Support NeoGAF

[Alex]

Does anyone have a Hyper 212 + that has had to change a fan out? I had a nasty rattle on one and did so recently, but had to gunk up the rubber stoppers that went over the screws in the process. Wondering if I did it wrong or if you're just meant to buy some replacement rubber feet w/ adhesive at the store when you swap one, not like it's hard to get that stuff and cut out the shape.

 

[rohlfinator]

PSA: For anyone looking for a Fractal R4 but wants to save a few bucks, I found this seller on eBay who sells customer-returned cases on the cheap:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Fractal-Design-Define-R4-Black-Pearl-USB-3-0-ATX-Micro-ATX-Mini-ITX-Comp-Case-/181098426074?pt=US_Computer_Cases&hash=item2a2a4eaeda
They go for $36 + $22 shipping, and apparently most are in good condition.

I ordered one this afternoon, and I'll post impressions when it arrives. It's not a huge savings compared to the $80 version that Newegg and Amazon are selling right now, but a lot cheaper if you want a color other than white.

 

[mkenyon]

When does nvidia come out with something new? Money isn't really a problem for me so if I have a question(s).

-Is the titan worth it if I can afford it?
-I can SLI those things right?
-How is SLI support in modem PC games?
-If I were to buy 2 titans and SLI them, would that be better than Nvidias upcoming 7 series?
-How long would 2 titans last me? That's at least 6 years without upgrading right?
-Is it true that SLIing cards doesn't combine the VRAM? Why is that?

Q3/Q4 is when the next series will launch.

1) Yes.
2) Yes.
3) Meh, depends on your usual gaming habits. Usually pretty good. If you are #esports, for every GPU you have in SLI, you get one additional frame of input lag.
4) $2000 for two Titans likely won't outperform $1000-1200 for two GTX 780s.
5) No one, not even NVIDIA, could answer this.
6) Yes, because the full rendering process needs to exist on both cards. They generally alternate frame rendering, so you can't produce a whole frame with only half of the graphics content.

OC3D are my go-to site these days, he hammers the shit out of hardware and isn't afraid to call out crappy products. (no matter how big the manufacturer)

If they moved testing to frame time as opposed to second based FPS polling, they would be amazing.

As much as I didn't want to admit it at first, he does seem to ignore some serious shortcomings on Corsair products that would be called out by anyone else. It's nothing major that would change a review from 'poor' to 'good', but the slight bias is there.

 

[Suairyu]

Well thank fuck I got insurance through scan. Fucker wont boot. 2 seconds of power, no beep, then turns off. Repeats endlessly.

Have taken it apart piece by piece three times now. Didn't even get to the "is it bad ram?" test stage yet because it wont get that far itself.

So either the mobo or CPU is fucked. No idea how. to add insult to injury, one of the pins in the hsf is now stuck and I can't remove the thing.

Put in my old mobo, CPU and ram and the whole thing works, so I doubt it's my psu either.

Either I managed to do something incredibly yet invisibly stupid, or one of the parts is defective.

 

[Varna]

Decided to bite on the Accelero Twin Turbo 690. I don't plan to upgrade until I can easy gain double the performance for $1,000 so I figured I should add some extra cooling to get some extra overclock room.

Pictures did not do the thing justice. It is huge.

Fortunately it's not much longer... and yes it does come with foam pillars to keep the weight from bending your board.

Card is pretty much silent now. I can only hear my case fans. Temps dropped about 12~15c.

 

[MisterNoisy]

Does anyone have a Hyper 212 + that has had to change a fan out? I had a nasty rattle on one and did so recently, but had to gunk up the rubber stoppers that went over the screws in the process. Wondering if I did it wrong or if you're just meant to buy some replacement rubber feet w/ adhesive at the store when you swap one, not like it's hard to get that stuff and cut out the shape.

I've added fans to them, but that's it - I could definitely see the self-tapping screws buggering up the rubber tho. Just go to a hardware store and get some rubber washers/o-rings for $1 or so.

 

[kennah]

Oh man, i5-760 with Maximus Gene III for $100 locally. Tempting deal.

EDIT: Guy is also selling a 5850 for $70. Not a bad system for super cheap.

 

[teh_pwn]

Not that excited for Haswell, but a i7-3980X 8 core cpu sounds interesting !

If Haswell is a paltry 10% IPC over Ivy, and Ivy Bridge-E has better thermal connector, I'm going for that as well, though maybe the $600 CPU version of it.

