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[longdi]

Ok. One last post about my Overclock before putting a nice little bow on it and calling it good to go.

Ran 50 instances of Standard Intel Burn test. Passed. Ran Prime95 for 8 hours. Passed.

Idle temperatures sit around 32C

While running Prime95 they were high High 50s up to 62C

The temps from Intel Burn Test are in the screenshot.

Does everything look a-ok?

Can try lowing the vcore, no need 1.3v for 3.7ghz.

 

[WEGGLES]

I tried lowering it, any time Prime95 would instantly give hardware failures on at least one of the workers.

 

[Anticitizen One]

I have never run two graphics cards together in SLI mode before. Is there a noticable jump in graphics quality/performance? is there any incompatibility issues that arise?

 

[scorcho]

I tried lowering it, any time Prime95 would instantly give hardware failures on at least one of the workers.

then you should be fine where you are. not all chips are created equally.

 

[JoeBoy101]

I have never run two graphics cards together in SLI mode before. Is there a noticable jump in graphics quality/performance? is there any incompatibility issues that arise?

Yes and Yes.

 

[Shambles]

Alright. I've got a modest HTPC setup that I built a couple years ago. I've got some money to devote to some basic upgrades for gaming. I'd like to reuse as many parts as possible (Power supply, HDD, Disc Drive, Case, Fans, etc.). My Current Specs:

CPU: AMD Athlon II X2 250
RAM: 2x1G DDR2
Mobo: Gigabyte GA-MA785GM-US2H
GPU: Radeon HD 4550
Power supply: 550W (not sure of brand)
OS: Windows 7 (64 bit)
Display native output resolution: 768p (aka "720p")

Not interested in messing with overclocking (too time consuming for what I want it for). My budget's in the neighborhood of $300-400. I figure I've got two basic routes: I could either just get more memory and a slightly better graphics card. Or I could get a whole new motherboard, processor, and memory (DDR3) along with a new graphics card. Mostly, I'd just like to play some PC-centric titles that I've missed over the past few years (Crysis, Dragon Age, Starcraft 2, The Witcher, etc). Something somewhat future-proof would be nice, but not necessary.

Also, just as important, I do all of my gaming in my living room sitting in a chair or on my couch. So using a standard wireless mouse and keyboard won't cut it for gaming. I know there are various "solutions" out there for lap gaming, but curious what some of you folks might use.

Upgrade the CPU to a Phenom II X4 925 and use the remaining money to buy a better GPU. Going to 4GB of memory is a good idea as well. This is the benefit of having viable upgrade path you can do a lot of improvement without spending a lot.

 

[Hazaro]

My rig upgrade is complete
Sorry for some of the off color or poor shots, it was 4am and the lights in my room are not bright at all.

Old Parts:

ASUS P5B
Intel E7200 @ 3.8Ghz
Corsair XMS 2x2GB

Resued parts:

Corsair 520HX
Samsung 500GB
eVGA GTX 295
2x Samsung DVD Burners
ThermalRight Ultra Extreme 120 (1156 adapter)
2x Lian Li 120mm Fans
ICD7 Diamond Thermal Paste
ASUS Xonar DG Sound Card
Audio Technica ATH-AD700
RocketFish case (Lian-Li)

New Parts:

Intel 2500K
ASUS P8P67 PRO
G.Skill 1333 CL9 SNIPER 2x4GB
2x Scythe Kama 900RPM 120mm Fans
Samsung 2TB F4 5400RPM

Click for full photo album.

 

[conman]

Upgrade the CPU to a Phenom II X4 925 and use the remaining money to buy a better GPU. Going to 4GB of memory is a good idea as well. This is the benefit of having viable upgrade path you can do a lot of improvement without spending a lot.

Cool. I'd assumed that I'd need to upgrade my motherboard by now, so I hadn't even considered upgrading my processor alone. Easy solution! Thanks.

