Thanks to everyone's generous help I re-configured and came up with an even better computer at less money! Don't know how that happened:
CASE: NZXT Nemesis Metal Mid-Tower Case 400W W/ side-panel Window (BLACK COLOR)
CPU: (Sckt775)Intel® Core 2 Duo E6700 CPU @ 2.67GHz 1066FSB 2x2MB L2 Cache
MOTHERBOARD: Asus P5N32-SLI SE Deluxe nForce4 SLI Chipset LGA775 Supports Core 2 Duo CPU FSB1066 DDR2/800 Mainboard w/GbLAN,USB2.0,IEEE1394&7.1Audio
POWER SUPPLY: Thermaltake ToughPower 750 Watt Power Supply - SLI Ready
POWER PROTECTION: OPTI-UPS ES1500C 1400VA/980W UNINTERRUPT POWER SUPPLY
COOLING SYSTEM: CoolerMaster Liquid CPU Cooling Fan System Kit + 2 EXTRA CASE FANS
MEMORY: (Req.DDR2 MainBoard)2GB (2x1GB) PC6400 DDR2/800 Dual Channel Memory (Corsair XMS2 Xtreme Memory w/ Heat Spreader)
VIDEO CARD: NEW!!! NVIDIA Geforce 7950 GX2 1GB 16X PCI Express Video Card
VIDEO CARD 2: NEW!!! NVIDIA Geforce 7950 GX2 1GB 16X PCI Express Video Card
LCD Monitor: NONE
HARD DRIVE: Single Hard Drive (750GB SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 16MB Cache 7200RPM HDD)
Data Hard Drive: 750GB SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 16MB Cache 7200RPM Hard Drive
Optical Drive: PIONEER DVR-111 DUAL FORMAT 16X DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW DRIVE DUAL LAYER (BLACK COLOR)
Optical Drive 2: COMBO DRIVE (16X DVD-ROM & 52x32x52 CD-RW) (BLACK COLOR)
SOUND: New! Creative Labs X-FI Platinum 24-BIT PCI Sound Card
$3946.00
(before all applicable rebates)
What if I remove one of those 7950's, would the machine
a. Still be powerful enough to run any game without compromises?
b. Be future-proof? Any reason I can't replace the 7950 with a DX10 card when they come out?
Seems like that's be best option. I can still buy stuff now and upgrade to Vista and a DX10 card whenever. Those two questions are important, though. I don't want to drop 3K on a machine and still have to turn off options, y'know? Nor do I want to be screwed come "next generation." Thanks again for the help.
CASE: NZXT Nemesis Metal Mid-Tower Case 400W W/ side-panel Window (BLACK COLOR)
CPU: (Sckt775)Intel® Core 2 Duo E6700 CPU @ 2.67GHz 1066FSB 2x2MB L2 Cache
MOTHERBOARD: Asus P5N32-SLI SE Deluxe nForce4 SLI Chipset LGA775 Supports Core 2 Duo CPU FSB1066 DDR2/800 Mainboard w/GbLAN,USB2.0,IEEE1394&7.1Audio
POWER SUPPLY: Thermaltake ToughPower 750 Watt Power Supply - SLI Ready
POWER PROTECTION: OPTI-UPS ES1500C 1400VA/980W UNINTERRUPT POWER SUPPLY
COOLING SYSTEM: CoolerMaster Liquid CPU Cooling Fan System Kit + 2 EXTRA CASE FANS
MEMORY: (Req.DDR2 MainBoard)2GB (2x1GB) PC6400 DDR2/800 Dual Channel Memory (Corsair XMS2 Xtreme Memory w/ Heat Spreader)
VIDEO CARD: NEW!!! NVIDIA Geforce 7950 GX2 1GB 16X PCI Express Video Card
VIDEO CARD 2: NEW!!! NVIDIA Geforce 7950 GX2 1GB 16X PCI Express Video Card
LCD Monitor: NONE
HARD DRIVE: Single Hard Drive (750GB SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 16MB Cache 7200RPM HDD)
Data Hard Drive: 750GB SATA-II 3.0Gb/s 16MB Cache 7200RPM Hard Drive
Optical Drive: PIONEER DVR-111 DUAL FORMAT 16X DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW DRIVE DUAL LAYER (BLACK COLOR)
Optical Drive 2: COMBO DRIVE (16X DVD-ROM & 52x32x52 CD-RW) (BLACK COLOR)
SOUND: New! Creative Labs X-FI Platinum 24-BIT PCI Sound Card
$3946.00
(before all applicable rebates)
What if I remove one of those 7950's, would the machine
a. Still be powerful enough to run any game without compromises?
b. Be future-proof? Any reason I can't replace the 7950 with a DX10 card when they come out?
Seems like that's be best option. I can still buy stuff now and upgrade to Vista and a DX10 card whenever. Those two questions are important, though. I don't want to drop 3K on a machine and still have to turn off options, y'know? Nor do I want to be screwed come "next generation." Thanks again for the help.