The hd4870 comes with adapters if your power supply is slightly older. I think your fine. Get the Samsung monitor, they last a long time and they look good. LG also makes good monitors. Gamerkat

Oh yeah, forgot about the adapters. Good call.

Not sure about the LG monitors though, heard lots of mixed reviews about them. I do know that their TV produce a lot of heat because of the processor. I have two friends who own their own custom (really high end installs) home theatre companies and they both tell me never to buy an LG TV.

Well, the cheapest parts are on Newegg. So, you have to order them online. Here is what I would get if I had that kind of money (some are general parts).

4 GB Ram (800 MHz)

Intel Core 2 Duo E8500

GTX 280 (or GTX 260 core 216)

P45

650W psu

24 inch monitor (or 22)

Windows Vista 64 bit

Have no idea for case

500GB hdd

bedram793

+1 for DDR2 800mhz ram. I'd recommend something by Mushkin, OCZ or Kingston.

+1 for the E8400/8500. Great CPU for gaming.

I'd opt for a Radeon HD 4850 GPU. Best bang for your buck, period. Recommend Palit or Sapphire.

+1 for a P45 mobo. Recommend a Gigabyte or Asus.

+1 for a 620w or better PSU.

+1 for a 20" or better monitor from Samsung. Look for high contrast and good response time (5ms or less).

+1 for Vista Ultimate 64 bit.

Case is up to you based on what you like the look of.

WD 640gb HD.

Thanks for your post. Finally someone who answered all my questions (not to say you other guys didn't help; you did)! Yeah, I may end up going for a Samsung, the one that an earlier poster linked seems nice... I disagree that Hanns-G is garbage. My bros' monitor is really nice, both in quality and looks, although I think they don't sell it anymore... Did you mean that particular model was junk? Or did you mean the company's quality in general? Funny, my bro also has a 4870. I agree, it's a really nice card, quite powerful... But my PSU does not have two 6-pin connectors, so if I bought a 4870, I would also need to get a new PSU, which would just be adding more money, and I do not want to have to do that.

Sam_Fisher_932

Trust me on this, go to a Bestbuy and look at a Samsung or HP or Dell and you will see the difference. The Hanns-G has a very low contrast ratio, picture quality will not be nearly as good... sorry to be the bearer of bad news but your brother monitor if it's the same model or simular is junk. Spend a little more, get a good monitor that will last you. Samnsung has one of the best warranties as well.

If you PSU has not have two 6 pin connectors you are screwed, that 4870 is a power hog. The 4850 should be really good for resolutions up to 1680x1050 but I'm not too sure off the top of my head what it will be like above that.

Another option for you is to keep using your current card and play a lower setting with the extra goodies turned down, wait a little to see how much the 4870 will drop and maybe getting a new PSU as well since you need a minimum 600w to run the 4870 safely anyways. A good PSU is also something you should get as this can be moved to your next system when it's time to upgrade.

To answer your question, spend a little more money and get a quality monitor. It's one of the things that will last you the longest. Acer is not that great for monitors and I've never really heard about that other company.

Check out somethin like the Samsung 2253 models or something in that range. Looks for a good fast response time of 5ms or less and a high contrast. I believe the 2253 models have a 2ms response time and 8000:1 contrast which is very good. I have 2 of them and I believe they are the best bang for your buck. Dell and HP also make some good monitors but the glossy screen is suseptable to glare.

As for a good GPU, the 4850 is the best bang for the buck. If you want to do some higher resolutions though I'd opt for the 4870. I have that too, great card. I believe the Palit and Sapphire versions are among the best ones as well as being a few dollars cheaper than some of the competition.

EDIT: Just read your last post, the Acer isn't that good according to the specs and the Hanns-G is garbage.