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[jambo]

Thanks for the link mkenyon

 

[Appleman]

Per the OP. Careful with going dual cards, it's not plug and play. You have to be constantly on top of drivers, knowing whether or not to update, and having all of the right profiles. There will be a ton of games out there that you will either have to create your own profiles for or simply disable SLI to have it work properly.

There's really no other option in his situation though, other than a marginal upgrade to a single GTX580... All of the SLi issues plague the GTX590 as well

 

[Zoolader]

Per the OP. Careful with going dual cards, it's not plug and play. You have to be constantly on top of drivers, knowing whether or not to update, and having all of the right profiles. There will be a ton of games out there that you will either have to create your own profiles for or simply disable SLI to have it work properly.

I thought the latest drivers were updated with the latest profiles, or am I wrong? I have the latest Nvidia driver v.275.33. Is there a place were I'm suppose to download updated profiles? Is it on a per game bases, or does the newest profiles include more than one game? I'm confused now...=(

 

[ss_lemonade]

One thing about putting two GTX 570s in SLI. I currently have a Galaxy 570, so would it be fine to put an EVGA 570 in with it? As far as I can tell the core clock and memory clock are identical so I assume it's all good to go.

You'll be fine

 

[Chesskid1]

alright guys just installed to the 6850, upgrading from the 4870.

my 3dmark vantage went from 10,000~ to 12,000~ about right?

http://3dmark.com/3dmv/3328189
http://3dmark.com/3dmv/3331752


I tried the Resident Evil 5 benchmark and it was went from 56.2 FPS to 72ish.

I also tried the Call of Pripyat Benchmark or whatever, and it seemed to stay exactly the same. I left it on medium settings on 4870 and 6850 so idk.

is everything lining up to be about right?

i guess i should try witcher 2 or such, i could barely run it on high, had to drop resolution and a bunch of settings. i dunno, doesn't seem like much of a increase going up 2 gens. it could be my resolution/cpu i suppose? not really sure.

 

[- J - D -]

Hi guys, Windows 7 question. If I want to re-use my retail Windows 7 Pro for my new build, would I have to remove it from my current pc? I'm not moving its hard drive over, so essentially I want to do a clean install on my new build, on a new hard drive. Or would it be easier to move my current hard drive (with W7 installed on) to the new pc build?

I've read around but can't find a definite answer. Some say you can only have one W7 license running, another says it's tied to the mobo, etc etc.

 

[knitoe]

Hi guys, Windows 7 question. If I want to re-use my retail Windows 7 Pro for my new build, would I have to remove it from my current pc? I'm not moving its hard drive over, so essentially I want to do a clean install on my new build, on a new hard drive. Or would it be easier to move my current hard drive (with W7 installed on) to the new pc build?

I've read around but can't find a definite answer. Some say you can only have one W7 license running, another says it's tied to the mobo, etc etc.

If you change the MB, you probably need to call Microsoft.

 

[- J - D -]

If you change the MB, you probably need to call Microsoft.

So would I have to do a complete wipe/removal of Windows 7 from my current pc? I have a Vista disc I could revert the current OS to.

Thanks for your reply.

 

[knitoe]

So would I have to do a complete wipe/removal of Windows 7 from my current pc? I have a Vista disc I could revert the current OS to.

Thanks for your reply.

No, but once Microsoft links it to your new MB / computer, old one shouldn't be able to update anymore.

 

[Cptkrush]

Hi guys, Windows 7 question. If I want to re-use my retail Windows 7 Pro for my new build, would I have to remove it from my current pc? I'm not moving its hard drive over, so essentially I want to do a clean install on my new build, on a new hard drive. Or would it be easier to move my current hard drive (with W7 installed on) to the new pc build?

I've read around but can't find a definite answer. Some say you can only have one W7 license running, another says it's tied to the mobo, etc etc.

I did this when i built my pc, i used the same HD but i had to wipe it because windows just wouldn't start. I could never get it to activate until I tried the activation by phone option. Worked right away. On my brother's pc, he just swapped his HD from his old pc into the new one and it worked without any issues, so I guess it varies.

