$1,000 to spend on a new rig

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JAGX02

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Hello, I'm a college student and I'm looking to build my own PC for the first time, and I'm trying to get the most bang for my buck. I'll be using this PC for everything, from word processing to gaming. I've got ~$1000 to spend, so I'm thinking the best option would be to go to an online site like Newegg and buy all the parts and then either assemble it myself (I've had limited experience replacing HDDs, RAM, and gfx cards) or having a local place like Best Buy do it for me. I've not had any experience with over clocking, but I would like to look into it, although I'm nervous about frying my hardware or wearing it out prematurely. I'm sure this will affect which hardware I should use depending on whether or not I want to OC it.

There are a whole lot of options out there, but roughly speaking, I had something like this in mind:

[$280]Processor-Intel Core i7 920 (I'm assuming this is better than the 860, even though it is similarly priced?)
I read that the 920 is good because it takes advantage of triple-channel architecture and will be upgradeable later on if I want to upgrade my processor in a few years. It also said something about automatic OC ‘Turbo boost' or something, which might make over clocking easier for a newb like me?

[$250-300]RAM-6 GB of either OCZ or Corsair DDR3 triple channel RAM. I'm not sure which brand is better or what would be a good option (DOMINATOR GT vs OCZ BLADE series vs regular DOMINATOR, and what about low voltage versions of the same memory)? All I do know is that top-of-the-line memory is too much money, so I'd want to scale down to bring me back within my budget.

[$350]Video Card-Admittedly, I've fallen behind the times in SLI and Crossfire in terms of benefits. I'm not a graphics junkie, but I'd want my rig to look nice and perform well. That being said, I'm not sure which card would be best on my somewhat limited budget, or if I should invest in multiple cards? Or would it be better to invest in one expensive card?

[$100-150]Case-A full tower cooling-type case seems to be what I would need. I'd like expandability and I also know that if I do OC (or even if I don't), that temperature is a major factor in the performance and lifespan of any PC. With this is mind, I just looked into these ones for functionality and price reference:

-AZZA Solano 1000 Full-Tower Advance Cooling Case w/ Dual 230mm Fan + Extra 3 Fans
-In-Win Maelstrom Full Tower Gaming Case w/ Sound Absorbing Foam
-Cooler Master HAF 932 High Air Flow ATX Full Tower Case Black

[$150-300]Motherboard-As far as these go, I have no idea what I would need for this type of rig, in terms of ports, compatibility, or anything else. I know it's perhaps the most important component, so I'd need a more tech-oriented user to comment.

[$100]HDD-I don't really care what size or make, just so long as it's quick enough. I have already own two twin internal WDs that I'm using externally via esata, for moving around and backing up data among several computers.
[$80?]Power Supply-I don't know, but I saw that a similar PC at Dell used a 750k unit, so I'll use that as a reference…

[$?]Extra Fans-How many, if any? I know most power supplies havetheir own, and the case will feature some, and perhaps the memory/gpu will have some fans/sinks? I'm also weary of liquid cooling in terms of installation/maintenance and price.

[$150-250]Monitor-I know a bit about displays, it's just a matter of finding a good-valued one. Anything over 22 inches with a good refresh rate and reliable brand will do. Obviously a display with high resolution is a must with the graphics card I'll be using.

[?]Operating System-I actually have a Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit upgrade disk, but I need another OS to upgrade from. I'm thinking of maybe buying some Widows XP whatever online and then just upgrading?

So clearly, I'm way over budget and I'm not too experienced or eager to do any extreme OC type stuff, nor am I sure about multiple graphics cards. I need to trim down the costs, I was thinking primarily about maybe scaling down the RAM in terms of performance or maybe brand? And perhaps trying to get a cheaper mobo or display? But given my preferences about OC and graphics cards, would it be a good idea to invest in all of this top-tier stuff or is that really only for those who want to OC everything and run Crisis on High? I'd also be looking for some good warranty coverage since I'm buying all of these parts online and I may have to go with lesser brands.
Any input would be appreciated!
 
Well you've got what you need down, but for ~$1000 (I'm assuming USD) your better off to go with something other then an i7. Since they're expensive, and perform great, but a lesser new quad will be just as good.

CPU/MOBO/RAM
Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, Digital Cameras and more! great combo going on now.

HDD
Newegg.com - Western Digital Caviar Blue WD6400AAKS 640GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

GPU
Newegg.com - SAPPHIRE 100282SR Radeon HD 5850 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card w/ATI Eyefinity - Desktop Graphics / Video Cards

PSU
Newegg.com - CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply - Power Supplies

So for me that ended up being $823.25, so ~$150 for case of your choice. I just noticed you wanted a monitor too, so I guess it'd be best to scale down the video card. Maybe go with a 5770, or 4890 instead.
 
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