"I need a New PC!" 2011 Thread of reading the OP. Seriously. [Part 2]
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Gvaz said:
I've even got 1943 and I've played heroes, yet I didn't get one. I really don't mind, as I don't really want my first experience with the game to be buggy, but I'd love to know how my rig is likely to perform in the final game.
Edit: I didn't want to make a new post for this, but it seems like the Coolermaster Hyper 212+ is back to $30 on Newegg. Sanity has finally prevailed...for now.
ChoklitReign
Member
Is the 460 significantly more power-hungry than the 6850? I don't see much love for the 6850 anymore. Is the performance difference negligible? What's the most efficient card for the money?
Sketch_Turntable
Member
All my parts are sitting in the living room except my SSD. That wont be here until Monday. UGH
Since I don't have any spare PSUs lying around I've been worried sick all day about my components after the explosion. I tore apart the dead one and saw burn marks and what looked like a blow out on one of the large capacitors, apparently it had enough force to bend whatever was right next to it.
I looked online and found out my PSU had Short Circuit Protection, would that have prevented damage to the mobo/everything else, or should I still remain worried until my Antec shows up?
I looked online and found out my PSU had Short Circuit Protection, would that have prevented damage to the mobo/everything else, or should I still remain worried until my Antec shows up?
Mr Solo Dolo
Member
Ok Gaf do your worse, i'm willing to attempt to have another go at a self build after the disaster of a first attempt (the less said about that the better).
Budget is £600-700 i know this come up alot now but i would like it to run BF3 at medium or high.
The only thing i ask is the case is not too large as it will be going into a smallish room.
Budget is £600-700 i know this come up alot now but i would like it to run BF3 at medium or high.
The only thing i ask is the case is not too large as it will be going into a smallish room.
Sourtreats
Member
I feel so idiotic right now. First of all I bought the wrong RAM, I bought DDR3 when my motherboard only supports DDR2. *facepalm* Hopefully Scan.co.uk will let me return it and buy the right one.
But I'm also having problems getting my new HDD to work. Can someone give me a idiot proof guide to install a new HDD? So far I've plugged it in via power and sata but it's doesn't appear on device manager or my computer.
But I'm also having problems getting my new HDD to work. Can someone give me a idiot proof guide to install a new HDD? So far I've plugged it in via power and sata but it's doesn't appear on device manager or my computer.
Whelp, just saw on that my stuff is out for delivery. I'm taking a half day so I can spend a lot of time working on this bad boy. I haven't put a computer together from scratch since my last build about ~4 years ago. Anything I'm missing or any tips with what I've got?!
CPU - i5 2500k
GPU - EVGA GeForce GTX560 Ti (Fermi)
PSU - CORSAIR TX750
MOBO - ASRock P67 Extreme4 (B3)
RAM - G.SKILL DDR 1333 2 x 2GB
CASE - CM 690 II
SDD - 128GB drive from current desktop
HDD - 1TB Storage drive from current desktop
DVD RW - Asus DRW - 24B1ST
On my list to pick up is some Arctic Silver Ceramique on the way home. Other than that I can't really think of anything else I need currently. Tips, suggestions, thoughts, concerns, etc.?!?
CPU - i5 2500k
GPU - EVGA GeForce GTX560 Ti (Fermi)
PSU - CORSAIR TX750
MOBO - ASRock P67 Extreme4 (B3)
RAM - G.SKILL DDR 1333 2 x 2GB
CASE - CM 690 II
SDD - 128GB drive from current desktop
HDD - 1TB Storage drive from current desktop
DVD RW - Asus DRW - 24B1ST
On my list to pick up is some Arctic Silver Ceramique on the way home. Other than that I can't really think of anything else I need currently. Tips, suggestions, thoughts, concerns, etc.?!?
Sourtreats
Member
Shambles said:
It doesn't show up at all. :/
It's a MSI P965.gokieks said:
Pretty awesome looking barebone kit
MSI GF615M-P31 Mobo
AMD Phenom II X3 700e CPU
CPU Fan
Corsair 8GB (2x 4GB) DDR3 RAM
Seagate 1.5TB HDD
24x DVDRW
DiabloTek Mid-Tower
400W Power Supply
$260 after $40 mail in rebate. The only thing you'll need to add is a video card and you might want to swap out the PSU eventually.
MSI GF615M-P31 Mobo
AMD Phenom II X3 700e CPU
CPU Fan
Corsair 8GB (2x 4GB) DDR3 RAM
Seagate 1.5TB HDD
24x DVDRW
DiabloTek Mid-Tower
400W Power Supply
$260 after $40 mail in rebate. The only thing you'll need to add is a video card and you might want to swap out the PSU eventually.
Sourtreats
Member
knitoe said:
No, it only shows my 250gb one.
