Processor Upgrade For B&w G3???? Options

[Jerald]

I have an old B&W G3 300Mhz and would like to upgrade its processor. The most common brand would be Sonnet. Their only choices are the Encore ZIF G3 and G4. I already asked this on the sweetwater.com/forum, but I'll post it again here.

What would be the most cost effective processor upgrade I can get? I plan to run MOTU's DP3.11, w/Digi001 as the audio interface. The tasks are MIDI arragement with audio tracking. No mixing and I will not be using the MAS plug-ins. Pretty straight forward, but recording and running up to 16 audio tracks can be hard on the CPU, hence the need for an upgrade.

The new Encore ZIF G4 1Ghz is WAY TOO expensive, not worth it. It's between the G3 or G4 500Mhz and the question would be which one would be most COST EFFECTIVE? On eBay, the G3 model is @ US$145, while the G4 model runs up to US$245. Is the extra US$100 really worth it?

I appreciate any input and thank any in advance.