i am going to be building my first desktop and i wanted to make sure i don't get the wrong tools or forget something important.

any recommendations on which kit i should get.

First I'd make a list of the main purpose you use your PC for. Then find a kit that matches it's use. Example: If you're a gamer (sp) then you want a PC that will allow you to play games without hanging up, etc.

i already have the parts bookmarked in my browser. what i am looking for is what tools i might need to put it together. i know i need a screwdriver but what size one do i need and what other tools do i need thats why i was hoping to get a pc assembly kit that isn't to many tools but is still enough. i plan on upgrading it over time as well i just don't have a desktop that i can look into and see what tools would be used so i thought i'd ask.

i was really tired when i wrote that and obviously left out that i already know the parts i am getting. sorry about that.

Computer assembly is fairly simple and straight forward if you have any mechanical skills at all.

Mostly the only things you'll need are a set of small phillips screwdrivers, maybe a few allen wrenches, a needle nose pliers or hemo stat for grabbing small parts. If you are going to be installing any chips or other circuit parts you'll need a grounding strap to prevent static electrical discharge from you to the parts.

Have fun.

grounding strap was bout all i had covered thanks. i will add those to my list for when i can afford the parts.

thank you both the help is appreciated

LOOK FOR COMPARABILITY ISSUES WITH THE MOTHER BOARD FIRST! For instance you want to know if it uses DDR, DDR 2, DDR 3, or DDR 4 RAM (Read Only Memory) that is either Registered or Unregistered (ECC or NON-ECC). It will have a rating like PC6400, PC7200, etc. Make sure you know what RAM will work with your motherboard. Also make sure to not buy SODIMM RAM fort a PC unless the Mainboard really uses' it. SODIMM is usually used in Laptops. SOME PC mainboards do use it but they are rare. Likewise know what kind of power connectors the mainboard uses. These days all Hard Drives are SATA. Also if you intend to have HD high end video and your Motherboard does not support it or needs a boost, look for a quality PCIe Video Card.

Do not waste your money on an SLI Motherboard unless you are a RABID gamer requiring multiple monitors. These days you are jerking yourself if you build anything less than 4GB of RAM but 2GB is acceptable. For a personal computer doing internet and other sundry BS stick with a Core Duo. ONLY opt for Quad Core if you need intensive number crunching or HARD video work. There is a Too Much point when building. Some people prefer Athalon. Others Intel. Intel is more common. Athalon has some advantages but then again they are more costly in the long run power for price. When buying a main board it is very important you match the CPU to the Mainboard. You cannot put an Intel CPU on an Athalon Board.

One last thing, DO NOT BUY CHEAP FANS to cool your computer! The noise will drive you crazy. An alternative is a "Heat Pipe" which is silent. You should always have at last one case fan installed. Also be sure to buy a decent case. You don't have to go crazy spending hundreds of dollars on a Liam Lee case or a Thermaltake.

If you are on a budget you can get a Mainboard for about $60 for a good one. $100 for a great one. Frankly you would have to justify spending more on a motherboard. I would Recommend ASRock motherboards. They work well with Crucial Memory which is not all that expensive. Asus are good but pricey. PC Chips makes good "Cheapie Boards." Stay away from Elite Group. Foxconn Makes a good case for a good price.

Shop around for your parts after selecting the mainboard. Build around that. Make sure everything you buy is rated like a power supply capable of feeding your system. The average computer uses about 250 watts. Mine uses 400 watts. I have seen computers that use 850 or more watts. I have seen one that needed a 1000watt power supply. A little extra is good but a lot is a waste. I have built good machines for about 350 not counting monitor. I have spent about $1800 building a power machine I use. Even after seven years it still is faster than most Core Duos and my machine is an older Hyper Threading "Dual Core" 775 P4 Intel at 3.4 GHz. There is faster out there now but you will pay through the nose for it.

Some shops I use for computer parts, Directron.com, Newegg.com, ZipZoomFly.com, eBay.com, Amazon.com, TigerDirect.com, and Frys.com.

Macmall is a waste and don't bother to build an apple unless you like financial punishment.

