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[teh_pwn]

For what it's worth, my AMD 6950 Crossfire has had 0 issues and runs wicked fast. Metro 2033 at max settings @ 1080p at 60 fps. Faster than GTX 580 at the same price. In the case of Metro 2033, 50% faster.

http://www.anandtech.com/show/4061/amds-radeon-hd-6970-radeon-hd-6950/15

All you do is put the cards in the mobo, connect 4 power connectors, and a ribbon between the two GPUs. That's all I had to do. It just works.

 

[EatChildren]

Last call. If nobody has any suggestions or changes, I'll be ordering this in about an hour.

 

[chessnut]

Last call. If nobody has any suggestions or changes, I'll be ordering this in about an hour.

http://www.abload.de/img/stuffnku9.png[img][/QUOTE]

ur buying everything at regular price >.< the 2500k is $180 at micro center, the hx-650 is $105 at newegg (115 w/o rebate), and your ram is $45 at newegg as well.
your build is pretty solid, i plan on getting the same motherboard when the price drops...i'm in no rush

 

[TheExodu5]

Last call. If nobody has any suggestions or changes, I'll be ordering this in about an hour.

What site is that?

ur buying everything at regular price >.< the 2500k is $180 at micro center, the hx-650 is $105 at newegg (115 w/o rebate), and your ram is $45 at newegg as well.
your build is pretty solid, i plan on getting the same motherboard when the price drops...i'm in no rush

Maybe it's Australian.

 

[EatChildren]

ur buying everything at regular price >.< the 2500k is $180 at micro center, the hx-650 is $105 at newegg (115 w/o rebate), and your ram is $45 at newegg as well.
your build is pretty solid, i plan on getting the same motherboard when the price drops...i'm in no rush

I'm not from the US. Those are Australian prices.

What site is that?

PC Case Gear

 

[TheExodu5]

Switch the thermal compound to Arctic MX-4.

edit: wait...that's Matrix...haven't seen reviews on it yet.

edit2: yeah, doesn't seem worth getting over the MX-4.

MX-4 is pretty much a standard at this point. It's roughly equivalent to the MX-3, is one of the easiest pastes to apply, and has zero conductivity. It's also dirt cheap.

I have no idea why Arctic Silver 5 is still on the market. I guess it just has the biggest name out there due to word of mouth, but it's an outdated product at this point.

 

[EatChildren]

Switch the thermal compound to Arctic MX-4.

edit: wait...that's Matrix...haven't seen reviews on it yet.

edit2: yeah, doesn't seem worth getting over the MX-4.

Is the MX-4 really that much better?

I haven't installed a CPU in about 5 years, so Im going to be really fucking rusty.

 

[TheExodu5]

It's not really that much better, no, but it's about the same price. =\

Actually, yeah there's one very good reason to go with the MX-4: it has no curing time. That means it's 100% effective from the get go. Arctic Silver Matrix has a 300 hour curing time.

 

[EatChildren]

It's not really that much better, no, but it's about the same price. =\

Actually, yeah there's one very good reason to go with the MX-4: it has no curing time. That means it's 100% effective from the get go. Arctic Silver Matrix has a 300 hour curing time.

Just saw your edit and saw the MX-4 isn't conductive, so that will be good incase I Really screw something up .

Thanks dude.

 

[TheExodu5]

Yup. It's an awesome paste. The tube is also pretty huge and will last you through several builds (or until it somehow dries up).

 

[nib95]

Switch the thermal compound to Arctic MX-4.

edit: wait...that's Matrix...haven't seen reviews on it yet.

edit2: yeah, doesn't seem worth getting over the MX-4.

MX-4 is pretty much a standard at this point. It's roughly equivalent to the MX-3, is one of the easiest pastes to apply, and has zero conductivity. It's also dirt cheap.

I have no idea why Arctic Silver 5 is still on the market. I guess it just has the biggest name out there due to word of mouth, but it's an outdated product at this point.

I'm confused, if it's on par with MX-3 why are you recommending it? According to the graph many compounds out perform the MX-3?

