1200 to spend need final suggestions =)

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Mechtech3000

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I was just curious as to what you guys think the best all around chipsets are for INTEL and AMD CPUs. In my case I wouldn't consider myself an Enthusiast but more along the lines of the step below. I don't plan on doing SLI.... I generally will only ever spend up to 1500 on building a new system also.

Also I know you guys don't agree with me on this but I do not overclock, I never have and most likely never will so with that in mind I need a rig powerful enough that won't hamper me in games today and tomorrow. I usually build a new system every 3-4 years or so.

So my budget right now is 1200 and I'm able to order as early as tomorrow. Here are a couple stipulations.

I'm almost positive I want to use the Antec 900 Case.
I'm also positive I want to use an Asus Motherboard as I'm an Asus fanboy.
I want to build a rig that is energy efficient, but any other brands or parts I'm open to suggestions.

I already have Windows Vista so that doesn't need to be included in the quote.

This is my current setup.

Intel P4 3.2 gig CPU HT (not dual core)
2 gb of ddr 400 Kingston Hyper X
120 gb hd
Asus P4C800-E Deluxe Mobo
Antec Solution series case
400 or 450 watt or so PSU
DVD Burner not even sure what it is does it matter hehe?
AGP Geforce 7800 GS
XP Pro

I looked last night and I was getting between 55-60 FPS in WoW
Sorry I don't have a 3dmark 2005 or 2006 score

So my big questions are:

Do you think my setup right now is good for awhile and should I wait for any new technology to come out or should I build now?

Secondly, since I'm not overclocking should I go AMD 6000+? Or Intel all the way? If so I want something as fast or faster than the 6000+ at stock with no overclocking.

Here is a list below of the parts I was thinking about.

Newegg.com - Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
Newegg.com - ASUS M2N-SLI Deluxe Socket AM2 NVIDIA nForce 570 SLI MCP ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail
Newegg.com - EVGA 320-P2-N811-AR GeForce 8800GTS 320MB 320-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Video Card - Retail
Newegg.com - Antec earthwatts EA500 ATX12V v2.0 500W Power Supply 100 - 240 V UL, CUL, FCC, TUV, CE, CB, C-tick, CCC - Retail
Newegg.com - AMD Athlon 64 X2 6000+ Windsor 3.0GHz 2 x 1MB L2 Cache Socket AM2 Processor - Retail
Newegg.com - Crucial Ballistix 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory - Retail
Newegg.com - Western Digital Caviar SE16 WD2500KS 250GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - OEM
Newegg.com - ASUS Black 18X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 8X DVD+R DL 18X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 14X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA DVD Burner with LightScribe - Retail

I was planning on doing 4gb of ram because I'm going to use Windows Vista Ultimate and apparently from what I've read 4gig is a sweet spot for Vista Ult with the 32bit version of the OS. I even talked to a guy on my honeymoon who works for Microsoft but he only claimed 3gb was the sweet spot so I could always go 3 instead.

Also please feel free to suggest an equivalent or better Intel build that would be better bang for the buck type of deal.

Thanks!
 
Are you sure you want an AMD? If you don't overclock, the E6750 with a P35 chipset mobo will do you lots better
Newegg.com - Intel Core 2 Duo E6750 Conroe 2.66GHz 4M shared L2 Cache LGA 775 Processor - Retail
Newegg.com - GIGABYTE GA-P35-DS3R LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
And if anytime in the future you decide you want to overclock, the E6750 would give you leaps of performance while the 6000+ gives you almost nothing, and if the E6750 is too expensive for you, the E6550 performs the same as the 6000+ at stock and costs as much as the 6000+.
 
No I'm not sure I want AMD in fact I'm more of a fan of Intel than AMD. I have used a mix of both in the past though so I won't consider myself an AMD or Intel Fanboy though.
 
Oh and since you like ASUS motherboards heres one: Newegg.com - ASUS P5K LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
And yeah, I'd definitely go for intel this time..I don't know how much money you have left after that build, but you can go for a quad core now and that'll do you some good for a long time without overclocking, or get the 6550 now with a P35 board and you can upgrade to the next line of intels coming out later this year. AMD has a lot planned too, but right now I think it's best to go AMD only if you're on a tight budget
Try and overclock that P4 system, leave all voltages alone and you'll be 100% safe - get some practice cause with what you're buying right now it'll be a real shame if you don't overclock, you'll be surprised how much more performance can come outta your P4, I had one and it was overclocked by 1ghz, difference was about a good 50 fps in some games
 
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