Get the CM690 II Advance. I bought one about a week ago and it's one of the best cases I have ever used. (upgraded from NZXT Whisper Full tower)

is it true that if you install 4GB of ram, windows can only utilize 3GB?
 
please don't kill me for asking this.

Not if you're on a 64-bit version of Windows.
And without going into too much detail, the amount of memory the 32-bit versions will see varies from one system to another, so it's not a fixed 3GB across the board.

  64-bit win7 or bust.  I can't think of any legitimate reason not to use it, I have seen zero compatibility issues during my time with both 64-bit and 64-bit Win7.  It got a bad reputation under Windows XP but that’s because the implementation was basically just shoe horned porting a bunch of code across from Win Server 2003, as a result it was buggy and shite.

I'm starting to change my mind now. Here is the dilema right now. I have the money for a gtx470 and also a HD5870 if it's on sale at a bit over $400 (I don't buy ati cards) Then I start telling others on the forum to get a gtx460 1 gb version and i'm starting to belive in my own propaganda. Okay it's much cheaper than the other two, yet less powerful. I suppose with the more powerful videocard, no one can tell me anymore that my rig isn't powerful enough or my gpu isn't. However not everyone wants to pay alot of money for this shit tbh, seriously $400 or more for a videocard? It's going to be cheaper in a year and more revisions will be out.

 
Also other considerations i'm thinking of. I already have the cash to build a new rig, however that means I have to replace everything and rebuild. I already own every game on the pc I care about. I'll just be replaying stuff or trying to finish stuff for a while. I was thinking maybe i'll get a gtx460 1 gb instead. Alot of ppl says it's more powerful than a gtx275. The only reason I will choose this card over the other ones is the hd5870 is way too long, I would need to buy a new case. Looking at the HAF case, it's full of red fans, I hate the red color tbh. I would have to get more blue led fans anyways and discard the side fan which is even more money down the drain. Of course I can go for the CM690 advanced 2 case, however at that price, I rather get a case with a lot more glowing blue lights. It's the same price as a antec 900, which won't fit bigger cards without removing the drive cage, yet it looks cool. The gtx470 runs at near 100 degrees at times, honestly wtf is that? I'm not buying a card that's so loud and runs so hot, I would need a new case by default.  
 
I already have the cash for a new rig, yet I will have even more cash later on in a month or two. Yet at the same time, I don't really need a new rig, yet it's nice to have. I was thinking, if I buy the gtx460, then I won't upgrade in a while, sure it's not the most powerful videocard, i'm not sure how crysis is going to run, still I can get by. Or should I buy a hd5850, it runs cooler, or should I go even higher? That would mean a new case and a new card. If there is a bottleneck, that would also mean a new mobo, new ram, new cpu, which is going to be more expensive. Maybe I should just buy another console for that money, yet I probally don't care enough to right now. Go for the cheaper upgrade, compromise, it will last me like two years, or go with a higher upgrade, it might mean I have to include a new pc case and also if there is alot of bottlenecking, I have to have to rebuild. I would run the latest and greatest, however I will run a nice card that will be good enough for now. Or get a gtx470 and a new case. Honestly I have no idea. Sorry i'm just thinking out loud, that's my dillema. Compromise now and be happy with what I have with a cheap upgrade, or think of the future which cost like $1500 for my next build.  
 

I like this card because it has a heatsink on it. I have a heatsink on my current videocard I installed. This card isn't powerful, however it's a cheaper compromise for acceptable power. This card overclocks really well, you can overclock it past a HD5850 with msi afterburner, that's what I like about it. Maybe I should get this card, or the gigabyte version which also has a heatsink with two fans.

Get a X6 1090T with a Asus Crosshair IV, more performance for your money. Plus it's alot cheaper. 
 
