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Help with a new rig.

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Sherlock:
So, after 7 years, I'm finally planning on getting a new rig. My current system was outdated a week after I took it[7 years ago].. Goes to show my luck :/ I do realize there've been tons of topics about stuff like this, but since I couldn't make head or tails of it, I figured some hands on advice wouldn't go amiss.

Any suggestions on what are the main things I should be focusing on getting? I have zero knowledge of what is happening currently. The last I kept up with anything was 3 years ago, after which my C.A started, throwing me out of the loop.

I don't plan on doing anything major with it, just a normal PC - some gaming, anime, movies etc.. Why that is important is because, with my current Desktop, probably the only game I can play is Claw. And of course, goes without saying that 10bit is off-limits for this. The current system I'm using is an Intel P4 2.66GHz with 716MB RAM and some sort of a low end Video Card I believe.. That should give you an idea of what a museum piece it is..

What configuration, along with what specific parts[if any], should I focus on mainly. I have a budget constraint of around roughly 1000 USD converted[maybe slightly lesser]. Based on that, what should be main focus? Just the CPU build, ignore sound systems/Monitors/keyboards/mouse etc.

Also, any recommendations on an OS? I'm currently using Ubuntu 11.04 with an lxde environment. 10.10[Maverick Meerkat was the last good Ubuntu I saw, after which it went bloated and to the dogs.] I sure as hell am not planning on getting Windows 8, so it probably is between Debian or Windows 7.

Freedom Kira:
I don't mind the bloat of the latest Ubuntus. The only thing that really annoys me about them is that they removed a lot of what used to be default. Aside from that, the bloat is hardly noticeable. It doesn't run any less smoothly for me unless I'm using a Live CD. If it pains you that much, go with Windows 7.

Anyway, my recommendation for CPU is to wait for Haswell, which should be out by June. If you can't wait until then, Ivy Bridge should be fine. Some mid-grade i3 or low-end i5 should suit your needs. Even an Ivy Bridge Pentium or Celeron should be enough, but if you want to do 10-bit 1080p, you'll probably want to move up the chain.

Video cards I can't give you any recommendations for, but if your gaming does not get really intense, you can keep it cheap here.

For RAM, 8GB DDR3 is standard these days. Just make sure that the RAM you buy clocks at a speed equal or higher than the CPU's memory speed, and get something that's rated an average of no less than 5 eggs on Newegg with at least 20 ratings. G.Skill is a big name for RAM.

Be sure to get an SSD for your boot disk (do your research). Prices on those have dropped to a point where it doesn't make sense to boot off of an HDD just to save a few bucks. Intel is best for reliability but their performance is a little lacking. Corsair makes stuff that is better for performance. I personally like G.Skill's stuff, though they are a smaller name for SSDs. Be sure to also grab an HDD for data storage.

For PSU, Corsair is solid, as are ThermalTake and Antec. Again, do your research.

For motherboards, generally the big names are ASUS, Gigabyte, and Asrock. Make sure you get the right socket for your CPU, and pick something that works for what you want to do (PCI-e for your video card, at least four slots for RAM, etc.). As always, do your research.

Skip the sound card entirely if you are any less than an audiophile, which most are. Onboard sound is usually good enough.

As for case, see what reviewers rated well and what you think looks nice. Lian Li is a top manufacturer for cases. Close behind it are Corsair and Antec.

If you want an actual build, there are a few people around the forums (like kitamesume, for example) who will put a list of parts together for you. You should also lower your budget constraint to around $800, because "some gaming, anime, movies etc." should not need much more than $800.

kitamesume:
trinity is a hit when it comes to "just the regular PC that does everything" builds, on the contrary it saves you the hassle of grabbing GPUs which actually saves some dough.
on the other hand, they tend to pale in performance and efficiency when compared to even a lowly i3, an i5 would've been a snag if you only wanted raw cpu muscle.

do you prefer a few builds though, like an ITX build(small package, its cute and really nice), a tower build (full atx paired with a full tower case), or a compact build (m-atx paired with a small but spacy case).

----

tips:
as much as you can, aim for motherboards with an onboard ALC889/ALC898 sound, they're one of the cream-of-the-crop onboard sound that actually has the decency of being able to compare with budget soundcards like the xonar dg/x.
this would be a great asset if you still stick with analog audio with your speakers, and a good pair with a decent pair of headphones.

2x8GB kits just started dropping it's price, maybe due to it being christmas, its a good pick, specially if you have four slots of ram since you would be able to push for 4x8GB later down the road if you ever need to.

purchasing a split SSD is better than purchasing a single large SSD, you don't need an evenly sized SSD as well, 64-80GB for the OS and 128-256GB for the heavy apps like games and such. the advantage of this is that the read/write throughput is theoretically doubled, or at least the read/write load is split into two SSDs.

if you go with an intel build, you're pretty much stuck with grabbing a GPU, although trinity's IGP isn't great either but they can at least push recent titles at optimal settings.
i suggest not going below a pick of HD7870 or GTX660, they're the minimum cards if you want high-max @ 1080p.
on a side note, there should be a release of the HD8000 series by next year march, aim for an HD8870 if you ever get the chance to. theres also the GTX700 series going out by june, a GTX760 would be another choice.

to point out, the requirements of a "just the regular PC that does everything" only needs an A10-5800K or an i3-3220+HD7770 as the minimum and they barely go over $600. which means with a budget of $800-1000, you may be able to squeeze in a high tier rig (strictly intel though) like an i5-3570K+GTX670.

