New build, ~$2000 budget

[MikeScott]

Hey guys, this is my first post (and first day) on this website and it has been amazingly informative for someone who hasn't been keeping up with computer hardware for 3-4 years now.

I have a 6yr old custom built desktop that just isn't cutting it anymore and am looking at building a new one around christmas-time this year. As the title says I have around a $2000 budget for the computer (not including monitor, speakers, etc.)

I went to my local Canada Computers shop where a knowledgeable employee (who directed me to this site) wrote up this quote for me. I think it looks awesome, but I would love some second opinions and suggestions from you. I will primarily be using this system for gaming (MMOs and RPGs are big for me); I already have a new laptop for work.

1. Intel Core i7 920 Quad-Core Socket LGA1366, 2.66Ghz, 4.8GT/s QPI, 8MB L3 Cache, 45nm (Retail Boxed) (BX80601920)

2. Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Ultimate Gamer Case

3. LG GH22LS40 Black SATA DVD-Writer 22xDVD+R/-R 8xDVD+RW/6xDVD-RW 16xDVD+R DL 12xDVD-R DL 48x CD-R 32xCD-RW Retail

4. Western Digital Caviar Green (WD10EADS) 1000GB (1TB) SATA 3 Gb/s 32MB (OEM)

5. Asus P6T Deluxe V2 Socket 1366 Intel X58 + ICH10R Chipset CrossfireX / 2-Way SLI Dual-Channel Triple-Channel DDR3 2000(o.c.)/1866(o.c)/1800(o.c.)/1600(o.c.)/1333/1066Mhz 2x PCI-Express 2.0 x16 Dual GigaLAN 8-CH HD Audio 6x SATA 3.0Gb/s ATX

6. Corsair HX Series CMPSU-850HX 850W ATX EPS12V Power Supply

7. G.SKILL Trident Series DDR3 2000MHz (PC3-16000) 6GB (3x2GB) Triple Channel Kit (F3-16000CL9T-6GBTD)

8. 2x Asus EAH5850/2DIS/1GD5 ATI Radeon HD 5850 Chipset (725MHz ) 1GB (4Ghz) GDDR5 Dual Display DVI/HDMI/VGA Display PCI-Express 2.0 Graphics Card

This comes to about $2100 with tax - which is right on budget.

So any comments or thoughts please feel free!

P.S. If Matt from Canada Computers is on here, thanks a ton for your help!

[AkG]

That green WD is going to SUCK as an OS drive. They are basically low power (thus the green moniker) 5400rpm drives. GREAT for storage....not so much for an OS drive. You want the "Black" ones. I prefer the ripjaws to the Trident series but that is just personal opinion.
Not going to comment on the Xfired 5850 vs 5870. Pros and cons to everything. ;)
If you like the looks of the Antec 900, go for it. Its a decent case.

[ayah]

Yeah, if you have the WG Green as a main boot drive, you're going to cry. A WD black is what you want. A blue would be ok, but nowhere near a WD Black.

[MikeScott]

Thanks for the advice, the Black seems to be about $22 more, which is well worth a decent upgrade.

Dual 5870s would also add about $300 to my computer price though, which I'm not sure I can afford.

[3.0charlie]

Black 1Tb
Ripjaws
Single 5870
i5 750
Asus P7P55D

or

Green 1Tb
Ripjaws
Single 5870
Asus P7P55D
i5 750
AND a 64Gb SSD as an OS drive, if you can spare enough $$$.

That would be perfect. I built one very close in specs 3 weeks ago, and my customer cannot believe the speed.

[AkG]

Why not go with a single 5870 NOW, see if it can run all your games at max eye candy, and later when new ones come out that it can't run at max....drop a 2nd one in then. ;)

[MikeScott]

Hmm yeah, that is a very valid suggestion as it would also allow me to grab a nicer monitor.

I've been reading a whole bunch of reviews for both video cards and I'm sold on the ATIs; I just am not sure which one(s) will suit my needs better for 2010/2011 MMO/RPG gaming.

And sorry I know that was pretty vague, I guess I just need some hand-holding on the decision!

[3.0charlie]

No problem.

This:

Green 1Tb
Ripjaws
Single 5870
Asus P7P55D
i5 750
AND a 64Gb SSD as an OS drive

Is probably your best bang for buck. With the possibility to add a second 5870 later on (PSU can take it).

[AkG]

+1 to 3.0s list

60GB Vertex OS drive = Oh my GOD its loaded already! Boot times. ;)

[Dazmode]

Check out Antec 902. Nice case with dust filters, better cable management too.