Need Input for New computer build

[RD Mercer]

I haven’t built a computer in a long time. I have been reading to catch up and I am way behind. The last computer I built was AMD 2500 Barton, which I am still using now. I use to build computers for the neighbors and small business back in the old days. I am ready to build a good computer for me! I use my computer for games, surf the net and just general use like Office and photos of family...
This is what I have purchased so far: Cooler Master HAF 932, Antec 850W Continuous Power Crossfire & SLI ready Modular, Western Digital Black 1TB 7200 32mb cache,
I cannot decide to go Intel or AMD. I was leaning towards AMD 965 with MSI m/b 790FX just because of the price. I really want the best bang for the buck but I like performance too. I will be running only 1 video card which I cannot decide on. Was thinking 5770 or 5850 or if the price drops go for the 5870. What do the experts think?

Thanks for the info. I already purchased the Power Supply and got a special price it was cheap as 650w. Plus future use I may run Crossfire. I have not kept up with the computer industry. Maybe Intel is the way to go I don’t know. My budget is not a problem.
I like to purchase from New Egg and TD and venders like them.


Thanks for any help.

 

[MalVeauX]

Heya,

Budget is what determines `best bang for buck' for you. Because if you're willing to spend $1000 on CPU/MOBO/RAM, you would get the highest possible stuff that bangs, for that amount of buck. It's all just relative.

Basically an i7 920 with motherboard and 4Gb of ram build would run you an easy $650 to $750 just for the CPU/MOBO/RAM. But it will outperform most everything out there and last you a good long time.

Alternatively, you can get an AMD955, motherboard and 4Gb of ram for just under $300. It performs great and will last a long time too simply by being a quad and having a good high clock.

Whether $300+ is worth the difference is up to you. For a gaming computer and general stuff, I'd have to say that the AMD is basically the better `bang' for your buck because in games, there's no significant difference between Intel & AMD. The Intel chip only shines in non-gaming applications. You'd probably never notice it unless you did massive video encoding or code compiling, etc.

The HD5770 is a great card to start with. If budget allows, the HD5850 is simply awesome for it's price tag.

If you want to game, the AMD + HD5850 build is better for the money. Any old dual core machine can do family photos and stuff. So if you wanna game and you wanna just spend enough to game really high end without over spending to do it, the AMD + HD5850 is the way to go.

Plus, if you save some of that money doing that, you can put it towards a better display to game on... like a 120hz or higher 1080p HDTV .

Very best,

 

[RD Mercer]

Thanks that is the information I was looking for. When I get ready to purchase the parts I will post a list and see what everyone thinks.

Thanks for your help.