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joeisjoe5 wrote Also I noticed that different people recommend different RAM and mobo although they seem very similar. What is the difference and how can you tell which is best?

RAM makes next to no difference, grab whatever you want. I recommended a single 8GB stick because the motherboard I suggested only has 2 RAM slots, this way you can add another 8GB in the future if you wish, better not to shoot yourself in the foot straight away. The motherboard I suggested is just a cheap board and I only suggested it because it allows you to fit a Xeon and what not into your budget. There really isn't a huge benefit in spending more on a motherboard, other than for extra RAM slots, SLI support, overclocking or m.2 slots. You can't overclock the Xeon anyway, and you'd need a Z97 chipset board for m.2 slots and SLI support which are going to cost considerably more. Spend a little more on motherboard if you wish, any LGA1150 motherboard will do, but you have to make sure it's mATX so that it fits in the case I suggested.