Support NeoGAF

[BravoSuperStar]

I'm running the latest one on AMDs website. 9.12 I think. Is there a more stable release I could get some where else?

You can get the beta 10.1 drivers here.

9.12's worked ok for me, but I used the hotfix version from this same site, not from AMD directly. Supposedly the official 10.1 drivers are going to be out any day now, but if you're having trouble the betas are worth a shot at least.

I wish there was a way to trick one of my rear speaker outputs into thinking it was the front. Its not a big deal to use USB though so Ill get over it.

This is actually possible with some sound cards. My on-board realtek calls it "connector retasking".

 

[Salaadin]

This is actually possible with some sound cards. My on-board realtek calls it "connector retasking".

I have that option too and I can get my 2.1 speakers working from one jack and headphones working from the other but they both want to output the same sound. I cant get the headphone to output just voice while the speakers handle all other sound. Im not sure theres a way to get it to do what i want.

 

[Fredescu]

I need to give my brother some build options, but I've been out of the loop for a few months. Am I right in thinking that the best CPU at each price bracket would be x4 620, i5 750 and i7 860?

 

[Blackface]

No reason you can't buy now, go:

i7-860
1156 motherboard
4GB DDR3 (with a possible upgrade to 8GB later on)
5850
1TB Samsung F3
500w+ PSU from a decent brand
Case is personal preference
SATA DVDRW drive, any will do

He would get better performance with an AMD Phenom 965 and a 5870 then with the build you mentioned for the tasks he is trying to accomplish.

 

[Baker]

I'm all ready to go for tomorrow. I'm taking the afternoon off just in case UPS and Fedex decide I have to sign for crap.

* I'll have a cleaner workspace tomorrow, I was just screwing around tonight because I got antsy.

 

[Deleted member 17706]

I keep getting this error with my ATI display driver: "Driver has stopped responding and recovered safely." I'm using an HD5850 in Windows 7 64bit. A quick google search shows that lots of people are having the same problem with ATI drivers in Windows 7 but I haven't seen a solution yet. Is my only option to just wait until ATI releases a new driver and hopefully fixes it?

When I first bought my 5870, I went with some no-name brand here in Japan and experienced the same problems you are mentioning along with frequent artifacting. The card wasn't even running hot so I knew it wasn't overheating that was causing the problems. I spent many hours online researching the problem and it seems there are a lot of other people experiencing similar issues. I tried tons of suggested fixes, but none of them worked for me. I think the problem had something to do with the card not properly adjusting fan speed when switching from idle to higher loads.

I got fed up and brought the card back to the story after a few days and exchanged it for a Sapphire brand 5870. I've had the Sapphire card for almost 2 weeks now and haven't had any problems whatsoever. No "driver recovery" or artifacting in games at all.

I can only assume that something was wrong on the hardware side of the card I originally owned.

 

[Owzers]

Do computer games take advantage or require a cpu to have a certain number of cores? I don't think i'm going to do much overclocking, at least for the time being, so i was wondering if getting an athlon x2 3.0GHz was a good idea, especially since it's only $67. If this is a reallly bad idea, alternative seems to be athlon x4 630 2.8GHz for $112 ( twice the price....twice the cores. coincidence? ). Would a x3 2.9GHz be a compromise for $87 or just silly? If games are going to start requiring triple or quad cores than dual might be out of the question.

 

[hylian_pirate]

Which motherboard should I go with?

GIGABYTE GA-P55A-UD4P Or ASUS P7P55D-E?

 

[Firestorm]

Do computer games take advantage or require a cpu to have a certain number of cores? I don't think i'm going to do much overclocking, at least for the time being, so i was wondering if getting an athlon x2 3.0GHz was a good idea, especially since it's only $67. If this is a reallly bad idea, alternative seems to be athlon x4 630 2.8GHz for $112 ( twice the price....twice the cores. coincidence? ). Would a x3 2.9GHz be a compromise for $87 or just silly? If games are going to start requiring triple or quad cores than dual might be out of the question.

You need at least 3 cores (amount 360 has). I'd just step up to a quad.

 

[topramen]

Help PC Gaf!

