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[EternalGamer]

So I'm finally ready to take the plunge and join the master race lol. Up till now I have only had a old MacBook and currently I'm using a iPad to do most of my surfing. I have read the op and it's great and full of info, but I have to admit most of it is jiberish to me

I'm currently in the process of reading through the thread, but I find most of it overwhelming.

I'll give you some info.
-I game mostly on consoles, and I see my self still staying with console for the majority of my gaming (for now)
-I really want to play the popular titles on my new pc, diablo 3, Starcraft 2, civ 5, probably a bunch of strategy games and the like, and of course take advantage of steam sales.
-I want my pc to be my main media hub (if that makes sense to you) using it for streaming movies, music and holding my collection of both.
-I won't be using business style applications or using it for work.
-I want the games to run the best they could for the cheapest I can get, sounds cheap but money is an issue.
- All in all it will be a gaming pc and media player.

So my question is. Based on the build list in the op, I love the first 3 options and can move to the 4th option ($940) but from what I described, which system would you guys recommend for a guy on a budget? The first 3 games I'll buy day 1 would be diablo 3, SC2, civ 5 and I would like them to run really well.

Sorry if this sounds newbish, and I'm sure once I get started I won't just stop there, I will learn all I can about the pc lifestyle with the help of pc GAF.

Thanks in advance for your help gaf

Definitely make sure you get an I5 for future's sake. The i3 (which are dual cores) do fine for now since not many games are really optimized for quad cores at the moment, but down the line, you will want the quadcore processor. Especially a year or two from now when new consoles come out.

I'd say go for the third tier in the op as a baseline but you dont have to follow it religiously. For example, you could easily knock at least a hundred bucks off by going with a slightly less powerful graphics card ( a 6850 would be fine) and a little less RAM 6 gb is fine). A i5 2400 would also work if you want to save more cash. And as for motherboards the three model variations mentioned in the OP are only important if you plan to overclock in the future. The only think that is absolutely essential if you are getting an i5 is that it is a socket 1155 motherboard. The model number only matters for overclocking purposes.

If you live next to a Microcenter, defintely buy the motherboard and processor there. It will save you tons. An i5 and a graphics card in the $150-$200 is the sweetspot for price/value. That i5 2500k listed in the OP for $215 is only $170 at microcenter. You can also get a very comparable i5 3450 for $150 at microcenter. And you get an extra discount if you buy a motherboard with it.

Either way around $600-$650 you can have a system built around an i5 quadcore that will blow your consoles away and run most games on medium high to high settings at 1080p. You could max out Diablo 3, Civ V and Starcraft 3 at 1080p with that system with ease. The only games that would really push it at that resolution would be really high end games like Battlefield 3. Even then you could run with most settings on high. The higher end hardware stuff is really primarily for people into benchmark stats or obbessed with maxing every graphic options at 60 fps that never dips at all. Especially coming from consoles, you would be very impressed with what a $600 machine could do. I say this as someone that did just that two years ago. Last summer I made a second cheap PC build to hook up to my TV for $550. Even that thing can run 90% of the games with most settings on high at 1080p. And it has a somewhat crummy AMD Phenom processor (not nearly as good as the intell i5s).


Pick up a wireless 360 dongle so you can use 360 controllers, download Steam add friends and Gaffers to your friends list. You wont look back.


So in short, here is a ballpark of what Id suggest for your budget and your usage:

Processor: i5 2500k or i5 3450 (or slightly cheaper option: i5 2400)
Graphics card: Radeon 6870 or Geforce 560 (not SE) (slightly cheaper Radeon 6850 or Geforce 460)
RAM: 6gb ddr 3 is plenty.

Here is a sample build I put together with your aims in mind:

Processor: i5 3460 $150
Motherboard: Biostar TZ77A $99
RAM: 8gb Kingston DDR3 1600 30nm $49
Graphics Card: Radeon 6870 $169 ($159 after rebate)
Harddrive: WD Caviar Black 1TB $119
Power Supply: Antec 450w $35
NZXT 210 ATX Case $38 ($28 after rebate)

Total: $640

Thats a nice system that would run most games on high settings at 1080p.

