I built a computer last October with the help of this forum, which was my first experience with something like this, and I had a blast. Now my brother's old computer is starting to go, and my parents have asked if I I would consider putting one together as their Christmas present to him. When I built mine, I researched and chose most of the parts myself, and mostly just asked for advice. But that was significantly easier, because I had a $1200 budget then, which I honestly could have went over, which gave me a lot of wiggle room. All told, with this computer I have a hard limit of $525, and I have no idea where to start.

What I'd like to do is build something that will run decently now, but that is easily upgradable into something more powerful as my brother gets money to buy his own parts. So I'm assuming I should devote a decent amount of the budget to the CPU and motherboard, and skimp on the other parts for now. Ideally, he'd like something that can run the Sims 3 right off the bat, though, and I don't know how possible that is with this budget.

We don't need any peripherals like a mouse or monitor or keyboard, His computer is junk so it can be gutted for whatever useful parts it has, which is probably just the CD drive, HDD for now, and potentially the case. I will need to budget for a copy of Windows.

Soooo, I need advice. What's a good CPU in my price range? What is absolutely essential and what can I cheap out on to upgrade later? What order should I prioritize these upgrades?

Thanks in advance

Can you post his current system specs please?

I don't know where you live but if you are in the US then this is a good starting point and can be upgraded later.
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicat...573372&CatId=31
$324.00 before rebates of $40.00 which makes it $284.00.
Windows 7 Home Premium 92.99 http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicat...3932&CatId=4622
After rebates you are looking at under $400.00 plus shipping which leaves you with the money to get a very good video card.
Like this: http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicat...9965&CatId=7387 $100.00
Or this: http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicat...6348&CatId=7387 $109.99

marka93 your links aren't working for me.

good place to start http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews...cking,3617.html

Your budget is 525$ but that is 650$ so we must modify some part.

Reduce
CPU from fx-6300 to Athlon x4 750K (save 40$)
M/B from 970chipset to FM2chipset such as Asrock FM2A75 DGS R2.0 (save 15$)
VGA from GTX760 to HD7770 (save 150$)
other are same.

from 650$ save 205$ so price of hardware = 455$
but you need windows
Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit = 100$
price with everything = 555$ without sacrifice much performance.

if budget is very tight you can reduce more component such as HDD from 1TB to 500GB or more cheaper M/B such as A55 chipset.

I just clicked on them and they work for me.

If there still not working then go straight to TigerDirect and type in the item # B69-0792, M17-7302, D10-7752 and G452-0652.

Well looks like I can't access tiger direct from my country.

Same here. Think it is a tigerdirect hosting or domain issue.

If you look at my post I did say if you live in the US.

tigerdirect.ca is canadian, and both tigerdirect.com and tigerdirect.ca were accessible from outside the US/CA previously. This access denied thing is new.

I'm sorry if took my so long to reply, I was not actually in the same state as his computer. And then I got into a car accident. It's been crazy.
Here's the information you asked for:

------------------
System Information
------------------
Time of this report: 12/12/2013, 19:15:36
Machine name: BOBTHECOMPUTER
Operating System: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit (6.1, Build 7601) Service Pack 1

(7601.win7sp1_gdr.130801-1533)
Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
System Manufacturer: eMachines
System Model: ET1831
BIOS: Default System BIOS
Processor: Intel(R) Celeron(R) CPU 420 @ 1.60GHz, ~1.6GHz
Memory: 3072MB RAM
Available OS Memory: 2816MB RAM
Page File: 2093MB used, 4720MB available
Windows Dir: C:\Windows
DirectX Version: DirectX 11
DX Setup Parameters: Not found
User DPI Setting: Using System DPI
System DPI Setting: 96 DPI (100 percent)
DWM DPI Scaling: Disabled
DxDiag Version: 6.01.7601.17514 32bit Unicode

---------------
Display Devices
---------------
Card name: NVIDIA GeForce 7050 / NVIDIA nForce 620i
Manufacturer: NVIDIA
Chip type: GeForce 7050 / nForce 620i
DAC type: Integrated RAMDAC
Device Key: Enum\PCI\VEN_10DE&DEV_07E5&SUBSYS_02451025&REV_A2
Display Memory: 1401 MB
Dedicated Memory: 249 MB
Shared Memory: 1151 MB
Current Mode: 1366 x 768 (32 bit) (60Hz)
Monitor Name: Generic PnP Monitor
Monitor Model: E182H
Monitor Id: EMA00B3
Native Mode: 1366 x 768(p) (59.790Hz)
Output Type: HD15
Driver Name: nvd3dumx.dll,nvd3dum
Driver File Version: 9.18.0013.0783 (English)
Driver Version: 9.18.13.783
DDI Version: 9Ex
Driver Model: WDDM 1.0
Driver Attributes: Final Retail
Driver Date/Size: 2/19/2013 21:32:36, 18376008 bytes


