If you're performing fine I'd get a better monitor. You could upgrade to a 3570k + new mobo but that's out of budget.
-
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"I need a New PC!" 2012 Thread. 22nm+28nm, Tri-Gate, and reading the OP. [Part 1]
- Thread starter Hazaro
- Start date
- Status
If you're performing fine I'd get a better monitor. You could upgrade to a 3570k + new mobo but that's out of budget.
Hey everyone, I'm looking to replace my old gtx 260. Looking for the best bang for my buck around $250 - $300. Any good deals out there? Saw this on Newegg and figured it was a good start.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150604
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150604
What do you use for a CPU?
Using an i7 920. Just bought an aftermarket cooler to do some overclocking.
Good deal. I think the 7870 should be a very significant upgrade, but I'm just one guy. Others with more experience here may think differently.
I'm also looking at the new gtx 660ti which is $300 baseline. Not any reviews other than some benchmarks so I guess I'll wait and see how that ends up turning out. I play on a 1080p monitor and heard the low busbandwidth may be any issue with higher res monitors + AA? Any insight?
You're gonna have to reformat.
Yep. You're asking for untold problems if you don't, plus if you're running Windows, it won't work because it's tied to your old motherboard.
It should bruteforce more than enough FPS as 1080 isnt high res.
Prax
Member
Dear PC GAF:
I am trying to put together a new PC after years of unreliability with my current PC.
Could you tell me if this build looks like it'll serve me well?
I need to be able to operate Photoshop CS5.5 smoothly for 2D art using 2 LCD monitors... and probably play the next generation of Sims 4 and Dragon Age 3 or whatever DnD cRPG will get made next that isn't an MMO. lol I don't need my games to run perfect at max settings, but I don't want it to stutter like crazy or have to run with no textures and lighting. (I'm working within an ~$800 budget).
I am Canadian and ordering from NCIX.com and trying to price match everything and using mail-in rebates.
MOBO: Gigabyte 970A-DS3 AMD970 ATX AM3+ DDR3 2PCI-E16 3PCI-E1 2PCI SATA3 USB3.0 CrossFireX ~$75
CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition Quad Core Processor AM3 3.4GHZ 8MB Cache 125W 45NM ~$100
SSD: OCZ Vertex 4 128GB ~$100 (for Windows 7 & art programs)
HDD: Western Digital 2TB Caviar Green SATA3 Intelli Power 64MB Cache ~$100
DVD DRIVE: ASUS DRW-24B1ST 24X SATA DVD Writer OEM Black ~$20
GPU: XFX Radeon HD 7850 860MHZ 2GB 4.8GHZ GDDR5 DVI HDMI 2XMINIDP PCI-E ~$235
RAM: Kingston KHX1600C9D3B1K2/8GX 2X4GB 1600MHz DDR3 240PIN DIMM Unbuff Hmp HyperX CL9 ~$45
CASE: Zalman Z9 ATX Mid Tower Case Black ~$30
PSU: Corsair HX520W Modular (REUSING FROM OLD PC)
HEATSINK: Zalman CNPS7500-CU Copper 1150-2300RPM 17-32DBA W/ Blue LED (REUSING FROM OLD PC)
Now GAF, tell me.. does this look okay??
I am not much of an expert but my brother and I tried to look for the best deals in my price range and this seemed to be it. Also, we're most comfortable using AMD & ATI if you're wondering why we didn't go for Intel or nVidia stuff.
I am trying to put together a new PC after years of unreliability with my current PC.
Could you tell me if this build looks like it'll serve me well?
I need to be able to operate Photoshop CS5.5 smoothly for 2D art using 2 LCD monitors... and probably play the next generation of Sims 4 and Dragon Age 3 or whatever DnD cRPG will get made next that isn't an MMO. lol I don't need my games to run perfect at max settings, but I don't want it to stutter like crazy or have to run with no textures and lighting. (I'm working within an ~$800 budget).
I am Canadian and ordering from NCIX.com and trying to price match everything and using mail-in rebates.
