For my 18th b-day, I'm going to make a new comp (reusing things like the case, DVD drive, etc.. from my current comp), and this is what I plan on getting:

https://secure.newegg.com/NewVersion/Wishlist/PublicWishDetail.asp?WishListNumber=3272645&WishListTitle=john%27s+18th+b%2Dday+dream

(There is one change I am going to make already. The 250gb hdd will be replaced with a 320gb one of the same series/specs for $20 more)

Comments? Suggestions?

It all looks good, except for the PSU- you can probably find a better deal than that if you want.

Agreed, everything else seems good. $110 for a 550W PSU seems overly high...

Oh, and the RAM looks obscenely expensive. Check Ebay- you can get 1 GB sticks of DDR for $35 with a "buy it now".

you have to be carful with things from EBay though, but yeah, you can get some them.

Here's a different PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16817182037

I need DDR2, and it has to be low-latency DDR2 800 - hence I got a high-end Corsair XMS2 DDR2 RAM. I also want a high-end RAM for overclocking. Another reason I don't want used RAM from ebay - its probably crappy RAM. If you can find me less expensive DDR2 800 RAM for the same (or better) specs (new), I'd love a link.

The PSU's price is right on the mark for its specs. It has active PFC, is very efficient (~85% - which is very, very high, even among the high-end PSUs), modular cables, is SLI and Crossfire approved, has dual 12v rails w/ each having 18A, is very good at keeping the voltages on each rail within spec even under high-load (a 12v rail on even a medium-range PSU can vary as much as .4v, whereas this one has a variance of more like .04v ), and is the latest gen of ATX (meaning it has SATA power connections and the 24pin mobo connection).

In short, its a d*mn good PSU with all the bells and whistles that will hold up under even the stresses of overclocking. I'll gladly pay the additional ~$40 for a PSU of this quality over some crappy, bargin bin one. I've already had a PSU die on me (and it was a crappy, bargin bin one), I'd rather not have a second one die on me.

http://computers.search.ebay.com/ddr2-800_Memory-for-Desktop-PC_W0QQbsZSearchQQcatrefZC6QQcoactionZcompareQQcoentrypageZsearchQQcopagenumZ1QQfgtpZQQfposZ53226QQfromZR2QQfsooZ2QQfsopZ2QQftrtZ1QQftrvZ1QQlopgZQQsacatZ1480QQsadisZ200QQsaprchiZQQsaprcloZQQsargnZQ2d1QQsaslcZ2QQsbrftogZ1QQsofocusZbs

Prices don't look much better than neweggs

http://search.ebay.com/search/search.dll?sofocus=bs&sbrftog=1&catref=C6&from=R10&satitle=ddr2+800+2gb&sacat=1480%26catref%3DC6&bs=Search&fsop=2%26fsoo%3D2&coaction=compare&copagenum=1&coentrypage=search&sargn=-1%26saslc%3D2&sadis=200&fpos=53226&ftrt=1&ftrv=1&saprclo=&saprchi=

Looks like I'd save a mesely $10 if I bought the corsair XMS2 off of ebay - http://cgi.ebay.com/CORSAIR-XMS2-2GB-2-x-1GB-240-Pin-DDR2-SDRAM-DDR2-800_W0QQitemZ290003515934QQihZ019QQcategoryZ74942QQssPageNameZWD1VQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

No thanks, I'd rather spend the extra $10 to get it from one of (if not the) best computer online store ever with a near flawless track record

Yeah, with RAM you have the definite danger that it's dead ram.

Nice list, moving onto AM2 is a great idea. Though if its for gaming and your an AMD fan, AMD is cutting down prices aggressively soon by the end of this month around July 27 (when Core 2 Duo is announced), because Intel's Core 2 has beaten the FX-62 in almost all benchmarks including gaming which has been a AMD stronghold for the past few years. Here's the article link: http://www.tgdaily.com/2006/07/14/amd_really_will_drop_athlon64_prices/

Oooh, that's cool. I look forward to it...

I already ordered it

I don't really care about the new Core 2 Duo procs, because even though they are faster, at the high resolutions for a game (around 1280x1024) the difference in FPS between the FX-62 and the Core 2 Duo Extreme Editions is a measely ~1 fps (if that). Seeing as this upgrade is primarily for gaming (my current CPU handles all my other computing needs just fine), I don't care if the new Intel CPUs are faster

So take all those gaming benchmarks you see that show the new intel's destroying the AMDs, because they are all at crazy low resolutions (640x480) with absolutly every graphics option turned off - who seriously plays a game like that?!? (unless, of course, they have to )

true, that does take a toll on performance. With a comp like that, you are running all out.

Either we're looking at different benchmarks, or you're a little off. I see the Core 2 E6300 (the cheapest Core 2 model) outperforming the Athlon 64 X2 3800+ by around 10 fps in most tests (done at 1024*768) and with a nearly 40 fps lead in Far Cry.
Here's the link if you don't believe me:
http://www.xbitlabs.com/articles/cpu/display/core2duo-e6300_11.html
Overall, yes, you're fine. I just happen to be an Intel fanboy who's on a budget.

Intel's really not that bad, especially when it comes to cpus, imho.

The P4s (specifically the Prescotts) sucked big time, and Intel tried desperately to cover up that fact. They were hot, inefficient, and sloooowww. The dual core Pentium Ds are even worse, as it involves TWO of those dreaded prescott cores side-by-side (and it wasn't even technically dual-core - but instead two seperate CPUs sharing one socket)

The Pentium M, and Core* series are much better

As for the gaming benchmarks, I was looking at the hardocp.com ones - which are always the best

Oh, and you must also remember than the Core 2 Duos aren't available yet

True. I'm perfectly happy with my pentium M though.

Oh, yes. I'm drooling expectantly for one, though. While we're on that, does anyone know of a decent mobo for Core 2 Duo that's around 100 bucks?

not sure if they are out yet, as the chip isn't quite yet.