Hunter,
I am sorry for being so long winded, but I love building computers. I hope my post helps you in building your new machine. If you have any specific questions you can either post here or I can send you my work email. I would be glad to answer any questions you have and walk you though overclocking your system if you choose to go that route. Just a little background on myself before you read my drivel. I have been building my own computers since 266mhz CPU's were considered fast. I have never been in the position to waste money, so I tend to over research and compare before I make any purchase.
Now to the meat and potatoes.
Computers need to be balanced systems or you are just wasting cash. If you are getting top of the line hardware for everything else, you really need to buy an SSD. There is no point in bottle necking your system by putting in a slow HD. Raptor drives are fast, but they cost almost as much as an SSD. I wouldn't even bother with them and just jump straight to SSD (its 3.5 (Raptor) vs a 4.0 (SSD) to put it in EZ Server terms). Your HD/SSD will store all of your data, and your computer will have to access it before starting any calculations. Without the hard drive and the software housed on it. Your computer is a whole lot of nothing. You do not want to be skimping on this component.
The entry price for SSDs may be scary, but you can buy a 120GB with decent read/write speeds for just under $300. Also, remember you have the RAID 0 option, which will use two hard drives as one. This increases performance because your system can write/read from both drives at the same time. Also you don't lose any storage space (2x 60gb = 120gb but at a faster speed). Also, you can stripe more than 2 drives. I use to run 2x Raptors (10,000 RPM) in RAID 0 and my single SSD blows them out of the water. My next machine will most likely have 2x SSD configured in RAID 0. I know you can buy PCI-E SSDs now that are pre configured in a RAID 0 type setup, yielding HUGE speed increases over a single SSD, but they are quite pricey and take up a PCI-E slot. And I wouldn't recommend squeezing one of these between two video cards if you go SLi.
The biggest con for SSD is price, but they are worth it. The biggest complaint on SSD is reliability and write times at the moment, but since there are no moving parts, you have a lot less chance of a hard drive crashing (permanent data loss). Most SSDs are equipped to rotate which sectors data is being written to, to balance the wear. Because of this, as you get closer to a dying SSD, your hard drive can alert you that it needs to be replaced. It is very unlikely to wake up one day and have a dead SSD. Some of the better brands are posting over a million MTBF hours. That means your drive is more likely to be replaced due to new technology than because it died. The write times have been greatly improved in the newest generation of SSDs and there is almost no point in buying an SLC over a MLC SSD now on some drives, because the technology really has jumped leaps and bounds this year. There are many benefits to moving to SSD. Faster seek times, it is solid state so there are no moving parts, seek times are non existent. Noise is non existent for a SSD compared to the constant chatter of an HD. The loudest part of your computer will be your fan. Heat and power consumption are far better in an SSD over an HD. Since there are no moving parts, SSDs are less susceptible to knocks and bumps than a regular HD. You can't really consider this a con, but having 3.5 drive bays with 2.5 SSDs can be annoying unless your case comes with 2.5 mounts for its drive bays.
The new 6 core CPU from Intel is sexy, and I have been debating giving/selling my current I7 to buy one, but I am not sure it is worth the increased price over an I7 920. Two extra cores is nice, but there are still a lot of programs out there that are not multi core enabled. Granted, you can run more apps and bind their affinity to different cores, but that is dependent on how many programs you are going to be running at once that will even utilize the cores they are on. If you are on a tight budget, I would recommend overclocking an I7 920 to 3.33+ ghz and spending the money you save on SSDs. (I currently run an I7 920 clocked at 3800mhz air cooled, posting 30C idle temps and max with 100% core stress peaks up to 75C. The cap for I7 is 85C danger zone 95C is absolute redline.) If you are worried about over volting your CPU, don't. I am actually running less voltage on my CPU now that it is overclocked than before.
