Shameless bump Thought I would update with all the suggestions people have given. So here's the next run:
Thermaltake Black Highest Xaser III Super Tower without Power Supply, Model "V1000A" RETAIL--$129
ASUS "A8N-SLI Deluxe" nForce4 SLI Chipset Motherboard For AMD Socket 939 CPU RETAIL--$229
AMD Athlon 64 3500+, 512K, L2 Cache, Socket 939 Windows Compatible 64-bit Processor RETAIL--$274
Maxtor 300GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive, Model 6B300S0, 16MB Buffer, OEM Drive Only --$205
Rosewill 52x32x52x16 CD-RW Black Combo Drive, Model C523216B, Retail --$30
NEC 16X Double Layer DVD±RW Drive, Black, Model ND-3500A BK, OEM --$64
OCZ Enhanced Latency Series Dual Channel Kits 184 Pin 1GB(512MBx2) DDR PC-3200 - Retail --$205
Fortron 530W Power Supply, Model "FSP530-60GNA" RETAIL--$78
**NEEDED** Vid card = 256mb 6800gt pci-e --$400-$450 **NEEDED**
Total = $1607-$1657
This is of course slightly over budget, which might still be ok, but any suggestions to lower the price a bit without sacrificing performance? Only thing that comes to mind for me would be the case. With SLI I will need adequate cooling, but if someone knows of a case with sufficient airflow for this setup (and addition of second vid card later) that is running for cheaper, please tell. Switched ram also; will this be quality stuff? I was told before to get something with TCCP or TCCD or something, but what are those? And do they really matter? Would like to reinforce that I probably won't be overclocking for a while at least.
THANKS AGAIN!!!!
EDIT: K now I forgot...OH yeah, wanted to ask about the 6800gt at chumbo. Says it is OC'd already...does that mean I'll have to worry about it being unstable or overheating? And yes I saw that they have it on order, and I e-mailed about it. They said they are expecting 2-3 weeks for it...bleh. Thinking I might as well though, except that I don't know when newegg will be getting it back in stock (probably around same time?).