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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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K

Katyusha

Member
inky, you might want to consider sending it back. I got a CX 750 last week and it was DOA, so that tells you something about the quality of those PSUs
 
R

RedSwirl

Junior Member
Could anyone here clue me in to how it is I have only 3GB of RAM on my computer? It's a 2007 Dell XPS 420, and I've basically only heard of computers having even numbers of RAM like 2, 4, or 8GB.

More importantly, what effect would it have if I took out the 3GB I currently have and replaced it with a 4GB set (I run Vista 32bit)? Could I even do that?
 
I

inky

Member
Katyusha said:
inky, you might want to consider sending it back. I got a CX 750 last week and it was DOA, so that tells you something about the quality of those PSUs
Click to expand...

Hmm, I might ask for a refund, but I still need a new PSU and what really sucks is that I considered other similar priced options that seem to be of better quality but they don't send them here from Amazon. I actually paid ~$115 for this PSU (crazy, I know) just due to import fees and shipping costs so even small stuff like this bothers me a lot. I'd probably have to pay like $20 to send it back too.

t-ramp said:
Maybe email Corsair, see if you can get permission to take it apart while retaining the warranty... I dunno.
Click to expand...

It wouldn't hurt i guess, but that sounds like something they'd never agree to.
 
D

Demon Ice

Banned
RedSwirl said:
Could anyone here clue me in to how it is I have only 3GB of RAM on my computer? It's a 2007 Dell XPS 420, and I've basically only heard of computers having even numbers of RAM like 2, 4, or 8GB.

More importantly, what effect would it have if I took out the 3GB I currently have and replaced it with a 4GB set (I run Vista 32bit)? Could I even do that?
Click to expand...

32 bit OS can't use 4 GB, It'd show up as around 3.2 - 3.5 GB usable.

As for your current situation...could be a number of things. Dell may have stuck a single 2 GB stick and a single 1 GB stick, or three 1 GB sticks, or you have an integrated GPU that's taking 1 GB and leaving 3 for the system...
 
M

Momentary

Banned
While I wait for the arrival of Broadwell, DDR4, and GDDR6/XDR2 powered Maxwell (hopefully) Should I invest in a GTX 700m series gaming laptop when they're released... or do most people think that would be a waste of money? I really don't know how much more I can take of this GTX 560m. I was thinking of maybe looking into OriginPC or Digital Storm... Are their laptop products overpriced hooplah?
 
Truespeed

Truespeed

Member
RedSwirl said:
Could anyone here clue me in to how it is I have only 3GB of RAM on my computer? It's a 2007 Dell XPS 420, and I've basically only heard of computers having even numbers of RAM like 2, 4, or 8GB.

More importantly, what effect would it have if I took out the 3GB I currently have and replaced it with a 4GB set (I run Vista 32bit)? Could I even do that?
Click to expand...

That's extremely odd unless of course you just ended up with a 2GB and 1GB stick. Use HWInfo or CPUZ to see what RAM config you have. As for replacing your 3GB with 4G it shouldn't really be a problem providing it's the proper RAM type.
 
K

knitoe

Member
Rayge said:
While I wait for the arrival of Broadwell, DDR4, and GDDR6/XDR2 powered Maxwell (hopefully) Should I invest in a GTX 700 series gaming laptop when they're released... or do most people think that would be a waste of money?
Click to expand...

I always think gaming laptops are a waste of money. For the cost, don't provide the performance of a desktop PC and runs very hot. Also, too heavy to be portable.
 
M

Momentary

Banned
knitoe said:
I always think gaming laptops are a waste of money. For the cost, don't provide the performance of a desktop PC and runs very hot. Also, too heavy to be portable.
Click to expand...

I thought so too, but on deployment it really saved my ass from boredom. I don't know... I guess this 560 can last me until 2014... Maybe I should just tough it out.
 
