"I need a New PC!" 2011 Thread of reading the OP. Seriously. [Part 2]

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Ok all, I am looking for a new MB, Processor and RAM (If I need new RAM) Please recommend MB brand/model, processor (INTEL ONLY) etc.. thank you so much!

I live near a FRY's if that helps.

Current set-up:

ASUS P5B M/B
Intel QUAD CORE 2.4
4 GB RAM
ATI 5850
I game on a 42" monitor in 1920x1080

BTW, mainly for BF3
 
Kurashima said:
If you're RMAing it for a replacement instead of a different model, I wouldn't say for sure that you'll get better temps. Usually if there's something wrong with the way the heatsink's attached, you'd be getting worse temperatures, and probably crashes. If the 78C is on a high-end game, that's not really that bad. Most likely, it could be cooler with a higher fan speed, but the auto profile isn't ramping it up higher because it's geared more for quietness and 78C isn't a problem for a GPU to handle.

If you are concerned about the temps though, before you give it back, try using MSI Afterburner and setting a custom fan curve. You can make the fan RPM ramp up sooner and thus cool the card more, though it'll be noisier.
Click to expand...


Problem is I want to crossfire another 6950 along with this card, with the extra card the heat will be extremely high.

I am also concerned about the temperature because reviews show the temperatures to be much lower.
 
Has PC-GAF considered doing build guides for other countries such as the UK and mainland Europe?

I'll be willing to look into £500 and £800 builds if people would find them useful.

Also could someone recommend me a monitor that features a HDMI input? i want to move from using my old 32" HDTV as that 768x1366 resolution is killing me D:

I have a budget of no more than £150

Been looking at monitors similar to these:

22" LG
21.5" Samsung
 
dangerbyrnes said:
does anyone here have an opinion on CyberPower for buying a computer? i just don't think i can build my own computer (handicapped). i saw someone else on here said they were buying from them. i just want to know if they are trustworthy enough before buying a computer from them.
Click to expand...

Between my brother and myself we have bought three computers from CyberPower and I am getting ready to buy a fourth. Knock on wood - we've never had any problems with them. Might help that I am close enough to go and pick up from them so I can save a little on shipping and get it a little faster.
 
I'm just wondering is there any point to having SLI 580s when I can just get a 590 and have it be cheaper and cooler and not eat up so much wattage.
 
Soi-Fong said:
I'm just wondering is there any point to having SLI 580s when I can just get a 590 and have it be cheaper and cooler and not eat up so much wattage.
Click to expand...

doesn't apply to everyone but general reasons are :

-higher core speed = higher performance
-much much better overclocks since you don't lose the ability to adjust voltage in a meaningful way
-much more total cooling surface per chip so *potentially* less noise
 
hodgy100 said:
Has PC-GAF considered doing build guides for other countries such as the UK and mainland Europe?

I'll be willing to look into £500 and £800 builds if people would find them useful.

Also could someone recommend me a monitor that features a HDMI input? i want to move from using my old 32" HDTV as that 768x1366 resolution is killing me D:

I have a budget of no more than £150

Been looking at monitors similar to these:

22" LG
21.5" Samsung
Click to expand...

Get an IPS monitor instead: LG IPS236
 
*sigh* I've already had to RMA my video card twice, and it looks like I'll need to have it replaced again. :(
Even if the side panel of my case is removed and the video card fan speed is manually raised to 100%, my video card's temperature is reaching 80 degrees celsius in just a few minutes when playing games. Until recently, temperatures normally stayed at about 70 degrees. Currently, the idle temperature hovers around 53 degrees celsius, but it skyrockets to 70 degrees celsius in seconds after starting furmark or a game. I really don't know what has changed. I tried cleaning some of the dust that had accumulated on the fan, but that doesn't seem to have helped.
Oddly though, it seems that the DispIO sensor is reading roughly 15 degrees lower than the rest of the sensors. I've considered that maybe the sensors are malfunctioning, but I've already had a game exhibit weird artifacts like a texture stretching across the screen, then crash due to heat. What could have gone wrong?
 
