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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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mkenyon

Banned
Nothing, it's pretty much on the same basis.

If anyone is looking for a reference. I'm running my 3570k @ 4.4Ghz 1.224V Idles 28-30 max under 70.
So many things can be so vastly different between systems. Everything from ambient, to the case, to the heatsink, to silicon lottery, to the motherboard. It's really impossible to use a reference point to judge whether or not one is doing well.
Can anyone recommend me a good solution for a Wi-Fi card to put in my desktop PC?

I'm moving into a new apartment soon and the setup will make it very difficult to keep a wired connection.

If anyone knows any really good cards that can get a strong wireless signal and keep it, please let me know!
Powerline adapters.
 

timnich

Member
I'm considering getting a second Gigabyte 7950 3GB to CrossFire. Good/bad use of money? My display goes up to 1080p, I only game at that resolution. I was hoping to be able to max out games like Sleeping Dogs and Far Cry 3, and be able to play upcoming games at max or as close to as possible. Right now I can play most games at max, save for the most demanding where I need to tweak settings between high and max. Also the cards now come with Bioshock Infinite and Crysis 3, both of which I was planning on getting eventually.
 

Lingitiz

Member
Would a 7850 2GB be a good upgrade for a 460 GTX? The deal with Bioshock seems pretty good. I'm looking for something that will last about 2-3 years during the initial rush of next gen ports. I play at 1680x1050 and would ideally like 60fps but i don't mind fluctuating around 40. I plan on changing out my AMD cpu/mobo for a Haswell later in the year too.
 

catmincer

Member
So I oced my 8350 to 4.5ghz in the bios and it is stable and cool enough. Idles about 35ish. However, I get lag spikes in games every few seconds. I'll be running full speed and then it stutters then goes back to full speed. This happens on every game I have tried, even mass effect 2 at 720p. So I put it back to factory speeds to test and the issue has gone. I tried ME2 and L4D2 at 1080p and maxed perfect, no spikes. Any idea why this would happen at higher speeds? Under load it was getting toabout 65c. So it isn't over heating. I have a 7950 paired with it so it wasn't that either.

Also for amd, any advantage to ocing in the bios versus in overdrive?
 

Koroviev

Member
Would a 7850 2GB be a good upgrade for a 460 GTX? The deal with Bioshock seems pretty good. I'm looking for something that will last about 2-3 years during the initial rush of next gen ports. I play at 1680x1050 and would ideally like 60fps but i don't mind fluctuating around 40. I plan on changing out my AMD cpu/mobo for a Haswell later in the year too.

The 7850 is a solid card, but you might want to shoot for a 7870 if you want it to last several years. I would go with the MSI Twin Frozr models.
 
so i placed a order on a mechanical keyboard, went with the cooler master quick trigger brown keys (80)
cooler master storm spawn (30)
and put the gigabyte 7950 (270) on back order

anything i should change before its too late?

also what do you think of sennheiser mm 55i for 50$ (earbud headphones). 142$ off at futureshop. worth it?

just reposting from last page.
 
D

Deleted member 17706

Unconfirmed Member
So many things can be so vastly different between systems. Everything from ambient, to the case, to the heatsink, to silicon lottery, to the motherboard. It's really impossible to use a reference point to judge whether or not one is doing well.

Powerline adapters.

This. I had avoided them for a long time, thinking they were some gimmick. After I finally gave them a go, I kicked myself for waiting so long...

Any links where I can read up on this? First I've ever heard of them.
 

Whooter

Member
I have not experienced any latency issues. For all intents and purposes it behaves like wired ethernet. The bandwidth is only 200 Mbps so it's noticeable when downloading or transferring large files (compared to gigabit ethernet), but it's more than enough for video streaming, online gaming, surfing, etc... It's still a darn sight faster than WiFi.



The first pair I got was plug and play.

When I added the second two adapters, I had to set a network "password" on the adapters so they all knew they could talk to each other. Once that password is set on each adapter you can unplug, move, replug, etc. with no further fiddling.
 

