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[Corky]

Hey guys

I'm now using EVGA precision X for OCing my 670, problem is I really like nvidia inspectors oc profiles more, maybe I'm missing something.

Is it possible to create a desktop shortcut for a potential OC profile in precision x? I only want/need to OC for a few games, so I'd rather run stock with the card barely audible rather than the jet that is the OC fan profile.

What I'm trying to get at is I really desire a quick OC+custom fan profile // Stock+stock fan profile - on the fly switch.

 

[MrBig]

Hey guys

I'm now using EVGA precision X for OCing my 670, problem is I really like nvidia inspectors oc profiles more, maybe I'm missing something.

Is it possible to create a desktop shortcut for a potential OC profile in precision x? I only want/need to OC for a few games, so I'd rather run stock with the card barely audible rather than the jet that is the OC fan profile.

What I'm trying to get at is I really desire a quick OC+custom fan profile // Stock+stock fan profile - on the fly switch.

Set a fan curve rather than a flat % so that when it's at idle clocks it's at a low rpm.

 

[mkenyon]

Hey guys

I'm now using EVGA precision X for OCing my 670, problem is I really like nvidia inspectors oc profiles more, maybe I'm missing something.

Is it possible to create a desktop shortcut for a potential OC profile in precision x? I only want/need to OC for a few games, so I'd rather run stock with the card barely audible rather than the jet that is the OC fan profile.

What I'm trying to get at is I really desire a quick OC+custom fan profile // Stock+stock fan profile - on the fly switch.

You can create OC Profiles in Precision X, I'm sure there has to be a way to hotkey those profiles.

Also, I think you got the Gigabyte card, but in case you didn't and ended up going EVGA or reference, 70C is now your biggest enemy. As soon as you hit that, your card starts downclocking. Despite a higher stable 'target', you might actually be seeing lower core/mem frequences due to hitting that wall. Such a pain in the ass (until my 690 went under water).

 

[Ceebs]

Buying a new storage Hard Drive to compliment my Samsung SSD.

WD Caviar Black the way to go if I plan on running games from it that do not merit moving to the SSD?

 

[Salsa]

anyone have any experience overclocking a cpu on an ASUS P8P67 LE

I used to think there was no way to do it but ive been told that even though you cant mess with the Core Ratio, you can overlock the Turbo Ratio, however, I never did this and have no fuckin clue how I should go about it and if it's the same thing/worth it.

 

[mkenyon]

anyone have any experience overclocking a cpu on an ASUS P8P67 LE

I used to think there was no way to do it but ive been told that even though you cant mess with the Core Ratio, you can overlock the Turbo Ratio, however, I never did this and have no fuckin clue how I should go about it and if it's the same thing/worth it.

AFAIK, that would only help you in games that use a single thread.

Buying a new storage Hard Drive to compliment my Samsung SSD.

WD Caviar Black the way to go if I plan on running games from it that do not merit moving to the SSD?

Yup. Or Velociraptor.

 

[Salsa]

AFAIK, that would only help you in games that use a single thread.

well aint that a bummer

guess I'll get the PRO version someday. If anyone else has any first hand experience though that'd be awesome, want to make sure.

 

[mkenyon]

well aint that a bummer

guess I'll get the PRO version someday. If anyone else has any first hand experience though that'd be awesome, want to make sure.

I was mistaken!

http://forums.anandtech.com/showpost.php?p=31136457&postcount=2

Looks like voltage will be auto supplied, which means a lower overall overclock due to too much voltage and therefore heat. If you have an aftermarket cooler, 4.2-4.3 should be absolutely fine, 4.4 even.

 

[Ceebs]

Yup. Or Velociraptor.

With SSD prices where they are I would probably just add more of those than pay for a Velociraptor.

Kinda shocked those are still as expensive as they are.

 

[mkenyon]

I'm right with you. A friend of mine still has a 10x150GB RAID0 array of those. My single SSD is faster.

Though, since it is a gaming drive, thought I'd throw it out there.

 

[Ceebs]

I just know I am going to end up with a $2500 PC at this rate as I have been looking to replace this 670 already for something with 4GB of VRAM.

 

[mkenyon]

At least most of it is reusable. Once you get a badass case, PSU, sound card/DAC, headphones, keyboard, mouse, monitor, SSD/HDDs, you really only need to upgrade a few parts down the line.

This is at least how I rationalize it after I start adding up all of the costs.

Its crazy how upgrading/benching/building can so easily become just as much part of pc gaming as actually gaming.

