[Carbon]

Originally Posted by SiGn

that video card requires at least a 500W psu

No, it doesn't. 500W is fine as overhead and it's certainly OK to look at higher end PSUs for efficiency reasons but that it "needs" a 500W PSU is laughable.

Originally Posted by jeffhghtn

I thought I posted a response but it didn't show up... So there might end up being a double post somewhere.

Anyways, the 750TX on newegg.ca is 115 dollars off which is why I was thinking of going with it.

NewEgg always has those ridiculous "$250!! $115 off!!" things, they don't mean anything because the actual units are never that higher price. The 520HX is modular which is a bigger concern than a few extra amps.

It is primarily a gaming PC, but im going to end up going to school for computers so I was hoping to futureproof with the i7.

There is no such thing as "futureproofing" and the i7 is really only worth it for people that do professional-level rendering and modeling now. The 955 is even overkill & will perform just as well now or in the future. The i5 is coming out in mid-Sept and will clean the i7's clock anyway in price & speed.

And can I still get the windows 7 RC (i know its off the main site and I can get it elsewhere). How much will it costs to upgrade when the real thing comes out? I do hate to pay 150 bucks for vista 64 bit + the upgrade to 7

All copies of Vista come with vouchers to upgrade to 7 right now. If you want the RC, get the iso off a torrent or other site and then get the key of MS's site - they really don't care where you get the actual image from, as long as you get the key off their site (even though there's only like 4 keys) it's completely fine to do this because the key is the license.

Oh... and how easy is assembly? I've never done it before and I hope it goes well.
And should I buy parts all over the web, or stick to newegg? (Just looking to find deals, etc. etc.)

I would look at NCIX as well, avoid TigerDirect. Assembly is pretty easy, you might find this helpful, and then go ahead and post if you have any problems too.

[mbonwick]

The i7 is hardly future proof/upgradable though is it? I mean if the reports we've seem here on CJ are true, then intel will have a 6 core out by Xmas running on a different socket....

[Carbon]

Originally Posted by mbonwick

The i7 is hardly future proof/upgradable though is it? I mean if the reports we've seem here on CJ are true, then intel will have a 6 core out by Xmas running on a different socket....

I'm pretty sure the i7 is on the same socket but who in a consumer role has use for a 6-core processor anyway? The only 1366 upgrades are going to be expensive, rip-off workstation class CPUs. It's essentially a "dead" socket as far as anyone that doesn't revel in buying whatever's most expensive is concerned.

[jeffhghtn]

Okay, so here is what I'm looking at because Carbon is convincing:

Processor: AMD Phenom II X4 955
Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-MA790X
Memory: G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3
Hard Drive: Western Digital WD1001FALS Caviar Black Hard Drive
Video Card: SAPPHIRE VAPOR-X 100269VXL Radeon HD 4890
Power Supply: CORSAIR CMPSU-520HX 520W ATX12V
Case: COOLER MASTER Elite NV-334-KWN1-GP
DVD/CD drive: Sony Optiarc 24x
Heat Sinks/Fans: XIGMATEK Dark Knight

Now I have two questions before I buy:
Should I buy it all from newegg, or look for deals?
And if I use the iso for windows 7 RC, aren't I gonna have to pay for the real windows 7 when it's out? (I don't want to stick with the RC). How much will that be compared to vista w/ the windows 7 upgrade?

[Carbon]

1. Like I said, look at Ncix too.
2. Probably about the same, if not better (there will probably be some deals on it).