Extra cache worth it?

[PlatinumFX]

Hi!
Im a couple of months out from picking a new CPU for my patiently waiting MSI K8N Diamond. I will get a 7900GT (or maybe GTX) and that will finish my upgrade strategy v.nicely. This will last me until atleast the middle of 2007 when I will move to AM2, DDR2 and a 2nd (or better) gen DX10 card setup. My question is: What CPU to get for now? My usage requirements:

I play Counter Strike Source a lot; and thats about it. Stalker is a long way off and I will probably be on my new rig when it finally shows up. Relevant fact: My 17" Iiyama TFT is capped at 1280*1024 native resolution; so I wont be going beyond this. I very occasionally fire up an old version of Cinema 4D and have a play around. Its version 5 (old) and so definetly doesnt natively support dual core CPU's.

This leads me to, which of these CPU's should I get?

- A64 X2 3800+ 512K Cache
- A64 X2 4400+ 1MB Cache

Will the extra cache help me enough to justify the extra cost? There's not a lot of difference in the clock speeds, and a bit of light OCing could remedy that anyway if there were. If I can save almost £140+ (based on todays prices however); I will take it.

Thanks in advance!

 

[PlatinumFX]

Thx for the rapid replies!
By the time I have the money for the upgrade, I doubt there will be any Opterons left to be had. And I dont want to settle for a lousy stepping. Im not against it totally, just trying to be realistic.

Ill be running CS in max possible quality, HDR and as high as possible AA and AF settings. I need atleast 40+ FPS in hectic fight scenes to be able to play properly; so I suspect a card as good as that will be necessary.

The MSI mobo I have came in the top 3 of a benchmark on Anandtech (I believe) vs the top Asus and DFI offerings (pre SLI X16 chipset). If I need it to be, it should support me clocking it quite well. Ive a Corsair 4000PT 2GB matched set so 250mhz FSB shouldnt be a problem (assuming a well clocking CPU).