 

[larvi]

Hi guys, Windows 7 question. If I want to re-use my retail Windows 7 Pro for my new build, would I have to remove it from my current pc? I'm not moving its hard drive over, so essentially I want to do a clean install on my new build, on a new hard drive. Or would it be easier to move my current hard drive (with W7 installed on) to the new pc build?

I've read around but can't find a definite answer. Some say you can only have one W7 license running, another says it's tied to the mobo, etc etc.

If it's a full retail verison (not OEM) you can install it fresh on a new computer without issue. If you leave the current computer running and on the internet you will eventually run into a problem because you have 2 computers sharing the same key.

 

[- J - D -]

Thanks for the replies, knitoe, Cptkrush and larvi. Very useful info. It's a full retail copy of Win7 Pro, so hopefully I won't run into any issues.

I'd rather not completely wipe the current drive on my old pc just in case I need to go back to it someday.

 

[Cptkrush]

I have another question concerning the explosion of my Power Supply:
Was this due to my recent overclock and stress testing? I'm sure it was a contributing factor, but i need to know if it will affect my next psu in the same way. Since i'm actually getting a high quality psu this time will I be ok?

My old psu was an "Ultra" brand 550 Watt and only had a 30a 12v rail so it was shit, and I knew it was shit but it was my only option a year ago when i knew nothing about this sort of thing. Now I know, never buy generic, and always look for japanese capacitors and continuous power.

 

[Chesskid1]

alrite after playing around with the 6850 i'm starting to see the gains

i can now run witcher 2 at 2560x1600, my 4870 was like dieing. all high specs, disabled AA/SSAO and it's a solid 30 FPS. i tried team fortress 2 and it was basically 130FPS with everything.

anyways, does anyone else have a 6000 series card?

what settings do you use? tesselation, AMD optimized or application controlled, then all the numbers under it?

what about antialiasing mode should i use?

i know all about those other settings, but i don't know about these new techs.

 

[Horsemama1956]

alright guys just installed to the 6850, upgrading from the 4870.

my 3dmark vantage went from 10,000~ to 12,000~ about right?

http://3dmark.com/3dmv/3328189
http://3dmark.com/3dmv/3331752


I tried the Resident Evil 5 benchmark and it was went from 56.2 FPS to 72ish.

I also tried the Call of Pripyat Benchmark or whatever, and it seemed to stay exactly the same. I left it on medium settings on 4870 and 6850 so idk.

is everything lining up to be about right?

i guess i should try witcher 2 or such, i could barely run it on high, had to drop resolution and a bunch of settings. i dunno, doesn't seem like much of a increase going up 2 gens. it could be my resolution/cpu i suppose? not really sure.

Did you reinstall the newest drivers(11.6) after removing the previous ones? Vantage should be about 14k at stock. I think Resident Evil should be higher as well.

Check out Radeon Pro and read the guide. Will let you set custom profiles for specific games with different settings. For tessellation I think the best setting is application controlled.

 

[knitoe]

I have another question concerning the explosion of my Power Supply:
Was this due to my recent overclock and stress testing? I'm sure it was a contributing factor, but i need to know if it will affect my next psu in the same way. Since i'm actually getting a high quality psu this time will I be ok?

My old psu was an "Ultra" brand 550 Watt and only had a 30a 12v rail so it was shit, and I knew it was shit but it was my only option a year ago when i knew nothing about this sort of thing. Now I know, never buy generic, and always look for japanese capacitors and continuous power.

That is a good assumption. Overclocking and stress testing can really push your PSU. A crappy one could easily fail, and even a good one can go long term. Many people are fine running a PSU at 80% load long term. Personally, I try to stick to 60% load. Most PSU are most efficient at 50% load.

 

[knitoe]

alrite after playing around with the 6850 i'm starting to see the gains

i can now run witcher 2 at 2560x1600, my 4870 was like dieing. all high specs, disabled AA/SSAO and it's a solid 30 FPS. i tried team fortress 2 and it was basically 130FPS with everything.

anyways, does anyone else have a 6000 series card?

what settings do you use? tesselation, AMD optimized or application controlled, then all the numbers under it?

what about antialiasing mode should i use?

i know all about those other settings, but i don't know about these new techs.

