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"I need a New PC!" 2013 Part 1. Haswell, Crysis 3, and secret fairy sauce. Read da OP

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HoosTrax

Member
I finally decided to brave into the deep end that is the Gaming PC thread. I'm getting ready to graduate from college this May and will be building my own gaming rig this holiday season (as long as my wife approves,lol). Here is my current laptop specs:

  • Windows 7
  • Intel(R) Core(TM) i5-2410M CPU @ 2.30GHz
  • GeForce GT 550M
  • 6GB of DDR3 RAM

Also, I have a Dell XPS 17. Is it possible for me to get any parts of it upgraded or is it stuck as is? I had it for almost 2 years so I'm not worry about breaking any warranty on it.
Just the hard drive.
 
Any good recommendations for a 360 controller wireless adapter? All I can find are 3rd party ones. Or should I just stick to the wired one?
 

HoosTrax

Member
Any good recommendations for a 360 controller wireless adapter? All I can find are 3rd party ones. Or should I just stick to the wired one?
This?

Just a word of warning -- the official Microsoft one (at least the white version) has a design defect and has a tendency to crap out eventually, which can easily be fixed with some minor soldering if and when it breaks.
 
Is CPU ratio the same as CPU multiplier?
Managed 4.5 like a champ.

EDIT: It did not lol.
Testing 4.4Ghz in Prime now.

Core 2 at 74 degrees, a whole 3 degrees higher than the second hottest core.
 

Artanisix

Member
Anyone have any experience with black/grey screens with a 7950? Installed it yesterday and already had it twice, once after I finished playing Crisis 3 and once during playing Antichamber. Kinda bothers me.
 

VE3TRO

Formerly Gizmowned
Been running all day at 4.5Ghz with temperatures averaging out at 55-60C when at full load doing encoding on some video. Idle seems to stay at 35-40C. These numbers seem ok?
 

brentech

Member
Is CPU ratio the same as CPU multiplier?
Managed 4.5 like a champ.

EDIT: It did not lol.
Testing 4.4Ghz in Prime now.

Core 2 at 74 degrees, a whole 3 degrees higher than the second hottest core.
It's normal for one to be higher. I actually have 2 cores that are usually together, then 1 in the middle, and 1 that's way cooler during OCCT stress testing.
I'm running the 3570K at 4.5Ghz using the offset clock. I've had no problems since getting it up and running on Thursday.

Some prefer the fixed OC, but I like the idea of it under-clocking for basic usage and then only jumping up on demand.
 

GHG

Member
It's normal for one to be higher. I actually have 2 cores that are usually together, then 1 in the middle, and 1 that's way cooler during OCCT stress testing.
I'm running the 3570K at 4.5Ghz using the offset clock. I've had no problems since getting it up and running on Thursday.

Some prefer the fixed OC, but I like the idea of it under-clocking for basic usage and then only jumping up on demand.

To be honest, I don't see any advantage to having a high fixed OC... All it does is increases temperatures and electricity consumption. Unnecessary IMO.
 
4.4Ghz, CPU Voltage Offset at 0.005v, and Turbo Voltage at 0.004v.
Temperature under two hours of Prime 95 - 70-77 degrees Celsius.

It's a bit on the high side, and that's probably because of a rather crowded case due to the non-modular PSU and the rather inconvenient placement of the CPU cooler.

Still, I've read this temperature is fine for gaming purposes, so I'll do some 3DMark testing next.
 

Korranator

Member
If you aren't going to be doing a build for ~2-3 months, then wait for Haswell and the new motherboards.

Well I was holding out for Haswell, and was finally going to upgrade my overclocked Wolfdale chip (Dual Core) when it was release. However, plans hit a major wall as my motherboard died the other night. I'm not sure if I can hold out for 3 months.

My big question is will Haswell be worth the wait, or am I better off buying a new Ivy Bridge I5 now? From reading the early News releases Haswell doesn't sound like it's living up to what Intel said it would be.

I realize it's still too early to know for sure, and that Intel could have "sandbagged" Haswell, when Tom's ran their benchmarks.

Tom's article for reference http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/core-i7-4770k-haswell-performance,3461.html
 

conBLACK

Neo Member
Do you see actual human fingerprints? Or just a residue over the entire board (which is just solder flux residue).

They don't appear to be actual prints as far as I can see. They looked more along the line of smudges that I've seen on DVDs and games I've rented from video stores where someone may have handled the disc with dirty hands.

