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"I need a New PC!" 2011 Edition of SSD's for everyone! |OT|

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F

Fixed2BeBroken

Member
Basic Desktop Questions
Your Current Specs: Doesnt matter as the computer is trashed and I need a new one it was a old peice of crap anyways

Budget: 800-1200 USA
Main Use: Gaming, Emulation (PS2/Wii), Video Editing, Music production/editing, and, general usage (Word, Web, 1080p playback)
Monitor Resolution: I have a Widescreen hd monitor. forgot the resolution but HD resolution is what I wanna use it at.

List SPECIFIC games that you MUST be able to play: WCIII TFT and Games on Steam, Dont really need to do alot of gaming on my PC.

Are reusing any parts?: Prob just my soundcard which is like a audiophile something like 24/96 or some shit.

When will you build?: ASAP

Will you be overclocking?: No

This is what I came up with so far on NCIXUS.com

Intel Core i5 2500K Quad Core Unlocked Processor LGA1155 3.3GHZ Sandy Bridge 6MB

ASUS P8P67 ATX P67 LGA1155 DDR3 2PCI-E16 2PCI-E1 3PCI USB3.0 Sandy Bridge B3

ASUS GeForce GTX 460 Fermi DirectCU TOP 700MHZ 768MB GDDR5 Dual DVI Mini-HDMI PCI-E DX11 Video Card

Antec Earthwatts 750W Modular Power Supply ATX12V V2.2 EPS12V Active PFC 80PLUS 135mm Fan


Seagate Barracuda ES.2 500GB SATA2 7200RPM 32MB Cache NCQ Low Power Hard Drive OEM 3YR MFR Warranty

Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 1TB SATA2 3.5IN 8.5MS 7200RPM 32MB Hard Drive OEM *3YR MFR Warranty*

Corsair CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9 Vengeance 8GB 2X4GB DDR3-1600 CL9-9-9-24 Dual Channel Memory Kit

Samsung SH-S243D/BEBE 24X Black DVD Writer SATA OEM


Microsoft Windows 7 Professional Edition 64BIT DVD OEM

Anything I should change or modify?

I'm stuck on finding a good case. I'm trying to get a Case that has a See through window on the side and has usb 3.0 slots and is about medium sized type tower that doesn't look retarded. Any suggestions on that end?

Thanks in advance.
 
K

knitoe

Member
Omiee said:
i had a 470 before this never a amd card in crossfire.




Its not in CCC, because i saw a screen of someone who had crossfire running and where i have performance where you can overclock, he also has crossfire and crossfire diagnostics or something like that.
and its not even showing up at device managar so its not hooked up right i guess..?
i did everything i found on amd forums, from removing catalyst 11.2 and installing 11.1 and than removing that and installing 11.4 preview.
nothing works




this is what some guy wrote on another forum that came up on google.
i tried switching the cables but it doesnt work, but the fan of the second videocard is spinning though.

http://forums.amd.com/game/messageview.cfm?catid=262&threadid=147988
Click to expand...
What's your PSU?

Make sure each video cards are getting separate power cables which aren't attached to anything else. And, crossfire bridge is connected.

There's always a chance the 2nd video card or the 2nd slot are bad. Have you tried moving it to first slot and see if it's working?
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
Yeah, per that forum thing you posted, sounds like you might have amp problems. Is your PSU a single 12v rail, or multiple rails?
 
O

Omiee

Member
mkenyon said:
Do you have a link to your PSU?



