[New System Build}Gaming, HD video, photo edit, Graphic design, $1000

APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: Within the next 3 weeks.

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: Gaming, HD video(will take place of TV and cable), photo editing(photoshop), and graphic design(adobe illustrator)
PARTS NOT REQUIRED: None, need it all.

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: newegg.com COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: USA

PARTS PREFERENCES: up for suggestions, thinking about the intel core i5 Lynnfield.
OVERCLOCKING: No idea, I'm a newb. CROSSFIRE: Again no idea. I'm a newb.

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1920x1200 24" HP LP2475w

So this is my first build, I'm just getting back into PC gaming, after about 5 years of console only. Instead of getting a new HDTV and xbox360 I've opted to go this route as I need a setup for my photo editing/graphic design as well.

Games I'm looking to play are Aion Online, Dragon Age Orgins, Bioshock 2, Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2, fallout 3, maybe Crysis.

Really have no idea where to start, done a little bit of research but not really sure of what I need for my uses. $1500 is pretty well the max I want to spend, and the monitor I'm looking at is a little over $500 so I have about $1000 for the rest. If I can spend less while maintaining good performance, great. Appreciate the help.

I'll have to do some more research for monitors. If I can't find a monitor that will be good for both gaming and photo editing that might change my plans a bit.

As for games, Aion Online, Dragon Age Orgins, Bioshock 2, Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2, fallout 3, maybe Crysis.

See like this one

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B [...] e=&seller=

Great color, no ghosting, no response lag... but it's a small screen that will hurt ya if you sit in front of it long enough.

Thats a pretty good resolution. To have a good gaming experience I would recommend at least the ATI 5850 ($260) or the ATI 5870 ($390) if you have budget for it. How much is your budget after the monitor?

This is what I would probably be buying if I was making myself a computer this XMAS. It seems to fit your needs pretty well.
i5 ($190)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819115215
ASUS P7P55D Pro ($170)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813131405
Gskill Ripjaws DDR3-1600 2x2GB ($95)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820231279
Samsung Spinpoint F3 500GB ($55)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6822152181
Sony Optiarc DVD ($33)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6827118030
Coolermaster Hyper 212 plus CPU cooler. ($30)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6835103065
XFX HD 5850 ($260)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814150442
Antec 300 illusion with Antec TP 650 PSU ($150)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Comb [...] mbo.265977

Total $950 - should be able to combo some of the other items to cover shipping costs.

That build will let do moderate overclocking and add a second 5850 in the future. If you wanted to do heavy overclocking and add a bunch more HDDs and SSDs you might want to go up to the 750W PSU for $30 more.


If you dont want the option of a second graphics card, the ASUS P7P55D LE motherboard is $35 cheaper and you could save about $30 on a cheaper PSU.

That 650W is one of very few that will handle two GPUs.

Need a bit more input, I'm planning on ordering in the next few days, basically going off dndhatcher's build but maybe upping the power supply. Only issues are that the gpu and the cpu cooler are no longer available. Any suggestions?

It hard to get a 5850 of newegg they seem to fly of the shelves,