Need help with new gaming system around 1k

[graffex]

I'm trying to put together a new PC for gaming in about a month. I'm a little out of the loop when it comes to components, it's been 5 years since I built my pc. I'm trying to get together the best possible system for around 1k. I don't need Monitor, Keyboard, Mouse, Case, and Sound Card. My friend came up with this build for me it comes to 924.25 on newegg. I want to get the best I can get without going over 1k.

Case: Antec Nine-Hundred (already own)

PS : CORSAIR CMPSU-850TX 850W $149.00

CPU : Intel Core 2 Duo E8500 Wolfdale 3.16GHz $184.99

MOBO: EVGA 132-YW-E178-A1 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 780i SLI FTW $199.99

MEM: OCZ Reaper HPC 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 1066 (PC2 8500) Dual Channel Kit $60.99

HD: Western Digital Caviar Black WD5001AALS 500GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Hard Drive - OEM $69.99

GFX: XFX GX260NADBF GeForce GTX 260 Black Edition

SOUND : Soundblaster XFi Xtreme Gamer ( already own)

DISC DRIVE: LG Black 22X (CAV) DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 22X (CAV) DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 22X DVD±R DVD Burner - OEM $24.99

MONITOR: 22" LCD @ 1680 X 1050 (dont have yet but not including in price of build)

Also I plan on running vista 64-bit. Was wondering if it is worth it to go for 8 gig of ram instead of 4.

 

[Kill@dor]

You won't even touch 4GB's of RAM in games man. That's more than enough...
Nice Rig ^_^

 

[jay2tall]

DUDE! if you already have a case, monitor, keyboard, etc.. $1000 will get you ALOT. Get an i7 don't waste it on a LGA775 chip. It's old tech, get the new stuff with a future upgrade path. And a 850w PSU is total overkill. I'd get a good 600w if you only plan on a since video card. Look at the system below. it will be MUCH better than the one you listed. It dips just above $1000 but WELL worth it. We could always bring the memory to 3GB instead of 6GB (You would never notice) or maybe a smaller hard drive to bring you to $1k but I kept most of the parts you listed exept the mobo, mem,cpu, and psu.


mobo: Asus P6T x58 $250

CPU: Intel i7 920 $289

memory: G.Skill 6GB kit $90

HD: Western Digital Caviar Black 500GB$70

DVD: LG DVD Burner 22x $25

PSU: OCZ ModXStream Pro 600W: $90

Video: XFX GTX 260 Black Edition: $220


TOTAL: $1034

 

[Kill@dor]

I'm sure you can also find a 22" monitor that 1920/1080. I have an Asus thats 2ms and it rocks!!!

 

[graffex]

I like that i7 build!

So I'm guessing that's gonna be as good as I can get for my budget? I also will probably add another GFX card in the future so I want to make sure I get a big enough power supply. Will the one you listed handle it?

I might even splurge and get a 24" instead of 22" as long as that video card can handle it.

 

[jay2tall]

I like that i7 build!

So I'm guessing that's gonna be as good as I can get for my budget? I also will probably add another GFX card in the future so I want to make sure I get a big enough power supply. Will the one you listed handle it?

I might even splurge and get a 24" instead of 22" as long as that video card can handle it.

You should like that build haha, just kidding. Actually I have the same mobo, cpu, memory combo and it really ROCKS THE HOT TOTTY. Just remember, alot of times when you buy the higher end componenst you have to watch it because you are alot of times just buying the extra "features" not actually things you will use. I do have a Thermalright U-120 eXtreme cooler on it and clocked at 4GHz though, hehe. I'd recommend getting a nice cooler and OCing your's as well. The Coolermaster V8 is a fav of mine. Even with the stock cooler it should be good for 3.2-3.6 or so. Especially if you get a D0 stepping i7.

As good as you will get for your budget? Dude to be honest your budget is right on key with a good upgrade. If you didn't have the components you already do, or your budget was like $900 or less, you wouldn't be able to swing this. But you will be MUCH happier investing $1000 into a 1366 socket chip rather than the older 775 chips. It gives you a future upgrade path. Plus the x58 boards, well all but the lowend ones, support both Crossfire and SLI. It's just a win win.

Anyways, The GTX260 is a nice card and it come with 2 free games, come on man! But yes, the 600w PSU would be pushing it if you plan to go SLI. You can always get a PC Power and Cooling 750w for a little bit more and it has 4 PCI-e connectors ready to go if you want a 2nd GTX260. I actually have this exact PSU and am very happy with it. Even though it only has 1 80mm fan its very quiet and does the job. PCP&C 750 $110 (-$20 MIR) The Corsair 750 is nice as well at $120 - $20MIR

ALSO... i would HIGHLY recommend the 24" lcd if you can swing that as well. I have a 22" and what a 24". The 22" is 1680x1050 res and a 24 is 1920x1200. JUST make sure you don't get the 1920x1080 24" you loose a little bit because they are designed to be 1080P 16:9 ration. Not the 16:10 that the 1920x1200 is. Acer and Asus make good inexpensive monitors. I'd recommend looking at one of them.