I'm building a $500 gaming PC, I have 2 picked out, which one is better?

FIRST:

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/HYsZqs

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 760K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($80.99 @ Amazon)

Motherboard: ASRock FM2A55M-VG3+ Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard ($44.98 @ SuperBiiz)

Memory: G.Skill AEGIS 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($71.99 @ Newegg)

Storage: Hitachi Ultrastar 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.00 @ Amazon)

Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon R9 280 3GB WINDFORCE Video Card ($199.99 @ NCIX US)

Case: BitFenix Merc Alpha (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($19.99 @ NCIX US)

Power Supply: EVGA 430W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply ($34.99 @ Amazon)

Total: $500.93

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-06 21:28 EDT-0400

 

SECOND:

 

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/m37WK8

CPU: AMD Athlon X4 760K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($80.99 @ Amazon)

Motherboard: ASRock FM2A55M-VG3+ Micro ATX FM2+ Motherboard ($44.98 @ SuperBiiz)

Memory: G.Skill AEGIS 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1333 Memory ($71.99 @ Newegg)

Storage: Hitachi Ultrastar 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($48.00 @ Amazon)

Video Card: MSI Radeon R9 270X 2GB Video Card ($179.99 @ Newegg)

Case: NZXT Source 210 Window ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.00 @ Newegg)

Power Supply: EVGA 430W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply ($34.99 @ Amazon)

Total: $494.94

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-06 21:29 EDT-0400

neither ... this will game much better and has CPU cooler and OC potential & more dependable mobo

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/vPWbVn

Plus the PSU you had selected was to close to the actual power usage of your system and not 80+ bronze .... you want to stay well under 20% of usage from available power

Well, that's also a lot more expensive that what his budget is allowing.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/NX7TjX

Might look a bit awkward in a mid-tower but should still work.

$500, not $580

It's only $20 over if you minus the mail in rebates and you get a decent CPU cooler instead of stock POS cooler which IMO will make your system last more than $20 longer. And you should know "some tech noob" that WD RE3 hard drive is meant for a video surveillance setup and not good for data storage ..., I was compromising with the Ultrastar. And I do admit I did choose the cheapest case there is ... only to add too the overall quality of the parts inside.

Edit

I apologize for not taking into consideration that the money in hand is the budget and does not include the shyster mail in rebates.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/CKWbVn

 

only thing i changed on it was the power supply, corsair 600W was only a few more dollars

build 1. just dont oc the gpu and that psu will handle the rig just fine.