Building a new system, need some advice

[Vampirtc]

Need a new system since my old one is almost outdated. OS used: Vista 32bit (possibly 64bit).
I do a lot of multitasking with my PC, VMware with WinXP is constantly running. I use Photoshop rather often. Barely play games though, but if I do they are either MMORPGs or RPGs. Would like to play Crysis though. Its used for playing HD movies (x264 1080p or 720p) as well. It is very important that the system is quiet since its on 24/7 and I sleep in the same room. I don't plan to OC though I would like it to be an option (say for Crysis).

So far I've been thinking about:
1. Case:
Lian Li PC-B20A Midi-Tower silber (ohne Netzteil) for 135?
I've read a few reviews, seems great, very classy and it should reduce the noise from fans. Are there any better for making my system more quiet?

2. CPU:
Intel Core 2 Duo E6400 Sockel-775 boxed for 205?
I've been thinking about E6600 but its 73? more expensive. I don't think its worth the price difference. How loud is the stock cooler?

3. Moterboard:
Gigabyte GA-965P-DS3 V1.0 for 106?
or
ASUS P5B-E, P965 for 122?
Or something else? Need SATA0 Raid and good sound output since I don't plan to buy a sound card.

4. RAM:
OCZ Gold GX XTC DIMM Kit 2048MB PC2-5300U CL4-4-4-12 (DDR2-667) for 157?
Could buy cheaper Kingston Value. Is that one good enough for OCing? I've been thinking about 3GB (though I worry about 32bit OS limitation) since my old system already has 2 gigs.

5. HDD:
2xHitachi Deskstar T7K500 320GB 16MB SATA II (HDT725032VLA360)
According to storagereview it is as fast as its 500GB big brother.
I intend to run them in Raid0. Btw how much faster is Raid0 as a single drive? What about noise? Do I need extra cooling or silencers?

6. PSU:
OCZ GameXStream 600W ATX 2.2 for 103?
or
Levicom Polar Power 400W ATX 2.2 for 63?
According to some website 311W is what I need (with cheaper graphic card).

7. Graphics:
PowerColor Radeon X1950 Pro Extreme, 256MB GDDR3, 2x DVI, ViVo for 172?
or
320MB EVGA e-Geforce 8800 GTS GDDR3 320bit 2xDVI HDTV PCIe for 292?
I know. A huge difference. But I worry that 8800 might be too loud and that its simply not worth the money atm. I've been thinking that I should buy X1950 and buy a better one when Crysis comes out since I have no use for 8800 atm.

 

[imported_eppenoire]

Based on what you do with your system, I would go with more memory than 2GB. I pretty much use the same software you do VMWare and Photoshop and I am running 4GB, which has made my life much easier. I would save your money on the video card until ATI comes out with their D-10 cards, so you can see if they are any better than NVidia 8800s or just snatch up the price reduced 8800s. You might want to reconsider your choice in PSU, I have had bad experiences with OCZ PSUs, I would recommend either Seasonic or Corsair's new line of PSUs. Other than that it looks like a good setup.

 

[Operandi]

Most if not all of the machines I build are geared towards very low noise.

The first thing I look for is a motherboard with good fan control options to automatically adjust fan speed of the CPU and system (exhaust) fans in relation to temperatures. I know the Asus P5B-Deluxe has good fan control options and I would assume the P5B-E would be the same but I'm not entirely sure. But you might want to go with Deluxe to error on the side of caution.

I like Lian Li cases but the PC-B20 has some odd fan confutation choices. I would suggest you go with the PC-101 or PC-V1100 for their use of 120mm fans all around. I would swap the fans with 120mm Yate Loons. The exhaust can be run of the motherboards system fan header to dynamically controlled via the system temp while the intake can be run at a fixed 5v.

For the PSU I go with an Seasonic S12 or M12 (380-430 watt S12 would be plenty). Both are widely regarded as the quietest actively cooled PSU you can get.

The stock Intel HS/F isn't terrible but wouldn't cut it for me at least in a (very) quiet machine. The Zalman CNPS-9500 would be an excellent choice for it's high performance and automated 4-pin PWM fan.