Need help selecting CPU/MOBO

[JOS]

Hello there,
I need to upgrade a system that I built about 3 or 4 years ago. I have a Pentium 866Mz ( don't laugh) and 512MB RAM ( limitation of the CUSL2 MOBO ).
I use my system mostly for Photo Editing (60%), Multimedia Authoring (DVD,Audio)(30%), Other tasks(10%). I don't use the system for games at all. The system is showing its age and it's really sloooow.
I have started reading about what's available in terms of new CPUs and even though I've always been partial to Intel I am willing to go with AMD. The AMD 64 3500+ has picked my interest and I was wondering if this is a good CPU for the tasks that I am involved in.
I don't plan to OC the system, at least not from the start, I might get into OCing later, but is not my priority. I understand that I have to look hard for a good MOBO since I have a AGP 4X video card that I don't want to trash it right away.
What do you, experienced guys, think about this CPU? I don't want to spend a lot of money on the upgrade so, expensive CPUs are not appealing to me at this point.
The 3500+ is selling for $203 (ret. box) which I think is a good value. Where could I get a nice MOBO for this processor ?
Your contributions to this thread will be appreciated.

 

[RallyMaster]

Get a 3000 or 3200+ and overclock. Mobo? AsRock has one with both PCI-e and AGP, so you should definitely try looking in that direction.

 

[RallyMaster]

I decided to find the board for you: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813157081

might want to check this one if you want eSATA or something... http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16813157087

 

[996GT2]

Since you are doing a lot of multimedia tasks a Dual Core CPU would help out quite a bit; check the AMD Athlon X2 3800+ for a fast dual-core proc that can be OC'd a lot later. For cost savings, see the Intel Pentium D 9XX series, now seriously discounted to the low $200 range.

If you are not going to upgrade to PCI-e, then the ASRock Dual-SATA2 is a good board.

 

[JOS]

Thank you RallyMaster for taking the time to find a suitable MoBo for that CPU. I'll take a closer look at that. My ancient video card is an AGP 4X which I assume will be no trouble for that board that is labeled as AGP 8X, right ?
Also, I have a couple of hard drives which are not SATA, I would still be able to use them, right? The whole idea is that I can reuse most of what I already have. I just want a system that runs faster and more efficiently than what I'm using right now.
Thanks again.

 

[pcoffman]

Originally posted by: JOSI have a couple of hard drives which are not SATA, I would still be able to use them, right?

Both of the motherboards pointed out have two IDE connections on them, so you'd be able to put, say, two old hard drives and two old optical drives on both of them. Be careful, though, in your mb selection. Some boards have only one IDE connector for legacy drives, in which case, if you use two old ATA hard drives, you will not have room for your old ATA optical drives.