I had an old macbook pro which crapped out on me and, instead of replacing the battery, hd, and screen, I was convinced into buying the hp pavilion dv6-1359wm (specs below). Basically I had never heard of this bullshit known as integrated GPUs. As my old macbook could run bioshock on high in bootcamp, you can imagine I was pretty surprised when Red Alert 3 chugged along at 800x600 low everything. Now, I'm not a big pc gamer, however there is no way I am going to live with a computer that won't be able to run starcraft 2. can anyone suggest to me a new machine (under $800 preferably as I can't return this and will have to sell it instead) that will be able to play sc2 at decent settings.


Intel Dual Core Core 2 Duo processor T6600 2.2GHz speed, and 2MB L2 cache
4GB DDR3 system memory
320GB SATA hard drive, 7200 rpm

Overall I am just shocked at how awful pavilions are, everything about this computer blows.

 

[Danj]

Help PC Gaf!

I had an old macbook pro which crapped out on me and, instead of replacing the battery, hd, and screen, I was convinced into buying the hp pavilion dv6-1359wm (specs below). Basically I had never heard of this bullshit known as integrated GPUs. As my old macbook could run bioshock on high in bootcamp, you can imagine I was pretty surprised when Red Alert 3 chugged along at 800x600 low everything. Now, I'm not a big pc gamer, however there is no way I am going to live with a computer that won't be able to run starcraft 2. can anyone suggest to me a new machine (under $800 preferably as I can't return this and will have to sell it instead) that will be able to play sc2 at decent settings.


Intel Dual Core Core 2 Duo processor T6600 2.2GHz speed, and 2MB L2 cache
4GB DDR3 system memory
320GB SATA hard drive, 7200 rpm

Overall I am just shocked at how awful pavilions are, everything about this computer blows.

The part which you missed out was the graphics, the GPU in that laptop is an Intel GMA 4500MHD, that is why it won't play anything more strenuous than Solitaire. Get it swapped with a machine with a proper GPU in and you'll be fine.

 

[Shambles]

You need at least 3 cores (amount 360 has). I'd just step up to a quad.

Most games are designed around dual core systems with a few utilizing quads and future games looking to use quads more often as well. Nothing is designed for 3 cores. At this point you'll want to stick with a quad, or test your luck with some of the Athlon II/Phenom II X2's or X3's that have a chance of being able to unlock the 3rd/4th cores through the motherboard.

 

[Baker]

As you can see in my pic a few posts up, I installed the PSU upside-down as told to me by the case instructions (fan points up). However, a dude at work said it was meaningless.

The PSU sits on a couple millimeter silicon pads, so could I get away with flipping it right-side up?

The only reason I care is because the case has a transparent side, so I'll always be able to see that the PSU logo is upside-down. Would it cause any problems (or help) since the vid card will be right above it too pretty much?

 

[Dina]

As you can see in my pic a few posts up, I installed the PSU upside-down as told to me by the case instructions (fan points up). However, a dude at work said it was meaningless.

The PSU sits on a couple millimeter silicon pads, so could I get away with flipping it right-side up?

The only reason I care is because the case has a transparent side, so I'll always be able to see that the PSU logo is upside-down. Would it cause any problems (or help) since the vid card will be right above it too pretty much?

What side does the PSU cooler suck it's air from? And does your case have a hole in the bottom of the case where the PSU is supposed to go? That might determine how to put it.

 

[brain_stew]

Do computer games take advantage or require a cpu to have a certain number of cores? I don't think i'm going to do much overclocking, at least for the time being, so i was wondering if getting an athlon x2 3.0GHz was a good idea, especially since it's only $67. If this is a reallly bad idea, alternative seems to be athlon x4 630 2.8GHz for $112 ( twice the price....twice the cores. coincidence? ). Would a x3 2.9GHz be a compromise for $87 or just silly? If games are going to start requiring triple or quad cores than dual might be out of the question.

Nope, its a terrible idea, dual cores (outside of the i3s) just don't cut it these days. If you're not overclocking then the X3 435 is a good compromise, yes. I strongly recommend you read up on OCing though, its damn near 100% safe if you stick to stock volts and that's all you'd have to do to get ~3ghz out of a x4 620, which is the direction I'd recommend the most. Its a lot easier than you think.

There's a bunch of games that pretty much "require" more than 2 cores already, even at 3.6ghz my E5200 bottlenecked me in L4D2, Fuel, GTA4, SR2 and Ghostbusters, but my recent quad upgrade got rid of that, no bother.

