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[Durante]

I used to have the same grey speakerbox/subwoofer I see under the table (came with 2 seperate speakers) ... I could be wrong but I think I had them around since 1999/2000... I can't really remember when I've bought them exactly.
Just wanted to let you know this important information

These speakers are in fact from 1999. It was pretty much the first widely distributed 4.1 surround speaker system for PC, the Cambridge Soundworks FPS 1000. I've been using them for 15 years

 

[Nostremitus]

Is there any chance AMD will release a better AM1 CPU in the next few months? If so, I might hold out for another while.

There's always a chance, but given that the 5350 came out this past April it's unlikely. But then again, Beema exists. Beema is the next chipset following Kabini that have Puma+ cores instead of Jaguar, it's been introduced in notebooks but they haven't announced a socketted variant, yet...

 

[LilJoka]

Building a PC for my dad's birthday.

Price: N/A but somewhere between 1000-1500 Canadian.

He really just wants something super fast. Turns on in 5 seconds. He won't really play games but he'll be looking artwork, doing some work, general internet use, and listen to music. He'll want a sound card to get some great sound for speakers he has installed. Do I need a graphics card?

He also wants a smaller form factor but I really don't want this thing overheating. He won't overclock.

PCPartPicker part list: http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/pvkZWZ
Price breakdown by merchant: http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/pvkZWZ/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($359.79 @ DirectCanada)
Motherboard: Asus MAXIMUS VII IMPACT Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard ($266.50 @ Vuugo)
Memory: A-Data XPG V1.0 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($84.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Storage: Crucial MX100 512GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($224.99 @ Amazon Canada)
Case: Fractal Design Node 304 Mini ITX Tower Case ($89.99 @ Memory Express)
Power Supply: Corsair RM 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($109.99 @ NCIX)
Sound Card: Asus Xonar DSX 24-bit 192 KHz Sound Card ($54.95 @ Vuugo)
Total: $1191.19
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-23 10:23 EDT-0400

Should I go with the Silverstone RVZ01 instead?

Could go either Case, but for the Node 304 i recommend the Seasonic G series 550W. Although this rig would run on a 350W supply. Forget the Corsair offerings. It will have onboard graphics so its not required to buy a GPU unless gaming. Motherboard is also overkill. Hyper 212 to keep the CPU cooling silent whilst doing any CPU intensive work.

http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/4wnVf7

SeaSonic 450W SSR-450RM if you want a fully modular PSU for similar price.

 

[opticalmace]

I currently have a 1920x1200 60Hz 24" monitor and a Radeon 6950 2GB card.

Ultimatley I am interested in a 1440p+ G-Sync monitor (and Nvidia card) but the monitors seem really expensive right now.

Would it be crazy to get a 1080p 120Hz monitor as a stopgap? I'd really like to get that extra smoothness in my PC gaming. Not sure if it's worth the, say, $250 though. I've never had a 120Hz monitor but I know people rave about them. I guess I would dual monitor with my current one (which is about 5 years old but still great).

 

[Stat!]

Could go either Case, but for the Node 304 i recommend the Seasonic G series 550W. Although this rig would run on a 350W supply. Forget the Corsair offerings. It will have onboard graphics so its not required to buy a GPU unless gaming. Motherboard is also overkill.

http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/tKLNsY

Should I get a fan as well?

Really, what he wants is something superfast, turns on fast (he's using a 10 year old computer that must have cost $300), has great audio, and allows him to look at a bunch of artwork (for work) so his fear is that the colours might be slightly off or something. I just don't want any issues for him as well.

EDIT: I see you added a fan as well.

 

[LilJoka]

Should I get a fan as well?

Really, what he wants is something superfast, turns on fast (he's using a 10 year old computer that must have cost $300), has great audio, and allows him to look at a bunch of artwork (for work) so his fear is that the colours might be slightly off or something. I just don't want any issues for him as well.

EDIT: I see you added a fan as well.