At that resolution, you should have gone with 2GB 6970 / 6950. I would leave all those CCC settings at default. Frame rate would probably be worst if you mess with them.

 

[Red Blaster]

So I removed some of the sound dampeners from my Fractal R3 and temps dropped a little bit but I'm still a good 8-10 degrees hotter than what most people around the net are posting for i7 2600s under load (what's the max operating temperature on these things anyway?). I'm not using a fancy 212 cooler or anything but the stock heatsink is installed correctly, the pins are popping out the back the right way as per the manual. Would adding a top case fan significantly help things?

 

[imoTEP12]

So I removed some of the sound dampeners from my Fractal R3 and temps dropped a little bit but I'm still a good 8-10 degrees hotter than what most people around the net are posting for i7 2600s under load (what's the max operating temperature on these things anyway?). I'm not using a fancy 212 cooler or anything but the stock heatsink is installed correctly, the pins are popping out the back the right way as per the manual. Would adding a top case fan significantly help things?

I wouldn't mind getting some advice on this as well because I am somehwat in the same boat.

 

[knitoe]

So I removed some of the sound dampeners from my Fractal R3 and temps dropped a little bit but I'm still a good 8-10 degrees hotter than what most people around the net are posting for i7 2600s under load. I'm not using a fancy 212 cooler or anything but the stock heatsink is installed correctly, the pins are popping out the back the right way as per the manual. Would adding a top case fan significantly help things?

Open the side panel and see if the temps are better. If yes, adding more fans => better airflow will help.

 

[Hazaro]

I dont have anymore psus unfortunately, thanks for the advice, i'm ordering my new one now, and getting ready to look over the motherboard.

A motherboard can go bad and cause the PSU to go bad as well.
Check the capacitors on the motherboard to make sure none are bulging or burst.

If the smell is coming from the PSU it is probably that though.

alright guys just installed to the 6850, upgrading from the 4870.

my 3dmark vantage went from 10,000~ to 12,000~ about right?

http://3dmark.com/3dmv/3328189
http://3dmark.com/3dmv/3331752

3dmark loves CPU to boost score.
If you are on 8.8 I'd update your drivers too.

I have another question concerning the explosion of my Power Supply:
Was this due to my recent overclock and stress testing? I'm sure it was a contributing factor, but i need to know if it will affect my next psu in the same way. Since i'm actually getting a high quality psu this time will I be ok?

My old psu was an "Ultra" brand 550 Watt and only had a 30a 12v rail so it was shit, and I knew it was shit but it was my only option a year ago when i knew nothing about this sort of thing. Now I know, never buy generic, and always look for japanese capacitors and continuous power.

Absolutely. Overclocking and running a stress test would put another 50W at least compared to what you run normally.

Now you know to not buy below average PSU's.

That is a good assumption. Overclocking and stress testing can really push your PSU. A crappy one could easily fail, and even a good one can go long term. Many people are fine running a PSU at 80% load long term. Personally, I try to stick to 60% load. Most PSU are most efficient at 50% load.

Good ones only vary 1-2% over a very large 30-80% curve so it usually is not a big deal.
Still if that's how you like to run it, then by all means.

Overclocked 2500K + 2x Overclocked 6950's = Under 500W draw
Granted a TON of that is from the 12V rail and you wouldn't want a 550W powering that.

 

[Gvaz]

What's a powerful Nvidia card that doesn't require an arm and a leg to power (both idle and load) and is somewhat quiet?

I think my next system I'm going for watercooling because my current setup is too damn loud.

 

[Red Blaster]

Open the side panel and see if the temps are better. If yes, adding more fans => better airflow will help.

Thanks I'll try that. Also, will I know just from normal use if the CPU cooling/airflow is inadequate or is it something I'd only be able to tell from monitoring temp programs?

