First Time PERSONAL Build

I'd opt for the quad core i5 if at all possible, and see review of assorted socket 1156 INtel based mainboards, P55 chipsets....

I'd recommend the i5 too. Excellent stuff for an acceptable pricetag!

Ugh I am not allowed to edit my own post, and I went to town with a big review of your choices after realising the one-liner I gave wasn't just what you asked. Ok part 2:

Processor: I'm sure the i3 is a performer like the i5 purely because they suit the same chipset and will have same-ish technologies inside. However if you want to make your rig future-proof in terms of budget performance then definitely stretch for the quad core as this will likely be very beneficial in later years. As for it being silent, processors are silent (comepletely, AFAIK), what will make noise s a fan that comes with the cooler. I'd recommend the Hyper212 plus as it's cheap and gives awesome cooling. The default fan speed is loud but this can be changed in BIOS or with software.

Ram: Sure. Whatever! I trust you don't care too much for frequency/timing values, You probably won't need to. Just make sure the voltage is around 1.5-1.8 and that it will work nicely with the Intel chipsets. I'm sure most OCZ memory is aimed at intel builds anyway.

Power Supply: I can't say a lot here other than 650w would be fine just fine! You might want to look at single rail power supplies over dual.. idk.. I'd also recommend glancing at reviews for Corsair models that lie above the low CX standard (that's VX, TZ, even HX if you can afford the space-saving modular luxury it gives.

Gfx Card: the 460 has great reviews. as for brands they are all the same or very similar. Maybe some cards have slightly higher speeds, better fans and some include HDMI slots, some don't. It is also important to notice that as with the cards with smaller ammount of memory I have seen there be weakened card power. You'd want a 1GB card though for high res gaming, espcially with new games.

Motherboard: Well I've seen ASUS and gigabyte getting the highest ratings, but I'm sure other competitors like ASRock are just as good, or close by. If you want USB3 technology then look for a board that has it. Bear in mind that some boards limit the pci-e slot lanes to 8x to draw enough power for usb3 or sata6 technologies.

I hope I helped a little, if I am talking crap anywhere then hopefully bigger fish here can correct me. I've only just built my first rig this month but I've researched like crazy on it. Good luck!

I appreciate your comments! I was considering the i5 as well, though i just dont know if I can convince myself that I need a quad core. I shall debate that for myself while I DO know that my money will be focused on a nice, but not too high end, graphics card. Since there is a point where I have had enough messing around, tweaking, and figuring out, I think the separate cpu heatsink/fan will be a later project after I experience and determine if the stock heatsink & fan meets my personal standards.

Again, thank you for you help!