http://secure.newegg.com/NewVersio [...] er=4252867

Click the link for the list of parts I'm getting. Anyway, I'll post here too:

Mobo: DFI INFINITY NF ULTRAII-M2 Socket AM2 NVIDIA nForce4 Ultra ATX AMD Motherboard

CPU: AMD Athlon 64 X2 4200+ Windsor 2.2GHz Socket AM2 Dual Core Processor

RAM: mushkin High-Performance 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300)

PSU: Rosewill RD450-2-DB ATX V2.2 450W Power Supply

Cooler: ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 64 Pro Cooling Fan with Heatsink
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So, here are my questions:

1) How far can I expect to overclock it?

2) Is there anything you would reccomend changing? (Can only afford around $60 more on price)

3) Any other suggestions and input?

I could upgrade to a X2 4800+, should I? If I do that, that will probably forfeit the possibility of better ram. Is the ram fine? Also, if i get a 4800+, I won't need to overclock as much. (I might not, but how will that affect the questions in the above post?)

If you overclock as heavily as you are talking about, I would recommend a more expensive power supply. Specifically you're looking at a higher overall wattage probably and definetely higher amps on the 12v rails.

Better ram would be DDR2 800 with a cas latency of 4 and from what I've seen the corsair is pretty much the best kind to get.

I can't get DDR2-800 because of the mobo I'm getting. I'm decided on that mobo, after all...its DFI (tons of OC options, and its just damn good.)

using ddr2-800 is the best way to get maximum performance out of your cpu. The first time I fired mine up my ddr2 800 wasn't recognized but once I flashed the bios it worked great.

I was just checking DFI's website, I was hoping that they had updated the support for ram there. It looks like it won't officially support ddr2 800, but who knows it might still work(I probably wouldn't risk it). That seems like an oversight for them.

Here is a Sparkle 460watt PSU, they are good quality for $69.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817103018

That CPU should be able to reach 2.6 to 2.7 GHz stable.

Also a Fortron 460watt
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817104935

or an Antec TruePower 430watt
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817103928

With the limitation of only $60 extra dollars spent, I'd first go from 2 gig of ram down to 1 gig and try to get a LP UT NF590 board and then get the DDR2 800 ram. That gets you the latest technology in the motherboard chipset and you can save to buy more ram later.

If there's enough left over, then think about the 4800+ cpu. Last thing, you might think about a more powerful psu. 550 wt or more is going to be needed before long, especially when Vista and DX10 cards become available.

I agree with Sailer on his points. When I jumped from 1 to 2 gigs it wasn't much of a change, I'm sure over time I'll use it but not right now. DDR2 800 will give you the best performance but I would definetely recommend a better power supply.

i agree with rich on the psu

evrything else looks good

I'll look into getting a better PSU. And, if I get 1GB ram, should I get 2x 512 (for dual channel)? But that would be weird if I get a 1GB stick later on. Or would that be fine? Or should I get a 1GB stick?

Get a 1 gig stick. Then it will be easy to add another 1 gig later and have the dual channel then. Combining a 1 gig stick with two 512 sticks will slow the whole works down.

i agree

Alright.

I think I'll bump the X2 4200+ to a X2 4800+, since the budget will now allow that. I might also get a better Cooler.

I'm thinking about getting this:
mushkin Enhanced Performance 1GB 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) is that good?

Edit: On newegg, there are two DDR 667 categories, one is PC 5300 and the other is PC5400. What is the difference? What about compatibility?