On a TIGHT budget, for a AXP 1700+, I would go with this
Asus A7N266-VM. Its an nForce1 board, so it has good sound and the equivalent to a GF2MX integrated graphics. Also integrated LAN. Its micro-ATX, so if he needs more than 3 PCI slots, its not great... but it does have most things integrated--so its great for a budget system. I've built a couple and been VERY happy with it.