I just wanted to know what brand to buy or what my price range should be, this is my first time, upgrading a computer if you couldn't tell, never had a good one before.

also I'm buying a new cpu and heatsink and I wanted to know which is the most, quiet, cool, and cost effective, much appreciated

For this system:?
My System Specs (#1):
Sony Vaio VGCRB42G
Processor:
Intel pentium 4 630, 3.0 mhz
Motherboard:
Intel 915GAG
Memory:
1024 mb ddr sdram
Videocard:
ATI Radeon x800 xl

If you are upgrading that, its going to be expensive, espically to get a better video card.

sorry i just meant a fan for my cpu and a heat sink, and a vga fan

I have an excellent VGA cooler on my Sapphire 9700pro it is whisper quiet cant hear it at all i strongly recomend it.

I have a true ATI 9800 Pro and have been considering the "Silencer", but I've read that I shouldn't expect more than a 2'C drop in temp. Hardly worth the money.

What has your experience been like?

PS: They didn't add a temp probe to the Radeon until the 9800 XT.

Things to know:

o Copper absorbs heat faster/better than aluminum, so avoid an all-aluminum heatsink. Aluminum with a copper core/contact on the face is better than pure aluminum, but not as good as pure copper (unless specially designed for greater heat dissipation... which you can always do in copper too, but costs more).

o Bigger fans cool better, but make far more noise. If the fan on your heatsink doesn't move at least 25 cfm (cubic feet per minute), then replace it with something bigger. Adapters to place a 80mm fan on a 60mm heatsink don't work. Avoid them.

o The best HSF in the world won't help in you can't move the heated air out of your case. Make sure you have plenty of fans to keep the air moving through your case.

o Overclocking creates far more heat than the equivalent faster processor, which shortens the life of your CPU, so don't bother unless you plan on upgrading in the next year or two.

Hope this helps.

My 9800 ran so hot that it would lock up the whole system. I could only game for about 5 minutes. After putting on the VGA Silencer the card only got warm and I never had a problem again. I could play Half Life 2 at 1600x1200 for hours with no problems.