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[Chinner]

Hmm, unless you do video encoding and stuff like that, I suggest you go for the i5 2500k instead. You will see basically the same gaming performance and it overclocks just as easily. Money saved.



Doesn't sound healthy to me, in a standard session my 580 Twin Frozr barely hits 64* playing heavy games that have over 95% utilization. It stays below 55* in middle ranged games. I suggest you try creating a custom MSI Afterburner profile - here's mine:

The default fan settings are awful.




MSI Twin Frozr, the Asus mentioned above or if you are hardcore you get a reference card, cheap as possible and mount an Arctic Accelero on there with some MX-4 and you'll see the sweetest air-cooled temperatures that beats everything else. However, that does void warranty - Hence why you need to be hardcore

im going to do this. ive read that once you change the fan settings you need to keep afterburner running, is this true or not?

 

[Sethos]

im going to do this. ive read that once you change the fan settings you need to keep afterburner running, is this true or not?

Yeah, that's true. So I suggest you have it start with windows.

 

[Chinner]

weird. i know that when you change the voltage it doesn't need to be running. or at least, hwmonitor says it does.

 

[chaosblade]

So just installed my rig. Got 2600K in it. Guess my stock fan is placed badly because idle temp is 55C?

Stock fans will usually result in high idle temps, but 55C is very high. Definitely try reseating it, and remember that you will need new thermal paste or you'll end up with air bubbles and bad temps again (you never want to lift the heatsink off the CPU once it's been put on there or you'll have to change the TIM out).

And to be sure, you took the plastic off the bottom of the CPU cooler right? I remember one guy didn't and was confused about his high temps.

 

[Yaska]

Stock fans will usually result in high idle temps, but 55C is very high. Definitely try reseating it, and remember that you will need new thermal paste or you'll end up with air bubbles and bad temps again (you never want to lift the heatsink off the CPU once it's been put on there or you'll have to change the TIM out).

And to be sure, you took the plastic off the bottom of the CPU cooler right? I remember one guy didn't and was confused about his high temps.

no plastic at all, will clean and reapply thermal paste. and then reseat

 

[Coldsnap]

Hmm, unless you do video encoding and stuff like that, I suggest you go for the i5 2500k instead. You will see basically the same gaming performance and it overclocks just as easily. Money saved.



Doesn't sound healthy to me, in a standard session my 580 Twin Frozr barely hits 64* playing heavy games that have over 95% utilization. It stays below 55* in middle ranged games. I suggest you try creating a custom MSI Afterburner profile - here's mine:

The default fan settings are awful.




MSI Twin Frozr, the Asus mentioned above or if you are hardcore you get a reference card, cheap as possible and mount an Arctic Accelero on there with some MX-4 and you'll see the sweetest air-cooled temperatures that beats everything else. However, that does void warranty - Hence why you need to be hardcore

AH okay thanks, I set this up and ran 3D mark. GPU went up to 65*C at 99% gpu use.

 

[MisterNoisy]

Looks like NZXT has a pair of new cases coming soon: Tempest 410 and 410 Elite. Looks like a nice case for what they're asking ($80/90)

 

[btcollide]

Anybody have experience with Diamond branded videocards?

I want to upgrade my 4850 to a 6950 (finally) but from what I'm researching, you can't unlock the shaders on most of the current 6950 cards. Apparently the Diamond 6950s are reference cards and should be able to be unlocked. I can pick one up at a local Fry's, but the downside is that I won't get a free Deus Ex copy from them.

Here's a link: http://www.frys.com/product/6490922?site=sr:SEARCH:MAIN_RSLT_PG

I guess I'm just concerned about overheating issues..

Any input or assistance on where I should go in terms of upgrading would be appreciated! I run a Phenom II X4 805, but am hesitant to upgrade to a higher phenom because I'm afraid that an upgrade would be miniscule (I've overclocked the 805 to 3-3.1ghz before).

 

[pegaso]

I can't speak to the naming of things but as far as the pictures on the box, it's showing CG pictures of the exact same stuff we find in our games. Why wouldn't they put it on the box?

Well... you're right. Crap.

There are soo many cases out there, that should not be an issue. take a look at the corsair 600t
may be one of the nicest looking cases imo.