Big thanks to you guys, especially feist and chaosblade, for sticking with me again through this build dilemma.

Here's where I currently am:

zkstvr.png


The more I read about the Define Mini, the more and more appealing it looked and it got to the point where the additional carrying premium seemed worth it.

Barring me having a weak moment of heart and going back to agonizing over to one of the Lian Li/GD cases for the HTPC form factor, I think I'm pretty set at this point. I'm probably going to get the CTSS LAN Bag later on once I've gotten a better idea of the size of the case relative to myself, or the the cheaper Sunbeam.

A side question I have at this point is that I have this card in one of my older PCs:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829121120

and I could technically put it in here since the bottom PCI slot would be free. Would the positioning(right in front of the now-tri-slot GTX 470 cooler) be too hazardous to the card?

Also, up until this point I've used the RCA jacks on the back for sound on that card, since the speakers I had also took RCA input. If I wanted to use headphones, would I have to keep going to the back or would the headphone jack connected to the motherboard transmit just as well?
 
gibon3z said:
Problem is I want to crossfire another 6950 along with this card, with the extra card the heat will be extremely high.

I am also concerned about the temperature because reviews show the temperatures to be much lower.
Click to expand...

Fair enough, just saying that there may not be anything wrong with it at all. Reviews aren't always accurate or comparable anyway, some just have great cooling set-ups, some use open air benches, some use manual fan speeds. Could also have to do with your case's airflow, but I also think it's possible that the card just doesn't see the need to spin faster when it's under 80C. Perhaps as the heat / load increases, it will compensate to keep things around low to mid 80s or so. Another possibility is that I think I read that Twin Frozr 6950s have a physical BIOS switch that also changes the fan speed (or maybe a dedicated fan switch). One setting is for quiet, one for performance, and I think it ships out on quiet mode. That's if I recall reading some reviews correctly, as I myself was looking for a 6950 before. So you can also try that. In either case, using Afterburner or the different switch setting, you can get the card cooler, just at the expense of noise.
 
ColonelColon said:
*sigh* I've already had to RMA my video card twice, and it looks like I'll need to have it replaced again. :(
Even if the side panel of my case is removed and the video card fan speed is manually raised to 100%, my video card's temperature is reaching 80 degrees celsius in just a few minutes when playing games. Until recently, temperatures normally stayed at about 70 degrees. Currently, the idle temperature hovers around 53 degrees celsius, but it skyrockets to 70 degrees celsius in seconds after starting furmark or a game. I really don't know what has changed. I tried cleaning some of the dust that had accumulated on the fan, but that doesn't seem to have helped.
Oddly though, it seems that the DispIO sensor is reading roughly 15 degrees lower than the rest of the sensors. I've considered that maybe the sensors are malfunctioning, but I've already had a game exhibit weird artifacts like a texture stretching across the screen, then crash due to heat. What could have gone wrong?
Click to expand...

what card u got ?
 
Does anyone have or had a Gigabyte X48-DS5 Motherboard? I'm trying to overclock my E8600 and no matter how little I increase the FSB over 333mhz, the thing reboots and resets to factory settings. Is there some special thing I need to do? I have tried 366 and 400, which is the max I will go and it does it every time. Any help?
 
Might have an issue with my OC GAF... need some help if you can:

i5 2500k
ASRock P67 Extreme 4 (B3)

So I manually went in (following the OP guide) to set my OC to 4.5ghz. I tried the 1.24v up to 1.27v and every time at the Windows screen I would get BSOD. So I let it handle the settings by doing the "Auto" turbo to 4.4ghz and currently 4.6ghz.

Ran burn test at 4.4ghz and the max temp on a core was 70C. Currently I'm running it at 4.6ghz and it's hit 71C. First question: Are the temps ok?

Second question, is that I see in CPU-Z my core voltage is getting up to 1.4v at times, though it's often in the 1.3x (higher end of 1.3x) range. Should my chip really be needing this much voltage?
 
