How is this gaming system?

I, a novice, plan to build a gaming system for my children. I also plan to use it some for video editing and as a DVR. I like to spend about $1500 for everything except the monitor/software/keyboard/mouse. The folks at Fry's recommended these components:

MSI K8T Neo-FIS2R ($169.99)
Athlon 64 3000+ ($249.99)
DDR 512 MB 3200 Corsair ($89.99)
Radeon ATI AIW 9800 Pro 128 MB DDR ($399.99)
MXT-L01P120 120G U133 8 MB ($119.99)
Diabolic Blue Case 400 W ($139.99)
TDK 4x Dual +/- RW Drive ($149.99)
Pioneer 16X DVD-ROM 16x Max DVD 40x Max CD ($69.99)

What do you think about this gaming system? Do you have any recommendations for improvements or alternatives I should consider?

Thanks for all your help!

-shing

If you are spending that kind of money, i'd get 1 gig of RAM really. The generic 400W may also be barely enough especially with that Radeon connected to it. Wouldnt hurt trying of course, but if you get any sort of trouble, consider a more powerfull quality PSU.

= The views stated herein are my personal views, and not necessarily the views of my wife. =

Try newegg.com for better prices. You can get a 9800pro AIW for $333 (save $66) for example. Definitely go for a gig of RAM.

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PIV 2.4c @ 3.12ghz
1gig PC3200 (512mbx2)
ASUS P4P800
GF3 Ti200 64mb (soon to be replaced)
WinXP Pro
3DMark2001SE: 6453
3DMark2003: 746

Decent system. But I would buy LiteOn LDW-811S as DVD burner. It's one of the best 8x dual format DVD burner (8x DVD+R) and costs only $130 to $150

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1gb of ram will do wonders. I currently just taken my 512 tossed it and bought 2x512 sticks.
Don't go generic psu. Highly recommend any name brand psu. And unless you're gonna use the AIW extra's go just a normal pro. Save ya some cash.

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Figured i'd do it too..reality my ass.

Sounds cool i'm sure they'll love it. Another stick of 512mb wont do u any harm, games like bf1942 are memory hogs and will take all the memory u give it. Go Newegg and save some $'ss

May be worth considering/pricing a dell or similar, u could get a full system with audigy sound card, surround speakers, 19in monitor etc. Then give your kids the old computer so they dont mess your one up... Also maybe look to wait 2 months as DDR2 and new gen of video cards will be out

everyone has said almost everything,so I thought I would show you one thing" MSI K8T800 Chipset Motherboard for AMD Socket 754 CPU, Model "K8T Neo-FIS2R" -RETAIL


- Specifications -

Supported CPU: Socket 754 Next Generation AMD Athlon 64-bit CPU
Chipset: VIA K8T800 + VIA VT8237
RAM: 3x DIMM for DDR400/333/266 Max 2GB
IDE: 3x UltraDMA 66/100/133 up to 6 Devices
Slots: 1x AGP 8X/4X, 5x PCI 2.2(32-bit,3.3V/5V)
Ports: 2xPS2,1xLPT,1xCOM,1xLAN,8xUSB2.0(Rear 4),5xAudio,1xSPDIF,2xIEEE1394
Onboard Audio: Realtek ALC655 6-Channel Audio Codec
Onboard LAN: Realtek 8110S Gigabit Ethernet
Onboard SATA/RAID: 2x Serial ATA, Ultra ATA/Serial ATA RAID 0,1 or 0+1
Form Factor: ATX

Model#: K8T NEO-FIS2R
Item#: N82E16813130434

Rating: Vote(s): 30 Review(s): 19
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Yes $126.00 "-newegg

Get the aiw version of the pro at newegg and make sure you buy the retail version for the software...at least if you've a cable connection to record all you tv shows and movies on,and make sure at least one optical drive has a dvd burner.For games make sure you've ODs that can read dvds at x16 and cds at X52,which means you'll have to use two;but you can then throw away your vcr and convert all your vrc tapes to dvds.BTW go to newegg and read their hardware reviews for your items.I recommend hardocp for motherboard reviews.