Well thank fuck I got insurance through scan. Fucker wont boot. 2 seconds of power, no beep, then turns off. Repeats endlessly.

Have taken it apart piece by piece three times now. Didn't even get to the "is it bad ram?" test stage yet because it wont get that far itself.

So either the mobo or CPU is fucked. No idea how. to add insult to injury, one of the pins in the hsf is now stuck and I can't remove the thing.

Put in my old mobo, CPU and ram and the whole thing works, so I doubt it's my psu either.

Either I managed to do something incredibly yet invisibly stupid, or one of the parts is defective.

Weak PSU or bad power outlet also can do this.

 

[ledman]

I just shipped my GTX 670 FTW to EVGA, the card suffered from driver problems and constant crash. Anyone here already used EVGA RMA?, did it worked?

 

[Om3ga]

So I'm finally deciding to use one of the 2 CPU's I have laying around one being an i7 960 the other being an i7 3770k. I'm upgrading from my 5 year old pc (e8400 + 8800GT).

I want to know what parts I should keep (if any) and what parts I should sell or save.

My PC Specs are currently.
Motherboard: Asus P5E-VM HDMI
Cpu: Intel e8400 @ 3.0Ghz
Graphics: EVGA 8800GT
RAM: 6GB DDR3 ram
Case: Antec Sonata III with 500w psu(it came with the case)
HDD: Multiple up to 4TB of HDD space.

I'm guessing I should use the i7 3770k. Unless there are any reason's why I should use the i7 960? I also have an 120GB SSD. I'm looking to use it for both gaming and recreational video editing. I have roughly a $2000 budget between this PC build and a gaming laptop or laptop that can play games... but that will depend on how much I can save by re-using parts.

I will overclock just to try it (never overclocked before), and to gain experience doing these kind of things.

sorry wasn't a completed and my niece hit something on my kb and this posted.

Either just need help with choosing the right pc components and help with what I should salvage from my old build. If I do need a new case. I'd like something as quiet if not quieter than my Sonata III. I have my PC beside my bed and can barely hear it.

Thanks for all your help(if any) gaf.

 

[LiveWire]

Hmm... Is it running at 100% util outside of games? You might have a virus if so.

Also I suggest reseating it as I said before.

No, it's running about 0-1% outside of games.

I reseated it as well...it's really bizarre. :/

Only thing I know for sure is that the most recent AMD/ATI drivers fail to display textures correctly. I have 7.14.10.0867 Catalyst 11.10 right now and that is the first set of drivers (I went back through 4 or 5 different versions from 2010 to present) that worked (somewhat) correctly.

 

[Koroviev]

So I'm finally deciding to use one of the 2 CPU's I have laying around one being an i7 960 the other being an i7 3770k. I'm upgrading from my 5 year old pc (e8400 + 8800GT).

I want to know what parts I should keep (if any) and what parts I should sell or save.

My PC Specs are currently.
Motherboard: Asus P5E-VM HDMI
Cpu: Intel e8400 @ 3.0Ghz
Graphics: EVGA 8800GT
RAM: 6GB DDR3 ram
Case: Antec Sonata III with 500w psu(it came with the case)
HDD: Multiple up to 4TB of HDD space.

I'm guessing I should use the i7 3770k. Unless there are any reason's why I should use the i7 960? I also have an 120GB SSD. I'm looking to use it for both gaming and recreational video editing. I have roughly a $2000 budget between this PC build and a gaming laptop or laptop that can play games... but that will depend on how much I can save by re-using parts.

I will overclock just to try it (never overclocked before), and to gain experience doing these kind of things.

sorry wasn't a completed and my niece hit something on my kb and this posted.

Either just need help with choosing the right pc components and help with what I should salvage from my old build. If I do need a new case. I'd like something as quiet if not quieter than my Sonata III. I have my PC beside my bed and can barely hear it.

Thanks for all your help(if any) gaf.

Are you trying to build a gaming PC and pick up a gaming laptop at the same time? Because I would devote nearly all of the funds to a desktop and spare just a bit for a work laptop if you really need it. I survive with a smartphone and a desktop.

 

[RkOwnage]

I just shipped my GTX 670 FTW to EVGA, the card suffered from driver problems and constant crash. Anyone here already used EVGA RMA?, did it worked?

Yes, I was very impressed with the whole RMA process. I won't buy any card but EVGA now. That and the two MSI cards I bought were both DOA. Sucks.

