Would you all mind taking a look at my system specs and let me know what you think about an upgrade to a E6850, or even an E8500; would such an investment greatly improve my system performance? I guess another way of asking that question is "Do you think a $300 - $400 investment in a better CPU is worth it, given my current hardware?" My current Dell is a dedicated FS9 system less than a year old and has some stutters and blurries, mainly in turn situations or high detail areas, but overall I'm very happy with it. I love FS9 and want to stick with it for now but I'm afraid I see the writing on the wall and know it won't last forever. I'm locked at 32 FPS, which drops to about 12 FPS at places like payware airports. I own FSX but don't use it because my system just won't handle it nearly as well.Also, if you don't mind, if I upgrade my CPU how much should I spend on a fan/CPU cooling system? My gosh, TigerDirect has them from 19.99 to 150 USD.Thank you all -- it's been a long time since I did a CPU upgrade myself.

I think you'll see more of a perfomance increase going to the 8500. It's a better CPU for the money. 45nm vs 65nm, runs cooler, 6 mb cache as opposed to four, and a faster instruction set. The 8400 that I use is faster than a 6850 and doesn't cost as much as that 6850. I'm OC'd to 3.6GHz running 24/7, I swear I can hear my system laughing as if to say "is that all you got?" FS9 never dips below 30FPS except maybe in the most extreme settings. If I unlock my FPS, I can see 70FPS with all settings maxed. The question of it being worth the investment is more subjective. What I can say is with my current rig, I have smooth performance, no stutters or blurries, and all my settings are max'd out with all the customary add-ons.I would recommend that you don't skimp on the CPU cooler. Cooling and power are two areas where it seems folks try to save a buck and it comes back to bite you more often than not. The Zalman 9700 is an excellent cooler as is the Thermalright 120. These are probably the two best on the market. With these coolers, you'll be hard pressed to get an 8500 CPU above 32c.Hope this helps.Regards, Jeff

Thanks for taking the time to reply. I've decided not to skimp on the processor and invest in the future: I'm going with the 8500.Thanks for the reccomendations on the cooling fans -- I was looking at the Zalman 9500 but it will be a tight fit in my case. I'll also look at the Thermalright -- not ThermalTAKE?? -- brand too.I'm buying all from Tigerdirect because they ship fast and offer a 100%, return postage paid, no questions asked refund policy for a 10.00 charge, and I've been happy with them in the past. I bought a CPU upgrade from them about 3 years ago and everything went fine. Any comments on TigerDirect.com as a vendor?

The Thermalright is a monster with the only other drawback being that you need also to add a 120 mm fan for max performance. http://www.thermalright.com/new_a_page/pro...cpu_cooler.htmlI use the Zalman 9700 and it's pretty big though it is difficult for me to relate it's size to cases, as my case is one of the bigger ones. When installed however, the top of the cooler doesn't extend much, if at all, beyond the front edge of my graphics card. It's dead silent too. I've never used TigerDirect so can't really comment either way. I usually purchase from NewEgg. I've never had a single bad experience with them. Always arrives on time and in perfect condition.Both companies seem to have their share of loyal supporters so I guess, all other things being equal, that price and CS should be the deciding factor. Glad I could help.Regards,Jeff

Yup, New Egg is great too - I've probably bought more computer hardware from them than tigerDirect. But the only place I found on line that has an E8500 in stock is TigerDirect, so it's with them I shall go. I paid the 9.87 USD for the 90 day money back guarantee, so I'm not worried at all.Thank you for your input, Jeff -- this post has kind of languished for 4 or 5 days and I didn't think anyone was going to answer it -- kine of a broad question, I guess. I just placed the order. I got the Zalman 9500 fan -- just couldn't wait for CircuitCity.com to send me the 9700; I had to have this thing up and running as quickly as possible.