 

[Cptkrush]

That is a good assumption. Overclocking and stress testing can really push your PSU. A crappy one could easily fail, and even a good one can go long term. Many people are fine running a PSU at 80% load long term. Personally, I try to stick to 60% load. Most PSU are most efficient at 50% load.

That's good to know, I picked up the Antec HCG-750 and I think it has something like 89% efficient, not sure what it means but it seems 100 times better than a no name crap psu.

 

[Hazaro]

What's a powerful Nvidia card that doesn't require an arm and a leg to power (both idle and load) and is somewhat quiet?

I think my next system I'm going for watercooling because my current setup is too damn loud.

You don't need to go water to have a very quiet PC.

Also fill out the list in the OP.

That's good to know, I picked up the Antec HCG-750 and I think it has something like 89% efficient, not sure what it means but it seems 100 times better than a no name crap psu.

HCG is a good line, not great. 750W if probably super overkill for what you have though.
*I only say this because I think it's a Delta unit. Japanese caps are good. Reg seems fine.

 

[mkenyon]

What's a powerful Nvidia card that doesn't require an arm and a leg to power (both idle and load) and is somewhat quiet?

I think my next system I'm going for watercooling because my current setup is too damn loud.

Sounds like you want an AMD card with those requirements. Nvidia cards are still very power hungry. The 560ti or GTX460 might fit the bill though.

 

[Cptkrush]

HCG is a good line. 750W if probably super overkill for what you have though.

I know, i know. I'm going to be getting a 6950 soon and upgrading my cpu and motherboard in november(if the dozers are out by then), possibly adding a second 6950 by then, I just want to be ready ya know?
when i did the psu calc with my current setup i got something like 384, which was higher than what my now deceased one was able to do continuously. I just did one with my current setup and two 6950s comes to 591, not sure how much power the dozers will draw but hopefully it's not overkill by then haha.

Any suggestions for a better unit around the same price range?
Oops nevermind, newegg just shipped it.

 

[knitoe]

Good ones only vary 1-2% over a very large 30-80% curve so it usually is not a big deal.
Still if that's how you like to run it, then by all means.

Overclocked 2500K + 2x Overclocked 6950's = Under 500W draw
Granted a TON of that is from the 12V rail and you wouldn't want a 550W powering that.

For that setup, I wouldn't even use a PSU 625W (80% load). I would go at least 750W.

 

[Gvaz]

Sounds like you want an AMD card with those requirements. Nvidia cards are still very power hungry. The 560ti or GTX460 might fit the bill though.

I have a 4890 at the moment, a 460 isn't a big enough jump for me.

Also fill out the list in the OP.

I don't want to build a computer just yet, I was just asking specifics.

 

[mkenyon]

The 6950 would do you about right. Low power consumption, and super quiet if you get one of the nicer proprietary coolers.

 

[Gvaz]

So I guess it'd be AMD for me for the time being? I was hoping to get away from AMD/ATI for once, since intel is better for emulation such as pcsx2 and dolphin with certain instruction sets.

Also ATI drivers.

Are newer gaming cards coming with display ports or HDMI ports?

 

[Hazaro]

For that setup, I wouldn't even use a PSU 625W (80% load). I would go at least 750W.

I have an X-750, so I think I am good.

I have a 4890 at the moment, a 460 isn't a big enough jump for me.


I don't want to build a computer just yet, I was just asking specifics.

Well you didn't even list a price or what it might be paired with.

The 6950 is a very good card. The Powercolor/MSI/ASUS dual fan coolers are nice on it.
And yes.

 

[Chesskid1]

so what program does everyone use for fan control? i'm ati and i would like it to be rather light on resources since it's running 24/7. no overclocking. i like to see the temp in the taskbar, next to the clock, btw.

I've been using rivatuner for maybe the past 8 years and it looks like its time to move on since it's never updated anymore and its generally out of date. RIP

 

[Dennis]

Is it just me or are we in the middle of a very boring time for PC hardware?

Next Intel CPUs are months away as are the new GPUs.

Looks like this until about Q4 2011 or Q1 2012 when the things start getting interesting again.

