Upgrading Mom's PC

[cinqo]

Hi everyone!

My mother called me today to say that her computer has "died." After going up to visit, her computer is working after all......BUT, it's been ~6 years since I built this for her, and I think it's beyond time to upgrade. So we're replacing all the major components - MB, CPU, RAM, (GPU?), (SSD?), and possibly the power supply.

As for the current power supply, it is an Antec Earthwatts 380w from ~3-4 years ago.


1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Fairly low requirements - standard web browsing, movie watching, etc.
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
Honestly, budget isn't much of an issue. I was thinking ~$300-$400, but more can be spent if future-proofing jumps significantly.
3) Which country do you live in? If the U.S, please tell us the state and city if possible.
US - Atlanta, GA
4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. The word "Everything" is not a valid answer. Please list out all the parts you'll need.
I think that Motherboard, CPU, RAM, perhaps a PSU are all required. Thinking that an AMD Integrated GPU would be best here, but if not a discrete GPU is required as well. Considering a smaller SSD for the OS, as well.
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
Case (Antec, can't remember the model. Nothing fancy), HD, DVD Drive,
6) Will you be overclocking?
No.
7) 7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?
1680x1050. 21"
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
ASAP.
9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? eSATA? Onboard video (as a backup or main GPU)? UEFI? etc.
Nothing specific. USB 3.0 and SATA 6Gb/s would be nice, but not necessary.
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If so, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
Yes. Windows 7 64bit.


As always, thank you for the consistently great advice!

Edit: Here's what I'm currently leaning towards, just want to run it by you guys!

CPU - AMD A10 6800K
Motherboard - ASRock FM2A85X Extreme6
Memory - Corsair Vengeance DDR3 1600 (8GB)
Total = $320. That gives me room to get a newer PSU (Corsair 430w?) and/or an SSD

 

[rudy]

3570k
any $100ish z77 mobo
8gb ddr3 ram
get a 128 gb SSD install windows 7 on it leave the old hard drive in there as a second drive for all saved music movies etc...
skip the GPU for now, feel it out if you want something buy it later.

Or do the haswell counterpart.

 

[Konstantinnovation]

Important question: Do you trust the old HDD? (it is 6 years old after all)

So I was thinking $300 is a really hard budget but here is something to work with:

CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 945 $82.98
Mobo: Gigabyte GA-78LMT-S2 Micro ATX $49.98
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) $54.99
That is $188 so far leaving some room for the PSU and SSD

PSU: You can get decent ones... not meant for overclocking for cheap, but I don't know them well, maybe an Antec Basiq or something.

SSD: I would hate to suggest a 64gb, unless you think you can get away with that little space on the primary partition.

Edit: You certainly need a dedicated GPU if you want to do 3d games, unless of course minor gaming = browser games.