EVGA ftw.

 

[mkenyon]

Hi PC GAF. I have been a console gamer for quite a while now, and though I have always been interested in quite a few pc games, I have never really had the cash available to drop on a decent enough build. That recently changed, so here I am.

Your Current Specs: An older toshiba laptop. i3, 4gb DDR3, intel 3000 graphics, pretty much irrelevant in terms of specs.
Budget: $1,500-$2,000, Pac-NW USA
Main Use: (not really sure yet, as I have never had a decent computer but, as an estimate) Light Gaming=5, Gaming=5, Emulation (PS2/Wii)=3/4, Video Editing=11, HD Streaming=5, 3D/Model work=1, General Usage (Word, Web, 1080p playback)=5.
Monitor Resolution: Current monitor is 1080p (bought to use with a xbox360 and ps3), I wount be doing a true eyefinity setup, because I don't have the space, but I would like to upgrade pretty soon and use my current monitor as a secondary display and have a 2560x1440 IPS monitor be the primary display
List SPECIFIC games or applications that you MUST be able to run well: I know future proofing is a four letter word around here, but i would like to be able to play games like Crysis 3, Battlefield 3, etc at 2560x1440 on high settings at 60fps. I don't know if that is possible within my budget however, so while not necessary, it is definitely preferred
Looking to reuse any parts?: nope, first build
When will you build?: I would like to build within a month or so if possible
Will you be overclocking?: Yes

I started to map out a build using pcpartpicker and Hazaro's PC build sheet from the OP, but stopped pretty quickly because of the sheer mass of options. I fell down the rabbit hole of reading for two to three hours about the advantages of two vs four gigs of gddr5 on specific cards, only to realize that afterward I still wasn't sure which was preferable to use in my specific situation. So I am turning to the experts: I will take pretty much any and all advice.

That being said, this will be my first build, and I would like to have fun with it.
Thanks in advance.

Basically you would be looking at the enthusiast build in the OP. Sub in a 256GB SSD and then some HDDs to suit required storage and redundancy for video editing. 32GB of RAM if you think you will be editing videos larger than ~10GB. Pick out a case you like.

We can look at an X79 processor with a 3820 as well, which will give nearly identical performance to the Z77/3770K. But it gives you quad channel RAM with 8 slots for a total of a lot of RAM. There *might* be a drop in processor upgrade in the next 6 months or so which would be something like an 8 core unlocked monster that will encode videos without breaking a sweat. That's a likely $500-600 processor though, and there's been a few rumors they might even skip it.

So unless you need to drastically cut down on rendering time for business purposes, the Enthusiast build is pretty much what you are looking for, with the substitutions I outlined in the first paragraph.

Since you are playing with a good amount of money, there's a few ways you can take it as far as nailing down certain attributes.

Do you want maximum cooling for high overclocking?

Do you want the PC to be as quiet as possible?

Do you want any aesthetic attributes to be present?

Do you want a smaller form factor? (32GB of RAM is possible with mATX)

Do you want some really nice cans? Mech keyboard? Fancy mouse? Capture card?

So I'm finally deciding to use one of the 2 CPU's I have laying around one being an i7 960 the other being an i7 3770k. I'm upgrading from my 5 year old pc (e8400 + 8800GT).

I want to know what parts I should keep (if any) and what parts I should sell or save.

My PC Specs are currently.
Motherboard: Asus P5E-VM HDMI
Cpu: Intel e8400 @ 3.0Ghz
Graphics: EVGA 8800GT
RAM: 6GB DDR3 ram
Case: Antec Sonata III with 500w psu(it came with the case)
HDD: Multiple up to 4TB of HDD space.

I'm guessing I should use the i7 3770k. Unless there are any reason's why I should use the i7 960? I also have an 120GB SSD. I'm looking to use it for both gaming and recreational video editing. I have roughly a $2000 budget between this PC build and a gaming laptop or laptop that can play games... but that will depend on how much I can save by re-using parts.

I will overclock just to try it (never overclocked before), and to gain experience doing these kind of things.

sorry wasn't a completed and my niece hit something on my kb and this posted.

Either just need help with choosing the right pc components and help with what I should salvage from my old build. If I do need a new case. I'd like something as quiet if not quieter than my Sonata III. I have my PC beside my bed and can barely hear it.

Thanks for all your help(if any) gaf.

