Budget PC build around $450

Hey everyone 😁

My old PC finally kicked the bucket this weekend—so now I'm looking at what I can get for roughly $1000 (maybe a bit more if it means a decent upgrade $1133)

I need it for work (nothing crazy) but also for gaming—both newer titles and some older stuff

I've already got my monitor, mouse, and keyboard, but I need everything else. If there's an option for delivery and setup, that’d be awesome.

I'll be paying cash. Location doesn't matter much—just looking for the best deal out there.

I've seen similar threads on here, but everyone's specs seem so different and honestly, I'm a bit lost 😵

Thanks! 🎉

1 x Intel Core i3-4130, Black Edition Edition (3.7GHz,4MB,95W,FCM2+) box
1 x MSI A78M-E35 (Sck. FM2+,DDR3,SATA III,USB3.0) mATX
1 x Crucial 4GB DDR3 1600 MT/s (PC3-12800) CL11
1 x Toshiba DT01ACA050 500GB 3.5"
1 x Fortron Hexa+ 400W, 80+, active, 12 cm
1 x MS PHOENIX case without PSU
1 x LC POWER LC-CC-97, socket 775/1155/1156/AMD
1 x MSI R7 265 2GD5 OC, 2GB DDR5, DVI-I, DVI, DP, HDMI

Total: $1123 Best Buy (includes free shipping and assembly)

crimsonstag84 said:1 x Intel Core i3-4130, Intel Black Edition (3.7GHz,4MB,95W,FM2+) box
1 x MSI A78M-E35 (Sck. FM2+,DDR3,SATA III,USB3.0) mATX
1 x Crucial 4GB DDR3 1600 MT/s (PC3-12800) CL11
1 x Toshiba DT01ACA050 500GB 3.5"
1 x Fortron Hexa+ 400W, 80+, active, 12 cm
1 x MS PHOENIX case without PSU
1 x LC CC 95, socket 775/1155/1156/AMD
1 x MSI R7 265 2GD5 OC, 2GB DDR5, DVI-I, DVI, DP, HDMI

Total: $1123 Best Buy (free shipping and assembly)

Thanks, Smartic! 🎉

Thinking about pulling the trigger on a PC in a few days. I'm gonna go with the build that gets the most thumbs up on this thread—so if you guys have any custom setups or want to weigh in on what's here, let me know. 😁

Thanks again, everyone!! 🙏

Overclocking the CPU to 4 GHz or higher

1 x Crucial 4GB DDR3 stick, 1600MHz CL11
1 x Intel Pentium G3258 Processor (3.20GHz, 512KB, 3MB, 54 W, 1150) Box
1 x Asrock H81M-HDS, s1150, Intel H81, M-ATX, dual Channel 2 xDDR3
1 x Zalman ZM-T2 PLUS micro tower case. 189(W) x 427.5(H) x 364(D)mm
1 x XFX 430W P1-430S-XXB9 PSU, TS series
1 x TOSHIBA 1TB, 7200rpm, SATA 6 Gb/s, 32MB, DT01ACA100
1 x AMD Radeon R9 270, R9-270A-CDFC, Double Dissipation Edition 925M Boost

$1129
techcrunch.com

Ryan Hayes82 said:overclocking the CPU to 4 GHz or higher

1 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Crucial, 1600MHz CL11
1 x Intel Pentium G3258 Processor (3.20GHz,512KB,3MB,54 W,1150) Box
1 x Asrock H81M-HDS, s1150, Intel H81, M-ATX, dual Channel 2 xDDR3
1 x Zalman ZM-T2 PLUS micro tower case. 189(W) x 427,5(H) x 364(D)mm
1 x XFX 430W P1-430S-XXB9 PSU, TS series
1 x TOSHIBA 1TB, 7200rpm, SATA 6 Gb/s, 32MB, DT01ACA100
1 x AMD Radeon R9 270, R9-270A-CDFC, Double Dissipation Edition 925M Boost

$1129
techcrunch.com

Can I actually overclock this CPU to 4 GHz on this board? ...is the multiplier unlocked?

I’d suggest avoiding the FM2 socket altogether because you won't have any room left to upgrade anything later on. If future-proofing matters to you—meaning if you plan on putting more money into this rig down the road—you could look at something like this:

1 x Gigabyte 970A-DS3P, AM3+, AMD 970 SB950, 4x DDR3 2000(O.C.)/1866
1 x Procesor AMD FX-Series X6 6300 3.5GHz,14MB,95W,AM3+, FD6300WMHK
1 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Crucial, 1600MHz CL11
1 x TOSHIBA 1TB, 7200rpm, SATA 6 Gb/s, 32MB, DT01ACA100
1 x Napajanje FORTRON 400W, HEXA 400, 12cm ventilator, Active PFC
1 x Zalman Z1 mid tower case. 199(W)x432(H)x457(D)mm. MB standard
1 x Sapphire R7 260X 1GB GDDR5 OC, 1GB GDDR5 128bit, 28nm

$1144 techcrunch.com

It goes slightly over budget, so I hope that's okay, but in exchange, you get a significantly beefier six-core processor on a much better platform. You'll be able to swap in a stronger CPU later by just stepping down to a slightly weaker graphics card. Also, I'd highly recommend grabbing an aftermarket cooler later, since the stock one is absolutely terrible. A Spire Kepler or the LC CC 95 would both work fine, and there are others listed below $33 them. 🙂

Bryan Taylor6 said:can you overclock that processor up to 4 ghz on that board? ...is the multiplier unlocked?

The multiplier is unlocked on the CPU, obviously, and you can actually overclock that chip even on an Intel H81 chipset; tons of people do it. That little processor is a total beast once you crank the clock speed up.

Thanks, everyone! 😁