Now to the rest of your computer:
Memory: I am a big fan of Corsair RAM, I am not 100% satisfied with my corsair dominator ram and their oversized heatsinks on top of each chip getting in the way of my cpu heatsink. For my next computer I would try out OCZ as they are coming up on Corsair quite fast, and would be worth looking at. I haven't heard anything really negative about OCZ. They also make some insane SSD drives as well. One thing to take note of in RAM is the CAS latency. Low CAS can actually improve the performance of your RAM better than higher frequency. I would look for something in the 7 - 8 range for CAS at around 1600. Remember if you are going to use triple channel, buy the matched pairs in one packet, and not single chips. Also, keep in mind some boards may boast 1600 speeds for the RAM but with large ram configurations or certain CPU's it is downclocked to the 1000 - 1300 range. You will want to decide on a motherboard first, then buy a good set of compatible RAM.
Motherboard: I noticed you didn't list a specific motherboard, or even specifications on it that you want. This is the thing that ties all of your components together. I wouldn't ignore it. Especially as it will define the maximum components you can get. Why buy a SATA 6gbs HD if your mobo doesn't support it? Why buy top end sli video cards if you are running 4x/1x pci-e? I originally was an ASUS fan, but I have since become a hater of ASUS due to their lack of support on their products after release. They are really slow to release drivers and have gone as far as to delete user's who are posting problems on their forums. I have since gone with EVGA, and even though my board has since been replaced/upgraded a few times, I still find regular BIOS updates. Which is nice to know that a company will support their product even after releasing it. They also are willing to upgrade your old hardware if they release new hardware within 6 months of your purchase. (I skipped on my upgrade as I just finished my system when the new motherboard came out and didn't want to tear it apart). Every problem I have had with my motherboard, was normally fixed by a new BIOS update by the time I noticed the problem.
Power Supply: I have purchased Silverstone for my last two PSU's. Back when I was researching for my first mega computer, they were the only company that would post their constant wattage. Some companies post their peak wattage to boast their number, but the actual numbers can fall below that due to heat. And on my most recent computer, they were the only company that was willing to release a tri-sli ready PSU that was under 1200 watts showing they were confident in their numbers. I also love their cases ...
Case: I originally tried Silverstone, because of their PSU but their build quality in cases was amazing. All the metal interior parts were rounded. No more cut hands while working on the inside of my case. For my most current computer. I tried the Silverstone Raven. It gives plenty of room to work in, I like the 90 degree twist as I can plug and unplug my components without having to reach behind my computer (or even get out of my chair), which means I can push it directly up to the wall and also not have to worry about heat as it ejects the heat upwards (heat rises naturally too). If you do look into this, make sure you check out the V1 as that style is larger than the current v2 chassis.
Uninterrupted Power Supply: APC is pretty much king for this. I don't know if it fits into your budget, but I have setup my machine and my modem/router on one of these. It is nice if your area has power fluctuation problems. Lights dimming, and power flickers don't interrupt your gaming session or corrupt your data. They also guarantee any hardware that is hooked up to it. They will refund you if your components break due to a surge/lightening strike. Keep in mind, with a beastly 1000watt PSU you will need a high end UPS to match it, or your computer will just shut off when it loses AC power. They sell a nice 1500watt one that has 2 hour battery life. You should be able to squeeze out 30min of gaming at least on it.
Video Card: I currently run 2x GTX 280s in my system. I am not sure it is worth it to get 2 cards over one, the speed is nice, but the heat really hurts your system. I have actually had my video cards overheat causing a shutdown. Also, the heat these things puts off is enough to heat my room. (Seriously ... even in the winter, with the heat off, I can sit in my room in my boxers and still break a sweat if both me and my wife are gaming ... I currently live in Canada). The new 400 GTXs are even worse for heat. Remember, your video cards sit right next to your CPU and your RAM, the heat they generate affects the rest of your components. They also take up a lot of space, and most PCI-E boards don't make 2x 16x PCI-E slots, most will run in a 16x/8x configuration. So make sure you get one that is 16x/16x if you do go SLi. I am a fan of Nvidia over ATI, just because I have had fewer problems with all my Nvidia boards versus my ATI machines. I would check out EVGA as well if you want a manufacturer for the board.