Not worth it unless you're hurting for space.
Click to expand...


http://tweakers.net/pricewatch/230765/seasonic-m12d-850-80+-silver-label.html#tab:info

http://www.seasonicusa.com/M12D.htm

A little update, so i put the cables that come out of your powersupply into the new card, and the modular cables in the second card, and the powersupply started beeping like crazy.
both of the cards are the same brand and type.

things iv also done, is change the crossfire bridge and change the videocard from the top spot to the second spot.
my motherboard does support crossfire i looked it up
 
U

Utako

Banned
Thanks all, I'm still a bit concerned about fan noise, I haven't had anything but a laptop for quite some time, and I'm not sure what to expect.
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
Omiee said:
http://tweakers.net/pricewatch/230765/seasonic-m12d-850-80+-silver-label.html#tab:info

http://www.seasonicusa.com/M12D.htm

A little update, so i put the cables that come out of your powersupply into the new card, and the modular cables in the second card, and the powersupply started beeping like crazy.
both of the cards are the same brand and type.

things iv also done, is change the crossfire bridge and change the videocard from the top spot to the second spot.
my motherboard does support crossfire i looked it up
Click to expand...

Yep, that's a dual rail PSU. Since this kind of thing is only solved by troubleshooting, I feel bad saying this, but you need to try out a single 12v rail PSU.
 
O

Omiee

Member
M

mkenyon

Banned
Omiee said:
So is it a bad thing that its a dual rail PSU? does that mean it does not support crossfire or something?
Is there a way to make it work?
Click to expand...
Yes, it is a bad thing. More or less, it means that you might be trying to get more juice from one of your rails than it can provide. As to a possible way to make it work, maybe? You won't know for sure unless you try a single 12v rail PSU.
 
O

Omiee

Member
mkenyon said:
Yes, it is a bad thing. More or less, it means that you might be trying to get more juice from one of your rails than it can provide. As to a possible way to make it work, maybe? You won't know for sure unless you try a single 12v rail PSU.
Click to expand...


I dont get it, do you mean i need to buy a new single 12V rail psu..?
Its weird because the power supply does have 4 3 pin connectors so why wont it work.
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
Omiee said:
I dont get it, do you mean i need to buy a new single 12V rail psu..?
Its weird because the power supply does have 4 3 pin connectors so why wont it work.
Click to expand...
Unfortunately yes. That isn't weird at all. Lets say you have two 15amp rails (which you probably do), one of those vid cards might use 12amps. If they are both on the same rail, you dont have enough amps to power both cards. You can try to figure out which connectors go to which rails, figure out how much each component needs, and plan accordingly. That might work out. Otherwise, you'll have to try out a single 12v rail PSU to see if that fixes your issues.

As a side note, and I don't mean to be callous (as I'm trying to help you as much as possible), but this is the exact sort of reason why I've been trying to steer amateurs away from crossfire/SLI.

*edit sidenote #2, this is how fixing these sorts of problems goes. You've got to troubleshoot and try things out. If people don't have the spare parts to do so, it gets expensive. I could be totally wrong about it, but I've run into something similar in my very own setup.
 
O

Omiee

Member
mkenyon said:
Unfortunately yes. That isn't weird at all. Lets say you have two 15amp rails (which you probably do), one of those vid cards might use 12amps. If they are both on the same rail, you dont have enough amps to power both cards. You can try to figure out which connectors go to which rails, figure out how much each component needs, and plan accordingly. That might work out. Otherwise, you'll have to try out a single 12v rail PSU to see if that fixes your issues.

As a side note, and I don't mean to be callous (as I'm trying to help you as much as possible), but this is the exact sort of reason why I've been trying to steer amateurs away from crossfire/SLI.
Click to expand...


Yeah it def sucks, i bought this power supply for a lot of money because people said it was powerfull enough if i wanted to do sli or crossfire in the future.
also i know im a noob so you might have to explain what rails are to me, if you mean those cables.

Im using the cables i put in the black cable on the first card, and the cables from the black thing im using for the second card, or is that not what you mean by 2 rails.
http://i53.tinypic.com/rc1nhy.jpg
 
T

TheExodu5

Banned
mkenyon said:
Yes, it is a bad thing. More or less, it means that you might be trying to get more juice from one of your rails than it can provide. As to a possible way to make it work, maybe? You won't know for sure unless you try a single 12v rail PSU.
Click to expand...

Dual rail PSU isn't inherently a bad thing. Good PSUs still split rails properly.

edit: he has a 750 or 850W Seasonic PSU? There's absolutely no way this is an issue with rail distribution. Those are among the best power supplies around.

