My quick 2 cents.
Processing in those types of apps hit the ram and hdd the most. If using a 32 bit environment you want 3 gig of system ram. As much as you can fit if 64 (preferably anything ABOVE 4 since the OS uses at least a gig by itself).
Buy a Raptor for your main drive, use the other as a scratch surface/dump drive.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...me=10000%20RPM
The Intel Q6600 is the best for the price cpu right now. Granted 4 cores only really benefit multitasking but for $160-180, you might as well.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115017
Video, the best bang for buck is the Ati 4850 (512M flavor). It's at or under $200.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...on%20HD%204850
Don't skimp on the psu if you get a quad and a 4850. I trust PC Power and Cooling but they're on the pricey side.
Mobo I leave up to you. The P35 based motherboards are pound for pound the most rock solid and mature you can get. Sure there's better, but you don't seem like you'll want to overclock anyway. I still use the Abit IP35 pro. Plenty of room for growth. Plus it has a PCI-E x16 slot for the 4850.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813127030
This is my recommendation. Sure you could get a Core 2 and a 7200 rpm hdd, but when you could have something so much better for $30-50 more per part, it becomes a no brainer. Most will say "Get a lot of ram and a fast cpu". I just can't stand people coming back and saying later "oh I shouldn't have skimped".
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