That's not bad at all, but 170$ is way too much right now. And the same goes for the Lian Li ones. I know they're good but they're also just too expensive, and the cheap models look cheap. Anyway, I'm not worried about the case right now. I'll get an Antec 300 or something just as basic and upgrade to a nice one when I have the money.

And as for the ram situation, four gigs would be the safest bet, I mean 2 gbs of ram is pretty cheap, as in 20 bucks give or take a couple bucks, soo with the 2 gigs you would already have you are still saving 20 bucks on 4gigs

I meant that he has 4 GB (two 2GB sticks, or modules, or whatever they're called). I was worried 4 wouldn't be enough. The last proper PC game I bought was Swat 4, I think, and I have ignored or avoided everything hardware-related since that.

 

[j2theizzay]

So my friend plays League of Legends and streams it online. He has a first gen i3 processor and a 550 ti and gets 20-30 fps. What would be the best upgrade for him, better processor or video card? I'm thinking better processor, but what would be the best bang for your buck 1156 cpu?

 

[Chinner]

weird. i know that when you change the voltage it doesn't need to be running. or at least, hwmonitor says it does.

can anyone confirm/deny that this is the case?

 

[RooMHM]

Okay guys, I haven't been following new on hardware recently, especially about graphics cards, mobos and cpu's. I have about 1200-1500€ to build a full tower.
Wait or buy now?
I'm talking Intel/Nvidia btw.

Thanks.

 

[n0n44m]

can anyone confirm/deny that this is the case?

can't check this now because my card is watercooled, but going by memory this is the case

auto fan speeds are defined by bios I think, but the fact that you can set nearly infinite points in the afterburner custom fan speed curve makes me feel the custom fanspeed is just a "hack"

i.e. Afterburner looks at the temp and sets what is essentially a fixed fanspeed according to the curve

fyi I once noticed my GPU was 98c with an Accelero Xtreme Plus on it ... Afterburner custom fanspeed had stopped working for some reason, and my fans weren't running AT ALL lol (lucky I was playing Saints Row II , not exactly a graphical workout)

 

[mkenyon]

Okay guys, I haven't been following new on hardware recently, especially about graphics cards, mobos and cpu's. I have about 1200-1500€ to build a full tower.
Wait or buy now?
I'm talking Intel/Nvidia btw.

Thanks.

OP, 1k build will suit you well.

So my friend plays League of Legends and streams it online. He has a first gen i3 processor and a 550 ti and gets 20-30 fps. What would be the best upgrade for him, better processor or video card? I'm thinking better processor, but what would be the best bang for your buck 1156 cpu?

A better HDD. That's what's screwing his performance. Ultimately, he wants a HDD for games, and then a separate HDD for recording.

 

[Saren is Bad]

Sup motherfucks. I know this gets asked every few days, but I need a recommendation for the best IPS and non IPS 27" monitor. Wanna make the jump to stupidly high res games.

Money is no object, go!

 

[RooMHM]

Nothing to wait for in the coming months? CPU, GFX, sockets, Ram, SSD's?

 

[mkenyon]

Nothing to wait for in the coming months? CPU, GFX, sockets, Ram, SSD's?

Bulldozer in 1 month, AMD 7XXX series in a few months, 6XX series is late Q1/early Q2. Sticking with one of the two sides for either CPUs or GPUs is silly nowadays. Both are rocking.

 

[Laurentius]

Is it best to install RAM, video card, and CPU into the motherboard first, before putting it into your case just to ensure everything is working?

Also, I know that has been asked a million times, but I want to make sure I'm clear...with the Hyper 212+ should I configure it so that it's blowing air to the back of the case? I'm running a Cooler Master 690 ii case, so there are fans at the top.

 

[Corky]

Sup motherfucks. I know this gets asked every few days, but I need a recommendation for the best IPS and non IPS 27" monitor. Wanna make the jump to stupidly high res games.

Money is no object, go!

Dell UltraSharp U3011

or if money truly is no issue then get your ass an Eizo , not sure if they're that good for gaming.

 

[Soi-Fong]

Nothing to wait for in the coming months? CPU, GFX, sockets, Ram, SSD's?

Ivy Bridge is suppose to come out next year and AMD Bulldozer apparently is coming out this November.

As for GPU's, Nvidia's Kepler is suppose to make an appearance this year.