 

[yodathesoda]

Shot in the dark but if you had approx. $1100 to throw down on a new PC what would you build? I'm buying the IT guy at work a case of beer to put it together.
EDIT: Primarily gaming and dicking around on the internet.

 

[TheExodu5]

I'm confused, if it's on par with MX-3 why are you recommending it? According to the graph many compounds out perform the MX-3?

Most of those are conductive or fairly esoteric.

Even though it's a few degrees from the absolute top dogs, MX-4 makes up for it by having no downsides whatsoever. No conductivity, low price, no curing time, easy to apply, easy to clean, no scratching your CPU (like IC Diamond).

 

[nib95]

Most of those are conductive or fairly esoteric.

I see. Thanks for clearing that up

 

[Stabby McSter]

K so primarily doing all my video editing on a pretty old G5 and was thinking of switching to my PC to work on stuff. I'm used to Final Cut Pro, so uh if anyone could recommend something similar to it, that would be nice. D:

 

[EatChildren]

Aaand it's ordered . Thanks so much guys for the help. I really, really appreciate it, and promise to break the PC in with some HD porn. I'll be jerking to thoughts of you lot.

 

[Hazaro]

Shot in the dark but if you had approx. $1100 to throw down on a new PC what would you build? I'm buying the IT guy at work a case of beer to put it together.
EDIT: Primarily gaming and dicking around on the internet.

See OP.
Substitute the P8P67 PRO for whatever you can find atm Socket 155 (B3)

Also it better be some good beer

 

[Quicksilver4648]

So I am in the process of finalizing the pieces of my first build but I was just thrown a curve ball. I have been planning to get the Corsair TX750 V2 PSU from NewEgg which costs $109 after mailin-rebate and an MSRP of $139.99. However, NewEgg is having a St. Patrick's Day sale with a Thermaltake Black Widow W0319RU 850W with loads of short-term deals bringing it down to $64.49 after mail-in-rebate from the original MSRP of $134.99.

How good is this Thermaltake PSU? Is it a good buy or should I avoid it? The extra 100W compared to the Corsair as well as the much less price has me itching to click the 'Checkout' button. But, since this is my first build I don't want to get crap hardware.

 

[Hazaro]

I would get the Corsair. The extra watts are not going to get you anything extra (if it is even continuous instead of peak).

 

[BloodySinner]

Nice, the Corsair 600t.

That will be my case, once I buy it when I get back from a trip next week.

Post some pics once you're done.

And here they are...

---

RIP Phenom 955. Broke the pins trying to remove it from my old case.

**Seriously. Does anyone know any GOOD & QIET sub-$50 coolers for AM3 boards? This thing is loud.

 

[Shambles]

So I am in the process of finalizing the pieces of my first build but I was just thrown a curve ball. I have been planning to get the Corsair TX750 V2 PSU from NewEgg which costs $109 after mailin-rebate and an MSRP of $139.99. However, NewEgg is having a St. Patrick's Day sale with a Thermaltake Black Widow W0319RU 850W with loads of short-term deals bringing it down to $64.49 after mail-in-rebate from the original MSRP of $134.99.

How good is this Thermaltake PSU? Is it a good buy or should I avoid it? The extra 100W compared to the Corsair as well as the much less price has me itching to click the 'Checkout' button. But, since this is my first build I don't want to get crap hardware.

If it's built on the same platform as the TR2 or many other Thermaltake units it's going to be garbage. The corsair is a lot better unit but how many GPUs are you planning to run? 750W is overkill if you are going with a single GPU system.

 

[Mr Nightman]

And here they are...


---

RIP Phenom 955. Broke the pins trying to remove it from my old case.

**Seriously. Does anyone know any GOOD & QIET sub-$50 coolers for AM3 boards? This thing is loud.

1) damn man that sucks, how did that happen?

2)I am using the hyper 212+ cooler master cpu cooler, and it is much quieter than those stock pieces of junk, only 30 bucks on newegg

 

[·feist·]

Considering that AMD already makes LGA parts, and Bulldozer 2 almost certainly won't be on AM3+, they really need to make some changes.

http://i.imgur.com/d7DNAh.jpg

RIP Phenom 955. Broke the pins trying to remove it from my old case.

