I don't have win 7 and I wan tto be able to watch movies on one screen whilst doing 'work' on the other. I am limited to 36" total width due to where my work station is. I don't mind spending slightly more than my original budget, ut don't want to go mad..

So what is your MAX budget?

And something wrong with using current monitor/case/psu/optical drive/hdd?

If it will be built to last I could stretch to £750.

Current system keeps crashing and giving hdd errors so is on it's way out. Monitor is a cheap 17" and if I am running 2 would like the same so that the resolution is the same, I also am a developer and need 2 monitors to effectively work 1 means I have to switch between apps too often, optical drive is a dvd reader and I want a dvd writer. It was bought from T3sco's 5 years ago, the case has a slider on the front so am not sure it would be that easy to plug other stuff into, I also want to be able to transfer bits and pieces across, so would like them both up and running whilst I do this..

Sorry to be vague, but I've never bought a pc with my eyes open before, just bought what seemed good value when necessity( old machine crashed) arrived.

The throughput on the expansion cards is not as good as native solutions, as evidenced by the massive threads on Bit-Tech. Overclocking can extend the life, but it can also shorten it over a longer life span and in any case 95% of users don't have the knowledge, or the interest, to bother. But either way, a stock SB system of any speed will easily last the 5yrs prescribed without OCing.

Antec Truepower New 650w £70 (superb semi-modular, very quiet, 80plus bronze PSU manufactured by Seasonic, with a 5yr warranty.)
Fractal Design R3 Case £80 (very well built and ultra quiet case with vibration damping and silent fans, and plenty of room for expansion over the 5yrs.)
Asus P8H67-M PRO £80 (has USB3 and SATA6gig, is easy to work with and has a fantastic EFI bios. I built with one last week.)
Core i5 2400 £150 (3.1ghz quad core is blindingly fast for absolutely anything and will last forever. The stock cooler is quiet and low profile. 3yr warranty.)
8gig Corsair XMS3 £75 (RAM prices are at an all time low and are about to increase again, so makes sense to get 8gig now for longevity. 5yr warranty.)
Sammy F3 1TB HDD £40 (a no-brainer choice and has been for some time. 3yr warranty.)
Plextor burner £30 (the best burners out there for accuracy and an extra tenner is worth it in that regard IMO)
7 x64 OEM £80 (obviously)

System total = £605

Then, if you really want this to last 5yrs, you should invest in a good quality monitor, not two cheap crappy ones. This is the current very good, but affordable thing:
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/23-viewsonic-vp2365wb-ips-widescreen-lcd-monitor-full-hd-1920x1080-10001-300-cd-m-14-ms

The onboard graphics on the i5 will power that AND your 17 and you could then pick up a cheap 19 square as and when funds allowed, if you really wanted to. But tbh, once you've worked on an IPS panel, you probably won't want to!

This system represents great value, but also great QUALITY components. If you're gaming turns into anything more than casual, you can add a graphics card. But it sounds like a discrete one might be overkill for you right now. The iGPUs on the Sandybridge chips are far more capable than anything before them.

Games will be race games e.g. Dirt
Two monitors wanted as I develop using 2 and this would mean working from home was easier and to allow me to watch movie whilst surfing/apps etc.

Ok, so you're happy to go with two crappy ones? Or you like getting a nice one and keeping your 17?

What other games? Are you likely to want to play more recent titles?

monitors ideally two - but if 2 crappy ones are really crap , then 1 good an dmy 17" philips may be the way to go... (gets off the fence)
games - As they come out yes, most will be racing though..

In which case, something has to give. You're gonna need a discrete GPU and that adds another £150 at least, which will have to be found somewhere. Which is gonna mean either a slower/older CPU, or scrimping on other components, or possibly both...

so what would a more realistic budget be?

For TWO monitors?

Around £1k, allowing for each monitor costing around £125

Well the system I specced above was based on integrated graphics. If you're gonna need a discrete card, that means the integrated features of the H67 board are useless. If it were my money, that would mean I would spend a little more and get a P67 and the overclockable chip that Cookeh was suggesting, but that will add about £60-70, plus the £150 needed for a graphics card. Depends whether you ever intend to overclock. You could just get a motherboard that is capable and get the same CPU for now, then upgrade at a later date if you felt you needed it.

Assuming the rest of the spec stays the same, you would want to spend between £150 and £200 on a graphics card. The difference between the two figures is quite substantial in terms of available performance and therefore longevity also. But it depends what your priorities are. Sounds to me like at least one decent monitor would blow you away and that LG is a fracking bargain. The problem what that is likely to be that if you're watching a movie on that and working on your existing monitor, it might begin to seem a little small and poor quality. Either way, a good quality monitor is something that will last you and make far more of an improvement to your daily PC usage than almost any other component.

The other way to play it, would be to stick with the system I already specced, then add a discrete graphics card in another month or two, when you can afford it. The onboard graphics will handle movies and HD easily and some basic gaming, but won't be able to do justice to Dirt.

Arghhh! Update. Buy this now!!!!

http://forums.bit-tech.net/showthread.php?t=202525

Ridiculously cheap!

don't have access to the page

Gah, why did my phone have to die on me this month. That's a seriously tempting purchase.

http://accessories.euro.dell.com/sna/productdetail.aspx?c=uk&l=en&s=bsd&sku=421265&~ck=dellSearch&baynote_bnrank=0&baynote_irrank=25&cs=ukbsdt1&dgc=SS&cid=41148&lid=1069637&acd=23975883724507181

Plus another 10% off with the code:
RHTB8J1BR0JC4$