AMD or Intel? and what motherboard?

Hi all,
my pc wont stop crashing, due to dodgy PSU and im afraid i may have knackered some of the components.
so with upgrade time (christmas) comming round the corner, i want to upgrade my machine.
my problem is i dont know what CPU to get, an AMD or intel, i cant tell them appart.
ATM i have an AMD Athlon 64 3400 754 clawhammer which is rather slow IMO as my mates AMD XP 3200+ is faster

all im after is some thing fastish (not expensive like fx-55 or 4800x2) which can play todays games without struggling much, or something cheapish which has good OC capabilities and a compatable motherboard to go with it. Im also thinking of going to PCI-e graphics as they are sometimes cheaper and better.
or are there any built systems worth buying (in the u.k.)

you people got any suggestions?

and my system ATM is:

amd 64 3400+ 754
2x 512mb pc3200 low density ram
30gb 5400rpm IDE hdd (im getting a new one)
Gainward 5600xt graphics card (also get a new one depending on what slot
Asrock k8 combo-z motherboard
the new motherboard is)
cd rom/dvd drive
cd-rw drive

all the above i can sell to fund the new components, if i go ahead with the idea of buying a new setup, or i could upgrade what ive got, motherboard has two cpu sockets, one for 754 and one for 939 CPU and takes upto amd 64 4800x2

 

definatelyy amd man

and id recommend an A8NSLI Deluxe which runs socket 939 cpus

 

if you want you can spend more money instead of on the mobo to buy a better cpu but idk about asrock so id recommend a Asus A8nSli Deluxe

if i could recommend a cpu it would be a 3700+ San Diego,3800X2 or a 4200X2

 

i would reccomend a 3500+ over a 3700+ as i have been told 3500+'s are better as they can overclock further, and only difference in the 3700+ Is 1mb l2 catch.

 

thanks for the very quick reply. i look for that motherboard, just a matter of what cpu, 3500+ 939, 3700+ 939? do 939's OC very well? my 754 doesnt OC at all.

 

lol, you answered the question before i asked it

 

The interface doesn't matter all that much. The newer cores of the 939 Athlon64's do tend to OC better than early 754 A64's, in part due to the manufacturing process.