Ok computers are a rapidly changing field and this can lead to some nice discussions. Essentially, spec out the best money can buy! (gosh this is making me drool as it is). To avoid too much conflict both AMD and Intel chips/mobos can be accepted as the #1 chip (i.e., list both if you'd like to be a diplomat hehe). Same goes for ATI vs nVidia. This is meant to be a friendly drooling party rather than a corporate pissing contest
PROC
AMD FX53-2.4Ghz (1600MHz)
INTEL P4EE-3.4Ghz (800MHz)
MOBO
ASUS SK8V
Chosen over nVidia's nForce3Pro because the NF3 only supports 650MHz (1300DDR) bus and has a different emphais (its a business oriented mobo)
http://usa.asus.com/products/mb/socket940/sk8v/overview.htmABIT KV8 Pro
Another serious contender on the AMD side of things, Abit brings reliability and more recently, more OC headroom compared to ASUS.
http://www.abit-usa.com/products/mb/products.php?categories=1&model=176ASUS P4C800E-Deluxe
The premier board for testing out Dual Channel memory, you cant go wrong with this baby. Not to mention the fact its the highest performing Canterwood board available.
http://usa.asus.com/products/mb/socket478/p4c800-e_d/overview.htmABIT IC7-MAX3
The IC7 series stirred a lot of comotion amoungst ASUS circles when it came out as it offers a CRAPLOAD of functionality and reliability not to mention some seriously kewl features. If it wasnt for my undying love of ASUS, I would have switched to this already
(assuming I went Intel of course
)
http://www.abit-usa.com/products/mb/products.php?categories=1&model=130RAM
Corsair RegisteredXMS TwinX2048-3200 (3-3-3-8)
Registered memory for the FX peeps, nothing special except it does have some nice timings for PC3200. The stock heatspreader isnt that fancy but thats the price one pays for regsitered ram
http://www.corsairmicro.com/corsair/products/specs/twinx2048RE-3200.pdfCorsair XMS Pro TwinX1024-4000 (3-4-4-8)
These babies are for Intel folks only and very very nice both in performance, looks and stock cooling
http://www.corsairmicro.com/corsair/products/specs/twinx1024-4000pro.pdfOCZ PC3700 Platinum OCZ466-1024 (3-2-2-8)
What's there to say, these sticks are absolutely fabulous -- and they look fantastic.
http://www.ocztechnology.com/products/memory/OCZ_DDR_PC-3700_Platinum_Enhanced_Bandwidth_Dual_ChannelOCZ PC3500 Gold OCZ433-1024 2-3-2-6
One word describes the timings: stunning -- especially so for registered memory (meaning its for FX peeps)
http://www.ocztechnology.com/products/memory/OCZ_PC-3500_ECC_Registered_Dual_Channel_DDRVIDEO CARD
eVGA GeForce6800 Ultra Extreme Edition
Three words: close your mouth....
http://www.evga.com/articles/public.asp?AID=188ASUS AX800 XT/TVD
Three more words: .... and stop drooling
http://usa.asus.com/products/vga/ax800xt/overview.htmSOUND
Soundblaster Audigy 2 ZS Platinum Pro
Sometimes these naming conventions just get out of hand.... lol and excellent set all around still
http://www.creative.com/products/product.asp?prodid=4925PSU
Coolermaster RS450 (450W)
Premodded, effective cooling, open design to limit dust getting clogged and reliable rails, this PSU is an excellent deal all around.
Link EditThermaltake Polo12 (410W)
Similar design as the Coolermaster (premodded and makes use of a 120mm fan), this baby comes with a front and/or rear mounted fan controller as well as some very nice case fans, an excellent PSU in any respect.
http://www.xoxide.com/polo12.htmlHSF
Thermaltake Silentboost K8
This is the K8 version of Thermaltakes very effective Silentboost HSFs.
http://www.thermaltake.com/coolers/venus/rs/a1838.htmThermaltake Venus12
This is the badass supercharged fan for the K8 procs.
http://www.thermaltake.com/coolers/venus/rs/a1744.htmThermaltake DIY Tower112
The ultimate in quiet (or loud depending on the fan config), this is a highly adaptable HFS for both Intel and AMD applications
http://www.thermaltake.com/coolers/comboCool/cl-p0024tower112/cl-p0024tower112.htmCoolerMaster Jet4
For P4 chips, this blower gets around the deadzone introduced by traditional fans and has air flowing over the entire surface of the heatsink.
http://www.xoxide.com/comajet4p447.htmlThermaltake Polo735
Although this is a 3-in-1 cooler, it is most commonly found on Intel chips since AMD chips typically use the Venus/Volcano line of coolers. This is one loud mofo
http://www.thermaltake.com/coolers/comboCool/a2144Polo735/polo735.htmThoughts? Ideas? Challenges?
I am liking it !