if the below lump is TL:DR material skip to the links and rate away ^^

i POSTED here the last few weeks as i was having trouble with my gfx card, i've had an expert look at it and he reckons, in expert "it seems pretty buggered" i've tried it in other computers with a range of drivers and no luck so i'm putting it down to "fried"

anyway, bad news is out the way, so its time to spec up a new comp, i've had a browse around to see whats good, whats bad, and whats probably a current bargin, quick info:
i looked at ddr3 and 1333mhz/1600mhz FSBs but they were just coming out far too expensive, the same i felt was true of quad core processors and duel graphics cards, at least till DX10 really takes off and games can take full advantage in a year or two, anyway, to the spec:

motherboard:
Gigabyte GA-N650SLI-DS4L nForce 650i SLI Socket 775 8 channel audio ATX
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/140949

CPU
Intel Core 2 Duo E8400 3GHz (1333MHz) Socket 775 6MB L2 Cache OEM Processor
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/143290

GFX
XFX 9600GT 1GB DDR3 Dual DVI HDCP HDTV Out PCI-E Graphics Card
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/144432

RAM
Corsair 2GB Kit (2x1GB) DDR2 1066MHz/PC2-8500 XMS2 Dominator Memory Non-ECC Unbuffered CL5(5-5-5-15) E.P.P. & DHX Technology Heat Sink Lifetime Warranty
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/119190

thats the basics, got a decent case, a corsair PSU and a good CPU fan and heatsinc

one thing i was wondering, the grapics card, which would be better, the one i posted above or:
Point Of View 9800GTX 512MB GDDR3 256bit Dual DVI TV Out PCI-E Graphics Card
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/143104here are my comments regarding your components...

Motherboard: personally i would go with at least a 680i motherboard. 680i supports true x16,x16 SLI unlike the 650i chipset which, upon enabling SLI, goes at x8,x8 speed.

CPU: looks good. i want to get one eventually.

Graphics Card: i would go for the 9800gtx. it is far superior to the 9600gt.

RAM: i would go with the OCZ SLI Ready DDR2 1066. OCZ RAM is known for its overclockablility, if thats a real word. the SLI ready PART will also add a small amount of performance if or when you go SLI. its also a bit cheaper then the corsair RAM.
http://www.ebuyer.com/product/120453

hmm, SLI ready would be nice as its pretty much an instant 100% upgrade, with extra ram and a move to vista in a few months i can definitely see the advantages, thanks overclockability....i like it.

Let's make it a real word.

All in favor ? ?

All opposed ? ?

im in favor ayeSo far it's unanimous...8 more votes in the affirmative and i'll make it official-like !

I Like it