My computer

  The reason why I didn't go with the Ultras is because it's just to much money for that little extra boost you get compared to a 8800GTX.  if you get the 8800GTX you can then upgrade more things on your computer that can improve your performance more.

 

Specifications:
Case: Digital Storm Twister ULTRA (Silver Anodized Aluminum Finish)
Power Supply: 1000W PC Power & Cooling (8800 GTX SLI Compatible) (Turbo-Cool Edition)
Processor: Intel Core 2 Quad QX6850 Extreme 3.00GHz (1333MHz FSB)
Motherboard: nVidia 680i Core 2 Quad (By: eVGA) (nForce 680i SLI) (A1 Revision)
Memory: 4GB DDR2 Corsair at 800MHz XMS2 (Dual Channel) (Extreme-Performance)
Floppy / Media: Digital Media Card Reader (Black)
Hard Drive 1: 1TB (Western Digital / Seagate) (Raid 0 Setup) (7200 RPM) (SATA) (Extreme Speed)
Hard Drive 2: 150GB Western Digital Raptor (10K RPM) (16MB Cache) (SATA) (Extreme Speed)
Raid Option: - No Thanks
Optical Drive 1: DVDｱR/RW/CD-R/RW (DVD Writer 20x / CD-Writer 48x) (LightScribe Edition)
Optical Drive 2: DVDｱR/RW/CD-R/RW (DVD Writer 20x / CD-Writer 48x)
Network Card: High Speed Network Port (Supports High-Speed Cable / DSL / Network Connections)
Modem: - No Thanks
Video Card: 2x SLI Dual (nVidia GeForce 8800ULTRA 768MB (By: eVGA / Asus) (PCI-Express)
TV Tuner: - No Thanks
Sound Card: Creative Labs Sound Blaster X-Fi Fatal1ty FPS (Up to 7.1 Channel) (Includes I/O Unit)
Physics Card: - No Thanks
Cooling: Liquid Chilled CPU & Video Cards (TwisterBoost Overclocked) (Artic Blue Liquid)
Case Lighting: Blizzard Internal Lighting (Blue Edition) (Cold Cathode Tubes)
Round Cables: Enhanced Interior Air Flow (Optical Drive & Floppy Cables (Blue Edition)
User Manual: Personalized Platinum Digital Storm Binder (Includes Paperwork/Benchmarks/CDs/Manuals)
Windows OS: Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate (64-Bit Edition) (For Enthusiasts)
Restore Kit: Digital Storm Specialized Recovery System (DVD Image Based)
Protection: McAfee Internet Security (Includes: AntiVirus, FireWall and AntiSpyware)
Office: Microsoft Office 2007 Home and Student (Word Excel PowerPoint OneNote)
LCD Display: - No Thanks
Surge Shield: APC 1200VA Uninterruptible Backup Power Surge Conditioner (Highly Recommended)
Speakers: Logitech 5.1 System (Black Edition) (Model X540) (Includes Subwoofer)
Keyboard: Logitech G15 Gaming Keyboard (Highly Recommended)
Mouse: Logitech G7 Laser Cordless Mouse (High-Speed Gaming Grade) (Recommended)
Warranty: 4 Year Platinum Care Extended Parts & Labor Warranty (Highly Recommended)
Support: Lifetime Toll-Free Platinum Care Technical Support

 

Im not sure wether to go with XP or Vista..I dont know what is better, but i'll probably go with XP since its what i currently have on this computer..I added another HDD, took out the network card, Added better sound card, Added Keyboard, 4 year protection..I dont know what the Raid option is, can anyone fill me in on what it is and what i should choose?..Also i kept the 8800 ULTRA vid card..should i go with what was reccomended and go with the GTX since theres little difference? 

 

PSU: IMO, the TT Toughpower 1200W is a better value all around if you think you'll push 1000W. It's the better performer of the two and it's cheaper.

 

Proc: sweet

 

MoBo: perfect

 

Memory: 1066 DDR2 for a faster OC than 800 can provide.

 

HDD's: 2*74GB Raptor RAID 0 will give you about 150GB of room to play with for your OS and Games. You could run the TB of storage, but do you need a TB of storage? If yes, great. If not, 2*250GB in RAID 0, is 500GB of storage space... that's ALOT of files. In fact, if you had the room to spare in your budget and had anything you really care about that you intend to store on that second disk, I would probably opt for a RAID 1 config before going to a TB. RAID 1 still performs better than a single HDD (only a little bit), and with mirrored drives, if one goes down, you don't lose all your data.

 

Sound Card: You will get much the same performance from the X-Fi. The X-RAM on the more expensive card is a bit like that Ageia physics card... it needs to be supported by the program running in order to be useful. The Fatal1ty does have a remote though, if that's something you want for your PC sound.

 

OS: Suggest Dual Boot, XP Pro, and Vista Premium 64 Bit. If you plan on playing Crysis you will see between a 50 % and 60% boost in performance with a Quad running a 64 bit version of Vista according to Crytek. For everything you're running on DX9, use the XP.

 

Protection: McAfee is a program I would not buy again. It's ok.  I had it for only one year, and only kept it that long because I hated the idea of paying for a service I wasn't going to use.  It works, but there are better options available. Avast comes to mind, but there are plenty of others out there as well. I personally use Zone Alarm Security Suite, and have been very happy with it.