upgrading my comp..could use some advice

so um i had a really rad comp like 3 years back... around 2ghz processing power nvidia 8900 1 gb of ram slick net connection (forgot wat video card i was using though) then something went terribly wrong.....some how last year a virus invaded my comp and BAM!!!!!!! my moniter even somehow got affected. my nvidia grafix card selfdestructed and everything came down in a land slide. for an avid gamer like me it was a nightmare. i wanted to upgrade my comp but my parents wouldnt allow it until my icse was over.

so here i am now with only 3 major exams left (maths, economics and second language) so im gonna finally remodel my system. but i have a few questions

my current processing speed is 1.78 ghz how much would it cost to change it to 4.2 ghz?( im obviously planning for a new cpu so the cost of getting a direct 4.2 is what im looking at)

i have no grafic card right now what so ever but i have 2 in mind.
ATI HD 4850
ATI HD 4770
ATI HD 4870

and if i can get a reasonable price then a

ATI HD 5870

now the problem of course is that the prices of 4850 and 4870 and 5870 is quite high..4770 delivers good enough performance for nearly just 150$.

now the thing is which one would you guys suggest and any other alternative is welcome ( price is a factor u cant tell me to now check out 5970 which is ludicrously priced).

any other adjustments and modifications u guys suggest for a serious gamer?

and also would these modifications cost more than just buying a brand new pc with the same components?

I see you do not know what you doing....

You need a balanced system, all needs to go together.

4.2 GHz processor is good for nothing if it has to wait for memory, 5870 graphics is for nothing if the motherboard is sucker..., etc.

You need to do good research if you going to build your own system.
If you upgrade - I suggest that you go only like 20% above your original specs. Anything more is waste of money.

ok so i did some serious research and came up with a combination
now my ystem is going to be based on amd..not so much as an amd dragon though

processor:AMD Phenom II X4 965 quad core
4.0 GHz
Socket AM3

Graphics:ATI Radeon HD 5870 x2

Motherboard:Asus M4A79T Delux
AMD 790FX chipset
Socket AM3
ATX
Audio
CrossFireX
PCI Express 2.0
Gigabit Lan
USB 2.0
SATA
Raid
DDR3 ram
SB 750S

So..how would this work out? and what would the cost come to?
should i make any adjustments?

If you want those EXACT specs, you're looking at spending a fair amount more, then shopping round for a ready made that is close, reason being, computer manufacturers buy bulk parts at wholesale price, you'll be paying retail.

If you need those specs, then check out www.microdirect.co.uk, cheapest available prices for PC parts in the UK that I know of. If your in the US then www.newegg.com will be the place for you.

Also, keep in mind if you're planning to build this yourself, it isn't like putting together blocks of Lego. You need to do a far amount of greasemonkey work plus presicion and patience. If you fuck up and break a part, that's $$ down the drain.

Take my advice, purchase from a small eBay manufacturer. Quality PC at a far lower price.

``Yousef said:

If you want those EXACT specs, you're looking at spending a fair amount more, then shopping round for a ready made that is close, reason being, computer manufacturers buy bulk parts at wholesale price, you'll be paying retail.

If you need those specs, then check out http://www.microdirect.co.uk, cheapest available prices for PC parts in the UK that I know of. If your in the US then http://www.newegg.com will be the place for you.

Also, keep in mind if you're planning to build this yourself, it isn't like putting together blocks of Lego. You need to do a far amount of greasemonkey work plus presicion and patience. If you fuck up and break a part, that's $$ down the drain.

Take my advice, purchase from a small eBay manufacturer. Quality PC at a far lower price.

Click to expand...

actually i HAVE thought of buyin it off ebay..just scaredit might not be top notch...and about whole slae manufactueres...isnt it a bit costly?
whats your take on getting a professinal to put it up for me?