Windows system questions

Question

I've got an old Windows XP system that just doesn't cut it for Lightroom and I need to upgrade. I've been researching various systems and I'm trying to determine what the best system would be for Lightroom.
I've got a budget of about $3k to $4k for a new CPU. I think that should allow me to get a pretty good system.
Here's my questions:
1) Should I look at one of the "gaming" systems like the XPS or Blackbird, or are they not well suited to Photoshop and Lightroom?
2) Should I consider running the 64 bit version of Vista? Does LR & PS CS3 support 64 bit or will they support it soon?
3) I could get a Dell Precision workstation with dual Xeon processors for about the same cost, would it be better or worse than the XPS style systems?
For the moment I'm only addressing Lightroom, Photoshop and DW CS3. I realize that the 64 bit OS would probably not support some of my other software, but I'm not a gamer, so I don't really care if the latest "shoot-em-up" doesn't run.
I also realize that spending about $4K for a gaming rig will only get me a moderately fast system, but I don't have the $10K for a FalconNW tricked out box with liquid cooling and custom paint job. What's my best option that doesn't require a second mortgage?

Answer 1

Hi Bob,
Yeah, if you are looking at the latest/greatest already, than it would be hard to beat the specs. But you could still win handily on the over all price.
One of the things I am considering for my next system (with in 12 months) is a new HD scheme based on ssd. Here is my initial though on that topic so far:
A separate ssd for the following:
System Disk (32-64gb)
LR DB disk (16-64 gb)
pagefile disk (8-32gb)
would continue to use old fashion (external)HD's for data storage/backup
My main reason for this is 4 fold:
1) Heat generation
2) power consumption
3) disk access speed
4) size off disks vs overall size of case ( I like small cases)
My main imaging computer is only used for imaging apps. So I do not need a huge system disk ( I use a laptop for everything else) Prices are falling quickly on ssd's and the industry expects prices to be nearly half of todays prices with in a year (or so)
As for ram, do your home work. As of recently (this may change with intels newest offerings) Intel systems prefer higher bandwidth, while AMD systems like faster latency timings. Just getting higher bandwidth ram may not do as much as you hope. So make sure that you do your research for the complete system you want to build. I am no expert here, I just do LOTS of home work before I fork over cash for my parts.
As for processor, you mentioned not wanting to OC your system. Well, don't overlook this possibility. At least with AMD processors (again this is recent) you can go with a lower $ value (slower speed) processor and oc it mildly to meet the speed of the more costly, speedier, model. And this holds true for their higher end chips as well. As much as you can push a slower one you can push a natively faster one as well. All this can usually be done with nothing more that a good heat sink/fan. I have been running with 15% oc for the past year and have had no problems. ( and I am only using the stock heat sink/fan in a very small case, better cooling and bigger case I am sure I could safely do 25%+)
Just some thoughts...
oh, one other thing: Power supplies. Make sure you get one that is properly sized for you system. It will run more efficiently and save you bucks every month!! There are websites that give you details on how to calculate proper power supply size. Just don't get sucked into the bigger is better idea with them.