Listmania!
Ulitmate Gaming Rig (March 09' Edition)
By an Amazon.com customer
Intel Core i7 965 3.2GHz 8M L3 Cache 6.4GT/sec QPI Hyper-Threading Turbo Boost LGA1366 Extreme ProcessorIntel Core i7 965 3.2GHz 8M L3 Cache 6.4GT/sec QPI Hyper-Threading Turbo Boost LGA1366 Extreme Processor
Buy new: $1,110.95
Allot of people will tell you to buy the cheaper twin of this processor, to which I say Nay! or Ni!. They will say things such as "It’s the same processor with only a slower QPI and clock speed". To which I say "But mine comes in a black box so Ha!". The true difference is this one has an unlocked multiplier for true overclocking potential.
EVGA 132-BL-E758-A1 X58 3-Way SLI Core i7 Motherboard with Tri-Channel DDR3 and Tuning UtilityEVGA 132-BL-E758-A1 X58 3-Way SLI Core i7 Motherboard with Tri-Channel DDR3 and Tuning Utility
Buy new: $289.99 / Used from: $259.95
A very solid motherboard by EVGA, this thing is an over clocker’s dream with a load of options to help you overclock and decide what your life's ambitions are. Runs DDR3 RAM, Triple SLI Ready (Nvidia or ATI) and accepts the new LGA1366 i7 processors. Plus it's made by EVGA so you can count on top of the line customer support (In Engrish).
Corsair TR3X6G1600C8D Dominator 6 GB 3 x 2 GB PC3-12800 1600MHz 240-Pin DDR3 Core i7 Memory KitCorsair TR3X6G1600C8D Dominator 6 GB 3 x 2 GB PC3-12800 1600MHz 240-Pin DDR3 Core i7 Memory Kit
Buy new: $204.98
Smokin' fast DDR3 1600MHz memory which is more than enough, plus it's Corsair which means it's very overclockable. Not to mention if you ever get rid of them they can double as an awsome hair comb.
EVGA 017-P3-1291-AR GeForce GTX295 1792 MB DDR3 PCI-Express 2.0 Graphics Card - Lifetime WarrantyEVGA 017-P3-1291-AR GeForce GTX295 1792 MB DDR3 PCI-Express 2.0 Graphics Card - Lifetime Warranty
Buy Two: Best graphics card on the market as of this writing. Go with EVGA because they make a killer product that is backed by killer support. Buy 2x for a quad SLI machine that can run any modern game at 2560x1600 with max settings and run a copy of Rent on your second monitor at the same time! Yay for Crysis and Musicals!.
Western Digital VelociRaptor 300 GB Bulk/OEM Hard Drive 2.5 Inch, 16 MB Cache, 10,000 RPM SATA II WD3000GLFS [Amazon Frustration-Free Packaging]Western Digital VelociRaptor 300 GB Bulk/OEM Hard Drive 2.5 Inch, 16 MB Cache, 10,000 RPM SATA II WD3000GLFS [Amazon Frustration-Free Packaging]
Buy new: $398.95 / Used from: $200.00
(One Optional) Can't be beat for price to speed ratio. Sure there are 2nd generation SSD's that are faster, quieter and cooler. But they are also smaller and very expensive. Buy two of these and throw them into a RAID 0 configuration for max speed loading your OS and games.
Cooler Master Cosmos ATX Full Tower Case Silver - (RC-1000-KSN1-GP)Cooler Master Cosmos ATX Full Tower Case Silver - (RC-1000-KSN1-GP)
Buy new: $197.99
Still one of the sleekest cases ever designed with a plethora of options that will make your life easy when assembling or upgrading your beast. This thing is huge! You can fit everything you ever dreamed of inside and still have room to fit a small deer or bear...one that doesn't pay it's loans on time.
Corsair CMPSU-1000HX 1000-Watt HX Professional Series 80 Plus Certified Power Supply compatible with Core i7 and Core i5Corsair CMPSU-1000HX 1000-Watt HX Professional Series 80 Plus Certified Power Supply compatible with Core i7 and Core i5
Buy new: $231.52
A very good SLI ready PSU advertised at 1000W but more in line with 1500W. You will not be disappointed by this bad boy, now, or in the future. Use it to power your PC, or do like me and use it for you mega christmas light bonaza with synconized light shows to Celine Dions Happy Christmas album.
Lite-On 20X Dual Layer DVD-RW Super All-Write (DH-20A4P-33C)Lite-On 20X Dual Layer DVD-RW Super All-Write (DH-20A4P-33C)
A solid and cheep all in one dvd burner.
Sony BDUX10S SATA Blu-ray Disc-ROM Drive (Internal)Sony BDUX10S SATA Blu-ray Disc-ROM Drive (Internal)
Buy used from: $99.99
(Optional)A good blu ray disk reader for any movies or games that may come in this format.
Zalman CNPS9700LED Ultra Quiet Cpu CoolerZalman CNPS9700LED Ultra Quiet Cpu Cooler
Buy new: $39.99 / Used from: $42.00
A very good CPU Cooler and highly recommended over the stock cooler if you plan to overclock at all. This thing will lower your temperatures considerably Note: This sucker is huge make sure your case is too.
Arctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound 3.5 GramsArctic Silver 5 Thermal Compound 3.5 Grams
Buy new: $5.71
Don't go with stock thermal gel! Buy the best and keep your CPU cool! Not that it costs a whole lot anyways...
PCI Express Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Champion SeriesPCI Express Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Champion Series
Buy new: $162.04 / Used from: $154.99
(Optional) Yeah sure, you could go with the on board sound and get all kinds of electrical interference in your sound, not to mention tax your CPU with redundant sound calculations. Or you could use your extra slot to throw in one of these bad boys and enjoy hardware accelerated true 3D sound and a really cool knob that you can put in your 3.5 bay and turn right and left…YAY!
Logitech Z-5500 THX-Certified 505-Watt 5.1 Digital Surround Sound Speaker SystemLogitech Z-5500 THX-Certified 505-Watt 5.1 Digital Surround Sound Speaker System
Buy new: $385.87 / Used from: $341.99
(Optional)Can you say 505 Watts of THX Certified Awesomeness? I can't...which is why I typed it. For the buck these are very good speakers for gaming or even watching a nice movie.
Samsung SyncMaster 305T 30-inch LCD MonitorSamsung SyncMaster 305T 30-inch LCD Monitor
(Monitor)Last update I choose a nice 30" Gateway monitor, come to find out later it's not so nice, in fact it caled me mean names. 60% of the gateways ended up dying 6 months after purchase (Ouch!). This 16:10 30" LCD however is looking very promising with a 2560x1600 native resolution and 1000:1 contrast ratio, this thing is a performer (it's true I watched it do Hamlet!)