MadraptorMan
Member
So what's the best way to install Windows 7 on a SSD for the first time on a new computer? Just plug in the SSD and not the HDD or have them both plugged in from the start? Does it even matter if both drives are brand new? Meaning the HDD won't be formatted yet when I first install Windows...
Unplug one of your working drive and use cables on HDD. See if it show up in the bios. If not, you probably have a DOA HDD. If yes, could be bad Sata port, Sata cable or power cable.Sourtreats said:
Boot into the Windows disc, select SSD, format and install Windows.MadraptorMan said:
MadraptorMan
Member
knitoe said:
I've read stuff about moving the Users directory to the larger HDD (I will only have 80GB on the SSD) and stuff, isn't that recommended/preferred? I know you can do it during installation but I have no idea how, maybe it's something I should worry about after the fact?
Sourtreats
Member
Cheers for the help guys. Embarrassing to admit but the Sata cable connecting the HDD to the board had fallen out. But thanks for telling me how format and assign it a letter.
Tallshortman
Member
ChoklitReign said:
What's your budget? The 6850 has a performance edge over the 460 (rough estimate of 3-10+ frames depending on the game).
cjtiger300
Member
What does everyone think of this Barebones kit? If the GTX 550ti 1gb on par with the Graphics card in the $600 dollar build on the first page?
Barebones Kit
Barebones Kit
Tobiasboon
Member
Silverstone Sugo SG05BB-450Mr Solo Dolo said:
Intel i5 2500 Sandy Bridge (or go for the 2500K for a few quid more then upgrade your motherboard down the line)
8GB Corsair XMS3 1600MHz (might as well buy the faster stuff, it's all the same price virtually and will future proof you a bit)
GeForce GTX 560 Titanium (whatever model you can find, I got an open box deal for £150 from ebay so keep an eye out)
Gigabyte GA-H67N-USB3-B3 motherboard (this will give you good performance while you wait for the Z68 mITX motherboards due later in the year or even next year assuming you go for the i5 2500K)
That lot takes you to £580 inc. VAT and delivery and that's just a quick look on Scan who aren't the cheapest, you can probably shave some off.
That just leaves storage: an SSD system/games drive and say 2TB standard drive with set you back say £100 and £50 respectively and then add an optical laptop drive for under £20 and you should be set!
This is basically the rig I have just built for myself although I went with a 500GB Momentus XT hybrid drive instead of the SSD system drive and I got the i5 2500K since it was only a few quid more than the standard version and I will be upgrading the motherboard once a Z68 mITX version is available. I get great performance from everything at 1080p with only really Metro 2033 and Crysis 2 DX11 dishing out a good beating when everything is maxed with antialiasing etc so I would wager more than enough to play BF3 at high settings adequately. It is also very quiet which is handy since it is my HTPC, media storage and gaming PC all in one box in my living room, I'm very happy with it.
FWIW you will pay a premium for such a small rig and make a few compromises, if you can get away with a Micro ATX form factor instead of mITX you can get more performance for your money at the expense of a bigger case of course. Hope some of this helps!
Moundir&Tony>you
Member
Quoting myself .Moundir&Tony>you said:
I noticed I have some extra cash lying around , so I can aim a little bit higher . 6950 or GTX560 , both for ~230 . Which one should I get ?
Tobiasboon
Member
Get a 6950 that you can unlock to a 6970 or thereabouts (do read up on this though, I'm not sure on the procedure and if the success rate is still as high as it was) depending on the clock speeds you will get from it. But the GTX 560 Ti is certainly no slouch either and offers performance somewhere in between the two overall at stock speeds.Moundir&Tony>you said:
Tallshortman
Member
cjtiger300 said:
Well a fairly decent value if it comes pre-assembled and you don't want to take the time to assemble one for yourself. I would definitely recommend against the GTX 550 Ti since it's performance is the same as cards $20 (give or take some) cheaper. It is about one step down from the GTX 460 listed in the OP $600 build. Also, the HDD they provide is 5900 rmp but it's pretty spacey so it doesn't have great speed. On the bright side it comes with a good processor and 8GB of RAM.
So even their inflated "show" prices only say you save $70. I would say if you don't mind assembling a rig yourself the OP build is significantly a better value. The only thing I would recommend is switching to a quad core CPU from the dual core listed in the OP build if you plan on keeping the CPU for a while since future games are being promised to optimize for quad core. You can definitely see this already in the Witcher 2 which takes a significant performance hit when comparing a dual core to a quad core CPU.
Xplatformer
Member
What's the purpose of mini HDMI connectors on the back of Nvidia's graphic cards?
Why don't they come with standard HDMI as the default like AMD's cards?
Why don't they come with standard HDMI as the default like AMD's cards?
