To the TC,

I read through your previous thread and this one, and find it funny because, just last week, I was in the EXACT same situation as you. Literally. For starters, I was thinking of making the jump from console gaming to PC gaming, and was looking into buying a pre-built gaming PC. As far as I was concerned, this was the only way to go about it, as I had no idea that building my own would be an option. However, it did not take long for the latter concept to be brought to my attention, and I started looking into it. Like you, I was very skeptical at first. I mean, I hardly knew the difference between a CPU and GPU, let alone all the other seemingly complicated components needed, so the task of actually buying all the parts needed to build my own PC and then putting it all together was very daunting, to say the least. But, because I knew I would save so much money, I continued looking into it, and the more I researched it, the more I started to consider the idea.

Then, like you, I created a topic on this board asking for help and how to go about purchasing all the parts required. It was at this point that I discovered Newegg, and for the next four days, I spent a ton of time researching all the different components needed along with their specs and asking a ton of questions. Also, like you, I gave myself a maximum budget of $2000, and, just for the record, I'm Canadian as well, which means everything for us is a bit more expensive.

Skip ahead to yesterday morning when I finally ordered everything. As I somewhat expected before committing to building my own PC, I went over my budget cap. The cost of the actual computer is a bit under $2200, and the final cost of everything, and I mean EVERYTHING, came out to $2500 exactly (this includes the monitor, keyboard, mouse, and headset). That said, I am very confident and happy with alll the choices I made, and cannot wait for everything to finally get shipped to my place. I am also happy that I decided to take the path of building my own computer instead of buying a pre-built one because of how much I learnt.

http://www.gamespot.com/pages/forums/show_msgs.php?topic_id=27380778

So, I highly recommend that you take a look at this thread, if not read through all of it, because of how much helpful information it contains and because of how similar both of our situations are.

Also, my final build is as such:

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CASE- Cooler Master HAF 922 Mid Tower

MOTHERBOARD- Asus P6X58D LGA 1366

CPU- Intel Core i7-930 2.8 GHz

GPU- Asus Geforce GTX 480

SSD(not required)- Intel X25-V 40GB

HARD DRIVE- Western Digital AV-GP 500GB

RAM- Corsair XMS3 6GB (3x2GB) DDR3 1600

PSU- Antec TruePower TP-750 750W

UPS(optional)- CyberPower 1350 VA 810W

OPTICAL DRIVE- Asus DRW-24B1ST DVD burner/drive

COOLING FAN- Cooler Master Hyper N 520 CPU cooler

OS- Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit

-

If you were to use my build as a base, you could lower the price by maybe downgrading a few things and simply drop the SSD and/or UPS. That way, you can easily stay under your $2000 cap for the computer itself, and even have enough left over to get yourself a decent monitor, keyboard/mouse, and speakers. Really hope this helps, as I completely understand your situation.

Well everyone, I finally ordered. Should be here in about a week.

Thanks again for all the help.

Also, never mind my last question about pricematching I figured it out. And I think I'm just going to stick with everything I have right now because as long as I and everyone else keeps posting here, I don't think I'm ever going to get to ordering. That said, thank you raven for pointing out that my DVD driver was nothing but, however, when it comes to everything else, I don't think I'm going to be making anymore changes. I'm happy with what I have, and even if I regret a choice or two later down the road, that's life.

Like I said, once everything gets shipped to my place, I'll be back here for more help, if needed.

^

Actually the monitor is 1920x1080. You know what they say about assuming...

^

When you say pricematching, does that just mean that your buying lower from other places, or does Newegg/NCIX have a policy where they match any lower prices?

^

Are you pricematching from Newegg?

The thing is, those are only the components from Newegg, which comes out at $2272.07 from that site. Accessories such as the monitor, keyboard, etc. are going to be purchased from Futureshop, which adds another $250. So, in the end, I'm actually saving a bit of money using Newegg as opposed to NCIX.

And, to answer Cheesehead's question, the final price of EVERYTHING, tax and shipping included, is around $2500. I know it's a lot, but it's something I'm willing to do, and I knew I would be spending a good two grand when I first made the decision to start this.

^

Haha, luckily I decided to pop back in here this morning before ordering. Quickly swapped the DVD drive for the burner you suggested (now I'm paying a whole $1 extra because of you!). I'm also considering switching my SSD for the other you suggested. Other than then that... I think I have everything covered. Thanks for that last bit of feedback though, raven. Saved me the shock of realizing I ordered something wrong once I got all this.

Well, everyone, it's all finally finished. Everything is set and ready to order. After spending the last few hours finalizing everything and picking out a monitor, mouse, keyboard, and headset, I can now say that I am done with this first phase of PC gaming.

The last few days have been pretty crazy in terms of how much information my brain had to take in, and I am now a hundred times more PC-savy than I was 48 hours ago. Of course, I have everyone who has helped me out here to thank for it all. Every bit of help was and is greatly appreciated, and I will not forget it. You guys at Gamespot/Gamefaqs really outdid yourselves this time.

Now that all of that is aside, if all goes well, I'll be back here in a week's time for further help in actually putting all this junk together. =P

PC building, here I come!