Needs advice on AMD gaming system

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: this week

BUDGET RANGE: $700-750

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: gaming, surfing the internet, watching HD movies

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: LCD (already have one)

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: Tigerdirect for cashback, or newegg

PARTS PREFERENCES: AMD fan

OVERCLOCKING: no at this moment

SLI OR CROSSFIRE: no at this moment, maybe later

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1920x1200, 1680x1050


It has been a long time since my last build of a desktop, maybe 4 or 5 years already... Hope I am not totally outdated

Personally I'm a fan of AMD for desktop due to its performance/price ratio. My last desktop several years ago got a Barton Barton 2500+ CPU / ATI 9800 PRO GPU. After spending my time on Thinkpad T43, X61 and recently HP 8710w, I finally decide to build a decent laptop for some up-to-date gaming. Here is my current plan. I am sure many friends here could give me good suggestions. Thx in advance.

CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 955
MOBO: Asus M4A78T-E Motherboard
GPU: XFX Radeon HD 4890 Video Card
HD: Seagate ST31000528AS Barracuda 7200.12, 1TB
RAM: OCZ Intel Extreme Edition Dual Channel 4096MB PC12800 DDR3 1600MHz (link points to 2x1GB version)
CASE: Apevia X-Jupiter Jr.G Type ATX Mid-Tower Case
PS: OCZ ModXStream Pro Power Supply - 700-Watt, Modular, Dual +12V Rails, SATA, 80Plus

The total comes out to be a little above $700 AR/AC shipped. Seems to be an acceptable price for me. However I am not sure whether there are any potential problems due to my outdated experience. So far I have the following concerns:

1) Will the Intel Edition memory work on my AMD platform? I assume there is no problem.

2) I will not OC my CPU for performance gain. Does this mean I can rely on the standard fan coming with the CPU?

3) An alternative to the mobo is Asus M4A78-E, which is quite similar to M4A78T-E but uses ddr2 memory. I think there is not too much difference for the two, but with similar prices, I go for ddr3.

4) Do I need to spend 20 more bucks to get XFX OC'ed version?

5) I have heard mixed words about Seagate 7200.12 hd, maybe I should choose WD black edition instead?

6) The case looks cool but I am not sure about its performance and convenience. Should I add like 40 bucks for Antec 900 instead?

7) I think 700w is good for this system. But since my mind lives in ancient times (where 300w is extremely good), I might be wrong at this point. Any ideas?

All the suggestions are highly appreciated.

Thanks, man. I am also intended go for 4gb RAM for $10 more bucks, which is not currently available on newegg. I checked TD and they do have. But your link points me to the 4890 video card...

Any suggestion for the case and PS?

Thanks for your prompt response again. I will go for antec case as you suggested.

I will go for WD black edition then. Since I'm not OC'ing, I will probably go with AMD 945 95w edition, such that I can stick to the factory fan in the box.

I was looking at the current cashback program and thought zipzoomfly has most of the things I want for decent price. After a while, they increased the price of each part for about 20~30 on average. What a shame. They did it again...

and the e 955 fan is fine for maybe 10% over clock but since you not overclocking the 945 is a bit cheaper an performs within 10% of the 955 at stock speeds.you can maybe save a bit by buying the case in store if you can since its the most expensive to ship