AkIRA_22

Member
I'll be doing a significant upgrade this year. My intention was to go for Haswell. But I am considering jumping the gun now. Is it expected Haswell will out perform the 3930k? Its not money that's the issue, but performance. Obviously its impossible to know for sure but I was wondering what the ball park for PERFORMANCE is expected to be.

The old 930 is really starting to shown its age, my chip only gets to 3.7GHz. That's why I'm getting the itch.
 

mkenyon

Banned
Copper wire is copper wire.

Air, however, is NOT copper wire.
I'll be doing a significant upgrade this year. My intention was to go for Haswell. But I am considering jumping the gun now. Is it expected Haswell will out perform the 3930k? Its not money that's the issue, but performance. Obviously its impossible to know for sure but I was wondering what the ball park for PERFORMANCE is expected to be.

The old 930 is really starting to shown its age, my chip only gets to 3.7GHz. That's why I'm getting the itch.
No way will the 3930K get outclassed.

What about going with a 3820 with an eye towards an octo core Ivy-E in a year?
 

multivac

Member
With the rumor that AMD and Nvidia may not release new GPUs until the end of the year I'm looking into an upgrade now. I've been putting it off since I got my Korean 1440p monitor in December with the idea that I'd upgrade when the new cards came out around March. My Radeon 6950 just doesn't give me the performance I'm looking for at 1440p.

So, with the Never Settle bundle AMD is offering, and the fact that 7970 is much cheaper at what appears to be fairly similar performance to the 680, which version do you guys recommend? I'm currently looking at this Gigabyte: http://www.amazon.com/Gigabyte-Radeon-Mini-Displayport-Graphics-GV-R797OC-3GD/dp/B00752QYLK. I have heard good things about it, and it seems to be the cheapest of the non-Ghz 7970s. Good idea? Thanks guys!
 

scogoth

Member
With the rumor that AMD and Nvidia may not release new GPUs until the end of the year I'm looking into an upgrade now. I've been putting it off since I got my Korean 1440p monitor in December with the idea that I'd upgrade when the new cards came out around March. My Radeon 6950 just doesn't give me the performance I'm looking for at 1440p.

So, with the Never Settle bundle AMD is offering, and the fact that 7970 is much cheaper at what appears to be fairly similar performance to the 680, which version do you guys recommend? I'm currently looking at this Gigabyte: http://www.amazon.com/Gigabyte-Radeon-Mini-Displayport-Graphics-GV-R797OC-3GD/dp/B00752QYLK. I have heard good things about it, and it seems to be the cheapest of the non-Ghz 7970s. Good idea? Thanks guys!

I would wait to see what Titan brings to the table
 

Sandfox

Member
With the rumor that AMD and Nvidia may not release new GPUs until the end of the year I'm looking into an upgrade now. I've been putting it off since I got my Korean 1440p monitor in December with the idea that I'd upgrade when the new cards came out around March. My Radeon 6950 just doesn't give me the performance I'm looking for at 1440p.

So, with the Never Settle bundle AMD is offering, and the fact that 7970 is much cheaper at what appears to be fairly similar performance to the 680, which version do you guys recommend? I'm currently looking at this Gigabyte: http://www.amazon.com/Gigabyte-Radeon-Mini-Displayport-Graphics-GV-R797OC-3GD/dp/B00752QYLK. I have heard good things about it, and it seems to be the cheapest of the non-Ghz 7970s. Good idea? Thanks guys!

I'm actually interested in doing this myself but I'm probably going to go with the 7950.
 
I have a question about Graphics Cards

I'm looking at a GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB Video Card. How is that card with most modern games?

Also, am I supposed to get a card that's made by Gigabyte if I have a Gigabyte motherboard?

(really noobish at this...)
 

catmincer

Member
I have a question about Graphics Cards

I'm looking at a GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB Video Card. How is that card with most modern games?

Also, am I supposed to get a card that's made by Gigabyte if I have a Gigabyte motherboard?

(really noobish at this...)

If it's a Gigabyte motherboard you can use any compatible video card so Sapphire, Galaxy, ASUS etc doesn't need to be Gigabyte.
 
Heya GAF,

Longtime console gamer, building a PC from scratch for the first time! I've never really had a powerful machine of my own before so this will be a first.

