I have been following this thread with interest. My 2011 i7 (3.4 GHz - 16 gigs of ram) machine is just now starting to choke when I use a lot of tracks and/or effects. I have found ways to keep using it but soon it must be replaced.

I will do what I did back then and that is look at the minimum and suggested specifications of the software I may purchase then buy a computer with more than those suggested specs. I will buy the fastest CPU with the capability of using 32 or 64 gigs of ram that I can afford and that meets my expected software purchases. It will be a tower machine as I need a lot of USB ports. This worked in 2011 so I think it will work now.

Of course a lot of this depends on chip shortages and inflation because I am on a fixed income.

I think my wife has started to show the first signs of dementia.
She said she can't remember what she ever saw in me!

64 bit Win 10 Pro, the latest BiaB/RB, Roland Octa-Capture audio interface, a ton of software/hardware