 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131644&cm_re=amd_890-_-13-131-644-_-Product
 
Also why Intel only? Do you already have the i7? Also IMO waiting is the best option right now since most 1366 mobos have been on the market for quite some time. I would wait for the next few months to allow newer products to become available in turn lowering prices of existing ones.

Honestly, the TC seems to have absolutely no idea about what he is talking about regarding computers. Also, the CoolerMaster RC-690 is one of the best computer cases anyone can buy and there is also an nVidia version of it.

The problem with the 480 compared to the 5870 is that for a very small increase in power, the gtx runs at much higher temps and power consumption (darn you Fermis!).  Also you could just not plug in the red fan... 
On the topic of AMD vs. Intel, you should get 1090t if you plan on doing stuff that uses all 6 cores (like video encoding).   
 
Still wondering why you are so stubborn on intel when you are just getting a new mobo.

Actually I just built a new computer.  It's a great 6-fan symphony.  The 5870 I use runs everything i've tried on it fairly good at highest settings. 
 
The Haf932 I bought came with a broken reset button.  Advice on the Haf932: the blue power LED is extremely bright.  You are going to want to put a piece of tape or paper over it (my friend who also has one does the same thing).  There is a blue Haf http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119213&cm_re=haf932-_-11-119-213-_-Product  but it costs more.    The red fan is removable/replaceable and the light is very dim so it isn't that bad.  It comes with more drive slots than you would know what to do with.
 
 Also, I never said the 6 cores means anything about benching faster, I just said that some programs work better with more cores.  But it sounds like you won't be using those programs so whatever.

Well, I decided to make my first upgrade, just as I thought, i'm getting severally bottlenecked by my chipset on my mobo. I'm getting more framerates, yet not to the level as advertised. My amd dual core cpu is pushed to the limits and it still isn't enough. Don't let anyone tell you that dualcores is good enough. It seems like every game that requires quad or higher is bottlenecking this card for me. I get a bit of stutters every now and then unlike my last card and I am not getting the advertised framerates. I'm going to get a new mobo eventually, a gigabyte 4 pci express X58 mobo. I'm sure there will be better cpus out next year or later. About this videocard, it overclocks like a champ, there really isn't a brick wall where it will stop running or artifact yet, however I don't want to dry the termal paste later on. The fan isn't really that loud either, you can barely hear it, unlike the gtx470 or 480. It seems to run at 36 degrees idle and 55 on load for every other game, crysis is like 73 degrees on load. Above is a picture of my old gpu vs the new one, it's sure alot smaller, slightly wider. It honestly deals with heat better too. Well I used that mobo for quite a while now, I really tried to make that gpu and cpu last going against that, you have to upgrade every year. I guess it's time to rebuild and start all over, i'm going to sli this card. It's not too powerful imo, however a gtx470 is too expensive right now at $370, it's not even worth it with the heat problems and noise which this heatsink doesn't have.  
 
Lastly the mobo with quad sli only cost $212, which is cheap and affordable. Then the cpu is like $300 or more? honestly, for that I can get a console. When I was discussing about pc's with others, they had a good point. That everyone wants an intel cpu, if everyone had unlimited funds, no one will buy AMD products. It's only because it's affordable and if it's recommended to you. I belive they do that to save you money, not give you the best product, those ppl are dishonest if they don't use it themselves. Also triple channel DDR3 ram cost $150? Also I thought I was going to have more cash these few months, several deals fell through, oh well, I guess I have to use my saving, however I don't want to spend it unless I have to. I can't even tri sli or quad sli the gtx460, there is only one lane or whatever it's called for the sli bridge.  
 
If anything this card has 32X AA, which I haven't tried yet. Also tellsellation, even on vista. Take a look, okay pictures aren't that big, however the rocks and details bumps out, that's tessellation and it's cool.
 

