Test it in another system for sure. Also, are you completely removing the drivers using DDU (Display Drive uninstaller)? If not, that could be causing some of the issue. It's possible that the corrupted part of the driver is lingering from one installation to the next. DDU will remove all traces of it.
As for Intel or AMD, both have some really nice CPU's right now, but if you want a path for future upgrades without replacing the motherboard, go AMD. Their CPU performance is great, Intel is generally faster, but AMD isn't far behind and in some cases better.
Intel's upcoming Coffee Lake CPU's will require yet another new motherboard and it's expected that Cannon Lake, which is to be released next after Coffee, will need yet another motherboard. So it comes down to this question....how long do you plan to keep the system and do you want to be able to upgrade the CPU? AMD is planning to keep AM4 until 2020.