 

[brain_stew]

Which motherboard should I go with?

GIGABYTE GA-P55A-UD4P Or ASUS P7P55D-E?

I'd personally recommend an EVGA board so that you avoid the Foxconn socket issue and can OC without any worries:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...3188055&cm_re=evga_p55-_-13-188-055-_-Product

No USB3.0 or Sata 6gb but you can easily add them through a cheap PCIe card later on if you ever need them. From what I've read the current implemention of SATA6 on P55 boards is pretty shitty anyway.

 

[brain_stew]

Most games are designed around dual core systems with a few utilizing quads and future games looking to use quads more often as well. Nothing is designed for 3 cores. At this point you'll want to stick with a quad, or test your luck with some of the Athlon II/Phenom II X2's or X3's that have a chance of being able to unlock the 3rd/4th cores through the motherboard.

Not anymore they're not. Pretty much every high profile release in 2009 was optimised for more than 2 cores. As for the 3 core issue, actually he's right, there's a bunch of software pushing three heavy threads (GTA4 and Tropico 3 being 2 good examples of the top off my head) because of the 360. If a game is quad optimised, it'll receive just as much benefit on a triple core as a game optimised for three cores would. A triple core or an i3 is the base minimum any gamer should be buying n 2010, do not rely on "unlocking" an extra core, its complete pot luck and the chances are very low, you want at least three guaranteed functional cores. Anything extra is a bonus.

 

[readleeb]

As you can see in my pic a few posts up, I installed the PSU upside-down as told to me by the case instructions (fan points up). However, a dude at work said it was meaningless.

The PSU sits on a couple millimeter silicon pads, so could I get away with flipping it right-side up?

The only reason I care is because the case has a transparent side, so I'll always be able to see that the PSU logo is upside-down. Would it cause any problems (or help) since the vid card will be right above it too pretty much?

It tells you to install it upside down because only fairly recently designed computer cases have you install the PSU on the bottom. It used to be the norm to have them installed in the top of the case, so generally the PSU is going to be upside down when installing it on the bottom because the PSU was designed to be in the top of the case.

And yes it does matter which way you install it because, as mentioned above, the air intake needs to actually be exposed to air . Some cases have ventilation at the bottom of the case, but not sure about yours (pretty sure it doesn't). If your PSU had no air intake then then the dude at work would have been right.

Air flow is what matters and your PSU is going to be exhausting out the back of your computer. Your air intake will generally be on the front, so yes it will be helping your GPU most likely.

 

[K.Jack]

Help PC Gaf!

I had an old macbook pro which crapped out on me and, instead of replacing the battery, hd, and screen, I was convinced into buying the hp pavilion dv6-1359wm (specs below). Basically I had never heard of this bullshit known as integrated GPUs. As my old macbook could run bioshock on high in bootcamp, you can imagine I was pretty surprised when Red Alert 3 chugged along at 800x600 low everything. Now, I'm not a big pc gamer, however there is no way I am going to live with a computer that won't be able to run starcraft 2. can anyone suggest to me a new machine (under $800 preferably as I can't return this and will have to sell it instead) that will be able to play sc2 at decent settings.


Intel Dual Core Core 2 Duo processor T6600 2.2GHz speed, and 2MB L2 cache
4GB DDR3 system memory
320GB SATA hard drive, 7200 rpm

Overall I am just shocked at how awful pavilions are, everything about this computer blows.

There is a lot of parity between $700 and $800, so I'll give you the two most sensible choices.

There is this Acer Aspire for $700. The 130M is competent, though it's DDR2 memory, making it slower.

Then, right at $800, you have the Lenovo Y550. Advantages: More efficient CPU, GT 240M GDDR3 > GT 130M DDR2, LED backlight, higher build quality.

The Product page says it's $100 off, making it $850, but it's actually $150 off, thus $800.

 

[brain_stew]

There is a lot of parity between $700 and $800, so I'll give you the two most sensible choices.

There is this Acer Aspire for $700. The 130M is competent, though it's DDR2 memory, making it slower.

Then, right at $800, you have the Lenovo Y550. Advantages: More efficient CPU, GT 240M GDDR3 > GT 130M DDR2, LED backlight, higher build quality.

The Product page says it's $100 off, making it $850, but it's actually $150 off, thus $800.

