My first build. Best pc on a budget under $300

[dark ariel7]

This is my first build and i am not a tech savvy so please keep the geek to a minimum *hides his geek club card*I am only 15 so no hardware experience what so ever.

My budget is iron clad this includes shipping taxes and any other additional fees.
i dont need an OS i am a linux person (mostly because its free)i also dont need a hard drive ive got an old ide 40GB (from the dell dimensions 8100 im using to type this) so keep in mind that the mobo has to have an ide, no peripherals and no monitor. I dont need a cd reader but it would be nice

I am not a gamer but wouldnt mind trying games like WOW or the like.
The most important part is that it HAS to be future proof, i dont want to have a 300 dollar paper weigh in a year or two . It of coarse will be an amd build so im guessing radeon would probably work best(correct me if im wrong).
it has to have hd graphics and an hdmi to hook up to my flat screen

I do care about aestetics so please no cruddy looking black boxes.
This is what i have thought of so far:
Phenom ii x2 565 $115
Biostar A880g+ $60
SENTEY Professional 3272 Mid Tower Case w/Power Supply $40
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3 1333 Model F3-10666CL9D-4GBXL $25
TOTAL=~$240

I know i said $300 but closer to $250 would be better.

I was also wondering if a Athlon ii x4 would be better for a little less in price.
I doubt that i will need a dedicated graphics card because like i said i wont be playing the latest games or anything. Do you think that i need any more ram and if so why?
The more you explain the better.

last thing is that i would like to be able to oc and optimice the whole thing to get a little more bang for my buck.

 

[gmcizzle]

I would strongly recommend going with a quad-core if you want to avoid it being a paper weight in a few years.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103808 for $10 more is much better.

If you want to OC your CPU then you will need a good cooler: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103065

4gb is probably enough unless you're doing lots of multitasking or apps that are very heavy memory users. I would get 8gb if possible since memory is relatively cheap right now. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231426

 

[ScrewySqrl]

I'd suggest a dual core Llano build:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.752623

 

[dark ariel7]

i thought about it but there is little upgradebility. plus arent they slower than athlon and phenom?

 

[ScrewySqrl]

Llano is a die-shrunk Athlon II, generally about 6% faster than the same speed Athlon II. that build can add a 6570/6670 for better graphics, and can upgrade to the quad-core a6-3650 or a8-3850 when you get more money. FM1 will probably be compatible with the next version (Trinity) with a bios upgrade given AMD's track record with sockets.

 

[dark ariel7]

can it beat the phenom II X2 565 though?
are the onboard graphics good enough for hd movies?
i checked out the link but i dont think it makes sense to spend that much money on a hard drive right now. i also dont like the window on the tower and i think mine looks better.
does this apu have better graphics than the mobo i posted?
I also want the most power i can get so a llano doesnt seem like the best choice
can you put together a system that would accomodate the better llano and in which i can use my old ide HDD

 

[dark ariel7]

@gmcizzle

i think that the X4 is a little out of my budget because if i got the x2 565 i could get a combo and save 17 dollars
i think 4Gb would be enough because i dont plan to run heavy programs like the adobe suite. also you mentioned to go quad so is athlon like out of the question....it IS a quad.but...not good enough?
like i said i dont plan on running anything *too* heavy

 

[ScrewySqrl]

the onboard 6410 is better than the onboard 4200, yes.

 

[dark ariel7]

ok but how about processing is athlon ii x4 better and could you tell me which is best among phenom ii x2 265 and athlon ii x4 and llano
also do you know of a better mobo maybe with better integrated graphics
and does anyone have anything to say about the case is it any good? will it fit my biostar a880g+?

 

[gmcizzle]

@gmcizzle

i think that the X4 is a little out of my budget because if i got the x2 565 i could get a combo and save 17 dollars
i think 4Gb would be enough because i dont plan to run heavy programs like the adobe suite. also you mentioned to go quad so is athlon like out of the question....it IS a quad.but...not good enough?
like i said i dont plan on running anything *too* heavy

Well if you're on a really tight budget then a Llano system may be your best bet. I'm not sure if that integrated graphics on the Biostar is sufficient for watching HD movies. If it were me I'd save up for a quad core and dedicated graphics card, but if you need a new system right now then I would go the Llano route.

 

[dostrowsky]

http://www.newegg.com/Special/ShellShocker.aspx?cm_sp=ShellShocker-_-773825-_-11222011_1

I would go with this for $289.99. Gives you a very decent system within budget and upgradable with a 1TB drive which in itself is worth $150 today.

You should be OK with the onboard HD 3000 for now and can always add am inexpensive video card down the road.

 

[dark ariel7]

the combo is already sold out.
also iron bound budget. cant muster up more money than that.
anyways cant anyone answer the athlon vs phenom thing? i am considering llano but the mobo selection is small and all the good ones are expensive. as for the dedicated graphics that will come later i do plan to upgrade this is my first system i only need capable that said i dont want to have to upgrade many things maybe the cpu and graphics only. also any reviews on my system as a whole is it solid. i am not shooting for pro.

 

[dostrowsky]

the combo is already sold out.
also iron bound budget. cant muster up more money than that.
anyways cant anyone answer the athlon vs phenom thing? i am considering llano but the mobo selection is small and all the good ones are expensive. as for the dedicated graphics that will come later i do plan to upgrade this is my first system i only need capable that said i dont want to have to upgrade many things maybe the cpu and graphics only. also any reviews on my system as a whole is it solid. i am not shooting for pro.

I just went through the exact same exercise. I had it nailed down to the Athlon ii X3 450 or 455 based on the fact that many of them could be unlocked to a Phenom ii B55 quad core. Then the computer gods sent me a deal I couldn't pass up.
This past Saturday Memoryexpress here in Canada had the A6-3650 with F1A75 Pro motherboard as a bundle for $159.99! I purchased this and a 4 GB stick of DDR3 1333 MHz ram for $16. I already had the HDD and the Case and PSU as well as Windows Vista 64 bit from the machine I was upgrading.

I guess what I am saying is, if you can be patient, I am willing to bet the APU's will be included in a sale somewhere soon.

PS...the A6-3650 coupled with the F1A75 MOBO is smoking fast compared to my old E2120 machine.

Best of luck.

BTW here is a system I was looking at:
Athlon ii X3 455 $80
Gigabyte GA-78LMT-S2P AM3+ AMD 760G $65
Ram whatever is on sale 4GB $20

This gets you to $165 and all you'll need is a Sata HDD and PSU

 

[dark ariel7]

your prices in your build are actually similar to mine. Are you sure it was an E2120 because i googled it and all that came up was a samsung phone. thanks and there are a ton of llano combos at newegg but i think phenom is better. llano is either slow or too expensive.

 

[redsunrises]

http://www.newegg.com/Special/ShellShocker.aspx?cm_sp=ShellShocker-_-774037-_-11222011_4

The Llano combo is a great deal. Its good at OCing and the onboard graphics can handle almost any game. Llano is your best bet IMO

 

[dark ariel7]

thats nice and all but shellshocker end soon im not building this system for a couple of weeks

 

[dark ariel7]

i Think i will go with the phenom ii x2 565 because it could become an x4 also it has a good mobo combo which lowers the price.
i REALLY want some help with the case though does no one know if its a good case or of a similar case that looks about the same and is reliable.

 

[ScrewySqrl]

get something cheap. Rosewill R102 is good if you have a microATX board

 

[dark ariel7]

it looks kinda ugly and doesnt have a power supply but thanks for the reply got any others?