**Seriously. Does anyone know any GOOD & QIET sub-$50 coolers for AM3 boards? This thing is loud.

$28 - Cooler Master Hyper 212+
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0315397
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B002G1YPH0/?tag=neogaf0e-20

$40 - Corsair A70
http://www.microcenter.com/single_product_results.phtml?product_id=0335877

$40 - Scythe Mugen 2 (aka SCMG-2100)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835185142&Tpk=scmg-2100

 

[TheExodu5]

Yeah, Intel hasn't used physical pins in a while now. It's about time AMD moves to a safer design.

 

[mrklaw]

Actually, soundcards are what prevent that. Onboard audio has a tendency to be funky every now and then, which is the exact reason why I bought a Xonar DX. The onboard audio for my Crossfire IV didnt like a couple of games and was causing some random crashes. Might have made a different choice on the exact card, but was the only decent one at my local computer shop. Bit-tech swears by doing so for the same reason.

Can you help me understand why my xonar DX is defaulting to front panel headphones everybtime I switch on? I'm connecting headphones in the back and want it to default to that + Dolby headphone but it won't stick.

I would strongly recommend a const DX though, especially for a gaming build. Most motherboards don't support Dolby digital live or Dolby headphone, so you have no way of getting slpositional audio from games to a normal AV receiver via optical, or to headphones. If you're only going to use PC speakers connected up via the multiple 3.5mm jacks then that would be ok

 

[Unknown Soldier]

Yeah, Intel hasn't used physical pins in a while now. It's about time AMD moves to a safer design.

This is the AMD that once made CPUs without a thermal diode so you could just take the heatsink off the CPU while the computer was on and the CPU would destroy itself by self-immolating. This is also the AMD that once made bare-die CPUs which were so fragile that putting the heatsink on badly and exerting uneven pressure on it in the first place would crack the corner of the die and destroy the CPU.

AMD is cheaper than Intel for a reason. Actually, it's for numerous reasons, most of which have to do with not being in the same performance galaxy. Either be more careful with your AMD CPUs or buy Intel.

 

[fizzelopeguss]

This Twin frozr II 560Ti is absolutely fucking bananas.

i've reached 1020 MHz on the core, 2040 on the shader clock and 2250 on the memory.

Played about 2 hours of metro and DoW retribution and it's been completely stable

 

[Unknown Soldier]

This Twin frozr II 560Ti is absolutely fucking bananas.

i've reached 1020 MHz on the core, 2040 on the shader clock and 2250 on the memory.

Played about 2 hours of metro and DoW retribution and it's been completely stable

MSI Twin Frozr II is really amazing, imagine if Nvidia had used something like it as the stock cooler on Fermi instead of the junk they do use.

 

[fizzelopeguss]

did they ever give the 480 the twin frozr treatment? i can imagine this cooler beating that big hot fiery bitch into submission easily.

 

[·feist·]

This is the AMD that once made CPUs without a thermal diode so you could just take the heatsink off the CPU while the computer was on and the CPU would destroy itself by self-immolating. This is also the AMD that once made bare-die CPUs which were so fragile that putting the heatsink on badly and exerting uneven pressure on it in the first place would crack the corner of the die and destroy the CPU.

AMD is cheaper than Intel for a reason. Actually, it's for numerous reasons, most of which have to do with not being in the same performance galaxy. Either be more careful with your AMD CPUs or buy Intel.

Bold 1: That was my favorite.

Bold 2: While I wouldn't go that far, it doesn't bode well when your competitor has dual cores that outperform your quads, for instance.

This Twin frozr II 560Ti is absolutely fucking bananas.

i've reached 1020 MHz on the core, 2040 on the shader clock and 2250 on the memory.

Played about 2 hours of metro and DoW retribution and it's been completely stable

Solid board and cooler design. Unlike some other AIBs who re-used GTX 460 boards of so-so quality.