 

[Ceebs]

At least most of it is reusable. Once you get a badass case, PSU, sound card/DAC, headphones, keyboard, mouse, monitor, SSD/HDDs, you really only need to upgrade a few parts down the line.

This is at least how I rationalize it after I start adding up all of the costs.

Its crazy how upgrading/benching/building can so easily become just as much part of pc gaming as actually gaming.

I probably would need a new PSU as well if I wanted to go SLI or something like 690. (Mine is easily resellable though as it's an X series Seasonic 650w)

But yeah, I am good to go on everything else. I can probably keep using my Noctua heatsink as long as they keep updating the mounting brackets for it for the next socket.

 

[cackhyena]

At least most of it is reusable. Once you get a badass case, PSU, sound card/DAC, headphones, keyboard, mouse, monitor, SSD/HDDs, you really only need to upgrade a few parts down the line.

This is at least how I rationalize it after I start adding up all of the costs.

Its crazy how upgrading/benching/building can so easily become just as much part of pc gaming as actually gaming.

That's kinda what I hate about it. Sometimes I feel like it outweighs the gaming.

 

[Salsa]

I was mistaken!

http://forums.anandtech.com/showpost.php?p=31136457&postcount=2

Looks like voltage will be auto supplied, which means a lower overall overclock due to too much voltage and therefore heat. If you have an aftermarket cooler, 4.2-4.3 should be absolutely fine, 4.4 even.

Honestly i'll try to find some asistance in going for it, im good at OCing in theory but im still a chicken. Always messed around with cheap disposable stuff.

Im running stock cooler right now, I gather a Hyper 212+ should be enough?

talking about an i5 2500k btw

 

[mkenyon]

It's not a 'must do', just something that people who love the tech end up doing as a hobby.

Honestly i'll try to find some asistance in going for it, im good at OCing in theory but im still a chicken. Always messed around with cheap disposable stuff.

Im running stock cooler right now, I gather a Hyper 212+ should be enough?

talking about an i5 2500k btw

You literally change the values of the 'Turbo Ratio', and then stress it while checking temperatures. Easy as pie.

Hyper 212+ should be plenty.

 

[cackhyena]

So when I've saved up 400 to 500 for the upgrade ( no clue what, all I know is I'd like to give nvidea a try ) for a new GPU, I'm just wondering if I'll be alright for the forseeable future with my Corsair 750w PSU?

 

[kharma45]

So when I've saved up 400 to 500 for the upgrade ( no clue what, all I know is I'd like to give nvidea a try ) for a new GPU, I'm just wondering if I'll be alright for the forseeable future with my Corsair 750w PSU?

For a single card it's more than plenty.

 

[CatPee]

So when I've saved up 400 to 500 for the upgrade ( no clue what, all I know is I'd like to give nvidea a try ) for a new GPU, I'm just wondering if I'll be alright for the forseeable future with my Corsair 750w PSU?

For pretty much all single cards, you're perfectly fine. 2x670 would still be fine on that too.

 

[Salsa]

You literally change the values of the 'Turbo Ratio', and then stress it while checking temperatures. Easy as pie.

Hyper 212+ should be plenty.

here's the thing: I had to turn off all the turbo boost options for the CPU from BIOS because the motherboard was making your typical annoying coil whine whenever that was activated and I did something (for example pluggin anything on a USB port). Kinda weird but now im wondering if maybe there's a way to fix that by changing voltages? something is vibrating in a weird way and messing up something else, right?

 

[cackhyena]

Thanks, guys.

 

[Corky]

Set a fan curve rather than a flat % so that when it's at idle clocks it's at a low rpm.

You can create OC Profiles in Precision X, I'm sure there has to be a way to hotkey those profiles.

Also, I think you got the Gigabyte card, but in case you didn't and ended up going EVGA or reference, 70C is now your biggest enemy. As soon as you hit that, your card starts downclocking. Despite a higher stable 'target', you might actually be seeing lower core/mem frequences due to hitting that wall. Such a pain in the ass (until my 690 went under water).

Good news everyone, this card is so bloody badass that I can pretty much run it at 1300 mhz boost // 7200 mhz mem whilst not even having to touch the fanprofile to begin with, doesn't cross 70! ( bf3 pushed it to hmm 67ish after an hour straight or so )...

 

[mkenyon]

Yeah, the cooler on that gigabyte is ridiculously good.

 

[Corky]

Yeah, the cooler on that gigabyte is ridiculously good.

I'm flabbergasted really, so happy I didn't wait for the msi one... like honestly, the card idles at 20% fan speed and during load it goes up to 40% which is what my previous ( what I thought were cool and quiet gpus ) idle level!

Madness.

Can't recommend this card enough.