MOBO: Gigabyte 970A-DS3 AMD970 ATX AM3+ DDR3 2PCI-E16 3PCI-E1 2PCI SATA3 USB3.0 CrossFireX ~$75
CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 965 Black Edition Quad Core Processor AM3 3.4GHZ 8MB Cache 125W 45NM ~$100
SSD: OCZ Vertex 4 128GB ~$100 (for Windows 7 & art programs)
HDD: Western Digital 2TB Caviar Green SATA3 Intelli Power 64MB Cache ~$100
DVD DRIVE: ASUS DRW-24B1ST 24X SATA DVD Writer OEM Black ~$20
GPU: XFX Radeon HD 7850 860MHZ 2GB 4.8GHZ GDDR5 DVI HDMI 2XMINIDP PCI-E ~$235
RAM: Kingston KHX1600C9D3B1K2/8GX 2X4GB 1600MHz DDR3 240PIN DIMM Unbuff Hmp HyperX CL9 ~$45
CASE: Zalman Z9 ATX Mid Tower Case Black ~$30
PSU: Corsair HX520W Modular (REUSING FROM OLD PC)
HEATSINK: Zalman CNPS7500-CU Copper 1150-2300RPM 17-32DBA W/ Blue LED (REUSING FROM OLD PC)
Now GAF, tell me.. does this look okay??
I am not much of an expert but my brother and I tried to look for the best deals in my price range and this seemed to be it. Also, we're most comfortable using AMD & ATI if you're wondering why we didn't go for Intel or nVidia stuff.
Iacobellis
Junior Member
Avoid OCZ at all costs. Go with an SSD from Samsung or Crucial.
Prax
Member
Are you sure???
I know I hear possibly bad things but.. >__>
It seems the reviews have generally been positive now that the 1.5 firmware update is out?
Iacobellis
Junior Member
I'm not totally sure. I've been planning my first build and my friends and others on here have been reluctant on going with OCZ. Failure rate is to blame, I guess.
Prax
Member
Yeah. I have spent hours looking at reviews.
I like the speeds/performance and the price, but there seems to be a few very adamant anti-OCZ people out there and now I don't know what to think.
There's a 5 year warranty on the drive and the firmware update supposedly made it even better, but now I am fearful.
chickdigger802
Banned
Current rig,
intel q9550
gtx 460
4 gb ram
128gb ssd
1 tb hd
I do feel like my old mobo is near the end of what I can upgrade (think it's an asus p4k)and what not (can't even use ddr3 ram).
How much more can i squeeeze out of this setup? What is my 'weakest link'?
Not really looking for anything right just now, just a 'physical checkup'
Thinking of maybe sticking in a 660ti, but I am pretty surprised that most games i own can play at 1440p at decent settings without a problem.
hmmm...
intel q9550
gtx 460
4 gb ram
128gb ssd
1 tb hd
I do feel like my old mobo is near the end of what I can upgrade (think it's an asus p4k)and what not (can't even use ddr3 ram).
How much more can i squeeeze out of this setup? What is my 'weakest link'?
Not really looking for anything right just now, just a 'physical checkup'
Thinking of maybe sticking in a 660ti, but I am pretty surprised that most games i own can play at 1440p at decent settings without a problem.
hmmm...
Infinite Justice
Member
Samsung 830 is around the same price now and its gotten much greater praises
I've successfully moved Windows to new motherboards/CPUs just by uninstalling the motherboard drivers and they've continued working just fine.
If anything, he should at least try it and then reformat if there are problems.
Prax
Member
As Hazaro said, it'd be better to go with the $700 Intel build in the OP. Get an nvidia gpu for hardware acceleration in Adobe products. They recently added AMD support iirc, but I wouldn't trust new support as opposed to proven stuff for professional purposes. "Comfortable" doesn't matter if the hardware is empirically worse.
Iacobellis
Junior Member
NVIDIA is better when it comes to driver support for games, as well.
