Hello:
I've decided to spruce up both my 75th and 90th Percentile system specs. Here's the 75th Percentile system (all pricing is from NewEgg.com):
==================================
INWIN C-Series Black ATX Mid Tower Case With 300W Power Supply, Model "IW-C720T.I300BFU2AD" -RETAIL $49.99
ASUS Black 52X32X52 IDE Internal CD-RW Drive w/ QuieTrack Technology, Model CRW-5232AS QuieTrack, Retail $29.49
SONY Black 1.44MB 3.5inch Floppy Disk Drive, Model MPF920, OEM $8.50
SAMSUNG 80GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive, Model SP0812C, OEM Drive Only $74.00
Mushkin 184 Pin 512MB DDR PC-3200 - Retail $51.00
MSI "K8T NEO-FSR" K8T800 Chipset Motherboard for AMD Socket 754 CPU -RETAIL $71.00
AMD Athlon 64 2800+, 512KB L2 Cache, 64-bit Processor - OEM $109.00
ENERMAX Thermal Control 80mm Case fan, Model "UC-001B-TC" -RETAIL $4.99
ALPHA Heatsink for AMD64, Model "PAL8150T" - Retail $29.99
Microsoft Windows XP HOME Edition With Service Pack 2 -OEM $92.95
HIS Hightech ATi RADEON 9600 Dual-DVI Video Card, 256MB DDR, 128-bit, TV-Out, 8X AGP, Model "EXCALIBUR RADEON 9600" -RETAIL $129.50
Product total: $650.41
Shipping & Handling: $ 45.95 (to Massachusetts)
Total (Before tax): $696.36
=================================
Some minor caveats: the video card has a tiny fan that it likely noisy, and so, if you need it quieter, you would want to buy the passive cooler listed below (the AeroCool), or get a Zalman VF700 Al/Cu. Also, the case fan in the InWin case is likely too high speed to be quiet, so you would want to slow it down; either by undervolting it to 5v or 7v or get a Zalman FanMate for $5.
And here's the 90th Percentile system:
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Evercase Black ATX Mid Tower Case, Model "E4252BB-53" -RETAIL $35.00
ASUS Black 52X32X52 IDE Internal CD-RW Drive w/ QuieTrack Technology $29.49
Mitsumi USB Digital Card Reader/Writer W/FD (Black)INTERNAL, Model FA404A/404M $42.00
2X (for RAID1 Mirror) SAMSUNG 160GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive, Model SP1614C, OEM Drive Only, $98.99 each, total $197.98
2X Mushkin 184 Pin 512MB DDR PC-3200 - Retail $51.00 each, total $102.00
GIGABYTE "GA-K8N Ultra-9" nVidia nForce4 Ultra Chipset Motherboard For AMD Socket 939 CPU -RETAIL $142.00
Seasonic S12 Series ATX12V 2.0 330W Power Supply, 12cm fan, Model "S12-330" -RETAIL $59.99
AMD Athlon 64 3200+ 2.0gHz, 512KB L2 Cache 939-Pin 64-bit Processor - OEM $180.00
ZALMAN CNPS7000B-Al Cu Aluminum + Copper CPU Cooler for Socket 478/462/754/939/940 CPUs -RETAIL $36.99
Microsoft Windows XP Professional With Service Pack 2 -OEM $147.95
XFX nVidia GeForce 6600GT Video Card, 128MB GDDR3, 128-Bit, Dual DVI, PCI-Express, Model "PVT43GND" -RETAIL $185.00
AeroCool Video Magic Series fanless VGA card cooler, Model "VM-101" -RETAIL $27.49
Product total: $1,185.89
Shipping & Handling: $ 59.41 (to Massachusetts)
(sub)Total (Before tax): $1,245.30
The only thing this system needs that NewEgg doesn't sell is a quiet 120mm fan. Here's an excellent fan for $5.50 plus shipping:
http://shop.store.yahoo.com/pctekonline/12x12cmcasefan.html This is the exact same fan that is used in the Seasonic S12 330 power supply -- it is very quiet when slowed down; by undervolting or a Zalman FanMate ($5). Another option is this fan, that includes a controller:
http://www.sundialmicro.com/silverstone_case_fan_sstfm121_1726_381.html
So the actual total would be about $1,265.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
You would obviously have to either assemble these systems yourself -- which is not all that difficult, or have somebody do it for you. I feel that both of these will give you good support, all things considered. You will know you own system very well, or you will have a local shop that can support it.
[Edit] Larry Gray pointed out to me (in an email) that these are all black components. I do prefer black over beige. And as Larry mentioned, the prices are virtually the same, but if they are different, the beige ones are a bit less: The beige Evercase is about $2.50 less expensive (but it may only be 50 cents -- NewEgg doesn't carry the exact case in beige!); the beige InWin is the same cost. The beige Asus CD-RW drive is $2 less, and the beige Sony floppy is 50 cents less.
So, if you prefer beige, or you don't care either way, then you can save as much as $5 -- which is an (even) better value!