 

[TheExodu5]

Looks like NZXT has a pair of new cases coming soon: Tempest 410 and 410 Elite. Looks like a nice case for what they're asking ($80/90)

Looks like a solid contender to the CM 690 II Advanced. The only thing I've never cared for is front facing hard drives, but not a huge deal.

 

[CarbonatedFalcon]

Looks like NZXT has a pair of new cases coming soon: Tempest 410 and 410 Elite. Looks like a nice case for what they're asking ($80/90)

Pretty good looking, especially the one with the window.

 

[Velion]

Is it best to install RAM, video card, and CPU into the motherboard first, before putting it into your case just to ensure everything is working?

Also, I know that has been asked a million times, but I want to make sure I'm clear...with the Hyper 212+ should I configure it so that it's blowing air to the back of the case? I'm running a Cooler Master 690 ii case, so there are fans at the top.

What I do is install CPU+Cooler and Ram before putting it in case , rest is pretty easy also don't forget the motherboard standoffs.

And yes the fan should be blowing air not the heatsink out of the back of the case.

 

[Laurentius]

What I do is install CPU+Cooler and Ram before putting it in case , rest is pretty easy also don't forget the motherboard standoffs.

And yes the fan should be blowing air not the heatsink out of the back of the case.

Thanks! Working on installing now. Will post pics when I'm done. Looking pretty good. I must say, I love the Cooler Master 690 ii already. I wasn't sure how much I would like the design at first, but the second I unpacked it I really fell in love with it.

 

[pirata]

How do I boot from the disk? Every time I restart the machine, it just goes straight into Windows!

EDIT: Nevermind, I was able to change the boot order of my hard-drive menu thingy to get it to boot off of disc before HDD.

 

[·feist·]

30"

4096x2160

~$36,000

This is cheap compared to some other displays.

Dell UltraSharp U3011

or if money truly is no issue then get your ass an Eizo , not sure if they're that good for gaming.

I know some people use 2-3 Eizos for gaming, but I wouldn't. Still feel that models like Dell's 24"-30" displays are better suited to straddling the multi-use line between a TNs for gaming, and Eizos/high end NECs/etc. for work.

How do I boot from the disk? Every time I restart the machine, it just goes straight into Windows!

Enter your BIOS, or UEFI/EFI, and change the boot order to your optical drive.

 

[n0n44m]

How do I boot from the disk? Every time I restart the machine, it just goes straight into Windows!

hit F8 during POST to get a boot menu (on most Asus boards anyway)

or go in bios and alter the boot order by giving the disk priority #1

 

[fuzzyreactor]

What do you guys think i need to upgrade to run BF3/ Skyrim at high setting and good framerate?

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666)
Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 ST3500418AS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal
AMD Phenom II X4 955 3.2GHz stock
ASUS M4A79XTD EVO AM3 AMD 790X ATX AMD Motherboard
SAPPHIRE 100283L Radeon HD 5770 (Juniper XT) 1GB 128-bit
on a 1080p monitor

 

[pirata]

Okay, so I've booted off of disk, like y'all said, and I want to format the hard drive. It shows that there are two partitions: the first is "system reserved" and has 100 MB on it with 70 MB free. The other is just a "primary" partition that has 1780 gigs on it. When I try to format the system one, it tells me that it may contain recovery programs from the manufacturer. Should I format both of them? I'm pretty sure I should, but I want to make absolutely sure that I don't fuck everything up more than it already is.

 

[erpg]

I decided to 'unlock' my 4th core and turn my Athlon II X3 435 into a Phenom II X4 B35, and it worked. Nice performance increase gratis, on a now 2 year old PC. Has anyone ever tried this, and is there anythign I should be afraid of? Seems stable so far, but I can't read temps anymore (not that my PC ever went much above 40c before anyway - I've got good cooling!)

 

[mkenyon]

What do you guys think i need to upgrade to run BF3/ Skyrim at high setting and good framerate?

G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666)
Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 ST3500418AS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal
AMD Phenom II X4 955 3.2GHz stock
ASUS M4A79XTD EVO AM3 AMD 790X ATX AMD Motherboard
SAPPHIRE 100283L Radeon HD 5770 (Juniper XT) 1GB 128-bit
on a 1080p monitor

No one knows what the requirements will be for BF3. Check back when they release the game and/or requirements.

 

[Shao Kahn Brewing a Stew]

No one knows what the requirements will be for BF3. Check back when they release the game and/or requirements.