DDR2 on a 128 bit bus? Hmm, that sounds like bottleneck hell, definitely go with the Lenevo imo.

 

[BravoSuperStar]

As you can see in my pic a few posts up, I installed the PSU upside-down as told to me by the case instructions (fan points up). However, a dude at work said it was meaningless.

The PSU sits on a couple millimeter silicon pads, so could I get away with flipping it right-side up?

The only reason I care is because the case has a transparent side, so I'll always be able to see that the PSU logo is upside-down. Would it cause any problems (or help) since the vid card will be right above it too pretty much?

Meaningless? Don't listen to that guy when it comes to PC's. It does matter, which is why your case manufacturer specifically said to install it upside down. Is the possibility of damaging your power supply, the nervous system of your PC, worth having the label right side up?

 

[AZ Greg]

Really need help on this ASAP as I need to make the order if it's what we need. As I mentioned before my bros 512MB 8800GT fried and he wants me to order a replacement. I'm looking at this 1GB 9800GT from TigerDirect:

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4902101&CatId=3669

It's compatible with his weaker power supply so we're good there. But I just need to confirm if this card will be an equal replacement in terms of graphical power to the 512MB 8800GT or maybe even an improvement. He doesn't want to take a step backwards.

 

[dionysus]

Really need help on this ASAP as I need to make the order if it's what we need. As I mentioned before my bros 512MB 8800GT fried and he wants me to order a replacement. I'm looking at this 1GB 9800GT from TigerDirect:

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4902101&CatId=3669

It's compatible with his weaker power supply so we're good there. But I just need to confirm if this card will be an equal replacement in terms of graphical power to the 512MB 8800GT or maybe even an improvement. He doesn't want to take a step backwards.

It is a slight upgrade, will work much better for high resolutions, and the base architecture is basically the same.

 

[BravoSuperStar]

Really need help on this ASAP as I need to make the order if it's what we need. As I mentioned before my bros 512MB 8800GT fried and he wants me to order a replacement. I'm looking at this 1GB 9800GT from TigerDirect:

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4902101&CatId=3669

It's compatible with his weaker power supply so we're good there. But I just need to confirm if this card will be an equal replacement in terms of graphical power to the 512MB 8800GT or maybe even an improvement. He doesn't want to take a step backwards.

Honestly it seems like a waste of $110 to me if the only reason you're getting such an outdated card is to avoid having to upgrade the power supply.

 

[Shambles]

Really need help on this ASAP as I need to make the order if it's what we need. As I mentioned before my bros 512MB 8800GT fried and he wants me to order a replacement. I'm looking at this 1GB 9800GT from TigerDirect:

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4902101&CatId=3669

It's compatible with his weaker power supply so we're good there. But I just need to confirm if this card will be an equal replacement in terms of graphical power to the 512MB 8800GT or maybe even an improvement. He doesn't want to take a step backwards.

It's the same GPU.

 

[brain_stew]

Really need help on this ASAP as I need to make the order if it's what we need. As I mentioned before my bros 512MB 8800GT fried and he wants me to order a replacement. I'm looking at this 1GB 9800GT from TigerDirect:

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=4902101&CatId=3669

It's compatible with his weaker power supply so we're good there. But I just need to confirm if this card will be an equal replacement in terms of graphical power to the 512MB 8800GT or maybe even an improvement. He doesn't want to take a step backwards.

Get him a 5670:

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5642516&CatId=3670

Cheaper, significantly lower power draw and DX11 compliant. Performance is within 5-10%.

The extra RAM doesn't make much difference on cards at this level, they haven't really got the power to use it.

 

[BravoSuperStar]

Get him a 5670:

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5642516&CatId=3670

Cheaper, significantly lower power draw and DX11 compliant. Performance is within 5-10%.

this is a much better solution.

 

[AZ Greg]

Thanks for the replies guys. I knew I had read about the 9800GT being the same as the 8800GT and when combined with the higher video ram I figured at the worst it should be slightly better.

Honestly it seems like a waste of $110 to me if the only reason you're getting such an outdated card is to avoid having to upgrade the power supply.