 

[ledman]

i5 3550 or a i5 2500k?
I don't plan to overclock the 2500k and I can get the i5 3550 for a slightly lower price.

 

[CatPee]

i5 3550 or a i5 2500k?
I don't plan to overclock the 2500k and I can get the i5 3550 for a slightly lower price.

Just go for the 2500K. Having the option to OC will greatly lengthen the usability you'll get out of the processor and increase the resale value.

 

[big_z]

intel e8400
thermalright 120 ultra heatsink + fan
Asus P5E-VM HDMI mATX
4GB corsair ram


how much do you think i can get for these parts assembled. the rest of my current pc im re-using for the new build. i rather make some money off the old stuff instead of tossing it in my computer closet graveyard.

 

[ArachosiA 78]

I was wondering roughly how much electricity it takes to run a gaming PC for 1-2 hours per day. Just wondering if it would be significantly more expensive than using my Xbox or PS3.

 

[Azzurri]

Is 430 for EVGA GTX 670 4GB SC a good deal?

How much better would it be than my GTX 580 SC.

 

[thcsquad]

Any advice for somebody on an extreme budget? My desktop broke tonight. I'm getting married in a couple of months so I really don't have much money. My plan is to build a super barebones system right now and then look to upgrade some key parts a little bit down the line (six months or so). Any recommended builds for someone with a ~$250 budget?

 

[NawidA]

Any advice for somebody on an extreme budget? My desktop broke tonight. I'm getting married in a couple of months so I really don't have much money. My plan is to build a super barebones system right now and then look to upgrade some key parts a little bit down the line (six months or so). Any recommended builds for someone with a ~$250 budget?

What can you salvage out of your desktop?

 

[Blasty]

How would one go about building a gaming PC that's at least silent while it's idle?

 

[Hellish]

How would one go about building a gaming PC that's at least silent while it's idle?

Fan controller, while idle, I can basically run no fans put the gpus on the lowest possible, and only have 1 running on the h100 at the lowest rpm it will spin at and still be fine.

 

[thcsquad]

What can you salvage out of your desktop?

Not sure yet.

• HDD is I think what broke
• The motherboard's AGP port (yes, it's AGP) has never really worked, so I wouldn't call the motherboard salvageable
• CPU might be fine. It's an Athlon 3.2 GHz single core. Then again, I don't know if mobo/cpu connectors have changed over the years and what the feasability of connecting the old CPU to a new mobo would be.
• Case is fine, I'm sure. Unless mobo sizes have somehow changed over the course of eight years
• RAM is probably fine. It's actually the only component I ever successfully upgraded, so the RAM is only 5 or 6 years old instead of 8 years old like everything else. Still, it's like 1 GB total, so not much that's salvagable by today's standards, and RAM is dirt cheap anyway

Overall, I could probably 'salvage' it by just getting a new hard drive and using that until I have more money, but since I'm going to be upgrading in six months anyway, and this thing was almost unusably slow even before it broke, my hope is to get something barebones and then upgrade RAM/graphics card (perhaps even CPU) in six months, and add an SSD for OS+applications. Obviously my barebones machine would just have a regular HDD, and post-upgrade I would still use the same HDD for main storage.

My logic is that PC manufacturers advertise sub $300 prebuilt machines (I see them all over the place), and that I should be able to do at least slightly better than that for the price range.

edit: Here is my first attempt at assembling a build. Thoughts? I tried to make sure everything was compatible and had good reviews (I think everything was 4/5 stars with decent volume of ratings), but past that mostly went for the cheapest possible. Exception was adding a mobo with USB 3, because otherwise I'd probably kick myself later.

 

[Zaraki_Kenpachi]

The Samsung 830 256gb is $190 again, I'm so tempted to get one for my laptop. :/

 

[mkenyon]

I was wondering roughly how much electricity it takes to run a gaming PC for 1-2 hours per day. Just wondering if it would be significantly more expensive than using my Xbox or PS3.

Depends on the gaming PC. Anywhere from ~200W to 1500W. The most common is probably 350-450W.

How would one go about building a gaming PC that's at least silent while it's idle?

You have to choose everything carefully, and it does add a fairly big chunk of change, $100-$200 depending.

Case
You want to choose something that isn't covered in mesh and preferably has sound deadening material. Fractal Define R4 is the case of choice for this, but the Bitfenix Shinobi is a good budget option.

Video Card
This is generally the loudest part on a gaming machine. The most quiet stock coolers are (in order of quietest->loudest) the Gigabyte Windforce, MSI Twin Frozr, and ASUS DCII. There's some that come in and out of these rankings from PowerColor, Gainward, and Zotac. They are usually inconsistent, changing, and region specific though.

