I see these companies arguing about "most powerful" like I see internet providers claiming "the fastest". Well, internet speed is provisioned. If you get 300mbps down from AT&T, Spectrum, Xfinity... whoever, it is 300mbps down. Speed of a CPU is the same no matter what name is printed on it. Whatever the speed rating is, it is. "Most powerful" relies on many other things. Number of cores, front side cache, as well as tangent things like RAM in the computer. The exact same CPU is going to APPEAR to run faster in a PC with 32gb or 64gb or RAM because the data processing across the data bus (from hard drive thru CPU to RAM where programs actually run) makes the response on the screen faster. Remembering what the CPU actually does is key. It doesn't make your program RUN faster. It makes it LOAD faster. An then if the CPU has a bigger front side cache it remembers instructions that are repetitive and runs it from that cache. Remember, the bottom line for these companies is how many of your dollars they can get rather than the competition getting it. I have always used Intel just by preference. Matt is spot on when he says speed over cores. Unless you are playing Grand Theft Auto, editing video, surfing and emailing while you are making music, cores are overrated. As I sit here I am watching TV in one browser on one monitor, playing backgammon in one of the 7 Chrome tabs I have open on another monitor, and typing this on a 3rd monitor in one of those 7 tabs. I have a 4 core Intel i5 with 16gb of RAM in this particular computer. When I go upstairs to make music on my i7 with 32gb of RAM nothing is over but Real Band. Too many people don't really get how a computer works and they eat up the hype and build "testosterone" computers when they don't need them.

Like many things, its horses for courses. Your usage pattern determines what you need.

Can you explain "USB port considerations?" Is this computer dedicated to music? If so, how many things do you need plugged into USB? For example, on my music computer the only thing in USB is the Focusrite. (If you are using MIDI over USB, stop that and buy an interface. Really. Life will get easier.)