Need advice on cheap pc build

[lancetronic]

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APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: The sooner the better

BUDGET RANGE: Low, maybe 400ish USD

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Watching videos on single/dual display (second display would be a TV), gaming

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: Monitor, keyboard, mouse, speakers, OS

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: www.newegg.com.cn, www.360buy.com (both Chinese websites)

COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: Do I have a choice?

PARTS PREFERENCES: ATI/AMD just because I hear that's the cheaper combo

OVERCLOCKING: Maybe

SLI OR CROSSFIRE: I don't think it's possible with this budget

MONITOR RESOLUTION: I have a 17" Viewsonic

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: Thanks to anyone who helps. Much appreciated.
I know this build is way above my budget, so I'm hoping someone could tell me how to reduce the price without losing too much performance. I could definitely go with DDR2 RAM, but then I wouldn't know what motherboard to use.
Besides the occasional game or two, I don't believe this will be a gaming PC. The most demanding game I might play would be along the lines of WoW.
Just a note, I'm purchasing the parts in China, so prices will be skewed a bit and some things available in US won't be available here. Sorry for the trouble that may cause you guys. Thanks again.

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AMD Athlon II X2 245 2.9GHz 2 x 1MB L2 Cache AM3 - ~$61

ASRock M3A770DE: Socket AM3, AMD 770 Chipset, ATX - ~$69

ASUS Radeon HD 4670 512MB GDDR3 - ~$73

G.SKILL DDR3 1333 4G - ~$131

Western Digital 500GB 7200 RPM - ~$51

Sony 24X SATA DVD-RW - ~$26

Thermaltake M5 VJ2000BWS - ~$54

CORSAIR CMPSU-400CX 400W PLUS Certified - ~$51

 

[may1]

You can buy a big cooling fan instead of a case.
That way, your system will be cooler, cheaper (by a margin).

 

[lancetronic]

No case? Just let the parts lie there? I'm afraid I'll step on something.. haha.

 

[may1]

No case? Just let the parts lie there? I'm afraid I'll step on something.. haha.

I think it is hard to cut down on costs given your current budget.


You can afford to do the following without affecting performance much.
Cheapest DDR3 kit.

Cheaper HDD (you can bear with 160gb)

Cheapest 770 mobo (MSI C45-770 was pretty darn cheap)

the cheapest case out there (which is none, just get a big fan to cool the components)


Otherwise, you can't cut down cost without affecting performance.

Of course you can always cut down the budget by getting the cheapest AthlonII CPU (Athlon 215 I think), but the margin is too small.

 

[lancetronic]

I guess I should put it this way, I'm willing to reduce performance as long as the new part is still a reliable brand and one of the better choices for it's price. For instance, I'm very willing to buy ddr2 ram if it can reduce cost and isn't a great drop in performance. According to my research, this build should be consisted of pretty reliable brands and very good performance for the price. Of course, I could be wrong, so that's why I came here.

As to having no case, I really can't imagine how I'd keep the parts safe. Is this case good quality? If it's just a flimsy case with a side window, I can always switch it out for a flimsy case without a window. That could take off maybe $30+.

 

[may1]

well I did think that if you want to really budget your build, $54 for a case was a bit too much...
And since your components are not the most demanding ones out there, I think you can bear with a much cheaper case...

 

[lancetronic]

What if I bought a case that only supports Micro-ATX boards? Besides having to choose a different motherboard, would the rest of the build work?

Also, what do you think about 2x OCZ DDR3 800 2GB (OCZ3G8002G) for RAM instead of the G.Skill ones?

Thanks for all the advice you've already given.

 

[-_-Help-_-]

What if I bought a case that only supports Micro-ATX boards? Besides having to choose a different motherboard, would the rest of the build work?

Also, what do you think about 2x OCZ DDR3 800 2GB (OCZ3G8002G) for RAM instead of the G.Skill ones?

Thanks for all the advice you've already given.

yes that would be fine since most mid tower cases will support M-ATX and ATX

 

[lancetronic]

yes that would be fine since most mid tower cases will support M-ATX and ATX

The case I was looking at only supports M-ATX. What would be a good M-ATX motherboard to choose? Is there any downside to using a smaller case/smaller motherboard? And are the OCZ RAM sticks good?

 

[-_-Help-_-]

The case I was looking at only supports M-ATX. What would be a good M-ATX motherboard to choose? Is there any downside to using a smaller case/smaller motherboard? And are the OCZ RAM sticks good?

well im Currently also using a M-ATX board and that would be Gigabyte 785GMT-USB3 i have checked the Newegg china website and it has 785GMT-USB3 for RMB-589 which is a bit over your one
But i have found something to compensate for it the Ram u can have 4gb of DDR3 for 113 USD

Also how about a Radeon 5570 for graphics card its 89 dollars just little more then your one you want and it performs better you get DX 11 and some other goodies

here are the links

RAM- http://www.newegg.com.cn/Product/25-c02-115.htm (2gb X2)

MotherBoard - (NO USB3) http://www.newegg.com.cn/Product/13-c18-127.htm

Graphics card - http://www.newegg.com.cn/Product/14-c28-129.htm

Note i have never heard of this Unika graphics card brand


Found a GREAT deal on a Case

http://www.newegg.com.cn/Product/11-c09-494.htm


Also dont know about OCZ but i would recommend it cause i see many gamers using OCZ