hi, Its that time of the decade where I need a new PC. I need help with a few decisions, help please? Goals: Gaming, Programming No overclocking Quiet, or at least not very noisy. 1. should I go for Q6600 or E6850? Q6600: Quad core, 8Mb cache, 2.4Ghz, 1066Mhz E6850: Dual core, 4Mb cache, 3Ghz 1333Mhz or maybe the E6750 is enough (same as above but 2.6Ghz) ? 2. should I go for 667Mhz memory or 800Mhz? brand name memory or cheaper noname? 2G or 4G? 3. HD: I am planning 320Gb 7200 16Mb cache, anything else I need to know? for example I saw there are different 320Gb models in Western Digital: AAKS, AAKB, AAJB, JB, JS, KS, YS... Should I care which model I buy? 4. Is 400Watt enough? I was told it is, but then the salesperson told me the computer will crash at full load unless I take 550W, or 600W preferably. The only thing I am pretty sure is that I want a 8800GT 512Mb card... at least I got that one down (unless you think I should choose differently...) thanks in advance, Iftah.

1: I'm no expert but I would deffinately go with a 500watt PSU or higher, I running lower hardware than your setup there on a 400watt and its already stressing. I think one of the main things you're looking for is a minimum of 2x 12volt rails and 500watts.

2: as for the hardrive, If moneys no question, get one that can read at 10,000rpm. it'll make a difference for alot of newer games that are storing all there info on the hardrive instead of the cd/dvd nowadays.

3: go with 4GB ram and as fast as your board can handle.

For programming the Q6600 will likely be better. For current games, the E6850 will likely be better. Both are fine CPUs. I'd go for the 6850 if I had to pick one right now.

4 GB, for sure. Get 800 MHz, it's not much more expensive than 667 MHz. Get a good brand, but not the "Extreeeme!!1!" version. The A-data 2 GB pair (times two) for $108 total, will do just fine.

400 W should be enough if you get it from a reputable power supply maker. A HD is about 10 W, a CPU is no more than 80 W, your graphics card is about 120 W, your mobo might be 40 W, and a bit more for RAM, DVD/RW, sound card, etc -- you're not getting over 400 W of draw. Buying a too large power supply means the power supply doesn't work in its design range, and thus will have less efficiency, and put out more heat in your room, which may also end up making it harder to cool the machine. I wouldn't go over 500 W for your system, no matter who is the vendor.

Buy a hard drive model with 5 years warranty, so you can send it back for a free replacement when it breaks. It will break, no matter what the brand. Buy TWO drives, and run them in RAID 1 (mirror) mode, so that you can keep using the computer (and keep your data) even when 1 drive dies. Additionally, you probably want to also store a back-up somewhere off-site (if your house should burn down); consider a removable/portable hard drive for that. I second the recommendation for 10,000 rpm drives; the shorter seek time helps with big compile times. (I run dual 10,000 rpm drives in RAID 1)