Since you have such a big overclock, you may want to invest in some cooling for your VRM and memory. Thermalright has some nice solutions, as does Zalman. Like these:

did they ever give the 480 the twin frozr treatment? i can imagine this cooler beating that big hot fiery bitch into submission easily.

Twin Frozr II
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127526

Twin Frozr III
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127532&Tpk=msi 480

 

[BloodySinner]

1) damn man that sucks, how did that happen?

2)I am using the hyper 212+ cooler master cpu cooler, and it is much quieter than those stock pieces of junk, only 30 bucks on newegg

Sad story.

Initially, when I was trying to remove the heatsink, I was pulling and tugging on it so hard that the CPU unlatched itself from the socket. Afterward, I installed it on the new motherboard that was in the new case. At this point, I realized that the CPU fan cable was on the opposite side from where the 4-pin connector was placed. So instead of wrapping the cord around, I wanted to rotate the heatsink so it would be closer to it.

FUCK!

This is where it at all went downhill. I took the same approach to removing it as I did originally. When I removed it, the processor was stuck onto the heatsink. I inspected it, and lo and behold, the pins were all fucking bent. So I had to run out and buy a new one (1055T, FYI). Now I need a new aftermarket heatsink, but I'm too fucking scared to touch my new CPU. I've checked out tutorials and videos on how to remove stock AMD coolers and it seems they're a pain to remove, regardless of the precautions taken.

 

[Mr Nightman]

Sad story.

Initially, when I was trying to remove the heatsink, I was pulling and tugging on it so hard that the CPU unlatched itself from the socket. Afterward, I installed it on the new motherboard that was in the new case. At this point, I realized that the CPU fan cable was on the opposite side from where the 4-pin connector was placed. So instead of wrapping the cord around, I wanted to rotate the heatsink so it would be closer to it.

FUCK!

This is where it at all went downhill. I took the same approach to removing it as I did originally. When I removed it, the processor was stuck onto the heatsink. I inspected it, and lo and behold, the pins were all fucking bent. So I had to run out and buy a new one (1055T, FYI). Now I need a new aftermarket heatsink, but I'm too fucking scared to touch my new CPU. I've checked out tutorials and videos on how to remove stock AMD coolers and it seems they're a pain to remove, regardless of the precautions taken.

i used a small knife and pried up slightly around all four corners, and just worked my way around until she budged, worked great, no issues whatsoever. That damn layer of paste sticks and holds itself really well, lol.

 

[Fredescu]

Back in the day you used to get Intel branded "forks" to remove your CPU. This was pre ZIF sockets. I can't seem to GIS up a picture of one.

 

[EatChildren]

I should probably buy a copy of Windows 7 for this new PC.

Which one do I want, GAF?

 

[Mr Nightman]

I should probably buy a copy of Windows 7 for this new PC.

Which one do I want, GAF?

Would say any version besides basic, 64 bit
windows 7 home premium 64bit 99 bucks on newegg

Also you can get a copy from 30-65 bucks if you are attending a college

 

[BloodySinner]

Would say any version besides basic, 64 bit
windows 7 home premium 64bit 99 bucks on newegg

Also you can get a copy from 30-65 bucks if you are attending a college

Or even here:

http://successful-software.net/shop/item/394/

 

[CrankyJay]

Also you can get a copy from 30-65 bucks if you are attending a college

Neighbor's kid in college is picking me up a copy of Win 7 ultimate for $13.

 

[EatChildren]

Would say any version besides basic, 64 bit
windows 7 home premium 64bit 99 bucks on newegg

Also you can get a copy from 30-65 bucks if you are attending a college

Thanks. Australia here though, and I'm not a student at the moment.

I got a copy of Ultimate for ~AU$120. Bit pricey, but whatever.

 

[mrklaw]

home premium has everything unless you need to have language packs - i.e be able to run windows in a different language. for some reason thats only in ultimate.

 

[Schmattakopf]

Posting once more.

I posted this in the tech support thread but it doesn't look like that's very active, so I'm sorry if this is out of place:

When I play Battlefield Bad Company 2 (BC2) online, I am able to get into a game for ~10 to 15 minutes before I get either a hard freeze or a blue screen, sometimes with a sound loop.

