Help me decide HOW my bank account is going to plummet (Need Advice)

[Rookierookie]

This year I'm going to treat myself to approximately $380 USD worth of Christmas presents. One thing that I am most definitely going to buy is a new mouse, either laser or very high quality optical, for gaming, and I expect to spend $30-$50 USD on that.

I'm having trouble, however, deciding where the rest of the money should go.

Currently I have my sights on one of two things - either a new graphics card or a 30-60GB MP3 player. Currently, I'm using a 9800SE - still fairly good, but showing its age in recent games, and even CounterStrike Source occasionally lags on high quality settings. In addition, I'm going to get a 17" LCD on my parent's expenses, and the 9800SE won't be sufficient for the higher resolution (currently 1024x768). Not to mention that I'm eagerly waiting for TES4, and if Half Life 2: Lost Coast is a good indication of how demanding TES4 is going to be, I'm not going to get happy frame rates even on lowest settings. My MP3 player is a Creative MuVo TX FM with 512MB, and I'm already having to pick here and there, and I've not even begun to touch the bulk of my library of CDs.

I could buy a 5GB MP3 player ($200) and a $100 - $150 graphics card and still stay within my total budget, if barely. However, I do not want to upgrade the graphics card again before I get a new computer, and so I'm aiming for X800XL/6800GT level ($250), or even an X850XT ($250-$300?), and I'm reluctant to go any lower than an X800Pro/X800GTO ($200). Versions of X800GTs, 6800LE/XTs and 6600GTs that are compatible with my computer are at around $150, and these are my absolute bottom line; any lower, and it's not likely to play Oblivion very well. Even in this case I am quite likely to overdraw my top budget of $380 USD. As for a 5GB MP3 player, I CAN fill it up with standard size 5MB MP3s, but I'm slightly concerned about future-proofing, since I expect my CD-collection to grow by at least another 10 CDs by September. Of course, I will have a lot more room as to choosing which songs to put in it in case I do have to, but I'm attracted by the prospect of never having to choose as is the case with 30+GB MP3 players, as well as the capability to use them as mobile hard disks.

Apart from these almost-certain expenses, there are a couple of other items that I'm looking at. The first is a new sound card (looking at SB Audigy 2 Value, $50). I'm not actually sure what my demands for audio quality are; I do plan on doing some music work with MIDI when I finally move the computer to my own room, and a good sound card MIGHT help, but I'm not sure by how much. I'm also considering a sound card for gaming reasons, but I'm not sure how much improvement it offers over onboard audio; I'm currently using $15 headsets and earphones for my computer and MP3, and I find both perfectly acceptable so I don't think my requirement for audio is all that high, and I'm wondering if the sound card is worth it for the purposes mentioned above. I'm currently using 5.1 channel AC97 audio.

The second one I'm looking at is a CPU cooler. I'm using the stock cooler from Intel, which works well enough for default speed, but I've overclocked it (from 2.4 to 2.8GHz - was clocking at 3.0GHz for a few weeks, but I was scared), which leads to higher temperatures than normal. This is more of a luxury, and a fairly cheap one, around $20-$30, but I'm pondering whether it will be worth it. I might also add one or two case fans, even if I choose to finally exclude the CPU cooler.

The last one I'm looking at is Noteworthy Composer - as I've said before I'm considering doing music work when I move the computer into my own room. I've downloaded the trial version - several times in fact, reinstalling each time - and I want the full version. 1.75b costs $39 USD, but as I've heard that NWC2 is near completion (tried it out on friend's comp, perfectly stable and stuff) I'm wondering whether to wait for v2, and whether I should buy it at all.

Also adding to the list of considerations is what I'm going to do with the old MP3 player and graphics card. I'll either sell the graphics card cheap to a friend, or leave it as backup if the new one fails in the event that I replace the graphics card, but I'll probably keep the MP3 player or give it to my brother if I choose to buy a new one.

To make it easier for you I'm arranging it:

Core -
Option 1. Mouse ($30-$50) + Graphics card ($200-$300)
Option 2. Mouse ($30-$50) + 30GB MP3 player ($300)
Option 3. Mouse ($30-$50) + 5-8GB MP3 player ($200) + Graphics card ($150)

Optional -
SB Audigy 2 Value 7.1 sound card ($50-$60)
CPU cooler (OR OTHER COOLING) ($20-$30)
Noteworth Composer v1.75b (OR WAIT FOR v2) ($39)

Going by option 1 I will spend from $230 - $350, leaving anywhere from $30 - $120 for other things, the latter of which can help me buy all the items in the Optional category; I will still be having my 512MB MP3 player, but I won't ever have to buy a new graphics card until I get a new computer. Going by option 2 I will spend $330-$350, which leaves me just enough money to buy one of the optional items; I will have enough space for all the songs I could dream of, but I'll be forced to turn down settings in newer, or even not-so-new-anymore games. Going by option 3 I will hit the cap of my budget even if I go by $30 mice, will have enough space for songs at the time being, and be able to play current games fairly smoothly on a 17", but I might have problems with future or the latest current games, and it would still be possible to run out of space on the MP3 player.

The final choice is of course mine, but I would like advice from you on any of the things I've mentioned - mouse, MP3 player, graphics card, software, etc. or just general advice. As most of my family on my mother's side is going to be visiting next week, I might consider waiting to see if I get an IPod or something in the Christmas gifts, and waiting until Boxing Day to buy the stuff (perhaps buying the mouse first, since I'm not likely to get a mouse in the Christmas presents, and I'm going to buy that no matter what happens), but I'm not putting up my hopes on that.

So, any advice?