It would actually involve a little more than just upgrading the power supply. His computer is a Dell Vostro 400 which is a smaller case and isn't really designed for gaming and continuous upgrades. Fortunately for him the computer was equipped enough for an 8800GT which has served all his needs (He's playing on an old CRT monitor at like 1024x768 lol). So going the upgrade route with his current parts wouldn't really be worth it. He's actually planning on buying the parts and building a more current one later this year and was just going to ride it with what he has for now. He wasn't anticipating his card burning out and having to buy a new one.

brain_stew: Interesting. I was checking out some other cards that would be an improvement for around the same price but I don't know enough to confidently make any recommendations to him. The only thing I'm worried about with the card you suggested is its thickness. Looks like it would fit fine though. Would there be any compatibility issues with the computer coming from the factory with an Nvidia card and that card being an ATI? Also, the processor is an E8400 and the PSU is 350W if any of that helps.

Thanks again guys, I really appreciate all the help.

 

[brain_stew]

Sapphire HD 5850 1GB GDDR5 - £255.16
Intel Core i7 860 2.8GHz Socket LGA 1156 8MB L3 Cache Retail Boxed Processor - £221.06
Samsung HD103SJ Spinpoint F3 1TB Hard Drive SATAII 7200rpm 32MB Cache - £64.00
Gigabyte GA-P55M-UD2 iP55 Socket 1156 8 channel audio mATX Motherboard - £82.02
Kingston 4GB (2x2GB) DDR3 1600MHz/PC3-12800 HyperX Memory Kit CL9 - £100.06
Antec 1200 Full Tower Case + Antec CP 850W Modular PSU - "Exclusive Special Offer Bundle" - £156.51
Samsung SH-S223 22X DVD±RW/RAM/DL Serial ATA Black Bare Drive - £14.04
Total - £922.70
Anything I should change?

Where are you ordering from? I'd recommend Novatech.co.uk and ebuyer.com

You can get a 5850 for £233 with free delivery from here:

http://www.novatech.co.uk/novatech/prods/Components/Graphics-ATI/ATIHD5800Series/nov-5850.html

Get a full sized ATX motherboard, no reason to restrict your upgrade options by getting an m-ATX board.

An 850w PSU is major overkill though that is a pretty good deal, be aware even a 500w unit from a similar brand will suit you just fine. That case is huge, just fyi.

Get this RAM, its cheaper and better:

http://www.novatech.co.uk/novatech/...DR3-PC3-12800/1600MHz/F3-12800CL9D-4GBRL.html

 

[brain_stew]

Thanks for the replies guys. I knew I had read about the 9800GT being the same as the 8800GT and when combined with the higher video ram I figured at the worst it should be slightly better.



It would actually involve a little more than just upgrading the power supply. His computer is a Dell Vostro 400 which is a smaller case and isn't really designed for gaming and continuous upgrades. Fortunately for him the computer was equipped enough for an 8800GT which has served all his needs (He's playing on an old CRT monitor at like 1024x768 lol). So going the upgrade route with his current parts wouldn't really be worth it. He's actually planning on buying the parts and building a more current one later this year and was just going to ride it with what he has for now. He wasn't anticipating his card burning out and having to buy a new one.

brain_stew: Interesting. I was checking out some other cards that would be an improvement for around the same price but I don't know enough to confidently make any recommendations to him. The only thing I'm worried about with the card you suggested is its thickness. Looks like it would fit fine though. Would there be any compatibility issues with the computer coming from the factory with an Nvidia card and that card being an ATI? Also, the processor is an E8400 and the PSU is 350W if any of that helps.

Thanks again guys, I really appreciate all the help.

It'll be fine, just uninstall the Nvidia drivers then run a driver cleaning program then you should be good to go. Its not a very large card, should fit just fine. He might as well reduce his power draw (and thus burden on his PSU), get triple monitor support, DX11 support and HDMI audio out of this "upgrade", seems a better option tha basically buying the same card again, and plus, its cheaper, which is always a bonus.

If you want to give him a performance boost there's an XFX (which means double lifetime warranty cover) 5770 on there for $120 which is a decent option, it'll draw less power thn his old 8800GT but be around a ~20% performance upgrade. Depends onw hat your priorities are really.


Edit:

Or just pick up a second hand 8800GT, there's a flood on Ebay for super cheap. The 9800GT is literally the same card just rebadged.

 

[Baker]

Thanks for the PSU help guys. I'm still waiting around for UPS to show up with my vid card, hdd, and battery back-up.

Amazon sent me the APC 900 I ordered over the weekend but nowhere on the product description did it say it was only 540w. They let me return it and I got a Cyberpower 810w for around the same price.

