Well, it's an old machine.
2 core 2.5 ghz (E5200), 3.25go ram (32bit s*cks) with a NVIDIA 9800 GT pro.
I'm aiming at a Six core i7 xeon 2.66 Ghz computer with a dual NVIDIA Quadro 600 for this summer.
I'm also saving money to buy a render BOXX (from boxx technology).
Configurations: Dual i7 Xeon 6 Core (so 24 threads), 24go ram with a primary storage of 500go.
It should be pretty smooth and I think I could even manage to do some 720p animations.
I've in mind since a long ago an animation movie (Alien & Predator) that I want to do.
Hopefully, this will live a day.

By the way, what would you say about 3DS Max?
I've heard some good things about its particles as FumeFX or Phoenix plugin but I've heard people saying that Maya is the real deal for creating models.