Looks like I'll pick up one of
THESE. Gonna do some checking to make sure that CPU will work with my motherboard, but I guess it will.
The min spec CPU for Rocksmith 2014 (Core2 Duo E6750) scores 1,727 on Passmark.
The CPU I'm looking to buy for my Rocksmith machine (Core2 Quad Q8400) scores 3,228 on Passmark.
My current gaming machine CPU (i5-2500k) scores 6,456 on Passmark.
The new CPU ought to be more than powerful enough. My old video card exceeds the min specs by a fair bit, and when I upgrade my gaming computer around Black Friday, I'll use my current GPU in the Rocksmith machine. I have more than enough RAM. Now all I need is a HD and a Win7 key. Used HD's can be had on the cheap. I'm betting Win7 keys can be as well at this point.
The only real pisser is that I'll have to use my old monitor, which is a CRT at 1024 x 768. I checked at the /r/Rocksmith forum at REDDIT, and it will work, but I'll probably miss that wide-screen fun. Still, maybe I'll get another monitor on the cheap eventually.