 

[longdi]

awesome hazaro how do you fine the upgraded speeds?
can do with some wire management, i like to coil up extra wires, wire tie them and chuck the roll into small spaces instead of stretching them out.

 

[The Big Rig]

Haz, how are you liking that F4? I've used mine mainly for storage, but that drive is an amazing deal.

 

[Hazaro]

awesome hazaro how do you fine the upgraded speeds?
can do with some wire management, i like to coil up extra wires, wire tie them and chuck the roll into small spaces instead of stretching them out.

18 fps (on single gpu on XP) to ~45 fps (SLi of course) on Crysis. It's an entirely difference experience with the minimum frames so high as well. Using Realifesis and Xtreme Particle mod 7.

Played first mission on Delta and even though I've played the level 20 times, I made sure to use a different tactic or spot for each major engagement. This game is so good.

The PSU wires aren't as tight or hidden as they could be since I'll likely be undoing them soon, and there is not a real area to hide them. If I tighten the PCI-E power ones anymore, the GTX 295 actually leans down so that's not good

Haz, how are you liking that F4? I've used mine mainly for storage, but that drive is an amazing deal.

Its quite snappy. Very quiet too. Whole computer is actually. These Scythe fans are incredible.

But MAKE SURE TO UPGRADE THE FIRMWARE. Or you can have data loss. If you run IDE mode you are ok though.

 

[The Big Rig]

But MAKE SURE TO UPGRADE THE FIRMWARE. Or you can have data loss. If you run IDE mode you are ok though.

Ok, is there a way to do this that doesn't involve booting off a usb drive?

 

[Hazaro]

Ok, is there a way to do this that doesn't involve booting off a usb drive?

Not easily no.
Just go with the USB route, it'll take you 2 minutes.

Copy your USB stuff to your HDD. Make it bootable, run it, format and put your data back.

 

[flipswitch]

Is the AMD 5690 a decent upgrade to the 4890 ( which I currently have) and does the i7 920 motherboard have all the connections for the card to connect to?. I read the the card is bulky as well, anyone have any issues with it fitting in their case?



thanks.

 

[Neiteio]

OK! Someone please tell me what to buy to make a capable gaming laptop! Take $1,500 and tell me what to buy at ncixus.com (they have a custom build option where'll piece it together and ship it to me).

Side note: It'd be cool to have a solid-state drive supplementing a HDD, the former for everyday operations, the second for media storage. Also: a CD/DVD/Blu-ray reader/writer would be cool.

I want to play everything at high settings and fast speeds.

 

[IrishNinja]

...goddammit.

so, my SG-07 fit with the new cooler after all (success!), even ended up just barely not touching the GPU, we put a piece of thick paper in there to block the two off for the meantime...

temps are nice at the moment:

...but 15 minutes into a prime95 test (realtemps showed a high of 70c), boom, my system reset again. what the fuck, man?! should i be thinking mobo or PSU or wha? i didnt see when it came back to life, but no doubt it was the usual Checksum error/last known good screen...what can i do to rule out/narrow down the issue? should i be thinking about flashing/updating BIOS, or is there something else im missing?

*edit: could it just be prime? i ran intel burn 2.5 and did ok:

not sure what my window is for OCing with both tests getting to the low 70s, but im optimistic, once i sort out what's been going wrong. gonna go play some games & such and see if it shuts down.

 

[ElyrionX]

So where are we now with SSDs? Last I checked was October last year. Any major advancement since or any expected breakthroughs coming? Are SLCs still ridculously expensive?

 

[fushi]

So where are we now with SSDs? Last I checked was October last year. Any major advancement since or any expected breakthroughs coming? Are SLCs still ridculously expensive?

Sidenote: I bought myself a 60GB one for W7 and applications and I now have only 6GB of free space left.

 

[drkOne]

I was looking into getting a 60/64GB from either OCZ or Corsair, mostly for OS and heavily used software and a 500GB Momentus XT for all the games and the rest of applications left.
I'm currently using 1TB 7.2K for everything but media storage.

