500 pound build advice

You can start with the i5-6400 8-pack OC bundle. Circa 330 quid. Add a case, PSU you're under 500 quid, but if you want to game you'll be short the wonga for a decen GPU.
 
You should be able to get this lot plus a case and OS for 500.

AMD Athlon X4 880K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor
ASRock FM2A88M PRO3+ Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard
Crucial Ballistix Sport XT 8GB (1x 8GB) 1866MHz x2
A-Data Premier SP550 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
XFX Radeon R9 380 2GB Double Dissipation Video Card
 
Before we start spec'ing up systems, what will this be used for? Gaming? Office/browsing?

Do you need a monitor or peripherals or just the tower? Need an operating system?
 
 
When you say full build, do you mean just the system unit or do you also need peripherals - monitor, keyboard, mouse - and a copy of Windows?
 
 
While the FX-8320 build is in budget, the M5A78L-M LE has no VRM cooling whatsoever. This isn't an issue with an FX-6xxx series CPU, but the FX-8xxx series are notoriously hard on the VRMs. The CPU may throttle, not because it's hot but because the VRMs are roasting.

The FX-6300 is decent enough for the money and shouldn't cause any issues with hermal throttling. My dad has the FX-6300 and it's more than enough for his office browsing and Photshop work.

Personally I'd go with the i3 as it's more efficient and is current technology. Bear in mind the FX series are around 4 years old now.
 
For a bit over £500 you can get a very good system:

My basket at Overclockers UK:

Total: £567.59
(includes shipping: £11.70)
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Substitute the Radeon R9 390 DD for the same price if you prefer AMD.

Yes, I'm using the stock CPU cooler. That can be upgraded when overclocking is attempted.

This is a bit over £500 but the GPU will come down in price once the 10x0 cards are launched, and I expect the total price will be much nearer the £500 mark. And some forum members get free shipping.
 
 
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