By cutting a few corners on a slightly cheaper graphics card, harddrive and motherboard you could probably get it down to $100 less without sacrificing a lot of performance. For example, you could also just go with a 500GB Caviar Blue harddrive for $50 less, if you dont mind deleting stuff more often. A Radeon 6850 would do fine for $25 less. And 4gb of RAM for $25 less would do fine for now since you could always add more later. In short, if you are really on a budget, you could make a build that is very close to this one in performance with just those 3 changes for $540, it just wouldn't have quite as much headroom for storage/overclocking in the future.

 

[Acrylic7]

Hello.

I was wondering if anyone has heard great things about Dells Precision Desktops. I wanted something to do my Digital Art, Gaming, Animation/3d rendering software, and whatnot. Looking through Dells website and it seems powerful but I don't understand much when it comes to whats under the hood.

I also was wondering if the Dell's Ultrasharp line of monitors are best for Digital Artists. Iv been researching and heard they have some pretty good stuff because they are IPS monitors.

And one more question. Iv been running Painter 11, Media Player and Firefox at the same time and my Laptop slows down a bit. I'm just using this laptop to do Digital Art with Photoshop and Painter. Would I be better off getting a new Laptop or Just upgrading some parts such as Ram? here are my laptop specs-

Model- Dell Studio 1555
Processor- Pentium(R) Dual-Core CPU T4400 @2.20GHz 2.20 GHz
Installed memory (RAM)- 3.00 GB
System type- 64-bit Operating System

Help would be appreciated.

 

[saltinekracka]

Been assembling for about 4 hours now...it's booting properly!

And now, bed.

 

[Sethos]

Looks awesome saltinekracka


By the way, I hear the thermal paste the comes with the H100 should be of pretty high quality? Is it recommended that you just go with that or wipe it off and apply some of your own ( MX-4 )

 

[Virzeth]

I could honestly use some help, GAF. Because of some overheating issues, I'll most likely have to get a new motherboard and CPU.
Keeping in mind that I don't mean to overclock (nor to add a new video card anytime soon), what would you recommend between i5 2500/2500k* - i7 2600/2600k/2700k/3770, for example?

And what about the mobo? I need 4 DDR3 slots (mine's @ 1600MHz, if it makes any difference) and a good enough number of USB2 connectors, plus possibly some USB 3 and eSATA as well.


* Good price, for sure, but would it be on par with the others on stock settings, without Hyper-Threading and 'only' 4 threads, instead of the i7s' 8?

 

[Nezmins]

This is an amazing post! tnx!

 

[harrytang]

need help

following the over clocking guide in OP for i7 2600k on my p877z pro mobo. Starting simple with base clock of 100 and multiplier of 40. On first restart getting BSOD with 124 error. Guide says adjust vcore, but the problem is I can no longer access the UEFI bios. Seems like the keyboard isnt being recognized until windows safe mode screen. Spamming the DEL key, changed my keyboard, changed my usb slot and still nothing. No access to bios. Only option to boot windows and get BSOD every time. What can I do?

 

[Sethos]

Finally done, pleasure to work with the 600T and everything went smoothly. Plexi glass window scratches super easy so that's already full of marks and scratches, had to use the mesh. My Phanteks fans also got a new home to help cool the GPUs.

Goodbye awful Cosmos II

 

[Rand0m TAG]

Finally done, pleasure to work with the 600T and everything went smoothly. Plexi glass window scratches super easy so that's already full of marks and scratches, had to use the mesh. My Phanteks fans also got a new home to help cool the GPUs.

Goodbye awful Cosmos II

http://i.minus.com/ibtuBh8YKFMFt1.png[IMG]

[IMG]http://i.minus.com/i45SEr7WwL8Ue.png[IMG]

[IMG]http://i.minus.com/ikANrmRClfJym.png[IMG][/QUOTE]

looks pretty good. i want to build another pc lol

 

[piratepwnsninja]

So my cousin wants me to part him out a PC and he has very limited funds to spend on it. He sent me a configuration with an AMD chip in it and a Radeon 6750. I'm fairly certain that just going with a i7 ivy bridge with the HD4000 on board is a better option, because in what limited stuff I can find, those two cards are actually very similar. I'm just thinking this way he can throw a better video card in whenever he gets the money to do it and have a better processor as well. Is my line of thinking right?

