Whats a good processor to buy, and what do I need to do if Im switching from an Nvidia to Radeon (video card)?

Okay so the time has come, I am looking to within the next 4 or 5 months to buy a Radeon HD 5850 video card to do away with my old Nvidia 8800 GT. My current processor is an AMD Phenom 9600 quad-core and for me it never was that great. I need a new processor for my gaming needs as well as work. I was thinking of getting an AMD Phenom II X4 3.4 GHz processor since it is only like 200 bucks and money is tight rigtht now. what do you guys think. remember money is very tight right now I only have like a $500 budget for both a new video card and processor. Also, my old video card is an 8800GT, what am I gonna have to do to switch from nvidia to radeon in terms of d/l drivers and stuff|||The first big thing to consider, and really the only thing that might be in the way, is the motherboard. If it is an nvidia based chipset, i.e. Nvidia 680i, 780i, something like that, ATI might not work as well. In most all cases, you should be fine as long as your power supply (PSU) has enough power. You definitely seem to know what you are talking about, so I assume you know what a PSU is. Maybe if oyu could post your current motherboard and PSU combo? Hope we can all help you out!|||The Processor selected is excellent, it offers 10X the bang for buck that Intel's fastest chip does. You will need to remove all of your old Nvidia Drivers: http://forums.nvidia.com/index.php?showt…



Note that using the third party Driver Cleaner software is NOT always needed. Then simply install the ATI drivers from ATI's website or your video card manufacturer's website (Ex. XFX, Saphire, ASUS, VisionTek, etc.)