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if he's a casual gamer, I'd drop the x-fi, and go with onboard audio. That'll free up more cash for a better cpu, or more ram. If he's into photoshop, 2gb of ram would be nice.
 
You know, I really like newegg. The prices are great (I live in LA) so the shipping is fawking awesome. My next upgrade (years from now maybe) im buying from the guys here at [H]. They have lots of good deals here on the trading/selling/buying forum. Since the 512MB 7800gtx is out, a lot of people are selling their 256mb 7800gtx for a damn good price.
 
I agree on the sound card. I have an old cheap plain audigy. Theres no way im paying over $60 for a sound card. Im a gamer also who doesnt photoshop.

two gbs of ram is helping out a lot in gaming. I couldnt handle f.e.a.r on good quality/decent res. Thats when I had 1gb of cheap kingston value ram. Now I got some stronger ram (2gb also) and I play it with ease.

also with the power supply, if he doesnt like dealing with wires, id go modular. They look awesome.

damn you picked a cheap case! im personally getting a super lanboy soon. Its not pricey, its very light, good for wire management, looks cool, and great for airflow.
 
osalcido said:
why are ppl so convinced that dual core is needed to be a good system?

People think this because it is better for multitasking, and also programs will start becoming multithreaded so the will need the dual cores.
 
photoshop is a semi multithreaded program, and benefits from dual core ;)

also, if he's doing something that'll hog up a lot of cpu cycles for a while, the system will still be pretty responsive since he has 2 cores :D
 
my couple pointers (i run a computer custom shop)

for progs like photoshop i agree a dual core is a good investment.

a few things i would reccommend

don't get the NEC drive, i put one in a build and had to replace it because it was flaky, get a lite-on, benq, or plextor. all are excellent quality drives, and lite-on's can be had for a few more dollars

get a 6800gs, right now they are easily the best price vs performance cards on the market, if i wasn't still on AGP i would have grabbed one in a heartbeat

server/full tower case is the way to go. trust me, when it comes to heat dissipation and room for you to work, you will thank me for getting a bigger case

PSU - this will be debated alot. i have personally converted to modular, and use a new model x-connect, this thing is ROCK solid for me, though you will hear this debated, i still reccomend them. and their warranty rma is solid. they will take care of you should something go wrong, no questions asked.

and personally i like Abit motherboards, and use them exclusively (unless someone asks specifically for something else) again when it comes to systems, i look at warranty, performance, tweakability, stability, and cost. abit is my choice here. however i'm not certain of their dual core boards (essentially if they support them yet or not, but i'm guessing they do).

as for audio..eh i like pci cards for it. check out the chaintech av-710 for a good standalone card. i just ordered one for a media box and it was like 25 bucks. either that or find an older audigy, they still work fine for gaming.

as for xp search around i've seen oems as low as 80bucks.
 
Although you said you wernt including speakers, monitor etc in the budget, im going to give a suggestion.

First, look at used/second hand home amplifiers and speakers. I got a 320W late 1970s kennwood 4 channel amplifier for free, someone was moving out and it didnt sell at a yard sale. broke power switch, so it is always on. Its about the size of my mid-atx case, but damn, they really dont make them like they used to. I was at bestbuy, and for something with similar features to this, I would have to fork over around $400-500 just for an amp/tuner. Then I paid $20.00 for a 120W sony home amplifier/tuner. Its about the size of a VCR, remote controll, all digital stuff. Its nice. Just add speakers.

Older stereo equipment, was back when people actually gave a crap about quality. None of this lame plastic over-rated maiden of china junk. Although there was quite a fair share of lame over-rated worthless crap 30-40 years ago. But what Im trying to say is, you can get enough amplifier to make yourself deaf while shooting guns in BF2, without having to spend much.

I really cant think of any suggestions for cpus or motherboards, I would have to look up some things on google, and my internet is being retarted right now. Good luck with the build. Keep checking places like newegg and see if they have any hot deals over the thanksgiving holiday.
 
Antec P150 with 430W PSU
Opteron 165
DFI Ultra-D
2 x 1GB Crucial Value RAM
WD2500KS
NEC 3540
6800GS

under $1100 if you shop around and I don't think you'll find anything that offers more bang/buck
 
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