 

[AwesomeSauce]

So my cousin wants me to part him out a PC and he has very limited funds to spend on it. He sent me a configuration with an AMD chip in it and a Radeon 6750. I'm fairly certain that just going with a i7 ivy bridge with the HD4000 on board is a better option, because in what limited stuff I can find, those two cards are actually very similar. I'm just thinking this way he can throw a better video card in whenever he gets the money to do it and have a better processor as well. Is my line of thinking right?

You have to be more specific with the HD 4000 model number if comparing it with the 6750.

Yes, your line of thinking is right. By setting him up with an i7 the PC he gets will have better longevity. If his priority is gaming, stick to an i5 and have him save up for a mid range gpu.

 

[Sethos]

Oh great, my H100 rattles because the molex delivers over 12v

People say it can be fixed by fixing a voltage reducer on to it, drop it to anything below 12, 11.9-8v how / where? Can't find such a thing, only extreme drops like 5 and 9.

 

[EternalGamer]

So my cousin wants me to part him out a PC and he has very limited funds to spend on it. He sent me a configuration with an AMD chip in it and a Radeon 6750. I'm fairly certain that just going with a i7 ivy bridge with the HD4000 on board is a better option, because in what limited stuff I can find, those two cards are actually very similar. I'm just thinking this way he can throw a better video card in whenever he gets the money to do it and have a better processor as well. Is my line of thinking right?

I5 is better for what he wants.

Show him this chart:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-cpu-review-overclock,3106-5.html

Even throwing in a very cheap $60 card with it would be a decent option for now with upgrading the card later. Like this 6670 for $65 that someone recommended in another thread. Obviously he could do way better for $100-$150 on a grahics card, but this would play games in the meantime and is better than onboard video.

 

[MrBig]

I5 is better for what he wants.

Show him this chart:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gaming-cpu-review-overclock,3106-5.html

Even throwing in a very cheap $60 card with it would be a decent option for now with upgrading the card later. Like this 6670 for $65 that someone recommended in another thread. Obviously he could do way better for $100-$150 on a grahics card, but for $15 this would play games in the meantime and is better than onboard video.

No, that would just be telling him to waste money. I had a 9600 and the HD4000 performed better than it in the few thing I tried it on. Just stick with the iGPU and when he wants to play games he can buy a GPU in whatever price range he wants.

 

[EternalGamer]

No, that would just be telling him to waste money. I had a 9600 and the HD4000 performed better than it in the few thing I tried it on.

Yeah, I changed it out before you quoted me. Seems the 9600 is a toss with 4000. Still a card that is the cost of a $60 console game would be a big improvement over onboard video.

 

[AwesomeSauce]

Oh snap I'm an idiot I thought he meant Ati hd 4000 series lol.

 

[cametall]

Oh great, my H100 rattles because the molex delivers over 12v

People say it can be fixed by fixing a voltage reducer on to it, drop it to anything below 12, 11.9-8v how / where? Can't find such a thing, only extreme drops like 5 and 9.

Go to the Corsair Cooling forums, there is a stickied post by RamGuy with instructions on how to RMA it for one that does not have the issue.

You can request an advanced RMA too (they ship you the part before you ship yours to them) but you need to give them your credit card info. You can't request an advanced RMA until you have an RMA number though, then you call Corsair and request it.

I'm going through this right now.

 

[Sethos]

Go to the Corsair Cooling forums, there is a stickied post by RamGuy with instructions on how to RMA it for one that does not have the issue.

You can request an advanced RMA too (they ship you the part before you ship yours to them) but you need to give them your credit card info. You can't request an advanced RMA until you have an RMA number though, then you call Corsair and request it.

I'm going through this right now.

Yeah I saw it, can't be bothered sending back and forth. I PMd the guy making Molex voltage droppers to drop it below 12v which fixes it for 80%+, so I'm trying a few of those first.

