what's the best mobo cpu and ram $500 can buy right now? I already have a comp with new parts that i built but i hate my mobo so much! It'sa HP mobo off ebay with a celeron 500mhz! Bahhh! I favor intel and i really want to overclock but im still flexible. Oh yeah and i dont want onboard sound or video. ^(',')]}~~~:]>

TigerDirect has some MB and CPU combo deals. An example is .... http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=879262&Sku=MBM-P4I865-2800N&CatId=191 A Soyo P4I 865PE Plus Socket 478 Motherboard with Intel Pentium 4 2.8GHz 800FSB Processor for $232. A faster processor with 1GB of RAM may still be within you $500 budget. They have other examples. Good luck, Sandor

It looks good i guess but not good enough. Should i wait for the next gen cpu's and mobos to come out? Also, is Soyo a good brand? ^(',')]}~~~:]>

Go with AMD... - get a motherboard based on the nForce2 400 chipset - get 512mb of PC3200 (DDR400) RAM - get an Athlon XP2500+ mobile CPU & overclock to 3200+ or better Should be able to get it all for about $300, maybe even less "If you can read this, thank a teacher" "If you are reading it in English, thank a veteran."

Check out TomsHardware's latest tests For 13 Memory Modules Paired With 14 Boards at .... http://www6.tomshardware.com/motherboard/20040602/index.html See if anything excites you. And, yes Soyo is a good brand. Good luck, Sandor

2.8g p4 not good enough??? w/ 1M of ram... Are you planning on finding new prime numbers, or what exactly do you need for this?

I just want to have the best desktop system i can get right now as I will not be upgrading until after my college days since my parents are buying me a laptop for college. I will use this beast for gaming and occasionally video editing. I want this thing to be good years down the road. And i dont know maybe im just dreaming, but once i start back to work this summer i will have a few extra dollars lying around burning a hole in my pockets. ^(',')]}~~~:]>