R

RedSwirl

Junior Member
Demon Ice said:
32 bit OS can't use 4 GB, It'd show up as around 3.2 - 3.5 GB usable.

As for your current situation...could be a number of things. Dell may have stuck a single 2 GB stick and a single 1 GB stick, or three 1 GB sticks, or you have an integrated GPU that's taking 1 GB and leaving 3 for the system...
Click to expand...

I was under the impression that 4GB was the upper limit of what you could use on a 32bit OS.

Truespeed said:
That's extremely odd unless of course you just ended up with a 2GB and 1GB stick. Use HWInfo or CPUZ to see what RAM config you have. As for replacing your 3GB with 4G it shouldn't really be a problem providing it's the proper RAM type.
Click to expand...

If I were to open the thing up, where would I even look for the RAM? I've opened it up a few times but have never been able to recognize it.

FdmDD.jpg
Click to expand...

Picture is blurry as shit but I think I see it somewhere in the top right corner underneath the PSU. Looks like two sticks.
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
Rayge said:
I thought so too, but on deployment it really saved my ass from boredom. I don't know... I guess this 560 can last me until 2014... Maybe I should just tough it out.
Click to expand...
Unless you are deployed again, why not just spend the kind of money that you would on a high end gaming laptop on a PC that isn't batshit insane? You don't have to do all or nothing :p
 
D

DTKT

Member
Man, I'm sad when I see people hating on "gaming" laptops. Sager and Cisco make some great machines with some very powerful parts for a little bit over 1.1k. Yes, it's never going to be able to compete with a PC with the same budget, but it's a great portable solution.

K.Jack has a great thread for anything questions about gaming laptops. HERE
 
N

nbthedude

Member
DTKT said:
Man, I'm sad when I see people hating on "gaming" laptops. Sager and Cisco make some great machines with some very powerful parts for a little bit over 1.1k. Yes, it's never going to be able to compete with a PC with the same budget, but it's a great portable solution.

K.Jack has a great thread for anything questions about gaming laptops. HERE
Click to expand...

Unless you are on the road all the time, the downsides far outweigh the upsides. And I say that as someone who owned one a couple of years ago. Most people are better off buying a tablet or a cheap netbook.

The biggest downsides are:

-way more expensive for what you get
-usually almost no upgrade path at all
-run hot and loud
-drain battery life like crazy
-heavy and less portable

If you are someone away from home regularly, they might make sense, though.
 
K

krewx078

Neo Member
Hey guys I'm new to GAF although I've been a lurker here for a while. I decided to to finally post now that I have a question some of you may be able to help me with. So yesterday my friend hooked me up with a Gigabyte 7970 for $270. Now I know that this version is voltage locked but for that price I didn't really care since I am not a heavy overclocker. The card comes clocked at 1000 mhz which is 75 mhz higher than reference. The GTX 680 is more often than not ahead of the reference 7970. Because the voltage is locked, I know I will not get some huge OC which is fine by me but I would like to see how much more I would need to push it in order to be neck and neck with the 680. So my question is, about how much of an OC do I need in order to have it equal the performance of a 680? Of course, this is assuming the voltage lock allows me to OC it a bit.
 
D

DTKT

Member
nbthedude said:
Nut unless you are on the road all the time, the downsides far outweigh the upsides. And I say that as someone who owned one a couple of years ago. Most people are better off buying a tablet or a cheap netbook.

The biggest downsides are:

-way more expensive for what you get
-usually almost no upgrade path at all
-run hot and loud
-drain battery life like crazy
-heavy and less portable

If you are someone away from home regularly, they might make sense, though.
Click to expand...

Absolutely, but I believe that there is still a place for them. A desktop, even with a mini-case, it a bit of a pain to carry around. A gaming laptop is not perfect, but it does provide more mobility.

But I just wanted to mention that there are good gaming laptops.
 
