Workstation build - $2500 or less

[WhyYouLoveMe]

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
Visio, large maps/files, large print jobs, multiple file access, multi-tasking
2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
$2500 max - tax/shipping included
3) Where do you live?
Arizona
4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. Please be very specific.
Everything including two monitors and the case
5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
All new build
6) Will you be overclocking?
No
7) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
23" or 24"
8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
In the next couple of weeks
9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? etc.
RAID 1 required
10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If so, what OS? 32bit or 64bit?
No - will buy Windows 7 64-bit


I'm building this for a real estate agent who uses Visio to open/edit/save/print large map files. He's got a lot of data and many of the maps are 200MB in size. He likes to run a lot of apps at the same time. I know he'll prefer a full tower case to show off the new build. I'm thinking a quad core, 16GB RAM, maybe two 2TB HDDs in RAID 1 for apps/data, Velociraptor for OS drive, Quadro or FireGL graphics, mobo audio and LAN fine, two DVD burners and two 23" or 24" monitors.

Thanks in advance for suggestions and comments.

EDIT: It needs to be fairly quiet, but not silent.

 

[Dangman]

$474 - Intel Core i7-930 CPU + Gigabyte GA-X58A-UD3R X58 ATX Motherboard Combo
$340 - 2 x G.Skill F3-12800CL9T-6GBNQ 3 x 2GB DDR3 1600 RAM
$50 - XFX HD-545X-YNH2 Radeon HD 5450 512MB PCI-E Video Card
$225 - Intel SSDSA2MH080G2R5 2.5" 80GB SSD
$280 - 2 x Hitachi Deskstar 7K2000 HDS722020ALA330 2TB 7200RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive
$50 - 2 x LG GH22NSS50 DVD Burner
$90 - Corsair 650TX 650W PSU
$150 - Antec P183 ATX Case
$30 - Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus HSF for LGA 1366 and LGA 1156
$100 - Windows 7 Home Premium 64bit OEM
$400 - 2 x ASUS VH236H Black 23" LCD Monitor
---
Total: $2189 plus tax and shipping.

A few differences from your initial thoughts:
- The Velociraptor drive is not a good buy these days since many $55 500GB 7200RPM consumer drives provide at least 90% of the performance offered by the Velociraptor drives but at 1/3 to 1/4th of the costs. In addition, many SSDs will just dominate a Velociraptor drive. So yeah, not a good buy
- I didn't see a need whatsoever for a Quadro or FireGL graphics with the kind of usage you've described so far. Unless I'm missing something, the $55 XFX HD 5450 would be enough.
- As with the above, I didn't think the extra 4GB of RAM was worth the extra $300. So I went with the best bang for the buck RAM choice possible. However if you really want the extra 4GB of RAM, ditch the RAM choice above and get this:
$640 - 4 x G.SKILL Ripjaws Series F3-10666CL9S-4GBRL 4GB DDR3 1333 RAM
- I went with the Antec P183 case since it was one of the most quietest cases in stock config. Plus it does look a bit more professional IMO

 

[WhyYouLoveMe]

Yeah, sorry I didn't mention he does some video editing/ripping/copying as well as some light 3D gaming. (nothing like the latest shooters, though)

I'm not familiar at all with SSDs so I'm a little hesitant to go that route. I know he wants the 'ultra' factor in this box so a SSD would be great if I wasn't a noob with them.

Love the CPU, RAM, mobo, opticals, case, PSU (pending vid card upgrade) and monitors. I had bad experiences with the Deskstar series in the past. Have they improved drastically? I'm a little skittish with those. Yeah, the extra $300 for the 4GB of RAM ain't worth it.

 

[tiraides]

Check out the AnandTech articles on SSDs in general. The long story short is that they are much better for overall performance than any mechanical HDD. Choose one that has a good controller, like Intel or Indilinx. There is no reason for you to look at a VelociRaptor.

Today's Deskstars are nothing like the "DeathStars" of old. Though faster (yet a bit more expensive) options are available, the Deskstars will be fine for your storage needs.

For decent gaming performance, consider either the HD 5770 or the HD 5850. The 5850 is much better, but it's also considerably more expensive. The 5850 will allow you to play the majority today's games at decent frame rates.

 

[Dangman]

PSU (pending vid card upgrade)

Even if you went with the HD 5850, the Corsair 650TX would still be more than enough for that setup.

But yeah, either of the video card recommendations that Tiraides made would be fine.

 

[WhyYouLoveMe]

Thank you for the feedback, guys. One more thing to nitpick: He wants a case without a front door since he uses the optical drives quite a bit. I really like the P183 but the door is a killer and it's hideous without the door. Anything else comparable? I like the PSU at the bottom, the top blow-hole and the compartmentalization.

 

[tiraides]

Cases are largely a matter of personal taste... here are a few cases to consider:

$50 - Cooler Master Elite 335 RC-335-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$50 - Thermaltake WingRS 201 VJ60001N2Z ATX Case
$60 - Antec 300 ATX Case
$70 - Cooler Master RC-590-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$60 - Cooler Master RC-690-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$80 - Cooler Master CM690 II ATX Case
$90 - Cooler Master HAF 922 RC-922M-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$100 - Lian Li PC-7B Plus II ATX Case
$100 - Lian Li Lancool PC-K7B ATX Case
$100 - Cooler Master HAF 922M RC-922M-KKN1-GP ATX Case
$110 - Lian Li PC-E8B ATX Case
$110 - Lian Li PC-7FN ATX Case
$120 - Velocity Micro GX2-W Silver Classic Aluminum Case with Side Window
$120 - Thermaltake ElementS VK60001N2Z ATX Case
$130 - Cooler Master Storm Sniper ATX Case
$150 - Antec P183 ATX Case

 

[burningrave101]

Thank you for the feedback, guys. One more thing to nitpick: He wants a case without a front door since he uses the optical drives quite a bit. I really like the P183 but the door is a killer and it's hideous without the door. Anything else comparable? I like the PSU at the bottom, the top blow-hole and the compartmentalization.

Depending on how much he wants to spend look into the Silverstone RV02 and FT02 cases. The FT02 has a professional look that would be good for a workstation build.