Also, each rail provides 40 amps. Even if both cards were somehow running on one rail (and they're not), the PSU would still manage to run them fine for anything but a stress test. That's up to 480W on a single rail at a time.
 
O

Omiee

Member
TheExodu5 said:
Dual rail PSU isn't inherently a bad thing. Good PSUs still split rails properly.

edit: he has a 750 or 850W Seasonic PSU? There's absolutely no way this is an issue with rail distribution. Those are among the best power supplies around.
Click to expand...


i have the 850W one.

does it help if i make a picture of how the cables look now?
because both cards are getting power now ( since the fan is turning ) but only 1 is actually being recognized on device manager.
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
TheExodu5 said:
Dual rail PSU isn't inherently a bad thing. Good PSUs still split rails properly.

edit: he has a 750 or 850W Seasonic PSU? There's absolutely no way this is an issue with rail distribution. Those are among the best power supplies around.

Also, each rail provides 40 amps. Even if both cards were somehow running on one rail (and they're not), the PSU would still manage to run them fine for anything but a stress test. That's up to 480W on a single rail at a time.
Click to expand...
Perfect, thats the exact information needed. Thanks!

Next step: Reformat.
 
O

Omiee

Member
mkenyon said:
Perfect, thats the exact information needed. Thanks!

Next step: Reformat.
Click to expand...


what do you mean by reformat ( im sorry english is not my first language. )
do you mean format the disc drives or something else.
 
T

TheExodu5

Banned
A reformat really shouldn't be needed for a GPU issue. Even if it's an OS/driver issue, CC cleaner should take care of that (but I don't think it is, as the card doesn't even appear under Device Manager).

Omiee said:
i have the 850W one.

does it help if i make a picture of how the cables look now?
because both cards are getting power now ( since the fan is turning ) but only 1 is actually being recognized on device manager.
Click to expand...

Have you tried both cards individually?

Another test I would do is to try a single card on the secondary PCI-E slot...maybe it's a defective PCI-E slot?
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
TheExodu5 said:
A reformat really shouldn't be needed for a GPU issue. Even if it's an OS/driver issue, CC cleaner should take care of that (but I don't think it is, as the card doesn't even appear under Device Manager).



Have you tried both cards individually?

Another test I would do is to try a single card on the secondary PCI-E slot...maybe it's a defective PCI-E slot?
Click to expand...
I've seen crazier things. Got a friend's dual 4850s to finally work after a reformat, who knows what the actual cause was.

I assumed he tried each card individually. If not, here's what you do.

-Try each card in the top slot individually.
-Try each card in the bottom slot individually.
-Switch the new one with the old one in the bottom slot.

If no issues crop up during that, it's not the hardware.
 
O

Omiee

Member
mkenyon said:
I've seen crazier things. Got a friend's dual 4850s to finally work after a reformat, who knows what the actual cause was.

I assumed he tried each card individually. If not, here's what you do.

-Try each card in the top slot individually.
-Try each card in the bottom slot individually.
-Switch the new one with the old one in the bottom slot.

If that doesn't work, it's not the hardware.
Click to expand...


will do that now and see what happens.
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
Sent this to Hazaro to possibly be included in the OP, but gonna put it here for now. Exodu5, if you see any issues, lemme know if I missed something.

Who/What Crossfire/SLI is for:
-Running Eyefinity.
-Running 3D Vision.
-Super high resolutions.
-Performance (not gaming) enthusiasts who don't care how much they are spending.
-Folks running a last gen card and want to extend the life on it by getting a second. This is only recommended for advanced users.

Who/What Crossfire/SLI is not for:
-People running a single monitor at 1080p or lower.
-Non tinkerers/enthusiasts. There are compatibility issues you will run into.
-"Futureproofing" your system.
-Getting two mid-low tier cards to "match" performance of a higher end card.

Q: But if X card is awesome, why aren't two X's twice as awesome?
A: Well, because for a game to really take advantage of it, there must be drivers to support said game. If not, you can run into performance loss, microstutterting, and all sorts of problems. In addition to that, there is generally a little bit of performance loss anyway, somewhere around 10-20%.