 

[cametall]

Yeah I saw it, can't be bothered sending back and forth. I PMd the guy making Molex voltage droppers to drop it below 12v which fixes it for 80%+, so I'm trying a few of those first.

Is he still making them? On Overclock.net it appeared he stopped.

If you have a fan controller you could try dropping the pump to about 3800rpm and see if it stops.

 

[Sethos]

Is he still making them? On Overclock.net it appeared he stopped.

If you have a fan controller you could try dropping the pump to about 3800rpm and see if it stops.

Don't have a molex fan controller, as that's the one you need to control. But yeah, he still makes them. Already been in contact with him and he's given me a price for two ( In case one doesn't drop it enough ).

If all that fails I'll advance RMA

 

[peppermints]

I've just bought an HDMI cable in hopes of running it from my PC using an nVidia GTX560Ti to my Onkyo receiver.

I know that HDMI out on the video card works because it was previously hooked up that way from to my monitor, which is now connected to the card via DVI.

The display settings in Windows recognize that the receiver is connected to the video card, and I can drag windows over to it, but nothing is being output through the receiver to the TV.

I've also tried going straight to the TV from the video card, but it won't even recognize that.

Are there some steps I'm missing in getting this to work?

 

[LordAlu]

I've just bought an HDMI cable in hopes of running it from my PC using an nVidia GTX560Ti to my Onkyo receiver.

I know that HDMI out on the video card works because it was previously hooked up that way from to my monitor, which is now connected to the card via DVI.

The display settings in Windows recognize that the receiver is connected to the video card, and I can drag windows over to it, but nothing is being output through the receiver to the TV.

I've also tried going straight to the TV from the video card, but it won't even recognize that.

Are there some steps I'm missing in getting this to work?

Try pressing Windows Key + P - it lets you choose what to output to. See if you can choose projector or TV and if that outputs anything that way.

 

[peppermints]

Try pressing Windows Key + P - it lets you choose what to output to. See if you can choose projector or TV and if that outputs anything that way.

No luck, trying both duplicate and extend.

 

[mkenyon]

Don't have a molex fan controller, as that's the one you need to control. But yeah, he still makes them. Already been in contact with him and he's given me a price for two ( In case one doesn't drop it enough ).

If all that fails I'll advance RMA

Just use a molex->fan adapter and then use the fan controller on the CM CII or 600T.

 

[LordAlu]

No luck, trying both duplicate and extend.

Hmm, strange. Did you try booting with the cable in or just connecting the cable whilst your computer was on? My previous computer would only work with HDMI out if you had the cable connected when you booted :/

 

[peppermints]

Hmm, strange. Did you try booting with the cable in or just connecting the cable whilst your computer was on? My previous computer would only work with HDMI out if you had the cable connected when you booted :/

Yep. I guess I'll move my computer closer to the receiver and use a shorter cable in case the cable length is the issue. It's only 25ft so I didn't think it would be a problem. Plus, if it's recognizing the receiver is there why wouldn't it display?

Is there something wrong with using both DVI and HDMI to output? In other words, should I try both outputs being DVI?

 

[Hazaro]

Looks good Sethos

Hello.

I was wondering if anyone has heard great things about Dells Precision Desktops. I wanted something to do my Digital Art, Gaming, Animation/3d rendering software, and whatnot. Looking through Dells website and it seems powerful but I don't understand much when it comes to whats under the hood.

I also was wondering if the Dell's Ultrasharp line of monitors are best for Digital Artists. Iv been researching and heard they have some pretty good stuff because they are IPS monitors.

And one more question. Iv been running Painter 11, Media Player and Firefox at the same time and my Laptop slows down a bit. I'm just using this laptop to do Digital Art with Photoshop and Painter. Would I be better off getting a new Laptop or Just upgrading some parts such as Ram? here are my laptop specs-

Model- Dell Studio 1555
Processor- Pentium(R) Dual-Core CPU T4400 @2.20GHz 2.20 GHz
Installed memory (RAM)- 3.00 GB
System type- 64-bit Operating System

Help would be appreciated.

Need links to what you are looking at.
CPU is everything for what you need in a laptop, you'd be looking at a new one.

