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[HolyBaikal]

First off, stop running FURMARK. Loading your GPU to 100C for an hour is not good even if you are stress testing, especially after 2 hard shut downs. It's a very unnatural draw and load.

Ouch! I hope I didn't permanently damage my card! I did it because it was the only thing I knew to do in order to test whether it could be PSU overcharge or other errors or GPU overheating.

If I've permanently damaged my GPU at all at to the point there may be even a sliver of permanent performance loss, I'm going to be sad.

First thing I would do is clean your card and make a much more aggressive fan profile so the card doesn't get super hot. Clean your case fans and filters as well.

I assume that "fan profile" means "turn the settings on the case fan higher than they are currently".

And I'll go do that, right now.

Swap the GPU into your other PCI-E slot and use different PSU PCI-E power connectors.

I'll try. But just as a personal note, could moving the GPU into an other slot affect the AMD driver settings at all? I know that when replacing a GPU, it is best to uninstall the old graphics drivers.

The fact that you haven't told me to uninstall graphics drivers, I am hoping that switching slots won't affect the graphics settings and drivers at all.

Anyway, I'm going to do that sort of thing. Starting with look at and cleaning the GPU. I'll be reporting my findings soon.

 

[memecomplex]

3820 is a beast and can easily clock to 5.0GHz, where you might be stuck at 4.3-4.5 with Ivy, unless you delid it which means no more warranty. X79 board + 3820 isn't too different in price compared to a nice Z77 board with a 3770K.

Do you have to go under water to OC the 3820 to 5.0GHz? Or will something like the Noctua NH-D14 suffice?

 

[gilljoy]

GPU has been dispatched and I'm off tomorrow for it to arrive this is a good day

 

[Hazaro]

Ouch! I hope I didn't permanently damage my card! I did it because it was the only thing I knew to do in order to test whether it could be PSU overcharge or other errors or GPU overheating.

If I've permanently damaged my GPU at all at to the point there may be even a sliver of permanent performance loss, I'm going to be sad.


I assume that "fan profile" means "turn the settings on the case fan higher than they are currently".

And I'll go do that, right now.


I'll try. But just as a personal note, could moving the GPU into an other slot affect the AMD driver settings at all? I know that when replacing a GPU, it is best to uninstall the old graphics drivers.

The fact that you haven't told me to uninstall graphics drivers, I am hoping that switching slots won't affect the graphics settings and drivers at all.

Anyway, I'm going to do that sort of thing. Starting with look at and cleaning the GPU. I'll be reporting my findings soon.

I ran my old 8800GT at 95C and GTX 295 at 104C for a bit. It's something they can technically take, but not something you should be doing.

Fan profile I mean the GPU fan settings that ramp up as temperature goes up on the GPU. Download MSI Afterburner to monitor and tweak your settings.

Swapping the GPU slot you shouldn't need to change drivers. After the above I'd update to the newest AMD drivers as well.

 

[JayDub]

Went hands on with the R4 today when I was returning a fan. That is one beautiful case - the sound dampening alone! Amazing! I'm sad that the grey 'titanium' one is only grey on the front, and black on the rest.

I love my Titanium R4. I said it a couple of pages back, but its the best case ever for $100. No drawbacks.

 

[kennah]

Yeah. Incredible value. Still pretty set on a SSF build though

 

[Koroviev]

Does anyone knows is it is worth upgrading my current ram (DDR3 1333) to the maximum supported by my MB (DDR 2400)?

I have a core i5 3570k, HD7970,SSD, the mobo is a MSI ZH77A-G41.

No, not really.

 

[HolyBaikal]

I ran my old 8800GT at 95C and GTX 295 at 104C for a bit. It's something they can technically take, but not something you should be doing.

A bit? I would hope that a bit counts as more than 10 minutes. Or I'm worried about having damaged my nice graphics card stupidly.

If it is almost certain I damaged my card and somewhat lowered the performance or worse, I'm probably never running Furmark again for more than 3 minutes unless I have insane fans. Also possibly replacing my GPU for a HD 7970 finally and throwing my hd 6870 in a home theatre PC with an HDMI capture card(I'm looking for one of those, by the way. As I want to record PC gaming footage without fraps, and also essentially play and record PlayStation 3 footage on my PC.)

I've noticed there is, in fact, a decent amount of dust stuck in the aluminum or whichever covering right beneath the fan. I've been looking all night/morning for some of those tiny screwdrivers to remove the fan. I may just have to go to town and buy some more, as well as stock up on canned air.

Also, as it turns out there's some dust stuck between the nodes in my pci-express slot. Is there any safe way to get that out? Would a toothpick work? I feel like that shouldn't be there.

By the way, thanks a lot for the help. I've been pretty worried and still worried.

 

[Kipp]

Is this the Samsung Basic SSD?

According to Anandtech, the 120GB has a life expectancy of about 3.5 years. The 250GB one should last at least 7 years.