I'm betting that it is solder flux residue. I feel like an idiot that I didn't think of that earlier. I guess that, in combination with some of the quality seal stickers being unstuck on the box made me think it was used. The texture of the box didn't seem like something a sticker would adhere to very well, and I just looked at an unboxing video on Youtube, and they had the same issue with the stickers. I am betting that the black color of the PCB also makes the residue more visible.

Thanks for the reply.
 
Okay, so I boosted my CPU to 4.4Ghz, same voltage and whatnot, and boosted my GPU marginally (950/1350Ghz).
In PS2, my FPS is now limited by my GPU, but I haven't really noticed any improvements.
 
Not sure if this is the right thread to get help with audio issues, but when I'm playing Starcraft 2: Heart of the Swarm, every time there's a cinematic voice audio is screwed up when listening in my headphones (but not through speakers).

I'm using the Logitech z506 5.1 Surround System, and I have only the 2 front and 1 center speaker connected, and I'm plugging the headphones into the headphone jack on the speakers.

When I play the sound directly through the speakers, it works fine, and when I plug the headphones into the HD Audio jack on the front panel of my case it also sounds fine.

The only thing that doesn't sound fine is headphones specifically plugged into the speakers. Also, the only thing that's messed up is voices in cinematics. voices in-game, sound effects/music in cinematics, etc all sounds fine.

Not sure if it's relevant, but this is my speaker configuration:

EpL6hr7l.jpg
 
Not sure if this is the right thread to get help with audio issues, but when I'm playing Starcraft 2: Heart of the Swarm, every time there's a cinematic voice audio is screwed up when listening in my headphones (but not through speakers).

I'm using the Logitech z506 5.1 Surround System, and I have only the 2 front and 1 center speaker connected, and I'm plugging the headphones into the headphone jack on the speakers.

When I play the sound directly through the speakers, it works fine, and when I plug the headphones into the HD Audio jack on the front panel of my case it also sounds fine.

The only thing that doesn't sound fine is headphones specifically plugged into the speakers. Also, the only thing that's messed up is voices in cinematics. voices in-game, sound effects/music in cinematics, etc all sounds fine.

Not sure if it's relevant, but this is my speaker configuration:

EpL6hr7l.jpg

Set your speakers to Stereo on the drop-down menu in the upper left. See if that fixes it.
 
Set your speakers to Stereo on the drop-down menu in the upper left. See if that fixes it.

Problem is then I don't get the center channel when not using the headphones.

Edit: Well, it works when I set it to stereo. I notice when I set it to the configuration shown above, I can click the left and right speakers to test them and it plays perfectly, but when I click the middle speaker I don't hear anything. So I think that might be the probelm, Windows is telling the game that I have a 5.1 configuration so it changes its sound functionality accordingly, and then the speakers don't send me sound from the center channel.

I don't know if this is a bug in the game, a bug in windows, a bug in my sound driver, or a bug in the actual hardware, lol :(
 
I've just finished removing all the components from my old desktop, and I've found that there's basically only 4/5 components that are probably still usable. I blame a burnt CPU and motherboard that are both out of warranty and obsolete.


I think I probably will only be able to use the hard disk drive and the DVD burner in the next computer. I think the graphics card isn't of much use these days, but feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. The memory sticks are... well, DDR2.

*wonders about a smaller case, a new motherboard and CPU (even a combo or integrated will work as I do not expect to game in there)*
 

kharma45

Member
I've just finished removing all the components from my old desktop, and I've found that there's basically only 4/5 components that are probably still usable. I blame a burnt CPU and motherboard that are both out of warranty and obsolete.



I think I probably will only be able to use the hard disk drive and the DVD burner in the next computer. I think the graphics card isn't of much use these days, but feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. The memory sticks are... well, DDR2.

*wonders about a smaller case, a new motherboard and CPU (even a combo or integrated will work as I do not expect to game in there)*

HDD and optical drive are still usable yeah, what is the GPU just out of interest?

If you're not looking to game with it something like an APU could be up your street like the AMD A10 5700 (or 5800K, there is $1 between them, The 5700 is clocked slightly lower with a TDP of 65w and the 5800K is clocked higher, is unlocked and has a TDP of 100w), or for Intel something like the i3 3220.

Edit - Actually the 5800K is almost $10 cheaper than the 5700 on Newegg atm with a promo code.
 

Noaloha

Member
I'm leaning towards an outlandish purchase tomorrow, the BenQ XL2420T. I'm not 100% sure what the landscape is for 120Hz monitors right now though. Prior to me dropping the cash, does anyone have any reasons why I might want to reconsider the purchase?
 

lettermassing

Neo Member
how viable are mini itx gaming computers this year? i've built a lot of computers before but never a mini itx, i've been thinking about building one soon but the main thing i'm worried about is the psu.
 

