Which brand of CPU should I get?

[MegaCharger]

Sorry for asking a newbie question, but I am wondering what brand of CPU should I get for Intel. I plan to get 3.06 Ghz but which maker is reliable, or does Intel make all the CPUs themselves?

 

[HardWareBoss]

Intel makes their own CPU'S AMD makes their own. Now Mobo's thats a differant story.

 

[HardWareBoss]

Are you upgrading your Computer? Or are you buying a new one? How much do you want to spend?

 

[Mephistopheles]

The 3.06Ghz you´re talking about is the current top CPU from Intel, and there are no brands. There are no brands, all 3.06Ghz processors are identical and are from Intel. By the way, the 3.06Ghz is currently also the top performer from all CPU manufacturers (AMD and Intel).

You might want to ask, though, with what configuration that CPU should be used: motherboards and RAM. There are brands for both.

 

[MegaCharger]

I'm buliding a new computer, but the last time I asked for advice on the whole thing like 2 people replied with semi-useful information so I just go ahead and break things up and spread them to the respective forums. Anyways, I came up with a configuration for my computer, and I want to know what price range it will be in. Keep in mind that I won't get this computer until June or July this year, so prices will fall a bit. But nevertheless I wanted to know about the current price and what you guys think the price will be in 3 months.

Intel Pentium 4 3.06 Ghz
Asus P4G8X(this should come with integrated sound)
Corsair 512MB DDR330 RAM stick x2
Radeon 9700 Pro(heard there's a bunch people having difficulty with it but hopefully in 3 months ATI would have fixed all the problems)
LiteOn 16x DVD-ROM
Western Digital 120GB HDD
Antec PLUS660AMG case

For the monitor I still have my trusty SONY VAIO monitor. Here's my questions. The Antec PLUS660 only have 4 fan openings, would that be enough for my system? If no can you recommend another case? Preferably one with washable front dust block. And is my mobo any good? I plan to do some hardcore gaming and video/3D rendering with it when I'm in college this fall, and I want the thing to last at least 3 years. Also please tell me the price range of such a machine, and what will the price range be in 3 months. Thanks!

 

[HardWareBoss]

Case go with Antec plus 1080AMG washable filter. Last time I checked New Egg it was $128. The prices in 3 months who knows. Check New Egg .com they offer free shipping on most of what you want. MOBO go with Canterwood it should be out April, May time frame. Very upgradeable for the next couple of years. Since your buying P4 3.06

 

[Mephistopheles]

I don´t have that much of an idea as to the price range right now... But I know that this config will get considerably cheaper and might be one hell of a good deal once Canterwood comes out. When it does, the 3.06G should become $150-200 cheaper, and the R9700 should be cheaper as well, so...

Ok, after a little research, I came up with:
3.06Ghz P4 w/ HT $547
ASUS P4G8X $195
CORSAIR DDR333 TWINX (512MB) $150
R9700 PRO $271
Western Digital 120Gb 7200rpm HDD $120
LiteOn 16x DVD-ROM $35

So, from these specs alone (from pricewatch.com), you should be looking at a $1350 or so price tag, if I´m not mistaken, plus, of course, case and power supply (and possibly monitor, keyboard and mouse if you haven´t got those yet). It´s hard to predict how the price will go down, but i´d estimate that it´ll drop about ~300-350 or something until July. (is that too much? what do you guys think?)

Oh, and by the way, this looks like one hell of a system to me!

And I should also agree with Hardwareboss. If you do wait until july, then get your hands on a Canterwood mobo. It´ll be upgradeable as hell for years to come and is a killer mobo in specs. Shouldn´t even be that much more expensive - and certainly worth it!

 

[HardWareBoss]

One heck of a system you got there Mephistopheles. That should last him a few years. IF!!!!! he goes with Canterwood.

 

[deekemon]

Not quite sure how helpful this will be but something I have learned is before you buy from anywhere its nice to double check on eBay. As for the antec case, for that money you can get yourself a Lian Li, a matter of personal taste. Anyhow, I am not in the position to quote much on intel, I have only been AMD. That core seems like the top dollar stable platform, If you want the best.... Its pretty =) But..... Have you thought anything of going cheaper? I posted a question a few weeks back as to going AMD again or trying INTEL. As usual, mixed responses. In two weeks i have will have this system (finally saved up)

Vantec 470 Watt Stealth Power Supply
Lian Li PC 86
AMD 2500 Barton
ASUS A7N8X Deluxe
ATI Radeon 9500 PRO Graphics
Kingston HyperX 512 MB Memory (Unsure whether dual channel is worth losing a bank)
Creative Audigy2 Platinum Sound

Now that I have gone and displayed my much anticipated system, the point (mainly) was to display that half of these items were/will purchased new on ebay. The Vantec power supply I saved $35 on, the 9500 Radeons average a little bit less then newegg and same for the sound package. LoL, its late and I have now realized I just typed a whole lot of nothing with no direction. I say do more homework on your case (unless its a tuck away) and really shop around newegg is great but deals pop up everywhere. I have included a link to good priced Lian Li's

http://www.silverpcs.com/category/pc___server_cases/?p=2