Update: Manually setting to 4.5ghz with at 1.3v got me a start-up. However, it failed burn test, so trying different voltages now.
 
Kurashima said:
Fair enough, just saying that there may not be anything wrong with it at all. Reviews aren't always accurate or comparable anyway, some just have great cooling set-ups, some use open air benches, some use manual fan speeds. Could also have to do with your case's airflow, but I also think it's possible that the card just doesn't see the need to spin faster when it's under 80C. Perhaps as the heat / load increases, it will compensate to keep things around low to mid 80s or so. Another possibility is that I think I read that Twin Frozr 6950s have a physical BIOS switch that also changes the fan speed (or maybe a dedicated fan switch). One setting is for quiet, one for performance, and I think it ships out on quiet mode. That's if I recall reading some reviews correctly, as I myself was looking for a 6950 before. So you can also try that. In either case, using Afterburner or the different switch setting, you can get the card cooler, just at the expense of noise.
Click to expand...


I set a custom fan profile on afterburner so the fan speed rises as temperature rises.
Even with the fan on 100 percent the temperature goes from 47-52c. Perhaps the heatsink on the card is not properly seated. I would take the card apart and reapply some thermal paste myself but I am pretty sure that voids the warranty.

As for the airflow in my case I have an nzxt phantom, 2 , 200mm fans on the top 1 doing exhaust the other intake.
2 120mm fans on the side on intake
1 140mm fan in the front on intake
1 rear 120mm fan on exhaust.

Airflow should be fine :/
 
Velion said:
What kind of Case do you have and how often do you dust it?
Click to expand...

The case is a Gigabye GZ_PH2A3. I don't dust the case frequently, but when I noticed the high temperatures, I removed most of the dust on the fan of the video card. There's hardly any fan vents on the case, but it sufficed until recently. As of now, the temperatures seem to be about as high when the side panel is removed as they are when it's installed.
 
Question:

Is there a specific "best" or "most reliable" brand for aftermarket case fans? Or is pretty much anything that's the right size and LED color (if you get LEDs) fine?

Also, best fan controller? Or opinions on ones you own/have owned?
 
Small update about my upcoming PC... I had not yet decided what GPU to get (though I was and still am leaning towards a single GTX 580), and now thanks to a very kind friend I can have a brand new AMD HD 6790 for free. Thinking I might just run with this for a year until I can afford to go for a dual/SLI 580 setup.

Obviously I know this isn't anyway near a 580 and probably more comparable to a 460 (maybe?) - anyway, how do you guys think it will do on BF3 (running at 1920x1080)? I'm hoping I can get high settings with a solid 30FPS...

For reference the rest of my kit:

CPU - Intel® Core™i7-2600k (3.40GHz)
Motherboard - Asus P8Z68-V PRO
Memory - 8GB Kingston Hyper-X Genesis (2 x 4GB KIT)
Power Supply - Corsair 750W Pro Series Silver Modular
Processor Cooling - Coolit ECO II A.L.C (Liquid Cooler)
Drives
- 1st Hard Disk 160GB Intel 320 Series SSD, SATA 3
- 2nd Hard Disk 1TB Western Digital Caviar Black WD1002FAEX, SATA 6 (7200rpm)
- SSD Cache Drive 20GB Intel SSD 311 Series
 
I think I'll build my new PC in a month or two. It will be cheap, but it will be NEW :) After years of no upgrades, it's pretty big thing for me. In terms of specs, the basics are from the first OP build. The big difference is that I won't buy a graphic card and suffice with the integrated one, because I want to save for something good here.

Question, because I guess I forgot the basics of building your own rig...

Do I need to buy a thermal paste for a CPU and apply it when assembling everything for its proper cooling? Or the standard cooler is enough? I WON'T be overlocking anything.

Also, for new page:

Alastor said:
What's the difference between the S and VS versions of motherboard ASROCK H61M? I assume it isn't anything important, but I want to be sure...
Click to expand...
 