Been assembling for about 4 hours now...it's booting properly!

And now, bed.

Looks great!

I could honestly use some help, GAF. Because of some overheating issues, I'll most likely have to get a new motherboard and CPU.
Keeping in mind that I don't mean to overclock (nor to add a new video card anytime soon), what would you recommend between i5 2500/2500k* - i7 2600/2600k/2700k/3770, for example?

And what about the mobo? I need 4 DDR3 slots (mine's @ 1600MHz, if it makes any difference) and a good enough number of USB2 connectors, plus possibly some USB 3 and eSATA as well.


* Good price, for sure, but would it be on par with the others on stock settings, without Hyper-Threading and 'only' 4 threads, instead of the i7s' 8?

Overheating issues and you need a new mobo and CPU? You sure?
Either way depending on what you do a 3570K with coupon is the best value wise. I still go for the K model due to having the ability EVER later on (A lot of people OC in 1-2 years) and increased resale value.

need help

following the over clocking guide in OP for i7 2600k on my p877z pro mobo. Starting simple with base clock of 100 and multiplier of 40. On first restart getting BSOD with 124 error. Guide says adjust vcore, but the problem is I can no longer access the UEFI bios. Seems like the keyboard isnt being recognized until windows safe mode screen. Spamming the DEL key, changed my keyboard, changed my usb slot and still nothing. No access to bios. Only option to boot windows and get BSOD every time. What can I do?

Try removing other USB devices and making sure the keyboard is on a USB 2.0 port.

So my cousin wants me to part him out a PC and he has very limited funds to spend on it. He sent me a configuration with an AMD chip in it and a Radeon 6750. I'm fairly certain that just going with a i7 ivy bridge with the HD4000 on board is a better option, because in what limited stuff I can find, those two cards are actually very similar. I'm just thinking this way he can throw a better video card in whenever he gets the money to do it and have a better processor as well. Is my line of thinking right?

How limited? What is the computer going to be used for?

 

[LordAlu]

Yep. I guess I'll move my computer closer to the receiver and use a shorter cable in case the cable length is the issue. It's only 25ft so I didn't think it would be a problem. Plus, if it's recognizing the receiver is there why wouldn't it display?

Is there something wrong with using both DVI and HDMI to output? In other words, should I try both outputs being DVI?

It shouldn't be an issue. Have you had a look in the nVidia Control Panel at the "Set up Multiple Displays" option to see if that helps?

 

[Smokey]

Finally done, pleasure to work with the 600T and everything went smoothly. Plexi glass window scratches super easy so that's already full of marks and scratches, had to use the mesh. My Phanteks fans also got a new home to help cool the GPUs.

Goodbye awful Cosmos II

Sweet!

Doesn't that look much better than that big hulk of a fan taking up 1/4 of your case

Looks like you have the H100 fans on the outside pushing air in?

 

[Sethos]

Sweet!

Doesn't that look much better than that big hulk of a fan taking up 1/4 of your case

Looks like you have the H100 fans on the outside pushing air in?

Nah, they are pulling it out. Thought I could have them pushing but the RAM blocks and one of the motherboard heatsinks are in the way. Right now it's at the lowest of the three settings, the balanced level seems awfully noisy?

 

[Veal]

So is there going to be an appreciable difference between this ram

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233299

And this ram

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233280

Those heat sinks on the first one are hideous and I'd like to avoid them, but if there is a performance benefit I can deal. What would you guys do?



I can see the timing is different on the compare page but I'm not quite that literate to understand exactly how it will affect performance.

If you're going to buy before the 11th, you could buy two of these: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231485 and use the promo code to save some money. That's what I did.

 

[peppermints]

It shouldn't be an issue. Have you had a look in the nVidia Control Panel at the "Set up Multiple Displays" option to see if that helps?

Just checked the cable connections, looks like the mini-HDMI adapter is borked. Ordered a new one from Amazon, hopefully that fixes it.

Really wanna get this set up so I can play all of the imminent Steam summer sale games on my couch!