RibbedHero
Member
The difference between the two is quite negligible nowadays.
Iacobellis
Junior Member
Really? I thought it was a deciding factor between the two.
RibbedHero
Member
That was true maybe ten years ago, ATI/AMD have really stepped their game up since then and are now on par with Nvidia.
Prax
Member
Okay, so for an i5 2500k, I would be spending an extra $130. (NOoooo!)
OR.. aim lower with an i3 2120, an extra $30 instead.
And the motherboard would be.. an extra $30 in either case.
That would be $60 extra for somewhat better support but similar performance?
I don't know if that is worth it, to be honest. I could just upgrade my mobo and cpu in the future for AMD-cheap too. >_>
2500K is quite worth it over the long run, really. Mobo is roughly the same price. If you absolutely have to stay within budget, just drop the SSD. A 1TB 7200RPM Seagate ($80) would reduce costs some as well.
Iacobellis
Junior Member
Spending the extra $20 to double the storage capacity is a bargain, especially if dropping the SSD is necessary.
Solideliquid
Member
I'd like to get a new gaming PC. I've built my own but it was years ago (Intel C2D days) and I just don't have the time to look at all the reviews and put the thing together. I'd probably make a mistake installing the CPU and ruin everything
I've looked at the Dell XPS which is about $1000, and there are some models on Newegg (cyber power or something). How are these machines? Does GAF have a recommendation for my situation? I can spend up to $1000 on the computer, I've got a monitor.
Thanks.
I've looked at the Dell XPS which is about $1000, and there are some models on Newegg (cyber power or something). How are these machines? Does GAF have a recommendation for my situation? I can spend up to $1000 on the computer, I've got a monitor.
Thanks.
Prax
Member
Okay, this is getting confusing, but I think you guys are telling me..
To possibly drop the 128GB SSD ($100), drop the 2TB WD Green Caviar HDD ($100), and instead use a Seagate 7200 HDD to stay in budget?
Getting an i5 will cost me $160 more than the 965 AMD build.
Seagate 1TB = $80 (save $120 -- afford i5 if spend $40 more)
Seagate 2TB = $120 (don't ask me why in Canada its a $40 jump -- save $80, and spend $80 more for i5)
Is this a good trade off? //flopsihateallthisbalancing
To possibly drop the 128GB SSD ($100), drop the 2TB WD Green Caviar HDD ($100), and instead use a Seagate 7200 HDD to stay in budget?
Getting an i5 will cost me $160 more than the 965 AMD build.
Seagate 1TB = $80 (save $120 -- afford i5 if spend $40 more)
Seagate 2TB = $120 (don't ask me why in Canada its a $40 jump -- save $80, and spend $80 more for i5)
Is this a good trade off? //flopsihateallthisbalancing
Performance is completely dependent on support...
(and yes even that i3 would be better than the AMD option)
Cav Green though. They don't exactly have the greatest reputation.
1TB should be good enough for a while. I store tons of games and shows constantly and still manage to have ~600GB remaining after a few months. Unless your work is super demanding on drive space and you require it right away, you could just always grab another 1TB down the road and put them in RAID0.
Buy the $700 build. i5 3450 if you need to save.
Gpu... support is weird. Maybe a 560 if that works.
Ssd if you can fit it in budget. Samsung Hdd if you can.
IrishNinja
Member
okay, so ive got a solid gaming rig (thanks again to the help in the last thread!), but ive got an archaic PC serving as a media center in the living room, right? it works just fine, but i'm upgrading to a new receiver and would like to sort out getting it on 5.1 surround/DTS, if not 7.1/HD as said receiver will support it, but i dont know the price difference here.
my geriatric specs:
2.13 gigahertz Intel Core 2 Duo
4GB RAM
MOBO: Board: Intel Corporation DG965RY AAD41691-207
Serial Number: BTRY710002BK
Bus Clock: 266 megahertz
GPU NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GT
said vid card supports HDMI but obviously im on standard red/whites for audio, which is a shame. should i:
1) upgrade to a slightly less old GPU that my board supports and can carry video + audio via HDMI, or
2) opt for a cheap sound card and go digital optical?