Hope this helps!

it will be a good while before i have the money for all the parts so some of these are gonna change but this is the jist of what i am getting, and yes i am a hardcore gamer. thats why i am going to build this system myself for about 1200 less than it would cost me to buy it from dell or anywhere else really. Newegg is a lifesaver. it is all compatible i made sure of that.

Case ( CoolerMaster HAF 932 Full Tower Gaming Case - Black )

Processor ( Intel® Core™ i7 970 Processor (6x 3.20GHz/12MB L3 Cache) )

CORSAIR Hydro H70 CWCH70 120mm High Performance CPU Cooler

Memory ( 12 GB [4 GB X3] DDR3-1600 - Corsair or Major Brand )

Video Card ( NVIDIA GeForce GTX 590 - 3GB - ASUS - Single Card )

Motherboard ( [3-Way SLI] ASUS Rampage III Extreme w/ 4x PCI-E 2.0 x16 )

Power Supply ( 1200 Watt -- CoolerMaster RSC00-80GAD3-US )

Primary Hard Drive ( 1 TB HARD DRIVE -- 64M Cache, 7200 RPM, 6.0Gb/s - Single Drive )

Optical Drive ( 24X Dual Format/Double Layer DVD±R/±RW + CD-R/RW Drive - Black )

Sound Card ( Creative Labs Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium Fatal1ty Champion Series )

Network Card ( [$89 - $10 Instant off = $79] Killer 2100 Gaming Network Card )

Speaker System ( Logitech Z506 5.1 Surround 3D Sound Speakers + Subwoofer - Black )

the reason i am getting a 1200w power supply is for running dual 590s but i won't need that for a while given that the 590 is already a dual 580 essentially.

That is a power house machine. The i7 is a beast of a chipset! you are not screwing around. That will be a video cruncher for sure.

I was actually contemplating my next build around the X85 ASRock motherboard. Drop a Quad Core and 24 GB of RAM on it and LOOK OUT CRAY COMPUTER!

your idea isn't exactly a kids toy either.

i am only a little familiar with motherboards cause i am just getting into training for an A+ cert but asrock seems to have a good rep on newegg. are you looking at the 2nd gen sandybridges or the other i7s though either way grab a decent liquid cooler and you can overclock them a good deal.

My current box is Watercooled. I could overclock to 5.2 Ghz but that is taxing on a chip. I actually like watercooling becasue it does deal with the heat so much better and it is quieter. My cooling system is actually a Hybrid of parts between two Thermaltake systems and the Cooler Master kit. the stock systems had their issues. Cooler Master has terrible pumps, the Big Water SE's pump was crap too and leaked. Thermaltake's Aqua Bay pump happens to be rock solid. I combined the chip set heat sinks from a Cooler Master kit, The 120MM radiator and Bay Tank from the Thermaltake Big Water SE, and a pump from the Thermaltake Aqua Bay system and now I have a water cooler that is rock solid and bullet proof. The tubing Thermaltake uses is terrible. So are the connectors. The connectors of the Cooler Master kit are MUCH better. I did not like the idea of hybridizing three systems into one but leaking fittings and pumps are bad news in a computer! My sent personal build I will be actually putting a custom system together so that I can be assured there will be no leaks at all. Metal tubing brazed together does not leak! Likewise I will opt for an external reservoir this time as well. Possibly even an external radiator to save real estate inside my case!

i hate the stock fans cause they are either bad at cooling or to loud for what they do. i have contemplated getting a second cooling unit for my graphics card depending on how well the 590 cools itself cause i know it has built in liquid cooling so it is supposed to run much cooler but i havn't seen to many review after people have been pushing the card so i will have to wait and see if somebody can actually push it to the limit. i was thinking about replacing the corsair cooler with a coolermaster cause it is cheaper but i won't thanks for the heads up.

The Cooler Master kit has a GBU water block kit as well. If you can get rid of more fans the better. Why just water cool your CPU?

liquid cooling is already built into the nvidia card and liquid cooling for anthing other than the graphics card and cpu seems like overkill but again i havn't had a desktop since my old 98 so i will just have to see how hot it runs and go from there.