Video, Media, Gaming with Q9450

[jkohm]

I'm building my first system in 48 years (stated with a CDC 160A). I don't have any experience but consider myself to be capable and trainable. My needs in order of priority are:
1. Converting, editing, rendering 35 years of movies, VHS, video (some 16x9 HD) slides, photos, and creating DVDs for my grandkids.
2. Media center stuff including using a large 1080p TV, streaming video and music.
3. Gaming. I don't do much but would spend a little more to have a more capable system.
4. Surfing, and general purpose work (word processing, spreadsheets, scanning) while doing 1 and 2 above.

I'm not limited by a budget but not interested in wasting $. If spending a little more will provide a noticeable improvement I'll do it

I have
Antec 900 case and 650w True Power Trio PS mod TP3-650
2 - WD Caviar SE16 sata300 500gb HDs

Plan to buy a Q9450 CPU (I think it's worth the $100 premium over Q9300)

Need help with MB, memory, video card, and what ever else I need.

I understand some of the issues with DDR3 vs DDR2. I'm leaning toward 4mb ddr3 and expanding when pricing becomes normal. DDR3 is the future and I want the system to last.

I'm thinking about the Asus P5E3 Deluxe MB and a Radeon HD 3870 video card. No clue as to memory speed or brand

I'll run Vista but which version and 32 or 64 bit?

Would a third HD ( Raptor ) for the OS make a noticeable difference?

I'm not sensitive so let me know what you really think. I'm really not very confident in the direction I'm going or do I understand the problems I'll have with the newer stuff but I don't want to wait to build. TIA jmk

[Khalil]

DDR3 is the newest Memory type however by no means does it mean the hardware will work better with it than DDR2, for example one of the most stable rigs out there are those with the AMD Socket 939 and DDR400 which are still extremely popular with gamers. I think everyone here will recommend you stick to DDR2 because by the time the rest of the hardware catches up to DDR3 whatever you build today will be semi-obselete by then. There is no such thing as future proofing. You chose a great case from Antec with that power supply. Q9450 will meet and exceed anything you want to use it for. Stick to the P5K motherboards, no sense in risking new untested technology on your first build. I would go with Vista 32 for your first build, 64 bit can be tricky with a lot of hardware and software, 64 bit was designed by Microsoft for developers.
Raptor HDs can be very effective in certain applications like music recording and semi-professional video editing. I find it good for gaming as well. The Radeon HD3870 is an excellent video card, Sapphire and Diamond are your best bet when it comes to brand. The Caviar hard drives you picked are very well made, I prefer Seagate but that is a personal preference, their RMA service is faster than WD and they all come with a 5 year warranty.

[Katreat]

I agree with Khalil's recomendations. DDR3 is the future because it is much faster. However, except for the extream OC'ers this potential can not be un-locked with current processors. The fastest CPUs available are 1333 FSB and with the 775 socket is being replaced and it is very un-likely that we will see any faster processros being introduced. So, in the end that faster DDR3 will just step down to the processor speed and you will see no real advantage over just using DDR2.

Everything Khalil commented on is right on the spot. I personally dont really think Raptors are worth it, but I might be more budget consious. They are faster but IMO not faster enough to justify the cost. The new 32 mb cache 7200 HD from seagate and WD have really closed the gap in performance so that most people will not notice a huge differnece in speed.

I have always like ATI video cards, although currently using a Nvidea, but if you have some extra cash and really want to see gaming performance you might check out the 3870X2, from reviews it looks like ATI hit a winner with that card in performance and now that the 9800 GTX has been release you might see the price drop.

Kat