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[mclaren777]

Yeah. The only thing I am juggling is which case I like more. The HAF 912 is nice but I also like the Antec Three Hundred Illusion.

It's obviously your money but I wouldn't consider the 912 vs. 300 battle a fair fight. The modularity of the 912 HDD/DVD area is a huge factor and it also has other nice features like ample behind-MB space and a vent on the bottom for your PSU to draw in outside air.

Plus the 912 is $10 cheaper.

 

[mclaren777]

It's the one on this page but subsitute an MSI Hawk 1GB 460GTX for the other card.

Yeah, that's a good build. I have the MSI Cyclone 1GB and it's been great so far.

Do it!

 

[mclaren777]

@mclaren777 - You can use a windows 7 upgrade disc for a full install of windows? I'm trying to figure out if I should just buy a builders copy or go through my college.

Based on my experience, yes, installing directly from an upgrade disc works.

I had done a fair bit of research and I was worried that I would need to do the 'double install' trick. But I simply chose Custom (which is full install) and then typed in my 25-digit serial number. W7 activated when it booted up and everything has worked perfectly so far.

 

[mrklaw]

Any idea if there's a US equivalent to that CPU/Motherboard/RAM bundle?

As for a case.. check out this one (US Newegg link, I apologize). I think it fits all of your criteria.

no idea, sorry.

How about the Fractal design R3? Looks nice in white. A little deep (would like ot keep it under 40cm deep, but thats perhaps unlikely)

 

[knitoe]

Apparently the max possible WEI score is 7.9 so I'm feeling pretty good about my numbers.

Another observation: just installing W7U on my SDD has taken up about 36GB.

I'm guessing much of that is the paging file and other OS necessities but I was hoping it would be closer to 20GB. Oh well.

To make your SSD last longer, you want as little write to the drive as possible. Thus, disable paging on the SSD and put it on the other drive. Google for more SSD tweaks.

 

[Quake1028]

Build ordered!

 

[Corky]

can you have the pagefile on another HDD that doesn't have an os?

I have my w7 on my SSD atm but ever since programs starting freaking the fuck out I reenabled the pagefile but reading all this about longevity I want to have as little write on my ssd as possible. Any suggestions?

 

[mclaren777]

It turns out that I'm rather stupid.

W7 wasn't taking up 36GB--it was telling me that I had 36GB free (of roughly 60GB).

I moved the paging file to my HDD and now I have 42GB free. I just got fouled up by the way W7 communicates drive space.

 

[CrankyJay]

can you have the pagefile on another HDD that doesn't have an os?

I have my w7 on my SSD atm but ever since programs starting freaking the fuck out I reenabled the pagefile but reading all this about longevity I want to have as little write on my ssd as possible. Any suggestions?

Chances are you will buy a new drive before the SSD dies.

 

[Mr. Hyde]

Based on my experience, yes, installing directly from an upgrade disc works.

I had done a fair bit of research and I was worried that I would need to do the 'double install' trick. But I simply chose Custom (which is full install) and then typed in my 25-digit serial number. W7 activated when it booted up and everything has worked perfectly so far.

Oh, thanks. I qualify for the $67.00 dollar upgrade through microsoft, so I am just making sure I can use the upgrade disc on a new build.

 

[Schmattakopf]

Is a 30GB SSD not enough for the boot drive?

 

[2San]

So I am trying to overclock using the following guide:http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1578110

Looks simple enough(Probably going for a clock speed around 4.5ghz to 4.7ghz).

For some reason I don't have the turbo ratio option.

I have the p8p67 standard mobo. Does this mean I have to update my BIOS or can't I change the turbo ratio with my mobo.

 

[iNvid02]

Is a 30GB SSD not enough for the boot drive?

Solely as a boot drive its enough, but if you want to open programs quicker etc you'll need em installed on the drive, depending on what apps you use it might not be enough

 

[Gawaian]

So what is the consensus on the AMD hd 5850? Where I live it is cheaper than the 1 Gb gtx 460. Should I go for the 460?

 

[Raistlin]

Is a 30GB SSD not enough for the boot drive?

Solely as a boot drive its enough, but if you want to open programs quicker etc you'll need em installed on the drive, depending on what apps you use it might not be enough

Yeah. For something like a dedicated HTPC it makes sense - normal use PC, not so much.

