Box is aimed at providing the most basic box that is reasonable to use for mainstream tasks: Web browsing, spreadsheets, light photo editing and storage, and similar duties. For those tasks, the Budget Box is huge overkill even with the discrete video card removed. This is where the Bargain Box belongs.

There are some important distinctions in the Bargain Box beyond being able to pick and choose your own components: it should have enough storage to make it truly versatile for such a low-end box and enough processing power to make those tasks comfortable. Unlike a few years ago (remember the days of the Atom-powered nettop and netbook?), going low-end no longer has to mean lacking in performance, nor does it mean being deprived of features. One area we will compromise on is the selection of a conventional hard drive instead of a solid state drive (SSD), as the bulk storage and cost savings of a conventional hard drive is a necessity in the Bargain Box.

In standard Ars fashion, this guide includes peripherals such as a monitor, mouse, and keyboard. With such a wide array of components available to meet the Bargain Box’s low-end and modest performance requirements, the choices are quite numerous for many of the components.

The Bargain Box is targeted between $400 and $500, which seems to be the current sweet spot for similar systems from big OEMs once you add in the cost of a monitor. The operating system cost is not included in this, whereas an OEM box will generally throw in Windows at the same price point.

Without rehashing the cost argument too many times, adding in the OS cost typically blows the value part out of the water for the Bargain Box builder. For those concerned about value, though, there’s still one important use case for the Bargain Box: as a reference point for the basic specs any similar system should meet.

Operating Systems

The main weakness of building it yourself at this price point is the cost of the OS. OEMs typically include Windows on their systems, which means that $329 or $399 special includes Windows 7 or Windows 8. By contrast, the individual system builder has to account for the software cost as an additional expense.

Typical choices include:

• Windows 7: Really any flavor of Windows 7, typically Windows 7 Home Premium. It’s usually sold in versions that include Service Pack 1 (SP1) built-in, and 64-bit Windows today is what most end users are used to.
• Windows 8.1: The basic version of Windows 8.1 drew considerable flak with its user interface (UI) changes, but, underneath, it’s fundamentally the familiar OS that we’re all used to.
• Linux: The free alternative for many. For typical Bargain Box tasks, Linux actually works quite well, as do office suites such as LibreOffice, Web browsers such as Firefox and Chrome, and a ton of photo editing software, etc. A plethora of distributions are available to match individual tastes in operating systems—Ubuntu, Linux Mint, Fedora, Debian, etc. This also happens to be Linux’s greatest weakness. The sheer number of distributions can be overwhelming. Things also lack some of the ease of use baked into Windows (or OS X) when you dig deep enough, and it’s an issue that can be daunting to many would-be users.

Bargain Box

We do two flavors of Bargain Box, one powered by Intel and one powered by AMD, since both companies produce competitive offerings in this price range. A few bucks more here or there changes things, but that goes both ways and can quickly get beyond the goal of the Bargain Box.

We discuss alternatives in the individual component recommendations, which is of particular importance in the price-sensitive Bargain Box. This is a space where an alternative component might be cheaper one day only for a higher-end one to go on sale days later. But again, the Bargain Box is one system where additional features for a few extra bucks might really break the budget for many. We’ll try to exercise restraint.

Common components:

• G.Skill 2x4GB (8GB) DDR3-1600 1.5v CL9 = $64.99
• Western Digital Blue 1TB = $59.99
• Lite-On 24x DVD-RW = $17.99
• Fractal Design Core 1000 = $39.99
• Corsair CX430 = $44.99 (plus $20 MIR)
• Acer G206HQLbd 19.5″ (1600×900) = $89.99
• Logitech MK120 wired desktop = $19.99
• Speakers (no specific recommendation) = $15
• Sub-total: $352.93 ($332.93 after $20 MIR)

Powered by Intel:

• Intel Celeron G1820 retail = $49.99
• MSI B85M-P33 = $61.49 (plus $5 MIR)
• Total: $464.41 ($444.41 after $20 MIR)

Powered by AMD:

• AMD A4-4000 retail = $49.99
• MSI A78M-E35 = $58.79 (plus $5 MIR)
• Total: $461.71 ($441.71 after $20 MIR)

Both systems offer similar performance. With this level of performance, the stereotypes of the last few generations (Intel holding power consumption and per-thread performance advantages, AMD with faster graphics) mean a lot less than the zealots would like to believe.

