A True Rookie...Any Comments

[chirp]

Hello all,
New to the forum and thought I would ask for input. I am following the 12 steps to building "the world's best PC" as detailed in the February issue of MAXIMUM PC MAGAZINE.

Antec 900 case
bfg GeForce 8800 GTS video card
EVGA nForce 680i SLI motherboard
Intel core2 Duo E6300 CPU
1 GB Corsair TwinX ddr2/800 Memory cards
Antec TruePower Trio 650 PSU
250 GB Maxter Diamond Max 9 Hard Drive
Lite-On It Super AllWrite SHM-165H6S Optical drive

This is supposed to come in under $1500.00 and work great. I have already purchased the case and the PSU and managed to save $85.00 over the mags suggested costs. I am now looking for the mobo and CPU but, I am willing to invest more if it would be worth it for me to do it at this time. I am not worldly enough to chance the upgrades w/o confirmation of what I am doing. It was suggested that I look at the ASUS Striker Extreme board. Can I go with that and leave the rest the same or do I have to start upgrading all other items?
I am not currently a "gamer" but do enjoy burning cd's and watching DVD's. My son might enjoy the gaming aspects more than me. I would like to eventually hook this up to a Sony Bravia big screen LCD and possibly into a digital stereo for indepth cd and dvd burning.

Please complicate my thoughts by adding your thoughts.

[JC316]

In all honesty, if you are not a gamer, then there is no need for the 8800GTS. You could get an X1950 pro and save a BUNDLE on cost. The 1950 Pro can handle pretty much any game right now and will be great for HD out's.

The Evga board should do good if you aren't into overclocking, but if you want to upgrade, the striker will work. Again, I don't think you would need something that powerful if you are not into gaming.

[Jimmy 2004]

http://www.asus.com/products4.aspx?l1=3&l2=11&l3=397&model=1439&modelmenu=1

That's the page with the info on, I don't know about price or performance, but from taking a look there I can tell you it should work fine with that setup.

One question - is the hard drive SATA or IDE? You should try to get a SATA drive, possibly SATA 3Gb/s, because those have faster transfer rates.

Edit: and I agree with JC, if you aren't gaming that machine is overkill.

[SK-1]

Overkill for burning and surfing,....but on the verge of uberness as far as a gamer.

[Mediarocker543]

I want the latest in graphics. i dont got money though. ^_^ stuck with a 6800 until 2010 :D

[chirp]

Hey Gang,
Thanks for the comments. Sorry for the delay in my follow up. I hope you are still out there and following my thread.

I think the general response has been that I am overkilling things based on my interests. I feel those comments are valid and have resigned myself to buying a more economical yet, still functional towards my needs, video card. I am still wondering about the motherboard though.
A friend suggested I consider the Asus P5N32-E SLI Plus. After reading reviews I feel this board is too good to be true. It appears that, despite its "labels" it isn't a 680i chipset on the board...it is a hybrid of the 650i and (?) board. Other comments suggest that this board is a "fix" of other Asus boards, however, although that comes across as a lessor technology the reviews imply great things. It offers future upgrades, stability, and it is economical. I don't understand the "Northbridge ans Southbridge" aspects or, whether or not I should concern myself with them.

Any thoughts?