Building a desktop in 2011. When to build and what to put in it?

[Piata]

1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing.
Mostly photoshop work, web design and gaming.

2. What YOUR budget is. A price range is acceptable as long as it's not more than a 20% spread
$1000 - $1200.

3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.
Canada.

4. IF YOU have a brand preference. That means, are you an Intel-Fanboy, AMD-Fanboy, ATI-Fanboy, nVidia-Fanboy, Seagate-Fanboy, WD-Fanboy, etc.
No real brand loyalty. I've mostly used nVidia cards to date, but am not oppossed to giving ATi a shot.

5. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.
I will be reusing my DVD-burner and SATA2 hard drives.

6. IF YOU have searched and/or read similar threads.
Somewhat. I've been reading a lot of articles and skimming a few threads.

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.
Most likely default speeds. I've never really overclocked anything.

8. What resolution YOU plan on gaming with.
1680x1050

9. WHEN do you plan to build it?
The sooner the better, but the problems with the 6-series intel boards makes me want to wait for a new chipset. Is it better to wait until later in the year or should I wait until spring when z68 chipset comes out? I have no problem waiting if it's worth the wait.

Essentially I need a case, psu, mobo, cpu(thinking i5 or i7 SB), ram, vid card and Windows 7. If there's money left over, I wouldn't mind getting a SSD for the OS.

Also a quieter rig would be nice. I don't want my computer to sound like a jet engine every time I turn it on.

 

[Davidh373]

The sooner the better, but the problems with the 6-series intel boards makes me want to wait for a new chipset. Is it better to wait until later in the year or should I wait until spring when z68 chipset comes out? I have no problem waiting if it's worth the wait.

Wait until they have new motherboards out. Intel says they have already applied a fix, and you shouldn't have a problem finding one in a few months. Intel is shipping out new reference models later this month, with expected shipping (from Gigabyte, ASUS, MSI, ect.) in mid to late March. There is no other problems with the chipset, and besides, all you would have to do is move your SSDs/HDDs to SATA III ports instead of the SATA II ports. People are really going overboard panicing about a problem that will only effect around 5% of people over the next 3 years. Also, since Intel officially recalled all of them, you wouldn't have a problem getting a shinny new replacement when they start coming off the line, free shipping and replacement!

 

[mfenn]

I agree with David. If you need it in the next month or so, go ahead and get a current generation i5 or i7. If not, wait until Sandy Bridge is re-released.

 

[BoomerD]

Hell, the "bad" P67 boards are still available at some retailers. I personally wouldn't hesitate to buy one...then swap it out once the "fix" is done.
IMO, the SATA problem, while something that needs to be fixed, has been blown way out of proportion...especially for the normal user who's not going to use ALL of the SATA ports anyway.
IF there's no "I gotta build a new computer TODAY!" rush, then wait...if time is of the essence, find one of the P67 boards at Amazon or Buy.com, build the rig...then replace the board in April, or May, or June...or whenever they get the problem resolved.