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[Tommie Hu$tle]

It looks like you have two cases, two mother boards and two cpus? Building two PCs? You also don't have the Eyefinity 6 5870 to run your games or 4 monitors :lol

Weird I'm not seeing the same thing you are.
I have two DVD burners so not worried about that. I'm going to take pieces from one machine and put them in the new box.

  Qty. Product Description Savings Total Price


Antec Nine Hundred Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
Item #: N82E16811129021
Return Policy: Limited Replacement Only Return Policy
-$40.00 Instant
$139.99
$99.99


Western Digital Caviar Green WD20EADS 2TB SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Item #: N82E16822136344
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
$149.99


ASUS 5870 EYEFINITY 6/6S/2GD5 Radeon HD 5870 (Cypress XT) 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.1 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support ... - Retail
Item #: N82E16814121371
Return Policy: VGA Standard Return Policy
$549.99


ASUS Xonar DX 7.1 Channels PCI Express x1 Interface Sound Card - Retail
Item #: N82E16829132006
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
$89.99


CORSAIR CMPSU-750HX 750W ATX12V 2.3 / EPS12V 2.91 SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS SILVER Certified Modular Active PFC Power ... - Retail
Item #: N82E16817139010
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
-$20.00 Instant
$10.00 Mail-in Rebate Card
$169.99
$149.99


Tuniq TX-2 Cooling Thermal Compound - Retail
Item #: N82E16835154003
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
-$2.00 Instant
$6.99
$4.99


OCZ Gold 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Voltage Desktop Memory Model OCZ3G1600LV6GK - Retail
Item #: N82E16820227365
Return Policy: Memory Standard Return Policy
-$5.00 Instant
$20.00 Mail-in Rebate Card
$371.98
$361.98
($180.99 each)


GIGABYTE GA-X58A-UD3R LGA 1366 Intel X58 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
Item #: N82E16813128423
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
$209.99


Intel Core i7-930 Bloomfield 2.8GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Model BX80601930 - Retail
Item #: N82E16819115225
Return Policy: CPU Replacement Only Return Policy
$294.99
1

UBISOFT Assassin’s Creed II – PC Digital Download, Gift with Intel Purchase - Retail
Item #: N82E16800992041
Return Policy: Limited Replacement Only Return Policy
-$59.99 Saving
$59.99
$0.00


VIZO VIZO-NBC-101-CPR Copper Sleet Chipset Cooler - Retail
Item #: N82E16835425007
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
$13.99


IPCQUEEN IPC-12025 120mm Case Fan - Retail
Item #: N82E16835168006
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
$3.99


CORSAIR Cooling Hydro Series CWCH50-1 120mm High Performance CPU Cooler - Retail
Item #: N82E16835181010
Return Policy: Standard Return Policy
Protect Your Investment (expand for options)


Grand Total: $2,211.34

I already have the four monitors already so no need to upgrade those.

 

[Kintaro]

I am very pissed off.

To catch up, the mobo I had was bad and supposedly was eating power supplies. So, I get it RMAed and a new one sent back. I get it put in and the PC works fine for 14 hours straight. I turn it off for the night ro go to bed. I wake up, turn on the PC and...nothing. It's dead again. No response. Nothing. Friend said it was outlet, but I've had this PC hooked up to that spot for years without a problem before I upgraded.

I'm at my wits end. It's highly unlikely that I was sent is bad. It is not grounded out. The power supply? I don't know. I'm incredibility frustrated and I'm ready to just call it a loss and forget PC gaming for a long time. What was a simple $250 upgrade has turned into close to $500 real quick and I'm sick of it.

Any ideas?

 

[vocab]

I am very pissed off.



Any ideas?

What kind of PSU you dealing with?

 

[Kintaro]

What kind of PSU you dealing with?

A Zumax Power Supply 700 watts. Had to pick it up since my old power supply didn't work anymore for this mobo.

 

[Jin34]

Yeah temp is a bit of a worry... my current Intel Core 2 Duo 1.86 can easily reach 63C under heavy load when temp is high here.

