Help with my first build

[Dalton626]

For the past couple years I have had a lap top and it has done everything I have asked of it but it is time to upgrade towards a beefier computer. I plan on running programs like Blender and Aptana on it plus I want to be able to play games like Planetary Annihilation and of course Minecraft. I’m buying my hardware off of New Egg with my overall budget somewhere around $650-$800. I have decided that I'm going to need a quad core CPU since I don’t plan on overclocking it but beyond that, I'm at a total loss. I have done a bit of research and all I have gotten was confusion when it comes to what brand to go with and what parts would be compatible with each other. I’ve been thinking of going with either the AMD FX series or the Intel i5 series but any suggestions about how to get the best CPU for the cheapest would be great. I plan on this being a long term project so I want to start of small spending most of my money on the CUP and the motherboard. I would like to be somewhere between $150 and $200 for the CPU and $120 and $150 for the motherboard. This way I can have the ability to upgrade it later if I have the need to at a later date. For the immediate build I'm not going to have an added graphics card but if I find that I need one I will later. Any help would be greatly appreciated but if I can get a little direction with choosing the CPU and the motherboard I should be able to take it from there.

 

[lehtv]

Welcome to the forums. Could you please use paragraphs, as no one wants to read a wall of text. Actually it would help if you copy-pasted the questions from the sticky on top of this forum and posted answers to those questions.

 

[Ken g6]

I think I can parse this:

1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing.

I plan on running programs like Blender and Aptana on it plus I want to be able to play games like Planetary Annihilation and of course Minecraft.

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

my overall budget somewhere around $650-$800

3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.
[USA]

4. IF you're buying parts OUTSIDE the US, please post a link to the vendor you'll be buying from.
We can't be expected to scour the internet on your behalf, chasing down deals in your specific country... Again, help us, help YOU.

I’m buying my hardware off of New Egg

5. IF YOU have a brand preference. That means, are you an Intel-Fanboy, AMD-Fanboy, ATI-Fanboy, nVidia-Fanboy, Seagate-Fanboy, WD-Fanboy, etc.

all I have gotten was confusion when it comes to what brand to go with

6. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.
[none]

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.
??? (May not be able to afford it.)

8. What resolution, not monitor size, will you be using?
???

9. WHEN do you plan to build it?
Note that it is usually not cost or time effective to choose your build more than a month before you actually plan to be using it.
???

X. Do you need to purchase any software to go with the system, such as Windows or Blu Ray playback software?
???

OK, I got about 6/10. The big remaining question is whether you need a monitor and/or OS in that budget? I tend to assume so, which could make this difficult.

Blender looks like it likes Intel CPUs a lot. i3-3220 beats FX-6300! But that's without overclocking the FX. So whether you want to overclock matters too.

 

[mfenn]

OK, I got about 6/10. The big remaining question is whether you need a monitor and/or OS in that budget? I tend to assume so, which could make this difficult.

This. With no OS or peripherals, it is easy to get a good gaming and productivity machine into the OP's budget. The options are much more limited if the build needs to include both of those things.