I have 2250 USD limit!

ViewSonic Optiquest Series Q22wb Black 22" 5ms DVI Widescreen LCD Monitor 300 cd/m2 900:1 - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6824116076

(2x ) EVGA 768-P2-N831-AR GeForce 8800GTX 768MB 384-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Video Card - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814130072

EVGA 122-CK-NF68-T1 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i SLI ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813188012

Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Kentsfield 2.4GHz 2 x 4MB L2 Cache LGA 775 Processor - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819115017

(Wh en it drops to $266 on July 22)

(2x) Kingston 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820134488

PC Power & Cooling Silencer 750 Quad (Black) EPS12V 750W Continuous @ 40°C (825W Peak) Power Supply 100 - 240 V UL, ULC, CE,

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817703009

COOLER MASTER Centurion 534 RC-534-KKN2-GP Black Aluminum & Mesh bezel / SECC Chassis ATX Mid Tower Computer Case -

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811119106

Logitech LX3 Silver/Black 3 Buttons Tilt Wheel USB + PS/2 Wired Optical Mouse - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6826104019

Logitech Media Elite 967559-0403 Black 102 Normal Keys 18 Function Keys USB + PS/2 Wired Standard Keyboard - Retail

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6823126178

Tot al: $2263

also get better keyboard and mouse.
i would suggest g15 kieboard and mx518 mouse

seagate barracuda 320gb $95 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6822148215
lite on combo drive $37 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6827106073
logitec x230 2.1 $39 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6836121123

One thing I would like to know is the stage of life the OP is in. If he/she is getting this, but also just moving out of the parents house and also going to get a TV and maybe speakers for THAT, then we can raise the budget (include what the budget on TV and Home Theater was in this). Also, we can then add a Blu-Ray drive or HDDVD drive to the PC and save him/her from having to buy those separately and costing way more than needed. If you can combine your Home Theater and PC setup, not only will you get a better video and audio experience from both, but you will save money too. I do this for people everyday at BestBuy.

Well enough of the shameless plugging. But another need to know: does the OP (original poster) need a wireless keyboard and mouse? If not, or maybe just the wireless mouse, we can save not only a lot of money, but improve the quality of the mouse for gaming. Also, we may want to consider that due to the expense of high-res monitors, we may not need the 8800GTXs. After all, its muscle is best shown at the high res.

I was going to say I triumped and did dual 8800GTXs for $2250 or less, but I was $43 over. Damn. Well, to the OP, I really hope $43 is not such a big deal. I spent HOURS (I started at 3, and now its like nearly 7) looking around the web and at Newegg, trying to price it all down as low as possible. Some here I know would rather see you chop one 8800GTX off and get better speakers, motherboard, maybe even a monitor. But remember, then when you need to grab that other GTX, your total just shot up to past $2750. Now you could easily take my setup and pull the $43 out of there by switch from 4 gigs of RAM to 2, but then remember you'd be using 2 1 gig chips. This means that in order to eventually get 8 gigs, you'd ahve to buy 4 all new 2 gig chips. So this setup has fewer "future upgrade-ability" clauses.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6827135148
ASUS 18x DVD Burner with 14x DVD RAM and Lightscribe: $27.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6811156053
RaidMa x ATX Case with 2 80mm fans: $19.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6822144415
Wester n Digital Caviar SE WD1600JS 160GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive: $48.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6817812005
mushki n 550150 ATX12V 750W Maximum Power; 650W Continuous Power Power Supply: $129.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6819115017
Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Kentsfield 2.4GHz LGA 775: $266 after price drop

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6824112007
SCEPTRE X20WG-1080P Black 20.1" 5ms(GTG) supported Windows Vista Certified DVI Widescreen LCD: $179.99 before $20 mail in rebate

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6813188015
EVGA 122-CK-NF67-T1 LGA 775 NVIDIA nForce 680i LT SLI ATX Intel Motherboard: $169.99 (w/$20 instant savings) (this board does run in 16x mode for both PCIe slots!)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6820231120
G.SKI LL 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 667 (PC2 5300) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory: $209.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6814130072
2xEVG A 768-P2-N831-AR GeForce 8800GTX 768MB GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Video Card: $516.99 a piece and there is a $30 mail in rebate, so total for both after rebates comes to $973.98