Question is, is the XT really worth it? I use around 300-350GB for OS+installed games+applications. Will I be able to find SSDs with that capacity going for £200 before the end of the year? As that's what I'll end up paying for the SSD+XT.

 

[Ikuu]

Anyone else with a 2500k that has one core running much hotter than the others. I've reapplied the thermal paste and reset the heatsink and still have one core that runs about 10c hotter than the others, though sometimes the others run at the same temp.

 

[-viper-]

should i buy my 2500k pc now or should i buy it in a few months? reason i ask is whether the prices will drop in the space of 3 months.

 

[I should be doing hw]

There needs to be a better question answering system in this thread, I have to say.

 

[jiien]

Anyone else with a 2500k that has one core running much hotter than the others, I've reapplied the thermal paste and reset the heatsink and still have one core that runs about 10c (though sometimes the others run at the same temp) hotter than the others.

Yes, happens with mine too.

 

[coopolon]

Is the AMD 5690 a decent upgrade to the 4890 ( which I currently have) and does the i7 920 motherboard have all the connections for the card to connect to?. I read the the card is bulky as well, anyone have any issues with it fitting in their case?



thanks.

I have newer heard of a 5690 before, but assuming you mean 5670, no, that is definitely not a good option.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-radeon-hd-6870-geforce-gtx-570,2834-7.html

Check out that article for good upgrade advice.

 

[Krauser Kat]

i have 1 core that is 3-5c cooler than the other not hotter.

 

[Prezhulio]

so after the success of building my rig in august, my brother is going to have me do one for him over the next couple weeks.

couple quick questions -

anyway to get windows 7 for less than $100?

other than the i5 2500k i'm picking up, any good deals currently being run at microcenter?

the gtx 560 - any pricing details yet/what places will it be distributed on release/are graphics cards usually in short supply on release?

is the cm 690ii still a good case?

 

[toastyToast]

anyway to get windows 7 for less than $100?

Are you a college student or do you know college student? If you know or are someone doing comp science or some sort of engineering you should be able to get some really cheap software. I managed to get a Win 7 Professional key for $10. I'd be willing to help out but it's limited to one key per student.

 

[JoeBoy101]

Just a problem with my P67 board this morning. Failed to post and got a Memory Error LED on the board when trying a cold boot. Removed one stick and it booted, but gave an overclocking failure notice for the BIOS. I went digging on the Net and found out this has been an issue popping up for alot of people who are NOT using 1333 memory, but 1600 or higher.

In case anyone has this issue, here's a link to the thread on the Asus boards and the fix for it as well:

Linkie

1. Turn OFF the computer and unplug the power cord.
2. Move the jumper cap from pins 1-2 (default) to pins 2-3. Keep the cap on pins 2-3 for about 5–10 seconds, then move the cap back to pins 1-2.

3. Plug the power cord and turn ON the computer.
4. Hold down the "Del" key during the boot process and enter BIOS setup to re-enter data.

FYI if necessary. Seems to have worked for me.

 

[Prezhulio]

Are you a college student or do you know college student? If you know or are someone doing comp science or some sort of engineering you should be able to get some really cheap software. I managed to get a Win 7 Professional key for $10. I'd be willing to help out but it's limited to one key per student.

will do, my brother in law is in school, think i can get it from him.

the seasonic in hizaro's cheap build (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151094) should be able to run on an i5 2500k + gtx 460 no problem, right?

 

[undu]

will do, my brother in law is in school, think i can get it from him.

the seasonic in hizaro's cheap build (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151094) should be able to run on an i5 2500k + gtx 460 no problem, right?

yep, I'm going for a build with the same components (if the GTX 560 is too pricey at launch)

 

[ashbash159]

What would you say is the best GPU on the market today?

How well does it run, say Crysis at absolute maximum settings at 1080p?

I'm just curious as I would like to know since I don't read about GPUs much.

