Alienware build under $750

Hey everyone.

I'm looking at a budget that could potentially hit $1.75, though that’s really stretching it.
The goal is to put together the best possible rig specifically for gaming.

I'd love a larger monitor if we can swing it, maybe aiming for 6 GB of RAM, and I need a full set of peripherals included.

I'm based in Washington, D.C., so please suggest a local shop that actually knows what they're doing when it comes to service and reliability.
I'll be paying with an American Express on a monthly installment plan.

Just picked up a Dell Monitor.
Just one Seagate Hard Drive, 500GB, 7200rpm, 32MB.
Just one Akyga AKY309BK.
Just one Corsair CX 430W power supply. It’s an ATX model with 80+ Bronze efficiency, though I think this might be the US version.
I think I have one Nvidia Kepler available.
One Zalman Case mouse, 1000DPI, Black.
Just one Nvidia GeForce GTX 2GB bulk unit.
Just one Kingston DDR3 stick (8GB, 1600MHz CL11).
I guess there's one AMD Athlon available.
I've got one MSI motherboard on the list—an ATX setup running an Intel Chipset with DDR3, SATA III, RAID, and both VGA and HDMI options. It also includes USB 3.0.
One Genius KB-110X keyboard—black, spill-resistant, and uses USB.

Total: $1662+$166 Regarding the cards. futura-it.us

Free assembly and delivery, I guess...

EDIT: It looks like other cheaper shops don't offer American Express installment plans, so I guess that's that.

If you cut corners on the monitor and settle for 4GB of RAM, I guess you could probably squeeze in a better processor and a stronger graphics card.

One Seagate Hard Drive, 500GB, 7200rpm, 32MB.
Just one Akyga AKY309BK case.
Just one Corsair CX 430W power supply here. It’s an ATX unit with 80+ Bronze efficiency, and I believe this is the US version.
I guess there's one Nvidia Kepler available.
I guess I picked up a black Zalman Case mouse—it’s got 1000 DPI. Simple enough, I suppose.
One Genius keyboard, spill-resistant, black, USB.
Just one AOC LED 21.5" monitor, 5ms response time, with VGA and DVI ports.
Just one Kingston DDR3 stick—4GB at 1600MHz (PC3-12800), CL11.
Just one AMD FX-6300.
Just one Nvidia GeForce GTX with 2GB of GDDR5. It’s the dual-fan version with Boost and OC, running at 920MHz (boosted to 945MHz) and 1400MHz. It's a 256-bit card that takes up two slots and features an active cooling setup. Lite version.
One Gigabyte Motherboard, AM3, A970, D3, S3, USB 3.0, A.

Total: $1661+$166 Regarding the graphics cards.

Could you provide some more specific guidelines? If you're looking at a 21.5" LCD, you'll likely end up spending an extra $333 + $167 on peripherals (mouse, keyboard, and speakers). I'd suggest picking something mid-range; at this price point, actual build quality isn't really the deciding factor—it's mostly about how the setup looks visually. ...

AMD Athlon

ASRock Motherboard, Socket FM2
2X Adata DDR3 4GB 1600MHz, AD3U1600C2G11-R
Seagate Hard Drive 1TB 3.5''
Nvidia GeForce GTX 2G GDDR5 PCI-E DVI-I / DVI-D / HDMI / DP DUAL-X WITH BOOST & OC VERSION
CORSAIR Power Supply, Corsair CX 80+ Bronze, 500 Watt, ATX, EPS12V, PS/2, US version
Zalman Cooler 92mm, Zalman Cooler
Zalman Case black, Zalman Case
MS ELITE 6D wired mouse
MS DYNAMITE gaming wired keyboard
AOC LED 21.5" E2250SWDNK, 5ms, VGA, DVI

$4,997.89 + $148 (Credit Card) via Best Buy (Free assembly)

Stane and FX 6300+R9 270+8GB RAMa are listed at Centro, but I don't think they accept American cards, if I'm seeing this right 😉

1 x AOC 21.5" LCD Wide, 6ms, 16:9, IPS
1 x Genius Gaming KB-G235 keyboard, USB
1 x Zalman mouse, M350 mousepad
1 x Genius SW-S2.1 355 speakers
1 x AMD Athlon II X4 760K processor
1 x 6GB (2+4GB) Kingmax DDR3 1600MHz, CL9 memory
1 x MSI AMD Chipset Desktop Motherboard (SFM2+, DDR3, SATA III, RAID, GLAN, USB 2.0, USB 3.0, VGA, HDMI, DVI) Micro ATX Box
1 x MSI Nvidia GeForce GTX 2GB DDR5
1 x Western Digital Caviar Blue Desktop HDD (3.5", 1TB, 64MB, SATA III-600)
1 x LG Optical Drive GH24NS SATA Bulk Black 24x
1 x FSP350-60APN 85+ bulk power supply
1 x Zalman Case ZM-T4, USB 3.0, Micro ATX
1 x Spire Nvidia Kepler Rev.2 1150/1156/775/AM3/FM2/FM1

$1699
futura-it

Here is the latest from Magazine, you can even pay with American Express in up to 6 interest-free installments...