Main Use:
Light Gaming, 5
Gaming, 5
Emulation (PS2/Wii), 5
Video Editing, 3
HD Streaming, 1
3D/Model work, 1
General Usage (Word, Web, 1080p playback), 5

I plan to play most games on a big LED TV at 720P or 1080P. 720P / 30FPS is acceptable for most games, BUT I want to use downsampling to improve image quality. I also really like crisp, clear textures.

Some AAA games I plan to play:

Deus Ex: Human Revolution
(w/ ENB mod)

Dark Souls
(w/ Durante fix)

GTA5
(modded to improve textures, increase draw distance, etc.)

Batman: Arkham Asylum & Mirror's Edge
(with all them fancy physics / PhysX effects)

Bioshock Infinite
Half-Life 3

Plus a bunch of indies like The Witness, Miami Hotline, The Antichamber, etc.

I was hoping to build in the next couple of weeks or so. I don't care about overclocking, I just want a nice PC for my living room for gaming that will last me for the next 2-3 years.

I currently live in Taiwan, so prices may be cheaper / more expensive depending on the component. I think I got good deals. Guanghua Digital Plaza was closed, but here is what I've picked up so far from the shops nearby:

CPU: Intel i5-3570, NT $6530 / $217 US
Motherboard: Asus P8H77-V, NT $3410 / $113 US
Memory: 4GB ADATA Premier DDR3 1600, NT $600 / $20 US
Graphics Card: None! I haven't decided yet... was hoping GAF could recommend one.
Power Supply: MIRAGE 550W (Model SP-550PS-1M), NT $1300 / $43 US *This one I'm a little iffy about. Was much cheaper than the others.
Storage: Plextor 128GB SATA, NT $2990 / $99 US (Only for Win7 installation, no games)
Case: Thinner form-factor, 5,9 x 14.5 x 18.3 inch

------------

What say you, PC-Gaf? Looking good so far? What type of video card should I buy? Is my case's skinniness a liability? Will my skimping on a power supply bite me in the ass? So many questions...

Thanks for all the advice!
 

Hazaro

relies on auto-aim
There's no way I can afford a $1000 GPU, I have two PCs in the household to upgrade anyway
7970
I have a question about Graphics Cards

I'm looking at a GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB Video Card. How is that card with most modern games?

Also, am I supposed to get a card that's made by Gigabyte if I have a Gigabyte motherboard?

(really noobish at this...)
660Ti is a very excellent card at the price. If you don't care about CUDA/PhysX and you want some of those nice free games you can pickup a 7950 as it is also an excellent card that should only improve more with time.

You can buy any model GPU to go with any model motherboard or processor or RAM!
Heya GAF, here is what I've picked up so far from the shops nearby:

CPU: Intel i5-3570, NT $6530 / $217 US
Motherboard: Asus P8H77-V, NT $3410 / $113 US
Memory: 4GB ADATA Premier DDR3 1600, NT $600 / $20 US
Graphics Card: None! I haven't decided yet... was hoping GAF could recommend one.
Power Supply: MIRAGE 550W (Model SP-550PS-1M), NT $1300 / $43 US *This one I'm a little iffy about. Was much cheaper than the others.
Storage: Plextor 128GB SATA, NT $2990 / $99 US (Only for Win7 installation, no games)
Case: Thinner form-factor, 5,9 x 14.5 x 18.3 inch

------------

What say you, PC-Gaf? Looking good so far? What type of video card should I buy? Is my case's skinniness a liability? Will my skimping on a power supply bite me in the ass? So many questions...

Thanks for all the advice!
SP-550PS-1M is a JPower PLATINUM PSU and I don't think those sell for $43. Do you have the correct name or model number?
Get another 4GB of RAM.
Playing with the eye candy you want will be helped if you could overclock your CPU (Need a -K model, and are you willing?)
As far as GPU goes and your want for downsampling I'd try to find a relatively cheap GTX670 or 7950. I've not dabbled with Super or Downsampling on either yet so I can't tell you which you might find better support in. You might get Bioshock free with a 7950 purchase though.
 