Also is there any expected future releases for GPUs which could be better than the best one there is today?

 

[The Nature Roy]

I had a decent gaming PC probably 13 years ago, but years and years of consoling gaming prior and since have left me soft and lazy and that's unlikely to change.

I'm toying with the idea of getting a decent gaming rig so long as it's simple and reasonably affordable.

I'd like a computer that will be able to play Crysis 2 in solid fashion. I don't need it to be maxed out in every way, but it needs to blow away the console versions to make it worth my while, otherwise I'm reasonably happy to stick with my 360 and PS3.

What would be the easiest way to go about that in a way in which I would get the most bang for the buck? In other words, the perfect balance of labor un-intensive, affordable, and effective. And keep in mind, I have zero clue what's what for processors and graphics cards and all that these days. It's basically different language since I've been paying attention.

If anyone is willing to lend some advice or at least point me in the right direction, I'd be very appreciative. Thanks!

 

[Azzurri]

Put the rig together but having problems.

First, when I shut it down or restart it it won't turn on until like the third time, e.g it will start up for 3 secs and then restart and does it like 3-4 times, then it will finally boot.

Second, I can't OC it, it tells me OC has failed even when I just bump it 100hz.

Third, today when i was on youtube all I gto was a green screen, so I tried a game and it was fuzzy, so I restarted and windows installed 1 update, rebooted and tried again and now everything is fine.

Man it's pissing me off.

 

[CrocMother]

So do you guys think that $600 build would be able to play Skyrim?

Been a console gamer forever but want to switch to PC gaming, just makes more sense. Problem is, I am a total novice. I look at those parts and just see random numbers and letters.

 

[Mr_Brit]

So do you guys think that $600 build would be able to play Skyrim?

Been a console gamer forever but want to switch to PC gaming, just makes more sense. Problem is, I am a total novice. I look at those parts and just see random numbers and letters.

More than good enough. At 1080p it will provide better frame rates and graphics than consoles.

 

[Mr_Brit]

What would you say is the best GPU on the market today?

How well does it run, say Crysis at absolute maximum settings at 1080p?

I'm just curious as I would like to know since I don't read about GPUs much.

Also is there any expected future releases for GPUs which could be better than the best one there is today?

GTX 580 is currently the best. New GPUs are expected in Q3 2011 and will provide a big boost in performance over the current ones.

 

[LiquidMetal14]

GTX 580 is currently the best. New GPUs are expected in Q3 2011 and will provide a big boost in performance over the current ones.

At what price? I'm not going to buy a 3-400 dollar card and then buy another 500 dollar piece. I want performance at a budget price.

 

[ashbash159]

GTX 580 is currently the best. New GPUs are expected in Q3 2011 and will provide a big boost in performance over the current ones.

Wow that's a lot of money. Is there anything similar for maybe £200 instead of £400? I'm guessing at this price running Crysis at 1080p and 60fps is impossible. Wow Crysis is stupid.

 

[a176]

yep, I'm going for a build with the same components (if the GTX 560 is too pricey at launch)

dont expect anything anywhere near 460 prices. youre looking at $250-300.

 

[Mr_Brit]

Wow that's a lot of money. Is there anything similar for maybe £200 instead of £400?I'm guessing at this price running Crysis at 1080p and 60fps is impossible. Wow Crysis is stupid.

Your best bet would be a 2GB 6950 for around £230 or you can wait for the GTX 560 in a few days which should come in at closer to £200. They'll run it above 30FPS at 1080p which is more than good enough for Crysis as it feels like a 60FPS game thanks to the motion blur.

P.S Crysis isn't badly coded, it's just years ahead of its time. Overall it's still the best looking game ever released nearly 3.5 years after launch.

 

[ashbash159]

Your best bet would be a 2GB 6950 for around £230 or you can wait for the GTX 560 in a few days which should come in at closer to £200.

What would you think the 560 would run Crysis at max at 1080p at? I literally just now found out about it and it seems worth waiting for.