Alastor said:
Also, for new page:
Click to expand...

According to their respective specs pages over at the ASRock website (H61M-S/H61M-VS), the H61M-S is the more featured of the two with a HDCP-compliant DVI port, a slightly better audio codec in the form of the Realtek ALC662, an infrared header, and an additional PCI-E x1 slot.
 
JaseC said:
According to their respective specs pages over at the ASRock website (H61M-S/H61M-VS), the H61M-S is the more featured of the two with a HDCP-compliant DVI port, a slightly better audio codec in the form of the Realtek ALC662, an infrared header, and an additional PCI-E x1 slot.
Click to expand...

Ah, so the S is better one, that's good because I can find this model easier here :) Thank you!
 
A quick question for FractalGAF: Will a GTX 570 fit snugly into the R3, preferably without the need to remove a hard drive bay?

Alastor said:
Ah, so the S is better one, that's good because I can find this model easier here :) Thank you!
Click to expand...

No worries. :)
 
pirateben said:
Small update about my upcoming PC... I had not yet decided what GPU to get (though I was and still am leaning towards a single GTX 580), and now thanks to a very kind friend I can have a brand new AMD HD 6790 for free. Thinking I might just run with this for a year until I can afford to go for a dual/SLI 580 setup.

Obviously I know this isn't anyway near a 580 and probably more comparable to a 460 (maybe?) - anyway, how do you guys think it will do on BF3 (running at 1920x1080)? I'm hoping I can get high settings with a solid 30FPS...

For reference the rest of my kit:

CPU - Intel® Core™i7-2600k (3.40GHz)
Motherboard - Asus P8Z68-V PRO
Memory - 8GB Kingston Hyper-X Genesis (2 x 4GB KIT)
Power Supply - Corsair 750W Pro Series Silver Modular
Processor Cooling - Coolit ECO II A.L.C (Liquid Cooler)
Drives
- 1st Hard Disk 160GB Intel 320 Series SSD, SATA 3
- 2nd Hard Disk 1TB Western Digital Caviar Black WD1002FAEX, SATA 6 (7200rpm)
- SSD Cache Drive 20GB Intel SSD 311 Series
Click to expand...
It trades blows with the 460 768MB. You might be able to run 1080p@30FPS if you sacrifice AA, but it will probably be close.

And I seriously doubt you'll be thinking about SLI 580s a year from now. Next-gen cards will be way too appealing.
 
Ok guys, I have CPUID Hardware Monitor to run on startup but how do I make it open in the same position and size as the last time my PC was on? Every time my PC starts up, the program starts up with a default size and at a default location on my desktop. Any way to fix this?
 
Been twiddling my thumbs these past few days over what GPU to pick for the new system - fortunately stumbled upon a sale for Asus GTX 570 Directcu II (100€ cheaper than other stores, yay!) so now that's sorted at least. Case will be the next headache, afaik the R3 would accommodate it but it'd be a snug fit, and I'll be making full use of that 3-slot monster cooler when OC'ing so proper air circulation is a must.
 
Can anyone recommend any all-in-one CPU and GPU water coolers under $100 each?

Also, what's the best bang for the buck GPU these days? In the 200-300 range.
 
I, like many others, want to build a new rig for BF3 and other awesome PC games this fall and for the next 6 or 8 months before upgrading it. If I can play games at 30+ frames at 1080p with high to max settings, I'll be thrilled. I assume I'm better off waiting until late October to build my rig? I'm looking to keep the total price at $700 including shipping and handling and Windows 7. (I can get the OS for $30 as a college student.)
 
ACE 1991 said:
I assume I'm better off waiting until late October to build my rig?
Click to expand...

If you aren't fussy about getting exact parts (more popular ones might go out of stock in many places once BF3 release gets closer), nor interested in other games coming out before that. I doubt the prices will drop significantly tho, so if that's your main reason I'd just order as soon as possible.
 