Yet another question: Do they make extenders for the 8pin power connector? I'm pretty sure the PSU cord isn't long enough to hide in the cable management compartment and still reach the mobo. Yet another "glitch" with having the PSU on the bottom I guess.

 

[combinekidd]

I'm getting a new PC soon and I'm undecided on whether I should get a HD 4870 or 5770. From what I've read the 4870 is a weeny bit more powerful and can play games at an increased FPS, but the difference isn't very much. However the 5770 has DX 11, but is that worth it? They're both about the same price, so which one should I get, or should I save up and buy a better card?

 

[Shambles]

Thanks for the replies guys. I knew I had read about the 9800GT being the same as the 8800GT and when combined with the higher video ram I figured at the worst it should be slightly better.



It would actually involve a little more than just upgrading the power supply. His computer is a Dell Vostro 400 which is a smaller case and isn't really designed for gaming and continuous upgrades. Fortunately for him the computer was equipped enough for an 8800GT which has served all his needs (He's playing on an old CRT monitor at like 1024x768 lol). So going the upgrade route with his current parts wouldn't really be worth it. He's actually planning on buying the parts and building a more current one later this year and was just going to ride it with what he has for now. He wasn't anticipating his card burning out and having to buy a new one.

brain_stew: Interesting. I was checking out some other cards that would be an improvement for around the same price but I don't know enough to confidently make any recommendations to him. The only thing I'm worried about with the card you suggested is its thickness. Looks like it would fit fine though. Would there be any compatibility issues with the computer coming from the factory with an Nvidia card and that card being an ATI? Also, the processor is an E8400 and the PSU is 350W if any of that helps.

Thanks again guys, I really appreciate all the help.

A 5670 would be a bit of a downgrade from a 8800GT. It wouldn't be huge but it is definite. It does have a much lower power draw though

 

[GamePnoy74]

Which motherboard should I go with?

GIGABYTE GA-P55A-UD4P Or ASUS P7P55D-E?

I'm planing to pick up the ASUS P7P55D-E (regular version, not the 'Pro' model above) when I build my system soon. These newer '-E' boards use the LOTES socket too from what I hear.

 

[brain_stew]

A 5670 would be a bit of a downgrade from a 8800GT. It wouldn't be huge but it is definite. It does have a much lower power draw though

Its only like 5% or something. He'd never notice it. If a game uses DX10.1 or DX11 it should perform much better on it though, throughbetter support for compute shaders and more efficient AA modes.

 

[AZ Greg]

It'll be fine, just uninstall the Nvidia drivers then run a driver cleaning program then you should be good to go. Its not a very large card, should fit just fine. He might as well reduce his power draw (and thus burden on his PSU), get triple monitor support, DX11 support and HDMI audio out of this "upgrade", seems a better option tha basically buying the same card again, and plus, its cheaper, which is always a bonus.

If you want to give him a performance boost there's an XFX (which means double lifetime warranty cover) 5770 on there for $120 which is a decent option, it'll draw less power thn his old 8800GT but be around a ~20% performance upgrade. Depends onw hat your priorities are really.


Edit:

Or just pick up a second hand 8800GT, there's a flood on Ebay for super cheap. The 9800GT is literally the same card just rebadged.

Thanks again. Think he's gonna go with the 5670. Small improvement in terms of features plus cheaper sounds good to him. Doesn't really want to go second hand and doesn't really want to buy too much of an upgrade considering he's gonna build a PC from scratch later on and his current monitor wouldn't really allow him to see any improvements.

I do need one more bit of help from you guys and it involves the removing of the old drivers. I had figured that would need to be done and would take care of it when the card came. As I originally mentioned his computer started getting artifacts on start and games were crashing and he was getting video driver error messages. However, the computer still functioned fine otherwise. Well a couple of days ago he was trying older drivers and some other things just to see if that might have been the problem. Well his computer crashed and at this point it won't even boot up anymore. Could something else have gone wrong? Or is this what happens when the video card completely goes? If it is just the video card then how do I go about removing the old drivers before installing the new card if it won't even boot up? If there is anything I can do on my end to help someone diagnose the problem then let me know and I'll do what I can.

Sorry for all the questions. Thanks!