Q: Where can I find out more about Crossfire and/or SLI?
A: AMD's published information is fairly limited, but here is their website. SLI Zone has tons of information.

Q: If I have 2 1GB cards, does that mean I will have 2GB of video memory?
A: No, since both cards will more or less be processing the same data. In addition, it will scale to the lowest card you have in your system. So if you have a 1GB card and a 2GB card, you will only have 1GB of effective video memory.

Q: I'm not satisfied with the performance of X card at 1080p, why not add another one?
A: Well, for lower resolutions the technology just doesn't scale as well. If you have an older card, you might be better off looking at some charts to compare the newest cards with SLI/X-fire results of your current card. If there arent any, you can assume a 40-50% gain in performance @1080p, and a lower gain if your resolution is below that. This won't be 100% accurate, but it should give you a good idea.

Q: Can I use the same card from different vendors? For example, will an XFX 5870 work with an ASUS 5870?
A: Absolutely. Generally the only difference is clock speed on an overclocked model, or the design of the cooler. As with the memory, crossfire/SLI will scale to the lowest card.
 
S

Schlep

Member
Utako said:
Hey all

Can I get an opinion on this "easy to install" liquid cooling system?

http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=5267687&Sku=C13-2528
Click to expand...
I like it. When I did my build (mATX), I liked the idea of having the heat sucked directly out of the case, not leaving much chance for it to linger in the smaller area. That said, if you're doing a build in a larger case, I'd probably go with a heatsink like the 212+. The H50 isn't going to give you liquid cooled temps, and you won't be at much of a premium for space.

In short, mATX or mITX, I think it's a good value (especially at $50). For ATX, I think you could make a better buy.
 
T

TheExodu5

Banned
mkenyon said:
Sent this to Hazaro to possibly be included in the OP, but gonna put it here for now. Exodu5, if you see any issues, lemme know if I missed something.

Who/What Crossfire/SLI is for:
-Running Eyefinity.
-Running 3D Vision.
-Super high resolutions.
-Performance (not gaming) enthusiasts who don't care how much they are spending.
-Folks running an older generation card where they want to add another at a low cost rather than adding a more expensive single card. Though this is not always recommended.

Who/What Crossfire/SLI is not for:
-People running a single monitor at 1080p or lower.
-Non tinkerers/enthusiasts. There are compatibility issues you will run into.
-"Futureproofing" your system.

Q: But if X card is awesome, why aren't two X's twice as awesome?
A: Well, because for a game to really take advantage of it, there must be drivers to support said game. If not, you can run into performance loss, microstutterting, and all sorts of problems. In addition to that, there is generally a little bit of performance loss anyway, somewhere around 10-20%.

Q: Where can I find out more about Crossfire and/or SLI?
A: AMD's published information is fairly limited, but here is their website. SLI Zone has tons of information.

Q: If I have 2 1GB cards, does that mean I will have 2GB of video memory?
A: No, since both cards will more or less be processing the same data. In addition, it will scale to the lowest card you have in your system. So if you have a 1GB card and a 2GB card, you will only have 1GB of effective video memory.

Q: I'm not satisfied with the performance of X card at 1080p, why not add another one?
A: Well, for lower resolutions the technology just doesn't scale as well. If you have an older card, you might be better off looking at some charts to compare the newest cards with SLI/X-fire results of your current card. If there arent any, you can assume a 40-50% gain in performance @1080p, and a lower gain if your resolution is below that. This won't be 100% accurate, but it should give you a good idea.
Click to expand...

Looks great to me.

I might add another blip as well, explaining that two low end cards are usually not better than 1 high end card, because of the SLI/Crossfire issues (e.g. 2x 6850 vs 6950).

