Andrew
There are many dark sky sites around, i have been to Peter Bobroffs place, and to some other places outside Canberra (dont ask me what they where called, i am not from 'round these éer parts!) but the difference it makes is quite marked. From my backyard, i dont see any fainter than around mag 4.2ish, and thats after dark adaption, at Peters place the limiting mag was around 6ish and the sky looked awesome.
If i can see M83 and M104 in an Orion ED80 visually, then when better skys are around you will have no trouble. As JJJ says, try the Sombrero, about just over a third of the way down, from Corvus to Spica, and just over a wee bit, there is litterally an arrowhead of stars pointing to it! i can see it in my ED80 (just! thanks Brian) and in my 12" i can easily see the central bulge, and dust lanes
There lots of us enthusiasts in the ACT dont think twice about sending me a PM is you want someone to bounce ideas off of, or its quite handy sometimes having a fellow observer showing you gems of the sky that you didnt know where there, and then go see them with your own scope.
an 8" dob is a great scope, and one that will serve you very well