 

[Hazaro]

so what program does everyone use for fan control? i'm ati and i would like it to be rather light on resources since it's running 24/7. no overclocking. i like to see the temp in the taskbar, next to the clock, btw.

I've been using rivatuner for maybe the past 8 years and it looks like its time to move on since it's never updated anymore and its generally out of date. RIP

MSI Afterburner
BIOS for case fans

Is it just me or are we in the middle of a very boring time for PC hardware?

Next Intel CPUs are months away as are the new GPUs.

Looks like this until about Q4 2011 or Q1 2012 when the things start getting interesting again.

Sub in Bulldozer in 1-2 months.
Q1 2012 for all the mainstream GPU stuff + Ivy Bridge

 

[Gvaz]

I'm not thinking about price first, just performance.

From what I see here the performance isn't as good as I would like:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-hd-6970-radeon-hd-6950-cayman,2818-7.html

Especially with a CPU that's a little better than my Phenom II x3 720 (which is OC'd to 3.2)

 

[Tallshortman]

I'm not thinking about price first, just performance.

From what I see here the performance isn't as good as I would like:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-hd-6970-radeon-hd-6950-cayman,2818-7.html

Especially with a CPU that's a little better than my Phenom II x3 720 (which is OC'd to 3.2)

If price doesn't matter then just get a 580. 6950 and 570 have been the best reviewed high end cards. 580 can be bested by two cards that are cheaper combined. 6970 is okay but is probably not worth the price premium over the 6950 when you can just unlock the 6950.

Also, the i7 they're using is quite noticeably more powerful than your phenom II.

 

[Gvaz]

So for the performance gains I'd like to see, and also thinking about going from 1920x1200 to 2560x1600 or the 16:9 equivalent, could I get two 6950s, unlock them to 6970, and watercool both along with my cpu in crossfire mode? I could just get a quiet case fan or two to suck out the ambient warm air from the motherboard and hard drives and that might work out in the way I'm thinking.

 

[Chesskid1]

MSI Afterburner

wow, this is pretty much rivatuner but simplified for dummies. very awesome.


also, the 6850 i purchased has one of those dual fan coolers. it's very quiet. highly recommended, great temps as well.

 

[NullPointer]

OK, looks like I'm getting ready to take the plunge back into PC gaming, or at least to go with a hybrid solution. Its been a long time though, so if I could ask for some PC GAF wisdom on a few things I'd really appreciate it.

Budget: $1,500 max
Usage: Office work (programming/DB/web), Gaming (60fps at native rez or die trying), Media Center.

Special requirements: My current setup has my desk along the north wall, with the huge HDTV on the west wall, and the comfy couch on the east wall. So I'm looking to use the desk for work (comfy keyboard/mouse/office chair/dual monitors) and for gaming that isn't couch friendly. When I want to watch some videos or play a game with the gamepad, I want to shift to the couch and have my video and sound output to the HDTV by way of HDMI. I'd like this process to be as easy as possible, and in fact I'd like to build the PC specifically around this concept.

I'm planning on building it out myself with the help of our IT guy at work, but I'm not sure where to start. Our IT guy is a genius with hardware, but he doesn't have GAF experience when it comes to getting things to work with modern games (what video card to get, whether SLI is worth a damn, etc).

Any ideas on where to start? Or what hardware in particular I should look at for this? I'm after reliability over performance, so I'm not looking to overclock anything or get into setups that introduce unnecessary complications. Cheers.

 

[RS4-]

Hrm, something is making my BC2 hardlock and I can't do anything but reset.

Nothing shows up in event viewer either.

 

[Tallshortman]

So for the performance gains I'd like to see, and also thinking about going from 1920x1200 to 2560x1600 or the 16:9 equivalent, could I get two 6950s, unlock them to 6970, and watercool both along with my cpu in crossfire mode? I could just get a quiet case fan or two to suck out the ambient warm air from the motherboard and hard drives and that might work out in the way I'm thinking.

