Dell m4400 : suggestions on specs

Hi,
I'm thinking of getting myself either a new or a refurbished M4400. It'll be use intensively for Architectural Renderings, drafting, photoshop, animations, video production etc. I was wondering if any of you could give me suggestions on the specs. I'm thiking of keeping it below $1500 but could spend more if some specs are highly recommended/useful.

My main question is which processor and how much RAM will be sufficient and should I get? I'll likely be multi-tasking among different programs open at the same time. What's the difference between an Intel Core 2 Duo and an Intel Quad? Is it better to get a faster Core 2 Duo processer instead of a slower Intel Quad Core processor?

Last question, should I buy a unit with 2GB RAM and upgrade it myself? never done it before so I don't know how difficult will it be? Is it just pop in the chip or will I have to configure the system etc?

thanks

I've been looking into these specs.

Intel Core 2 Duo T9800 (2.93GHz, 6M L2 Cache, 1066MHz FSB)
System Price : $1,249.00
4 GB DDR2 SDRAM 800MHz (2 DIMMs)Hard Disk Drive
160 GB Free Fall Sensor Hard Drive (7200RPM)Video
512MB NVIDIA Quadro FX 770
6 Cell Primary Battery

 

May be selling mine soon if you'd be interested. Specs in signature; warranty for 2.5 years still.

 

For your purposes a slower quad core would be better than even the fastest dual core available. Also, memory is a lot cheaper if you purchase it at a store such as Newegg and install it yourself. Installation is very quick and simple then the machine will automatically detect it upon boot up.

 

is a slower quadcore say an Intel Core 2 Quad Core Processor Q9000 (2.00GHz 1066MHz 6MBL2) better than an Intel Core 2 Duo T9800 (2.93GHz, 6M L2 Cache, 1066MHz FSB)?

 

I believe your apps can take advantage of multicores, so yes, it would be significantly faster.