Windows 7: Building a PC...

These are the EVGA cards you want:
EVGA | Products
And this bad boy mobo has expansion on steriods:
http://www.evga.com/products/moreInf...%20Family&sw=5

Those brands are considered "Rolls Royce" where I am.

I'd also look at Cooler Master and the Corsair Obsidian range of cases. Although cases are a matter of taste I don't think the Gigabyte case is a patch on the ones I've mentioned

Newegg.com - SILVERSTONE TJ07-BW Black Aluminum ATX Full Tower Computer Case

$349.99 is a lot but you get what you pay for.

I think everything else sounds great apart from the monitor. It's a TN panel. If you really want true colour quality look for a (H)IPS panel. These can be found on the Dell Utrasharp range,
and the NEC Multisync monitors- NEC EA231WMi review - FlatpanelsHD being a favourite

Also this is a little gem ;Amazon.com: Dell UltraSharp U2311H 23-inch Widescreen Flat Panel Display eIPS 1080p LCD Monitor w/ DVI & DisplayPort: Computer & Accessories

The beauty of IPS is incredibly vivid colours and the fact that you have a much wider angle of view without the darkening or colour change you get with Twisted Nematic panels.

The monitor and case are going to be with you long after you've upgraded the internal components of the pc. Also the monitor is the part you look at everyday so it's got to be good

This sounds like a great build. Keep us informed of your decisions, John

I love the motherboard, but those graphics cards are a major killer. How long do you think it'd take for the price to drop a bit?


@ John: Thanks man. I tossed those monitors in just because I liked them from when I worked out at Microsoft. Having my own personal setup was awesome

Those were prices from the manufacturer but likely as a premium product they will still be pricey on the street. I just love the water ready quality and the single slot thickness with all the performance with maximum cooling. What ever you decide I'm sure it will be wicked build. I'd love to do a system of this type of quality. Cheers, the Cheese

All the suggestions are good, IMHO.

I would recommend one of these SSDs.

Intel X25-M SSDSA2MH120G2K5 2.5" MLC Internal Solid State Drive

OCZ Vertex 2 OCZSSD2-2VTXE120G 2.5" MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

Crucial RealSSD C300 CTFDDAC128MAG-1G1 2.5" MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

It will be better to get a smaller size before considering lower quality.
You should be able to get 60-80GB SSD for OS and apps.

Well, I currently have a 160GB Hard drive now, with most of my apps installed.. I have 64.7GB of free space left. Would 120GB be better than the 80GB?

Definitely, if you have that many apps.

Is that only OS and apps?
Do you keep any data files there?

No sir; I have 3TB of space, currently 2TB or so is filled up, that's just for the media. I plan on buying a new motherboard for this PC, taking out the hard drives, and puttin' some 2TB drives in here for a mass storage computer.

My family enjoys watching tons of Windows Media Center stuff, since we don't subscribe to cable... =)

If you are watching TV movies etc. then you would definitely be better off with an IPS or PVA monitor panel. The TN panels only really work if you sit directly in front of them, at the correct height and so on.
An IPS panel would allow for family viewing from different positions.

Here is the case i like even if I have 3 Antec Cases P-180 and P-182 and and older 3300 I think but i like this case

Newegg.com - AZZA Hurrican 2000 CSAZ-2000 Black SECC Japanese Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case