Yeah, the stock one is fine for everything, just can get noisy when your doing demanding tasks. The Node has decent airflow, i run a GTX 780 and i7 3770 @ 4.2Ghz no problems. All my fans are set to low. It comes with 2x80mm (iirc) intake fans and a rear 140mm exhaust fan.

 

[Prez]

There's always a chance, but given that the 5350 came out this past April it's unlikely. But then again, Beema exists. Beema is the next chipset following Kabini that have Puma+ cores instead of Jaguar, it's been introduced in notebooks but they haven't announced a socketted variant, yet...

Thanks, I'll go for the 5350 then. Is there any advantage to getting the 1.6Ghz 5150? It will work just as well for my needs and I'm wondering why it's even on the market with such a minimal price difference (just €10 less).

 

[Lockjaw333]

212 Evo
overclock
If you're buying a new GPU, spend the extra on a single 970 instead of going SLI on such old cards.

edit: what motherboard? PSU?

Mobo: asus p8p67 pro
PSU: antec HC gamer 1000W


Aren't the 970's pretty expensive? Not sure if I'm ready to drop that much, I would probably rather just get by with my 670 for another year or two then build a new system with a 970 or better.

Whats a 212 evo overclock?

 

[Nostremitus]

Thanks, I'll go for the 5350 then. Is there any advantage to getting the 1.6Ghz 5150? It will work just as well for my needs and I'm wondering why it's even on the market with such a minimal price difference (just €10 less).

The 5150 is the same chip, just lower clock so it doesn't perform as well as the 5350.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/8067/...athlon-53505150-and-sempron-38502650-tested/3

Mobo: asus p8p67 pro
PSU: antec HC gamer 1000W


Aren't the 970's pretty expensive? Not sure if I'm ready to drop that much, I would probably rather just get by with my 670 for another year or two then build a new system with a 970 or better.

Whats a 212 evo overclock?

The Cooler Master 212 Evo is a great budget cooler, I'm at 4.5Ghz @ 1.35Vcore with my 2500K with my 212 Evo.

The 970 can be had for around 340, so yeah a bit more expensive than another 670 but you'd get twice the VRAM and wouldn't have to deal with SLI. When I originally mentioned the 970 I didn't know if you would need to upgrade your PSU IOT SLI as that would have been additional cost. Since your PSU is probably good to go, it's really up to you on whether the pros outweigh to cons of either choice.

 

[Stat!]

Yeah, the stock one is fine for everything, just can get noisy when your doing demanding tasks. The Node has decent airflow, i run a GTX 780 and i7 3770 @ 4.2Ghz no problems. All my fans are set to low. It comes with 2x80mm (iirc) intake fans and a rear 140mm exhaust fan.

Thank you the help. This is good to know. I might prefer a non-stock fan just because I know he would prefer a quiet PC. Is that possible?

 

[fluffydelusions]

Your temps are within reason for Haswell I believe but I have heard of auto voltage issues with the Haswell refreshes on old bios versions. You can check it out with CPU-Z.

http://www.cpuid.com/softwares/cpu-z.html

So I had a question about this. Out of curiosity I lowered the voltage from 1.269 to 1.2 but I notice cpu-z shows a constant 1.2 now rather than idling lower before when I had it set to auto. Do I have to do something else to have it idle properly again?

 

[Prez]

The 5150 is the same chip, just lower clock so it doesn't perform as well as the 5350.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/8067/...athlon-53505150-and-sempron-38502650-tested/3

Alright, 5350 it is then.

One last thing, what should I look at when comparing motherboards? Asus, MSI and Gigabyte all have AM1 motherboards but they all seem pretty much the same. Is one brand better than the other?

 

[jabuseika]

That drop.

 

[thuway]

From the last page since I know it got buried:

Can anyone reccomedn an LGA 1155 Z77 Motherboard for my PC? It's my first build and the mobo is dead. PC gaming is sitting here laughing at me.

