Yet another Tips for Building My First PC Thread

[Fubsywubkis]

Ok guys I am working on building my very first PC. I have done some research and my budget is $1,200-$1,300 for the parts, and another $300 for the moniter and Windows 7 (I can get a student discount and get Win 7 for $65) and the moniter I will probably be picking up on craigslist. The computer will be used for moderate computer gaming as well as some light video editing. My main goal is to have it be easily upgradable in the future (hence the huge case).

The weakest part of my build is definitely the motherboard, as I am finding it VERY tough to do the correct research on it, so please feel free to let me know if I should take it a different way. I will be using my Razer Mamba mouse (soon to be replaced by the Razer Spectre) and the Razer Arctosa.

Here's what I have so far. Feel free to critique as you see fit. I know that specific RAM can only be used with specific motherboards and specific CPU's with motherboard, etc, so let me know what you think, and if I made a boo-boo somewhere.

Any/all recommendations are welcome

CPU: AMD Phenom II x4 955 BE - $159.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819103674

RAM: G.SKILL 2 GB 240-Pin DDR3 1333 x2 - $99.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231180

Mobo: MSI 870A-G54 AM3 AMD 870 - $89.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813130275

GPU: XFX HD-585X-ZAFC Radeon HD 5850 1GB 256-bit - $294.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814150477

Storage: SAMSUNG Spinpoint F3 HD103SJ 1TB 7200 RPM - $79.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-185-_-Product

Case: Cooler Master HAF X - $199.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811119225

PSU: CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W - $109.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817139006

DVD Burner: Some random $20 Sony- $20.99 <---Am I correct in thinking that it really doesn't matter which DVD Burner you get?
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827118039

Total: $1055.92

As you can see, I'm about $200 below my budget, which is great news to me! I'm just not sure where to put the extra $$. I could upgrade my GPU to the 5870, or a higher-end CPU, maybe get a SSD to boot my OS from, or even get a liquid-cooling system. I can't decide what to do! What would you upgrade?

One of my biggest concerns is that I might have chosen cheap parts, and I don't want that. I tried to find good deals and parts that aren't super expensive, but I don't want to sacrifice quality for price. If I can get a part for $20-$30 more and the quality doubles, I'll do it.

Thanks for any help/advice!

[Doom]

Not too bad, but here are some things to consider:

- CPU: Looks pretty good. A quad-core will likely give you a good future capability and the ability to multitask. If you want to focus on gaming, moving to a higher speed dual core also works. That being said, I think your current selection is a good choice.
- RAM: A majority of folks on these forums (myself included) recommend Corsair.
- Mobo: I've got an MSI mobo and it's worked well for a few months, but the general concensus in this forum is that ASUS is a much better choice. Check out this one... http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131646 I've personally used EVGA in two builds and really like them, but they are more expensive and are only intel based. For now, I'd recommend ASUS.
- GPU: Good, but again, ASUS and Diamond are recommended parts. In some of the detailed forums here, Khalill has ranked all the brands for GPU cards and mobos.
- Storage: SAMSUNG is fantastic for monitors. For just about everything else they tend to not be recommended. A WB Caviar Black is the hard drive of choice for most folks on these forums. Cost should be about the same.
- Case: Probably overkill. An Antec 900 or the new Antec 900 Two can handle multiple GPU cards, lots of hard drives, and lots of airflow for about half the cost you're looking at. Ask yourself how many additions you're really going to make before investing this much in a case. I have an Antec 900 for my gaming rig and it has a lot of space for multiple hard drives. I also had two large graphics cards in it.
- PSU: Spot on. Unless you are going to add a few hard drives or a second video card over-time you may be able to go to the 650W, but this is a good PSU and Corsair rocks.
- Optical: Not much of a big deal here. ASUS and Lite-On drives get good marks. I personally haven't heard good or bad of Sony.

[Nikon]

xfx is not a good brand for video cards. i know several people who recieved several DOA cards in a row.
on the forementioned rank list of cards, xfx is among the lowest.

i have never had a bad MSI board, but i have heard alot of people who say they have. i personally prefer asus or gigabyte.

the psu you chose is my personal favorite.

other than that looks good.