The mobo price is 119.99 and the memory is around 100, maybe a tad bit more. By the way, I am buying from NewEgg :lol Raping me with the shipping but I can't find a better alternative. If you group it all in one purchase it comes out cheaper, but man do they hit us hard here =/

Well when I bought my sticks it was about $15-20 cheaper but that was just before mem prices ballooned. My mobo is the Msi 770-C45 and I got the same processor (the 955), but I got it over the summer when they had this amazing deal where with the combo price the mobo cost just $15, and the mobo had $15 rebate so I got it for free. The X4 955 was $210-215 back then so I think you can save some on the mobo if you have no intentions of Crossfire/SLi.

And yup we have to buy everything in bulk, so we usually cant take advantage of sweet deals. If only amazon shipped PC components here, I just don't get some of these dumbass restrictions, you can't even buy digital codes like points!

 

[Minsc]

Weird I'm not seeing the same thing you are.
I have two DVD burners so not worried about that. I'm going to take pieces from one machine and put them in the new box.



I already have the four monitors already so no need to upgrade those.

I can't vouch for compatibility or anything, but all the parts seem in the ballpark, except for the WD Cavair Green. In the build I linked, they were used as storage drives. They're slow, and not good for a system drive, you're much better off getting a 1TB Samsung Spinpoint F3 for like $70 less.

 

[Cheeto]

Got the SSD in my netbook, cloned and it's good to go... amazing. Boot time is ridiculous fast now, something around 10-15 seconds from bios to xfce4.

 

[Pctx]

Got the SSD in my netbook, cloned and it's good to go... amazing. Boot time is ridiculous fast now, something around 10-15 seconds from bios to xfce4.

*Thumbs up* Glad to hear that Cheeto... makes me want to put an SSD in my netbook too! :lol

So--- in light of looking for the perfect netbook/laptop/desktop--- I think I'm about ready to say F'it and build myself another desktop.

In looking around, this has to be the most balanced machine not hurting in performance or options and gives me a lot of wiggle room in adding more later on.

Here's the list:

Having had a Core i7 920 rig built sometime last year... I quickly realized, it was overkill for what I was going to be doing. in looking at the Core iX series that Intel has now put out... I realized just how big of a bumble-f*** the chip business is these days. In reading the difference between the i3-530 and the i5-750, the pro's vs. con's of what I'd be doing, I saw no point in paying more than $120 bucks for a chip that would squeeze out a few extra frames here or there and there was no added benefit to me having a "turbo" button on a chip that in theory, I don't need. (based of the various musings of websites.)

That said-- I've tried to strike a balance between form and function. The i3 w/ 2 cores + HT really is all I'm going to need to game on fine and do photo editing and such, and the 5770 really looks like the best GPU on the market for the value (as it's simply an upgraded 4850) in terms of what you're getting.

Gaming wise, I'll be doing that on a Dell ST2410 @ 1920*1080 of which the 1GB 5770 should do fine at. I would expect to have less AA on some titles, but that's to be expected.

The other components aside, I don't think anything is really lacking all that much. (but that's open for your opinion! )

One thing that you might ask is "why the micro ATX board?" It's weird... if you go out and look at a mATX board in a ATX tower... Dunno, something just sexy about it.... call it a fetish or whatnot but I'm going for as least amount of junk in the box as possible this go round.

That said--- ask away or critique my build. For those wondering what I used to have....
Core i7 920 @ 3.93GHz (OC'ed of course)
Gigabyte X58 UD4P
3x1GB Corsair Dominator 1600
eVGA GTX 285 1GB DDR3
WD 640GB 7200.11 (dev0) | WD 750GB 7200.10 (dev1)
DVD Burner

 

[brain_stew]

I'm going to pick up a samsung Spinpoint f3 hdd to replace my 5+ year old barracuda. Does the 32mb vs 16mb cache make a difference at all for responsiveness or gaming?