PC Gaming hates me :'(.

I need your help GAF!!

I was gifted a computer some family pulled money together to buy. THE MOTHERBOARD has went into an infinite loop and has died. This is what I get for just pressing that OC Genie II button :/. Unfortunately, they bought it off craigslist and have no real way to RMA it. So I ask you one favor GAF:

Can you reccomend me a motherboad that will fit into my case and will perform well with my Core I5 2500k? I've never built a PC before, but I'm smart enough to figure it out.

The motherboard I was using is a LG1155 socket:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130574

Processor: Core i5 2500k
RAM: 8 GB 1600 mhz
Power Supply: 880 watts of something
And I think the case is a full sized ATX Case



Whatever you reccomend I'll buy now. Thank you so much guys. Also, should I just get any old thermal paste to go along with it?

 

[Prez]

I see that all AM1 motherboards only have 2 SATA connections. Does this limit me to only 1 optical drive and 1 HDD?

 

[knitoe]

So I had a question about this. Out of curiosity I lowered the voltage from 1.269 to 1.2 but I notice cpu-z shows a constant 1.2 now rather than idling lower before when I had it set to auto. Do I have to do something else to have it idle properly again?

Did you select Offset + / - or manually enter a CPU core voltage? If the later, it will always use that voltage, idling or under load.

I see that all AM1 motherboards only have 2 SATA connections. Does this limit me to only 1 optical drive and 1 HDD?

Yes.

 

[fluffydelusions]

Did you select Offset + / - or manually enter a CPU core voltage? If the later, it will always use that voltage, idling or under load.

I just changed vcore from 1.269 -> 1.2

 

[garath]

From the last page since I know it got buried:

Can anyone reccomedn an LGA 1155 Z77 Motherboard for my PC? It's my first build and the mobo is dead. PC gaming is sitting here laughing at me.

My LGA 1155 board is the exact one that died on you. I've been nothing but happy with it. If anything, if you bought the exact same board you should be able to plug and play rather than going through the hassle of reinstalling windows.

I tried the OC genie button when I first got it but didn't like the overclock. It had WAY too much voltage for the clock. I did it manually since then and it's been rock solid. Granted I'm only doing a light OC at like 4.2 or 4.3.

 

[LilJoka]

I just changed vcore from 1.269 -> 1.2

You are using manual vcore, you need to select offset first then it'll appear like +/- x.xxxV.

 

[knitoe]

I just changed vcore from 1.269 -> 1.2

You need to use Offset. Unlike manually entering Cpu core voltage number 1.20V = 1.20V, Offset = base + X (number you enter). So, enter small number, like 0.050V, load Windows and see what the CPU core voltage is under load. Adjust the X, increase or decrease, until you hit your target of 1.20V.

 

[LilJoka]

From the last page since I know it got buried:

Can anyone reccomedn an LGA 1155 Z77 Motherboard for my PC? It's my first build and the mobo is dead. PC gaming is sitting here laughing at me.

Just get an Asus Z77 board that fits your budget, it'll be around $100 on newegg. Or any other z77 board from asus/gigabyte/asrock. There really isn't bad motherboards.

 

[zeroeffect]

Guys the Corsair Raptor K30 is on sale at Amazon. Anyone recommend it? I'm usually not big on gaming keyboards myself as I think they're mostly marketing...but some are pretty good.

It's $32.99 sold by Amazon if anyone is interested.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00F0DCH9Y/?tag=neogaf0e-20

Thinking about getting it just to try it out since it's cheap. Anyone recommend it or against it? I have the Raptor M40 mouse and love it.

 

[LilJoka]

Thank you the help. This is good to know. I might prefer a non-stock fan just because I know he would prefer a quiet PC. Is that possible?

Yeah that's right. The Coolermaster Hyper 212 is perfect for this. It's what I use in my node 304 too.

 

[foamdino]

I believe I have an ASUS motherboard http://www.asus.com/Motherboards/P7P55DE (or extremely similar).