G

gilljoy

Member
Not happy at all, Amazon have posted everything for my new build except my bloody CPU. And since I happen to live in Northern Ireland it means I won't get it now until Monday. Their goes my plans to do alot of uni work this weekend and catch up on what I couldn't do since I didn't have a system to develop on
 
U

Unregistered007

Banned
Hey guys, I am in Canada.

Can some give me an estimate on what it will cost to build a kick ass machine that I can use and survive next 5 years at 60 fps and awesome AA or should I wait and just stick with PS4.

I know there are specs in the OP, however they look like the more sugar you put the more sweeter it gets.
 
K

kennah

Member
Budget? The best way to do a PC is to not spend a crazy amount and then incrementally upgrade as your needs stop being met. So I doubt you could build anything right now that would last for five years of 60fps without needing at least a new gpu in a few years.

The builds in the op are current. They are good parts that have been curated by our fone experts here in the thread. Scogoth and I are basically the resident Canadians lol. Where are you? Are you going to be building yourself? What specific needs do you have?

There is a survey in the OP. cut and paste and fill it out and we will be able to give you better advice.
 
ss_lemonade

ss_lemonade

Member
krewx078 said:
Hey guys I'm new to GAF although I've been a lurker here for a while. I decided to to finally post now that I have a question some of you may be able to help me with. So yesterday my friend hooked me up with a Gigabyte 7970 for $270. Now I know that this version is voltage locked but for that price I didn't really care since I am not a heavy overclocker. The card comes clocked at 1000 mhz which is 75 mhz higher than reference. The GTX 680 is more often than not ahead of the reference 7970. Because the voltage is locked, I know I will not get some huge OC which is fine by me but I would like to see how much more I would need to push it in order to be neck and neck with the 680. So my question is, about how much of an OC do I need in order to have it equal the performance of a 680? Of course, this is assuming the voltage lock allows me to OC it a bit.
Click to expand...
Don't 7970s already match or surpass the 680 due to recent driver updates?
 
K

kharma45

Member
Rawr Its Ry said:
What's up pcgaf! Set aside around $125ish for some upgrades recently. Currently sitting on a non-modular 550 psu. I know I want to upgrade to a modular 650 psu. ATM im looking at getting either http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151088 VS. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151106 & http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231277 since im also at 4gigs of ram. What do you guys think?
Click to expand...

Neither of those, get one of these PSUs

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207029

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151121

georaldc said:
Don't 7970s already match or surpass the 680 due to recent driver updates?
Click to expand...

Yes.

inky said:
Hmm, I might ask for a refund, but I still need a new PSU and what really sucks is that I considered other similar priced options that seem to be of better quality but they don't send them here from Amazon. I actually paid ~$115 for this PSU (crazy, I know) just due to import fees and shipping costs so even small stuff like this bothers me a lot. I'd probably have to pay like $20 to send it back too..
Click to expand...

$115 for that :O yeah I'd get talking to Amazon asap, see what they say about it.
 
E

EsotericManiac

Banned
Thanks for the help in this thread guys!

I wasn't expecting a noticeable increase in my GPU after putting in my 500W PSU. Definitely seems like my 360 was under powering my 7850.
 
E

ElectricKaibutsu

Member
I've been running pretty much Linux exclusively for about 4 years now. Every other computer I've owned has come preinstalled with an OS. I'm upgrading my homebuilt PC for gaming and now of course need to buy a copy of Windows. I... had no idea Windows was so expensive. It's so hard to pay for something I've been taking for granted as being free.
 
K

kharma45

Member
EsotericManiac said:
I've been experiencing less screen tearing running at 1080p at 60FPS
Click to expand...

Strange. Having a look at Guru3D's 7850 review

Our test system is based on a power hungry Core i7 965 / X58 system. This setup is overclocked to 3.75 GHz. Next to that we have energy saving functions disabled for this motherboard and processor (to ensure consistent benchmark results). On average we are using roughly 50W to 100 Watts more than a standard PC due to higher CPU clock settings, water-cooling, additional cold cathode lights etc.

