$400-500 barebone budget, suggestions or recommendations?

[YetAnotherNoob]

Ok, I'm pretty much a noobie, who spent a few days lurking on this forum. my p3 800EB is long over due for an upgrade, and hoping to get some experienced input(hopefully with links). As im on a limited budget, i'm trying to keep it under $500(the cheaper the better of course ). As I have mentioned im looking to build a barebones system needing:
CPU
Motherboard
COOLING
MEMORY
CASE W/PSU
MISC(round cables???, artic silver??? etc)

This computer will be for general use, a little of everything(encoding, gaming, browsing), but not particularly hardcore in any department. So I don't need super high-end anything. just bang-for buck. expecting to do some entry level overclocking, avoiding high voltages, soldering, expert setups/mods etc...

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what i've concluded from lurking so far:
CPU: Athlon-M 2500+ @ $88.00 - http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=19-103-401&catalog=23&manufactory=BROWSE
MB: ABIT NF7-S @ $82.00 - http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=13-127-166&catalog=23&manufactory=BROWSE
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$170.00
Leaving more or less: $230-$330.

Cooling: ???
I don't think i can afford a water-cooling solution on my budget. and even if i could I question my ability to setup/troubleshoot/maintain it... so I suppose I should get a good cpu fan, and a couple of case fans???

Memory: ???
I don't think I'm in the market for BH-5. Don't know what speed or brand is recommended for my scenario.

Case: ???
Since I''m not housing a big cooling system, I'm thinking something like: http://www.compgeeks.com/details.asp?invtid=BLK-769-6&cat=CAS
would be adequate.

PSU: ???
is 400 sufficient or should i go for more? my graphics card is an older geforce4 mx 420.

MISC: ???
As this is my first computer built from scratch, im not sure what else i need like rounded cables for better circulation because i'm probably relying on the fans for cooling, even in the summer.., and I'm not sure whats included with the MB, is artic silver?? necessary??? etc...

and if possible please provide links or what would-be a good price for the item, because im not familiar with market value of parts...

 

[Mr.Radar]

Welcome to the forums!

CPU: Athlon-M 2500+ @ $88.00 - http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=19-103-401&catalog=23&manufactory=BROWSE

Good choice.

MB: ABIT NF7-S @ $82.00 - http://www.newegg.com/app/viewProductDesc.asp?description=13-127-166&catalog=23&manufactory=BROWSE

For overclocking get the DFI Ultra Infinity instead. It's a much better overclocker than the NF7-S. Newegg Link.
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Cooling: ???
I don't think i can afford a water-cooling solution on my budget. and even if i could I question my ability to setup/troubleshoot/maintain it... so I suppose I should get a good cpu fan, and a couple of case fans???

For budget cooling I'd go with an SLK-947U and a 92mm Delta HHE for the CPU and Panaflos (available at many places) for the rest of the case fans. That should be a pretty good balance between noise and cooling, especially if you also want to get a fan controller.

Memory: ???
I don't think I'm in the market for BH-5. Don't know what speed or brand is recommended for my scenario.

Sorry, I can't help you here (I know a lot about everything BUT memory).

Case: ???
Since I''m not housing a big cooling system, I'm thinking something like: http://www.compgeeks.com/details.asp?invtid=BLK-769-6&cat=CAS
would be adequate.

The front of the case looks very restrictive, I'd be surprised if the front fans would move any amount of air with the front cover on and it doesn't include a side fan which makes a HUGE difference in case temp (in my experience), though if you feel like modding some holes into it then it should be fine.

PSU: ???
is 400 sufficient or should i go for more? my graphics card is an older geforce4 mx 420.

The number of watts a PSU has doesn't matter as much as brand name. I highly reccomend reading this sticky in the Cases & PSUs forum. I'd go with a Fortron/Sparkle FSP350 or an Antec TruePower 430 as minimums, and you can go up the line in either case if you have more money to spend. The best bang/buck PSU out there right now is the Fortron/Sparkle 530 which is only $75 shipped and beats out even the Antec TruePower 550.

As this is my first computer built from scratch, im not sure what else i need like rounded cables for better circulation because i'm probably relying on the fans for cooling, even in the summer.., and I'm not sure whats included with the MB, is artic silver?? necessary??? etc...

Rounded cables are crap most of the time but do increase airflow. If you can live with slower and less reliable data transfers and want a few degrees off your load temps than go with rounded, otherwise get the flat ribbon cables (of course that's all IMHO).

Arctic Silver 5 is currently one of the best thermal transfer compounds on the market, though since you're on a budget you might want to get Arctic Silver Ceramique which is just as good as Arctic Silver 3 (there was no Arctic Silver 4 because in Japan the number 4 is associated with death).

NOTE: I'm having trouble accessing Newegg right now so I can't link everything I mentioned in this post.

 

[YetAnotherNoob]

oooooh its DFI ultra infinity...for some strange reason "lanparty" was in my head, i saw a $60 difference and choose the NF7-S...

now that you mention it, it would definitely make sense to get a case supporting more fans...never even occured to me :\...gonna look for a better case...

 

[Agent_Mull]

Case:
http://store.yahoo.com/cyberpowerwholesale/chiefsxcaswi.html $35 for a windowless white case, or $40 for the other colors.

 

[YetAnotherNoob]

where's a good place for a Neo Backplate? and that site doesn't give very clear specs on how many fans are supported. googling now...