 

[Crayons]

Hi PC-GAF! I'm going to be getting a new graphics card because my Nvidia GeForce 9100 has been overheating. The thing is I have no idea where the graphics card is and how I would replace it. Can someone point it out to me in these pics? Thanks.

sorry for the poor quality.

whole thing

zoomed in

 

[gutterboy44]

Yes! Last part of my build ordered. Decided to go with the GIGABYTE GV-N670OC-2GD GeForce GTX 670 2GB over the Asus Top version. Reread all of the Tom's Hardware review of both cards and I think I will be happy with the Gigabyte if not more so.

Monday is going to be like mega Christmas. So excited.

 

[EternalGamer]

Hi PC-GAF! I'm going to be getting a new graphics card because my Nvidia GeForce 9100 has been overheating. The thing is I have no idea where the graphics card is and how I would replace it. Can someone point it out to me in these pics? Thanks.

sorry for the poor quality.

whole thing

zoomed in

Isnt the 9100 integrated graphics? If so, this means it is on the motherboatd and you arent going to remove it. Instead, just disable it when you get the new card put in.

As for where the new card goes, with he cae open, look near the back of you're PC (where everything plus in) and you'll see little brackets on the case that are held on with screws. They are just tiny metal tabs that stop dust from getting in your case when you dont have cards plugged into it.

You are going you remove one of those braclets and then slide the videocard in to one of the slots on the motherboard so that the video cards backside (with the HDMI/VGA plug) sticks out the back through the slot where the bracket was. You then plug your monitor into itonce you get it installed rather than your motherboard.

It it pretty easy. It just involves removing that one bracket, popping in the videocard, screwing it in to secure, then closing it back up amd plugging your monitot up to the new spot in the back where the videocard sticks through. then when awindows boots go to your comtrol pannel, right click and "disable" your old card. Takes 5 minutes.

 

[CambriaRising]

Hi PC-GAF! I'm going to be getting a new graphics card because my Nvidia GeForce 9100 has been overheating. The thing is I have no idea where the graphics card is and how I would replace it. Can someone point it out to me in these pics? Thanks.

sorry for the poor quality.

whole thing

zoomed in

Looks like it is integrated. You will not be able to remove it, however it looks like you have a PCI-E 2.0 port, so installing a new GPU and just disabling the old one will work just fine. Do you know what kind of processor you have?

 

[Crayons]

Isnt the 9100 integrated graphocs? If so, this means it is on the motherboatd and you arent going to remove it. Instead, just disable it when you get the new card put in.

As for where the new card goes, loot at the back of you're PC and you'll see little brackets that are held on with screws. You are going yo remove one of those brackets and then slide the videocard in so that its backside (with the HDMI/VGA plug) sticks out the back. You then plug your monitor into it once you get it installed rather than your motherboard.

Looks like it is integrated. You will not be able to remove it, however it looks like you have a PCI-E 2.0 port, so installing a new GPU and just disabling the old one will work just fine. Do you know what kind of processor you have?

Thanks both of you! I have AMD Athlon 7550, with 8.00 GB Dual-Channel DDR2 @ 400MHz, running Windows 7 64 bit.

 

[Jburton]

Ok guys I have come into some insurance money and I have specced a laptop

clevo w150er chassis

i7-3610qm

1gig ddr5 650m

8gig 1600mhz ddr3

1080p 15.6 screen


I am considering whether to go with the laptop or desktop (laptop would not be moving anywhere except in the house).

I want some advice on a desktop spec I have come up with

i5-2500k sandy bridge

asus p8h77- le motherboard

corsair vengence 8gig (2x4) 1600mhz dual channel

sapphire 2gig ddr5 7870

1tb seagate barracuda sata 3 hdd

fractal design core 3000 midi case


Is this balanced?

What performance should I expect on the likes of BF3 ?

 

[Lactose_Intolerant]

the case will add a few fps

 

[Jburton]

the case will add a few fps

huh?

 

[Smokey]

Nah, they are pulling it out. Thought I could have them pushing but the RAM blocks and one of the motherboard heatsinks are in the way. Right now it's at the lowest of the three settings, the balanced level seems awfully noisy?