Cache isn't very important, its platter density that really matters. Pick up a 500GB per platter drive (like a 1TB Samsung F3) and you're golden.

 

[snack]

I'm buying the following rig from my brother. I'm giving him my old computer (X3 720, DDR2, 4850) and $460 in cash. His computer's specs are as follows:

CPU: P4 955 BE
MOBO: MSI 790FX-GD70
RAM: G. SKILL DDR3 F3-12800CL7D
CASE: HAL 922 COOLERMASTER
PSU: TX 750
GPU: XFX 5770 1GB

How "fair" is this trade?

Comments? Thanks.

 

[Fitz]

So long as the parts are all in decent condition, that's a pretty good deal for you. For the CPU, you're talking about the Phenom II X4 955 BE right?

 

[demolitio]

Can anyone point me to a nice, cheap cooler for my 4850? It runs reeeeaaaallllly hot with the fan up. The cheaper the better.

Can anyone answer this before I go to the store today? It'd be a lot better to get it online, but I have no clue what I'm doing so a little help from Microcenter might be bad if not more expensive.

 

[drhankmccoyphd]

Gonna ask this one more time, but I assume it doesn't really matter. Will the 32mb/16mb cache on a spinpoint f3 make any difference at all?

 

[Cheeto]

Can anyone answer this before I go to the store today? It'd be a lot better to get it online, but I have no clue what I'm doing so a little help from Microcenter might be bad if not more expensive.

Zalman coolers are generally a good bet. This one is pretty good, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118001

 

[jufonuk]

Hi Gaf:

my specs would be

Budget: (£350-£500)
Main Use(s): (Gaming,Video Editing)
Monitor Resolution: not too fussed
List SPECIFIC games that you MUST be able to play: (L4D2 & MW2)

 

[causan]

Quick question. Just upgraded from 8800gt 512mb to a SAPPHIRE Vapor-X Radeon HD 5770 1GB and really happy with the performance. I decided to use my old 8800gt as a dedicated phys-x card and it seems to run pretty well but the heat it generates raises the temps of my 5770 by 10-15c. My current temp levels is 40c idle and 68c full load. Do these levels seem safe to keep running these current setup?

 

[demolitio]

Zalman coolers are generally a good bet. This one is pretty good, http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118001

Thank you kind sir. Went on Amazon and got it 8 bucks cheaper with free 2 day shipping so I'm really happy. I hope it's an easy install for a computer illiterate man like myself. :lol

 

[Minsc]

Quick question. Just upgraded from 8800gt 512mb to a SAPPHIRE Vapor-X Radeon HD 5770 1GB and really happy with the performance. I decided to use my old 8800gt as a dedicated phys-x card and it seems to run pretty well but the heat it generates raises the temps of my 5770 by 10-15c. My current temp levels is 40c idle and 68c full load. Do these levels seem safe to keep running these current setup?

Take a look at the charts here, you'll be quite happy about your "hot" temps.

Spoiler

Your hot 5770 is still 10C cooler than a normal one!

 

[GHG]

Hi Gaf:

my specs would be

Budget: (£350-£500)
Main Use(s): (Gaming,Video Editing)
Monitor Resolution: not too fussed
List SPECIFIC games that you MUST be able to play: (L4D2 & MW2)

Have you got a monitor already or are you factoring that into your budget?

 

[BuddhaRockstar]

Thank you kind sir. Went on Amazon and got it 8 bucks cheaper with free 2 day shipping so I'm really happy. I hope it's an easy install for a computer illiterate man like myself. :lol

Ordered that exact cooler for my 4850 awhile ago. Installation is very straightforward, and my only issue was getting the old cooler off since it was stuck on there pretty tight with thermal tape. Lowered my temps from like 47C idle/over 100C load to 38C idle and 60C load. Extremely quiet at 100% speed too.

 

[Spy]

Updated the OP with the March 2010 System Guide thanks to Hazaro!