Got the gpu covered, i'll buy another one when it's cheaper. So far I am looking at the haf case, the ugly square red one that's so common. I tried to look for a case that can match the features and still look better. Obviously searching for a while, I have failed, maybe the antec 1200 looks better, however I want to find a good case that's cheaper. Here is what I found, it's like perfect, however I doubt I can find this case around here, so I have to pay for shipping.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811103033

 
-Feature, it's a full tower case exactly what i'm looking for 
-rather than the ugly red color haf, this case can change to any colors. You can stay with one color or let it keep changing 
-it's quiet, fans aren't too loud because it's not overly powerful for the front one.  
=it's on sale right now, yet you have to pay for shipping, it's only $80 u.s 
-there are fan controllers on it, which is great 
-big side fan like the haf 
-the case looks good, unlike the haf  
-you can see through the side, unlike the haf

Here is a video of it changing colors, honestly if I had this pc case, I can stare at it for hours. I am seriously considering this, I like everything about it except paying for shipping.  
 

   
Still, what is stopping me from building a new pc is the $300 price tag of the i7 cpu. I can buy a xbox360 for that price, yet I don't want another amd cpu. I'm going with a 

I understand your frustration about spending so much money on a PC, but I am sure you know that the rewards are fantastic. Consoles have their advantage. No doubt about that, but you can do a lot more with a PC. Games that are coming up like Crysis 2, Rage, Doom 4 will all work better on a new PC than on a console. 
 
So I think your investment will pay off.

dude get a dell lulz

Great ran into another dillema already. That pc case which looks cool and stuff, well the big side fan can get in the way of a big air cooler, also there is no top fan where if I want to use water cooling, I can only mount it at the rear fan and the hot air will be blowing in, not out for the radiator.

That means I have to use the HAF case instead, which is totally ugly, however it does have a top fan I can remove.

Here is what i'm looking at a cosair hydro H50. I'm going to add another fan to the radiator, maybe just use two noctura fans since it's quiet. It's a maintaince free cooler and I don't have to worry about it getting in the side fan's way or anything like that. I don't have to change the water cooling liquid for years.  
 
Other thoughts going through my mind, this pc will be running two gtx460 1gb sli, if I bought a gtx470 instead before, that's like $370 and for sli that's X2 which will generate alot of heat and it's expensive ($742) Two gtx460 1gb is okay ($480), my gpu is only 60 degrees at most, that's like 120 degrees at most on load, that's acceptable with good airflow. I still haven't figured out the ram i'm going to get, however once I brainstorm all this stuff out, i'm probally going to get it. I have the money already, however I don't want to go into my savings. Or maybe I shouldn't use my saving and apply for a job, yet I get bored easily because i'm not motivated.
 
Running 3dmark vantage, I was suprised how my gpu's score was the same on review sites, that means it's not bottlenecking and my cpu score even if it doesn't compare to the best, still had a way higher score than I expected. Maybe it's less of a bottleneck than I expect, however i'm sure I will get like alot more frames rebuilding. However is it worth it spending more than a grand for a measly 10-20 more frames averagely? I have no other options except to sli this card later on, it's not powerful enough, however when it's sli, it scales better than two hd5870. It should be enough power for any game I want and it will cost less than a gtx480 giving me more power. Then again, you could of sli that, yet who is going to spend a grand on two gtx480? I might get more stuttering than a single card, however it should last me a few more years. I don't need to upgrade, i'm getting by, however that's not enough for me.

I'm seriously thinking of buying an i7 950 due to the price drop this week. It's early in the morning for me, not sure if anyone will read this, however I have seriously been looking at pc cases. The one above from a few post looks nice, I like it. However if I want to add this cooler above, it will only be mounted on the exaust. That means the fans will be blowing hot air into the case, that would probally overheat alot of the components because I rather use this as a top fan with a 120mm radiator. That means my only options are cool master cases, the HAF 922, 932 the cm II 690 advance.  
 