Tallshortman
Member
Moundir&Tony>you said:
Definitely get the 6950 if they're the same price. I'm not sure where you're purchasing from but that seems very expensive for a GTX 560. The GTX 560 Ti is also weaker (more powerful than the 560 but weaker than the 6950) and not recommended. Also like mentioned above, the 6950 can be unlocked into roughly on par with the 6970.
iSurvivedTheOutage
Member
Xplatformer said:
Ive always wondered this...maybe future monitors and TVs will come with Mini HDMI connections?
Moundir&Tony>you
Member
I'm ordering from a french store . I'm gonna go with the 6950 then . It's even cheaper than the 560 , don't really know why , but I'm not gonna complain .Tallshortman said:
Stupid question , but is paying 40 more for a 2GB card worth it ? I can get a 1GB 6950 for 200 , and the cheapest 2GB one I found is 240 .
Also , is it hard to turn it into a 6970 ?
get the 5850 (it's more powerful than the 6850 -> 6870 = 5850)Moundir&Tony>you said:
you'd be wasting your money because your cpu is gonna be bottlenecking the 6950
hell, if you get the 5850, you'd probably be bottlenecking your current system as well
get the 5850, and overclock ur cpu to 3.8ghz
Tobiasboon
Member
Yeah that is expensive for a GTX 560! That's like £200! You can get a new 560 Ti for £150 plus the postage on Ebay and only £20 more for a 6950.Tallshortman said:
Looking at the benchmarks the 6950 does seem to edge ahead depending on where you read, Hardware Compare has them fairly evenly pegged but in the Guru3D review the 6950 wins, they seem to be pretty much equal in terms of fps vs cost vs power consumption. Unfortunately in my case I was limited to 9 inches for my card so the 6950 was a no-go from the start, would have loved one and get it unlocked etc.
Still, the GTX 560 Ti is doing me proud for the moment.
Moundir&Tony>you
Member
Ok , now I don't know what to do anymoreAnony said:
Tallshortman
Member
Cptkrush said:
Actually a few of the manufacturers have cards with the BIOS switch and are available at newegg last I checked.
Moundir&Tony>you
Member
So ? What should I do then ? Tobiasboon says that my new card would be limited by my current cpu . And if I want to get a 6950 , which model should I buy ?
hi guys,
i've been messing around with drivers all day. i have a 6850, i used to be able to right click the CCC icon and set settings, like what type of AA i wanted to use. if i wanted tessellation to be set to optimized, application controlled.
i've been experimenting and trying different drivers till i decided to go back to the default drivers straight from AMD.
I no longer have those tesselation/type of antialiasing settings anymore. just the regular ones that have always been there, like anstriotropic, AA, etc. anyone know whats up? i've uninstalled all the ATI stuff, then use driver sweeper in safe mode, then downloaded the full package from AMD. i want those settings back even though i have no idea what they mean.
i can't even access them from the full CCC either.
i've been messing around with drivers all day. i have a 6850, i used to be able to right click the CCC icon and set settings, like what type of AA i wanted to use. if i wanted tessellation to be set to optimized, application controlled.
i've been experimenting and trying different drivers till i decided to go back to the default drivers straight from AMD.
I no longer have those tesselation/type of antialiasing settings anymore. just the regular ones that have always been there, like anstriotropic, AA, etc. anyone know whats up? i've uninstalled all the ATI stuff, then use driver sweeper in safe mode, then downloaded the full package from AMD. i want those settings back even though i have no idea what they mean.
i can't even access them from the full CCC either.
Uninstall the drivers, but don't use the Express option. Instead, select the Custom option, and then, the Select them all. Afterward, restart the computer and reinstall the driver again.Chesskid1 said:hi guys,
i've been messing around with drivers all day. i have a 6850, i used to be able to right click the CCC icon and set settings, like what type of AA i wanted to use. if i wanted tessellation to be set to optimized, application controlled.
i've been experimenting and trying different drivers till i decided to go back to the default drivers straight from AMD.
I no longer have those tesselation/type of antialiasing settings anymore. just the regular ones that have always been there, like anstriotropic, AA, etc. anyone know whats up? i've uninstalled all the ATI stuff, then use driver sweeper in safe mode, then downloaded the full package from AMD. i want those settings back even though i have no idea what they mean.
i can't even access them from the full CCC either.
NullPointer
Member
Just want to give this one last try.
Any suggestions on the best videocard or setup to easily switch audio&video between dual monitors on a desk and a HDTV? Something that puts audio and video across HDMI?
Will any modern videocard work? Or should I prefer one brand? A specific model?
Any suggestions on the best videocard or setup to easily switch audio&video between dual monitors on a desk and a HDTV? Something that puts audio and video across HDMI?
Will any modern videocard work? Or should I prefer one brand? A specific model?
Tallshortman
Member
Moundir&Tony>you said:
If you want to try and unlock a 1GB version please read ahead for more details and warnings. Your best bet if you want to know for sure you can unlock it is make sure it's a reference design (mentioned above) or has the dual BIOS switch on a non-reference card(easiest way to unlock it). For example, this has the name in the product
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102945.