 

[Interfectum]

I have a Radeon HD 4890 and when I play games the temp gets up to about 76C which seems decent but the problem is the card fan is LOUD.

Does anyone have any suggestions as to what I need to do to silence / cool my graphics card or PC down a little?

Edit: it also could be my processor cooling fan ( AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor )

 

[Moobabe]

After saving for ages I'm ready to jump in but I don't have any idea about pcs or building them :| So I figured this is the best place to ask

Budget: About £650 (at a push 700)
Main Use: Gaming
Monitor Resolution: Need a new one, but it's not factored into the budget.
List SPECIFIC games that you MUST be able to play: The Witcher 2/Final Fantasy XIV/Bad Company 2

 

[UrbanRats]

Quick question. Just upgraded from 8800gt 512mb to a SAPPHIRE Vapor-X Radeon HD 5770 1GB and really happy with the performance. I decided to use my old 8800gt as a dedicated phys-x card and it seems to run pretty well but the heat it generates raises the temps of my 5770 by 10-15c. My current temp levels is 40c idle and 68c full load. Do these levels seem safe to keep running these current setup?

Damn, i didn't think about this when i brought my 5850!
I should've got the Toxic(vapor X) version

 

[causan]

Take a look at the charts here, you'll be quite happy about your "hot" temps.

Spoiler

Your hot 5770 is still 10C cooler than a normal one!

Wow. Looks like the Vapor-X is really doing its job. Thanks for the link.

Just need to save up for another 5770 now to crossfire and i think ill be set for awhile.

 

[gregor7777]

ATi GPU Scaling question:

I want to hook up two monitors. My PC monitor (DVI:1680x1050) and my TV (HDMI:1080p). Can I set the TV to run at a lower 16:9 resolution and use GPU scaling to upscale it?

My GPU isn't powerful enough to push 1080p on high in most games, and the TV's scaler is shit.

I mention the PC monitor in case there is some quirkyness with dual monitors and GPU scaling.

TIA

 

[Oreoleo]

ATi GPU Scaling question:

I want to hook up two monitors. My PC monitor (DVI:1680x1050) and my TV (HDMI:1080p). Can I set the TV to run at a lower 16:9 resolution and use GPU scaling to upscale it?

My GPU isn't powerful enough to push 1080p on high in most games, and the TV's scaler is shit.

I mention the PC monitor in case there is some quirkyness with dual monitors and GPU scaling.

TIA

^ I don't see why not.

 

[Shambles]

^ I don't see why not.

It will still looked like stretched shit unless you go all the way down to 960x540 and then it'll look like like a low resolution picture

Spoiler

You'll still have better looking games than most consoles titles though

 

[gregor7777]

It will still looked like stretched shit unless you go all the way down to 960x540 and then it'll look like like a low resolution picture

Spoiler

You'll still have better looking games than most consoles titles though

Why will it looked stretched?

If you choose a 16:9 res and have the GPU scale it up it's exactly the same thing your 1080p TV does when displaying a 720p source. The only difference is, the GPU is doing the scaling instead of the TV.

 

[Dead Prince]

if a monitor has VGA, DVI, and HDMI input and i have the wire and card for it. which input would be best? and can I just buy a HDTV that has HDMI if it's good? i'm in the market for one. preferably cheap. I have cash so i am going to stop at best buy. Need a new monitor and can't wait for newegg :lol.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Acer+-+...lack/9183224.p?skuId=9183224&id=1218049006792

 

[Lkr]

im looking to upgrade my video card but when do you think the hd5800 series will come down in price? too expensive because I want a new monitor as well.

 

[Minsc]

im looking to upgrade my video card but when do you think the hd5800 series will come down in price? too expensive because I want a new monitor as well.

No time soon, prices are still ~10% over MSRP. Deals can still be found, but I doubt you'll see a 5870 for less than $300 this year, but you can get it pretty close with free game bundles, it's been as low as $380 w/ a free game. A GTX 470 can be had for ~$350 barring any price increases once it starts shipping (no free game), so that's a little cheaper, if you want to go for that instead.

