Neil Bothwick wrote: > It's time for a new desktop, I'd rather the the money to Amazon or Ebuyer > than the Inland Revenue. I'm currently running a Core2Duo system, but use > AMD before that, so I have no real allegiances. > > I was thinking of something like an AMD 1100T 6 core CPU, the new > Bulldozers are expensive and initial reports are not that promising, but > an Intel that gives the same bang per buck would do.
For AMD I'd recommend to go for a 960T : http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103995 It's a 95W and as a Zosma it's actually a 6-core. Most of those (not all unfortunately) can be unlocked to a 6-core. Has Turbo functionality. For Intel a 2500K is the way to go but maybe you should wait for Ivy Bridge. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072 > I'm thinking > Gigabyte for motherboard, based on comments made here in similar threads > (like the one Dale started a while ago). Go for ASUS or Gigabyte. For AMD make sure you pick one that is compatible with the Bulldozer Architecture. For example : http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131754 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128509 Those are UEFI boards which will help with larger AF drives. For Intel go with Z68 boards. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131790 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128507 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157264 > I need lots of SATA ports > (fortunately, I bought a pair of 2TB drives a fortnight ago, just before > the prices went ballistic). Above boards have lots of SATA ports. > I'm not a gamer, but I want a system with plenty of grunt. Video > performance is not critical, on board would suffice, except I need > something with dual output to drive two monitors. Do any of the onboard > jobbies do this or is a separate Nvidia still the best option? Dual output what ? DSUB, DVI ? A fanless card : http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102933 Something more powerful : http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150543
