Motherboard, CPU questions

[trevorpe]

Hi again guys,

I was wondering,
I have a stick of ram (2GB DDR2) that can run at 800 MHz.
Should I buy a couple more and go to 6GB at 800 Mhz,
go with 4GB 1066,
or go all the way with DDR3 ?

By the way, I'm talking about Windows 7, and I would like to run things like GTA IV, and some other games.

[Quantos]

Then spend what you can afford.  I see no reason what-so-ever why we shouldn't spoil ourselves occasionally.

[trevorpe]

Since I'm going to upgrade motherboard and processor,
this question might be predictable.

Should I go with AMD or Intel?
I want a Quad-Core, and I'm looking at DDR3 1600 Memory, maybe 1333 if the processor can only take 1333.
I'm also looking at price, I'm not willing to pay "tons" of money on it, but I'd like your guys' opinion.

Right now, I have an AMD Phenom II X4 925 AM3 processor I'm looking at, but that might change.
It's at about $170 I think.
Would Intel's performance be the same/better for the same price?

[Quantos]

Personally I would suggest the intel chip as they are more in touch with the high end video cards.  AMD and ATI have a thing going that is somewhat unreliable.

[BC_Programmer]

AMD and ATI have a thing going that is somewhat unreliable.

err... AMD owns ATI as far as I'm aware. I only have experience with the older models of both companies products (ATI Rage pro, early Radeon cards and K6-2+ CPUs) so I have no idea how they are today.

What exactly do you mean, I guess, is what I'm asking. The CPU really has no bearing on the selection or use of graphics cards; but it does affect the choice of motherboard, which is the critical component when selecting a graphics card, as well. It's more or less the selection of motherboard that can make or break a good build (the bad tasting egg ruins the omelet...), however, I believe that boards for both Intel and AMD chips of course can both be found that are of good quality and generally reliable.

Basically- the question was wether to select a Intel, or AMD chip- BUT- selecting a different chip also means a different motherboard, which can change the feature-set and price considerably; I'd suggest exploring both options- configure a Intel build, and configure a AMD build within your price range, and then consider them based on a comparison of their features, such as the RAM speed of the motherboard and so forth.

[Quantos]

Sorry BC, what I am referring to is a lack of support on the ATI end, the catalyst software messes up far more than it fixes.  And from what ATI and AMD have declared on their site, they don't plan to fix it.  There must be a replacement somewhere.