My upcoming build

[Eyolan]

Hey all, I'm building a new machine for the first time to replace my 5 year old one.

Current Machine:

Pentium 4 Hyper Threaded 3Ghz
Radeon 9600 / 9700 PRO
1 Gig of Ram
80Gig HDD

New Build:

CPU - Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 3Ghz 1333MHz FSB
Mobo - MSI P45 Neo3-FR
GPU - Radeon HD 4870
Memory - 2x2Gb(4Gb) Kingston DDR2 800
OS - Vista Home Premium 64
Monitor - Dell 22" E228WFP
Case - COOLER MASTER Elite 330
Fan - Thermaltake A1280 120mm Case Fan (Should I get 2, or just one for the front?)
PSU - COOLMAX CXI-500B ATX12V 500W
HDD - 320Gb Western Digital

Total w/ monitor: ~$1,160.00

Is there any serious bottlenecks I need to be worried about and will I see a good improvement?

 

[onedestinazn2]

shell out the extra money and get the 640gb harddrive and this also ensures a much faster drive

 

[Dangman]

Ditch the PSU. You're spending $300 on a video card and $200 on a CPU. Don't be dumb and cheap out on the PSU. I recommend getting this PSU:
Corsair 750TX 750W PSU - $99

And yes you'll see a major performance improvement over your current build.

 

[Eyolan]

Do I really need a 750W PSU?

How about this Rosewill RP550V2-D-SL L 550W

 

[Dangman]

Do I really need a 750W PSU?

How about this Rosewill RP550V2-D-SL L 550W

No you don't need a 750W PSU. However, you do need a better QUALITY PSU. In terms of price, performance and power, that the Corsair 750TX PSU is a great choice. That Rosewill isn't a good choice either.

However if you don't feel like spending $100 on a PSU, the Corsair 450VX is enough for your setup:
Corsair 450VX 450W PSU - $70

 

[Eyolan]

No you don't need a 750W PSU. However, you do need a better QUALITY PSU. In terms of price, performance and power, that the Corsair 750TX PSU is a great choice. That Rosewill isn't a good choice either.

However if you don't feel like spending $100 on a PSU, the Corsair 450VX is enough for your setup:
Corsair 450VX 450W PSU - $70

Looks good. Thanks for the tips.