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"I need a New PC!" 2012 Thread. 22nm+28nm, Tri-Gate, and reading the OP. [Part 1]

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D

derder

Member
Sethos said:
Can anyone recommend me some reliable, cheap 2TB external drives? Looked a bit at the WD offers but I just have so many bad experiences, my colleague at work even had TWO WD fail on him, our work discs and I saw it myself. I have little faith in WD now.

So I was looking for some recommendations.

EDIT: Never mind, found some dirt cheap Samsung USB 3.0 ones, that'll do. Love Samsung.
Click to expand...

External HDDs are less reliable than desktop drives. You should buy a desktop drive and get a SATA->USB converter kit for cheap if you would prefer not to lose your data.
 
Celcius

Celcius

°Temp. member
Has the FT02 been discontinued? I know they updated the case with USB 3.0, but newegg only has the windowless version of the silver color in stock and amazon only has 2 black in stock (1 with window and 1 without). Is demand too high or have they been axed?


celcius said:
If you had to pick one 4gb gtx 680, which version would you pick?

Also, based on reviews it seems like the evga classified 4gb actually runs quieter & cooler than a stock card if you don't overclock it. Is this true?
Click to expand...

Also reposting this question in case anyone knows...
 
legacyzero

legacyzero

Banned
I have the funds! I'll be pulling the trigger on this new build tomorrow morning, and I will not sleep until I'm 100% confident on everything.

Here's everything that I'm on the fence about, and I need Enthusiast-GAF to help me reinforce my decision.

ibs9RcMRvqUCvz.png


I've already got the PSU, Ram, CM 212+ CPU cooler, and HDD. Some in this thread seem to hate the EVGA 670 GPU, and I've heard some warnings against ASRock MOBO's, so I went with the ASUS instead. I'll be running 5 fans, too. Two up front, Two in the case (the NZXT 810's tilt fan next to the HDD cage), one in the upper rear for the exhaust.

I think I'm ready!
 
C

cackhyena

Member
legacyzero said:
I have the funds! I'll be pulling the trigger on this new build tomorrow morning, and I will not sleep until I'm 100% confident on everything.



I've already got the PSU, Ram, CM 212+ CPU cooler, and HDD. Some in this thread seem to hate the EVGA 670 GPU, and I've heard some warnings against ASRock MOBO's, so I went with the ASUS instead. I'll be running 5 fans, too. Two up front, Two in the case (the NZXT 810's tilt fan next to the HDD cage), one in the upper rear for the exhaust.

I think I'm ready!
Click to expand...
If people are saying don't go with EVGA enough, I'd listen. You can get the Gigabyte version (what I just ordered) for 399 on Amazon with a code for Borderlands 2 to boot.
 
K

kharma45

Member
JustAnotherOtaku said:
I come seeking help, GAF. Looking to buy a new PC to replace my laptop in a month or so. Main use will be split between every day browsing and gaming, with some PS2/Wii emulation also planned. I'm pretty clueless when it comes to individual parts etc, but I've started to try to narrow down what I want and have come up with the following.

Intel® Core™i5 Quad Core Processor i5-3470 (3.2GHz) 6MB Cache
ASUS® P8H61-MX USB3/SI: uATX, USB 3.0, SATA 3.0Gb/s
16GB SAMSUNG DUAL-DDR3 1333MHz (2 X 8GB)
1GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 550 Ti - DVI, HDMI, VGA - 3D Vision Ready

1TB 3.5" SATA-III 6GB/s HDD 7200RPM 32MB CACHE

WIRELESS 802.11N 300Mbps PCI-E CARD

Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 Bit w/SP1 - inc DVD & Licence

I was hoping to spend £600 max, but the above + postage and keyboard/mouse is ~£700. I basically want something as future proof as possible for that price. Will still be playing most games that make it to PC on PS3/360, but definitely want to start playing more stuff on PC - Skyrim, Battlefield 3, Sleeping Dogs etc and would want it to be able to play games on a decent/high setting for a few years if possible.

Don't need Blu-ray, 3D or a monitor. I'm also not that fussed in having everything on max setting or whatever, as long as it looks/runs equal to or slightly better than on PS3/360 I'm happy.

Anyway, the above stuff may be unrealistic or whatever, but if I can get opinions and narrow things down it would be greatly appreciated!
Click to expand...