Celcius

°Temp. member
I've just finished removing all the components from my old desktop, and I've found that there's basically only 4/5 components that are probably still usable. I blame a burnt CPU and motherboard that are both out of warranty and obsolete.



I think I probably will only be able to use the hard disk drive and the DVD burner in the next computer. I think the graphics card isn't of much use these days, but feel free to correct me if I'm wrong. The memory sticks are... well, DDR2.

*wonders about a smaller case, a new motherboard and CPU (even a combo or integrated will work as I do not expect to game in there)*

What kind of videocard is that?
 
HDD and optical drive are still usable yeah, what is the GPU just out of interest?

If you're not looking to game with it something like an APU could be up your street like the AMD A10 5700 (or 5800K, there is $1 between them, The 5700 is clocked slightly lower with a TDP of 65w and the 5800K is clocked higher, is unlocked and has a TDP of 100w), or for Intel something like the i3 3220.

Edit - Actually the 5800K is almost $10 cheaper than the 5700 on Newegg atm with a promo code.

What kind of videocard is that?

It's a GeForce 9800 GTX+. It needs cleaning, that's for sure. (You might also have noticed a pair of missing screws, but that isn't a problem for the most part)

I don't need gaming for anything cobbled up from these parts plus anything that I should buy, so anything remotely decent will work. I think I'll just make a... well, something that sips power should work.
 

kharma45

Member
It's a GeForce 9800 GTX+. It needs cleaning, that's for sure. (You might also have noticed a pair of missing screws, but that isn't a problem for the most part)

I don't need gaming for anything cobbled up from these parts plus anything that I should buy, so anything remotely decent will work. I think I'll just make a... well, something that sips power should work.

You could go for something like this for just over $350

CPU: AMD A10-5700 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($128.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock FM2A75 Pro4-M Micro ATX FM2 Motherboard ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Patriot Viper 3 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($47.98 @ Amazon)
Case: Fractal Design Core 1000 MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($36.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Cooler Master Silent Pro M2 620W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $353.94
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-03-24 12:51 EDT-0400)

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/LRYQ

Savings to be made with the PSU if you don't want to go modular, and you could drop the motherboard to a lower model too. A 60/64GB SSD would be a nice addition too, but it depends on what you can spend. You could also change the CPU to an AMD A8-5500 to save more money, and it'd still be plenty powerful for general use and a bit of light gaming if you ever wanted to do so.

There is also the option to go down the Intel route with an i3 3220 if you wanted to re-use your GPU.

how viable are mini itx gaming computers this year? i've built a lot of computers before but never a mini itx, i've been thinking about building one soon but the main thing i'm worried about is the psu.

Very viable.
 

HoosTrax

Member
how viable are mini itx gaming computers this year? i've built a lot of computers before but never a mini itx, i've been thinking about building one soon but the main thing i'm worried about is the psu.
They're perfectly viable for most people (who don't need SLI or a discrete sound card). Many of the enthusiast miniITX cases will take a normal ATX PSU.

Me, I keep going back and forth between whether I will go microATX or miniITX next gen. I might have to look into a USB DAC solution to replace my sound card.
 
You could go for something like this for just over $350

CPU: AMD A10-5700 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($128.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock FM2A75 Pro4-M Micro ATX FM2 Motherboard ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Patriot Viper 3 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($47.98 @ Amazon)
Case: Fractal Design Core 1000 MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($36.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Cooler Master Silent Pro M2 620W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $353.94
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-03-24 12:51 EDT-0400)

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/LRYQ

Savings to be made with the PSU if you don't want to go modular, and you could drop the motherboard to a lower model too. A 60/64GB SSD would be a nice addition too, but it depends on what you can spend. You could also change the CPU to an AMD A8-5500 to save more money, and it'd still be plenty powerful for general use and a bit of light gaming if you ever wanted to do so.

An AMD APU configuration seems to be rather intriguing, to be honest. There's the matter of "do I really need a desktop", though, seeing as I already am using a very capable laptop that matches the old desktop in terms of performance. What are the benefits of a fixed non-gaming desktop in this situation? Am I better off not building for now?

There is also the option to go down the Intel route with an i3 3220 if you wanted to re-use your GPU.

Hm... The TDP of the GPU might be a major concern though. The 9800 GTX+... it blows through power.
 

kharma45

Member
An AMD APU configuration seems to be rather intriguing, to be honest. There's the matter of "do I really need a desktop", though, seeing as I already am using a very capable laptop that matches the old desktop in terms of performance. What are the benefits of a fixed desktop in this situation? Am I better off not building for now?