Case Fans
Another important factor as this is what is *always* running. Some suggest a fan controller, but fan controllers have become all but obsolete with new 120mm fan technology. You want low spinning, low dB fans. The best of the bunch right now are Corsair AF Quiet Edition, Bitfenix Spectre Pros, Noctuas, and NoiseBlockers. Low speed Scythe and Yate Loon fans can also work just fine, and are a bit less expensive.

PSU
PSU choice is also important, as you'll hopefully get something that is a hybrid and has enough overhead to never really get hot at full load. If you want to totally maximize, you would want a PSU that can deliver double what your total system draws. For a modern gaming PC, you'd want a Corsair AX750, Seasonic X750 (Corsair AX is a rebranded seasonic), or Seasonic Platinum series. Depending on the hardware, you could go up or down in watts.

CPU Cooler
Also an important choice, but, contrary to the way reviews are run and how most people recommend such parts, it's the fan included that should really be under scrutiny. A Coolermaster Hyper 212 with a pair of really good fans like the Corsair SP Quiet Edition, Bitfenix Spectre Pros, or Noctua NF-F12s will be nearly inaudible compared to a Noctua NH-D14 with crappy CoolerMaster fans. So, just get a decent heatsink tower and pair some good fans with it. Or, grab a Noctua heatsink that is compatible with your platform.

Watercooling
This adds hundreds of dollars to the expense, but on my Shinobi XL, the loudest part is a Spectre Pro which runs at 18.9 dB(A). It's inaudible even in my super quiet rural house. The only moving parts are the fans that are attached to the radiators and the pump. The pump itself is extremely quiet. There is no difference in sound between idle and load, it's always whisper quiet. There's no CPU/GPU fans spinning up and down.
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/newreply.php?do=newreply&p=40857027

edit: Here is my first attempt at assembling a build. Thoughts? I tried to make sure everything was compatible and had good reviews (I think everything was 4/5 stars with decent volume of ratings), but past that mostly went for the cheapest possible. Exception was adding a mobo with USB 3, because otherwise I'd probably kick myself later.

It leaves you no room for further upgrades down the line, but if you're not trying to build a 'gaming' PC, then that's pretty much what I'd use to build something like an HTPC.

Swap the case with a Bitfenix Merc or Outlaw. Grab a Corsair Builders Series 430W, just to make sure you have a nice new PSU. If you don't need a ton of storage, you could even swap the HDD for an inexpensive 60GB SSD.

 

[RibbedHero]

Anyone have any experience with the Noctua NH-C14? I'm looking at it as its low profile means that it'll comfortably fit in my case. Frostytech seems to suggest that it keeps the CPU incredibly cool, but I understand they run tests in a lab, and I was looking for some first hand, real life experience with it.

 

[Ostinatto]

got my things yesterday !! thanks gaf, you guys know a lot

 

[Thraktor]

got my things yesterday !! thanks gaf, you guys know a lot

You'll want to switch your fan to the other side of the CPU heatsink. It's more efficient to have it pushing air through the heatsink and out the back of the case.

 

[Ostinatto]

You'll want to switch your fan to the other side of the CPU heatsink. It's more efficient to have it pushing air through the heatsink and out the back of the case.

right, or maybe i should buy a second fan for the cooler?, i think it cost 10 bucks or something..

 

[thcsquad]

It leaves you no room for further upgrades down the line, but if you're not trying to build a 'gaming' PC, then that's pretty much what I'd use to build something like an HTPC.

Swap the case with a Bitfenix Merc or Outlaw. Grab a Corsair Builders Series 430W, just to make sure you have a nice new PSU. If you don't need a ton of storage, you could even swap the HDD for an inexpensive 60GB SSD.

What about it doesn't leave room for further upgrades? The case size?

 

[RibbedHero]

What about it doesn't leave room for further upgrades? The case size?

Mobo mainly, not a great case either and the PSU is small and won't last long. Might want to think about saving for something that would be more upgradeable down the line.

 

[AwesomeSauce]

Is 430 for EVGA GTX 670 4GB SC a good deal?

How much better would it be than my GTX 580 SC.

IMO save your money. You don't need to upgrade yet as a 580 is plenty capable still.

 

[thcsquad]

Mobo mainly, not a great case either and the PSU is small and won't last long. Might want to think about saving for something that would be more upgradeable down the line.