I am in a conflicting bracket above. Performance enthusiast + running a single 1080p monitor. :D
 
S

Shambles

Member
Multi GPU is just as viable on a single average monitor as it is on duals or triples. Even though it can be a pain in the ass it's not rocket science and it works well as long as you come into it knowing that 1+1 =/ 2. Buying a 2nd GPU down the line is a great way to get a cheap upgrade to extend the life of your system. Instead of throwing out your old GPU that you paid 250$ two or three years ago you can find a 2nd one now for half the price that will give you the performance of modern high end cards for a fraction of the price. I would not suggest multi-GPU for a new build unless you're looking to spend $600+ on the GPUs alone in which case money doesn't matter much for you and you'll probably end up dropping $600 on GPUs every two years anyways as I watch from across the internet hating you with jealous eyes :p

Fixed2BeBroken said:
Anything I should change or modify?

I'm stuck on finding a good case. I'm trying to get a Case that has a See through window on the side and has usb 3.0 slots and is about medium sized type tower that doesn't look retarded. Any suggestions on that end?

Thanks in advance.
Click to expand...

If you're not overclocking it's not worth the extra 30 dollars to get the K version of the 2500. I'd probably push the GTX 460 up to the 1GB model that is not the SE edition. The SE/768MB models don't quite cut it for GPU power in my books for a decent experience. I'm assuming your monitor is running at 1920x1080. The power supply is huge overkill, a simple CX430 unit would power it fine. Windows 7 professional is likely a waste for you, home premium will do all the same things for you as professional. Someone else probably has better knowledge on the seagate drives but something you might want to consider is moving the 1TB drive to a 2TB drive if you plan on doing a lot of editing and want to keep the drive count in your machine as low as possible if you're looking to expand over 6-8TB of total storage. If you spend a lot of time on it editing it might be worth it for you to move the CPU up to the i7 2600. The hyperthreading of the i7 can help you in several programs.
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
Fixed2BeBroken said:
So can anyone helpme?
Click to expand...
Whats with the two mechanical drives?

The RAM is overkill, unless you're getting a crazy good deal on it.

Don't get the 2500k if you're overclocking, just get the 2500. Its the same processor, just not unlocked.

With those savings, upgraydde the vid card to something like a 560 or 6950.
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
Shambles said:
Multi GPU is just as viable on a single average monitor as it is on duals or triples. Even though it can be a pain in the ass it's not rocket science and it works well as long as you come into it knowing that 1+1 =/ 2. Buying a 2nd GPU down the line is a great way to get a cheap upgrade to extend the life of your system. Instead of throwing out your old GPU that you paid 250$ two or three years ago you can find a 2nd one now for half the price that will give you the performance of modern high end cards for a fraction of the price. I would not suggest multi-GPU for a new build unless you're looking to spend $600+ on the GPUs alone in which case money doesn't matter much for you and you'll probably end up dropping $600 on GPUs every two years anyways as I watch from across the internet hating you with jealous eyes :p
Click to expand...

I accounted for all of this in the post, outside of your first sentence which I can't quite make sense of. Do you mean that performance is doubled or tripled? Generally, performance is about 40-50% increase @ 1080p or lower.

*sorry for double post
 
R

RaGNaRoK 2k5

Banned
Alright GAF, I used to be a hardcore PC gamer back in the P1 90 MHz days up until I got my P4 3.2 GHz 6 years ago. I have fond memories playing the old Lucasarts point and click adventure games, Half-Life, SW: Jedi Knight, Baldur's Gate, Wing Commander, and spending countless hours online with Quake Threewave CTF, Ultima Online, Team Fortress Classic, MOH:AA, CC: Renegade, and Tribes. Since my X800 overheats like crazy now, I might be able to get 10 minutes of TF2, L4D, or WoW before artifacts take over and my computer freezes. I've been reading this thread religiously since January and you have me convinced that it's about time to get back to my PC roots. I've got a pretty good handle on the kind of build I want but I'd like to see what you guys think first.