To begin with SSD speed increases due to internal parallelism of the arrays. So all things being equal, the larger the drive the faster. With that in mind a 30GB drive is kind of pointless if speed is your concern. It's going to be the slowest SSD natively, plus there isn't room for applications. Poor use of money IMO. Well unless it's something where temperature is key (fanless HTPC, etc).

Striping two might get you closer to what you want, though price-wise a larger SSD may make more sense.

 

[n0n44m]

So I am trying to overclock using the following guide:http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1578110

Looks simple enough(Probably going for a clock speed around 4.5ghz to 4.7ghz).

For some reason I don't have the turbo ratio option.

I have the p8p67 standard mobo. Does this mean I have to update my BIOS or can't I change the turbo ratio with my mobo.

you do have a 2*00K cpu right?

did you grab the latest official bios yet? http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1578865

 

[prodystopian]

Newegg has C300 64gb SSD for $100

 

[HaRyu]

Okay GAF, my turn to get help.

Current Specs: P4 3.4GHz, 3 GB RAM, 500 GB SATA HD, DVD-writer, 23" LCD w/ max resolution of 1680x1050, Nvidia GeForce 8500 GT

Budget: US, budget of $700 w/c MUST include the price of Windows 7. Not a student, btw.

Main Use: Gaming. I'd also like to do PS2 emulation, some video editing, definitely something that can do video conversions, something able to convert and stream stuff on the fly to my PS3.

Monitor Resolution: 1680x1050, and yeah, I'll probably change this LCD, its looks like its going to die soon anyway. I'd LOVE to get a new LCD too, but considering my budget, I'm willing to wait, but its an option.

List SPECIFIC games that you MUST be able to play: Civ5, Portal 2 when it comes out, pretty much whatever is current right now or coming out in the immediate future, I'd like to be able to play, w/o any framerate issues.

Are reusing any parts?: DVD-writer definitely. Hard Drive will be moved to the new computer, either I'll get new hard drive or using this current one for the main drive, but would prefer a new HD. Monitor, Keyboard, and mouse being reused, as well as speakers.

When will you build?: If all goes well, I'm willing to pull the trigger and place an order sometime tommorrow, or over the weekend.

Will you be overclocking?: Nope.​

 

[2San]

you do have a 2*00K cpu right?

did you grab the latest official bios yet? http://hardforum.com/showthread.php?t=1578865

Yes I have a K chip(i5 2500k). Yeah, I'm guessing I have to update the bios. Thanks for the link these seem to be the latest.

 

[Nabs]

So what is the consensus on the AMD hd 5850? Where I live it is cheaper than the 1 Gb gtx 460. Should I go for the 460?

the 5850 is still a boss. unless you want to sli/cf, then you should go with the 460.

 

[knitoe]

can you have the pagefile on another HDD that doesn't have an os?

I have my w7 on my SSD atm but ever since programs starting freaking the fuck out I reenabled the pagefile but reading all this about longevity I want to have as little write on my ssd as possible. Any suggestions?

Yes. Disable it on SSD drive and set it on another drive.

 

[DangerStepp]

I currently have a GeForce 9800 GTX+ in a really nice rig.

Any suggestion on what to step up to? I feel it handles what I throw at it pretty well for the most part.

Has anybody had any experience with cyperpowerpc.com? Thinking about ordering a rig from there.

NO! DO NOT ORDER FROM HERE! Taking one look at their help forums will tell you all you need to know. It's an absolute nightmare. I actually ordered a PC to be built, read the forums, and promptly canceled.
I ended up building my own rig which was really rewarding, plus you learn a lot.

 

[mclaren777]

Okay GAF, my turn to get help.
Budget: US, budget of $700 w/c MUST include the price of Windows 7. Not a student, btw.

We just helped Gloomfire with a build and this is what it started as. Your budget is really limited, especially given that you also need W7.

 

[Wrekt]

Anybody have any experience with the "Bill Me Later" payment plan on Newegg? All of my supplemental income is going towards my March wedding. I know I'll have plenty of cash available after the wedding but I don't know how much longer I can put up with my current rig. I'm trying to be patient but Sandy Bridge is making it hard. For reference my current specs are:

AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+
Asus A8N-SLI Premium
2 GB of DDR1
GeForce 8600GTS

So if I order $900 worth of parts and pay it off in 2 months, will my final bill just be $900 or is there some kind of hidden fees or interest there? Any annual fee on that Bill Me Later account? Basically I'm just trying to see if ordering it early will cost me any additional money over just ordering it all on my debit card right now.

