I am beginning the process of building my own computer and have always appreciated input from people on this site. I would like your opinion on how I can spend my 2000 dollars most efficiently. I am planning on buying everything new. Included in that price will be a monitor also. I would really appreciate your input on this. p.s. I want the computer to suited for gaming and streaming video on the web.
A couple quick questions before the build: Does price include mouse and keyboard, speaker system, or any other accessories (game pad, racing wheel, headset, etc...). When you say "Streaming video on the web" do you mean that you will be steaming it to others, or that you will be recieving the stream?
I already have the keyboard and mouse. No other accessories will be bought at this time. I would like to be able to download and upload streaming video without the video stuttering.
Just to make sure I understand, by upload, do you mean upload videos to youtube, and such sites? Uploading videos to youtube doesnt really rely on your computer, but more so your internet. The same can be said for things like web cams and such. It still helps to have a strong cpu since most streaming video is done in flash which is a bit hard on cpus for now, though flash is in the early stages of off loading the work to the video card. So I am not sure you really need a $2K build from the sounds of it, but if thats what you want, then I will do some pointers. Core i7 860 - A top end cpu. MSI,Gigabyte, or Biostar mobo - Personally I have a MSI p55-GD65 that I like. 5750 Video Card - Gives you DX11 performance, gives you good video performance with out drawing much power compared to similar gpus and is fairly cheap. You could squeeze in a 5770 pretty easily if you wanted. 1 TB WD Caviar Black - Great performance for less then $100, plenty of space to. If you want an extra drive to store media on, go for a 1 TB WD Caviar Green. Memorey - G.Skill,Corsair,Patriot DDR3 of course. Theres a 22 inch Acer on NewEgg that looks pretty good for a monitor, or a Del2208 is another great 22 incher. Last I heard Dell and Acer pretty much were making the best monitor on the market. Corsair ~500 watt should do nicely. Any questions, just ask.