Help me build the ultimate gaming system

[Heart Break Kid]

Quick question here -

By August I should have some extra $$$ laying around, and I've been meaning for a while to build the ULTIMATE GAMING MACHINE. I'm not talking about some top of the line IBM or DELL. I actually want to go out and put this thing together. So with that said, limiting you guys to a $4000 budget, can you come up with a great setup? Monitor, keyboard and mouse are ofcourse not included. I've never actually done this before, so I would really like to find out how I would actually go about doing this. The only thing that is a must with this system is it has to run M$-XP. Its a standard and I know whatever games come out will run on it. Also with regards to the OS. After everything is is plugged in, how exactly do I go about getting the OS on the system? I mean, do I just stick the CD into the drive and let it work its magic? or do you buy it pre-intsalled? Well, if you had any doubts bout me never doing this before, i hope that question just ended them.

As for hardware - I want the following
1. badass video card
2. super super super super fast processor
3. a motherboard that is stable and can handle pretty much any expansions i might need
4. some kind of insane cooling system
5. a crap load of ram
6. atleast 2 hardrives min.
7. a decent sound card. it doesnt have to be the best of the best..all the other things are more i mportant to me
8. speakers
9, a good looking case thatll actually do its job

I know im probably forgetting stuff, but like i said, ive never done this before. So if anyone can give me advice and what they think the ultimate system would look like, i would appreciate it alot. Keep in mind though, I have a 4g budget.

side note - for any1 who is upset with the fact i want a peecee...just keep in mind i shelled out 4g's for a 17" Powerbook with 1 gig ram. :D

[MacAztec]

Gigabyte Mobo with Nforce 2 fully loaded
AMD 2800+ Processor
Radeon 9700
Case...http://store.yahoo.com/dealsonic/raid26atxmid.html

DDR 400 RAM
2 80GB Maxtor HDs

Should cost about 1k dollars...

[edesignuk]

For good reviews on any hardware that people recommend, check out http://www.tomshardware.com , it's FULL of information :)

[solvs]

Personally, I like Newegg.com (http://www.newegg.com) for my parts.

Get a Kick-A** video card like the ATI All-In-Wonder 9700, or 9800 when it comes out. The nVidia GeForce FX would be cool too, I guess (though not literally, very hot). Lots of memory. Good, high quality RAM. Big hard drives. As big as you can get them (though I'd go with a couple of 180 GB IBMs). You're going to want 2 for back-ups (or a RAID). A DVD-R (I'd recommend the Sony DVD-R/+R) and a fast CD-R/W (or 48x Combo). A nice motherboard with all the features you want. And as fast a CPU as you can afford.

And get a really nice case and power supply. You don't want to wind up with a really great system, but a cheap, noisy PS that's going to die on you. At least 350W. A couple of good quality, QUIET fans. You'll need them, cuz that sucker's going to be HOT, and LOUD. Maybe an Acoustic Absorption Mat, too (http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProduct.asp?description=11-999-607). Don't forget a router if you have more than 1 computer sharing the internet. If you've got a big enough budget, go nuts.

You should pick up a copy of MaximumPC too. Very helpful. Sometimes (they do make fun of Apple, which is stupid because I'm sure many of their readers are Mac users). And if this is your first time, you may want to take a class, or get some help. It's not always as easy as it looks. Drivers don't install, things don't work. Even if you're an expert, Wintels can be a hassle sometimes (well, all the time).

And of course, last, but certainly least - a full, legal (yeah right)copy of Windows, and other software.

Let the nightmare... I mean, fun begin.

[Les Kern]

Let somebody else build it, and get the warranty.
http://www.alienware.com/main/gaming_main.asp

[void]

Get a
Intel XEON 3.06 ghz 780-x2
iWill Dual Xeon MoBo 580-
Radeon 9800 Pro AIW 500-
Western Digital 200 GB HD 300-
Water Cooling (For OC) 200-
Case & Lights & Misc 300-
Some Nice @ss RAM 300-
Optical Drives 200
Total: 3940
Prices Are Rough
A detailed guide on how put it together is here. (http://forums.gamespot.com/gamespot/board/message?board.id=pchardware&message.id=39573)