Should I upgrade now or later?

[ixelion]

My current setup:

Asrock 939 Dual
Athlon64 3000+ @ 2.2Ghz Winchester
8800GTS
2GB RAM @ 166Mhz

I was thinking of going for the 4400+ or 4600+ or even the opty 165 and OC it.

Will I notice much of a diffrence if I upgrade my CPU? What is the best "bang for the buck" upgrade my CPU now or upgrade later?

 

[Tarrant64]

If you have the cash, ditch AMD(I hate saying this, I really do...) and opt for the Core 2 Duo's. 2.0 Ghz and up should do to give most people the multitasking power they need. This might require you to get some new ram (DDR2).

Now that I've said that...
Moving from the 3000+ to the 4400+ or 4600+ X2's would be a bit of a difference as far as performance goes. You already have the recommended 2gb of ram to carry you on to whatever comes out within the next year(aka Vista). I am not so sure opty's are the route to go anymore. Price/Performance doesn't compare to the better deals you can get on other processors whose specs are very close if not the same thing. Whether you wait or not is your decision. The next move seems to be quad core for Core 2 Duo's(which is already out, but priced similarly to the dual core processor, you sacrifice speed to more cores, which really isn't that much of a difference), and a 4x4 technology from AMD(remains to be seen).

You can try to snag a holiday deal on a Core 2 Duo setup, or you can wait to see what's new to be released first qtr next year.

 

[pkme2]

The C2D is the better way to go, but if you'll looking for a better deal, may I recommend to wait until after Xmas for prices to drop or better stabilize. Good luck.

 

[xitshsif]

With that monster of a video card, I'd assume you've got money. Like Tarrant64 said, Core 2 Duo is where it's at. And you'll need it in order to let the 8800 show its stuff.