Another First Build Question

Hey everyone. I am planning on building my first system over the summer, below is what I came up with so far. I will mainly be editing photos and doing some 2D CAD work, but I will also be doing a little 3D CAD and after effects stuff as well. I'm at school for engineering now, so I have labs to go to for the really graphics intensive stuff. I don't do much gaming now, but I will probably get into it a little once I have a rig that can handle it. I also don't plan on overclocking it right away, but imagine i will start tinkering with it at some point. I would like to stay as close to 2 grand as possible with all my hardware and the OS. Let me know what you guys think, where I could save some cash and where I should drop more. Also, anything important that I'm missing (other than graphics card) that I would need to put this together? I'm a rookie builder so I don't want all of my parts to get here and a missing cable stop me from booting up the system. Thanks.

Case: COOLER MASTER Centurion 5 CAC-T05-WW Black/Silver Aluminum Bezel - $50
http://www.newegg.com/product/prod [...] 6811119077

CPU: Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 Conroe 2.4GHz LGA 775 - $227

Mobo: ASUS P5B Deluxe/WiFi-AP LGA 775 Intel P965 Express - $193
http://www.newegg.com/product/prod [...] 6813131028

RAM: CORSAIR XMS2 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 - $159
http://www.newegg.com/product/prod [...] 6820145034

GPU: No idea really, looking for some help on this one

PSU: SeaSonic S12 Energy Plus SS-550HT ATX12V / EPS12V 550W Power Supply - $123
http://www.newegg.com/product/prod [...] 6817151027

HD: 2 x Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST3320620AS 320GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA - $160
http://www.newegg.com/product/prod [...] 6822148140

DVD Burner: Sony NEC Optiarc Black 18X DVD+R 2MB Cache SATA DVD Burner - $34
http://www.newegg.com/product/prod [...] 6827152079

DVD-ROM: ASUS Black 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-ROM SATA DVD-ROM Drive - $22
http://www.newegg.com/product/prod [...] 6827135143

Monitors: 2 x ViewSonic X Series VX922 Black-Silver 19" 2ms DVI LCD Monitor - $490
http://www.newegg.com/product/prod [...] 6824116375

OS: Microsoft Windows XP Professional With SP2B 1 Pack - OEM - $140
http://www.newegg.com/product/prod [...] 6832116059

That puts me at about $1600 without a graphics card.

Edited to change OS

Looks like a nice system, couple suggestions
For 2 monitors I would go ahead and get the 8800 GTS 640mb, more than most people need but with 2 monitors, better to go with a little moe power.
I really don't think you need 2 optical drives, so unless you have a program that has to stay loaded, one would work.
The motherboard is also above what you need, but Wi-FI might be a kicker for you.
I think you can get XP Pro OEM version for less and with all the parts, the store will not have a problem selling you that version.

The case comes with two fans which is all it holds. Not great but with out overclocking and high room temopatures, you should be ok.
There are a couple things you could do if you are worried and have the budget.
Still would drop 2nd DVD.

I don't think the 640MB card is overkill in this case, with two monitors and I don't know how much the CAD depends on the video card.

I did notice that you're looking at the WiFi version of the P5B Deluxe, and I don't think getting the WiFi version is worth it. I don't know how you plan on connecting your computer to the Internet, but the board has two Ethernet ports on it. If you're really set on using WiFi, any number of WiFi PCI or USB cards will do the trick. If you have a particular router with a speed-enhancing feature, buy a card that matches it instead of the generic card that's included with the P5B WiFi. The "standard" P5B Deluxe is also about $20 cheaper.

Good choice on RAM; however, make sure you set the voltage and timings manually in the BIOS. The BIOS will set the RAM slower than it can go.

If you do decide to overclock, look into a nice heatsink. The C2D comes with a pretty decent heatsink, but doing a good amount of overclocking will require a better one. Thermalright's Ultra-120 is excellent.

Since you're in school for engineering, check to see if your school offers MS products at a discount or even for free. At LSU we get Vista Ultimate, XP Professional, Office 2007 Professional, and a bunch of other MS programs for free.

I would get either this monitor:http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824009089
24" 1920x1200 for 20 more

OR

one or two of the following:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6824009102
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6824001096
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6824116060

all 22" 1680x1050 displays


OR
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6824001095
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6824014105
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6824112006


not sure what you need 2 screens for? Could it be like photoshop or something? Like needing a second screen for toolbars and stuff?

Anyhow, I would go with 1 screen. Anyhow those 2ms "gaming" displays are way overpriced. You can almost get a 22" for the price of one of those.
If you are gonna spend that much but want extreme screen space get two 20" benqs for 380 dollars. More screen space than dual 19" squarescreens and less cash to boot.

what if one breaks? I like having 2 drives bc I can keep a game disc in one.

Anyhow its fun

Thanks for the suggestions. I'm going to keep the second optical drive. I had 2 on my last computer and like the convenience of having a second one. For $20 I think it's worth it. As for the monitors, I'm definitely going to stick with 2 as well. For editing photos and videos it's really nice to have a second screen to keep clips etc. on. Bildcat, your probably right about not needing 2ms screens, I'm going to look into some of the others you suggested. Scoot, I don't need the wifi on the motherboard, I'm going to go with the regular P5B Deluxe. That's cool that you guys get such cheap/free software. At Penn State we get discounts on some stuff, but the only OS is the Vista upgrade. I'll probably post a revised list a little bit later.

while reading i noticed that you are going to build in summer, in summer ATi and nVidia DX10 war will start, and big price drops, since maybe r600 will be a lot better in DX10.If r600 shows like a DX10 superior go with the HD2900xt, or HD2900xtx if you can afford, overall great quality products.

I can't tell you if the P5B Deluxe's onboard sound is good or bad; I already had an Audigy 2 ZS and stuck it in without even trying the onboard sound. I've heard of issues with it, but I'd recommend trying it out and if you're not satisfied then get another sound card.

If you do want a different sound card, Creative is the company to look at. Their newest cards are the X-Fi line.