if you have a pc from 2005 then it will likely be hard to upgrade your processor to anything higher than a dual core. you can get amd's highest X2 6400+. you could go with a cheap mainboard from gigabyte or dfi to get you started. then maybe look into getting a kit of 2x2gb sticks of ram. those are 45 by g.skill on newegg. you can really go anywhere with you video card from an 8800 to a 4870x2 it's all how much you're willing to pay into it. also, you can stick with XP if you want. I like vista, but that's just me. and, for your mainboard, if you're shopping on newegg or tigerdirect and you're sticking with amd, make sure the processor is going to fit in a socket AM2/AM2+. as for price, it's whatever you're willing to spend, that's why i cant give you a direct estimate. but you can get a good set of ram, proc, board, video for under 500.
oh gosh. let's get this out of the way...from the argument in the thread above, performance really does vary system to system. it seems to be more processor dependent than it is video card dependent. but id say a 4670 wouldnt be too bad, esp for that resolution
i pushed my i7 940 up to 4.1ghz under water, nabbed a mate of mine's 6gb of ddr3 to bring my system up to 12gb of ddr3. i run two 2560x1600 lcds but use one during gaming (ultramon). i can run high settings through the benchmark with the sliders all the way up. it stressed my system, and i got a nice 42 fps.
go with ATI so you can keep that 800 budget. a 4850 will set you good. and as for the AMD processor you can really go anyway you want. we can recommend a dual core processor now but we can place it in a mainboard that is upgradeable to a quad core later on down the road if you want.
it's not necessarily that each connection pertains to a certain rail. that psu only has four +12V rails, so i think certain group of components are spread across different rails. i am not going to lie, i don't really know my electrical stuff as well as i should. but to answer your question, the red PCI-e cables probably run on their own rail to efficiently supply them with the proper power that a gpu needs.
if lundy gets a hold of this thread he'll build you something nice for 1000. a couple of questions though. are you going to be using a monitor from another computer? what resolution is it? or is that going to be needed within that 1000usd range? also what games are you wanting to play? don't build your system around crysis, you'll play it once and never touch it again.
honestly, i dont think there is a way around it. it is most likely recording at the lowest quality because you dont have the highest version. it's kinda like taking a 800x600 picture and trying to make it look nice on 1900x1200. it's not going to happen.
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