Thu Feb 18, 2010 6:50 pm by brentbizzle
You should really look into the i7. I'm not a gamer, but I believe I read that modern games benifit from multiple cores and threads, and with the i7's 4 cores with 2 threads per core, it sounds like it will really help. Plus, you'll have the added power savings of the chip winding down and not overclocking itself when it's not needed. As far as video cards go, start researching now. Everyone has their own opinions on ati vs nvidia, and which card is the best. You're going to have to go SLI if you want a really good gaming PC.
Don't know if you know anything about RAM, but you won't notice a difference between DDR2 and 3 and their various clock speeds, although 3 is where we're heading so keep that in mind when it comes to future proofing. Just don't get caught up in getting the uber hax0rz fast memory, waste of money. If you're air cooling, go with 120mm fans. They've got the best flow/noise ratio. A modular PSU will also help keep things tidy inside and prevent a block in air flow.
A lot of what you're asking for is personal preference. For example I wouldn't have some led'd out case because no one but your geek friends will think it's cool, and it's annoying at night if your pc is in the same room. I would also be balancing performace/heat/noise because I don't want it to sound like a leaf blower just to keep my cpu from frying. And budget is another huge thing to consider.
Founding father of the Wiibrew Packgen.
About 2 noob posts away from going ape sh*t
