another config

So, OK...here is my third attempt to get the best overall performance for around 3K.  My primary use will be FPS gaming so I want to be as close as I can get to top performance for the $s and as I can only do this every 4-5 years, I want to be able to upgrade as I go and not have to make changes too often to stay current with new games.  With the new video cards on the near horizon, I would be willing to wait if it may be worth it, but only if I don't have to spend a lot more or if there will be a significant drop in the prices of what's available now.  I guess that video, processor and mamory are the top considerations, but can I get better performance by spending a bit more?? or maybe even a little less???  I want to get the most bang for the buck!

Thanks for the help.

NTEL, Core™ 2 Quad Q9450 Quad-Core 2.66GHz, 1333MHz FSB, 12MB (2 x 6MB) L2 Cache, 45nm, 95W, EM64T EIST VT XD, Retail

ZALMAN, CNPS9500A LED Copper CPU Cooler, Socket 478/754/775/939/940/AM2, Blue LED SERVICE, Overclocking, Quad-Core CPU, 10-20% Performance Increase ASUS, P5K/EPU, LGA775, Intel P35, 1600MHz FSB, DDR2-1200MHz (O.C.) 8GB/4, PCIe x16 CF /2, SATA 3 Gb/s /4, HDA, GbLAN, FW /2, ATX, Retail OCZ, 4GB (2 x 2GB) Reaper HPC Edition PC2-8500 DDR2 1066MHz CL 5-5-5-18 2.1-2.3V SDRAM DIMM, Non-ECC eVGA, e-GeForce® 9800 GX2 600MHz, 1GB (2 x 512MB) GDDR3 2000MHz, PCIe x16 SLI, DVI /2, HDMI, Retail BFG TECH, AGEIA™ PhysX Physics Card, 128MB DDR3, 32-bit PCI 2.3 SERVICE, Overclocking, Dual GPU, Optimal and Stable Performance WESTERN DIGITAL, 300GB WD VelociRaptor™, SATA 3 Gb/s, 10000 RPM, 16MB cache WESTERN DIGITAL, 500GB WD Caviar® SE16 (WD5000AAKS), SATA II 300MB/s, 7200-RPM, 16MB cache RAID, No RAID, Independent HDD Drives ROSEWILL, RCR-102 Black 52-in-1 Card Reader/Writer Drive, 3.5" Bay, Internal USB SAMSUNG, Super-WriteMaster™ SH-S203N Black 20x DVD±R/RW Dual-Layer Burner w/ LightScribe, SATA, w/ Software, OEM ANTEC, Twelve Hundred Black Full Tower Case, ATX, No PSU ZALMAN, ZM-MFC1 Black/Silver 6-Channel Fan Controller Panel, 5.25" Bay CUSTOM WIRING, Standard Wiring with Round Cables LOGISYS, Dual Cold Cathode Case Lights Kit, Blue ANTEC, Quattro 1000 Power Supply, 80 PLUS®, 1000W, 24-pin ATX12V EPS12V, SLI Certified MICROSOFT, Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit Edition w/ SP1, OEM SERVICE, OEM System Recovery (both secure HDD partition and bootable CD/DVD) SERVICE, System Binder LOGITECH, G15 Keyboard (920-000379), Black, w/ LCD, USB, Retail RAZER, Razer Copperhead™ Mouse 2000dpi, 7 Buttons, Tempest Blue, USB GAMING PC, Silver Warranty Package (3 Year Limited Parts, 3 Year Labor Warranty) SERVICE, Standard Shipping (UPS, DHL, or Fedex)

Originally posted by Flash67 I want to get the most bang for the buck!

Here are my recommendations:

INTEL, Core™ 2 Quad Q9450 Quad-Core 2.66GHz, 1333MHz FSB, 12MB (2 x 6MB) L2 Cache, 45nm, 95W, EM64T EIST VT XD, Retail

Like Matt said, this is the best processor for the money. It has the same overclocking limit as the more expensive Q9550.

ZALMAN, CNPS9500A LED Copper CPU Cooler, Socket 478/754/775/939/940/AM2, Blue LED

AVA Direct carries the Xigmatek HDT-S1283, which is rated the second best cooler at FrostyTech. This is the one I would have gotten in my system if I had known about it before I ordered.

ASUS, P5K/EPU, LGA775, Intel P35, 1600MHz FSB, DDR2-1200MHz (O.C.) 8GB/4, PCIe x16 CF /2, SATA 3 Gb/s /4, HDA, GbLAN, FW /2, ATX, Retail

I couldn't find any reviews of this motherboard at the normal review sites, but the reviews on newegg for this board were very good. If you are only ever going to use one video card then the P35 chipset will be fine. My personal view is that one high-end card is better than two cards in SLI or CrossFire, because games have to support SLI/CrossFire for it to be useful, and not all games do this well. Other people disagree. If you decide to go with SLI, then I recommend the eVGA 750i SLI FTW motherboard, although there have been some reports of video corruption with all of the 7x0i chipsets.

OCZ, 4GB (2 x 2GB) Reaper HPC Edition PC2-8500 DDR2 1066MHz CL 5-5-5-18 2.1-2.3V SDRAM DIMM, Non-ECC

Getting this memory will allow you to overclock the Q9450 past 3.2GHz, which is what you would be limited to if you only used 800MHz RAM.

eVGA, e-GeForce® 9800 GX2 600MHz, 1GB (2 x 512MB) GDDR3 2000MHz, PCIe x16 SLI, DVI /2, HDMI, Retail

Without knowing what size of monitor/resolution you game at, it's tough to recommend something. This card is for gaming at 1920 x 1200 and higher. However, some of the new video cards coming out are rumored to have performance better than a 9800 GX2. If you stick with eVGA, you can use their Step-Up Program to get one of the new cards for only the difference in price.

BFG TECH, AGEIA™ PhysX Physics Card, 128MB DDR3, 32-bit PCI 2.3

Unless you have a particular game that you want to play that supports this card, then you don't need it. The new nVidia video cards will have PhysX support incorporated into them.

WESTERN DIGITAL, 500GB WD Caviar® SE16 (WD5000AAKS), SATA II 300MB/s, 7200-RPM, 16MB cache

The new 640GB WD Caviar SE 16 uses the new 320GB platters, and is as fast on data transfer as the old Raptors. Since you are getting a VelociRaptor I assume you are interested in speed, so you're better off with the 640GB.

ANTEC, Quattro 1000 Power Supply, 80 PLUS®, 1000W, 24-pin ATX12V EPS12V, SLI Certified

The Corsair brands are a much better power supply. If you are only going to stick with one video card, then a Corsair CMPSU-750TX will be enough. If you might go with two video cards at some point, then get the Corsair CMPSU-1000HX.