You're not using the Corsair fans right? So they run at the highest RPM under the respective setting. If so then yeah the balanced does cause some noise. I have my machine under my desk so I don't really notice it, but if you have it in the open or something then it could be bothersome.

You can run it on the lowest setting and still get some really good cooling though.

 

[Virzeth]

Overheating issues and you need a new mobo and CPU? You sure?
Either way depending on what you do a 3570K with coupon is the best value wise. I still go for the K model due to having the ability EVER later on (A lot of people OC in 1-2 years) and increased resale value.

That was just putting it shortly. The problem is actually the motherboard, but to avoid having to go through it again in six months, I'd rather get away from the 1156 socket as fast as I can.
PC is mostly for modern gaming @1080p, with some graphic work in the middle, the occasional noobish 3D modeling and pretty heavy multitasking all around... factoring future-proofing too the i7 HT looks like a safer bet to me, honestly.

And yeah, a mild OC isn't absolutely out of the picture, and this is why I did include those -K models, given the really small price difference... but I want stability, first, so I'm looking for something fairly powerful by default too.

 

[Sethos]

You're not using the Corsair fans right? So they run at the highest RPM under the respective setting. If so then yeah the balanced does cause some noise. I have my machine under my desk so I don't really notice it, but if you have it in the open or something then it could be bothersome.

You can run it on the lowest setting and still get some really good cooling though.

I am using the Corsair fans, so they should be controlled. It's not even a slight hum, a bit louder it really sounds like a tornado is about to form at the second setting, third setting just sounds completely freakishly loud. I would like to have it running at the balanced setting at least but right now, I just need to deal with the rattle.

But temps are "Okay", idles a bit high - 38-40 but it keeps doing these spikes to 47 for a split-second, then back down.

 

[n0n44m]

I am using the Corsair fans, so they should be controlled. It's not even a slight hum, a bit louder it really sounds like a tornado is about to form at the second setting, third setting just sounds completely freakishly loud. I would like to have it running at the balanced setting at least but right now, I just need to deal with the rattle.

But temps are "Okay", idles a bit high - 38-40 but it keeps doing these spikes to 47 for a split-second, then back down.

from an H100 review

"Fan Speed : (+/- 10%): up to 1300 RPM (Low Noise), 2000 RPM (Balanced), and 2500 RPM (High Performance)"

1300 = loud
2000 = fucking loud
2500 = WTF

IMHO

 

[Acrylic7]

http://www.dell.com/us/soho/p/precision-t3600/pd
they have more, but this shits confusing to me.

 

[cametall]

from an H100 review

"Fan Speed : (+/- 10%): up to 1300 RPM (Low Noise), 2000 RPM (Balanced), and 2500 RPM (High Performance)"

1300 = loud
2000 = fucking loud
2500 = WTF

IMHO

I've heard the stock Corsair cooling fans are all around noisy. I replaced mine with Noctuas and don't even use the stock one.

Though I hear the Corsair fan controller only works on Corsair fans.

 

[Sethos]

from an H100 review

"Fan Speed : (+/- 10%): up to 1300 RPM (Low Noise), 2000 RPM (Balanced), and 2500 RPM (High Performance)"

1300 = loud
2000 = fucking loud
2500 = WTF

IMHO

Yeah, that's pretty much my experience. I need to find some replacements that make sense, they need to push more air but be a bit quieter considering they will be running 100%.

 

[n0n44m]

Yeah, that's pretty much my experience. I need to find some replacements that make sense, they need to push more air but be a bit quieter considering they will be running 100%.

probably Gentle Typhoon 1150 or 1450 rpm ? Good tradeoff between noise and rpm, and they have pretty much the best pressure characteristics for use on a radiator out there

Noiseblocker PL2 are great as well, and mkenyon likes the Bitfenix Spectre Pro's a lot ... those also come in all white according to the Bitfenix site

 

[Crayons]

I fixed my card overheating!

Opened it up and pointed a fan at it. It's only 53 degrees Celsius now, opposed to 123 before.
Temporary solution obviously, until I get my new graphics card in the mail.

 

[Ocho]

Is it necessary to install the usb (intel and asmedia)/intel graphics/sata drivers? I'm configuring a Maximus V.