Decent Gaming PC for less than $450? HELP!

[Levi Leach]

Hello everyone. I'm helping my friend build his first PC. His budget is around $400, $500 max (preferably including windows). Obvious he's not doing 1080p, 60fps gaming on high levels with a $400 dollar machine, but he'd like something that's fairly capable. Preferably a mid-tower, but full ATX is fine too. Any links to build guides or info is hugely appreciated. Thank you!

 

I was told linustechtips' "$300 gaming PC" video wasn't a good build. Can I get somebody's opinion on that?

[MahDays]

http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/p/w93yRB

[RevoltTrain]

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/hqDqXL

[RevoltTrain]

http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/p/w93yRB

Pretty sure OP meant USD as the currency 

[MahDays]

Pretty sure OP meant USD as the currency 

I'm british so it was GBP automatically

[spartaman64]

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/79xsBm ifyou want better gaming performance but dual core

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/BTXyRBif you want quad core with less gaming performance

[spartaman64]

http://www.vip4sale.com/windows-81-standard-p-63.htmlget the windows here for 35$

[Johannes_Lazor]

This is what id suggest: This review is about what performance you should expect.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: AMD 5350 2.05Ghz Quad-Core Processor  ($49.99 @ Directron) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-AM1M-S2P Micro ATX AM1 Motherboard  ($27.98 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($29.23 @ Amazon) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($51.89 @ OutletPC) 

Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R7 260X 2GB Video Card  ($102.98 @ Newegg) 

Case: Apex TX-381 MicroATX Mid Tower Case w/300W Power Supply  ($26.99 @ Directron) 

Power Supply: EVGA 430W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply  ($27.99 @ Micro Center) 

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit)  ($87.75 @ OutletPC) 

Total: $404.80

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-02-28 10:23 EST-0500

[Starelementpoke]

 

This is what id suggest: This review is about what performance you should expect.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: AMD 5350 2.05Ghz Quad-Core Processor  ($49.99 @ Directron) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-AM1M-S2P Micro ATX AM1 Motherboard  ($27.98 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 4GB (1 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($29.23 @ Amazon) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($51.89 @ OutletPC) 

Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R7 260X 2GB Video Card  ($102.98 @ Newegg) 

Case: Apex TX-381 MicroATX Mid Tower Case w/300W Power Supply  ($26.99 @ Directron) 

Power Supply: EVGA 430W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply  ($27.99 @ Micro Center) 

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit)  ($87.75 @ OutletPC) 

Total: $404.80

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-02-28 10:23 EST-0500

 

That Amd 5350 is my biggest concern. Heard it ain't a very good cpu.

[Johannes_Lazor]

That Amd 5350 is my biggest concern. Heard it ain't a very good cpu.

Did you hear why it isnt a good CPU?

From what i have heard it is a good performer for what it is, And when the system is upgraded sometime in the future it would be Great for a NAS or other 24/7 server or similar since it only requires 25 watts.

[Starelementpoke]

Did you hear why it isnt a good CPU?

From what i have heard it is a good performer for what it is, And when the system is upgraded sometimes in the future it would be Great for a NAS or other 24/7 server or similar since it only requires 25 watts.

Something on pcpartpicker. Don't remeber exactly what, all that I know was that it was bad. But hey, im not the most reliable guy for this kind of advice, so by all means, go for it

[spartaman64]

 

This is what id suggest: This review is about what performance you should expect.

 

 

Type|Item|Price

:----|:----|:----

**CPU** | [AMD Athlon X4 860K 3.7GHz Quad-Core Processor](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/amd-cpu-ad860kxbjabox) | $78.78 @ OutletPC 

**Motherboard** | [Asus A88XM-A Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/asus-motherboard-a88xma) | $52.99 @ SuperBiiz 

**Memory** | [G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/gskill-memory-f32133c10d8gab) | $54.99 @ Newegg 

**Video Card** | [sapphire Radeon R7 265 2GB Video Card](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/sapphire-video-card-112320020g) | $129.99 @ Micro Center 

**Case** | [NZXT Source 210 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/nzxt-case-s210001) | $37.99 @ SuperBiiz 

**Power Supply** | [Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/corsair-power-supply-cx600m) | $59.88 @ OutletPC 

**Other**| Windows| $35.00 

 | *Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts* |

 | Total (before mail-in rebates) | $504.62

 | Mail-in rebates | -$55.00

 | **Total** | **$449.62**

 | Generated by [PCPartPicker](http://pcpartpicker.com) 2015-02-28 10:53 EST-0500 |