 

[brain_stew]

I'm getting a new PC soon and I'm undecided on whether I should get a HD 4870 or 5770. From what I've read the 4870 is a weeny bit more powerful and can play games at an increased FPS, but the difference isn't very much. However the 5770 has DX 11, but is that worth it? They're both about the same price, so which one should I get, or should I save up and buy a better card?

5770 is the only answer.

 

[BravoSuperStar]

Thanks again. Think he's gonna go with the 5670. Small improvement plus cheaper sounds good to him. Doesn't really want to go second hand and doesn't really want to buy too much of an upgrade considering he's gonna build a PC from scratch later on and his current monitor wouldn't really allow him to see any improvements.

I do need one more bit of help from you guys and it involves the removing of the old drivers. I had figured that would need to be done and would take care of it when the card came. As I originally mentioned his computer started getting artifacts on start and games were crashing and he was getting video driver error messages. However, the computer still functioned fine otherwise. Well a couple of days ago he was trying older drivers and some other things just to see if that might have been the problem. Well his computer crashed and at this point it won't even boot up anymore. Could something else have gone wrong? Or is this what happens when the video card completely goes? If it is just the video card then how do I go about removing the old drivers before installing the new card if it won't even boot up? If there is anything I can do on my end to help someone diagnose the problem then let me know and I'll do what I can.

Sorry for all the questions. Thanks!

When you say it wont boot, do you mean nothing comes on the screen, or the computer will not turn on? Do you hear fans running, HDD access noise? Anything to indicate the computer is booting, just no video? If you cannot get into windows until the new card arrives you can install the new card, then boot into safe mode and remove the drivers. That should work. To be honest it sounds like that PC is on it's last leg...

 

[readleeb]

Yet another question: Do they make extenders for the 8pin power connector? I'm pretty sure the PSU cord isn't long enough to hide in the cable management compartment and still reach the mobo. Yet another "glitch" with having the PSU on the bottom I guess.

Yea

I had to get one for the same reasons except I have the full tower version of your case and, as it was without the extension, it could barely even reach the connector on the mobo what with the GFX card in the way and all

 

[brain_stew]

Thanks again. Think he's gonna go with the 5670. Small improvement plus cheaper sounds good to him. Doesn't really want to go second hand and doesn't really want to buy too much of an upgrade considering he's gonna build a PC from scratch later on and his current monitor wouldn't really allow him to see any improvements.

I do need one more bit of help from you guys and it involves the removing of the old drivers. I had figured that would need to be done and would take care of it when the card came. As I originally mentioned his computer started getting artifacts on start and games were crashing and he was getting video driver error messages. However, the computer still functioned fine otherwise. Well a couple of days ago he was trying older drivers and some other things just to see if that might have been the problem. Well his computer crashed and at this point it won't even boot up anymore. Could something else have gone wrong? Or is this what happens when the video card completely goes? If it is just the video card then how do I go about removing the old drivers before installing the new card if it won't even boot up? If there is anything I can do on my end to help someone diagnose the problem then let me know and I'll do what I can.

Sorry for all the questions. Thanks!

Definitely sounds like GPU just finally went kaput, but you can never be sure until you test ofcourse. Boot into safe mode with the new card first so that you can remove the Nvidia drivers before installing ATI's.

Make sure you run Driver Cleaner once you get into Windows proper to get rid of any remanats of the old Nvidia drivers.

 

[TouchMyBox]

edit: nvm, posting while tired, etc.

 

[vermadas]

So I know this thread is focused mostly on gaming PCs, but I'm hoping to get some advice on a home server build; specifically some HDD recommendations. I've been wanting to do this for a while, and it looks like I might be able to finally get the funds for it. Right now, I'm thinking that two HDDs with 1 TB each should be sufficient. I see deals every now and then for the Western Digital Green drives and it sounded like a great way to go for storage. I took a look on Newegg and there have been several negative reviews on them recently and they've had a seemingly much higher than normal DoA/failure rate.

So I guess I'm looking for the best alternative. With a home server box I put higher priority on reliability / low heat / low power over speed. What do you guys think?

 

[AZ Greg]

When you say it wont boot, do you mean nothing comes on the screen, or the computer will not turn on? Do you hear fans running, HDD access noise? Anything to indicate the computer is booting, just no video? If you cannot get into windows until the new card arrives you can install the new card, then boot into safe mode and remove the drivers. That should work. To be honest it sounds like that PC is on it's last leg...