Drazgul said:
If you aren't fussy about getting exact parts (more popular ones might go out of stock in many places once BF3 release gets closer), nor interested in other games coming out before that. I doubt the prices will drop significantly tho, so if that's your main reason I'd just order as soon as possible.
Click to expand...

Cool! Are my performance expectations at this price range a little too greedy?
 
Drazgul said:
If you aren't fussy about getting exact parts (more popular ones might go out of stock in many places once BF3 release gets closer), nor interested in other games coming out before that. I doubt the prices will drop significantly tho, so if that's your main reason I'd just order as soon as possible.
Click to expand...

yeah cause everywhere is running out of those Asus 570s
 
Ah the sweet taste of success. A faulty PSU and RMA later, my pc is complete!
I've gone for a Fractal Define R3 case, Intel Core i5 2500k, Asus P68Z68 Pro, 8GB Corsair Ram, Corsair 750W modular PSU, 2x 1TB samsung HDD's, 120GB OCZ Vertex 3 Max iops edition and a Asus GTX 580 Direct cu ii. Absolutely love it! Tried to make the cables neat but it got a little outta hand by the end :p Also the coolermaster hyper 212 is a little bent hope thats gonna be ok. Cost around £1000 but I'm well pleased! Windows 7 boots in like 15 seconds.

16e10353.jpg


d62c1ca2.jpg
 
ACE 1991 said:
On an unrelated note, my friend is willing to sell me his Gateway FX6800-01e for $50. He had hard drive failure six months ago, but all the other parts look to be in working order. Would it be worth it to buy this and flip it on ebay for $150-200, or will no one buy it?

Link for specifications, it's about 2 and a half years old: http://reviews.cnet.com/desktops/gateway-fx6800-01e/4507-3118_7-33392302.html
Click to expand...

Amazing deal for 50$ hell I'm sure you can get way more than 100 or 150$.

if you live in the SFV I'll take it off your hands ;-)
 
AwesomeSauce said:
Amazing deal for 50$ hell I'm sure you can get way more than 100 or 150$.

if you live in the SFV I'll take it off your hands ;-)
Click to expand...

My crazy friend is just trying to get rid of it. What would you list this on ebay for? Also, is there anyway I can check to make sure all the hardware is sound? Since the HDD is busted, there is no OS installed.
 
iSurvivedTheOutage said:
yeah cause everywhere is running out of those Asus 570s
Click to expand...

The ASUS version may be a good card, but it's still 3 slots and that's not worth it to me considering I'd probably prefer to SLI two 570s first before buying a new single card. The other non-reference ones that I've looked at are the EVGA Doubleshot (though it seems to have some fan control issues) and the Twin Frozr III from MSI which is available on Amazon (not Newegg) but it doesn't have any customer reviews up (don't know about professional reviews elsewhere).


On another note, it may have been discussed in the last couple pages, but finding a good looking case at a decent price point is hard. The Fractal R3 is probably one of the best looking ones out there, but it has two shortcomings in my eyes - no USB 3.0 (though there is the kit, even though I can't find it for sale...) and no side panel window. Otherwise the only other thing I would change is maybe some LED fans, but that's hardly a big deal. Well I emailed about the window and this was my response

Fractal Design said:
Hi,

Define R3 and Arc Midi will soon receive an optional windowed sidepanel. No dates yet, but we hope quite soon.

Best Regards
Fractal Design
Click to expand...

So hopefully we get that as an accessory and/or slightly different model soon. Would make my day since my build has been pushed from around now to probably October at the earliest, and maybe January/February of 2012 at the latest.
 
ACE 1991 said:
My crazy friend is just trying to get rid of it. What would you list this on ebay for? Also, is there anyway I can check to make sure all the hardware is sound? Since the HDD is busted, there is no OS installed.
Click to expand...

I would put it for 300-350$.
 
Chinner said:
nice setup citizen K, similar to mine. what kind of temps you getting?
Click to expand...

What do you use for temps etc? Cos Asus Probe is saying one thing and another tool I got is saying another! Is there one you'd recommend?

ps how did your cable management go?
 
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