The All American Computer Build of 2010

[Rockefella]

Redirecting this from the Recent Purchases thread, my original post:

Budget over a few months: $900-1100

What I want to do mainly: It doesn't necessarily have to handle FarCry at 100 FPS but if a good pc game comes out that requires a solid machine to handle it, I want to be able to play it. I deal with a lot of multimedia but that will probably be covered if it'll handle higher-end pc games. To put it simply, I want a higher-end rig, not a top-of-the-line "holy shit guys check out my spec sheet overclockeddddd!!" computer

What I was thinking, just a rough sketch of this I guess:

- Quad-Core processor, last I cared I preferred AMD over Intel but I can definitely use some advice in this department
- 8 GB RAM, should I go DDR3 (not sure of the prices) or am I OK going with ddr2?
- HDD I think I'll go with 2 drives. The primary being 160 GB, or 320 depending on how the budget works out but must be a high speed drive. I forgot the exact speed but I think they run at 9600 RPM? (versus 5400 IIRC) The secondary drive will prob be 500GB or so and will only serve as storage space. I also have a 750 GB external sitting around collecting dust
- Video Card/Sound Card I would like to be on the higher-end of the spectrum, again.. not top of the line but something that offers good bang for my buck. My limit for video/sound cards would probably be $300 combined.
- Drives aren't too important. I guess 2 5.25" disc drives and a multi-whatever its called bay with card readers and such. Forgot the name of it. DVD-RW necessary, was thinking about BluRay but I'll hold off on that.
- Motherboard I'm pretty much clueless on and will definitely require some help with
- Peripherals like mouse/keyboard/monitor/speakers/printer/webcam I'm ok with, already have most of those to begin with.
- Operating system will be Windows 7
- I'll need help with buying cables, fans, thermal gels, and such

Yep, I guess that's all. I don't want to bottleneck anything so all parts should be pretty equal in their respective level of performance

Cheers

The same pretty much still applies, but I got to thinking about buying a SSD instead of the conventional HDD. I would hold off on this until the last part of the build a few months down the road but even then I think they're too expensive. My best bet I think would be to buy a case that has SSD install bays and just buy one a year later when it's half the price.

I figured the first thing I'd buy is the case. Any recommendations? Budget is roughly $100 for the case. I want something that looks good, has good ventilation, and offers a decent amount of expandability/flexibility with drive bays and ports.

EDIT: Don't want anything uber-flashy, example shown below relates to what I'm looking for. A plexiglass window in the side of the case would be nice so I can get aroused to the LEDs inside while reading my system specs at night.