Just went and tested it. Upon hitting the power switch it makes all the normal noises. You can hear the fan start up, it makes the same normal beep it always made, etc... It locks up on the Dell start up screen that tells you the Bios revision number, hit F12 for boot menu, etc... It just doesn't go beyond that screen (It is humming along as if it were running properly, however). And that screen does have a bunch of blue and white dot artifacts. I'm hoping that's enough to indicate it is just the video card. Let me know what you guys think!

 

[Great King Bowser]

Sister says she wants a new PC. Can anyone help me out with the best config for around £450? The PC I built for myself in the summer was the one recommended in the old $500 thread, so I'm not too familiar with choosing what works best together myself. :lol

 

[Blizzard]

So apparently there are issues with the Antec 900 and front headphone jack intergerence and I cant find any solutions that dont involved snipping off ground connections and praying.

That means the idea to use my headphones and a clip on mic for communication during online gaming is gone. Does anyone have any suggestions for a good USB headset?

Someone else?! I think I might have an Antec something, maybe 300? And I had just posted about that a page or two ago. The back output seems to work fine with headphones, so I basically just need headphones with a longer cord. Is there not a mic jack on the back as well? Or is there only an input jack that doesn't work with a normal mic? I have a headphone and mic both plugged into the front right now, and just get the occasional headphone noise.

 

[Nabs]

you can get a wire that will serve as an extender. i have one from radio shack that i used w/ my last antec.... and my current one. same issue as you guys. i just use the back output.

 

[Baker]

What up people, I'm partaking in my virgin post on my new desktop! Thanks again for all your help.

Some comments from putting this thing together:

1) Bottom mounted PSU's suck. I'm sure they make ones that are made for that position, but mine sure wasn't. The SATA chain was essentially backwards and I have couple power cables that definitely need extenders.

2) 5850's are huge. I had to move my hdd because I couldn't plug the power cables into it.

3) This Antec 902 case is phenomenal. Blue LED fans, hidden cable management area, etc.) It did get a little cramped towards the end, but if it was any bigger, some of my power cables wouldn't have reached their destinations.

4) The computer ran on my first try, so that was cool. The only mistakes I made were installing the mobo shield upside-down (icons fault), the aforementioned vid card vs. hdd, and one of the fans didn't work because I had some spare power cables that accidentally got caught in it. It's all great now.

Now it is time to try Crysis, woohoo. One final question... I was supposed to plug both PSU PCI-e cables into the 5850 right? The PSU had two separate 4-pins but the card had 8.

 

[Hazaro]

I think we need a template added to the top of the OP.

Something like:

Budget/Location: ($500, $800, $1,200...)
PC Main Use(s): (Gaming (Light Gaming), Video editing, Web browsing...)
Monitor Resolution: (1280x1024, 1680x1050 ,1920x1080...)
Other Concerns: (Case size (ATX, mATX [Limited in part selection]), Low power [Limited again], Silent [Can get expensive, Limited]...)
List SPECIFIC games that you MUST be able to play: (Starcraft II, Diablo III, Oblivion IV, Arma II, Crysis...)

If you need to add anything to that just do so. Every time someone asks for help they don't tell us everything and we waste posts.

 

[Hazaro]

Now it is time to try Crysis, woohoo. One final question... I was supposed to plug both PSU PCI-e cables into the 5850 right? The PSU had two separate 4-pins but the card had 8.

Yes.

The separate 4 pins are for motherboard power (2x2) unless you mean molex (4x1)?
Be sure to install Mster or HP 1.3.1 Very High config.

 

[TheExodu5]

Well I just took a plunge into snake oil territory and ordered myself a Killer Xeno Pro.

My onboard ethernet has been problematic due to some motherboard issue that prevents me from shutting down my PC without a complete power down, and the Killer Xeno Pro is cheap enough for me to give it a shot (about 2x the price of a regular NIC). I'm hoping it can stay on when my computer is off (not sure if that's possible with a PCI-E component) so that I don't need to wait for my IP address to be assigned when I boot my PC. Now that I have an SSD, having my IP assigned is the longest part of my boot process. Whatever, let's see if it's any decent.

The idea behind it isn't completely bogus (speaking as a computer engineer), so I'll give it the benefit of the doubt.