Well, people that have played alpha should know that the requirements will be similar (with alpha requirements being minimum and the recommended requirements being a bit higher).

For the alpha:

OS: Windows 7 or Vista (SP1)
App: EA Origin
CPU: Quad core 2.0 GHz or faster
RAM: 4 GB or more
Hard Drive: 7.25 GB free disk space
Video RAM: 512 MB or greater
DirectX 10 or 11 compatible video card with latest drivers (AMD 11.5 or later, nVidia 275.33 or later)
Sound: DirectX 10 or 11 compatible card
Internet: Broadband connection


My personal settings are:

OS: Windows 7
CPU: AMD Athlon II X4 - 2.90 Ghz
RAM: 4GB RAM
Hard Drive: 1TB
Graphics Card: HD 5770 with 1GB RAM

I was easily getting frame rate of minimum 30fps. So take my specs as a benchmark for 30fps and aim higher for higher framerate.

 

[fuzzyreactor]

No one knows what the requirements will be for BF3. Check back when they release the game and/or requirements.

i know that, but i assume some ppl on here would be able to give a educated response on what they assume i would need to upgrade.

 

[Forbiden]

It may not be the most appropriate thread to ask this.

For a while now my computer has been unable to install some programs, in this case, games. I downloaded a couple of games from gamersgate, but whenever I try to install them, a installation window for Visual C++ 2005, and when that window disappears the entire installer closes, without having installed the program.

http://i.imgur.com/pFLX6.jpg

Any idea how I could fix this?

 

[Shao Kahn Brewing a Stew]

i know that, but i assume some ppl on here would be able to give a educated response on what they assume i would need to upgrade.

Oh shit. Just realized your system is similar to mine. For 1080p, your PC is good. You will get 30fps on high settings and 60fps on medium, easily. If you are aiming for buttery smooth 60fps and higher, upgrade your card to GTX460 or GTX570, depending on your budget.

That said, I'm sure I'll need to upgrade my brother's GTS 250 real soon! Let's see if it's DDR2 or DDR3 PC.

 

[statham]

we need a budgeted PC upgrade thread. all these people running 4.6 cpus and dual cards make me feel ashame.

 

[black_vegeta]

we need a budgeted PC upgrade thread. all these people running 4.6 cpus and dual cards make me feel ashame.

Don't mind us, go for what's within your budget.

 

[darkblade77]

I made some posts earlier regarding building a SFF PC. I've got a few more general questions, and I'm also back at sort of an impasse on the topic of the case, because the situation has changed a bit.

The components are largely going to remain the same(unless the case dimensions require them to change), but I have a GTX 470 I can use instead of the 275(I mistakenly said 260 in the previous post) for the system.

This is going to be a machine I'd like to be able to easily pack up and bring with me back and forth between multiple locations driving. I expect I'd be moving and driving with it at least 4 times per week. So I really need something sturdy with an easy carrying solution(whether that's a tote bag, knapsack or a handle or whatever, as long as it doesn't risk the parts inside too much from general travel). Also, please let me know what sort of CPU cooler I should use for this(regarding case dimensions) if I pick up something aftermarket, as I may end up switching the CPU to the 2500k or 2600k.

Also, I know the GTX 470 produces a lot of heat without having the cooler replaced, but I'm not sure which one to pick up--or if that complicates its positioning in the case.

 

[FJ0372]

Hey guys, I'm not sure this is the ideal thread to ask this in, but you're all computer geeks if you're in here and I would love some computer geek help. Basically I have my gaming computer setup upstairs in my bedroom, I've recently run a (stealth) 20 metre HDMI cable down to my living room so that I can enjoy the gaming goodness that my PC can produce on a 50" screen. However, I have a problem, the HDMI produces no sound on the TV so now I'm resorting to having speakers setup in the living room but the audio cable which runs to my PC temporarily looks terrible as I cannot make it stealth like the HDMI (long story).

So basically, my question is, is there a wireless reciever I can use so that the speakers I have in the living room can be connected to my PC upstairs without the wires? also if I was to buy a wireless Xbox 360 receiver for my PC, how good is the range?

Thanks for any help in advance fellow PC geeks.

 

[fuzzyreactor]

Oh shit. Just realized your system is similar to mine. For 1080p, your PC is good. You will get 30fps on high settings and 60fps on medium, easily. If you are aiming for buttery smooth 60fps and higher, upgrade your card to GTX460 or GTX570, depending on your budget.