If you can, get the Pro model or the 250GB Basic, but I wouldn't get the 120GB Basic.

Here's the review:

http://www.anandtech.com/show/6337/samsung-ssd-840-250gb-review

Thanks for that link! Didn't realize the 250GB model was supposed to last ~7 years. I think I'll go with that instead of the 128GB 840 Pro when I decide to build. In 7 years, surely SSDs will be much, much cheaper so it won't really be that big of a deal to replace a drive that's destined to die.

 

[scogoth]

A bit? I would hope that a bit counts as more than 10 minutes. Or I'm worried about having damaged my nice graphics card stupidly.

If it is almost certain I damaged my card and somewhat lowered the performance or worse, I'm probably never running Furmark again for more than 3 minutes unless I have insane fans. Also possibly replacing my GPU for a HD 7970 finally and throwing my hd 6870 in a home theatre PC with an HDMI capture card(I'm looking for one of those, by the way. As I want to record PC gaming footage without fraps, and also essentially play and record PlayStation 3 footage on my PC.)

I've noticed there is, in fact, a decent amount of dust stuck in the aluminum or whichever covering right beneath the fan. I've been looking all night/morning for some of those tiny screwdrivers to remove the fan. I may just have to go to town and buy some more, as well as stock up on canned air.

Also, as it turns out there's some dust stuck between the nodes in my pci-express slot. Is there any safe way to get that out? Would a toothpick work? I feel like that shouldn't be there.

By the way, thanks a lot for the help. I've been pretty worried and still worried.

Don't worry you GPU is fine. Clean out all the dust, remove the plastic shroud if necessary, their really shouldn't be any build up dust anywhere inside your PC. Maybe you should invest in some fan filters (or cut up pantyhose, cheap and effective)

And if I recall correctly your cant use your PS3 with an HDMI capture card because none of them support HDCP decryption.

 

[haikira]

If someone could be so kind to help me out with a few things, that would be much appreciated. I'm trying to decide between getting a second 670 for SLI, or selling my current 670 and getting a 690. I've never used SLI before and just wanted to ask a few things.

Current Specs

Motherboard ASUS P8P67 PRO (REV 3.1)
CPU 2500k
GPU Gigabyte GTX 670 OC 2 GB
Memory G-Skill 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 1600Mhz RipjawsX Memory Kit CL9 (9-9-9-24) 1.5V
Case Coolermaster HAF 932 Advanced Case
PSU Corsair TX850w

First Picture: Reading up, i notice i'd need to use the slot directly below the current card. It looks like it would be a snug fit, is that ok?

Second and Third Picture: I don't have any other PCI-E power connectors left. Would the two links below do the job?

http://uk.startech.com/Cables/Computer-Power/Internal/LP4-to-8-pin-PCI-Express-Video-Card-Power-Adapter~LP4PCIEX8ADP
http://uk.startech.com/Cables/Computer-Power/Internal/LP4-to-6-pin-PCI-Express-Video-Card-Power-Adapter~LP4PCIEXADAP




For context. I'll be gaming on a 27inch 1080p monitor. Though i'm looking to probably downsample most games, be able to max out stuff for a while and would also like to make a much bigger dent in Crysis 3 than i currently am.

• Is there anything else i need to know about SLI?
• What are the pros and cons for a 690 over 670SLI?
• I'm hoping to keep my current CPU for just a little while longer, is it sensible going for 690/670sli first while i'll still be using the 2500k? I'm running it at 4000.

Sorry for wall of spam and thanks for reading.

 

[v0mitg0d]

Hola mr mkenyon!

So I'm putting the breaks on that (awesome) gaming build you recommended due to funding, so more on that in the next couple of months.

I do have two scenarios I'm faced with where I could use your advice (both involve family members):

1) Laptop, budget $900-$1000: This user requires technical support & solid warranty, will be used for some minor gaming but mostly browsing internet and photoshop.

2) Desktop, budget $700: Good news is we already purchased a GTX560SE so we need a machine that will support that card and push through games. Already own KB+M and monitor. Needs good tech support, warranty and build quality. I'd rather not go with Dell but if that's what you like then that's totally cool.


Thanks in advanced!

 

[Smokey]

Guys quick question:

Thinking of SLI'ing my GTX 580 in a month or so. Should I do it or holdout for the 7XX series of Nvidia cards.

If I have the money at the time of the 7XX series release I'll most likely get a single 780.

I'm running SLI 580s. Runs everything I throw at it. Only time it really struggles is in 5760x1080. Crysis 3 I get 40fps or so on High at 2560x1600. 25-30 on Very High. That's the one game that punches back against them, but that's at 1600p and beyond. 1f you're at 1080p you'll really be set. I imagine you can find some cheap 580s too.

 

[scogoth]

If someone could be so kind to help me out with a few things, that would be much appreciated. I'm trying to decide between getting a second 670 for SLI, or selling my current 670 and getting a 690. I've never used SLI before and just wanted to ask a few things.