seriously, nothing fancy; the cheapest solution will do here. thanks in advance.
my geriatric specs:
2.13 gigahertz Intel Core 2 Duo
4GB RAM
MOBO: Board: Intel Corporation DG965RY AAD41691-207
Serial Number: BTRY710002BK
Bus Clock: 266 megahertz
GPU NVIDIA GeForce 7600 GT
said vid card supports HDMI but obviously im on standard red/whites for audio, which is a shame. should i:
1) upgrade to a slightly less old GPU that my board supports and can carry video + audio via HDMI, or
2) opt for a cheap sound card and go digital optical?
seriously, nothing fancy; the cheapest solution will do here. thanks in advance.
killertofu
Member
Hi PC Gaf
I'm looking to build my first rig. I've been looking into Hackintoshes and was wondering if anyone here has had any experience in it?
The only thing I've hackintoshed was an older Dell Mini10 that I put OSX on a couple years ago.
Does anyone have any reccomendations about a sleek, simple PC case?
I'm looking to build my first rig. I've been looking into Hackintoshes and was wondering if anyone here has had any experience in it?
The only thing I've hackintoshed was an older Dell Mini10 that I put OSX on a couple years ago.
Does anyone have any reccomendations about a sleek, simple PC case?
Midtower? Fractal R4. For mATX the Bitfenix Prodigy actually looks a bit like the Mac Pro.
You can find a Xonar DG for $20 or less. If the GPU does what it needs to there's no reason to replace it.
Don't discount the 7850, when overclocked there is little between them.
IrishNinja
Member
If you have an open pci slot yeah
TabletopTictacs
Member
My 5 year old PC finally gave up about a month ago. I've hooked my crappy laptop up to my monitor and have been using that for the last few weeks, but it struggles run Chrome with more than a few tabs open. Finally I've got enough money together to replace my desktop.
I've never built a PC before (or even replaced anything within a pre-built one) so this is all completely new to me, so sorry if I seem a bit useless. To make it worse, I've always been a console gamer but figured that if I'm going to be needing a new PC, I might as well get into PC gaming.
I read the OP, and although little of it makes much sense to me I figure it's a better idea to build than buy with the budget I have.
Basic Desktop Questions:
I'll also need to get a case for it, but won't need anything with blue lights or anything like that.
That's pretty much me. I hope that's enough information for you guys!
I've never built a PC before (or even replaced anything within a pre-built one) so this is all completely new to me, so sorry if I seem a bit useless. To make it worse, I've always been a console gamer but figured that if I'm going to be needing a new PC, I might as well get into PC gaming.
I read the OP, and although little of it makes much sense to me I figure it's a better idea to build than buy with the budget I have.
Basic Desktop Questions:
- Your Current Specs: Not sure what my old desktop was but it was old and weak. I tried TF2 when it became free and it could barely handle it. My laptop was given to me by my Uni: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B003WU8FZC/
- Budget: ~£750, England.
- Main Use: Gaming (4), Video Editing (3), HD Streaming (4), General Usage (Word, Web, 1080p playback) (5).
- Monitor Resolution: a 1680 x 1050 monitor or a 22" 1080p tv - I might connect them both at once?
- List SPECIFIC games that you MUST be able to play: Battlefield 3, Football Manager 13, Team Fortress 2.
- Looking to reuse any parts?: -
- When will you build?: I'm aiming to have it built by the 10th September when I go back to Uni.
- Will you be overclocking?: Maybe (yes)
I'll also need to get a case for it, but won't need anything with blue lights or anything like that.
That's pretty much me. I hope that's enough information for you guys!
Are you able to get Windows 7 for free through your university?
$900 build with a 660ti/670.