You don't need 16GB of RAM, get rid of the 550Ti for at least a 6850 and upgrade your CPU to a 3570K.

For £600 this is what I'd go for

3570K - http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B007RUZKK6/

BitFenix Shinobi case - http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004ULZA82/

AMD 6850 - http://www.ebuyer.com/391772-xfx-hd...dual-mini-displayport-hdmi-pci-e-hd-685x-zcfc

Samsung F3 1TB - http://www.ebuyer.com/173804-samsung-1tb-spinpoint-f3-internal-hard-drive-hd103sj

Windows 7 HP x64 OEM http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004Q0PT3I/ or you can go the Software4Students route http://www.software4students.co.uk/products/microsoft-windows-7-professional-upgrade although that breaches the licensing agreement, depends on how you feel about the matter.

8GB Corsair LP RAM http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00569K7LM/

Antec BP550 PLUS PSU http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0019JASJ4/

Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0068OI7T8/

Asus P8Z77-V PRO (motherboard has WiFi) http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B007KZQE6C/

That comes in at £628 in total delivered if you go for the expensive version of Windows. You could get it in £600 by dropping that cooler and running stock for a while but the good OC it brings would help for emulation. I didn't stick in an optical drive either but they're around £13 for a DVD writer if you want one.

Where were you pricing your parts that what you had came to over £700?

Edit - As for your keyboard and mouse, I've got this mouse and am very pleased with it and my brother has this keyboard for gaming and is happy with it

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0037KLSS8/

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B003STDR14/

With those you're up to £687.51 delivered (or ~£700 if you need a DVD writer) for everything (with the OEM copy of Windows from Amazon) but it's more powerful than you had specced up before with greater longevity. If you went and bought the upgrade copy of Windows (or if you were happy to not overclock and run on the stock cooler) you could put money towards a better GPU like a 7850 which would make your build more 'future-proof' and you could buy an aftermarket cooler at a later date.

I was also taking items from Amazon and Ebuyer for the free delivery and usually quite reasonable prices but if you shop around and use sites like HotUKDeals and http://pcpartpicker.com/uk/ you might find some items cheaper elsewhere.

You could also cheapen the build down with a motherboard like this http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B007KZQE7Q/ and a PCI WiFi adapter like this http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B001811NCO/
 
E

Evlar

Banned
Building my new PC tonight. I'll have both a 128GB SSD and a 1TB HDD, and my motherboard is a Z77. Should I enable the Smart Response technology (dedicating a portion of the SSD as a giant cache for the HDD?) Is the tech safe and stable? If so, what's a good cache size given the capacity of my drives? I'm planning to go with about 24GB.
 
L

Lonestar

I joined for Erin Brockovich discussion
alright, got Windows 7 to work, haven't ran into an errors yet. Haven't ran any benchmarks or games, but so far so good.

Haven't installed an HDD yet (running off SSD), that'll come in a little bit, just wanted to make sure I could get it running on SSD.
 
C

cackhyena

Member
When i do get my GTX 670, should I/do I uninstall the AMD drivers I have on here? Is that necessary? If so, how do I go about that to ensure I have them all off?
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
celcius said:
Can anyone that owns a GTX 690 comment on the noise levels?
Click to expand...
It was noisy enough that I felt the need to put it under water. My case is at head level, and about 3 feet from me. That makes me a bit more sensitive to sound levels.
cackhyena said:
When i do get my GTX 670, should I/do I uninstall the AMD drivers I have on here? Is that necessary? If so, how do I go about that to ensure I have them all off?
Click to expand...
1) Uninstall CCC and any AMD drivers from the add/remove programs tool.
2) Restart into safemode.
3) Delete everything in C:\AMD, and run CCleaner/Driver Sweeper to look for extra stuff.
4) Turn off computer, remove AMD card, put in 670.
5) Turn on, and install NVIDIA drivers.

TBH, when I make a big switch like that I actually reformat.
 
C

cackhyena

Member
1) Uninstall CCC and any AMD drivers from the add/remove programs tool.
2) Restart into safemode.
3) Delete everything in C:\AMD, and run CCleaner/Driver Sweeper to look for extra stuff.
4) Turn off computer, remove AMD card, put in 670.
5) Turn on, and install NVIDIA drivers.

