Quote:There is an advantage for trying to get as close to the bleeding edge as possible, that being you don't have to bother with upgrading for 3 to 4 years in everything, but possibly the video cards. So IMO, it's worth spending extra money on all the non-video card components as they'll still be powerful for several years down the line. As to video cards though, you're pretty much spot on. Being a generation or two behind means you can still have good graphics for a couple years before you jump to beinga generation or two behind again.
I have built my last 3-computer from the ground up and have never spent less than $2,500-USD, and always regurgitated previous items, such as mouse, keyboard, dvd r/rw+/- rom drives, data cable usb 2.0 ports (if motherboard does not already have them), internal fans, software, speakers, all-in-one printers, internal power supply, RAM (when compatible) and even the tower itself at times. And I never even come close to getting 100% of the power I desire - it's mostly around 75% with that extra 25% costing a further $1,500 to $2,500.
Now I will tell you Nomad25055 that the honest to god truth is that if you purchase a pre-built machine from a Fry's or similar electronics discount store, they usually come bundled with relatively good features and software. If you find the motherboard you desire bundled already, then you only need to upgrade the ram (assuming you want more than what already comes bundled - new egg has great deals), cpu (if necessary), and the video card. Altogether, it might cost you between 2-3K for the whole system including the additional components you add/upgrade, but you will KNOW it will work 100% perfect the first time (a BYO system almost ALWAYS needs tweaking), and will save a LOT of money in the long run... trust me. Pre-builts have special deals with all the venders of the parts they use getting a better deal than you could purchasing every single piece solo. It's like upgrading parts of a sports car as opposed to building one from the ground up.
After seeing my wife's computer on sale at Fry's with a more powerful system than my BYO system less than 5-years later for $350.... well I was quite put out at the money I threw away. First we tried to configure her costs for a BYO of similar quality to mine, but ran up to around a $800-1k range, and here is a pre-built with almost identical set up for $350... all it needed was some more RAM. Such a shame I didn't know many years ago what I know now.
And why do you want 4-SATA drives? For a RAID-10? Just get two for a simple RAID configuration - the RAID-10 won't increase boot times like you'd think it would... trust me.
"The true value of a human being is determined primarily by the measure and the sense in which he has attained liberation from the self." -Albert Einsetin