We'll be calculating the GPU power consumption here, not the total PC power consumption.

Measured power consumption R7850

System in IDLE = 160W
System Wattage with GPU in FULL Stress = 256W
Difference (GPU load) = 96W
Add average IDLE wattage ~10W
Subjective obtained GPU power consumption = ~ 106 Watts
Click to expand...

I can't see how your PSU wouldn't have been adequate and causing the card to under perform. Same story in two other reviews I looked at quickly, all around 260w or so for a full system under full load.

ElectricKaibutsu said:
I've been running pretty much Linux exclusively for about 4 years now. Every other computer I've owned has come preinstalled with an OS. I'm upgrading my homebuilt PC for gaming and now of course need to buy a copy of Windows. I... had no idea Windows was so expensive. It's so hard to pay for something I've been taking for granted as being free.
Click to expand...

There are ways to get it cheaper like buying an upgrade edition and using it to do a clean install but that's against the user agreement thing.
 
E

ElectricKaibutsu

Member
kharma45 said:
There are ways to get it cheaper like buying an upgrade edition and using it to do a clean install but that's against the user agreement thing.
Click to expand...
Of course I would never violate a user agreement, but that sure is interesting!
kennah said:
Steam is on Linux too!
Click to expand...
But the games aren't :(. At least not the ones I'm interested in. I have quite a few games on my Steam account from when I was into PC gaming before, but I think only HL2 Deathmatch works on Linux.
If the Steambox rumors are true and it runs Linux, and somehow magically Linux becomes an OS people can run the majority of new games on, I will throw a party and you're all invited. Free copies of Ubuntu and party hats for all!
 
R

ruxtpin

Banned
New computer! Tried by best with the cable management. Not bad for a first/second time I reckon.

(Not the best quality pics, but they'll have to do.)

8621217354_c0b7a48cb2_c.jpg


8621216514_d2cc3ea899_c.jpg


8620116361_bce46787a3_c.jpg
 
K

Katyusha

Member
So this is a little odd, myidle GPU temps seem to be getting cooler every day. Just a couple weeks ago it was at 45c and it dropped to 35c when I put in a bottom intake. Now it's at 30c and that's after I removed the bottom intake.

Hmm, maybe my room temps have gotten cooler and I just haven't noticed
 
T

theSlacker

Member
ruxtpin said:
New computer! Tried by best with the cable management. Not bad for a first/second time I reckon.

(Not the best quality pics, but they'll have to do.)]
Click to expand...

Looks like you did the best you could with a non modular psu in that case. Looks nice. I do love that case too. Find it odd that people go nuts for that bitfenix prodigy mitx case when it is actually bigger then this matx case because of the handles.
 
S

shuri

Banned
So I finally pulled the trigger on a rig. This will be my official return to PC Gaming since 2001 or so. I used to be a super hardcore pc gaming from 1993 to 2000 until I gave it up for the dreamcast.

This is what I just ordered:

  • Intel Core i7 3770K Unlocked Quad Core Hyperthreading Processor LGA1155 3.5GHZ Ivy Bridge 8MB Retail
  • NZXT Havik Series 140 Compact Universal CPU Cooler 2011/1366/1156/1155/775/AM3/AM2+/AM2
  • MSI Z77MA-G45 mATX LGA1155 Z77 DDR3 2PCI-E16 2PCI-E1 SATA3 DVI HDMI VGA USB3.0 Motherboard
  • Kingston HyperX Blu Black Series 8GB 2X4GB DDR3-1600 CL9 DIMM Dual Channel Memory Kit
  • 2x MSI GeForce GTX 670 OC PE 1079MHZ 2GB 6.0GHZ GDDR5 2xDVI HDMI DisplayPort PCI-E Video Card
  • NZXT Vulcan mATX Mini Tower Case Black 2X5.25 2X3.5 2X3.5INT Fan Control No PS Front Audio USB eSATA
  • NZXT Hale 82 650W ATX 12V 24PIN 80PLUS Bronze Modular Power Supply
  • NZXT Hue 3 RGB Color Changing LED Controller w/ 2 Meters LED Strip - Black
  • Microsoft Windows 8 64Bit English DVD *for NCIX PC Only*
  • Kingston SSDNow V300 120GB 2.5in SATA3 LSI SandForce Solid State Disk Flash Drive SSD
  • Nmedia ZE-C368 3.5IN Flash Card Reader Black W/ Front USB3.0
  • NZXT Fz LED Series 120mm Orange LED Case Fan 1200+/-200 RPM 59.1 CFM 26.8DBA 3Pin and 4Pin

