helllloooo
being a roadie and a mtb rider, it has come to my attention that i am missing out on the only event which will make my riding life complete.
CYCLOCROSS.

ive saved a fair bit of $$ for a bike, around 1500aud
any ideas for a first cross bike?

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CARPE DIEM
Colnago C59 Italia GLBK
Up coming custom steel cyclocross

For racing? Keep saving or buy used. Kona, Ridley, Cannondale, Ibis, Redline, Specialized, Santa Cruz Stigmata, Fuji, Giant, Salsa, Scott, Focus... I'd keep saving and get something over 2 grand if you want to race.

2000$ sounds about right for a pretty decent bike, that's perfectly fine for racing. It's not gonna be the lightest, flashiest paint job, but it will be MORE than fine for racing.

That said, I'm not sure what prices are like for CX bikes in Australia. I've heard things get pretty expensive down there.

You can do quite a bit with $1500AUD if you play your cards right. I bought a 2009 Ridley X-Ride as a frameset six months ago for $350 USD on craigslist. This was perfect for me because I had a lot of parts laying around from upgrades/builds that never got off the ground. To be fair, I work at a shop and I don't race, but you should be able to work some magic with ebay and a few wise purchases.

One decent option that falls in your budget is the Motobecane Fantom Cross Pro rival build from bikes direct. Not a particularly exciting bike, but I see plenty of people going faster than me on them. Depending on the exchange and shipping/etc, you'll probably have enough money left over for a better fork and some paint stripper for the frame.

Personally, if I was looking for something in that price range I'd set up a US eBay watch for a used Indy Fab Planet X. You can almost certainly find one complete with a decent build for around $1500, and it's a bike that will ride spectacularly well for a long time. It won't win any weight weenie contests, but you'll get cred points in the starting grid.

if you are doing it on a budget id go for a specialized crux frame, then if you have bars and stem and seat laying around put those on as they are less of a factor. go for some good light tubular wheels as they offer a big advantage to racing.
i've just built up a specialized crux with bits i had laying around so it is full dura ace 7800 apart from chainset which is ultegra 6600 altogether it came out costing £600 as i didn't have any tubular wheels that i'd want to thrash about in the crappy conditions

what i'd look for in a raceable cross bike are:
frame with good clearance and good racing geometry
tubular wheels
functional gearing (possibly gore sealed cables or similar)
brakes that actually work.
all the rest can be done 2nd hand and on the budget you have left

I just got a Dura-Ace 7800 rear derailleur for 99 dollars. Competitive Cyclist had Ultegra Sl shifters on sale for $150 dollars a few days ago. I see Easton bars, stems and seatposts dirt cheap everywhere...
You can piece together a nice bike with minimal cost if you're patient and grab the deals as you see them. If you're going to race take the above poster's advice - get a frame with plenty of clearance and blow your money on nice tubular wheels.