AMD FX-6300 Processor
ASRock Motherboard
Kingmax 4GB, 1X4GB, DDRIII 1600
Corsair CX 80+ Bronze, 430 Watt
MS PLUTOS case without power supply
Seagate Hard Drive 1TB, 7200rpm, 32MB
Nvidia Kepler cooler
Dell Monitor 21.5", 16:9, IPS
Nvidia GeForce GTX, 2GB DDR5
MS DYNAMITE gaming wired keyboard
MS Alienware wired mouse
Genius speakers SP-HF150, 4W, wood

5,$8.00
Free assembly and delivery included

You get a six-core processor that is perfect for this kind of build. The graphics card comes with a 3-year warranty, stays cool, and runs all the big titles on high settings...
It includes a 1TB hard drive and all the peripherals—except for a headset, which you can just grab used for cheap later...
Upgrading the RAM is the easiest thing to do, so it’s plenty for now. If I had bumped it to 8GB right away, I would have had to cut corners on the processor or the graphics card, which are the most important parts...
And of course, an IPS monitor....😉

Here is the version with 8GB of RAM..

AMD Athlon Processor
ASRock Motherboard
KINGSTON 8GB Memory, 1600MHz
Corsair CX 80+ Bronze, 430 Watt
Zalman Case mid tower
Seagate Hard Drive 1TB, 7200rpm, 32MB
Nvidia Kepler cooler
Dell Monitor 21.5", 16:9, IPS
Nvidia GeForce GTX, 2GB DDR5
MS DYNAMITE gaming wired keyboard
MS Alienware wired mouse
Genius speakers SP-HF150, 4W, wood

5,$7.25

A weaker processor, but you get 8GB of RAM and a better case. Everything else remains the same...🙂

Intel Core i5, Haswell, 3100 MHz, LGA 1150
Gigabyte Motherboard, LGA 1150
KINGSTON 8 GB (2 x 4 GB) DDR3, 1600 MHz HyperX, DIMM
Seagate Hard Drive 500 GB, Seagate Hard Drive, 3.5", 7200 rpm, SATA III
PALIT Nvidia GeForce GTX, 1GB DDR5
CORSAIR VS450, 450 W
MS Alienware Case
GIGABYTE GK-KM6150 Keyboard + Mouse, USB
Dell Monitor 22", IPS LED
GENIUS SW-2.1 355 Computer Speakers, 2.1, 3.5 mm
Total price: $1859 (available in up to 6 interest-free installments via American Express if you have an account with Bank of America)

-Genius SP-HF150 Speakers, 4W, wood finish
-Gigabyte Motherboard, USB, Black
-MSI A88XM-E35, FM2+, D3, S3, USB 3.0
-AMD Athlon II X4 760, AD760KWOHLBOX
Athlon II X4 760, Socket FM2, 3800 MHz clock speed, 2x 2 MB L2 cache, Richland Core, includes cooler, no integrated graphics
-KINGSTON Desktop Memory Device KINGSTON ValueRAM DDR3 SDRAM Non-ECC (8GB, 1600MHz(PC3-12800), Unbuffered) CL11, Retail
-SILVERSTONE Power Supply SILVERSTONE Strider ST50F-230 AC 180-264V, 50/60Hz, DC 3.3/5/±12V, 500W, Retail, Active PFC, 1x120, Efficiency 80%, Black
-LG Optical Drive 24x GH24NS95 SATA black bulk
-Zalman Case, micro tower. 189(W) x 427.5(H) x 364(D)mm. MB standard: Micro ATX. PSU standard: Standard ATX ATX12V. 5.2" external x 1. 3.5" internal x 2, 2.5" internal x 3. Fans: Front: 120mm Fan x1(optional)
-Nvidia Kepler Rev.2 cooler 1156/775/FM1
-Seagate Hard Drive 500GB 3.5", DT01ACA050
DT01ACA050 500GB, 500 GB, SATA3, 64 MB, 3.5", 7,200 rpm
-Nvidia GeForce GTX, 2G GDDR5 PCI-E DVI-I / DVI-D / HDMI / DP DUAL-X WITH BOOST & OC VERSION, 920MHz (945MHz) / 1400MHz, 256-bit, 2 slot active, LITE
-AOC I2269VWM, IPS monitor 21.5" Wide, WLED, 1920 x 1080@60 Hz, Screen format 16:9, Dot 0.248mm, contrast ratio 50m : 1 DCR, 6 ms, 250cd m2, 1XVGA, 2XHDM, 1XDisplay port, speakers, wallmount

Cards:$1765 Cash/Wire transfer: $1649

Discount 24

@Robert Rodriguez2

Diskont24 only lets you pay with Ford upfront, no installments available...

I noticed Amazon has some low prices too. David Sanders4 made a solid suggestion, even if he went a bit over budget...

Here it is...

A-DATA 8 GB DDR3 Memory, 1600MHz
MS Alienware Case
Dell Monitor, IPS LED, 22"
Xilence Cooler, 480 W
ASRock Motherboard, socket AM3
Seagate Hard Drive, 1 TB, 3.5"
Havit Headset, USB
AMD FX-6300
Thermaltake Cooler
Nvidia GeForce GTX
Havit Headset, PS/2, USB
MS Industrial Wave Black

$1697 Amazon
free shipping

American Express offers up to 6 interest-free installments, or a loan for up to 60 months at 8.98% interest...

Six installments? Honestly, feels like a bit much if you ask me. It’d be way better if you could just snag a loan and pay the whole thing upfront in cash.

First off, thanks for all the input, guys—you really covered a lot of ground with those recommendations. Now I'm just sitting here weighing my options. I'll let you know once I finally pull the trigger on what I decide to go with.