Just buy the monitor now, and the 3D card in a couple months, split up the expense.

 

[Wag]

Link

My new monitor arrived today. Simply beautiful. I highly recommend it.

 

[Amir0x]

Link

My new monitor arrived today. Simply beautiful. I highly recommend it.

Damn that's rad. 1000 dollars...maybe in the future.

 

[123rl]

ATi GPU Scaling question:

I want to hook up two monitors. My PC monitor (DVI:1680x1050) and my TV (HDMI:1080p). Can I set the TV to run at a lower 16:9 resolution and use GPU scaling to upscale it?

My GPU isn't powerful enough to push 1080p on high in most games, and the TV's scaler is shit.

I mention the PC monitor in case there is some quirkyness with dual monitors and GPU scaling.

TIA

I had a similar issue with my projector. Does your TV accept a 1600x900 signal over HDMI? That's what I ended up using as it looked comparable to 1080p and was a 16:9 signal so it didn't have to be scaled to fit my screen

 

[Minsc]

Damn that's rad. 1000 dollars...maybe in the future.

It's Dell though, meaning with the right coupons you can probably get it for around $600 a couple times throughout the year. :lol

Very nice monitor, I'm partial towards 1080/1200p myself, they need less GPU power to hit 60fps!

 

[IMACOMPUTA]

Quick question;
What's better? A 5770 or an an nvidia gts250?
DX11 doesnt matter, just in raw power which one is better?
My friend has ~$150 to spend on a video card.

 

[Wag]

Quick question;
What's better? A 5770 or an an nvidia gts250?
DX11 doesnt matter, just in raw power which one is better?
My friend has ~$150 to spend on a video card.

5770 by far.

 

[dankir]

I'm looking for a Laptop that could play Crysis 1 and 2 fairly easily lol

Would the Alienware M11x ( fully loaded ) be able to pull that off? Anybody have any other good gaming laptops in mind or some configuration I could look into ?

Thanks

 

[Shambles]

Why will it looked stretched?

If you choose a 16:9 res and have the GPU scale it up it's exactly the same thing your 1080p TV does when displaying a 720p source. The only difference is, the GPU is doing the scaling instead of the TV.

While it won't look as bad as stretching between aspect ratio's you're still trying to stretch each pixel into 1.5 pixels horizontally and 1.5 pixels vertically. While some filter do these better than others you're still left with distortion. For example a 960x540 picture stretched to 1920x1080 gives you a perfect 2:1 stretch that preserves proportions. Each pixel now becomes 2x2 pixels of the exact same colour.

You might not even notice/care about the minor distortion from 720P to 1080P, it's one of those things that bugs some people but not others. Perhaps saying it will look like stretched shit was a hyperbole. It just looks like stretched stretchy-ness.

 

[snack]

MSI 790FX-GD70 motherboard. Sometimes when I bootup my computer, my mouse and/or keyboard will not be responsive forcing me to reconnect them in their USB slots. I'd say I would have to reconnect my mouse/keyboard once every 10 startups. Both are USBs. Could the problem be because of a bad connection job when I first hooked up all the wires on the motherboard and stuff? Thanks.

 

[x3sphere]

Damn that's rad. 1000 dollars...maybe in the future.

That's a great monitor but I got my 30" 3008WFP for $800. 2560x1600 resolution. Wouldn't pay $1k for a 27". But like Minsc said there will likely be deals that knock down the price even further. Dell usually goes crazy on coupons.

 

[UrbanRats]

Damn that's rad. 1000 dollars...maybe in the future.

There's always the U2410, wich is less than 500$, if you look around a bit.

 

[JayDubya]

Alright, didn't get much (any?) help last time, but I was kind of rambly, so this'll be succinct.



Budget: $750

Main Use: Gaming - both video and online tabletop

Monitor Resolution: 1440x900; 720p - Can't afford a better one right now and the computer.


