Need new computer, now sure beyond that.

[DPF]

This is my first post here. I've got an eight-year-old Gateway desktop, 512mb RAM, small hard drive, worn out, tired, noisy and slow. Have about $600 or $700 to spend on a new tower. I mostly do audio editing with Adobe Audition, maintain a pretty big iTunes account, have lots and lots of photos, and an occasional video. I play simple games now and then, with EA's NASCAR Thunder 2003 being about the newest. I do word processing and email and spend a good amount of time on the Internet.

I know more RAM would be good, but is 4gb enough for the kind of thing I'm describing? Is there a real advantage to getting an i3 or i5 processor? Should I hold out for 3.0 USB ports? I don't want to look up a year from now and regret going too cheap, but I don't want to buy a bunch of capabilities that I don't really need, and probably won't anytime soon.

Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.

 

[wolfeking]

ok, for ehat you are describing I am not sure what you would need. I can steer you in a direction though.

The i3-2100 is a good choice on a budget. Its a pretty powerful little processor. If you need more power, then you can always upgrade to a 2500k or an ivybridge later on.

RAM, 8GB is about average now. It is more than you will need, but for the price it is a great deal.

Graphics wise you are not going to need much. I would say that if you want a dedicated card, go for a HD6670/6570 or GT440 or such, maybe a 6770 or GTX550ti if you plan to update your gaming library anytime soon.

I would say get a 1 or 1.5 TB 7200 RPM hard drive from western digital or seagate for your storage needs. If you want a little more speed, then get a small SSD for your OS and primary programs, like adobe that you use all the time.

 

[Benny Boy]

I don't want to look up a year from now and regret going too cheap

^This tells me your willing to spend a little more now, if it made sence. If it meant making a sizable impact your computing experience for what you want it to do, and you wouldn't need to do anything like upgrade something for a long while. Am I correct?
It doesn't cost more to assemble/build it yourself and you get a better computer. Would you be willing to do that? All the help you need is here on this forum.
USB 3 and Sata III are now pretty much the norm from a good motherboard.

 

[DPF]

Thx.

You know, I hadn't been thinking about building it myself, but now that I'm thinking more...yes. The actual build doesn't seem daunting at all, if I had a resource like you guys during the prep phase. So I might take that route. That would be satisfying. Thanks. I'll mull this over.

 

[Defyantly]

im sure almost all of us would love to help set you up with the knowledge of how to go about building your pc but also if you would like to give us a detail explanation about what you would want to do with the computer what kind of cosmetics you want and how much exactly oyu would want to be spending. and also if you have any manufacturer preferences i.e. asus mobo or evga vid cards stuff like that!