Edit: I should say I have a 5750 at the moment and it can't run Crysis to my liking and it's my 18th birthday soon and just wondering if I should get a really nice GPU so I can run games like Crysis at amazing quality.

 

[Joe Molotov]

What would you think the 560 would run Crysis at max at 1080p at? I literally just now found out about it and it seems worth waiting for.

I have a 570, and I still can't run Crysis maxed at 60fps.

 

[The Nature Roy]

So do you guys think that $600 build would be able to play Skyrim?

Been a console gamer forever but want to switch to PC gaming, just makes more sense. Problem is, I am a total novice. I look at those parts and just see random numbers and letters.

Yeah, what he said. If you had $600-700 to spend and were starting from scratch, what would you buy?

 

[Stealth]

What would you say is the best GPU on the market today?

How well does it run, say Crysis at absolute maximum settings at 1080p?

I'm just curious as I would like to know since I don't read about GPUs much.

Also is there any expected future releases for GPUs which could be better than the best one there is today?

GTX 580. For a list of best cards for the money, check Tom's Hardware:
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-graphics-card-radeon-hd-6870-geforce-gtx-570,2834.html

So do you guys think that $600 build would be able to play Skyrim?

Yes. But it likely won't play it at 1080p. For a more future proof build you need to spend around $900 on the low end. You're in AMD territory at $600. Check the front page for a recommended build.

Anyone else with a 2500k that has one core running much hotter than the others. I've reapplied the thermal paste and reset the heatsink and still have one core that runs about 10c hotter than the others, though sometimes the others run at the same temp.

10C is abnormal and unsafe if you plan on attempting to OC. What kind of heatsink do you have and what case? You should only be seeing around 3-5C of separation in temperatures, at maximum, between cores.

I'll post a pic or something later of my build. Suffice it to say I went from 20fps in Black Ops to 125 with drops to 100... because that's what I set the limit at in the console. And that's without turboboost or and OC being done. So, yeah, I'm happy right now.

 

[Stealth]

Yeah, what he said. If you had $600-700 to spend and were starting from scratch, what would you buy?

Check the first post of this thread for the $600 build. With the extra cash, swap out the GTX 460 for either the 1GB version of the 460 or whatever you can afford that's better. Tom's has the best bang for the buck cards listed in the link I posted above.

 

[The Nature Roy]

Check the first post of this thread for the $600 build. With the extra cash, swap out the GTX 460 for either the 1GB version of the 460 or whatever you can afford that's better. Tom's has the best bang for the buck cards listed in the link I posted above.

Thanks! I guess I really should have started there. Apologies.

I know it's impossible to know until it comes out, but how well could the $600 build be expected to handle Crysis 2?

How about Crysis?

 

[CrocMother]

Thanks Stealth.

Gonna have to have patience and just wait until the rig I want (plays Skyrim at rec. settings) is cheaper($700 max). Until then, I think I am going to buy a used ps2 and play all the games I missed out on (I never had one).

 

[TheExodu5]

10C is abnormal and unsafe if you plan on attempting to OC. What kind of heatsink do you have and what case? You should only be seeing around 3-5C of separation in temperatures, at maximum, between cores.

It's actually pretty normal with Sandy Bridge, by the looks of it. I have a Thermalright Venomous X with 2x 800RPM fans in push-pull and Arctic MX-4 thermal paste. I still have the same issue. At 4.6GHz, temperatures range from 55-68C.

 

[Jin34]

It's actually pretty normal with Sandy Bridge, by the looks of it. I have a Thermalright Venomous X with 2x 800RPM fans in push-pull and Arctic MX-4 thermal paste. I still have the same issue. At 4.6GHz, temperatures range from 55-68C.

Perhaps a byproduct of OCing through Turbo instead of running all the cores at the same speed all the time.

 

[Ikuu]

From what I've heard on other forums it seems to be pretty normal, everything is running alright and my temps are pretty good so I'm not worried.