 

[mclaren777]

Anybody have any experience with the "Bill Me Later" payment plan on Newegg? All of my supplemental income is going towards my March wedding.

Just wait until after the wedding. It's one less financial concern to worry about and one less thing to have to move/rearrange.

 

[The Big Rig]

Newegg has C300 64gb SSD for $100

Any other opinions on this one? It looks like a really good deal.

 

[Schmattakopf]

Solely as a boot drive its enough, but if you want to open programs quicker etc you'll need em installed on the drive, depending on what apps you use it might not be enough

Yeah. For something like a dedicated HTPC it makes sense - normal use PC, not so much.

To begin with SSD speed increases due to internal parallelism of the arrays. So all things being equal, the larger the drive the faster. With that in mind a 30GB drive is kind of pointless if speed is your concern. It's going to be the slowest SSD natively, plus there isn't room for applications. Poor use of money IMO. Well unless it's something where temperature is key (fanless HTPC, etc).

Striping two might get you closer to what you want, though price-wise a larger SSD may make more sense.

Alright, thanks.

 

[knitoe]

Any other opinions on this one? It looks like a really good deal.

Super fast read speeds, but write speed is severely lacking. I went with OCZ Vertex 2 60GB instead fast with read and write. You can get it for $99 after rebate.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...0227550&cm_re=ocz_60gb-_-20-227-550-_-Product

 

[ChoklitReign]

We just helped Gloomfire with a build and this is what it started as. Your budget is really limited, especially given that you also need W7.

What's the difference between the Cyclone 460 768MB and the Twin Frozr 460 768MB when the latter is cheaper?

 

[Oreoleo]

Anybody have any experience with the "Bill Me Later" payment plan on Newegg? All of my supplemental income is going towards my March wedding. I know I'll have plenty of cash available after the wedding but I don't know how much longer I can put up with my current rig. I'm trying to be patient but Sandy Bridge is making it hard. For reference my current specs are:

AMD Athlon 64 X2 3800+
Asus A8N-SLI Premium
2 GB of DDR1
GeForce 8600GTS

So if I order $900 worth of parts and pay it off in 2 months, will my final bill just be $900 or is there some kind of hidden fees or interest there? Any annual fee on that Bill Me Later account? Basically I'm just trying to see if ordering it early will cost me any additional money over just ordering it all on my debit card right now.

Nope. Bill Me Later is 6 months no payment no interest IIRC. Pay it off in 2 months and you're golden. I've used it in the past with no issues.

 

[TheExodu5]

Unless you've got really good case airflow, you're better off with the Twin Frozr.

 

[Snuggles]

Hmm...

I'm trying to trim the cost of my rig and the ASRock Intel Motherboard that McLaren listed above me is $60 cheaper than the one I have right now, the ASUS Intel Motherboard.


Would it be a good idea to go with the cheaper motherboard, or should I just suck it up and spend the extra money and have something better for the long term? I can afford it but I am going way over my original budget. This shit is expensive yo.

 

[TheExodu5]

The ASRock is probably fine.

What are your cutter specs? I can give you options for trimming it down.

 

[Veal]

Are temps in 80's generally safe for a GPU? I was dabbling with overclocking with the AMD Overdrive utility and in the Metro 2033 demo, my temps hit around 81 C. Is this ok, or should I just sit the fuck down?

Specs:
AMD Phenom II X4 970
ASUS M4A88TD-V EVO/USB3
Corsair XMS3 1333 4GB(2x2GB)
XFX Radeon 6870 (oc'd to 950mhz core, stock RAM at 1050mhz)
HAF X case

 

[CrankyJay]

Are temps in 80's generally safe for a GPU? I was dabbling with overclocking with the AMD Overdrive utility and in the Metro 2033 demo, my temps hit around 81 C. Is this ok, or should I just sit the fuck down?

Specs:
AMD Phenom II X4 970
ASUS M4A88TD-V EVO/USB3
Corsair XMS3 1333 4GB(2x2GB)
XFX Radeon 6870 (oc'd to 950mhz core, stock RAM at 1050mhz)
HAF X case

Um...do you mean 81F? 81C is like 170F.

 

[Teknopathetic]

"Um...do you mean 81F? 81C is like 170F. 180 is considered boiling."

80C, depending on the card, is an appropriate temperature.

That sounds a little hot for a 6870, though. Though, you did OC it some.

 

[CrankyJay]

"Um...do you mean 81F? 81C is like 170F. 180 is considered boiling."

