optimizing processor power for PT M-Powered

[nonsqtr]

Hi all, I've been running M-Powered 7.3.1 on a Sony T7200 laptop and it's been working just fine.

Now, however, it's time for an upgrade, mainly because of new plug-ins that are being used more extensively.

My question is: what kind of processors and motherboard should I be looking at?

I've heard rumors about the hyperthreading issues with the Nehalem processors, so what's my best bet for processor configuration?

And, if I had to buy something "now" for M-Powered 7 or 8, with a view to upgrading to HD, what would be the best strategy in terms of motherboards and processors?

And, is more memory going to help me or is CPU utilization the main bottleneck when using "many" simultaneous plug-ins?

[soundmaster]

you can use THIS from the LE guys for M-Powered also.