So after finding out just how un-upgrageable my Dell actually is, I've decided to go ahead and start building a pc, but want to do it right, so it might take me a month or two.

I primarily use Photoshop CS5, and lots of memory would be great, so it seems I will have to go ahead and upgrade to 64-bit to utilize over 4gb of ram. The files I deal with are 50mb+, loading up to 20+ of them sometimes at a time. I think I've put together what I want, but want to be sure not to cause any bottlenecks along the path...

Phenom II X4 970 3.5 ghz
Asus M4A89G TD/Pro Motherboard (w/USB3 and SATAII)
2X OCZ solid state 120GB drives (one for bootup, one for Photoshop's scratch disk)
2X4096MB Corsair Vengeance 1866mhz RAM
ATI Radeon HD 4670 1GB

I already have an ATX case, a 500GB drive for "data" (mostly music and photos), 650 watt power supply, cdr/dvdr.

Is the motherboard overkill? I went with that particular one not for the 6-core support, but for the SATAII and USB3 capability. Is anything there too much or overkill? I don't game, but do want a zippy machine.

I really want to just make sure that these components will properly interact with eachother, or if there are better options out there?

Thanks!

Looks good to me, but I think you mean it has SATA III, not SATA II.
That is s great board, you never want to skimp with a motherboard.
I would opt for a more powerful graphic card, look at the AMD 6000 series.

What 650w PSU do you have and how old is it?

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Phenom II X6 1100T B.E.@ 4.26GHz
Corsair H70 Core Hydro
ASUS Crosshair V Formula
2x4GB G.Skill RipjawsX@ 1894MHz, 9-10-9-28
SLI: 2x EVGA GTX 570's@ 902/1804/2032
Creative SB X-Fi Xtreme Gamer
Corsair HX850W Modular
Cooler Master HAF 922
2x Win 7 Home Premium (x64)

That 4670 will do a pretty good for what you want it to do but I would opt for the 6770 and then run three monitors.

-------------------------
PII 1100T (Extinct)
Asus M4A78T-E (should be Extinct)
4Gb of Corsair XMS3 1600Mhz DDR3 (Going strong)
2x1GB 5850's (On their last lags)
Corsair HX850W (Awsome)
NZXT Phantom case (too ***** big)

Not sure what brand it is... it's an off brand from from TigerDirect that I paid less than $60.00 for. It's about 3 years old and has connections for 4-6 SATA power, 2-4 Molex, SLI, ATX power, and a couple of expansion connectors; and it has a variable speed fan that rises and lowers as needed. I never hear it though currently and it was first in my Intel Core Duo machine with PCI-Express card, etc.. Should I plan for a new power supply?

Was also eyeballing the AMD 890FX Crosshair since it is only $30 more, but was wondering if it was overkill.

Also... is it worth it to go to 64-bit Windows? Not only will it involve purchasing Windows, but do I lose some of my software if 64-bit versions are not available? I might be stuck at 4GB memory if that is the case, and stick with 32-bit. As much as I've read about it, I'm still not real clear of pros and cons of switching to 64-bit. I know Photoshop behaves a lot better in the 64-bit environment, but while I use it alot, there are other software packages I use as well that, after looking, I cannot find 64-bit versions of. Or, would it be a case of possibly installing both versions of Windows, 32-bit and 64-bit so I have the ability to run whichever programs I choose?

Thanks for the input!

Hmmm... I just might do that... I've been running my Acer 24" along with my Sony Bravia for a bit now. We'll see, the total price is climbing pretty quickly. But, might as well do it right the first time.

Off brand, three year old PSU, I suggest replacing it with a 550-650w Corsair.
If you're not going to be an avid overclocker, then it really would not be worth it to go with the Crosshair IV.
Windows 7 H.P. x64 is all you need, you can buy an OEM copy from Newegg for around 100 bucks or so.

-------------------------
Phenom II X6 1100T B.E.@ 4.26GHz
Corsair H70 Core Hydro
ASUS Crosshair V Formula
2x4GB G.Skill RipjawsX@ 1894MHz, 9-10-9-28
SLI: 2x EVGA GTX 570's@ 902/1804/2032
Creative SB X-Fi Xtreme Gamer
Corsair HX850W Modular
Cooler Master HAF 922
2x Win 7 Home Premium (x64)

Thanks for the info!