That said, I'm sure I'll need to upgrade my brother's GTS 250 real soon! Let's see if it's DDR2 or DDR3 PC.

cool, out of curiosity could you tell me some games you play and how they run and at what settings? want to compare.

 

[statham]

Don't mind us, go for what's within your budget.

I seriously think it could be a great thread. people trying to maximize their old cards or cpus. not even old just budget shoppers. I would love a highend/lowend PC talk.

 

[Laurentius]

I'm having a heck of a time installing my Hyper 212+. The instructions are pretty bad. I've got the backplate on and everything, but can't figure out the retention bracket. Googling hasn't helped much.

Going to have to clean off the thermal paste now and try again. The retention bracket has that center piece that's "springy" -- when trying to get the screws into the standoffs, the it doesn't seem to have enough give. How much pressure should it be putting on the CPU?

 

[Shao Kahn Brewing a Stew]

cool, out of curiosity could you tell me some games you play and how they run and at what settings? want to compare.

Give me a few minutes. I'll run all my current games and give you the exact details.

For now, the games I know that run GREAT are:

- Just Cause 2 (Highest Settings).
- All of Valve's games (Highest Settings).
- All of Battlefield games including Battlefield 3 Alpha (Highest available setting. You couldn't change settings for Alpha).
- Starcraft 2 (Highest Settings).

My processor is the same as yours but a bit slower (2.9Ghz compared to 3.2Ghz) so you should be good.

The latest game that I have is DIRT 3 so I'll try that out and see how it plays.

 

[fuzzyreactor]

Give me a few minutes. I'll run all my current games and give you the exact details.

For now, the games I know that run GREAT are:

- Just Cause 2 (Highest Settings).
- All of Valve's games (Highest Settings).
- All of Battlefield games including Battlefield 3 Alpha (Highest available setting. You couldn't change settings for Alpha).
- Starcraft 2 (Highest Settings).

My processor is the same as yours but a bit slower (2.9Ghz compared to 3.2Ghz) so you should be good.

i was just playing just cause 2. ironic. i get 38 fps on benchmark high settings. what are your fps?

 

[Shao Kahn Brewing a Stew]

i was just playing just cause 2. ironic. i get 38 fps on benchmark high settings. what are your fps?

Let me find out for you. It's definitely over 30fps (Which is all I care for, really lol. 60fps would be great but alas I don't think it is).

I don't know which free software to use to find the FPS. FRAPS?

EDIT: Yeah... FRAPS.

 

[zulfate]

Hey guys, I'm not sure this is the ideal thread to ask this in, but you're all computer geeks if you're in here and I would love some computer geek help. Basically I have my gaming computer setup upstairs in my bedroom, I've recently run a (stealth) 20 metre HDMI cable down to my living room so that I can enjoy the gaming goodness that my PC can produce on a 50" screen. However, I have a problem, the HDMI produces no sound on the TV so now I'm resorting to having speakers setup in the living room but the audio cable which runs to my PC temporarily looks terrible as I cannot make it stealth like the HDMI (long story).

So basically, my question is, is there a wireless reciever I can use so that the speakers I have in the living room can be connected to my PC upstairs without the wires? also if I was to buy a wireless Xbox 360 receiver for my PC, how good is the range?

Thanks for any help in advance fellow PC geeks.

I had this problem when i first did it, right click your little sound thinggy at your desktop go to playback and you should see your hdmi pluggin right click that and set it as default, then test it...hopefully it should work im not a computer geek lol

 

[fuzzyreactor]

Let me find out for you. It's definitely over 30fps (Which is all I care for, really lol. 60fps would be great but alas I don't think it is).

I don't know which free software to use to find the FPS. FRAPS?

the game should have a benchmark

 

[Shao Kahn Brewing a Stew]

the game should have a benchmark

OK. Will do.

 

[fuzzyreactor]

OK. Will do.

thanks, i'd appreciate it

 

[Shao Kahn Brewing a Stew]

OK. So I did a couple of benchmarking. Contrary to popular belief (lol), my card has 2GB RAM, not 1GB. Apologies for that mistake. It should be a big effect though. The first one is highest setting with everything turned on. The bottom setting is the optimal 60fps setting.