TBH, when I make a big switch like that I actually reformat.

*saves into notepad* Thanks

I can't reformat though. I just...can't. Not after I just get back to where I was.
 
legacyzero

legacyzero

Banned
mkenyon said:
It was noisy enough that I felt the need to put it under water. My case is at head level, and about 3 feet from me. That makes me a bit more sensitive to sound levels.

1) Uninstall CCC and any AMD drivers from the add/remove programs tool.
2) Restart into safemode.
3) Delete everything in C:\AMD, and run CCleaner/Driver Sweeper to look for extra stuff.
4) Turn off computer, remove AMD card, put in 670.
5) Turn on, and install NVIDIA drivers.

TBH, when I make a big switch like that I actually reformat.
Click to expand...
Yeah, I'm going from AMD to Nvidia as well with my new build. Gonna completely reformat probably.
 
L

Ledsen

Member
Ledsen said:
I have a question about temperature using HWmonitor:

which temp should I focus on? When I test using IBT @ Very High, my 2500k@4,5GHz with a CM 212 EVO with a Noctua F12 fan, reaches a maxium of 82 C if I look at the "package" temp. However, if I look at the different "core" temps, none of them go above 76. Are my temps too high? Is "package" the one I should be looking at? Is IBT so unrealistic in the load it puts on the proc that I shouldn't even care about its temps?

edit: got a bit worried so I lowered to 4.0 GHz, now "package" maxes out at 76 C... would you recommend this instead? I want to run it @ 4.5 >_<
Click to expand...

Anyone?

I also noticed my noctua f12 is running Max 1350 rpm... It's suppose to be 1500. How do i fix that?
 
L

Ledsen

Member
Ceebs said:
Are you using the adapter that comes with the fans? If so get rid of it and plug the fan in directly.
Click to expand...

No I didn't plug in anything except the normal fan cable on the fan itself. Both Speedfan and HWmonitor are saying my fastest fan (which I assume is the CPU fan?) never goes beyond ~1350 rpm.
 
S

Salacious Crumb

Junior Member
You'll never get the full 12v from the fan headers on your motherboard. If you want it to run at full speed you should use the molex adapter and plug it straight into your PSU.
 
L

Ledsen

Member
Salacious Crumb said:
You'll never get the full 12v from the fan headers on your motherboard. If you want it to run at full speed you should use the molex adapter and plug it straight into your PSU.
Click to expand...

Oh! Had no idea. I'll try this when I get home. Maybe now I'll be able to run the proc at 4,5GHz. Thanks a lot!

edit: just realized I won't be able to control fan speed if I do that...

this is my mobo:

http://www.manualowl.com/m/Gigabyte/GA-Z68AP-D3/Manual/210492?page=7

Apparently it can do both voltage control (on 3-pin headers) or pwm (on 4-pin headers or, I guess, the 3-pin "pwm" header). CPU_fan is 4-pin and so has speed control. I'll check the speed control software (Easytune 6) when I get home to see if there's some kind of fan throttle going on.
 
N

nickcv

Member
guys i need to build a gaming pc for my cousin, but i don't know where to buy.

i've seen the list of online stores in the op, but the top ones seems like only ship in UK.

can you suggest any store for Italy/Continental Europe?


edit:

ok guys following the guide in the op i came up with this build.

MB 1155 ASRock Z77 Pro4 (ATX)

CPU Intel Core i3-3220 BOX 3.3GHz 3MB Soc.1155
GPU PCI-E Sapphire HD7870 2GB
RAM DDR3 PC1600 8GB CL9 Corsair kit (2x4GB)

power supply 450W LC-Power LC6450 V2.2
Hard Disk 3,5 1000GB Seagate ST1000DM005
ASUS DRW-24B5ST Retail black
Case Miditower 430W Techsolo Oversea MO-04

for a total of 639&#8364;

do you think it's ok? isn't the GPU too powerful for the CPU i'm using?
 
M

MMBosstones86

Member
Enlil said:
The WD Caviar Black is a rocket. it makes too much sound. for anyone thinking about getting it...don't.
Click to expand...

just picked one up and can't say it bothers me much. Maybe if you are going for a silent build, but i can't recognize mine over the GPU fan or even the
...stock...
heatsink.
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
Almost done with the zfz.Prodigy build. Still waiting on an etched side window and front case badge with the zfz logo.

