PC Dreaming

After the recent scare with my old XP machine, more and more my thoughts have drifted towards building a new computer. There is nothing wrong per se with my old machine save for it being old - and computers, like people, tend to slow down and develop unexpected quirks with age. More importantly, this computer has reached the its limit in regard to upgradability. Some examples:

• On their website, Microsoft told me point blank not to bother even trying to install Windows 7 on my current machine
• My motherboard only includes two SATA HDD ports; both are being used
• My motherboard is only upgradable to 4GB RAM
• The 2.8GHz dual-core CPU I've got is as good as it can handle
• The video card being used is plugged into a now obsolete AGP slot
• New video cards generally use PCI-express, speaking of which...
• My motherboard has none of those; it does have five PCI slots though

So, I've compiled a wishlist of parts to build a new computer with and filed it under "things to reward myself with once I have a steady income again." Along with the two 1TB SATA drives and Soundblaster Audigy 2ZS which I plan to cannibalise from my current PC, here's my initial wishlist for a new build:

Part	Brand & Model Number	Price*
Motherboard	Asus P8Z68-V PRO/GEN3	$209.99
RAM	G. Skill 16GB F3-17000CL11Q-16GBXL	$169.99
CPU	Intel 3.3GHz Quad-core w/ fan BX80623I52500K	$224.99
Hard Drive	Western Digital 2TB SATA 6.0Gb/s WD20EARX	$199.99
CD/DVD drive	Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS	$19.99
Video Card	Sapphire Radeon HD 5670 100289-2L	$89.99
Power Supply	Apevia 500W ATX-CW500WP4	$39.99
Case	Antec Black ATX Mid-tower Three Hundred	$54.99
Fans (2)	Scythe 120mm slipstream case fan SY1225SL12SL	$19.98
Operating System	Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 64-bit FQC-04649	$139.99
Wifi Card	Asus PCE-N15	$29.99
Keyboard & Mouse	Logitech MK120	$20.99
Total:		$1,220.87
*as of Wednesday, November 23rd, 2011 from Newegg.com

No doubt these specs will change with time, technological advances and market adjustments (the prices of hard drives and RAM sticks are particularly inflated right now). In any case, what I have listed above is pretty much what I would purchase if I were to do it right now.