I need to but a motherboared on the cheap that I may still get some use out of later with a CPU upgrade.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157323
This a good choice? Eventually I'd like to build a new system with an intel i5 but for now I'm on a old amd athlon II that I can't still squeeze decent fps from.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157323
This a good choice? Eventually I'd like to build a new system with an intel i5 but for now I'm on a old amd athlon II that I can't still squeeze decent fps from.
Ban Puncher
Member
Waiting to see what the 660ti goes for here in Australia. Was going to go all out with a top end rig but am now thinking about building a good mid-range and keep the extra $1k in my pocket.
More than likely out of his budget, with a copy of Windows included it's probably going to be at least £100 if not £150 past his budget.
It'll priced to compete with the 7950 so whatever it's going at for you guys it'll be around that.
Hi there! Thanks for this awesome post, I have used the OP as reference a few times alreadyMy computer refused to boot up this morning, and I think it's time I upgraded. Here's the thing as it is right now:
It's basically an old Acer Aspire X1700 moved to an extremely old case (ATX) that can house the new GTX560, and with a new PS and second HDD. For the upgrade, I'm thinking i5 3750K (~225€ with an appropriate motherboard (?€ and 8GB RAM, I guess DDR3 1600MHz? (~50€. Where I'm sure I need help is with the motherboard. Any pointers? I can't go over ~500€ total, but I don't think I should need to. The rest of data the OP asks for:
Budget: ~500€ (Spain)
Main Use: Gaming, video manipulation
Monitor Resolution: I'm driving one 1080p monitor over HDMI and one 1680x1050 monitor over VGA right now. But hey, I already have my graphics card.
When will you build?: This weekend, probably. I can sort of make do with my EEE 901 for a few days.
Will you be overclocking?: Probably not.
Extra credit if anyone knows about this: Since I'm upgrading, I think I want to try to install OSX on this. I remember reading that 10.8 Mountain Lion adds support for Ivy Bridge, but is there any component here I would have trouble with, compatibility wise?
- CPU: Core 2 Quad Q8200 (x86, too)
- Motherboard: mATX, I dunno lol, but I think it's dead anyway
- RAM: 3GB DDR2
- Graphics: Spanking new GTX560
- HDD: one crappy 320GB where W7 lives, and one 1'5TB Caviar Green
- PS: 750W, I can't remember anything else
- Cooling: I got nothin'
It's basically an old Acer Aspire X1700 moved to an extremely old case (ATX) that can house the new GTX560, and with a new PS and second HDD. For the upgrade, I'm thinking i5 3750K (~225€
with an appropriate motherboard (?€ and 8GB RAM, I guess DDR3 1600MHz? (~50€. Where I'm sure I need help is with the motherboard. Any pointers? I can't go over ~500€ total, but I don't think I should need to. The rest of data the OP asks for:Budget: ~500€ (Spain)
Main Use: Gaming, video manipulation
Monitor Resolution: I'm driving one 1080p monitor over HDMI and one 1680x1050 monitor over VGA right now. But hey, I already have my graphics card.
When will you build?: This weekend, probably. I can sort of make do with my EEE 901 for a few days.
Will you be overclocking?: Probably not.
Extra credit if anyone knows about this: Since I'm upgrading, I think I want to try to install OSX on this. I remember reading that 10.8 Mountain Lion adds support for Ivy Bridge, but is there any component here I would have trouble with, compatibility wise?
Vigilant Walrus
Member
I am interested in building a great looking small form factor gaming PC. This is the case I want. This is the case I need in my life. It's the FT03-Mini from Silverstone. I need this. This will be perfect on my desk: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R1_OYsVbjek
In this video he fits a Nvidia 670 2GB card into it. Very impressive. I've never build a small rig before. I don't feel like going for the Alienware X51. I think that looks too much like a home console. And I think 555 is not enough, power wise. The goal is to make a capable and portable machine that can run games well at 1080p. Well. Not extremely well. Just good.
Cliffs;
- Micro-ATX
- SFX Power supply (a small form factor power supply)
- Slot-in DVD drive (ultra thin)
- The bottom 140mm fan seems very good.