Processor

• AMD version: AMD A4-4000
• Intel version: Intel Celeron G1820

Intel’s new Haswell-based Celeron chips now handle the low end, extending Ivy Bridge’s performance lead due to architectural improvements as well as a slight clock speed bump all around. AMD’s updated Richland APU’s retain the same Piledriver core as the previous Trinity APU, but with firmware tweaks for improved performance and power consumption.

The newest, shiniest chips at the very low end from both Intel and AMD—Bay Trail-D for Intel and Kabini for AMD—occupy a low-power/high-efficiency niche, which looks great for tablets. However, it’s not so great for performance compared to Richland and to Intel’s older Ivy Bridge Celeron G1610. After extrapolating a bit more from the limited benchmarks currently available and reflecting on what we know of Haswell’s improvements over Ivy Bridge and existing dual-core Bay Trail benchmarks, sticking with a Haswell-based Celeron is the sensible thing for the Bargain Box. AMD’s A4-4000 is close enough to be a viable competitor for most tasks, but if one is keeping score, Intel is probably the way to go.

Higher-end quad-core Bay Trail-D chips do not yet appear to be in retail channels for end users, and, unfortunately, speculating on performance is tough. Plus, we already know Haswell’s single-threaded performance is superior to Bay Trail.

A few bucks more for the faster AMD A4-6300 or Intel Celeron G1830 isn’t much of a stretch, but given the modest performance goal of the Bargain Box and the price/value we’re trying to keep, passing on CPU upgrades is probably the smart thing to do unless there’s a specific need for them. If CPU upgrades are deemed necessary, then more in-depth research into the actual applications being used and how much more CPU they can handle is probably a good idea before spending more money.

AMD’s A4-4000 processor is based off AMD’s code-named Richland APU, with a single code-named Piledriver tile, 3.0ghz base/3.2ghz turbo clock speed, 1MB L2 cache, and 65W TDP. Intel’s Celeron G1820 is based off Intel’s code-named Haswell architecture, with a 2.7ghz clock speed, 2MB L3 cache, and a 54W TDP. Both CPUs include a heatsink/fan as well as a three-year warranty in their retail boxed versions.

Motherboard

AMD:

Intel:

• AMD version: MSI A78M-E35
• Intel version: MSI B85M-P33

While basic boxes need only a basic motherboard, that no longer has to mean bare-bones. USB 3.0 is built in to almost every modern chipset today. Even current budget desktop motherboards have virtually everything a modern system would need built in.

The main concern in Bargain Box motherboards—beyond making sure USB 3.0 is integrated—is what kind of display outputs are onboard. Most boards pack some combination of VGA, DVI, and HDMI, but finding all three together is often an extra cost. DisplayPort (DP) is also uncommon on desktop motherboards, although it’s slowly becoming easier to find.

For AMD builders, avoiding AMD’s lowest-end A55 chipset (which lacks USB 3.0) is the main hangup. MSI’s A78M-E35 features AMD’s A78 chipset with socket FM2+/FM2 support, two DDR3 sockets, one PCI-e 3.0 x16 3.0 slot and one PCI-e 3.0 x1 slot, six SATA 6Gbps ports, 7.1 channel audio, gigabit Ethernet, 2x USB 3.0 ports and 4x USB 2.0 ports (plus headers for two more USB 3.0 and four more USB 2.0 ports), plus VGA, HDMI, and DVI outputs. A three-year warranty is standard.

For Intel builders, MSI’s B85M-P33 features Intel’s B85 chipset, two DDR3 sockets, one PCI-e 3.0 x16 3.0 slot and one PCI-e 3.0 x1 slot, two SATA 6Gbps ports and two 3Gbps ports, 7.1 channel audio, gigabit Ethernet, 2x USB 3.0 ports and 4x USB 2.0 ports (plus headers for four more USB 2.0 ports), plus VGA and DVI outputs. A three-year warranty is also standard.

With so many choices in basic boards that meet the Bargain Box’s needs and the fluctuating nature of component prices, some equivalent models to consider for AMD builders include the MSI A88XM-E35 and ASRock FM2A75M Pro4+. Equivalent boards for Intel builders include the Gigabyte GA-B85M-D2V and ASRock B85M-GL. Spending a few bucks more on higher-end boards, as noted, tends to get more display connectivity options, more memory sockets (4x DDR3), more SATA ports, and other, smaller frills such as more USB ports. Getting to motherboards with Wi-Fi built in tends to be a substantial premium as far as the Bargain Box is concerned. A separate Wi-Fi adapter is generally going to be more affordable.

