Dweet

Its been awhile since I've been parts shopping for a computer processor/mb setup. So when I get home I want to build something that is vista compatible. I'm definately going to need a new setup to do this. Traditionally I've went with AMD processors because they were cheaper and just as good for the most part. Plus it the MB for it was cheaper as well. Anyways I know Vista is a resource hog and want something that will run it smoothly and any video game I might purchase for it. Soooo what AMD/Intel processors you guys recommend and what is the big difference between the two brands right now? Also what type of memory and I know I'm going to need at least 2gb of it. With the video Im thinking GeForce 8800 series.
Anyways let me know what you guy think.

supercow

I buy amd because I don't like intel as a company.

Best way to go is to find a motherboard with all the features you want. ddr2, sata, pci-x, etc. and then find the processor to go with it. Whats your budget and is this for internet or gaming? If it's internet only the sempron line makes for a great cheap option. For gaming look for on of the 64bit amd's either an athlon64 or and athlon64 x2.

of course get an asus mb.

edit: oh and get and am2 board, socket 939 is practically gone already.

radu_rd2

If you want the absolute best, Intel's Core 2 Extreme Edition I think is the best right now. But that is very expensive and I don't think it's worth it. And instead of getting a cheaper Intel CPU, you should get an AMD as they are generally cheaper and give better bang for the buck.

I'd go with an Athlon 64 X2, on an AM2 socket. The higher the frequency, the better. I would look for a new one on ebay, sometimes you can save quite a bit that way. You'll need an AM2 motherboard with PCI express. Don't know what brand to recommend though, I don't agree with ASUS any more, I have a few problems with my ASUS mainboard and I searched on different forums and it appears that a lot of people do too (they used to be great but lately I don't know). In any case, don't spend way too much on it, I personally don't think there's a big difference between mainboards.
If you can afford a GeForce 8800, that would be really great.

If you're not in a hurry, you can look on http://dealstobuy.com/ daily for a while, sometimes really good deals come up for hard drives and other stuff.

supercow

let me know what you come up with and I could give you a good price on it. Usually with shipping I can beat newegg.

StrikeEagle

I just bought a computer setup for $850, my present computer is dying, so I needed to upgrade. Matched memory, motherboard and graphics card, it looks like it's going to be blazing fast and really reliable!
Here we go:
Motherboard: by Gigabyte, 1333/1066Mhz FSB. Supports 8GB of DDR2 1066 RAM.
Processor Intel Core 2 Duo 6420, 2.13Ghz. Many people have overclocked it to 3.4Ghz, very reliable, fast and stable. Best bang for the buck
RAM Corsair 2GB 2DIMM matched sticks, 1066Mhz to match the motherboard. Pretty much the fastest most reliable and coolest memory on the market.
Video Card Not the highest end but it's still fantastic. 256-bit 1380Mhz memory clock 500Mhz core clock. Those specs were higher than some of the low end 8-series, and much cheaper. 2 DVI ports!
Hard Drive Seagate Barracuda, one of the best HDs, especially in RAID. I got one 400GB, could have gone bigger, but not really necessary. If I need more room, I'll simply get another one.
Fan One of the biggest fans I've seen, I laughed when I saw the size of it. According to the reviews, this thing works really well! People running full CPU at 40C, I'm typically running about 53C idle with my present computer.
Power Supply Not the most high end, but thermaltake is reliable and 430W is plenty of power for me.

My brother and I did a bunch of research to get this stuff matched, and it should work great! And for $850, I was really happy.

Dweet

Thanks for the reply guys.... I probably wont be purchasing anything till the mid-end of July because I know how prices on hardware can drop in over a month's time. So hopefully I can get something similiar to strike eagle's setup but for cheaper.

Keep the recommendations coming!! fing02.gif

tibbytib

Keep your eyes on www.pricewatch.com

They usually have fair market values at any given time on computer parts.