p5woody4, I have been having the same experience. I've spent the last 3 days *geez i need some sleep* researching this EXACT subject. I have found that I'm choosing between the following two possible systems from newegg (note that I have no existing DDR and I already own an ATI 9700, thus influencing my purchasing decisions)-
rig #1
$96 Barton 2500+ (bang for the buck)
$138 2x256 Kingston HyperX 3500 DDR $69each (good ocing RAM that won't break the bank, and is pretty stable)
$99 MSI K7N2 Delta-L (Nforce board with no integrated video. Mature Nforce 2 board easy on the features)
Total $333.
You could even go for the Kingston 3200 HyperX DDR sticks and save $11 on each to bring the price down to $311.
Pros- cheap,
reliable due to platform maturity. Very fast for any games through the end of the year except maybe Half Life2 or Doom 3. Good overclocking potential (average OC is ~400MHz according to the OC database). Works great in most software right now.
Cons- will most likely be a relatively low end CPU for Doom3/HalfLife2. CPU upgrade path is limited (xp3200 is likely the end, or close to it). Needs more aggressive (read: aftermarket heatsink/watercooling=$$) cooling to OC.
rig #2
$196 P4 2.4c (likely to overclock to 3GHz+, but 2.8 is almost a given)
$138 2x256 Kingston HyperX3500
$99 Intel Springdale based (865pe) Abit is7-e (don't "boo" this board just yet)
OR $138 Asus P4P800
Total $433- 472
The 865/875 is undoubtedly a better performer than the AMD, but costs $100-140 more.... hmmm
Pros- VERY likely (but not guaranteed) to top 3GHz. Hyperthreading is becoming more useful. Will most likely be a good mid/lower-mid level CPU for Doom3/Half Life2 (assuming you get that magic 3GHz overclock) Great Upgrade path using Intel "Prescott" cpus means you will be safe through at least 3.8ish GHz. Stock cooling is quite good for OCing. Last and Least: the "cutting edge kewlness" factor.
Cons- unstable and immature chipsets mean all kinds or issues are plauging rigs built on these 865/875 boards.
Random reboots, RAM timings driving people crazy,
8MB hdds in RAID not working properly,
beta BIOSes everywhere (which can be a VERY good thing if you're hurting),
45 (!!) reboots in a day... The real question is "do you mind being a beta tester" ?!? Also, the cost is high for the performance if you don't get to the 3GHzish overclock. Clearly, if you aren't comfortable troubleshooting hardware issues, then you could be in for a lot of trouble.
It seems to me that the Athlon path is an easy, but less rewarding one. Maybe you'll get to 2.3GHz with an extra $30-40 spent on a heatsink and be happier than a chair under J-Lo's butt. The NForce2 boards are also a LOT less finicky about RAM. The Athlon route is also far less likely to cause premature baldness or sleepless nights. Meanwhile the P4 path gives us the opportunity for unseen levels of performance, great upgrade paths, far more tweakability, and a place in the Professor X's School for the Gifted and a free lunch. Yeah, right
I'm picking the P4 path, but at least I've got a backup rig, broadband internet for help/tech support, and lots of patience/experience with banging my head on the wall.
I know what I'm getting into. I also have a specific plan, and that is to run this sucker hard now, and then maybe upgrade from my Radeon 9700 and Pentium2.4c to an ATI R400/nVidia NV40 and Intel "Prescott" sometime after Doom3/HalfLife2 hit the shelves.
What do you plan to do with either of these systems in 4-6 months? If this is gonna be your primary rig for HL2 or Doom3,
maybe the Athlon will be enough (especially with an xp3200+ upgrade), but I would plan on having enough money to buy a new vid card if you don't have at least a 9700 or Geforce 5800. If you already
do have one of those vid cards, then I would save money to upgrade your system's weak point (CPU or RAM or vid) sometime around when those two games hit the market.
Also, FYI I've been hitting the forums at the HardOCP, overclockers.com, Toms, Ars etc etc. Thus far the best dialogue on 865/875 issues appears to be going on over at abxzone.com (formerly Asusboards). Check it out.
Anyways, sorry for the long post . This is my way of rationalizing/easing my head over the fact that I'm broke, but just shelled out $500 for a new 'puter that has immense potential to give me a huge pain in the a**. Now where's my beer? I need to calm down!