Basic Desktop Questions
Your Current Specs: P4 3.2 GHz, 1 GB Ram, ATI X800
Budget: $1000 - $1200 USA
Main Use: Gaming, Emulation (PS2/Wii), Video Editing, HD Playback, general usage
Are reusing any parts?: No
When will you build?: April
Will you be overclocking?: Yes
Needs to be able to run BF3, D3, HL3, TF2, Portal 2, TESV, SW: TOR (Would like for everything to run at 60 FPS)
Here's what I have so far:

Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3 GHz
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072

XFX Radeon HD 6950 2GB (Does the make matter?)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150518

ASUS P8P67 PRO or Standard (What do you guys think?)

CORSAIR Enthusiast TX750 V2
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139021

G.SKILL 4GB DDR3
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231190

Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB HD103SJ
http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-Spinpoint-Cache-Desktop-HD103SJ

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus
http://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-Hyper-Sleeve-RR-B10-212P-G1

Things I'm unsure about:

This is my first build. All of my computers in the past have put off a ton of heat. I'm looking for a case that is cool and quiet, preferably with dust filters and tool free installation. Looking to spend $60-$80 but most of the cases with the features I want are closer to $100. Any other suggestions are welcome. Here's the narrowed down selection:

Antec Solo
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129018

Rosewill Blackhawk
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147107

Cooler Master CM690 II
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119216

Let me know what you all think
 
O

Omiee

Member
mkenyon said:
I've seen crazier things. Got a friend's dual 4850s to finally work after a reformat, who knows what the actual cause was.

I assumed he tried each card individually. If not, here's what you do.

-Try each card in the top slot individually.
-Try each card in the bottom slot individually.
-Switch the new one with the old one in the bottom slot.

If no issues crop up during that, it's not the hardware.
Click to expand...


i did what you said here, use one card on the top spot first than on the second spot and the same with the second card.
everything was fine, but when i put them both in again they do get power and the fans etc rotate but its not recognized in device manager, cpu id gpu id or any other program.

to be honest i have no idea what the problem could be, since both pci slots work fine and both cards are fine, but as soon as i put them in crossfire it doesnt work.
and i grabbed the motherboard case just to be sure and it had a big crossfire label on it.
 
S

Shambles

Member
mkenyon said:
I accounted for all of this in the post, outside of your first sentence which I can't quite make sense of. Do you mean that performance is doubled or tripled? Generally, performance is about 40-50% increase @ 1080p or lower.

*sorry for double post
Click to expand...

Yeah. The tone made it sound like it doesn't do much which is true in many cases but there are also many cases where as soon as you turn up the AA the framerate starts to nosedive on a lot of single-GPU setups. I just wanted to make sure people didn't think that SLI/CrossfireX was a broken waste of a system but your words of warning are wise indeed.

Also on Fixed's build he's using it as an editing machine, the 8GB memory will help him out a bunch.
 
P

Proc

Member
Hey guys...

Just upgraded my main components after about 4 years away from the upgrade game...

I had a bottleneck with my gpu (gtx280) that really couldn't perform at all with my current system.

Today was the deciding day that I'd skip the ipad 2 hype and go straight to my local infonec/canada computers and do the dirty.

Ended up with the following:

-Intel BOX CORE I7 2600 3.40GHZ
-Asus P8P67 Pro
-DDR3 8GB (2x4GB) PC3-10666
-vertex 2 60gb ssd (just wanted to see what the fuss was about, didn't want to invest too much...just for my win 7 disk)
-antec mid size case p183 (sounds super quiet, my dad has one)



My question to you gaf is what do I play to show this thing off to myself? Civ 5? DoW2 Retribution? Crysis on max? I hope to max out at 1900x1200 but I know my gfx is fairly old so I'll have to drop aa or other settings a bit. Should I buy Crysis 2? What is next Gaf? What is next?
 
F

Fixed2BeBroken

Member
mkenyon said:
Whats with the two mechanical drives?

The RAM is overkill, unless you're getting a crazy good deal on it.

Don't get the 2500k if you're overclocking, just get the 2500. Its the same processor, just not unlocked.

With those savings, upgraydde the vid card to something like a 560 or 6950.
Click to expand...
2 drives cause i like to have windows and progs on one and all media and storage on another....so it makes a clean format/restart easy.