-------------
Sound Devices
-------------
Description: Speakers (Realtek High Definition Audio)
Default Sound Playback: Yes
Default Voice Playback: Yes
Hardware ID: HDAUDIO\FUNC_01&VEN_10EC&DEV_0888&SUBSYS_10250245&REV_1000
Manufacturer ID: 1
Product ID: 100
Type: WDM
Driver Name: RTKVHD64.sys
Driver Version: 6.00.0001.5898 (English)
Driver Attributes: Final Retail
WHQL Logo'd: Yes
Date and Size: 7/20/2009 05:52:38, 1831968 bytes



------------------------
Disk & DVD/CD-ROM Drives
------------------------
Drive: C:
Free Space: 8.3 GB
Total Space: 289.8 GB
File System: NTFS
Model: Hitachi HDT721032SLA SCSI Disk Device

Drive: D:
Model: HL-DT-ST DVDRAM GH40F SCSI CdRom Device
Driver: c:\windows\system32\drivers\cdrom.sys, 6.01.7601.17514 (English), , 0 bytes

Sorry to hear about the accident, get well soon!

Here's what I've come up with. Budget was really tight though ><

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: AMD Athlon II X4 760K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($89.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus A88XM-A Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard ($83.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill 4GB (2 x 2GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($41.49 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital WD Blue 500GB 2.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7770 GHz Edition 1GB Video Card ($99.99 @ Microcenter)
Case: BitFenix Merc Alpha (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($29.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Corsair Builder 430W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($39.99 @ Microcenter)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($88.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $523.39
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-12-12 21:48 EST-0500)

The build is still cheap though, the first place I would upgrade in the future would be an extra 4GB of RAM, then the GPU.

I have several computer cases laying around, do you think I would be able to use one of those instead? And I was considering using his hard drive for now, because I'd be able to replace that within a month or so. Would that be feasible, do you think? I know it's not saving a lot, but this computer is going to have to last him for several years at least, so every bit helps.

Is there a reason you chose that specific manufacturer for the video card? There are several 7770s that are a bit cheaper. Is there much of a difference between them? And the video card will be replaced within the next 6 months, Since we won't be using it for very long, I'm kind of just looking for good enough for now and would prefer to spend more money elsewhere if it's at all possible.

For cases it depends. In general yes you can reuse them. Make sure it has an intake vent in the front and an exhaust vent in the back, that it supports mATX sized motherboards and it has room for the video card you choose.

On PC Part picker I only saw one 7770 that was cheaper, and it was the Sapphire, which I've heard are not as good. It was only cheaper than the Gigabyte by $5 so not worth it imo. If you saw other cheaper ones, go for it. The brands I like are Gigabyte, Asus and MSI. But if others are significantly cheaper they should be okay. Post here if you find one and I'll see if I can help you find reviews for it.

You might be able re-use the HDD but it's IDE, which is an obsolete technology unsupported by new motherboards in general. You would have to pay for an adapter and possibly fiddle with some settings. I can't guarantee it'll work and it's not something I've done myself. I haven't used IDE since 2002.

Newegg, Vantec IDE to SATA Converter - Model CB-IS100:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...N82E16812232004

Okay, I won't be reusing the hard drive, because that absolutely seems like something I don't want to deal with. I'll check on the cases when I go over later today. How do I make sure they're compatible with mATX?

If I pretend that I'm actually going to get the mail in rebate on the PSU, and possibly assume I could acquire a case, that gives 20-50 dollars of wiggle room on the budget. I'd like to throw that at the CPU. I was thinking maybe going with the FX 6300? I'd have to pick a different motherboard, though. And would I need to get a more powerful power supply for that?

If you have the exact brand and model number of the case, you could google it. If you don't, you'd have to open it up, take a look inside and check yourself.

I think the FX-6300 is better than the x4 760K, so if you think you'll have the budget for it, go for it.

I don't think you'd have to get a new PSU if you switch from x4 760K to FX-6300. There's only like 5W TDP difference between the two last I checked.