Idea for a gaming rig for Istaria (and other games)

[Eelime]

I am going to be buying a new computer in January, whether I build it myself (which I have 0 experience with) or buy it pre-built, I am not sure. My budget is between $1,000 and $1,200 USD. I want to be able to play Istaria on as highest settings as possible, and also be able to play other games I enjoy (the new games for PC with high-end graphics, darkfall, mortal online, etc..).

What do you guys think? Should I go the build-it-yourself route? It'll probably give me more bang for my buck, but I have no experience with it and I wouldn't have any idea on where to begin looking for parts, finding the best deals, what is compatible with other parts, etc... But, I'm quite confident in my ability to actually put together a computer and install an OS. So, if you think I go this route, could you offer my some help? Either by giving me a list of the best possible parts and such I could get? (Preferably from tiger direct or newegg), or give me some pointers on how I can best find them myself?

Or, if you think I should go prebuilt, can you give me some ideas on what to look for? Or even post some links to some possible machines I could buy? (Again, preferably from tiger direct or newegg, but I'd willing to go from other sources as long as they are well known/credible).

Also, I'm looking for a desktop computer, not a laptop.

Thank you in advance for all your comments, suggestions, ideas, etc...

[Bahkar]

i cant really offer much advice on the matter, but search for some online sites that allow you to interchange parts, hopefully somoene with more experience can give some better suggestions, i did manage to pull up a site through google though that looks alright.. not saying you should order parts online though, go to a local computer hardware store if you can, i have no experience with the sites you mentioned above though, best of luck in any case

[Guaran]

Well, newegg is not too bad on price. a core i7 system should be close to your budget:
i7-950 cpu $295
Asus sabertooth x58 board $200 (includes built in audio and network)
CORSAIR HX Series CMPSU-850HX Power supply $170 (get $10 back by mail in rebate)
Corsair ddr 3 6gb ram kit CMP6GX3M3A1600C8 $130
Galaxy GTX 570 video card $350

Total is $1145 so far (plus $6 for 3 day ground shipping), room for a new case if needed.

Oh, forgot to add a hardrive in:
Western Digital 1Tb sata, $80

$1231, guess thats pretty close to budget, the i5 cpus have came up so much otherwise a cheaper system could have been easily selected. (i7 is a better system than i5 and only added another $30ish to the total. Might as well get it instead).

Edit: Also forgot to put on an Operating system:
Win7 Professional, x64 oem $140.

Since this is the first one you have put together, be sure to get the assistance of someone who has put one together.

[C`gan]

It also doesn't hurt to shop around. A site I recommend is http://www.pricegrabber.com. Take the specs Guaran put in and do a search by piece. It'll bring up not only newegg, but several other dealers and suppliers as well. It shows you what they're listing the component for. It will even do the shipping cost calculation as well. Hope this saves you some money.

[Spirit]

I can make a suggestion for a great mid-range graphics card... I've just picked up EVGA's Geforce GTX 460 Superclocked 1024mb edition. 10 year warranty (will I be using it in 10 years though...?) and overclocked at the factory.

It was £159 in the Uk in a *shop* (a little less online of course), and the bang for the buck is incredible. My pc is a whole different beast (it had an ATI 3870), and the reviews seem to agree for the 1024mb GTX 460 generally. It was a card out in the Summer, and with the new lines here the price is good now. It's easy to find with google shopping.

http://www.techreaction.net/2010/08/...ked-1024mb-ee/

Rakku