Rebuild recommendations for career change.

[ROADSTIR]

I currently have an
Asus P5K Deluxe with a quad core processor
2 x 2gb ddr2
3 x 1tb Hitachi HD's
1 x sata 750GB Buffalo Station
new Radeon 6850 video card
NEC 24" 2490 Multisync monitor for digital photo restoration
Sun 24" monitor
WD 1TB Passport USB 2.0 or 3.0
800w PS
Using Nikon lab scanner w/ Firewire
" " Epson flat scanner w/Firewire
Newer NZXT full case
FIOS ActionTec router
Win 7 64 bit Professional
latest version of BitDefender
And all kinds of USB peripherals sucking the juice out of my Belkin USB hubs

I want to upgrade to a better mobo. Have used Asus for last three upgrades. As a Realtor, I use my pc for internet surfing mainly. I also restore photographs as a sideline and this is the reason I bought the fantastic NEC monitor and the new video card. I also tend to have 6-10 windows open at any one time. I do a little gaming, but nothing current. Just a little Zuma now and then. lol

Question- with a budget of $300+/- for mobo and processor what would you recommend? I need the Firewire and sata connections and would like USB 3.0. I know going to DDR3 is going to help, but would you suggest a new series i5 or i7? And is it worth the difference to buy up to the i7 or will I not notice the difference with what I use it for? Or is an AMD config a better way to go? My main beef is that it takes too long to render large .tif files in 64bit Photoshop and my system is just bogging down too easily, it seems.

Also, what speed memory would you suggest? Most cost efficient?

Bottom line, I want smoother, quicker rendering and speeeeeeeeed!

Thanks for any help you care to give.

 

[o1die]

With a budget of $300, your board choices may not have all the ports you desire. The 2500K is about $215, so that leaves you with $85 for the board and ram; 8 gb of ddr3 can go as low as $30 after rebate, leaving you with about $55 for the motherboard. This board http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157236 might work for you if you raise your budget slightly. I recommend 8 gb of ram while it's so cheap; go for any name brand 1333 or 1600 such as corsair, kingston, gskill, or patriot.

 

[ROADSTIR]

O1die, Thanks for the quick reply. Actually, I'm up to about $350 as I set aside about $50 for memory. Feel free to suggest a higher end mobo if not too far out of range. I'd hate to miss a bargain over a few bucks. And I'd save a few dollars if they were a combo, right?

 

[zhihao50]

thats a poor choice for 2500k it doesn't do it justice.

The question is do you want to overclock ever?
If yes then a cheap p67 or z68 is the choice with 2500k. Asrock z68 extreme3 maybe

if not forgo the unlocked "k" version for something cheaper like the 2400 or 2500. and a better h67 board or other thing. yes its locked multiplier so you can't overclock but you can't overclock on a h61

 

[zhihao50]

Intel BOXDP67DEB3 $110 got firewire and usb3 but its a p67 so you missing out on ssd catch but it goes great with 2500k. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813121512

PS: oh micro ATX so smaller board going to limit your the number of pci plug in card and no sli or crossfire in future. Still its good

$30 mail in rebate with the MSI board http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130576

 

[ROADSTIR]

Zhihao50,

I'd like to stay with something that lets has SSD cache and an ATX board because I have many peripherals. Not much of a gamer, either. Any more suggestions based on this additional info?

 

[o1die]

I use biostar motherboards in both my computer systems. This board might have all the features you need: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813138319

 

[roxxia]

Don't forget, you can get add-in PCI cards with firewire ports really cheap if the MOBO doesn't have them!

 

[ROADSTIR]

Best answer selected by ROADSTIR.