Build me a 500$ Pc

[creepa]

Use from most important to least- School, youtube, games


Monitor resolution-1280x768


Crossfire-no

Cost can be between 450-530 before rebates and shipping

(just make sure its am3 and has ddr3 ram)

sorry for formatting

 

[JDFan]

DO you have any parts already that can be reused ( ie. windows OS, mouse, keyboard,HDD, etc.) as getting an entire system for $450 - $530 that includes $100 for the OS is gonna be a challenge !!

 

[cpp214]

Okay, with shipping included (to my zip code, not sure what it would be to yours) here is a build that comes in at $506.36-$10 in one rebate=$496.36--with Windows 7 64 bit OS included:

CPU--Athlon X II 240 $58.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103688

RAM--A-DATA 1333mhz DDR3
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820211409

OS=$104.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116754

Antec NEO ECO 400 watt PSU=$39.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371029

Gigabyte 4550=$44.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125250

ASRock DDR3/AM3 Mobo=$59.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157176

WD 250GB Hard drive=$44.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136075

Rosewill case=$17.99+$9.99 shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147150

Lite On CD/DVD burner=$23.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106289

Okay, this build is not exactly a thing of beauty, but it gives you:

1) AM3 Mobo
2) AM3 CPU
3) DDR3 RAM
4) You can build on the RAM and the Mobo. If you want to later, just drop in a better CPU and upgrade the GPU, PSU and perhaps the case.

Weaknesses:

1) The hard drive is just barely big enough and it's kinda slow, but it shouldn't effect your overall performance too much.
2) The case is not great, but it's cheap and hopefully a decent starter
3) The CPU is not a beast, but it's a dual core AM3 with good clock speed out of the box, and maybe you can do a MILD OC on the stock cooler, and get it up to 3.0 ghz or a little higher.
Although with no fans included in this case, OC'ing is probably not a good idea. That CPU should be fine on it's stock settings. You may want to look into ordering a couple case fans in the near future. They're pretty cheap, and they're worth their weight in gold since they help keep your system cool, and cool systems run better and live longer This case can hold 2 120mm fans and a 80mm fan BTW.
4) The graphics card is not a beast either, but it should play games at low/medium settings at your resolution. Maybe at medium settings...

Hope this is helpful, and maybe some more experienced members will offer some input on this build or improve on it with another. This is about as good as you will come up with performance-wise at this price point.

*I love doing hypothetical builds on Newegg *
* I wish I could do that for a living...*

If you don't need an OS, or you can re-use other parts, I would use those extra funds to upgrade the graphics card and CPU first and foremost, next in line would be upgrading the case, and lastly, depending on the card you get, you may need to upgrade the power supply. For $12 more, you could also get a nice 500GB Samsung Spinpoint F3 hard drive.

Or, better yet, if you don't need an OS, here is a build that comes in at $526.34--$35 in rebates= ~ $491
And it is DRAMATICALLY better than the one listed above:

RAM--A-DATA 1333mhz DDR3
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820211409

CPU: Athlon II X3 425=$76
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103726

Case: Antec Two Hundred=$39.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129070

Hard drive: Seagate Barracuda 500GB/7200RPM (Samsung F3 out of stock )
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148395

ASRock Mobo: 59.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157176

GPU: Sapphire 4850=$99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102824

OR

GPU: XFX 5670=$99+6.98 shipping
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150466 This would put your total at $529 before rebates

PSU/Disk Drive: OCZ Fatal1ty 550 watt modular PSU + Lite On burner = $78.98
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.323454

MUCH better CPU (for everything but gaming, it's pretty even with the 240 in games), PSU, case, hard drive and graphics card with this build.
That's the power of an extra $100 when you're talking about a budget build
Personally, I would go with the 5670 GPU simply because it runs cooler and drains
less energy. Plus, it performs relatively close to a 4770 and would be a dramatic improvement
over the 4550 listed above.

 

[assasin32]

If you wanted a good budget gaming PC I would save up another 100-200 more because your at a point where that amount of money can more than double what you get if you look for the deals. Take a look at the tower I built on this forum and take a look at the price and how much more it offers for the $100-200 more, its cheaper in the long run to just save up a bit more in my opinion.

http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/278681-31-best-gaming-build#bas