8 gb of ram only cause of all the audio editing i plan to do and cause i plan on getting a "machine" by native instruments to work with it
 
T

TheExodu5

Banned
If you're going with a Sandy Bridge build, I'd probably recommend going 8GB. If ever you want to upgrade, you probably want to stay with 2 sticks for overclocking stability. While 4GB is enough now, it's likely you'll want to go 8GB before the end of your system's life (3-5 years). And really, it's a $40 difference.

I've had a few games take a lot of memory lately. Stalker CoP Complete takes over 2.5GB on its own.

If you're looking to shave a bit off the build, going to 4GB isn't going to hurt you, however.

Then again, if spending that extra $40 means you have to sacrifice elsewhere, then maybe you do want to scale it back.

RaGNaRoK 2k5 said:
This is my first build. All of my computers in the past have put off a ton of heat. I'm looking for a case that is cool and quiet, preferably with dust filters and tool free installation. Looking to spend $60-$80 but most of the cases with the features I want are closer to $100. Any other suggestions are welcome. Here's the narrowed down selection:
Click to expand...

Fractal Define R3. You should definitely be able to fit that into your budget.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...2&cm_re=fractal_define-_-11-352-002-_-Product

For the record, no case will change the amount of heat put off...that's purely dependent on the power draw of your system. What matters is how your PC deals with the heat. This case doesn't have the best airflow...but it's definitely enough for what you're putting in it. It makes up for it by being quiet, nicely designed, and very easy to build with.
 
V

Vanillalite

Ask me about the GAF Notebook
w00t my mom gave me her old Yamaha amp + 5 bookshelf spears and sub. It's an older non hdmi amp, but it has optical which I used to hook up to my PC verses my regular crappy 10 year old pc 2.1 speakers.

Shit sounds fucking ballin' in Win 7 now son!
 
L

luiztfc

Member
Dear Master Gaming Race,

I have a P6T motherboard and 3 sticks of ram (normal Kingston DDR3 1333). As the MB supports triple channel, I bought three sticks of the mentioned ram, however according to CPU-Z, I'm only running in dual channel. What should I do?

MB.png

triple0.png

triple1.png

triple2.png

triple3.png
 
K

knitoe

Member
luiztfc said:
Dear Master Gaming Race,

I have a P6T motherboard and 3 sticks of ram (normal Kingston DDR3 1333). As the MB supports triple channel, I bought three sticks of the mentioned ram, however according to CPU-Z, I'm only running in dual channel. What should I do?
Click to expand...
Do you have them in the correct slots?
 
A

aasoncott

Member
I was wondering if anyone could comment on my current build. Specifically, I'd like to know what my main bottlenecks are, and what kind of performance gain I could expect from upgrading. Specifically:

  • Would I get a good performance boost replacing my aging 250gb main drive with a small SSD? I'd still be storing all my games on the WD Black. Would this affect anything other than boot and app loading speeds?
  • Would I see a bigger performance boost by moving from an i5 to an i7, or from moving to a newer GPU? How much of a boost?
Obviously I have the RAM situation under control.

Motherboard: Gigabyte P55A-UD3P

CPU: Intel Core i5 750 Quad Core Lynnfield LGA1156 2.66

RAM: OCZ OCZ3G1333LV8GK Gold DDR3, 2x4gb + 2x2gb (12gb total)

HD: Old WD 250gb 7200rpm main drive, WD Caviar Black 1tb storage

GPU: MSI GeForce GTX 260 Twin Frozr OC 655MHZ 896MB 2.1GHZ GDDR3 PCI-E
 
K

knitoe

Member
luiztfc said:
I believe I do, and my system is recognizing 6GB or do I need to put them in specific slots for the triple channel?
Click to expand...
They have to be in certain slots. Usually, every other slot. Check your MB user guide for correct slots.
 
Q

Quicksilver4648

Member
RaGNaRoK 2k5 said:
Intel Core i5-2500K Sandy Bridge 3.3 GHz
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115072

CORSAIR Enthusiast TX750 V2
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817139021

Cooler Master CM690 II
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119216
Click to expand...