Yes, as long as you have a proper PSU the 6950 CF solution is very good for the price. It will be roughly the same price as a single GTX 580 give or take $10-$20 depending on the brand you choose. However, I will say that benchmarks have shown some modern games are getting more and more CPU bottle necked at high resolutions so that may be something you may want to look into in the future.

Assuming your GPU doesn't get bottle necked by your CPU, you will see 60+ fps in all games out now in 1080p and in 2560x1600 except for the rare exception like Witcher 2 with ubersampling and maybe Metro 2033. Note that ubersamping for the Witcher 2 was basically built for future high end cards. I haven't researched into whether anyone has gotten it to work at 60fps at 2560x1600. Last I checked a single GTX 580 averaged 13 fps with ubersampling for 2560x1600 and 20 fps for 1080p.

 

[Complistic]

Hey guys, this might be super dumb, but am I suppose to take the stickers off this?

Also Its a gtx 560 ti, is rivatuner still the best thing to modify fan speeds based on core temps or is there something better?

 

[close to the edge]

Hey guys, this might be super dumb, but am I suppose to take the stickers off this?

Also Its a gtx 560 ti, is rivatuner still the best thing to modify fan speeds based on core temps or is there something better?

There is no harm in leaving them on. (at least I never heard of any, and I always left them on)

 

[Complistic]

All right, I didn't see any warnings against leaving them on, but I thought I'd feel really stupid if I went and messed something up.


edit: Question still stands about adjusting fan speeds.

 

[Ryan_]

That looks very nice, where are you buying it (I'm dutch too)? Looking at something similar but with a bigger SSD, a HD6970 and some more RAM. What made you chose that corsair Graphite series?

Azerty.nl

I actually live in Belgium but even with the delivery costs it still has the best bang for your buck.

And about the Graphite 600T...

In the search for the housing of my new rig I stumbled upon it and began to read and watch a whole lot of reviews. They were unanimously positive and praised (amongst other things)

- The incredible cable management (which is highly important to me)
- The good cooling ( 2 x 240 mm fans + 1 x120 mm)
- The design and toolless installation
- The way you can easily add more fans, remove hard drive cases and add watercooling inside.

Ofcourse, the exterior design has to be to your liking but I'm coming from an Antec P182 and I really like the stately, solemn design.

Here are some reviews for you:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLCwBkf4o94 Hardware Cannucks

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=64JDcsyQqt8 MNPCTech

You also have the white version with a window in the side:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pbA44i2K4sw Hardware Cannucks

 

[LordCanti]

Bad Company 3 Alpha just started apparently. My fingers are crossed for some benchmarks soon.


(Even though I didn't get an invite. I'm a sad panda.)

 

[Gvaz]

How do you get invited?

 

[LordCanti]

How do you get invited?

According to the thread, invites went out to longtime BF players. Who knows if that is accurate though.

I'm a long time BF player, and I didn't get one.

 

[wandering goat]

So I removed some of the sound dampeners from my Fractal R3 and temps dropped a little bit but I'm still a good 8-10 degrees hotter than what most people around the net are posting for i7 2600s under load (what's the max operating temperature on these things anyway?). I'm not using a fancy 212 cooler or anything but the stock heatsink is installed correctly, the pins are popping out the back the right way as per the manual. Would adding a top case fan significantly help things?

I'm not sure how much of a difference just having the top open (what I assume you mean by removing the dampeners) would make, but in my P183, which is also a fairly closed / quiet case, I had the top blocked off and didn't have very good temperatures. I removed the stuff I had blocking the top exhaust and put in a fan there, and I've noticed quite a difference in CPU cooling. Basically, two fans (rear and top) at 600 rpm gave me better cooling than just the rear, even at very high RPM. Also, if you have the fans hooked up to the R3's fan controller or anything else that could limit them, try having the fans up full blast to see if that helps, if they aren't already. In general though, cases like the R3 or P183 aren't going to provide the best cooling performance, as they're geared more toward quiet.

Anyway, you should aim for having load temps of under 73C. It's not a big deal (IMO) if Prime95 pushes temps a bit above that, as long as your regular activity won't.