I went for 'portability' and comfy couch gaming. Win8 was selected for its console'ish interface. The only weakpoint is the limited amount of ram, 8gb is a bit low but we'll see about that. The 120GB HDD is a bit small, but I won't be using this machine for storage, I have a 12TB NAS. This will be hooked to my lcd screen for maximum comfy couch gaming. This will be my first system without optical media.

My imac will remain my main machine, this will be for gaming only. This is a prebuilt system from ncix with a few upgrades. What's hilarious is that I work in IT and I can't be bothered with building my own PC at home, bahahaha.

Basically I wll be using this machine to play Arma2, MechWarrior Online and other pc exclusives, with some video encoding.
 
R

ruxtpin

Banned
theSlacker said:
Looks like you did the best you could with a non modular psu in that case. Looks nice. I do love that case too. Find it odd that people go nuts for that bitfenix prodigy mitx case when it is actually bigger then this matx case because of the handles.
Click to expand...

The PSU is actually semi-modular. It's this one - Seasonic 750W

I'm surprised by how quiet the whole thing is. Loudest bit of the entire build is the front case fan, and that's if it's on high-RPMs via the switch on the side.
 
K

kharma45

Member
shuri said:
So I finally pulled the trigger on a rig. This will be my official return to PC Gaming since 2001 or so. I used to be a super hardcore pc gaming from 1993 to 2000 until I gave it up for the dreamcast.

This is what I just ordered:

  • Intel Core i7 3770K Unlocked Quad Core Hyperthreading Processor LGA1155 3.5GHZ Ivy Bridge 8MB Retail
  • NZXT Havik Series 140 Compact Universal CPU Cooler 2011/1366/1156/1155/775/AM3/AM2+/AM2
  • MSI Z77MA-G45 mATX LGA1155 Z77 DDR3 2PCI-E16 2PCI-E1 SATA3 DVI HDMI VGA USB3.0 Motherboard
  • Kingston HyperX Blu Black Series 8GB 2X4GB DDR3-1600 CL9 DIMM Dual Channel Memory Kit
  • 2x MSI GeForce GTX 670 OC PE 1079MHZ 2GB 6.0GHZ GDDR5 2xDVI HDMI DisplayPort PCI-E Video Card
  • NZXT Vulcan mATX Mini Tower Case Black 2X5.25 2X3.5 2X3.5INT Fan Control No PS Front Audio USB eSATA
  • NZXT Hale 82 650W ATX 12V 24PIN 80PLUS Bronze Modular Power Supply
  • NZXT Hue 3 RGB Color Changing LED Controller w/ 2 Meters LED Strip - Black
  • Microsoft Windows 8 64Bit English DVD *for NCIX PC Only*
  • Kingston SSDNow V300 120GB 2.5in SATA3 LSI SandForce Solid State Disk Flash Drive SSD
  • Nmedia ZE-C368 3.5IN Flash Card Reader Black W/ Front USB3.0
  • NZXT Fz LED Series 120mm Orange LED Case Fan 1200+/-200 RPM 59.1 CFM 26.8DBA 3Pin and 4Pin

I went for 'portability' and comfy couch gaming. Win8 was selected for its console'ish interface. The only weakpoint is the limited amount of ram, 8gb is a bit low but we'll see about that. The 120GB HDD is a bit small, but I won't be using this machine for storage, I have a 12TB NAS. This will be hooked to my lcd screen for maximum comfy couch gaming. This will be my first system without optical media.