Parts list:
2500K
ASUS Z77-I Deluxe
EVGA 670
Samsung 830 128GB
BitFenix Prodigy
Corsair AX650
Corsair H60
Corsair SP & AF Quiet Edition fans
NuForce uDAC 2 custom mounted in the rear

Quick teaser before I get out the lights and DSLR

IaKJEh.jpg
 
S

suko_32

Member
cackhyena said:
How long is that 670? *__* I'm kinda worried with how little room I'll have in my Fractal R3 case with the 670 I have coming.
Click to expand...

9.5-inches in length.

Edit: Nevermind, I'm guessing you're talking about the Gigabyte Gtx 670. From what I hear it's about 11.2 inches though.
 
C

cackhyena

Member
Yeah, the Gigabyte version size I knew. Was just wondering if that was bigger or smaller. Do different brands have different sizes usually? I'd still choose the quality brand, but it's going to be tight.

Makes me wonder if the next time I upgrade I'll even be able to fit a new card in there if they keep this up.
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
cackhyena said:
How long is that 670? *__* I'm kinda worried with how little room I'll have in my Fractal R3 case with the 670 I have coming.
Click to expand...
Newegg lists dimensions. It'll fit without removing the top HDD cage IIRC. But you should remove it anyway for better airflow if you aren't using it.

For reference, the inside of the prodigy above is only about 12" deep. Its a pretty small case that looks big due to the handles.
 
C

cackhyena

Member
mkenyon said:
Newegg lists dimensions. It'll fit without removing the top HDD cage IIRC. But you should remove it anyway for better airflow if you aren't using it.

For reference, the inside of the prodigy above is only about 12" deep. Its a pretty small case that looks big due to the handles.
Click to expand...

Oh yeah, I know. I measured mine out just to be sure. I was just asking about yours because I couldn't tell if the card was just that big or it was a smaller case.

By removing cage, do you mean the white things, or the actual racks? If so on the racks, I didn't know you could do that because I would remove a couple if I could. I thought it was one solid thing in there. I only need three for the 2 HDDs and 1 SSD I have.
 
F

Fou-Lu

Member
So I'm going to post my build here one last time before I order it, basically I'm looking to be able to play most games maxed out at playable FPS on the monitor, I'm not worried about running every game perfectly smooth, I don't play shooters online.

CPU: i5 3570K
Motherboard: Asus P8Z77-V LK
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB
Storage: Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB and Crucial M4 64GB
Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition
Sound Card: Asus Xonar DG
Case: Fractal Arc Midi
PSU: Corsair HX750
Monitor: Crossover 27" 2560x1440

pcpartpicker lists this as costing $1293.42, but we'll see.

I'm not quite sure why, but something about the build feels 'off' to me, maybe I'm just being crazy since it's coming so close to placing the order. Still, if there's anything equal or greater I could get for the same price or a better deal, or anything I shouldn't get for some reason, please tell me.
 
S

Stubo

Member
Ichor said:
So I'm going to post my build here one last time before I order it, basically I'm looking to be able to play most games maxed out at playable FPS on the monitor, I'm not worried about running every game perfectly smooth, I don't play shooters online.

CPU: i5 3570K
Motherboard: Asus P8Z77-V LK
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB
Storage: Samsung Spinpoint F3 1TB and Crucial M4 64GB
Video Card: XFX Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition
Sound Card: Asus Xonar DG
Case: Fractal Arc Midi
PSU: Corsair HX750
Monitor: Crossover 27" 2560x1440

pcpartpicker lists this as costing $1293.42, but we'll see.

I'm not quite sure why, but something about the build feels 'off' to me, maybe I'm just being crazy since it's coming so close to placing the order. Still, if there's anything equal or greater I could get for the same price or a better deal, or anything I shouldn't get for some reason, please tell me.
Click to expand...
I almost feel bad saying so because I know budgets are important, but if you could squeeze a 128Gb SSD in there you'd probably appreciate the extra headroom later.

Other than that it's looking excellent to me :D
 
B

Blitzhex

Member
Why isn't the z77 UD3H recommended on the first page? I don't know whether to get a p8z77-v or a ud3h. They're both pretty much the same price where I am. Also, what kind of an overclock can I expect on these boards with a 3570K? Would it push past 4.3 ghz?
 