Hm... The TDP of the GPU might be a major concern though. The 9800 GTX+... it blows through power.

If your laptop is fulfilling all your needs I'd just stick with it.
 

Threi

notag
Problem is then I don't get the center channel when not using the headphones.

Edit: Well, it works when I set it to stereo. I notice when I set it to the configuration shown above, I can click the left and right speakers to test them and it plays perfectly, but when I click the middle speaker I don't hear anything. So I think that might be the probelm, Windows is telling the game that I have a 5.1 configuration so it changes its sound functionality accordingly, and then the speakers don't send me sound from the center channel.

I don't know if this is a bug in the game, a bug in windows, a bug in my sound driver, or a bug in the actual hardware, lol :(
neither. Your speakers aren't downmixing to stereo when you plug in your headphones, so any sound from the center speaker is lost. I have the same issue with my Logitech surround sound speakers.

Is there a "sound fill" option? Turning that off will fix it without having to set your speakers to stereo.
 
Jumping in looking for suggestions. I'm looking for a monitor, primarily for gaming, for under $200. I'm coming from a Samsung 216bw so pretty much anything is an upgrade.

I've come close to settling on an Asus VS239H-P, a 23'' 1080p LED-backlit IPS for $169. There are some others for a few bucks more that are 24'', but the viewing angle on this sounds nice. Anyone know if this would be a good pick, or if there's something else that might be a better fit?
 
neither. Your speakers aren't downmixing to stereo when you plug in your headphones, so any sound from the center speaker is lost. I have the same issue with my Logitech surround sound speakers.

Is there a "sound fill" option? Turning that off will fix it without having to set your speakers to stereo.

If there were a sound fill option, where would I find it?
 

FireRises

Member
So I'm in the process of prepping a new build (either haswell or jumping on a i7 3770k).

I need some opinions on these seasonic power supplies:

SeaSonic M12II 620 Bronze 620W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151095
$89

SeaSonic G Series SSR-550RM 550W ATX12V
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151119
$89

SeaSonic M12II 650 SS-650AM 650W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151106
$89

SeaSonic M12II 520 Bronze 520W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151093
$79

So they're all very similiar, including the price. Am I missing anything? Should I just take the highest wattage PSU since they're all pretty much the same price / series? I know the 520w will be plenty for my new build, I don't plan on running dual gpus, it'll just be an i7 3770k or haswell equivelant with 660ti (for now) and 2 drives. Thoughts?
 

teh_pwn

"Saturated fat causes heart disease as much as Brawndo is what plants crave."
should i wait for haswell

If your GPUs are out of date, I'd wait. With Sea Islands design hitting the market with mid-range HD 7000 series, I think new GPUs are likely to come out in Summer, when Haswell comes out.

Otherwise, go ahead and build with Ivy. I have a feeling that whenever Intel determines to focus on desktop performance, everyone that has Sandy-Broadwell will upgrade.

Edit: By new I mean like 40% faster. Die shrink designs, 2x over 2013 designs, are in 2014.
 

kharma45

Member
So I'm in the process of prepping a new build (either haswell or jumping on a i7 3770k).

I need some opinions on these seasonic power supplies:

SeaSonic M12II 620 Bronze 620W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151095
$89

SeaSonic G Series SSR-550RM 550W ATX12V
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151119
$89

SeaSonic M12II 650 SS-650AM 650W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151106
$89

SeaSonic M12II 520 Bronze 520W
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151093
$79

So they're all very similiar, including the price. Am I missing anything? Should I just take the highest wattage PSU since they're all pretty much the same price / series? I know the 520w will be plenty for my new build, I don't plan on running dual gpus, it'll just be an i7 3770k or haswell equivelant with 660ti (for now) and 2 drives. Thoughts?

Get the G550, it's the best there.
 
Alright, I have a nice list sitting in the checkout at NewEgg, thinking I'd post this here for suggestions before I pull the trigger.

Thermal Paste
RAM
Monitors x3
OS
MOBO
GPU x2
PSU
CPU
HDD x2
DVD Drive
Heatsink/Fan

I already have a nice case I will be using. Hard disks will be in a redundant RAID setup. No SSD because this is pushing my budget limits and don't care much about load times which seems to be the main reason to have one. Went with the 2gb GPU's over the 4gb because my understanding is that there is very little gain, even from the SLI @ 5760x1080 benchmark reviews I have seen.

