Need Help & Advice On New PC Build

[MuscleMilk]

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: Would love to purchase this in the next month..

BUDGET RANGE: $800 After Rebates

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Surfing the internet, listening to music, watching movies, some basic microsoft office programs, maybe some dj'ing program?

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: Speakers, OS

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: newegg.com

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA

PARTS PREFERENCES: N/A

OVERCLOCKING: ?

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1680x1050? (I want a big sized monitor, maybe 20"?, 23"?, but dont necessarily need a top of the line one or the best resolution.)

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: If you cant tell, I am rather clueless when it comes to building up a parts list for a computer. In the past, I have just bought a computer from Dell and customized it on the website. I am fortunate enough to have a friend that is willing to build me my computer if I build up the component list for him. I am looking for a fast computer that has no problem surfing the internet, music player, and maybe even a few other programs simultaneously. Who knows, maybe even a game at some point?! I would like the PC to be relatively quiet, but it doesnt have to be silent.

Any help would be much appreciated, I really do not know where to even start. I have been reading through all of the forums and have been learning a lot, but I am not even close to the level of knowledge that I need to be to build my own system.

Thanks in advance for any and all help.

 

[dndhatcher]

At newegg you can almost always get an LDC Monitor 21.5 inch, 1920x1080 for ~$150

The only probelm is "maybe even game" can substantially change the build. If you only play flash games on the internet then you save alot of money by going with onboard graphics. As soon as you start into more serious games like Crysis, Call of Duty or MMORPGs like World of Warcraft then you need a separate graphics card that will add at least $100 to the cost.

 

[MuscleMilk]

Gaming isnt important to me then. Lol. I havent played computer games for years and realistically, dont see myself playing any time soon.

 

[dndhatcher]

Athlon II x3 435 ($75)
Gigabyte MA785GMT-UD2H motherboard with onboard HDMI 4200 video ($90)
4GB (2*2GB kit) DDR3-1333 RAM ($105)

Antec VSK 2000 Case ($35)
A good quality ~400W Power supply. ($40-60)

Try some nice combo deal like this
Antec VSK 200 case and Earthwatts 80+ bronze 380W PSU ($75)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.319125

I wouldnt overclock it unless you get into encoding or gaming and need the speed. At that point you will want to buy a good air heatsink like the coolermaster hyper 212 for $30.

 

[MuscleMilk]

Ok. I can look into these suggestions a little more. Thanks for your input!

If anyone else would like to add their 2 cents as well it would be much appreciated.

 

[dndhatcher]

You could bump the budget up 35 dollars or so and get an Athlon II x4 CPU. For what you listed it probably wont run faster, but you could say you have a quad core CPU.

 

[MuscleMilk]

Ok. And how much would this set up change if I decided to bump the budget up to $850/900? Is there going to be a significant difference? I am just trying to get the most bang for my buck, and not have to worry about getting a new computer for a few years...

 

[dndhatcher]

For the light functions you listed you wont see much performance change. If you were to do something taxing like video encoding or heavy gaming then you could use that money to improve performance.