Another Recommendation for new Build thread

[Patt]

I am looking to build a new machine immediately because the old one failed. Fortunately my company has a 0% interest, 2 year loan (deducted from payroll) available up to $2500, and I'm thinking I'm going to get something a little higher end than I normally would.

Needs:
[*]2 GB RAM[*]320 GB HD[*]high end vid card (though not absolute cutting edge)[*]quiet case[*]quiet, reliable power supply[*]DVD/CD burner[*]latest gen motherboard

Any recommendations on Core Duo vs. A64, types of RAM, motherboard etc?

 

[moosey]

Start w/ Core2Duo and something in the GF 8800 series for video.

 

[Munkaz]

Save some money and reuse old case?

I say go with a C2D E6600

 

[Patt]

Originally posted by: moosey
Start w/ Core2Duo and something in the GF 8800 series for video.

I want a new case because the old one is crappy for air circulation.

 

[engiNURD]

$2500 for the system alone? no monitor? nice budget... you could definately afford cutting edge, lol.

Start with this... the E6600 is the best value right now for higher end systems. The P5N32-E SLI Plus has the dual 16x SLI capability, but with the 650i sli chipset instead -- performance is on par with a 680i board. The Patriot sticks have nice low latency, and use micron chips for overclocking. The Corsair PSU is Seasonic made, so its really quiet. The P180B is one of the most quiet cases around. WD HDDs are more quiet than Seagates in my experience. While you do have the budget for a raptor, it is kinda loud, but I don't notice it in my P160 (predecessor to the P180) -- then again, it is under my desk.

$197 - Asus P5N32-E SLI Plus LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 650i SLI
$313 - Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Conroe 2.4GHz
$215 - Patriot eXtreme Performance 2GB (2x1GB) DDR2-800 PDC22G6400LLK ($50MIR)
$390 - eVGA 640-P2-N821-AR GeForce 8800GTS 640MB ($30MIR)
$130 - Antec Performance I P180B Full ATX Tower
$145 - Corsair HX Series CMPSU-620HX 620W PSU (Free Shipping)
$100 - WD Caviar SE16 WD3200AAKS 320GB 7200RPM SATA300 16MB Cache
$42 - Lite-On 20x DVD±R DVD Burner Black SATA LH-20A1S
$40 - Scythe SCNJ-1100P 120mm CPU HSF
=========
$1565 + tax and shipping - $80MIR

Upgrades?
$105 - Samsung SpinPoint T Series HD400LJ 400GB 7200RPM SATA300 8MB Cache
$210 - WD Raptor WD1500ADFD 150GB 10,000RPM SATA150 16MB Cache ($30MIR) (not that quiet, lol)
$160 - WD Caviar RE2 WD5000YS 500GB 7200RPM SATA300 16MB Cache (Get 2+ for RAID; WD5000AAKS for non-RAID)

$250 - eVGA 122-CK-NF68-AR Socket T (LGA 775) NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI
$260 - Asus P5N32-E SLI LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI

$560 - eVGA 768-P2-N831-AR GeForce 8800GTX 768MB ($30MIR) (single or x2 for SLI)

$290 - Crucial Ballistix 2GB (2x1GB) DDR2-1000 BL2KIT12864AA1005
$400 - G.Skill 4GB (2x2GB) DDR2-800 F2-6400CL5D-4GBPQ

$100 - Lian-Li PC-7A plus II Silver Aluminum ATX Mid Tower
$245 - Cooler Master Stacker 830 RC-830-SSN2-GP Silver Aluminum ATX Full Tower ($25MIR)
$300 - Silverstone TJ09-BW Black Aluminum ATX Full Tower
$330 - Silverstone SST-TJ07-BW Black aluminum ATX Mid Tower

$120 - Silverstone ZEUS SST-ST65ZF 650W PSU
$160 - Seasonic S12 Energy Plus SS-650HT 650W PSU
$180 - Silverstone SST-ST75ZF 750W PSU
$240 - Silverstone ST85ZF 850W PSU

//edit: forgot these:
$45 - Zalman CNPS9500 AT 2 Ball CPU HSF
$58 - Scythe SCINF-1000 120mm
$59 - Thermalright Ultra-120 CPU HSF
$60 - Zalman 9700 LED 110mm 2 Ball CPU HSF
$65 - Tuniq Tower 120 P4 & K8 CPU HSF