Sound Card: I am torn on this, I don't really enjoy my on board sound card, but my X-Fi doesn't really make me feel like it was worth the purchase. Especially since it doesn't even put out 5.1 surround through its optical output. Maybe as a reference board, but Creative is pretty horrible on supporting their older hardware. It took almost a year to get some working vista drivers, and almost 6 months before Win 7 drivers were released, and I still find this thing to be finicky. They even had fan's submit more stable drivers than they could, and it seemed they spent more time trying to squelch those drivers than developing their own. I would steer away from a sound card all together unless you have a nice sound system and use your computer as your primary media machine. Considering most headsets are simulated surround sound anyways, its not worth the money.
Liquid Cooling: I can't really comment much on liquid cooling, as I have not ventured to test it myself. I have looked into it, and it just sounded like a lot of hassle for not a whole lot of pay off. Dealing with the radiators having to be at the highest point on your case to avoid air bubbles, dealing with water pumps, and having all that extra weight, not to mention liquid in my machine scared me away. I hear good things about the potential gains when you purchase a non budget system, but for me, some high end fans was enough to satisfy me. You may want to look at a liquid solution for your video card(s) though. I will probably test liquid out on my next machine, just so I can learn more and it does seem interesting.
Heatsinks/Fans: For my CPU I bought a Noctua heatsink and fan (NH-D14 I think). It is huge but it keeps my overclocked CPU very cool. The Noctua fans are notched and shaped specifically to create more airflow without increasing the noise. They are actually lower RPM than most fans, but still put out more air even at their low speeds. They are also the quietest fans in my case, and when my case fans go I will be upgrading them to the Noctua fans as well. The only downfall, is they are a beige color. Which kind of ruins the look of my case, but my computer is about computing power ... not a ricer with underglow. Looks are secondary in my eyes.
I would build something like this:
HD1: 60/120GB GB SSD (RAID 0: OS/Games) (OCZ Brand, I think they are called Vertex 2?)
HD2: 60/120GB GB SSD (OS/Games) (OCZ Brand, same model so you can RAID 0)
HD3: 1 TB HD (Media Storage) (Western Digital Cavier Black, make sure to get the one with 64mb of cache, you can add a second one if you need more room)
Standard CD/DVD +/- 24x
3.33 Gighertz 6-Core (i7 Extreme 980x) or an I7 920/930 overclocked to 3.6ghz - 4.0ghz depending on your heatsink
1x Nvidia 480GTX
24 GB (6x4GB) PC3 12800 DDR3 1600 Triple Channel (24gb may be overkill, I would use around 12gb. Make sure to get a low CAS, preferably 7, make sure it has been tested on your motherboard SUPER IMPORTANT!)
64 Bit Windows 7 (There isn't a reason not to go 64 bit with Windows 7, the only reason 64 bit was so bad ... was driver support and Win XP 64 was BAD. That has been fixed.... the driver support, not Win XP 64 being bad)
Full Tower (Silverstone Raven)
Extra Fans (Noctua makes some sweet fans that run super quiet. They have an ugly brown color, but are worth it.)
750-1000w Power (Any Silverstone PSU that meets your requirements)
Remember, computers have diminishing returns. At a certain point your will be spending twice as much money for half the speed increase. You can build a really fast computer for just $1000 if you are willing to pick and choose your parts wisely and live with some lower end, but still high quality components. You can go really top end with a $2000 dollar budget and enjoy some of the newer technology without being bleeding edge. After that... if you want to be bleeding edge ... you will need to bleed cash to get there. From the $4000 - $5000 range you can build an insane computer, but in the next year that computer will not be much faster than the $2000 dollar machines. I would recommend sticking in the 1000 - 3000 range depending on your budget, and always trying to build a balanced machine. Don't skimp on any particular component, but buy parts that compliment each other.
If you have any questions hunter feel free to ask. I try to be unbiased as possible and just let the facts speak for themselves. Thanks for taking the time to read my post. Sorry it was so long.