List SPECIFIC games that you MUST be able to play:

Diablo III, SC II, Civ V. Maybe The Old Republic.


Where to start?

This place not too far from work has an i7-930 for $200. The trouble is, it seems there's only one compatible mobo, and it is expensive as all get out, too, cheapest at Amazon for $225. There went my budget if I go that route - $300 left for a case, power supply, graphics card, and everything else I need. D'oh!

To add insult to injury, they will happily sell you an i5-750... for $190. :lol

Too bad I didn't have the cash in hand yet when I made the last post, or that i5-750 + Mobo bundle from Fry's would have been the way to go.


Of course, that's just Intel; I don't mind trying an AMD either.


I need some general advice, and I'm hoping to start buying by the end of next week... unless the general advice is to wait as long as it takes for a good bundle sale. I'll buy from different places, where ever I can get the cheapest deal, to get the best bang for my buck. But I'm ready to get started.


Other:

* Smaller hard drives are fine; I just want a fast HD.

* I can get my OS for cheap; software not included in budget.

* The wife wants to switch the house to wireless, too; not really included in budget, but yeah.

 

[brain_stew]

if a monitor has VGA, DVI, and HDMI input and i have the wire and card for it. which input would be best? and can I just buy a HDTV that has HDMI if it's good? i'm in the market for one. preferably cheap. I have cash so i am going to stop at best buy. Need a new monitor and can't wait for newegg :lol.

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/Acer+-+...lack/9183224.p?skuId=9183224&id=1218049006792

You need to make sure the TV is a 1080p panel, supports 1:1 pixel mapping and allows you to turn off the picture processing somehow. Without those features it'll make a real shitty monitor.

 

[rocK`]

Link

My new monitor arrived today. Simply beautiful. I highly recommend it.

ooof, hate to trump you, but coincidentally, I got my new monitor too, and it's the one I've been wanting for two years now.

http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/...etail.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=bsd&cs=04&sku=223-4890

I got that for about $800 new...

 

[Cheeto]

Alright, didn't get much (any?) help last time, but I was kind of rambly, so this'll be succinct.

[snip]

I gave it a whirl,
http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=10738834

Total: $749.92 8 cents under budget

 

[brain_stew]

I gave it a whirl,
http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=10738834

Total: $749.92 8 cents under budget

That motherboard is God awful. Trying to fit in a SSD is a noble idea but personally I reckon you're compromising too much and while he may have said "smaller" HDDs are fine, 80GB is just no where near enough for a modern rig, you'll have to give W7 ~30GB of that at least and your average game install is often 10GB+ these days. Its just not going to work for a primary rig.

 

[Cheeto]

That motherboard is God awful. Trying to fit in a SSD is a noble idea but personally I reckon you're compromising too much and while he may have said "smaller" HDDs are fine, 80GB is just no where near enough for a modern rig, you'll have to give W7 ~30GB of that at least and your average game install is often 10GB+ these days. Its just not going to work for a primary rig.

What is so bad about that motherboard? It seems like it would get the job done, and besides there are others in the ballpark of price.

As for the hard drive, its up to him... me personally, my HTPC doubles as my gaming machine at the moment (until later this week when I build another standard desktop). Its W7 partition is 140gb and I'm only using 50-60gb of it. I generally keep games uninstalled if I'm not constantly playing them(steam makes that real easy). For instance, now I only have 3 big games installed... SupCom2, Starcraft 2 beta, and Team Fortress 2, and then a bunch of smaller indie games...but my steam games list is easily approaching 100 games now. So for me, the 80gb SSD would have been viable.

 

[JayDubya]

Thank you, I will take a look.

My current hard drive is 80 GB, and yeah; it's been kind of frustrating keeping it defragged and empty enough for new things. I was hoping for a little bigger. I'm just saying that I have no plans for this as a big media storage device; if I'm not playing a game, or have no plans to play it within 2 months, I don't mind going to uninstalling / reinstalling it.

Though from what I hear about DD sites like Steam, this process is much simpler nowadays.