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6832116141
Windo ws Vista Home Premium: $149.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6836131012
DCT Factory OG-310 1000 Watts (P.M.P.O) 2.1 Speaker: $19.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6823109149
Microsoft Comfort Curve Black USB Wired Ergonomics Keyboard 2000 (I kept it ergonomic because this is not just a gaming PC): $12.99

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Prod [...] 6826116113
IOGEAR GME521 Black/Gray 5 Buttons 1 x Wheel USB Wired Laser Mouse: $19.99

Total w/rebates and after shipping is:
$2293.22

There is hope yet however: the price drop has not hit yet. On that day, who knows? maybe there will be a few other sales, like a GTX priced right at $500 or a little lower.

Not true at all and the size is irrelevant, the resolution is what matters, the video card could care less how big the screen is, however I would also recommend against the second GTX as the money could be better spend on other parts.

I agree w/ Gators and jt001, don't get the second GTX.

scryer_360, I think that build needs a lot of work:

- That case is terrible, won't cool a Q6600 or 2x 8800GTX
- I think the smarter buy for him on Jul22 is the E6850 (better gaming performance).. but he could save $80 by going with the E6750, performance gain isn't worth $80 (could be spent elsewhere).
- If you must have SLI GTX, I would say stick with 2GB for now to stay under budget, especially since you suggested a 32-bit OS.
- With 2x 8800GTX he should be gaming atleast at 1920x1200.. that Sceptre defeats the purpose of SLI
- Speakers, mouse, keyboard are crappy as hell.. this is supposed to be a gaming machine!

I agree entirely with qwerty.
And whether you go 32- or 64-bit on the O/S, don't get Vista at least until it is out of the beta testing that Microsquishy has tricked businesses and consumers into doing for them at no charge.

Oh and as for the PSU: there is a link I go to in one of my first posts that takes you to a PSU calculator. 850 watts is really not needed unless we go with even more hardware. And even then, its better that we have sufficient amperage, and on the OP's budget, this PSU has the amps.

Ugh, you guys keep forgetting the OP! He said he will be gaming, but thats not all. He is also doing music, and PROGRAMMING.

PROGRAMMING=NEED MORE THAN DUAL CORE. 2xcores will work, but quad core is better. Also, he said high end gaming. Hence dual 8800GTXs.

I know we all have our own preferences but we need to keep the OP in mind.

But since we are doing it anyway, my own personal build would be everything I already listed, but instead of quad core I'd go with the E4400 (woohoo cheapness) and a Zalman cooler, then scratch off the drives, case, speakers and monitor. I have a Antec 900 case, two DVD drives (one a burner), a Harmon Kardon Home Theater system w/ Klipsch speakers and a 42" Sharp LCD with 1080p, 120hz capability, and 6 ms response time. Oh add the TV tuner card the the comp as well.

scryer_360:

I see now you recommended the retail version, my mistake. I assumed OEM since that is the usual recommendation on here.

Yes, maybe the E6850/6750 will be higher that advertised on Jul22, but the same for the Q6600..

OP said a bit of programming, not a lot. Since when does that require quad-core? Photo editing professionally.. I think any high end dual core will do the trick. Heck, OP could even do both on a dual core while listening to music . None of these uses demand a current quad core. Next gen quads will be improved and worth it for the mainstream, but current gen affordable hybrid quads usually only take the crown in rendering tasks...

I disagree that a cheap case will cool a quad core with 2 GTX. That case doesn't even come with a back fan. The GTX's aren't the problem since they have rear exhaust, but the do contribute to overall case temp. The quad will be hard to cool, regardless. Give em a better case.

I guess you agree about the display? Professional image editing, yeah you want 24" or higher. Well I would classify a single GTX has high end gaming, maybe not highest, but high. So depending on what the OP is playing, a single is probably enough.