Questions;
1) Do I grab a mobo with socket 1155? - And what would be a good mobo that is Micro-ATX? (Mini-ATX apparently is not supported )
2) what CPU would compliment the 670 Nvidia?
3) If I don't know want to OC CPU, do I need an aftermarked CPU cooler, or can I use the one that comes with the CPU. This is mostly because I don't want to apply new thermal paste and all that. I'm worried about heat though. Entire system only has 1 fan. Then again, I won't OC!
4) Since I am price sensitive, do you think it would be worth it, value-for-money-wise to wait for the 660 card? - cooling, size, price?
5) for such a tight fit that needs the least amount of cables for the best airflow (only one bottom fan!) would it be silly to get both a SSD and a HDD? Maybe it would be cheaper/better value to go for a Seagate XT Momuntus hybrid drive? half SSD/half HDD?
6) A quad-core ivy bridge and a 670 card - Can these two run on a 400 SFX(Small form factror) PSU? Should I go for those with the "bronze rating"?
7) do you think I can make this budget work for under 700 dollars (micro-atx mobo, nvidia card, cpu, 8 gigs of ram, ssd/hdd, SFX psu, the chassis, slot in dvd drive) ?
In this video he fits a Nvidia 670 2GB card into it. Very impressive. I've never build a small rig before. I don't feel like going for the Alienware X51. I think that looks too much like a home console. And I think 555 is not enough, power wise. The goal is to make a capable and portable machine that can run games well at 1080p. Well. Not extremely well. Just good.
Cliffs;
- Micro-ATX
- SFX Power supply (a small form factor power supply)
- Slot-in DVD drive (ultra thin)
- The bottom 140mm fan seems very good.
Questions;
1) Do I grab a mobo with socket 1155? - And what would be a good mobo that is Micro-ATX? (Mini-ATX apparently is not supported
)2) what CPU would compliment the 670 Nvidia?
3) If I don't know want to OC CPU, do I need an aftermarked CPU cooler, or can I use the one that comes with the CPU. This is mostly because I don't want to apply new thermal paste and all that. I'm worried about heat though. Entire system only has 1 fan. Then again, I won't OC!
4) Since I am price sensitive, do you think it would be worth it, value-for-money-wise to wait for the 660 card? - cooling, size, price?
5) for such a tight fit that needs the least amount of cables for the best airflow (only one bottom fan!) would it be silly to get both a SSD and a HDD? Maybe it would be cheaper/better value to go for a Seagate XT Momuntus hybrid drive? half SSD/half HDD?
6) A quad-core ivy bridge and a 670 card - Can these two run on a 400 SFX(Small form factror) PSU? Should I go for those with the "bronze rating"?
7) do you think I can make this budget work for under 700 dollars (micro-atx mobo, nvidia card, cpu, 8 gigs of ram, ssd/hdd, SFX psu, the chassis, slot in dvd drive) ?
Okay cool. I'll see if I can stop by Best Buy today. Thanks.
So I'm planning for a new rig to be built sometime in the next few months and am looking for some ASUS mobo recommendations (Always had good luck with the brand, would like to stay with it).
In the past, I've typically overspent on features I never use (Hello Express Gate), so I'm looking to keep things reasonable this time around, with a max budget of $150 or so. I don't need crap like wireless connectivity, built in SSD's, etc. I've included the things that are important to me below.
- Ivy Bridge compatible
- UEFI bios
- Polymer caps
- 4 x USB 3.0 ports (At least)
- 1 x E-SATA ports (At least)
Would appreciate any and all advice. Cheers.
In the past, I've typically overspent on features I never use (Hello Express Gate), so I'm looking to keep things reasonable this time around, with a max budget of $150 or so. I don't need crap like wireless connectivity, built in SSD's, etc. I've included the things that are important to me below.
- Ivy Bridge compatible
- UEFI bios
- Polymer caps
- 4 x USB 3.0 ports (At least)
- 1 x E-SATA ports (At least)
Would appreciate any and all advice. Cheers.
- Status