I've decided to spruce up both my 75th and 90th Percentile system specs. Here's the 75th Percentile system (all pricing is from NewEgg.com):
==================================
INWIN C-Series Black ATX Mid Tower Case With 300W Power Supply, Model "IW-C720T.I300BFU2AD" -RETAIL $49.99
ASUS Black 52X32X52 IDE Internal CD-RW Drive w/ QuieTrack Technology, Model CRW-5232AS QuieTrack, Retail $29.49
SONY Black 1.44MB 3.5inch Floppy Disk Drive, Model MPF920, OEM $8.50
SAMSUNG 80GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive, Model SP0812C, OEM Drive Only $74.00
Mushkin 184 Pin 512MB DDR PC-3200 - Retail $51.00
MSI "K8T NEO-FSR" K8T800 Chipset Motherboard for AMD Socket 754 CPU -RETAIL $71.00
AMD Athlon 64 2800+, 512KB L2 Cache, 64-bit Processor - OEM $109.00
ENERMAX Thermal Control 80mm Case fan, Model "UC-001B-TC" -RETAIL $4.99
ALPHA Heatsink for AMD64, Model "PAL8150T" - Retail $29.99
Microsoft Windows XP HOME Edition With Service Pack 2 -OEM $92.95
HIS Hightech ATi RADEON 9600 Dual-DVI Video Card, 256MB DDR, 128-bit, TV-Out, 8X AGP, Model "EXCALIBUR RADEON 9600" -RETAIL $129.50
Product total: $650.41
Shipping & Handling: $ 45.95 (to Massachusetts)
Total (Before tax): $696.36
=================================
Some minor caveats: the video card has a tiny fan that it likely noisy, and so, if you need it quieter, you would want to buy the passive cooler listed below (the AeroCool), or get a Zalman VF700 Al/Cu. Also, the case fan in the InWin case is likely too high speed to be quiet, so you would want to slow it down; either by undervolting it to 5v or 7v or get a Zalman FanMate for $5.
And here's the 90th Percentile system:
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Evercase Black ATX Mid Tower Case, Model "E4252BB-53" -RETAIL $35.00
ASUS Black 52X32X52 IDE Internal CD-RW Drive w/ QuieTrack Technology $29.49
Mitsumi USB Digital Card Reader/Writer W/FD (Black)INTERNAL, Model FA404A/404M $42.00
2X (for RAID1 Mirror) SAMSUNG 160GB 7200RPM SATA Hard Drive, Model SP1614C, OEM Drive Only, $98.99 each, total $197.98
2X Mushkin 184 Pin 512MB DDR PC-3200 - Retail $51.00 each, total $102.00
GIGABYTE "GA-K8N Ultra-9" nVidia nForce4 Ultra Chipset Motherboard For AMD Socket 939 CPU -RETAIL $142.00
Seasonic S12 Series ATX12V 2.0 330W Power Supply, 12cm fan, Model "S12-330" -RETAIL $59.99
AMD Athlon 64 3200+ 2.0gHz, 512KB L2 Cache 939-Pin 64-bit Processor - OEM $180.00
ZALMAN CNPS7000B-Al Cu Aluminum + Copper CPU Cooler for Socket 478/462/754/939/940 CPUs -RETAIL $36.99
Microsoft Windows XP Professional With Service Pack 2 -OEM $147.95
XFX nVidia GeForce 6600GT Video Card, 128MB GDDR3, 128-Bit, Dual DVI, PCI-Express, Model "PVT43GND" -RETAIL $185.00
AeroCool Video Magic Series fanless VGA card cooler, Model "VM-101" -RETAIL $27.49
Product total: $1,185.89
Shipping & Handling: $ 59.41 (to Massachusetts)
(sub)Total (Before tax): $1,245.30
The only thing this system needs that NewEgg doesn't sell is a quiet 120mm fan. Here's an excellent fan for $5.50 plus shipping:
http://shop.store.yahoo.com/pctekonline/12x12cmcasefan.html This is the exact same fan that is used in the Seasonic S12 330 power supply -- it is very quiet when slowed down; by undervolting or a Zalman FanMate ($5). Another option is this fan, that includes a controller:
http://www.sundialmicro.com/silverstone_case_fan_sstfm121_1726_381.html
So the actual total would be about $1,265.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
You would obviously have to either assemble these systems yourself -- which is not all that difficult, or have somebody do it for you. I feel that both of these will give you good support, all things considered. You will know you own system very well, or you will have a local shop that can support it.
[Edit] Larry Gray pointed out to me (in an email) that these are all black components. I do prefer black over beige. And as Larry mentioned, the prices are virtually the same, but if they are different, the beige ones are a bit less: The beige Evercase is about $2.50 less expensive (but it may only be 50 cents -- NewEgg doesn't carry the exact case in beige!); the beige InWin is the same cost. The beige Asus CD-RW drive is $2 less, and the beige Sony floppy is 50 cents less.
So, if you prefer beige, or you don't care either way, then you can save as much as $5 -- which is an (even) better value!