First Build Core i7 920

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: Within a month

BUDGET RANGE: Id like to stay within 1200-1500

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming, Photoshop, Movies, Surfing

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: Keyboard, Mouse, Speakers, Possibly sound card.

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: Doesnt matter

PARTS PREFERENCES: Nope

OVERCLOCKING: Yes /

SLI OR CROSSFIRE: Maybe

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1920x1080

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS: Ive never built a computer before, but i've always wanted to. Also I have never overclocked before, and I want to as well. I didn't pickout a video card on purpose cause im really not sure how to choose one (I am open to suggestions) but if it helps the games I do want to play will be Starcraft 2 & Diablo 3

Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811129021

Western Digital Caviar Black WD1001FALS 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5"
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6822136284

CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817139005

OCZ Platinum 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Voltage Desktop Memory Model OCZ3P1600LV6GK - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820227381

GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD4P LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813128374

Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819115202

Im open to cooling options as I don't know what is good

Im also looking into this monitor

Hanns·G HG-281DPB Black 27.5" 3ms Widescreen LCD HDMI Monitor 500 cd/m2 800:1 Built in Speakers
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6824254026

The monitor price should not be factored into this build since it would be purchased a few weeks later and not by me.

Also I am wanting to hook up my xbox to the same monitor as my computer and am questioning 32" LCD TV's as well. would playing games on a 1080p 32"lcd by the computer look bad? would using a 32" look bad period as a monitor?

First off, DON'T use a TV for a monitor if you want your games to look good. I experimented with it briefly, and it just doesn't work. It usually looked fuzzy and had problems with the resolution. You can get a HDMI cable and hook your 360 into your computer monitor though. (assuming you've got an HDMI port on your monitor) That would probably work nicely.

Everything looks nice, but I might recommend the 750 or 850TX instead of the 650. I only say so because if you want to overclock AND have the option of SLI/XFire, the extra wattage will come in handy so you don't have to worry about insufficient power requirements.

I also recommend the GTX 275 video card. It'll give you the best bang for the buck IMO. (on the NVidia side at least)

650w isn't enough to push two decent cards, and I didn't put that Antec 900 in this build for the fact it isn't a case I wouldn't recommend for a dual card.

Do a google on "ewiz coupons" or "ewiz promo codes" and save another $5 - $15 off that mobo/cpu combo. It's all in the shopping. That psu will easily push two of those cards in SLI. No need for a sound card imo, onboard sound just keeps getting better and better these days.

http://www.zipzoomfly.com/jsp/Prod [...] e=10006382 $109.99 ($79.99 after MIR) Free Shipping
PC Power and Cooling SILENCER 750W QUAD S75CF Power Supply Retail

http://www.ewiz.com/detail.php?name=MB-EX58U4P Combo Price: $492.99 Free Shipping
GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD4P Core i7/ Intel X58/ DDR3/ CorssFireX & 3-Way SLI/ A&GbE/ ATX Motherboard
Intel Core i7 Processor i7-920 2.66GHz 8MB LGA1366 CPU, Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6835233029 $39.99
XIGMATEK Dark Knight-S1283V 120mm Long Life Bearing CPU Cooler - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6835154003 $4.99
Tuniq TX-2 Cooling Thermal Compound - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814133268 $199.99 Free Shipping*
PNY VCGGTX275XPB GeForce GTX 275 896MB 448-bit DDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Comb [...] mbo.199045 Combo Discount: -$7.00 Combo Price: $212.98 $20.00 Mail-In Rebate *Free Shipping
OCZ Platinum 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Voltage Desktop Memory Model OCZ3P1600LV6GK - Retail
Western Digital Caviar Black WD1001FALS 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drives - OEM


Total: $1,060.93 | $1,010.93 w/mail in rebates

http://technet.microsoft.com/en-us [...] ID=mscomsc <--- Save yourself some money on an o/s until March 2010 and dl the 64 bit version of Windows RC 7

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813128374 <--- more pics, specs, and customer reviews of the Gigabyte UD4P mobo

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817341011 <--- more pics, specs, and customer reviews of that psu

http://www.tomshardware.com/review [...] ,2266.html <--- gtzx 275 review and benchmarks

http://www.tomshardware.com/review [...] ,2298.html <--- gtx 275's in SLI > gtx 295