3770K. Add the parts from the "Excellent" build in the OP sans the CPU. That'll put you out around $800. You'll want a new case too. Get a Fractal Define R4. Total around $850. That'll give you enough scratch for a smaller gaming laptop like the Alienware M11x or whatever is good and similar these days.

 

[Varna]

Om3ga, you have a i7-3770k just laying around?

I would definitely build around that. Unfortunately you can't really use anything from you're older build. well, you could use that GPU, but really if you plan to do some gaming you should invest in something better.

So you will need a LGA 1155 socket motherboard. I've always had good luck with Asus motherboards. You would just have to choose one that meets your needs (mainly SLI/crossfire or not).

New ram. Samsung 30nm still seems like the best choice. Getting harder/more pricy to find it seems though.

Maybe a new PSU probably. You want to invest in a higher quality PSU. One with at least 750w I would say.

GPU will be up to you. I suggest a 660 ti and up.

Case should be fine.

I would advice against a gaming laptop. They cost way to much for stuff that will never be as good as a decent desktop.

 

[Alex]

I've added fans to them, but that's it - I could definitely see the self-tapping screws buggering up the rubber tho. Just go to a hardware store and get some rubber washers/o-rings for $1 or so.

I'm not sure if they'd fit good or not without the little rubber feet that cover the screws on the brackets for the fans. I had the stock fans and I just took the backets off of those and was able to reuse the feet this time.

 

[kennah]

Sad. My P35 motherboard is one revision too old to be compatible with a hackintosh build. Now what am I going to do with those leftover parts.

 

[DietRob]

What would be an acceptable video card that has an HDMI port and could easily handle bluray discs and high resolution streaming on a 65 inch TV? Can I grab something that will suit my needs for under 100 bucks? Preferably under 75.

I don't need a TV tuner.

 

[kennah]

Anything.

What do you have now?

 

[RibbedHero]

What would be an acceptable video card that has an HDMI port and could easily handle bluray discs and high resolution streaming on a 65 inch TV? Can I grab something that will suit my needs for under 100 bucks? Preferably under 75.

I don't need a TV tuner.

You're iGPU should be capable of decoding blurays.

If not, then something like this for $30

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131339

 

[DietRob]

You're iGPU should be capable of decoding blurays.

If not, then something like this for $30

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814131339

Thanks gonna order this. When my HD 5850 from the old build sells.

 

[GhastlyGaseous]

Basically you would be looking at the enthusiast build in the OP. Sub in a 256GB SSD and then some HDDs to suit required storage and redundancy for video editing. 32GB of RAM if you think you will be editing videos larger than ~10GB. Pick out a case you like.

We can look at an X79 processor with a 3820 as well, which will give nearly identical performance to the Z77/3770K. But it gives you quad channel RAM with 8 slots for a total of a lot of RAM. There *might* be a drop in processor upgrade in the next 6 months or so which would be something like an 8 core unlocked monster that will encode videos without breaking a sweat. That's a likely $500-600 processor though, and there's been a few rumors they might even skip it.

So unless you need to drastically cut down on rendering time for business purposes, the Enthusiast build is pretty much what you are looking for, with the substitutions I outlined in the first paragraph.

Since you are playing with a good amount of money, there's a few ways you can take it as far as nailing down certain attributes.

Do you want maximum cooling for high overclocking?

Do you want the PC to be as quiet as possible?

Do you want any aesthetic attributes to be present?

Do you want a smaller form factor? (32GB of RAM is possible with mATX)

Do you want some really nice cans? Mech keyboard? Fancy mouse? Capture card?

I was trying to figure out why you put such a significance on video editing, then I realized I put a typo in there, it should be a two, not an eleven, that's just my typing being spastic.
I was slightly interested in three of your other ideas (mech keyboard, mouse, and headphones) but I briefly ducked into the cans thread, saw someone say that you couldn't get great audio-quality without spending at least 500, and ducked right back out.
Maximum cooling would be awesome, but I would like to find some sort of balance between that and quietness, and the last time I read about noise dampening cases, it was sort of implied that the soundproofing made them much hotter/gave them poorer airflow as well. I know that I don't have the technical expertise to deal with installing and maintaining full on water blocks and radiators though, like I said, I am new to this.

 

[Zabojnik]

Guys, I'm looking for a blu-ray player for my PC. I don't need or want a blu-ray burner, I'd like a BR-ROM, maybe a DVD recorder combo, but all I can find are BR burners. I'd rather not pay more for something I'll never use. I just want to be able to play/rip blu-rays on PC. Any suggestions? Thanks!