Others, like this one
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127575
don't have it in the product name but still have the BIOS switch.
First off, let me go into a little detail beforehand. People have *successfully* unlocked cards that are neither reference nor come with dual BIOS switch however a significant portion of them have run into problems and I wouldn't recommend you try in the first place unless you are willing to put the time and risk into it. If you decide to get one that isn't reference or has the dual BIOS switch I recommend you overclock the card rather than unlock it. It is a great card to overclock too so don't think you're losing a too significant amount of performance if you choose to overclock rather than unlock it.
1. How to know if it is a reference model
You will need to physically look at the card. Hopefully the store you're buying from has good, accurate pictures. The PCIe connector will have an AMD logo on it. This may be too small to see, so you may need to check if the SINGLE FAN is at the END of the card, not in the middle and not dual fans.
Please not that it will also have the dual bios switch. I will go into detail in the next segment so bare with me.
2. How to know if it has the dual BIOS design/switch
Some new, non-reference models have the dual bios switch/design put back in. Like stated above, some of them don't even advertise this feature. Please note that these cards CAN have dual fans and other features that other non-reference models have. As long as it has the dual BIOS switch, you're gravy. As far as I know, all these models are 2GB models.
Okay, so if the card doesn't specifically state it has the dual BIOS switch, check next to where the Crossfire link/bridge is. Next it it will be a pretty small looking switch. Here are examples of what it should look like, please note different manufacturers mean some switches do look different.
http://img801.imageshack.us/img801/1543/compare6950s.jpg
http://t1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTsR9kS7tYRA_iD2Zj4c7UTi_NZ1RYd6TYKiUmLB3-BlVYh-XOhSQ
Before purchasing, a simple google search on the specific model name regarding whether it has the switch/design or not may also be helpful if it is both not listed and you can't tell from looking at the picture.
Conclusion
Here is a pretty in depth guide on how to unlock your card.
http://www.techpowerup.com/articles/overclocking/vidcard/159
If it is one of the new dual BIOS design cards the manufacturer may have their own instructions or software so check with them first.
Remember, the safest and recommended way to unlock your card is a 2GB reference or 2GB dual BIOS design card. The process is no that complicated if you get a compatible card. If you just want to overclock the 1GB is probably the better choice for you since it is also significantly cheaper on the site you're shopping on.
I know this is a bit long winded but hopefully this properly informs you before you make your choice.
Tallshortman
Member
Moundir&Tony>you said:
Okay I didn't see your original post. Yes you will be hampered by your CPU when you play modern games on high/ultra settings. Can you please post your entire system specs please? If you aren't open to re-hauling more of your system you may just want to go with a less powerful card, otherwise the CPU won't let you get all the juice you can out of a high end card like the 6950.
NullPointer
Member
Thanks for the tip, I'll look into that one.mkenyon said:
As far as oomph my target is Battlefield 3 at native rez at 60fps. Going to build a machine from scratch over the next few months.
How do you go about switching the audio/video from Monitor/PC speakers to HDTV/receiver? Is it just a button in some video card app? I'll have two monitors + HDTV plugged in at any time, and just want to make sure its a simple process to switch between both setups.
Tallshortman
Member
NullPointer said:
What is the native resolution of the monitor you plan on using and what graphics settings are you looking at?
The 5770/6770 is definitely a very good bang for you buck buy in the mid-range. At 1080p on all high settings I would guess be 30+ fps. No benchmarks are out as far as I know so who knows, BF3 might be very well optimized for current cards. I would guess you could hit 60 fps with medium settings. DICE is saying they want to put more load on the CPU and optimize it for quad core so we may be seeing great performance on mid-range cards. If you want 1080p, all high settings, 60+ fps you'll most likely need a more powerful card.
EDIT: The FleX edition cards from sapphire are possibly the most simple cards to use for multiple displays but all AMD cards that have eyefinity support multiple displays.
What games can really take advantage of a GTX 480 SLI system?
I'm playing at 1920x1200 and I get really motion-sick unless the framerate is relatively high (ie. 60 FPS).
Right now I'm thinking of Crysis 2, The Witcher 2, and Metro 2033. All of them only gave me 20 - 30 FPS with everything turned on with a single GTX 480...
I'm playing at 1920x1200 and I get really motion-sick unless the framerate is relatively high (ie. 60 FPS).
Right now I'm thinking of Crysis 2, The Witcher 2, and Metro 2033. All of them only gave me 20 - 30 FPS with everything turned on with a single GTX 480...
NullPointer
Member
I'll have to check when I get home, but I'm pretty sure my monitor is 1920 by something, something, something. And the HDTV is 1080p native.Tallshortman said:
In terms of a more powerful card what would you suggest?
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