Another problem is I want a big window on the side, I like that sort of look, maybe I should get an antec 900, the best looking case out of every pc case imo. However bigger cards won't fit, so i'm in a no win situation without removing the drive bays, also poor cable management. Everytime, this half 932 wins in terms of features, however I think it's ugly. I'm looking at other cases like thermatake cases however the airflow isn't that great, even if it has a side window. So your compromising things, which means the ugly haf 932 wins. It's the only case with every feature i'm looking for, i'm going to just put many blue cathode lights in there and hopefully turn the ugly case into something that glows blue and might look cooler.  
 

Lastly what's on my mind is I broke down the prices of three different pcs. Let me tell you, what I found is if you save $50 on a mobo, $50 on a cpu to a $100, that's only equilvent to a bit of money like triple channel memory. My point is no matter the build, hardrive will always be the same price as windows 7 is always going to be the same. You really won't save much money unless you get a really lousy pc case and mobo, which you will later regret. The starting price without my gtx460 is $1170, the next price down is $995 with tax, Then $980 unless I drop the cooler, or just drop the X6 and get a phenom X4 to save another $100 it which I belive i'll regret it due to some bottlenecking. It will bring the price down to $895 because I need a mobo that can do sli and that's the cheapest, yet unreliable mobo. I drop the good pc case, get a really cheap one with a side window and no airflow, it's going to not help with sli, it might be like $850. You don't save much trying to scale down and save a bit of money, pc gaming is expensive because of all the components I need. Maybe i'm going way over my head here, hopefully it's going to last for a while.

HAF case $130 (could buy now)
Windows 7 $105 (could buy now)
H50 cooler $70 (optional if I want to overclock now or later)
western digital 1Tb hd $88
samsung sata drive $32

expensive stuff
LGA 1336 3.06Ghz $310 (could buy now)
asus mobo $230
(other option) gigabyte mobo $212
cosair ddr3 triple channel ram $150

$1045

$1170 tax

I still need to buy ram, so that's even more expensive, so buy the i7 that's more expensive, then don't buy that cooler with it. Worry about 4.0Ghz
later when I have more money.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
i5 cpu $209
gigabyte 1156 mobo $189
asus mobo (option) $195
Windows 7 $105 (could buy now)
cm 690 II advance $100
H50 cooler $70
western digital 1Tb hd $88
samsung sata drive $32
kingston value ram or g-skill $90

$889

$995 tax

This build is still expensive with a cheaper cpu, the power is more inline with a phenom rather than an i7. I didn't really save much on a pc case.
The cooler made this pc more expensive because it needs to be overclocked. Ram is cheaper, however it didn't really significantly change much, now I
have a much slower pc for lanes, might affect sli, paired with a weaker gpu. Which is sort of not what I want, with a case that looks like shit.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ASUS M4N98 Evo ATX AM3 sli mobo $150
X6 phenom 2.8Ghz $210
Windows 7 $105 (could buy now)
H50 cooler $70 (optiona, maybe use a shitty air cooler for cheaper)
western digital 1Tb hd $88
samsung sata disc drive $32
kingston value ram or g-skill $90
HAF case $130 (could buy now) (maybe I can use a ghetto case)

$875

$980    

I have question. I'm thinking about getting a i7 950 soon. What motherboard would you guys recommend?

@AlisterCat: What is your goal? Are you using ati only, nvidia or both? Are you thinking of sli? only one gpu? I only have a few choices and they are all sli, crossfireX mobos. I'm just going to throw a few mobos out there for you that I was looking at before.
 