This is only related to BC2 because I have played other games without issue, and Furmark tests work fine, and I've searched on Google and found a lot of other people with this specific problem. The fixes they mentioned did not work for me. I disabled the onboard sound, I disabled sound altogether, I reinstalled PunkBuster, I changed the memory voltage, I updated to the right GPU driver.

I went to the Event Viewer, and maybe it's just because this last time was a hard freeze instead of a BSOD, but all it says is things like, "The system has rebooted without cleanly shutting down first."

I'm on Windows 7 64-bit
i5 2500k (not OC'd)
HD 6950 (with a modified BIOS that unlocked the shaders of the 6970)
4GB Adata RAM 1600
Corsair 650TX
GA-P67-UD3

 

[Palette Swap]

Or even here:

http://successful-software.net/shop/item/394/

That looks fishy as hell.

 

[ithorien]

This is also the AMD that once made bare-die CPUs which were so fragile that putting the heatsink on badly and exerting uneven pressure on it in the first place would crack the corner of the die and destroy the CPU.

I'm a very careful person, always have been, always will. I take precautions while building, more so than probably required.

With that said, I have shattered NINE (9) CPUs that way for a 4 computer build at my old job. Stock cooler, if you moved a nanometer off that shit would break. Thankfully the PC shop that we bought from knew about this, and would RMA them no problem. That was the last time I used an AMD product.

That looks fishy as hell.

Eh, it's only 10 bucks less than Newegg. On the subject of Win7, anyone know how activations go for the Win7Pro that's bought with a student email? I'm afraid of building a new PC if the activation won't move through, don't want to spend an extra hundred if I don't have to.

 

[sk3tch]

What size zip ties do you guys typically use for cable management within your case? Will a pack of 50 4" ties do the trick or should I get a longer length? CM 690 II case, btw...

 

[AzerPhire]

What is the best $200-$300 video card out right now? I am heading down to Denver in a week (from Canada) and if there are any really good video card deals that are better than what we have up here I may jump on it.

 

[knitoe]

Posting once more.

If other games and testing works, the problem probably lies in the game itself and/or AMD drivers. Tried different AMD drivers. If that still doesn't work, tried Nvidia card.

 

[verbum]

Eh, it's only 10 bucks less than Newegg. On the subject of Win7, anyone know how activations go for the Win7Pro that's bought with a student email? I'm afraid of building a new PC if the activation won't move through, don't want to spend an extra hundred if I don't have to.

It will be an upgrade version. The following link will show you how to install it and activate it on a clean disk/drive.

http://www.mydigitallife.info/2009/10/27/clean-install-windows-7-with-upgrade-media-and-product-key-on-formatted-or-empty-blank-hard-drive/

 

[Wrekt]

What is the best $200-$300 video card out right now? I am heading down to Denver in a week (from Canada) and if there are any really good video card deals that are better than what we have up here I may jump on it.

I'd go with a ATI 6950. If you want to go the geforce route, probably the 560.

That being said, you won't find either of them in a Best Buy for under $300. You might get lucky with a Micro Center or something.

 

[ithorien]

It will be an upgrade version. The following link will show you how to install it and activate it on a clean disk/drive.

http://www.mydigitallife.info/2009/10/27/clean-install-windows-7-with-upgrade-media-and-product-key-on-formatted-or-empty-blank-hard-drive/

Sorry should have been more specific-

I have used and upgraded with this specific version of Win7Pro Student from a Vista Business install. I have activated this copy of Win7 on this computer.

If I get a brand new build, and attempt to reinstall, what will happen to the Win7 license/activation?

 

[Schmattakopf]

If other games and testing works, the problem probably lies in the game itself and/or AMD drivers. Tried different AMD drivers. If that still doesn't work, tried Nvidia card.

I am quite sure it is the game itself. I have tried different AMD drivers. The card works fine with Furmark and other games.

 

[mkenyon]

I am quite sure it is the game itself. I have tried different AMD drivers. The card works fine with Furmark and other games.

Did you not see my previous post? Try out a cheapo sound card.