I am not sure of their functionality yet since I haven't built my PC yet, but UPS and FEDEX delivered those three things today. After opening them up I can't find any complaints.
 
H

Hazaro

relies on auto-aim
RaGNaRoK 2k5 said:
Alright GAF, I used to be a hardcore PC gamer back in the P1 90 MHz days up until I got my P4 3.2 GHz 6 years ago. I have fond memories playing the old Lucasarts point and click adventure games, Half-Life, SW: Jedi Knight, Baldur's Gate, Wing Commander, and spending countless hours online with Quake Threewave CTF, Ultima Online, Team Fortress Classic, MOH:AA, CC: Renegade, and Tribes. Since my X800 overheats like crazy now, I might be able to get 10 minutes of TF2, L4D, or WoW before artifacts take over and my computer freezes. I've been reading this thread religiously since January and you have me convinced that it's about time to get back to my PC roots. I've got a pretty good handle on the kind of build I want but I'd like to see what you guys think first.

Here's what I have so far:

XFX Radeon HD 6950 2GB (Does the make matter?)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150518

ASUS P8P67 PRO or Standard (What do you guys think?)

Things I'm unsure about:

This is my first build. All of my computers in the past have put off a ton of heat. I'm looking for a case that is cool and quiet, preferably with dust filters and tool free installation. Looking to spend $60-$80 but most of the cases with the features I want are closer to $100. Any other suggestions are welcome. Here's the narrowed down selection:

Let me know what you all think
Click to expand...
That XFX is good. Brand is all about warranty. All the 6950's you want are reference so you can flash to 6970 (like that one).

I'd go for PRO just due to the fact that you can Advanced RMA it in case something goes wrong. Standard would fit your needs though if you want to save a touch.

6950 will be the loudest by far so if you are really concerned about noise you could buy an aftermarket cooler for that and a Scythe Kama to put on the 212+
luiztfc said:
So the sticks are in the right position. Do I need to set some timings perhaps?
Click to expand...
Hmm. Should report triple channel. Try manually settings the timings as you said.
If that doesn't work, move them over and see if it picks up triple channel then.

They are in the orange slots, correct?
aasoncott said:
I was wondering if anyone could comment on my current build. Specifically, I'd like to know what my main bottlenecks are, and what kind of performance gain I could expect from upgrading. Specifically:

  • Would I get a good performance boost replacing my aging 250gb main drive with a small SSD? I'd still be storing all my games on the WD Black. Would this affect anything other than boot and app loading speeds?
  • Would I see a bigger performance boost by moving from an i5 to an i7, or from moving to a newer GPU? How much of a boost?
Obviously I have the RAM situation under control.

Motherboard: Gigabyte P55A-UD3P

CPU: Intel Core i5 750 Quad Core Lynnfield LGA1156 2.66

RAM: OCZ OCZ3G1333LV8GK Gold DDR3, 2x4gb + 2x2gb (12gb total)

HD: Old WD 250gb 7200rpm main drive, WD Caviar Black 1tb storage

GPU: MSI GeForce GTX 260 Twin Frozr OC 655MHZ 896MB 2.1GHZ GDDR3 PCI-E
Click to expand...
FPS boost? no. Loading times for games, a little. Overall system snappiness, heck yes.
Overclock CPU and get a new GPU is the most cost effective by far.
 
L

luiztfc

Member
Yep, I'm dumb. The memory were in fact in the wrong positions... (and I checked them and assumed the were in the right ones.

CPU-Z is now reporting triple channel. Thanks knitoe, DeadRockstar and Hazaro.
BTW should the performance gain be noticiable?
 
J

JaseC

gave away the keys to the kingdom.
luiztfc said:
Yep, I'm dumb. The memory were in fact in the wrong positions... (and I checked them and assumed the were in the right ones.

CPU-Z is now reporting triple channel. Thanks knitoe, DeadRockstar and Hazaro.
BTW should the performance gain be noticiable?
Click to expand...

Within a real-world environment? No, not at all.
 
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