Ok, I've been researching this new build for a while now. I am a graduate student on a budget of around $1000 total, looking for a primarily gaming PC that will last me a bit. I've already purchased the PC&C 750W that was on an outrageous discount at Newegg, as well as Vista 64-bit Home Premium OEM when it went to $79. I already have a monitor (1280x1024 at 17", may upgrade sometime next year, keyboard, etc.)

These are what i am set on:

HD: Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM $84.99

Memory: G.SKILL PI Black 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL4D-4GBPI-B - Retail $49.99 or mushkin 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model 996587 - Retail $53.99

Case: Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail $109.99 (Missed out when it was discounted, is this still a good deal ?) or RAIDMAX SMILODON ATX-612WB Black 1.0mm SECC Steel ATX Mid Tower Foldout MB Computer Case - Retail $39.99 after discounts and rebates.

Cooler: ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 7 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler - Retail at $26.99 or the XIGMATEK HDT-S1283 120mm Rifle CPU Cooler - Retail at $26.99 with rebate, + the retention bracket.


I am still torn on CPU, motherboard and video card. My head has been twisted with all that I've read about the dual-core vs. quad-core debate. Simply put, is it foolish of me to want to get a q9300 2.5 GHz at $244.99 when I could get a e8500 3.16 GHz at $174.99? Is "future-proofing" with a quad just misguided?

Deciding the CPU will help with the motherboard. I have been looking at the p45's from Gigabyte, specifically the GIGABYTE GA-EP45-UD3R LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail. Or should I try the ASUS P5Q Pro LGA 775 Intel P45 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail with XFire? I would like to overclock to an extent, but I don't have the budget to get a really extravagant MB.

As far as video cards, I have narrowed it down to one really good GPU: either the SAPPHIRE 100259-1GL Radeon HD 4870 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail at $269.99 or the EVGA 896-P3-1267-AR GeForce GTX 260 Core 216 Superclocked Edition 896MB 448-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail at $259.99.

I don't have the scratch to make a jump up to a GTX 280 or the HD 4870x2, or even a 4850x2.

I would really appreciate some last minute advice. I am wanting to get this build done sometime next week, and I would like to order the parts today. Please help out someone less enlightened and knowledgeable. Thanks in advance.

Agreed. It looks good for now.

I would go with the Dual if you are mostly gaming. Go with the quad if you do a lot of editing, recoding of video/audio, or do a lot of multitasking.

The P45s from Gigabyte or Asus are good choices.

Both GPUs are good. I would lean towards the 4870 1GB.

Good luck.

Look at it this way, you can get the E8500 today for $174.99 and then buy a quad core in 2 years or so when you need it for around $100 and it will most likely be a better CPU than a Q9300