What's more important to you?

I wouldn't care if it was built in a cardboard box as long as it worked like a charm.

Components. Although I'm starting to find the noise level of the computer to be another important factor.

I so agree! I've got a Shuttle with a laptop brick type PSU, a heat pipe cooler which has a very quiet fan, rubber mounted HDDs, and you have to listen hard to tell if it's on.

I would pay for a good Micro Refrigeration if it would speed up windows xp, hoping Thermaltake will start to sell them.
Thermaltake Xpressar - World's First DC Inverter Type Micro Refrigeration Cooling System
http://www.xpressar.com/product/rsc100/rsc100-features.html

It wont speed it up you would just get better overclocks. 
Its kinda like those phase change cooling except smaller
http://www.crazypc.com/products/cooler_express-92801.html
I still think phase change is cooler though but I dont know

Visit Silent Pc forums. There is a whole website dedicated to quiet, quieter, and silent PC's. They sell high quaility fans and controllers too.

Components. Although I'm starting to find the noise level of the computer to be another important factor.

Visit Silent Pc forums. There is a whole website dedicated to quiet, quieter, and silent PC's. They sell high quaility fans and controllers too.

Yep. Familiar with the site and other sites like it and have gone with a few other quite solutions. Right now I think my highest noise maker in my office is my Drobo (fist gen) and haven't had the time to try opening it and switching out the fan.

Components are more important because I want a Core 2 Duo/Quad PC for $600 with a ugly case instead of a modded case but only a Celeron CPU.

I don't care what it looks like, unless the screen is trashed.  I want solid reliability, and some damned good performance.