New rig
 

Planing to build a new rig so would like some feedback,haven't done this in a while so might have made mistakes. Going mostly for bang for buck, so if you suggest changes, keep mindful of the final total, as that could be concidered the budget. Also to keep in mind, I'm going to be piecing this together over a period of time so about 200 usd a month is the maximum i can spend.

http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?k...0E&hl=en#gid=0

Edit: Changed ram from A-data to Crucial, better timings.
Changed grpahics card to MSI Hawk 5770 models

One thing to note on the PSU is that it only has 4 SATA connectors. Other than that it looks like a fair build. :yep:

I wont be using any more than 2 sata drives anyway, besides, if i need more, i have adapters.

Seems like a good setup to me. I might recomend you go for 8 gigs of ram instead of just 4 because modern games can push ya to around 4 gigs of ram used. Possible upgrade the cpu to a dif am3 cpu but the 955 is a great cpu and OC's like a beast!

the only CPU upgrade that would make sense is to go to 6 cores, but that makes little to no sense at the time, as to the ram, I do inted to expand that to 8gb in the future.

Sounds like a good plan the. I might suggest instead of using 2 graphics cards in cros-fire instead buy one current gen one. Not only will you have the latest version of direct x 10.x whatever the x num is lol but you also wont be hassled by programs that dont sopport dual gpu's very well...

Both ati and nvidia have some awesum new cards out that will out pace those 2 in cross fire and cost around the same.

Cost arround the same in total yes, but wont cost the same per month ;) Besides these cards have both DX11 support and definitly, they are current gen cards.

Maybe bump the monitor up a notch; SLI/Crossfire scales better with higher resolutions.

And you might find a Kingston kit with good timings, instead of Crucial. Should be a heck of a lot cheaper.

Yeah, good point. A 1680 x 1050 22 inch monitor would be better with a lesser card or cards. With 2 x 5770's I would definately look at a 24 inch screen with native res 1920 x 1200.

I looked at the phenom also but then i found out that the intel i5 750 quad was just as good and with intel speedstep enabled used way less power when idle .
Regarding the motheboard , if you went for the intel i5 chip then i think something like the asus p7p55d-deluxe is a better board and it has memok as well .
Forget the cpu cooler if you get the i5 because you wont need it . and get a better moniter such as the LG W2486L-PFV with led backliting for great contrast , especially with SH5 and dark nights .
Get the best PSU you can afford .
See if you can get 8gig of ram by skimping on something else like the mouse for instance .
I would definately get windows proffesional 64 bit .

Kingston sets are not cheaper here, because of their high popularity the retailers charge a larger commission. But I am still looking for better options in that price range, occasionally used parts come up on offer on a local overclockers board, I check there regularly for good deals, but I will add an extra 4gb on a later date.
I have looked at both i5 and i7 options, neither of which provides me with more back for buck with the prices as they are here.
PSU wise, that is the best I can afford, also that particular model can put out 940w before it craps out, it is just rated at 750 because that is what it can put out even with capacitor aging taken into account over long term use.
The cpu cooler is there to keep temperatures down with the kind of overclock I plan to run it under.
As far as peripherals are concerned, I will not skimp any more on anything though am considering getting a Microsoft X6 instead of the g15, will try to get my hands on both before actually making the buy.
Monitor wise none of the 24" monitors are in my price range.
OS wise will be going to Windows 7 Ultimate as I have already have a legal edition.