If you don't mind waiting Kaveri will be launched Jan 14th and you may get more bang for your buck with the newer system or you may get price reductions on FM2 parts. Also take a look at http://www.newegg.ca/ Sometimes you can get combo deals that make up for shipping fees and part of the HST. That being said that APU would do fine, just make sure you don't use 1333MHz ram. The faster the better for APUs
Thanks for the reply. I already have the A10 and the motherboard, so waiting to buy Kaveri is not an option. It's true I might get some price reductions for the FM2 parts after it's release, but I'm hoping to put this system together before school closes for the holidays - the kids are looking forward to using it during their break - it's their "present"!!.
I have looked at newegg, and will probably end up purchasing what I need from them. I had purchased a 550 watt psu, but after doing some reading up on crossfire, it seems if I eventually go that route in the future, I will need more power than 550 watts, so I returned the psu. Hopefully someone will give some input as to a good psu that will allow me to use crossfire later.
I've read favorable reviews from people who have used the Hyper 212 EVO cooler: http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103099 although it seems it works best in a push/pull config, which means buying another fan. Still, would this be my best bang for the buck??
As for memory, with the mobo I have, it takes up to 1866 MHz, and can over clock to 2400 MHz. Newegg has some 1600 MHz on sale - would there be a noticeable difference in performance between the 1600 and the 1866?? I've watched the teksyndicate video on comparisons between 1600 and 2400 memory https://teksyndicate.com/videos/amd-a10-6800k-richland-ram-speed-test-adata-ram-2400-mhz-vs-1600-mhz and there was a difference.
Hyper 212 is one of the best low-cost coolers on the market.
As for RAM, 2133mhz will pair nicely with the APU graphics, just keep in mind; the lower the latency the better. Go with a dual channel kit as it will be faster than a single stick and cost the same. 8GB is plenty, but 4GB will do if you're on a tight budget.
If you're considering crossfire with the APU integrated graphics and a discreet GPU, I would advise against doing so. The best GPU you could pair with it is a 7750 and the gains are not that significant from what I've seen/heard. The thing is; for the same cost of the A10-6800k + 7750 you could go with an Athlon x4 760K (which is an A10-6800k with the iGPU disabled) and 78XX GPU which would give you much better performance.
The A10-6800k is great for small form factor PC's where there is no room for a discreet GPU or if you have a set budget and don't plan on doing any "heavy" gaming.
Since you already have the A10, just enjoy the on board GPU for the time being, which is pretty good anyways. You can still upgrade to a better discreet GPU later on and just run it standalone (not use the integrated GPU in crossfire).