Any comments/suggestions would be welcome!
 

teh_pwn

"Saturated fat causes heart disease as much as Brawndo is what plants crave."
Alright, I have a nice list sitting in the checkout at NewEgg, thinking I'd post this here for suggestions before I pull the trigger.

Thermal Paste
RAM
Monitors x3
OS
MOBO
GPU x2
PSU
CPU
HDD x2
DVD Drive
Heatsink/Fan

I already have a nice case I will be using. Hard disks will be in a redundant RAID setup. No SSD because this is pushing my budget limits and don't care much about load times which seems to be the main reason to have one. Went with the 2gb GPU's over the 4gb because my understanding is that there is very little gain, even from the SLI @ 5760x1080 benchmark reviews I have seen.

Any comments/suggestions would be welcome!

Seems solid. If you want to upgrade general performance in the future, you could keep the RAID1 as storage for libraries and use an SSD for steam/OS.

I don't know much about 3 monitor gaming or SLI performance. I know CF is pretty shit right now.
 

knitoe

Member
Alright, I have a nice list sitting in the checkout at NewEgg, thinking I'd post this here for suggestions before I pull the trigger.

Thermal Paste
RAM
Monitors x3
OS
MOBO
GPU x2
PSU
CPU
HDD x2
DVD Drive
Heatsink/Fan

I already have a nice case I will be using. Hard disks will be in a redundant RAID setup. No SSD because this is pushing my budget limits and don't care much about load times which seems to be the main reason to have one. Went with the 2gb GPU's over the 4gb because my understanding is that there is very little gain, even from the SLI @ 5760x1080 benchmark reviews I have seen.

Any comments/suggestions would be welcome!

Artic MX4 is a better thermal paste. You don't need time for it to settle in. There are already games using more than 2GB of VRAM. At the res you will be playing, makes even more sense to get 3GB or more for the video cards. Plus, with next gen console, more games will definitley be using greater than 2GB.

Also, SSD is more then just boot and load times. Using it just for the OS, your computer will feel much more responsive and snappy. For example, clicking your web browser will open instantly, due to ~0 seek time vs 12ms. Spending that much money and not getting one should be a crime.
 

Ty4on

Member
The one area in PC hardware which has never been my forte is fans, so I'm in need of some advice.

I just finished my long-planned mITX Hackintosh build with a SilverStone FT-03 Mini (an absolutely gorgeous case), ST45SF-G PSU, and Corsair H60 (2013 version). Everything is working, but I'm finding that it's much louder than I'd like, with the primary culprit being the AP141 fan that the case comes with. Maybe the PSU and pump are audible as well, but I can't tell over the case fan. So, it's got to go. But the problem is I'm not sure what to replace it with. As this is a fairly low-powered system (i3 3225, no discrete GPU), I'm much more interested in silence than performance. But I also have a 3.5" HDD in the system, whose mounting system is probably the weakest part of the case, and it gets in the way of both cable management and airflow (and prevents the use of another fan on the radiator for push-pull), so maybe I do need something that also offers more airflow/pressure?

Any advice from people who have experience with multiple fans, especially in similar setups, would be appreciated.

Sorry for the late reply, but I have the same case and that PSU in the only regret I have. The modular interface is squeezed by the drive bay and useless as I only get rid of the molex cable and the fan is noisy and whiny and never goes below 1800RPMs. The thread about it on hardforum is basically people looking to replace the fan, but I wouldn't recommend it as the PSU needs the cooling and opening the PSU voids your warrenty.
You can reduce noise by replacing the fan or not using it at all. My stock 3570k never got very hot rendering in Blender with the fan disconnected with the pump plugged into the CPU fan connector, but I only got rid of the "whoosh" from the AP141 and I do that with it running at 700RPMs as well.
If you have no ability to change fan speed you can fit a 120mm fan at the bottom. I just had to sand down the fan filter mount a bit fitting . I was trying push pull as well, but with an i3 I don't see the point. If I had been you I would remove the fan or at the very least run it sub 1000RPMs to limit dust build up. Less air means less dusty air regardless of dustfilter.

The sad fact is high performance SFX PSUs are noisy. The non gold Silverstone PSU is actually more quiet at low load and Seasonic has an even more quiet SFX PSU at 300W I saw in a German review. The PSU it trying way too much. Modular sounds good, but inside a small case all it does it take space in the case and make it so cramped the fan has to run fast and even then it's not rated for case temps above 40C (50C is normal for quality PSUs). I would take a second look and google around for info about a Seasonic 300W SFX PSU. They seem to have made some and they're usually quiet. Gold rating means nothing when the fan is on one side and the internals cramped and you don't need 8pin CPU power or PCI-e power for an i3 :)
 
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