Good piece over at Ars Technica describing how to build a green PC. They have also provided some pre-configured build specs for those that simply want suggestions for a good set of components.

I'm doing some minor upgrading to PC's at my house, adding in extra memory and new graphics cards. Newer graphics cards tend to draw a good bit of power, so it's time to consider whether the power supply units (PSU) are up to the task. I also noticed this past summer that both were fairly hot even though they are running 420W Thermaltake Purepower PSU's. These Thermaltakes are fairly cheap, but not the worst one could buy.

So with my first upgrade, I went with the Corsair VX550. The air coming out of the back of the machine is much cooler, the computer is quieter, and the system boots faster. The better cooling is a result of the 80 PLUS® Certified efficiency rating. It also has more and much cleaner power with better voltage regulation.

After reading reviews at Silent PC Review, I've just ordered the Antec earthwatts EA500 500W for Ian's computer. I considered the Corsair VX450W for Ian's machine, but went with the Antec Earthpower because of the difference in price after rebate. Not quite as snazzy as the Corsair, but it has good power efficiency.

See Silent PC Review's list of recommended PSU's if you are in the market for upgrading your machine.

Oh, and here are the specs for my home machine:

AMD X2 4200+ | Asus 8600GTS | 4GB Corsair XMS DDR2 800 RAM | Abit KN9 | 150GB WD Raptor | 160GB WD SATA | M-Audio Revolutions 5.1 | Corsair VX550 PSU | Viewsonic 20" monitor | Samsung 19" monitor | Windows XP

Next step, CPU upgrade.