C

Ceebs

Member
mkenyon said:
Almost done with the zfz.Prodigy build. Still waiting on an etched side window and front case badge with the zfz logo.

Parts list:
2500K
ASUS Z77-I Deluxe
EVGA 670
Samsung 830 128GB
BitFenix Prodigy
Corsair AX650
Corsair H60
Corsair SP & AF Quiet Edition fans
NuForce uDAC 2 custom mounted in the rear

Quick teaser before I get out the lights and DSLR

IaKJEh.jpg
Click to expand...

That looks a bit bigger than I was expecting it to be.
 
F

Finn of Ooo

Member
K guys, total noob here, but I'm looking to join the master race. Not at a point where I'm confident enough to build one from scratch but I'm thinking about buying a pre built one. If someone could give me some feedback on this tower I'd really appreciate it.
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
Blitzhex said:
Why isn't the z77 UD3H recommended on the first page? I don't know whether to get a p8z77-v or a ud3h. They're both pretty much the same price where I am. Also, what kind of an overclock can I expect on these boards with a 3570K? Would it push past 4.3 ghz?
Click to expand...
Reliability is the #1 concern on most of the part choices. Gigabyte had some pretty big issues with their P67/Z68 boards.

That being said, my G1 Assassin 2 and the new UP line has me currently smitten with them. If I were in the market for a standard Z77 board right now, I'd pick up the UP4 TH.
Ceebs said:
That looks a bit bigger than I was expecting it to be.
Click to expand...
the handles make it seem that way. I'll post a pic of it next to an R4, V700, and full tower Lian Li for reference.
celcius said:
Ugh, amazon's completely sold out of FT02's and newegg only has 3 silver in stock :(
Click to expand...
That's okay. There are better choices out there that won't limit you to noisy reference video cards anyway.
 
A

AwesomeSauce

MagsMoonshine
Stupid ass FedEx.

I was waiting in my apartment for the delivery guy, but he never came. I go over to my mailbox and i see the door tag on my mailbox. Now to wait till i can pick up my PSU at their shipping center. Luckily it isn't too far from my place.
 
F

Fou-Lu

Member
Now that it comes time to order I'm having a really hard time deciding if I want to risk one of the Korean monitors, after spending so much money on the PC already it would be terrible to get a bad one. On the other hand I want to put my 7970 to good use!
 
C

Ceebs

Member
Ichor said:
Now that it comes time to order I'm having a really hard time deciding if I want to risk one of the Korean monitors, after spending so much money on the PC already it would be terrible to get a bad one. On the other hand I want to put my 7970 to good use!
Click to expand...

Do it! It's so worth it.
 
P

pxleyes

Banned
I need a bit of emergency help. I have a very capable system that I have been fully happy with, but I got a close lightning strike today. I lost my eVGA P55 motherboard and my router. Router is replaced, but I've had to downgrade my system back to my Core 2 Duo setup on an Asus P5B.

So...I know the old LGA 1156 is pretty much obsolete. I already 8gb of DDR3 1600 sitting by, and I am satisfied with my GTX260 for now. I figure getting something with LGA 1155 would be a big benefit as that is seems to be the new standard, but that means I'm going to need a motherboard, processor, and cooler.

I beg for your help GAF. Money is definitely a concern, and I'm not looking to totally bottleneck my system. I figure a 2500k+ (or 3500+? I've lost track of the numbering) would be sufficient with a mid-range motherboard that can take advantage of my RAM.

Thoughts?
 
legacyzero

legacyzero

Banned
So I did it GAF. Purchase is FINAL for my new build

New purchases:
Case: NZXT SWITCH 810 Gun-Metal
CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz
CPU COOLER: COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 Plus
GPU: GIGABYTE GV-N670OC-2GD GeForce GTX 670 2GB (Based on GAF recommendation in this thread)
MOBO: ASUS P8Z77-V LK LGA 1155 Intel Z77

Stuff I already Had:
8GB DDR3
750 watt PSU
1 TB HDD

I cant fucking WAIT to get this put together!!!!

Another question for Enthusiast GAF. I MAY just have the money for a SECOND 670 very soon. How hard is it to get SLI installed and working?
 
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