80C, depending on the card, is an appropriate temperature.

212 is boiling btw.

 

[Nabs]

Are temps in 80's generally safe for a GPU? I was dabbling with overclocking with the AMD Overdrive utility and in the Metro 2033 demo, my temps hit around 81 C. Is this ok, or should I just sit the fuck down?

depends on the gpu. what are your fan speeds when you hit 81c? if they aren't kicking in, you could get msi afterburner and create a fan profile. have it blast whenever it hits a certain temp.

 

[Veal]

"Um...do you mean 81F? 81C is like 170F. 180 is considered boiling."

80C, depending on the card, is an appropriate temperature.

That sounds a little hot for a 6870, though. Though, you did OC it some.

Yeah sorry! I'm new. Even though I really like the performance of the card at stock settings, if the ability to add more performance is there and won't kill my machine, why not? But those temps are a bit high for this card? Would you recommend toning it back down to stock?

 

[Dabookerman]

Hey guys. Is there a UK based website that offers finance/pay monthly options, preferably interest free. I know ebuyer did so, but don't appear to anymore

 

[TheExodu5]

80-85C is fine. It starts getting dangerous when you're passing 90-95c. Old single slot cards like the 8800GT used to run at 95C.

 

[Teknopathetic]

"Yeah sorry! I'm new. Even though I really like the performance of the card at stock settings, if the ability to add more performance is there and won't kill my machine, why not? But those temps are a bit high for this card? Would you recommend toning it back down to stock?"

Hey, if it works and you're getting no artifacts :shrug:.

 

[DrBaalzamon]

Few questions! As mentioned before, I have a Phenom ii x2 560 unlocked to x4. I've OC'd it a bit to 3.6ghz from its stock 3.3. I've been running with Cool and Quiet off via the bios.

Is this preferred or should I just leave it on so it saves power/stays cooler when not fully ramped up? I've read conflicting things online. Some say it messes up the OC or causes instability etc. What say you GAF.

Secondly, I have a Cooler Master Hyper n520. Its a 3pin fan so basically it runs fullspeed always. Is this alright, or should I manually dial it down with Speedfan and inversely turn it up when I game to max? The sound doesnt bother me THAT much but more of a worry of it burning out because its running at its max RPM always. thanks again!

 

[Veal]

depends on the gpu. what are your fan speeds when you hit 81c? if they aren't kicking in, you could get msi afterburner and create a fan profile. have it blast whenever it hits a certain temp.

Ok. Fan speeds topped out at 34% during the heaviest parts of the demo. Activity jumped around from 74% to 98% percent at times. The temps stayed at 81C and below.

 

[TheExodu5]

Ok. Fan speeds topped out at 34% during the heaviest parts of the demo. Activity jumped around from 74% to 98% percent at times. The temps stayed at 81C and below.

That sounds more than acceptable. You're fine.

There's nothig wrong with running a hotter card to achieve low noise output (35% fan speed should be relatively inaudible in a quiet system). If you're uncomfortable with the temps, you could force the fan speeds higher.

Nothing wrong with <85C temps at all.

 

[xero273]

Just want to get a final check from gaf to see if this is good. Also, I remember a couple pages back someone saying AS5 wasn't good anymore. What is the thermal paste I should be using? thanks.

 

[TheExodu5]

Arctic MX-4

I would get the 7200RPM Samsung or a Seagate to use for an OS drive, if you're not planning on an SSD.

Also, the cooler you selected is great, but probably overkill for your needs. You can do with a $30 Cooler Master Hyper 212+.

 

[Schmattakopf]

Yes! After four tries, I have successfully reserved my 690 II at Micro Center.

So I've got that, optical drive, 4GB RAM, PSU, 2500k and mobo.

All that's left is the drive, cooler and probably a 6950.

This has been going on for way too long...

 

[CrankyJay]

Just want to get a final check from gaf to see if this is good. Also, I remember a couple pages back someone saying AS5 wasn't good anymore. What is the thermal paste I should be using? thanks.

Wouldn't you rather have the 7200 on that Samsung drive?

edit: Just noticed it was 2TB.

 

[Wrekt]

Nope. Bill Me Later is 6 months no payment no interest IIRC. Pay it off in 2 months and you're golden. I've used it in the past with no issues.

Awesome. Thanks.

Edit: Though I think I'll wait for the new Intel SSDs. I may not even need to use it. I wish they would release a concrete date.