Memory

• G.Skill 2x4GB (8GB) DDR3-1600 1.5v CL9

8GB is worth the small-but-significant splurge over 4GB, even in the Bargain Box. Open more than a handful of applications and the extra 4GB shows its benefits almost immediately, particularly on a system where the only alternative to more system memory is to hit the orders of magnitude slower hard disk for scratch space.

Memory prices a year or 18 months ago were considerably friendlier, but as it is, the Bargain Box spends the few bucks extra to go from 4GB to 8GB. Two 4GB memory modules ensure both memory channels for the CPU are populated for optimal performance, JEDEC-spec 1.5v ensures optimal compatibility, and DDR3-1600 memory at a reasonable CL9 latency is a sweet spot of value and performance.

Sound, communications

• Network card: none (on-board)
• Sound card: none (on-board)

Onboard sound and gigabit Ethernet more than suffice for Bargain Box users.

Bargain Boxes that need Wi-Fi have a plethora of wireless adapters to choose from, such as the TP-LINK TL-WN822N (802.11n, USB, 2.4ghz), Asus PCE-N15 (802.11n, PCI-e, 2.4ghz), TP-LINK TL-WDN4800 (802.11n, PCI-e, 2.4/5ghz), and Buffalo WI-U2-866D (802.11ac, USB, 2.4/5ghz). Experience in the Orbiting HQ is a little thin on third-party wireless adapters, but for reviews we find SmallNetBuilder to be excellent.

Storage

• Western Digital Blue 1TB
• Lite-On 24x DVD-RW (iHAS124-04)

Skipping the DVD-RW entirely is a viable option. Find another computer to build a bootable version of the operating system of choice from DVD/ISO to USB flash drive and save the money… although given that the extra cost of Windows 8.1’s downloadable version is about the cost of a DVD-RW, those who have no access to another computer (or who are attached to having an optical drive) may find the final cost difference a wash.

That said, optical drives today are commodities. 24x DVD-RW‘s with a SATA interface are all pretty similar, and BD-ROM/DVD-RW combo drives, while somewhat more expensive, also reflect their status as commodity items.

With hard disks smaller than 1TB being about the same price as their larger brethren, a 1TB drive is the logical choice for the Bargain Box. The amount of storage is enormous compared to the amount of storage possible in a similarly priced solid state drive. More importantly, this is vital for the Bargain Box to make it usable as a repository for the typical user’s collection of media and pictures without having to worry about running out of space. All the media on a typical tablet or phone fits comfortably on the Bargain Box and is easy to access without having to wait for it to download from the cloud.

1TB per platter, 7200rpm, 64MB cache, and a two-year warranty seems to be standard for most desktop hard disks today.

Case and power supply

• Fractal Design Core 1000
• Corsair CX430

The Fractal Design Core 1000 adds a front USB 3.0 port compared to the more basic Antec VSK-3000. It’s not necessarily critical, but nice to have. We could go even cheaper on the case, but quality and design start to take serious compromises with overly restrictive fan grilles, less than solid drive cages, questionable construction leading to additional noise and vibration, and more.

Fractal Design’s Core 1000 is an excellent micro-ATX tower case for the money, with two 5.25″ bays, a very flexible drive cage (up to 3×2.5″ or 2×3.5″) with vibration damping, excellent airflow and a filtered intake, one included 120mm fan, one front USB 3.0 port, one front USB 2.0 port, and front panel audio jacks.

Power supplies are fairly straightforward. The Bargain Box’s extremely modest power needs mean a picoPSU could probably power it, but a standard ATX power supply is generally easier and cheaper. Seasonic’s SS-300ET, SS-350ET, and Antec’s Earthwatts Green EA-380D are worth a look if the Corsair isn’t on sale. 300W is significant overkill for the Bargain Box, but finding quality, high-efficiency power supplies that are smaller (aside from the picoPSU) is an almost impossible task for Bargain Box builders.

Corsair’s CX430 is 80 PLUS Bronze certified, packing a single +12V rail with 32 amp maximum output, a single PCI-e 6+2 pin connector, four SATA power connectors, three 4-pin molex connectors, a low-noise 120mm fan, and a three-year warranty.