My imac will remain my main machine, this will be for gaming only. This is a prebuilt system from ncix with a few upgrades. What's hilarious is that I work in IT and I can't be bothered with building my own PC at home, bahahaha.

Basically I wll be using this machine to play Arma2, MechWarrior Online and other pc exclusives, with some video encoding.
Click to expand...


If it's not too late to change some things I would, like the PSU to this for SLI 670s and presumably an overclocked 3770K http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207029

It doesn't review the best http://www.hardwaresecrets.com/article/NZXT-HALE82-N-650-W-Power-Supply-Review/1565 and that XFX is a much better unit anyway for the same price.
 
Z

zam

Member
Been thinking of getting another GTX 670 with the money I'll be getting of my tax returns. Currently I have a GTX 670 overclocked, an i5 3570K @ 4.5 GHz, and a 680w (80+ Gold) PSU. Does the PSU have enough power to run 2x 670s in SLI?
 
J

JB1981

Member
I have a really dumb question. If you have a PC that does not have a built-in wifi card, a wirless network adapter will work instead correct?
 
B

Broadbandito

Member
Hey guys. The mobo I sold my friend ended up frying. So I need a recommendation for a new one.

the system contains

i5 2500k
6950 2 gb
seasonic m12ii 650w
16 GB corsair vengeance (2x8)
bitfenix shinobi window case

looking for something between $50 and $100. Dont need anything super fancy
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
zam said:
Been thinking of getting another GTX 670 with the money I'll be getting of my tax returns. Currently I have a GTX 670 overclocked, an i5 3570K @ 4.5 GHz, and a 680w (80+ Gold) PSU. Does the PSU have enough power to run 2x 670s in SLI?
Click to expand...
Yes. Maybe sell it and get a Titan though.
JB1981 said:
I have a really dumb question. If you have a PC that does not have a built-in wifi card, a wirless network adapter will work instead correct?
Click to expand...
Yes, but look into powerline adapters instead.
Broadbandito said:
Hey guys. The mobo I sold my friend ended up frying. So I need a recommendation for a new one.

the system contains

i5 2500k
6950 2 gb
seasonic m12ii 650w
16 GB corsair vengeance (2x8)
bitfenix shinobi window case

looking for something between $50 and $100. Dont need anything super fancy
Click to expand...
A used Z68/Z77.
 
K

kharma45

Member
Broadbandito said:
Hey guys. The mobo I sold my friend ended up frying. So I need a recommendation for a new one.

the system contains

i5 2500k
6950 2 gb
seasonic m12ii 650w
16 GB corsair vengeance (2x8)
bitfenix shinobi window case

looking for something between $50 and $100. Dont need anything super fancy
Click to expand...

Are they doing any serious overclocking? The Z75 Pro3 is $85 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157304

It'll throttle at about 4.5GHz apparently but I'm yet to test it myself as I've only got my 2500K at 4.2GHz. There is also this MSI too if you don't want to go used http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130653
 
S

scogoth

Member
ruxtpin said:
New computer! Tried by best with the cable management. Not bad for a first/second time I reckon.

(Not the best quality pics, but they'll have to do.)
Click to expand...

Looks sweet!


mkenyon, are we going to see any updates on the 50 shades of grey build this weekend?
 
Z

zam

Member
mkenyon said:
Yes. Maybe sell it and get a Titan though.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't mind a Titan, but the prices in Sweden don't really allow for it (GTX 670 model I have and want to get another one of is 3500 SEK new, GTX Titan is around 9000 SEK new).

Might order a Titan from the US and have my Dad bring it over next time he visits from the US.
 
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