I am looking to build a reasonable (<$1000 tax, title, license out the door) system for the opening of the next World of Warcraft expansion in December. I have been an AMD user since the mid 90s, and had been looking at the AM3 socket boards. I used to build systems back in the late 90s and into early 2000, however I havent really kept up on the hardware or homebuilding since then - my job just doesn't apply anymore and life has only so much time.
So my general goal was to build a box that can be expanded so that it was relevant for WoW for the next 4-5 years. My thought was to invest in a solid, fast, top-end motherboard and pair it with an inexpensive AM3 socket processor, 2-4 GB of memory, and a video card.
WoW (from what I understand) is more CPU intensive than GPU intensive - so I know I would have to balance the performance between the two devices.
I don't have the info to be able to gauge the variance between say a 6 core Phenom II and a 3 core Athlon II x3 or a Sempron AM3 socketed CPU - and this is where I am stuck. The lowest end Athlon IIs run ~$50, with a Phenom II x4 955 running ~$150. But I dont know what I am getting for that additional $100, and if I wait 6-12 months, will I be able to pay 50 bucks to upgrade then.
I have absolutely no idea about videocards anymore as well. Crossfire? SLI? I'm reading,but if there is a short answer as to what is best based on an AMD platform and the application of WoW.
Thanks for any input.
Jim
So my general goal was to build a box that can be expanded so that it was relevant for WoW for the next 4-5 years. My thought was to invest in a solid, fast, top-end motherboard and pair it with an inexpensive AM3 socket processor, 2-4 GB of memory, and a video card.
WoW (from what I understand) is more CPU intensive than GPU intensive - so I know I would have to balance the performance between the two devices.
I don't have the info to be able to gauge the variance between say a 6 core Phenom II and a 3 core Athlon II x3 or a Sempron AM3 socketed CPU - and this is where I am stuck. The lowest end Athlon IIs run ~$50, with a Phenom II x4 955 running ~$150. But I dont know what I am getting for that additional $100, and if I wait 6-12 months, will I be able to pay 50 bucks to upgrade then.
I have absolutely no idea about videocards anymore as well. Crossfire? SLI? I'm reading,but if there is a short answer as to what is best based on an AMD platform and the application of WoW.
Thanks for any input.
Jim