 

[NoRéN]

Guys, I'm looking for a blu-ray player for my PC. I don't need or want a blu-ray burner, I'd like a BR-ROM, maybe a DVD recorder combo, but all I can find are BR burners. I'd rather not pay more for something I'll never use. I just want to be able to play/rip blu-rays on PC. Any suggestions? Thanks!

What about this?
http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=49828401&postcount=4586

 

[Vinterbird]

A friend of mine wants to buy my 560Ti for a very reasonable price, and I'm looking to upgrade to something newer.

Would the 670 be a good choice, or would AMD be a better option (i5, 8gb ram), and what are the overall pro's and con's for each manufacture?

 

[Vestal]

A friend of mine wants to buy my 560Ti for a very reasonable price, and I'm looking to upgrade to something newer.

Would the 670 be a good choice, or would AMD be a better option (i5, 8gb ram), and what are the overall pro's and con's for each manufacture?

Nivdia = Price premium, kickass driver/software.
AMD= Cheaper as far as dollar per performance but Crappy drivers/support.

670 is a great card, or you can go with a 660ti SC from EVGA. 299 right now on the 660ti SC and you get that slick 90day step up program just in case Nvidia gets off its ass and releases the Kepler refresh.


Don't get me wrong I have had AMD for my last 2 builds.(Crossfire 5770s and MSI 6950), they are solid cards however the Drivers are pure garbage in regards to new game releases. What Nvidia gets done in a week in regards to compatibility it takes AMD atleast a month.

Currently I am running on that 6950 but will be moving up to a 660ti SC in the next few days while selling the 6950.

 

[kharma45]

AMD drivers are perfectly fine.

 

[Frankfurter]

Om3ga, you have a i7-3770k just laying around?

I would definitely build around that. Unfortunately you can't really use anything from you're older build. well, you could use that GPU, but really if you plan to do some gaming you should invest in something better.

So you will need a LGA 1155 socket motherboard. I've always had good luck with Asus motherboards. You would just have to choose one that meets your needs (mainly SLI/crossfire or not).

New ram. Samsung 30nm still seems like the best choice. Getting harder/more pricy to find it seems though.

Maybe a new PSU probably. You want to invest in a higher quality PSU. One with at least 750w I would say.

GPU will be up to you. I suggest a 660 ti and up.

Case should be fine.

I would advice against a gaming laptop. They cost way to much for stuff that will never be as good as a decent desktop.

Why would he need such a PSU? OCed i7 + 660Ti should max. out at ~300W.

 

[Vestal]

AMD drivers are perfectly fine.

For the last few day one purchases I have made they have been horrible compared to nvidia. Examples

Skyrim, swtor, guild wars 2, witcher 2, borderlands 2.
in all these cases a lower specced nvidia card performed better on release. Some of these still have issues with AMD drivers.

don't get me wrong they are great pieces of hardware its just that the supporting software is still to this day a bloated pile of junk.

 

[kennah]

No they aren't.

 

[Voice of Reason]

I thought AMD driver support was vastly superior now.

 

[kennah]

Yep. They realized it wasn't great and have been fixing the problem. 13.x is fucking incredible.

 

[kharma45]

Yeah they greatly turned things around after moving away from the monthly release schedule.

In this thread for example of late I think I've seen a lot more complaints about Nvidia drivers than I have AMD, anecdotal as it is.

 

[Koroviev]

Yeah they greatly turned things around after moving away from the monthly release schedule.

In this thread for example of late I think I've seen a lot more complaints about Nvidia drivers than I have AMD, anecdotal as it is.

Yep. Unfortunate that Nvidia is still the only way to go for SLI.

 

[Xdrive05]

I thought AMD driver support was vastly superior now.

The 13.x beta drivers are. Performance and reliability is top notch.

Anecdotal, but I just switched from Nvidia to AMD (first time in a decade), and I was surprised by the superiority of AMD's control center features, compared to Nvidia's IMO. I had no idea they were improved that much.

I have heard less favorable things about their crossfire support, however. Not sure if true.

 

[EsotericManiac]

I believe I'm in need of a video card. It's basically to play one game, but may eventually lead to others. I would like to spend less than $100 if possible.

Any recommendations?

 

[kharma45]

I believe I'm in need of a video card. It's basically to play one game, but may eventually lead to others. I would like to spend less than $100 if possible.

Any recommendations?