I have 6G of ram and an old i7 820 (2.8Ghz with hyperthreading)

Could I do a cheapo upgrade by just upgrading my gpu to a gtx 970 or would I have to replace motherboard+cpu+ram+gpu?

If I could split my upgrade into two bits it becomes easier to justify to my wife ;-)

(my current gpu sucks so just upgrading that would I think be the best route if my current setup would support that)

 

[Prez]

Did you select Offset + / - or manually enter a CPU core voltage? If the later, it will always use that voltage, idling or under load.

Yes.

If I'm correct I could always add more SATA ports with a PCI SATA card?

The Asus AM1M-A motherboard seems like the best choice since it has more USB ports on the back panel.

Also looking at this case which comes with a PSU: Advance 3906b. It costs less than just a single PSU though... Can I trust the included PSU?

 

[mkenyon]

Great looking setup

The only thing that is surprising me is the lack of a mech keyboard. I pegged you as someone who uses something so extremely ergonomic that it's esoteric like the Ergodox or Datahand.

Or at least something that has programmable macros, perhaps with topre switches.

From the last page since I know it got buried:

Can anyone reccomedn an LGA 1155 Z77 Motherboard for my PC? It's my first build and the mobo is dead. PC gaming is sitting here laughing at me.

Depends on what is available, really. The only ones to avoid would be the ASRock boards. They made their power delivery for IvyBridge processors, so they don't play as nicely with Sandy Bridge procs in them, and have been known to burn up.

 

[Booshka]

I was gonna recommend my board (ASUS Sabertooth z77) for a 1155 Board, but apparently they are out of stock everywhere and the few that are still available are wildly expensive.

 

[Nostremitus]

Alright, 5350 it is then.

One last thing, what should I look at when comparing motherboards? Asus, MSI and Gigabyte all have AM1 motherboards but they all seem pretty much the same. Is one brand better than the other?

I don't know of any blatant issues with any of them, so it would come down to which one has the features you like. It looks like the ASUS AM1I-A allows for overclocking.

I see that all AM1 motherboards only have 2 SATA connections. Does this limit me to only 1 optical drive and 1 HDD?

Yes, unless you'd rather go SSD + HDD internally with an external optical drive for use only when needed.

 

[Durante]

The only thing that is surprising me is the lack of a mech keyboard. I pegged you as someone who uses something so extremely ergonomic that it's esoteric like the Ergodox or Datahand.

Heh, those look interesting. But really, I've been using Microsoft ergonomic keyboards for over a decade, both at work and at home. I can work on "normal" ones, but not as fast -- and I simply don't like it as much.

A fear of mine is that one day my keyboard breaks and MS doesn't make any of this type anymore. But, considering that recently in every second "game developer workplace" photo I see someone is using one of them it appears they are still more popular than I thought!

 

[Prez]

I don't know of any blatant issues with any of them, so it would come down to which one has the features you like.

Yes, unless you'd rather go SSD + HDD internally with an external optical drive for use only when needed.

Looks like I can add more SATA ports with a PCI SATA card. I prefer a normal size optical drive for ripping CDs anyway and all external ones are slim...

 

[Nostremitus]

Looks like I can add more SATA ports with a PCI SATA card. I prefer a normal size optical drive for ripping CDs anyway and all external ones are slim...

That works too, and in case you missed it it looks like the ASUS AM1I-A mobo allows for overclocking.

 

[Prez]

That works too, and in case you missed it it looks like the ASUS AM1I-A mobo allows for overclocking.

Looks like the Asus AM1M allows that too? Can't really tell the difference between the two. Anything I should know if I overclock? Do I have to watch out for high temperatures?

edit: so if I get this right, the AM1M-A is mATX which won't fit in the Cooler Master 130, but the AM1I-A doesn't have internal USB 3.0 headers which renders the front USB 3.0 ports on the Cooler Master useless...