Monitor

• Acer G206HQLbd 19.5″ (1600×900)

A plethora of affordable LCD monitors are out there, and to be fair, most monitors in this price range are pretty similar in performance. A few dollars extra ensures we get a decent resolution (1600×900 at a minimum) panel for the Bargain Box as opposed to the absolute cheapest screens out there. Beyond that, it’s hard to get much more picky. Hanns-G has a decent 20″ unit with similar resolution and specs, as do Viewsonic, LG, and Asus. Buy whatever works and keep in mind that frequent price fluctuations mean that cross-shopping other models is usually a good idea.

For those with a little more to spend or a need for more screen real estate, there are plenty of affordable 1920×1080 monitors. The 23.6″ Acer G236HLBbd and Viewsonic VA2246M-LED (22″) are both quite decent, and the Viewsonic VA2249S is one of the most affordable monitors around with a higher quality IPS panel.

The Acer G206HQLbd we selected is a 19.5″ panel with 1600×900 resolution, 5ms response time, VGA and DVI inputs, 1000:1 static contrast ratio, 250cm/m^2 maximum brightness, and a three-year warranty.

Mouse, keyboard, and speakers

• Logitech MK120 (keyboard and mouse)
• Speakers: no specific recommendation

The Logitech MK120 is a decent wired keyboard and mouse combination for most users. Microsoft’s Wired Desktop 600 is another popular one. Going wireless, Microsoft’s Desktop 800 and Logitech’s MK520 are both solid. With value being paramount, we stick with the very conventional wired Logitech MK120 as the default recommendation for the Bargain Box.

We emphasize that personal preference and comfort are huge factors in choosing a mouse and keyboard. Something that is comfortable to use is often worth a few bucks more. Looking around the Orbiting HQ, we see a huge spread of keyboards from bog-standard 104-key wired USB units to battered Microsoft ergonomic keyboards to the Apple-standard wired and wireless units to fancy ones with mechanical keyswitches. There are even some with fancy lights. Costly and fancy is not a prerequisite, but individual user comfort definitely is.

We have no specific recommendations for speakers in the Bargain Box’s price range. Something to output something resembling sound and music is about as good as it gets here. Even at twice the price, most speakers in this category are best described as mediocre. For the money, a headset or headphones may be more cost-effective.

More than a Bargain Box

While the Bargain Box itself is aimed at a lowest-reasonable-cost price point for general computing, the guts within the Bargain Box have gotten fast enough to handle a lot of other tasks with minor variations.

We can only cover a few possibilities here. As we noted repeatedly, these often cost a little more, quickly eroding the Bargain Box’s value as a basic affordable computer. But the options below show the Bargain Box’s versatility as a base by going far beyond the scope of the original rig with only moderate changes.

Going cheaper

Less memory, hard disk

The Bargain Box takes some small splurges in this update. A 1TB hard disk and a case with a front USB 3.0 port both run another couple of bucks, and stepping down to a smaller hard disk and a more basic case as discussed for each item trims another $5 or so off per item. Really scrimping on the case could be done too. If the DVD-RW can be skipped, that’s another $15 or $20, easily the biggest chunk to be saved.

Another area of potential savings could be taking the performance hit with a cheaper, slower CPU/motherboard combo in the form of an AMD Kabini or Intel Bay Trail-D part. Pricing and availability on these is still skimpy, but reports expect $60 price points for the dual-core Bay Trail parts. It’s a substantial performance hit to take, but it remains a very viable option for Bargain Boxes that will only see light use.

Rough math suggests that saves $30 or so economizing on case and storage, potentially another $40 or so going with a cheaper CPU/motherboard combo—but before getting to that point, don’t forget to check what deals HP/Dell/Lenovo/etc. have to see if all that trouble is worth it. If saving every last dollar is the utmost priority, buying a pre-built in this price range is almost always the smarter thing to do.

HTPC

Suitable case, skip monitor, go to wireless keyboard/mouse + add remote

The Bargain Box has ample processing power for a modern home theater PC. Slim things down with a more suitable HTPC-friendly case such as the Silverstone ML05 (mini-ITX motherboard required) or ML03B/ML04B (micro ATX), make sure the motherboard used has HDMI out, and maybe shift to a smaller 2.5″ hard disk to reduce heat output and improve cooling. AMD builders sticking with micro ATX have it easy, as the Bargain Box’s AMD motherboard of choice already has an HDMI out. All of these tweaks cost a few bucks more depending on the exact components chosen, but that’s only if looks matter to the end user…