You'd be best off going used, like a 6870 or something like that or a 560 Ti if you can find one, anything you buy new won't be overly great at that price. Best you'd do is a 7770 after MIR

Edit - Found a cheaper faster one http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127664

Not the worst, I've got one in one of my systems, but you can do a lot better used.

 

[fivehorizons]

Does anyone have a Hyper 212 + that has had to change a fan out? I had a nasty rattle on one and did so recently, but had to gunk up the rubber stoppers that went over the screws in the process. Wondering if I did it wrong or if you're just meant to buy some replacement rubber feet w/ adhesive at the store when you swap one, not like it's hard to get that stuff and cut out the shape.

Mine is rattling real bad. I was going to replace it with a new Corsair SP I think.

 

[kennah]

And as I asked in the buy sell thread it helps if you let us know what you already have

 

[EsotericManiac]

And as I asked in the buy sell thread it helps if you let us know what you already have

Some stock dell garbage. Sorry, I can't be more specific right now.

 

[Salaadin]

Anyone have any experience with newegg open box items? I managed to snag an SSD for 190 bucks but its open box. Was wondering if anyone had any issues.

 

[Koroviev]

Some stock dell garbage. Sorry, I can't be more specific right now.

I don't know if you saw my reply in the other thread, but I do have a new 650ti that I'm willing to sell for fairly cheap. I can match the base price of the 7770 that kharma pointed out.

 

[derder]

Anyone have any experience with newegg open box items? I managed to snag an SSD for 190 bucks but its open box. Was wondering if anyone had any issues.

open box SSD sounds like a bad idea to me.

 

[Koroviev]

open box SSD sounds like a bad idea to me.

I'd be more concerned about an open box HDD.

 

[EsotericManiac]

I don't know if you saw my reply in the other thread, but I do have a new 650ti that I'm willing to sell for fairly cheap. I can match the base price of the 7770 that kharma pointed out.

I did see your post, thank you. I'm trying to weigh my options and figure out how much I want to spend.

My whole goal is to play Phantasy Star Online 2 on the computer. I'm used to playing the game on the PS Vita, so obviously just about anything will make it look better than my handheld.

I didn't have time to get the specs of my computer this morning. The thing was given to me (free) from my wife's grandmother because "it can't connect to the internet".

They are the type of people with more money than brains, so I told them not to throw it out and give it to me. Turns out it has an i7 CPU, and at least 4 gbs of memory in the thing, but I'm almost positive it doesn't have a separate video card.

 

[Shambles]

Yep. Unfortunate that Nvidia is still the only way to go for SLI.

Yes but for single GPU setups you have just as much chance to have issues with nVidia as AMD. Everyone here still stuck in 2001 can go look at Tomb Raider.

 

[derder]

Gaf, I found a good deal on a 2nd 6950 on my local craigslist.

I currently own this card: 6950 1GB

will it crossfire with this: 6950 2GB XXX Edition?

I understand that it's a OC'd version of my current card and has 2GB VRAM, but for $140, I think it would be worth it. A used 7950 starts at $330, more than 2x the cost. I just want to know if it will work.

 

[Vestal]

Gaf, I found a good deal on a 2nd 6950 on my local craigslist.

Will this 6950 1GB

Crossfire with this: 6950 2GB XXX Edition?

Last time I tried crossfire was a little over a year ago with dual 5770s.. There will always be some slight hitching (hardly notcible) not to mention that Crossfire support is SLOW AS HELL when it comes to sending out new profiles, still remember it took over a month for both Skyrim and Witcher 2 Profiles. However I would not suggest going the route you are suggesting. Since they are not identical in regards to memory size which could have some performance impact.

If you are going over 1080p or dual screen setup crossfire/SLI is the way to go..

 

[kennah]

Gaf, I found a good deal on a 2nd 6950 on my local craigslist.

Will this 6950 1GB

Crossfire with this: 6950 2GB XXX Edition?

how much is 'good deal'?

If it is close to what a 7870 or 7950 would cost you would be better going that route

 

[t-ramp]

I'd be more concerned about an open box HDD.

I just ordered a refurbished Seagate 160GB IDE drive from Newegg for $11. Just need something to throw into a Pentium 4 build I put together on Sunday, so hopefully it works.

Also bought 2GB of DDR3 to put into one of my AM3 rigs. Within a week I'll have 4 fully functional desktop PCs running if things go as planned. One LGA 1155, two AM3, and one Socket 478.