The Gigabyte AM1 motherboards are Micro ATX too, so those are out of the question. And the MSI AM1I doesn't have any USB 3.0 headers either.

 

[Totobeni]

Good news for people using PC on their HDTVs. Roccat is making this -called Sova- for 2015(?)

Mechanical keyboard, built-in rechargeable battery, moving mouse pad, customizable with multiple usb ports to charge things.

 

[Faith]

Do I have to reinstall Windows if I change my mainboard? If so, is there a workaround to prevent that?

 

[Durante]

Do I have to reinstall Windows if I change my mainboard?

No, generally not. I just moved my 5 year old Windows 7 installation to a new MB/CPU without issues.

 

[Buburibon]

So, after doing cable management in my PC I spent basically an entire day also doing cable management outside of it. I even got a separate shelf for it. Admittedly, a large part of that day was spent cleaning my desk in preparation.


I realize this still doesn't look exceptionally clean, but (a) you should have seen it before and (b) you have to realize that there are 14 power plugs, 5 Gigabit ethernet cables, 4 HDMI cables, 1 DVI cable, a TV antenna cabe and a collection of USB cables going on there. Oh, and all the cabling involved in surround sound. I'm pretty happy with the result considering all that.

It looks good. There's only so much you can do when dealing with a ton of wires/cables. I do what I can at home, but here at work (recording studio) I'm practically always drowning in patch cables, etc.

Anyway, it's great to see where all the GeDoSaTo magic happens.

 

[Nostremitus]

Looks like the Asus AM1M allows that too? Can't really tell the difference between the two. Anything I should know if I overclock? Do I have to watch out for high temperatures?

edit: so if I get this right, the AM1M-A is mATX which won't fit in the Cooler Master 130, but the AM1I-A doesn't have internal USB 3.0 headers which renders the front USB 3.0 ports on the Cooler Master useless...

The Gigabyte AM1 motherboards are Micro ATX too, so those are out of the question. And the MSI AM1I doesn't have any USB 3.0 headers either.

I'm at work right now and PCpartpicker doesn't work on my work PC, I wish i could help more.

 

[tarheel91]

i'm on the wrong side of the atlantic for a microcenter unfortunately.

and yeah, future proofing was probably the wrong word to use. ideally i just want this pc build to last longer than my current one, which is roughly five years old. the cpu has become an anchor around the neck of the system.

6 cores+DDR4 would definitely be a good way to extend the life of your CPU/MB.

 

[xBladeM6x]

No, generally not. I just moved my 5 year old Windows 7 installation to a new MB/CPU without issues.

Don't you need to re-enter the Windows product code if it thinks there's a hardware change? I remember I was trying to do this with an old Windows XP, and it did that.

 

[AngryChinchilla]

Reposting this because I really need help.

Help GAF!! I'm in the pits of despair.
I finished my build last night, posted just fine. In windows 7 now and it's working great. But, there is one issue that is pretty serious. When I shut down my computer, windows closes and then all of the fans in my computer ramp up and stay that way. It stays like that forever. Also my DVD drive still works. The only way to shut it off is with the power switch on the psu. When I flip the psu switch to turn it back on again, it stays off until I hit the power button on the tower. When I do hit the button the fans turn on but nothing happens with the computer besides the fans. Then if I press the power button a second time it comes to life. I need some help

 

[Prez]

I'm at work right now and PCpartpicker doesn't work on my work PC, I wish i could help more.

Found the solution, ASRock AM1B-M does have an internal USB 3.0 header. Now, how do I get more USB 2.0 ports using the USB 2.0 headers? Do the ports have to be built in the case already or is there another way? Then again, I might not need any more USB ports though, the Cooler Master already has 2 USB 3.0 + 1 USB 2.0 port, on top of the 2x USB3.0 and 2x USB2.0 on the motherboard.

What exactly are my expansion options with the PCIe x16 slot?

 

[mkenyon]

Reposting this because I really need help.