 ASUS P6TD Deluxe LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard    (not sure, it's cheaper though, asus is an okay brand)
 
ASUS P6X58D-E LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA (supports 6 cores right away)

 
GIGABYTE GA-X58A-UD3R LGA 1366  (if you use the third slot, the first slot is only 8X lane, which is retarded)
 
ASUS Rampage III Gene LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard (that or better for the series)  
 
There are some evga mobos, it's all sli, not crossfire 2. Also msi mobos, I don't exactly trust msi that much, i'm not sure if it's a good overclocker either, I don't have experience with their products.  
 --------------------------------------------------------
Edit: to the next post 
 

It's early now so I hope someone is reading this. I'm going to take the plunge and buy the i7 cpu today. I'll take a picture of the box at least to say that I have it and that's two components down. I might buy the haf 912 and start to cut the case to make a window or get that cheap elite 430 or just get an antec 900 and accept all the flaws of the case. It has no top 120mm fan for a radiator if I use a H70. I have to weight my options, however at least now I get two more options besides the ugly haf 932.
 
Okay thanks to someone on the forum, crusader, he suggested a new pc case and it was out this month like the haf 912. Honestly I didn't know that, however these are like the most recent pc cases. I am posting it because I think it might help other ppl since it seems a ton of ppl are building a pc case. Coolermaster finally listened to my complaints and finally made a mid tower case. In fact they made two cheap ones, and they both retail for like $60 and $50 or less with mail in rebate. They will both actually fit a water cooler radiator on top, that's what makes it in constrast to all other pc cases. The catch is the cheaper one only has one fan on the front and you have to buy the rest or recycle from your old builds. It's not going to be that cheap, however you can actually put a radiator on top. So if you are like me and your building a new rig, here are two products that fills a void in the market that no one else did. I mean who wants to pay for a $150 pc case when you can buy something like this for way cheaper.
 

 
Edit: i've decided to get the antec 900, not the antec 902, if I want cable management, I will just drill a few holes, not difficult. I can paint the case black too, however I don't care enough to. It's my favorite pc case in the world, I was going to go with the azza solano because with sales, it can be cheaper and a full tower, however it's a bit ugly. I'm going with the antec 900 dispite it's cable management, or problems with bigger videocards.
 

Okay nobody seems to know this. I read every review for the antec 900 I can. However on the box it said SSD compatible? Then it has these twist ties for cable management. Also it has drill holes, two of them, rectangular holes on the side for cable management. It now has a two holes on the side for water cooling. There is also a big cpu thing on the back where you can install a water cooler and the hole is big. Honestly this isn't the same antec 900 I expected, they must of secretly updated the case without anyone knowing. I think they did this, or fixed all the mistakes because of all the negative reviews. Also they didn't tell anyone because they don't want it to detract sales away from antec 902. They practically stole all the advantages from that case and put it here. I don't really need to because I am going to sli gtx 460 so it's not like very big cards.  
 
Edit: I found the very bottom under all the hardrive cages, they actually have an area to put an SSD drive, or your screw that in. It doesn't even need to take away any of the drive cages. Honestly they changed this case alot, they added a ton of new stuff.
 
 
Some problems I have with the case, that big damn middle black thing for another fan, it doesn't allow my old huge videocard to fit. I hope that's removable, right now I don't know how. If I can remove the damn thing, I can fit most cards at least. (instruction manual said I can rvemove it. however that practically gives me another fan for cooling.
 
Second of all, isn't the big top fan suppose to glow? maybe not, however I expected it to. Anyways here is a picture I just took to show you all the improvements.  
 
Lastly they still didn't put holes on the bottom for my psu, I hope I can lay it downwards and not fry the thing. Most ppl do, if you know any of the answers, let me know.  
 

   
Some things I don't like though, on the window, there are like two things sticking out to hold the 120mm fan in place. The top plastic part which is part of the window blocks most coolers. Either I remove the window, or I just cut that part off, I can still fit a fan regardless. That is something I didn't consider until now. I was more worried about the videocard, so there are some flaws with this case. The hardrives really can block a videocard.

I have a good chunk of what you are looking at buying in my build:

• Mobo: P6X58D-E
• CPU: i7 950
• GPU: GTX 480 SLI
  
• PSU: Corsair 950TX
• RAM: Corsair Dominator 6GB 1600 DDR3
• Case: Antec 1200

Jesus christ it's just a computer!