Except those of us that ended up with Intel GPUs and IPUs, I still rue the day I let Intel talk me into buying those stinkers.

Off the top of my head the XFX 6850 is very powerful mid ranged card. I only thing i've read thats negative about it is has a noisy fan. I think you got a good deal.

The kit is not bad at all. The only component I'm not sure about is the Power Supply.

I found this guide somewhat helpful, I purchased the parts for and assembled my current box based on it:
http://i1002.photobucket.com/albums/af150/The_FalconO6/CurrentLogicalPCBuyingGuide/Guide.png

I think your should upgrade your CPU cooler.. that little wimpy thing for a quad core? hah!

The case has 2 built in fans I believe.

That doesn't mean its a bad idea to have a solid CPU cooler, and that one does look quite skimpy compared to the ones I've gotten boxed with my AMD CPUs. Granted the newest I've got is a Phenom 1 and I don't know how they compare temp-wise. You can always give it a go if you are willing to keep a close eye on the temps whey you get started to make sure you aren't running too hot.

Just enter the BIOS right away and watch it for awhile, and while your there, enable a shutdown temperature so that if it does run hot the system will turn off and keep the CPU from overheating. Hopeful without trashing any files! If things are running a tad too warm for comfort you can always pick up a better fan with a later paycheck.

On another note it might be worth looking into any motherboard model you have to see if they offer FX support or have a BIOS flash to enable FX CPU support. You probably won't want to replace the one you are getting with the newer FX line but knowing you could might be worth knowing. It also might be worth knowing if you can't. Its not a big deal if you don't.
Now I didn't say anything about GPU's! They haven't figured that one out in the slightest.

I'm sorry what?

You didn't, but you just said an Intel purchase. The only times I've regretted it is because the manufacturer included an Intel IGP as a kiss off for buying the laptop. I had a fairly nice Pentium 4m based system about the time that Centrino came out, and it was hobbled by one of their crappy IGPs.

info
http://www.newegg.com/Store/Category.aspx?Category=34&name=CPUs-Processors

FX is AMD's kind of reoccurring consumer level flagship CPU line. When they think they have something swell they call it FX. Currently the new FX line is their newest line of CPU's and go into their socket AM3+. So, in theory if you have a AM3+ board you can use an FX CPU. Some of your proposed builds even have a FX CPU listed, BUT your last build has the previous line CPU - a Phenom 2,

Here is the catch, the AM3+ socket design has been around awhile and its not enough to just have an AM3+ socket and an AM3 CPU. The motherboard BIOS also has to be made to support each type of CPU. Since the FX line is newer than a lot of motherboards with an AM3+ socket there are a lot of motherboards that won't take an FX chip out of the box. There is a way to upgrade some boards, but there are risks and requirements, so maybe you should just ignore the whole statement and buy a motherboard and CPU combo that you know works and never think about that sort of thing.

Most retailers will list which CPU line the motherboard will accept in the stats for the MoBo. Just make sure the Socket types and supported CPU line all match what CPU you are buying. If its a bundle it should already be done for you.

Did that help at all or did I just lead you more into taller grass?

I'm not exactly Intel's greatest fan (thanks to a patent licensing spat between them and nVidia, the first generation of Core iX series CPUs got delayed from getting into MacBooks), but you can't argue with Intel's performance vs. AMD (especially with Ivy Bridge coming around the corner). It makes me sad, because I've always rooted for AMD.

I think it's always a good idea to have a little extra overhead for your cooler and your power supply, to give you room to grow in the future. Given how important the cooler is to your setup, it's not something you want to cheap out on.

Taller grass. I guess the CPU is my only problem wen it comes to the Mobo?

Sorry about that.

If you are eying barebones kits that have MoBo, RAM, and CPU then that may be the easiest way of making sure all the stuff works together and it should be fairly cost effective. All boards should take whatever Vid card, Disc drive, and HD you toss at it.


AND FYI the bundle you listed last looked fine for MoBo CPU compatibility. Wanted to make that clear because I think I may have given you the idea that they weren't. I was getting into something a bit more abstract that you don't really need to worry about.

Ah, okay. Thanks :)
I have a similar thread posted on another site and I want to get their opinions as well.