Need Some Advice on First Build (Intel Core 2 Duo/Abit AW9D)

[EricB]

Hello. I'm about to start gathering the components I need to put togther a system able to play Microsoft Flight Simulator X when it is released. That's not all I'll using it for obviously, but that is the straw that broke my ibook g4 800mhz's back. I live in Seoul South Korea right now and its pretty easy to get components here. Some are far cheaper than in the U.S., some more expensive as it seems the market is at least a few months behind. Anyway, I'll be either putting this together myself or having someone do it for me at Technomart (a ten story electronics mall with two floors dedicated to computer equipment). I just wanted to check in with you guys to see what you thought of the system I have in mind and if you notice any problems. Here's what I'm thinking.

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 2.4ghz
MB: Abit AW9D (if it ever ends up being released) or ASUS P5W-DH (haven't decided)
Video Card: BFG Geforce 7900 GT 256mb
HD: Western Digital Caviar WD2000 SATA-150 200gb
RAM: 2 gig ddr2 800mhz (probably Corsair but I need recommendations)
Power Supply: Haven't decided- something ATX 2.0 500w+ (preferrably something under $80)
DVD-RW

Now, I wouldn't say I'm an enthusiast, but I do want to have a great system. I'm trying to keep this thing under $1500 if possible but I want to get it right. One of my main concerns is upgradability- hence the more expensive motherboard. Every comp I've owned in the past has been out of date from the day I got it and I never bothered to upgrade because I didn't know where to begin. I figure with this system, two years from now I should be able to drop in a new CPU, videocard, and maybe some more RAM and I'll be good to go. I'm a musician so I'll probably also use this to record and edit music- nothing professional though, I'll use a studio for that. Just demo stuff. I'll also be using it as a soft synth with my midi keyboard.
The questions are, then, do the components I have listed work together? Should this system run MS Flight Sim X without any problems (I know thats hard to say but...), which motherboard is recommended, and...well, I guess thats it really. As for the motherboard, the Abit AW9D looks great but its pricey. Thats why I'm thinking of the standard and not the Max version. Two Ethernet ports would be nice though. The Asus P5W on the other hand, has built in WiFi which would be great for the laptop I already have- and it has 2 ethernet ports. I don't know anything about overclocking but I might learn if it becomes necessary. Well let me know what you think. I'll probably start gathering components next weekend.

Eric

[Foosa]

It should run any game you try on it. I have a setup almost like that.(i only have 1gb ram) and it runs games great. I run fear and oblivion(2 of the most demainding games out there on mine)

I went with the asus p5w-dh deluxe and it has been great so far.

Don't forget an Os. If you go windows that's another 100$.(unleass you get it cheaper over there)

psu. Antec, seasonic, Fsp enermax are good names.(there are more but those are all the good ones i can think of right now.) But do not get cheap on the psu. Bad things can happen, if you do.

[blue60007]

Since the P5W DH supports Crossfire (ATI only) - and even if you don't use it - I think it would make sense to get an ATI card. One thing to keep in mind, since there aren't any DirectX 10 cards you won't have hardware support for all of DX10. You should be able to run DX10, but I would imagine a few things (ie, eye candy settings) would get toned down. Might end up having to upgrade the video card anyways, DX10 and games looks to really tax the system, so current cards might not be enough (if you want to crank all the eye candy up)...

[Mr.Ferrari]

Abit has really looked to be changeing with its new AW9 lineup. However I still dont trust their customer service or parts. But nonetheless they are of much higher quality then they were before. They really want to get their customers back..

Looks great. On the powersupply, What brands are available in your area/store?