I had pretty much decided on the AMD Sempron 3400+ Palermo 754 socket with 256MB L2....but I just saw the Athlon 64 3000+ Venice 754 with 512 MB L2...at Newegg...the reviews were heavily in favor of the Athlon 64 3000+....especially for o/c'ing ability ( which I had not really considered but it might be fun to do). The comparison charts at Tomshardware actually have the Sempron ahead in most tests except for one or two...SO....what do ya'll think? Go with the Athlon 64 3000+?? The Venice core got tons of high marks from the reviewers...it's in some of the 939's....have I already talked myself into it? !! My m/b will be the Abit NV8....