I was thinking of building a new gaming rig and then it hit me--I really don't know shit about computers! Now I could be totally wrong, but isn't this AMD CPU superior to the i7 below? it's running at 3.2GHz as opposed to the Intel's 2.66GHz although the i7 has 8MB of L3 Cache instead of 6MB. What is the importance of the L3 Cache? Is it like a reserve that the CPU can tap into when under heavy load? Does that extra 2MB make the faster speed of the Phenom negligible? Which of these would be better for gaming? Also, if anyone has a CPU they think would be better I'm open to suggestions. I'm trying to shoot for say, a $2,000 to $3,000 PC.
AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103674
Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115202
AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103674
Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115202