Maybe I should clarify the scope of upgrading. This is never going to be a $2000 or probably even $1000 machine (I don't PC game enough to care that much, the only ones I do buy are from the Humble Bundles, otherwise the most strain I give it is Visual Studio + other productivity apps + Spotify at the same time). My original plan was to build a $600-700 machine in six months, maybe getting a mid-range graphics card instead of the cheapest possible, and getting a bunch more RAM + an SSD as that's more pertinent to my use case than a really powerful CPU/GPU.

 

[Hellish]

Depends on the gaming PC. Anywhere from ~200W to 1500W. The most common is probably 350-450W.

You have to choose everything carefully, and it does add a fairly big chunk of change, $100-$200 depending.

Case
You want to choose something that isn't covered in mesh and preferably has sound deadening material. Fractal Define R4 is the case of choice for this, but the Bitfenix Shinobi is a good budget option.

Video Card
This is generally the loudest part on a gaming machine. The most quiet stock coolers are (in order of quietest->loudest) the Gigabyte Windforce, MSI Twin Frozr, and ASUS DCII. There's some that come in and out of these rankings from PowerColor, Gainward, and Zotac. They are usually inconsistent, changing, and region specific though.

Case Fans
Another important factor as this is what is *always* running. Some suggest a fan controller, but fan controllers have become all but obsolete with new 120mm fan technology. You want low spinning, low dB fans. The best of the bunch right now are Corsair AF Quiet Edition, Bitfenix Spectre Pros, Noctuas, and NoiseBlockers. Low speed Scythe and Yate Loon fans can also work just fine, and are a bit less expensive.

PSU
PSU choice is also important, as you'll hopefully get something that is a hybrid and has enough overhead to never really get hot at full load. If you want to totally maximize, you would want a PSU that can deliver double what your total system draws. For a modern gaming PC, you'd want a Corsair AX750, Seasonic X750 (Corsair AX is a rebranded seasonic), or Seasonic Platinum series. Depending on the hardware, you could go up or down in watts.

CPU Cooler
Also an important choice, but, contrary to the way reviews are run and how most people recommend such parts, it's the fan included that should really be under scrutiny. A Coolermaster Hyper 212 with a pair of really good fans like the Corsair SP Quiet Edition, Bitfenix Spectre Pros, or Noctua NF-F12s will be nearly inaudible compared to a Noctua NH-D14 with crappy CoolerMaster fans. So, just get a decent heatsink tower and pair some good fans with it. Or, grab a Noctua heatsink that is compatible with your platform.

Watercooling
This adds hundreds of dollars to the expense, but on my Shinobi XL, the loudest part is a Spectre Pro which runs at 18.9 dB(A). It's inaudible even in my super quiet rural house. The only moving parts are the fans that are attached to the radiators and the pump. The pump itself is extremely quiet. There is no difference in sound between idle and load, it's always whisper quiet. There's no CPU/GPU fans spinning up and down.
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/newreply.php?do=newreply&p=40857027


It leaves you no room for further upgrades down the line, but if you're not trying to build a 'gaming' PC, then that's pretty much what I'd use to build something like an HTPC.

Swap the case with a Bitfenix Merc or Outlaw. Grab a Corsair Builders Series 430W, just to make sure you have a nice new PSU. If you don't need a ton of storage, you could even swap the HDD for an inexpensive 60GB SSD.

He said while idle lol

And a fan controller is not obsolete and will cost him all of 25$

Manual Control >

 

[paperboywriter]

I currently have 4gb of ram (2x2gb) but I want to upgrade to 8. any suggestions which one I should buy?

ps: Is it possible to put the new ram additionally on the motherboard or is this a bad idea? I have 4 slots? (ASUS P8P67)

 

[mkenyon]

He said while idle lol

And a fan controller is not obsolete and will cost him all of 25$

Manual Control >

There is egg on my face! That's what I get for posting before bed.

Noctua C-14 is a great cooler. It actually has some secondary benefits in keeping motherboards cool due to the downward facing design.

 

[Iacobellis]

Can someone help sway me to get an i7 over an i5? I have a 3570K in my wish list but I've been reading the 3770K is the way to go for any kind of editing. If I can see any kind of boost in game performance, then I can justify spending the extra $100 a little easier. In my case it would mainly be using Photoshop and Sony Vegas, anything to cut down render times would be great for me.

 

[Petrie]

He said while idle lol

And a fan controller is not obsolete and will cost him all of 25$

Manual Control >

Any particular fan controllers recommended? Something I'd like to add to quiet my rig.



Would I be able to do any PS2 emulation with a GTX 460 and i5 3500k?

 

[CatPee]

Would I be able to do any PS2 emulation with a GTX 460 and i5 3500k?

You'll be able to do it excellently.