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I usually class myself as quite IT savvy considering my qualifications, but i'm truly stumped by hardware, all these names and numbers means absolutely nothing to me (I get that 6790 is worse than 6970, but how much worse? How much better is it than what i've already got? etc. etc.), so i'm asking here instead.

Current card is an ATI Radeon HD 4800 series, which has served me well thus far, but with Skyrim drawing ever close, i'm starting to wonder just how much i'm going to get out of it in the coming years. It tackles the Space Marine demo pretty well on reasonable settings, but that's the latest game I can tell you about.

Now, I don't want to be stuck on 11/11/11 try.ing.t.o.pl.ay.sk.yr.i.m.wi.th.ev.er.y.th.ing.jum.ping.a.bo.ut so this is as much of a "do you think I could tackle it?" thread as it is a "I need to buy a new XYZ" thread.

Specs I know without having to rip into the case:
ATI Radeon HD 4800 seires GC
AMD Athlon 7850 DC CPU
Gigabyte m61pme-s2p AMD Motherboard

Feths knows about the PSU (if it's important, tell me, because it's the one thing I don't want to have to buy cheap) or anything else, but if you need anything, just say.

As it stands, i'm looking for another ATI card (because the last few NVIDIA ones i've had have been crap) and have been eyeballing the 6700 and 6800 series (because the 6900 series is too expensive for me, even if it does mean I can sit on it for a long time without it becoming archaic), but i'm open to other suggestions (even a 6600 if it'll do me for as long as the 700s and 800s).

I'm not really usure about an AMD CPU though, Intel seems to be leaving AMD in the dust, so to speak, in terms of overall performance, so an i5 or i7 might be right up my street; an i3 perhaps, but like the GC, I don't want to learn that I could've had several more years of performance from a little more investment.

The motherboard is what i'm truly stumped about; i've no doubt that i'll need to replace it should I require a new CPU, but what to?

This is a program that'll tell you nearly everything about your system:

http://majorgeeks.com/download181.html

You'll be able to tell exactly which video card you have.

In terms of upgrades,

1. I suggest you look at the 6850 as a minimum. Its price/performance ratio is quite high. Ideally, a 6870 is at the sweet spot as you said the 6900s are out of your budget.

2. Wait until Bulldozer comes out if you want to stick to AMD. Once we see the impact on the market, prices may drop (they usually do) on AMD parts. I know the Phenom X4 965 Black Edition is suppose to be really good, but how recent it is, I'm not 100% sure, since I seldom keep up with AMD in recent times. In regards with Intel, an i5 is really the only thing you need unless you do hardcore video encoding, which in that case you'll probably want an i7.

3. The best thing to do is to wait until system requirements actually come out.

Let us know what your looking to spend, its easier to pick a video card that way then say... I want something good in the 6000 range.

Right now my recommendation would be a 6850 and a motherboard that will let you go Crossfire in a few months.

As for processors.... You really can't go wrong with a Sandbridge I5 2500. Its faster then any video card out needs. It also beats the pants off of anything AMD has out.

The reason i'm not posting a budget is because I can't afford it all at once, so i'm waiting to see what I can pick and choose, if anything. I can afford either a new GC OR a new CPU + MB OR a new GC + MB, but not all of it at once.

If the system runs everything you play at the moment, wait to upgrade until just before you buy the game. Thats what I did with Space Marine, I waited until just after it came out and I bought the game before I bought my new video card. Just waiting a span of two month's can save you some money, or you can get better hardware for your original budget. Computer hardware is the opposite of GW, it gets cheaper over time!

PS for you're PSU, I would suggest a minimum of 600 watts, go for more if you're planning on eventually running two cards in crossfire.