So I'm finnally upgrading my old ass self built PC of 7 years. Last year I got a new graphics card and the year before a new powersupply, now I'm looking to get a new motherboard, CPU, hard drive, and 8 gb of RAM. Deadman gave me some help and I ended up with all of this. What do you guys think? I would appreciate any help/advice on the topic, as I'm pretty clueless as far as computer hardware goes. If anyone knows similar / better equipment within the same price range ($250-300) let me know.

motherboard - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6813131827

CPU - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6819103911

hard drive - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6822145580

2x4GB RAM sticks - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6820231422

edit: I'm trying to get my computer up to speed to run GW2, as well as just improve overall performance in what im already playing. I only use this desktop for gaming as I've got a laptop I do my important shit on, so improving gaming performance is my main objective.

How long are you expecting to run this mobo? It doesn't have USB 3.0. As far as I've seen, USB 3.0 is only really used for increasing the data transfer rate for things like external hard drives. It has eSATA though, so make sure you get a external HD with eSATA if you think USB 2.0 is too slow for you.

I have no experience with refurb hard drives. I have enough issues with new hds. But Western Digital has a pretty good replacement system if you drive fails while covered under warranty. With this drive it looks like you only get 90 days. But for the price, you could probably afford to straight replace it if it fails and still be at a not-insane price.

Just make sure your PSU is capable of running all this. It probably is, and you'll most likely notice if it isn't -- random crashes, video glitches. Especially if you plan on overclocking the CPU / unlocking the 4th core. Also make sure you're using a 64 bit OS.

What's your budget?

@fomenta: I was hoping I could get another 4-5 years out of this mobo/cpu setup like I have with my last set. I don't plan on getting an external HD, just an internal HD. Yeah I figured the price on the refurbished hd was low enough that if I did run into problems it would most likely be within the 90 day warranty and as long as it doesnt crap out in under a year it wouldnt be the end of the world. forgot to mention I replaced the PSU a year or so ago as well with the graphics card so I think im good there.

@reynolds: im looking to spend no more than 400, but cheaper = better as rather strapped for cash right now.

HDD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6822148321
mobo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6813131754
Cpu: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6819103996
ram: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6820148544

Mobo/CPU combo - http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDeal ... mbo.985740
Memory - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6820231488
Hard Drive - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6822149380

You want the system to last 4 years then put the money where you need to and splurge on the cpu and mobo. Going with one 8gig memory chip leaves you three open slots to upgrade to down the road.

Theres a lot of debate out there about whether to go with 1 or 2 sticks -- for example one 8gb stick vs. two 4gb sticks.

By going with only one, you're throwing out the advantage of dual channel memory (ever wonder why the memory sockets were colored in pairs?). This decreases the effective throughput in half. Will you notice it? Almost definitely not, unless you're using ramdisks or some memory-intensive application (video encoding, matlab simulations, etc).

By matching, you'll also ensure that the timings and voltages are consistent between the pair.

For 8gb, I'd personally probably go with two 4gb sticks since that mobo has 4 slots. You can always add two more sticks for 16gb or if you went with 8gb sticks, 24gb.

But even 8gb is a lot for everyday use, I doubt you'll find it is the bottleneck anytime soon.

yeah I just bought windows 7 64 bit last week, waiting to upgrade all my shiz before I install it.

word thanks guys im gonna take a look at everything and see how much im willing to spend. really appreciate the help!

Think back to how much you put into your previous rig before deciding to upgrade all of that stuff at once. Perhaps you could do 'just' the cpu/mobo and go hog wild and then wait a few months or whatever and get the HDD/RAM. The CPU/Mobo you chose was old last year. You're really limiting your upgrade potential on the CPU by going with an AM3 motherboard instead of an AM3+, which is still good for another cycle of new parts next year, which means that if you go with an AM3+ mobo you can get a brand new CPU next year and still be good on the mobo.

I like Cpt. Reynolds' idea, though you'd be able to get the same mobo and a slightly less powerful cpu (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6819103996 or http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6819106009) because nobody 'really' needs an octacore CPU. However, the octacore+mobo combo looks like it costs the same as the quadcore+mobo.