New build, need advice

[ApacheChief]

My budget is $800, I'm looking to go AMD instead of Intel to save some money, and I am willing to overclock. I want to play games cheaply and upgrade the computer ~yearly.

CPU: Not sure?
Motherboard: Not sure?
GPU: 4870 1gB
RAM: G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL5D-4GBPQ
Case: Antec 900 w/ 650W PSU
HDD: Western Digital Caviar Blue WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM 16mB Cache

I'm not sure about that HDD

 

[Isura]

Don't know much about AMD chips. The Cavaliar Black is faster but uses more power. Green is the low power/lower speed option. RAM, GPU, etc look fine. A 550W PSU should be sufficient.

 

[BaboonGuy]

CPU: 720BE x3 and overclock to 3.4GHz and beyond. Mobo I'm not too sure but you want to find something that is an enthusiast board that will allow for the possibility of unlocking the 720's 4th core (not guaranteed to work). For HD's just stay away from Seagate... WD, Samsung, and Toshiba seem to be the trusted brands nowadays.

Oh more mobo advice, if I were buying my system again (940BE + Biostar TA790GXB) I'd get a motherboard that has cooling on the mosfets. Mine get ludicrously hot and I'm worried that someday they'll pop, given that I have my system overclocked. (I'll be getting cooling for them soon though).

The stock cooler won't be good enough to get the most out of your chip. You could go for a Xigmatek tower cooler since you're getting an Antec 900 which has a top exhaust fan (the Xigmatek on AMD boards only allows for the fan to point up or down, so it's not optimal for no top fan cases).

 

[Lunyone]

Here you go!
$359 Shipped!!
AMD PhII x4 955 BE w/AMD 4890 1gb GPU combo!!
$80 - $10 MIRc = $70!!
GIGABYTE GA-MA770T-UD3P AM3 AMD 770 ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
$80 Shipped!!
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL - Retail
$70 shipped!!
Western Digital Caviar Blue WD6400AAKS 640GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM
$125 shipped!!
Antec 300 case w/Antec 550w New PSU!!
$31 shipped!!
HP Black 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM SATA 24X Multiformat DVD Burner LightScribe Support - Retail
$28 shipped!! Not the best, but definately much better than stock CPU HSF.
ARCTIC COOLING Freezer 64 Pro 92mm CPU Cooler - Retail

Total $780 - $10 MIRc = $770!! Now you could probably get a different CPU HSF if you like, I just put the ACF 64 in for a improvement over the stock CPU HSF. You could even just see how well your 955 OC's, before buying an additional cooler. Since your going to OC pretty easily with just adjusting the multiplier you shouldn't need much additional cooling. If you want to push things more, I'd suggest getting a better CPU HSF.

 

[BaboonGuy]

I'd definitely get the best HSF you can afford. The Phenom II's are very heat sensitive... and they need extra voltage as well. You can push them high but not without good cooling. I mean really good cooling From what I've read and my own experience, if you can't keep the load temp under 55 then you're not getting much farther than that. The stock cooler for me on my 940 was giving me ~55 on stock voltages!