Budget build ideas?

Hey everyone.

I'm looking for some recommendations for a PC build around $1833—just the tower, no peripherals or OS included. This is for my retiree father; he has pretty basic needs and isn't planning on upgrading anytime soon, so I’d prefer not to blow through the budget. Alternatively, if there's a way to get an OS (Windows 7) pre-installed without a massive markup, let me know. In the end, I'll probably just handle the x64 install myself, but I'm feeling a bit lazy about it today.

Use case: web browsing, older games (up to roughly 2005), movies, series, music, and Office tasks.

A few notes:
- He's using an old monitor that seems to only have a VGA port. I might consider buying a new one eventually, but for now, we're sticking with this one.
- I'd prefer to stick to US retailers—ideally somewhere like Best Buy where I can pick everything up and perhaps even have it assembled in one go.

I'm no tech guru, and honestly, I wouldn't want to be one, but looking at all the tech magazines lately, it seems like you can get a setup that's just a tiny step below top-tier high-end gear for that kind of cash. Now, whether it actually makes sense to hook up a beastly rig like that to some 17" or 19" monitor from back in 2001 just to play arcade games—well, that's a whole different story. Since computing pretty much boils down to whatever you're seeing on the screen, and since we're talking about a retiree here (who probably values his eyesight), maybe it'd be smarter to build this whole thing around a really nice display. Maybe a Philips, a Dell, or some other Best Buy 24" monitor for around $200. That's a solid move, because if prices have been dropping for the last decade—like, cutting in half—then you're getting decent quality. The rest of the "budget" should probably go toward the PC case and some high-end peripherals.
Since all those self-proclaimed PC experts keep saying the whole world of PC cases and parts has been stuck in a rut for years regarding revolutionary speed or processor jumps—basically, that the "personal computer" concept peaked a while ago—even buying a used machine or a pre-built "office PC" with a Solid State Drive might be fine... it's not like it'll matter much. As for putting it together, I guess there's this AI-driven builder on some tech site: , plus you've got big retailers like Best Buy or Micro Center that do the heavy lifting for you. You just send them an "official inquiry," and they send back quotes. Hopefully... yeah.

If you plan on keeping a rig for 5+ years, I guess more cores is always better... regarding the monitor:

Seagate BarraCuda 1TB HDD, 3.5", 7200RPM, 64MB Cache, SATA3, HDWD110UZSVA
AMD Radeon RX 460 2GB GDDR5, 128-bit, 1210/7000 MHz
AMD FX-8300 Processor (16MB Cache, up to 4.20 GHz), sAM3+
ASUS M5A97 R2 motherboard, sAM3+
AOC i2476Vwm Monitor, 23.6" FHD IPS
Zalman Z1 mid tower PC case
XFX Pro Series 450W Power Supply, ATX 2.3, P1-450S-X2B9
LC POWER Cosmo Cool CC-95, compatible with 775/1155/1156/1150/AM2/AM3 | 120GB Kingston UV400 Solid State Drive, SATA3, SUV400S37/120G
8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-14400 1600MHz CL10 Kingston HyperX Fury, HX318C10FBK2/8

Total: $1.75 - ADM

I’d definitely go with a new monitor, but personally, I think an Intel Core i3-6100 makes more sense here. It’s plenty capable for these kinds of tasks and should hold up better over the long run. Honestly, it isn't much weaker than the FX8300, which might be worth considering if you were doing heavy multitasking, but that doesn't seem to be the goal here.

1 x Monitor AOC I2481FXH 23.8", VGA, 2xHDMI, FlickerFree, 4ms, AH-IPS
1 x AMD Radeon RX 460 GDDR5 2GB/128bit
1 x Intel Core i3-6100 (3.7GHz, 3MB,LGA1151) box
1 x Crucial DRAM 8GB DDR4 2133 MT/s (PC4-17000) CL15 SR
1 x XFX Pro Series 450W PSU CoreEdition 80
1 x Seagate BarraCuda 1TB, 64MB, 7200rpm, High-Performance
1 x SSD AD 128GB SU800 SATA3 NAND
1 x Asrock LGA1151 H110M-DGS
1 x GIGABYTE Midi ATX GZ-IF238R, ABS+Steel, USB 3.0, Black, 2x120mm

Total: $1845
futura-it

I’d probably lean toward the i3 too.
Lower power draw, newer platform.

Long-term, the FX8300 might be more "future-proof," but there's really no point if we're just sticking to the requirements we laid out.
If the goal was running heavy AAA titles down the road, then an 8-core AMD would make sense.

As it stands, the i3 is likely the smarter move. It'll do the job just fine, and you can always upgrade later if demands actually spike—which, based on this list, they won't.

You don't even need to drop that much cash; tech development has really slowed down lately anyway.

For instance, back in 2012, right around Christmas, I put together a little office setup for my neighbors: a 1TB WD Blue, a 400W Chicony, the cheapest dual-core Celeron out there, an $100 motherboard, and 4GB of RAM. It’s been four years since then, and that rig still cruises through everything they throw at it—just basic office work, browsing, and media. You’d think they'd be looking for an upgrade after four years, but honestly, there's just no reason to.

So, I guess some sort of Intel i3 or AMD APU paired with a Solid State Drive, 8GB of RAM, and decent leftover components should easily last them for many years. They wouldn't even need a dedicated graphics card, and you could probably pull the whole thing off for around $2000-$1000.

Maybe we don't need to go overboard here—the guy mentioned money isn't really an issue, he just doesn't want to deal with the headache of picking parts anymore. I set a bit of a ceiling on this budget because I figured it covers everything he needs, and frankly, I was worried if I gave you guys free rein, you'd suggest some overkill, top-of-the-line enthusiast rig. 😬

Here’s what crimsonstag84 suggested, with a few of my own tweaks:
- A Western Digital HDD—personally, I trust them a bit more than brands like Toshiba or Seagate. Though, I could be wrong there.
- An Intel processor, specifically the Intel Core i3-6100 that halek recommended. The only catch is finding a compatible motherboard; halek's suggestion didn't include one for Intel, so can anyone recommend a decent option?

Western Digital HDD 1TB Blue, 3.5", 7200RPM, 64MB Cache, SATA3, WD10EZEX ($135)
Intel Core i3-6100 (3MB Cache, 3.80 GHz), s1151 ($333)
SAPPHIRE RX 460 2G D5, 2 GB DDR5, 128-bit, 1210/7000 MHz ($310)
Zalman Z1 mid tower case ($89)
450W XFX Pro Series full wired edition, ATX 2.3, P1-450S-X2B9 ($129)
LC POWER Cosmo Cool CC-95, socket 775/1155/1156/1150/AM2/AM3 SSD 120GB Kingston HyperX Fury, SATA3, SUV400S37/120G ($31)
DDR3 8GB (2x4GB) PC3-14900 1866MHz CL10 Kingston HyperX Fury, HX318C10FBK2/8 ($180)

Motherboard (?)

Great, thanks everyone. 🙂