LiquidMetal14

hide your water-based mammals
Is it worthwhile to get a Bluray drive? I don't have any optical drives atm.

If you plan on watching movies and also using the huge space the discs hold then yes. They aren't as expensive as they used to be and you can back up large amounts of data.
 

DericLee

Banned
I haven't even logged onto Gaf since 2009(though I have been an occasional creeper), but I had to just to say thank you for this thread, and all the information with in.

Just built my new pc(using cash from selling my dirtbike) and I love it(well, outside of the LED's on the fans...didn't think that through).

So thank you gaf users for making my build(first one in over a decade) go smooth as butter!

EDIT: Guess I don't know how to post pictures on GAF....oh well.

Stats:
i7-3770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core
Hyper 212 EVO CPU Cooler
MSI Z77 MPOWER ATX mobo
16GB Corsair Vengeance DDR3-1600
840 Pro Series 128GB SSD
WD Green 2TB HDD
Asus GeForce GTX 680 2GB
Fractal Design Define R4(white)
LG Bluray writer, and DVD writer
Win 7
 

kharma45

Member
I haven't even logged onto Gaf since 2009(though I have been an occasional creeper), but I had to just to say thank you for this thread, and all the information with in.

Just built my new pc(using cash from selling my dirtbike) and I love it(well, outside of the LED's on the fans...didn't think that through).

So thank you gaf users for making my build(first one in over a decade) go smooth as butter!

EDIT: Guess I don't know how to post pictures on GAF....oh well.

Stats:
i7-3770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core
Hyper 212 EVO CPU Cooler
MSI Z77 MPOWER ATX mobo
16GB Corsair Vengeance DDR3-1600
840 Pro Series 128GB SSD
WD Green 2TB HDD
Asus GeForce GTX 680 2GB
Fractal Design Define R4(white)
LG Bluray writer, and DVD writer
Win 7

Upload the pics to Minus and then copy the direct url to it over with [\img] either side of it, or click the little yellow box in the toolbar when posting (with the mountains and moon in it) and paste the link there.

Enjoy your PC! :) now to look into overclocking it :P

[quote="Zeth, post: 47577135"]None at all, pretty much gaming only.[/QUOTE]

In that case I'd probably go 7970.
 

GMM

Banned
None at all, pretty much gaming only.

Go with the 7970 then. The 7970 performs a bit better then the GTX 680 when it comes to most games, but you would miss out on a huge performance increase due to the broad GPU acceleration and CUDA features a lot of visual production software these days have.
 

Zeth

Member
Only two 7970s they have in stock are the MSI (not twin frozr) and a Diamond edit: both seem like really loud reference designs and I have no intention of water cooling, so I'm starting to lean 680 :/

Other option would be a 2GB MSI 680 Twin Frozr or one of the 4GB 680s. These are my options. The 4gb 680s there don't look so hot. The EVGAs look like a reference design and I don't know anything about the Zotacs. There's also a reference design evga 4GB 670.

Upgrading the 660Ti I got a couple weeks ago when I did my build, so Microcenter is my only option. They're allowing me to exchange the gpu.
 

mkenyon

Banned
I'd do an exchange, but plunk down the money on an order for a non-reference card. Reference 7970s are *really* loud.

*edit*

Goodness gracious, Microcenter doesn't have any non-reference 7970s.
 
I am completely at a loss as to what I should do for my display(s). I've gotten a few pieces of great advice here in terms of what to look for. Now I narrowed down my best picks for each catagory.

I love the look of the IPS displays (and I made the mistake of looking at a 27" iMac display which is IPS 2560x1440). So I am considering just a single display, a Nixeus WQHD 27" S-IPS NX-VUE27. At $500 it gets you a no frills LG A+ or A grade display.

I am extremely curious as to what the hype is all about surrounding LightBoost on a 144hz display (ASUS VG248QE). A much lower price of entry (~$300), people are saying this is the first real feel of CRT motion blur reduction since LCD displays tooks over. I am worried about off angle colors and the washed out look that my current TN panel has. That said, I've seen a lot of folks talking about how amazing just going to 120hz is. Factoring in LightBoost really has me wishing I could see it for myself.

