[Mythrandyr]

Hello,

 

   I am planning to build one or two PC's with some kids as a demonstration and for my kids to use for games.  Preferably I would like small form factor (if possible) PC's to use for Minecraft playing and programming as well as simple internet games and research.  Do you have any suggestions?

 

Thank you!

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Gday Mythrandyr.

​Sound like a great project.   Do you have a brand preference?   AMD is  cheapest but Intel has a much better upgrade Path.  

You may find a SFF build a bit hard for kids, squeezing parts into such small enclosers. > http://www.buildcomputers.net/computer-case-sizes.html 

Please give us a budget, per PC and the country you will purchase parts from.

 

Will you need monitors?   What size are you thinking of?

[iammykyl]

Gday Mythrandyr.

​Sound like a great project.   Do you have a brand preference?   AMD is  cheapest but Intel has a much better upgrade Path.  

You may find a SFF build a bit hard for kids, squeezing parts into such small enclosers. > http://www.buildcomputers.net/computer-case-sizes.html 

Please give us a budget, per PC and the country you will purchase parts from.

 

Will you need monitors?   What size are you thinking of?

[Mythrandyr]

Gday Mythrandyr.

​Sound like a great project.   Do you have a brand preference?   AMD is  cheapest but Intel has a much better upgrade Path.  

You may find a SFF build a bit hard for kids, squeezing parts into such small enclosers. > http://www.buildcomputers.net/computer-case-sizes.html 

Please give us a budget, per PC and the country you will purchase parts from.

 

Will you need monitors?   What size are you thinking of?

 

 

Thanks for your assistance, iammykyl.  Mini-tower's might be ok, but I really don't need anything fancy or bulky.  As far as brands, I have always gone with Intel products in the past, but I am not up-to-date on the technology now.  That's why I'm asking for advice .

 

I am buying parts in the U.S, and will probably order online.  I'm looking to stay under 1k, but preferably between $500-800 each.  I do not currently have any OS licenses so will have to purchase that as well.

As for monitors, I don't require anything large there and will probably look harder at those after I have taken your suggestions and planned the build.

 

I am planning to run a minecraft server using a hosting service to use as a teaching tool for this group, so primarily my kids will use it (them) for minecraft and minecraft related programming as well as school research.

[iammykyl]

Thanks for the info Mythrandyr.

CPU is a fast Duel Core with Hyper threading, all cores run at max speed all the time.

MB should service for 5+ years as is very parts upgradable. > http://www.asrock.co...Gaming K4Hyper/

RAM,   16GB, looking again, future, costs $20 more the 8GB.

PSU, Semi modular, really needed for the case.   

Case, > http://www.nmediapc....Guide_2800B.pdf

Compare all the I3 results on this page , They do very well, even against the i7s > http://minecraft.gam...mance/Archive_5

I3- 3220 @ 3.3 GHz Sapphire HD 7870 @ 1100/1400 8gb ddr3 1600mh   1920 x 1080   1.4.6 250-300   ~200                  

 

 

About the best I can do for an Intel build.   Looking at an AMD build, may not be possible due to using a small case and heat issues.

[PCPartPicker part list](http://pcpartpicker.com/p/nGYPbv) / [Price breakdown by merchant](http://pcpartpicker.com/p/nGYPbv/by_merchant/)

 

Type|Item|Price

:----|:----|:----

**CPU** | [Intel Core i3-6300 3.8GHz Dual-Core Processor](http://pcpartpicker....u-bx80662i36300) | $134.99 @ NCIX US 

**Motherboard** | [ASRock B150 GAMING K4/HYPER ATX LGA1151 Motherboard](http://pcpartpicker....50gamingk4hyper) | $113.98 @ Newegg 

**Memory** | [G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory](http://pcpartpicker....f42400c15d16gvr) | $66.89 @ OutletPC 

**Storage** | [Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive](http://pcpartpicker....ive-st1000dm003) | $45.89 @ OutletPC 

**Video Card** | [EVGA GeForce GTX 750 Ti 2GB FTW ACX Video Card](http://pcpartpicker....ard-02gp43757kr) | $119.99 @ Newegg 

**Power Supply** | [SeaSonic G 550W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply](http://pcpartpicker....supply-ssr550rm) | $73.99 @ SuperBiiz 

**Optical Drive** | [Samsung SN-208FB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer](http://pcpartpicker....ive-sn208fbbebe) | $19.99 @ Directron 

**Operating System** | [Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit)](http://pcpartpicker....oft-os-kw900140) | $85.49 @ OutletPC 

**Other**| HTPC| $89.99 

 | *Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts* |

 | Total (before mail-in rebates) | $771.20

 | Mail-in rebates | -$20.00

 | **Total** | **$751.20**

 | Generated by [PCPartPicker](http://pcpartpicker.com) 2016-04-17 21:46 EDT-0400 |

 

 

> http://pcpartpicker.com/p/JnBgYJ

[Mythrandyr]

Best Answer

This is exactly what I was looking for.  Thanks so much for your help!

[iammykyl]

You are very welcome  

An AMD build does work out a little cheaper, > http://pcpartpicker.com/p/yyfrJx

The performance would be similar to the Intel build but being rather old tech, not very upgradable.   The MB does not have a internal USB 3.0 header for connection to the case front port, so you would need a passthrough adaptor for a connection.

I was unable to find a SFF/Macro case that I felt confident would cope with the extra heat from the AMD CPU.   

​Please consider using the Enthroo case for the Intel build, it would be better for future upgrades and also more suitable for Demo purposes that children would grasp.

 

Not included, keyboard/mouse.   Mouse may need to be small, Laptop style and possibly a simple basic keyboard.

 

Some links you may find useful.

> http://minecraft.gam...a.com/Tutorials

 

 

If we can be of further help or you need clarification/alterations on the a build, please let us know.