Update BIOS.

I've never ever heard of something like this happening, but it has to be a BIOS bug.

 

[Felix Lighter]

I contacted NCISUS about my Swiftech H220X order that I mentioned earlier in the thread. I payed $20 for 3 Day shipping but the tracking information indicated that the item is scheduled to be delivered on Monday next week. Their response was, oops our supplier didn't ship it right and they refunded the shipping cost but they apparently can't do anything else about it. The ground shipping they accidentally used would have been free anyway.

I've ordered things from them before but this was the first time I payed for expedited shipping. I guess in the future I'll avoid them anytime that I'm not willing to wait 7+ business days for delivery. Now my hopes of building this PC over the weekend are pretty much dashed. I will have everything, except a CPU cooler.

I guess I'm spoiled by Amazon. I know their response would have been to send a second item overnight and would have just asked me to return one of them at my earliest convenience but I know not every retailer has the kind of resources Amazon does when it comes to addressing customer issues.

 

[Nostremitus]

Found the solution, ASRock AM1B-M does have an internal USB 3.0 header. Now, how do I get more USB 2.0 ports using the USB 2.0 headers? Do the ports have to be built in the case already or is there another way? Then again, I might not need any more USB ports though, the Cooler Master already has 2 USB 3.0 + 1 USB 2.0 port, on top of the 2x USB3.0 and 2x USB2.0 on the motherboard.

What exactly are my expansion options with the PCIe x16 slot?

I just realized that you were talking about an internal optical drive and the 110 case doesnt support them. You'd need to 120.

 

[garath]

Do I have to reinstall Windows if I change my mainboard? If so, is there a workaround to prevent that?

You don't HAVE to, but I would. There are a lot of drivers that are installed for a motherboard that won't be used with the new one.

 

[Prez]

I just realized that you were talking about an internal optical drive and the 110 case doesnt support them. You'd need to 120.

I was already going to get the 130.

The ASRock MB apparently has a lot of issues, so that's no longer an option.... I might go with a case that's suitable for mATX after all, though those cases seem an awful lot bigger :/

 

[HT UK]

So after browsing part picker for a bit and talking to some people at work, I've come up with this as a potential build:

http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/user/htuk/saved/qxtLrH

I'm looking for something that will last quite some time. Can you guys spot anything wrong with build? Anything I should considering upgrading/downgrading?

Thanks to anyone who can help. I use a single 1080p monitor by the way.

 

[RadioactiveLobster]

Anyone here have an opinion on Corsair's new tramp stamp...erm, I mean new logo...

 

[AngryChinchilla]

Update BIOS.

I've never ever heard of something like this happening, but it has to be a BIOS bug.

I did, it is a Gigabyte board. I flashed it from f3 to f5 bios version and the problem persists. I also just tried using the power supply from my old build and the problem persists so I am pretty sure it is something with the motherboard. I sent a help ticket to Gigabyte yesterday, but no response yet

 

[mkenyon]

Yeah, just picked up the K65 RGB last night, and was very unhappy with that new branding.

So after browsing part picker for a bit and talking to some people at work, I've come up with this as a potential build:

http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/user/htuk/saved/qxtLrH

I'm looking for something that will last quite some time. Can you guys spot anything wrong with build? Anything I should considering upgrading/downgrading?

Thanks to anyone who can help. I use a single 1080p monitor by the way.

Here, saved you 100 quid to put towards a 120 Hz panel.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor (£239.94 @ Aria PC)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (£24.96 @ Amazon UK)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-UD3H ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (£99.52 @ Ebuyer)
Memory: Kingston Fury White Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory (£114.98 @ CCL Computers)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (£79.99 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£37.50 @ Aria PC)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card (£298.76 @ Scan.co.uk)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 w/Window (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case (£84.98 @ Novatech)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply (£63.31 @ Amazon UK)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) (£83.05 @ Amazon UK)
Total: £1126.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-23 19:00 BST+0100