And finally, there is a part of me that wants to go for the WOW factor of a nVidia surround setup with 3 21.5" IPS displays. (Either Asus or Dell). This being right between the two in terms of cost at right around $400. I have 2 GTX 670's in SLI, but at such a large resoultion (5760x1080) I fear that the limitation of only having 2gb GDDR on the cards will end up leaving my short in the frame rate department.

I guess I am looking to hear feedback on if the 120hz TN panels will leave me disappointed vs. an IPS in terms of image quality, also if 3 monitors is better than 1 big one.

I don't mean to rehash my last question, but I've researched quite a bit more, and I've narrowed my choices by quite a bit after pounding some forums, reviews, and most importantly the OP.
 

Momentary

Banned
*Checks on Samsung RAM* nope
*Checks on 900D* nope
*Checks on TITAN* nope
*Checks on K95* nope
*Checks for new lines of monitors* nope

*sigh*

Would ASUS and EVGA carry the Titan or just one of them?
 

Salaadin

Member
Im upgrading for Haswell and am just putting together a rough build right now to watch for prices and want to know if my Antec EA650W will be good enough or if I should go bigger.
I currently have a GTX 660ti and I dont think its worth upgrading the GPU until a new line of cards come out later this year/early next. Im thinking of going higher than what I usually do...probably whatevers comparable to the 670 or 680. Do you guys think a 650W PSU will be good enough for this?
 

mkenyon

Banned
I am completely at a loss as to what I should do for my display(s). I've gotten a few pieces of great advice here in terms of what to look for. Now I narrowed down my best picks for each catagory.

I love the look of the IPS displays (and I made the mistake of looking at a 27" iMac display which is IPS 2560x1440). So I am considering just a single display, a Nixeus WQHD 27" S-IPS NX-VUE27. At $500 it gets you a no frills LG A+ or A grade display.

I am extremely curious as to what the hype is all about surrounding LightBoost on a 144hz display (ASUS VG248QE). A much lower price of entry (~$300), people are saying this is the first real feel of CRT motion blur reduction since LCD displays tooks over. I am worried about off angle colors and the washed out look that my current TN panel has. That said, I've seen a lot of folks talking about how amazing just going to 120hz is. Factoring in LightBoost really has me wishing I could see it for myself.

And finally, there is a part of me that wants to go for the WOW factor of a nVidia surround setup with 3 21.5" IPS displays. (Either Asus or Dell). This being right between the two in terms of cost at right around $400. I have 2 GTX 670's in SLI, but at such a large resoultion (5760x1080) I fear that the limitation of only having 2gb GDDR on the cards will end up leaving my short in the frame rate department.

I guess I am looking to hear feedback on if the 120hz TN panels will leave me disappointed vs. an IPS in terms of image quality, also if 3 monitors is better than 1 big one.

I don't mean to rehash my last question, but I've researched quite a bit more, and I've narrowed my choices by quite a bit after pounding some forums, reviews, and most importantly the OP.
Do you play fast paced games or Skyrim? If the prior, time for some self reflection and real talk: are you really good at fast paced games?

For the people who are huge on colors, image quality, high resolution, and are bad at Dota, Tribes, and Quake, 1440p IPS is the way to go.

For people who's highlights of gaming in the last year involve rocket jumping off a wall to get a better angle on a mid-air railgun (extreme, but I mean play any competitive games), or just want consistent motion, 120Hz is where it's at.

There's a lot of room there in the middle, and I still think 120Hz is the correct choice those people. But, I've never been fussed about super pretty graphics. I understand that is important for people though. The Samsung 120Hz displays have amazing color, I think just as good as a Crossover 27Q I had for a time (the Apple ACD panel display). If you can find an S23A700/750D for a decent price, I think those are the way to go.
*Checks on Samsung RAM* nope
*Checks on 900D* nope
*Checks on TITAN* nope
*Checks on K95* nope
*Checks for new lines of monitors* nope

*sigh*

Would ASUS and EVGA carry the Titan or just one of them?
EVGA will be the first party that sells them directly. The ASUS variants will be available through Newegg, TigerDirect, and some others first.
 
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