Sherlock:
I was thinking of getting the 2x4GB G.Skill Sniper series for RAM. Motherboard, I'm mostly going to stick with Intel, as servicing, in case any needed over here, is a pita for others.

I'm planning on the intel build itself.. And maybe an ATI Radeon or nVidia dedicated GPU. I'm still unsure of which and what to buy, although GTX670 sounds nice..!

I'm going for a tower build with twin fans, though I'm not sure which(Corsair seems to look good.)

I'm still not sure if I should actually try for an SSD though. Seems overkill for me, considering I'm just going to be using it as a normal PC, without any encoding or any such.

kitamesume:
you're really missing out on the cheaper ram deals ;D
short comparison:
[$44.99]G.SKILL Sniper 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Desktop Memory
[$79.99]G.SKILL Sniper 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Desktop Memory
[$64.99]CORSAIR Vengeance LP 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600Desktop Memory

nvidia seems to be the better choice when you're considering high tier graphics card (GTX660Ti-GTX670), the only worth purchase from AMD at the moment are HD7750, HD7770, HD7850 and HD7950, possibly a few options from HD7970(most of them aren't worth it, talking about brands).

(click to show/hide)GTX650 < HD7770
GTX650Ti < HD7850
GTX660 = HD7870
GTX660Ti = HD7950
GTX670 > HD7950
GTX680 > HD7970
twin front fans? which would mean going ATX build isn't an issue, i recommend corsair carbide 300R for it's simplicity while being spacy.

going for an SSD is far from overkill, the performance boost just doesn't profit applications alone but daily usage as well, the most noticeable improvement is that the system responsiveness becomes more fluid with an SSD.

a build like these works:
(click to show/hide)[$219.99]Intel Core i5-3570K
[$144.99]ASRock Z77 Extreme6
[$64.99]CORSAIR Vengeance LP 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600Desktop Memory
[$359.99]ZOTAC GTX670 2GB 256-bit
[$99.99]Western Digital WD Black WD1002FAEX 1TB
[$89.99]SeaSonic X Series X650 Gold (i snagged it because its "gold" :P)
[$79.99]Corsair Carbide Series 300R
---------------------------------------
total : $1,059.93

(click to show/hide)[$219.99]Intel Core i5-3570K
[$144.99]ASRock Z77 Extreme6
[$64.99]CORSAIR Vengeance LP 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600Desktop Memory
[$249.99]EVGA 02G-P4-3660-KR GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB 192-bit
[$99.99][OS] SAMSUNG 840 Series MZ-7TD120KW 2.5" 120GB
[$99.99][storage] Western Digital WD Black WD1002FAEX 1TB
[$89.99]SeaSonic X Series X650 Gold (i snagged it because its "gold" :P)
[$79.99]Corsair Carbide Series 300R
---------------------------------------
total : $1,049.92

(click to show/hide)[$164.99]Intel Core i5-2310
[$134.99]ASRock Z77 Extreme4
[$64.99]CORSAIR Vengeance LP 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600Desktop Memory
[$214.99]ZOTAC ZT-60901-10M GeForce GTX 660 2GB 192-bit
[$99.99][OS] SAMSUNG 840 Series MZ-7TD120KW 2.5" 120GB
[$99.99][storage] Western Digital WD Black WD1002FAEX 1TB
[$59.99]SeaSonic S12II 430B
[$79.99]Corsair Carbide Series 300R
---------------------------------------
total : $919.92

(click to show/hide)[$129.99]Intel Core i3-3220
[$129.99]ASRock Z77 Extreme4-M
[$64.99]CORSAIR Vengeance LP 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600Desktop Memory
[$134.99]SAPPHIRE Vapor-X HD7770 1GB 128-bit GDDR5
[$99.99][OS] SAMSUNG 840 Series MZ-7TD120KW 2.5" 120GB
[$99.99][storage] Western Digital WD Black WD1002FAEX 1TB
[$59.99]SeaSonic S12II 430B
[$79.99]Corsair Carbide Series 300R
---------------------------------------
total : $799.92

notes: the first two is definitely overkill for a general purpose PC, the 3rd one is a little too beefy for the avg joe, while the last one is the "just about right".

edit: as for the slightly over $600 claim for the i3+HD7770.
(click to show/hide)[$129.99]Intel Core i3-3220
[$129.99]ASRock Z77 Extreme4-M
[$64.99]CORSAIR Vengeance LP 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600Desktop Memory
[$134.99]SAPPHIRE Vapor-X HD7770 1GB 128-bit GDDR5
[$99.99]Western Digital WD Black WD1002FAEX 1TB
[$59.99]SeaSonic SSR-360GP GOLD
[$39.99]NZXT Source 210
---------------------------------------
total : $659.93

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