Current Specs

Motherboard ASUS P8P67 PRO (REV 3.1)
CPU 2500k
GPU Gigabyte GTX 670 OC 2 GB
Memory G-Skill 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 1600Mhz RipjawsX Memory Kit CL9 (9-9-9-24) 1.5V
Case Coolermaster HAF 932 Advanced Case
PSU Corsair TX850w



First Picture: Reading up, i notice i'd need to use the slot directly below the current card. It looks like it would be a snug fit, is that ok?

Second and Third Picture: I don't have any other PCI-E power connectors left. Would these do the job?

http://uk.startech.com/Cables/Computer-Power/Internal/LP4-to-8-pin-PCI-Express-Video-Card-Power-Adapter~LP4PCIEX8ADP
http://uk.startech.com/Cables/Computer-Power/Internal/LP4-to-6-pin-PCI-Express-Video-Card-Power-Adapter~LP4PCIEXADAP




For context. I'll be gaming on a 27inch 1080p monitor. Though i'm looking to probably downsample most games, be able to max out stuff for a while and would also like to make a much bigger dent in Crysis 3 than i currently am.

• Is there anything else i need to know about SLI?
• What are the pros and cons for a 690 over 670SLI?
• I'm hoping to keep my current CPU for just a little while longer, is it sensible going for 690/670sli first while i'll still be using the 2500k? I'm running it at 4000.

Sorry for wall of spam and thanks for reading.

1) it's fine
2/3) Your PSU has 4 PCIe connectors so you can use those for the second card

SLI profiles are ok for big name titles but for smaller games can be an issue, you can create your own though
690 takes less space, two 670s are cheaper
2500k is fine with 670SLI

 

[haikira]

2/3) Your PSU has 4 PCIe connectors so you can use those for the second card

Damn, you're absolutely right. Don't know how i missed them before.

Thanks very much for the answers.

 

[Salaadin]

Newegg Combo Deal for today:

Samsung 840pro 256GB SSD
Acronis True Image - OEM

179.98 total

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Combo...-na&ItemList=Combo.1224769.20-147-193D&cm_sp=

EDIT: OUT OF STOCK
Damnit!

 

[musicjunkie]

Apologize in advance for the wall of text but think I am happy with this:

Your Current Specs:AMD Phenom II X6 1090T Black/G.SKILL Ripjaws 4GB DDR3/ASUS M4A88T-V EVO/EVGA GTX 460 SE (Fermi) 1GB/Corsair 750-Watt TX/Antec Three Hundred
Budget: $1000-$1200, US
Main Use: 3-4, Gaming mostly.
General Usage: 1080p playback, music and web browsing.
Monitor Resolution: 1920 x 1080 atm but possibility of 2560x1440/1600 in the next year.
List SPECIFIC games or applications that you MUST be able to run well: 60fps perferable in games. Will be playing Far Cry 3, Sleeping Dogs and Crysis 3 and care more about framerate than being at absolute 100% max settings but would still like to be able to run at higher settings. Only run Sleeping Dogs at 'normal' settings now with mostly good framerate.
Looking to reuse any parts?: Will be using 2x640GB WD Caviar Blue in a raid 1 array from my old build and upgrading to 2x1TB a few months after this build.
When will you build?: Next few months probably around May/June
Will you be overclocking?: No

Here's what I ended up with:

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/FRVk

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core
MOBO: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155
RAM: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600
SSD: Crucial M4 CT256M4SSD2 256GB
GPU: Sapphire Radeon HD 7970 GHz 3GB
Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 ATX Mid Tower
PSU: Corsair Pro 750W 80 PLUS Silver Certified
DVD Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS
Total: $1244.63
Tad over budget but worth it since the extra $$$ is going to the GPU.

I have 3 concerns

1)Going with 7970 ghz over gtx 670 ftw since most people here say is superior if I don't plan to SLI the 670s. Been an EVGA man forever so not sure if I should be going with SAPPHIRE Vapor-X 7970 GHz Edition for $460 currently or the GIGABYTE 7970 GHz Edition which is $30 cheaper. Don't plan to OC so not sure what the difference is.

2)Have some WD Blues which have served me very well but would there be a major difference if I snagged 2x1TB drives of going green over blue or should I just get whatever is cheaper?

3)Don't plan on OCing my CPU so any need for CPU Cooler? Never had one in previous builds and things seemed fine.

 

[chickdigger802]

Any of y'all use three monitor setups? How does that work for productivity? You can make the primary monitor the center screen in windows right?

 

[The Albatross]

Buddy of mine is looking to put a PC together and he picked out these parts with soem mixing matching. I think he's trying to stay around this price point, doesn't need crazy performance or high specs for most games... He's more into humble bundle stuff and games that are a few years older.

THoughts?

Also, what do you think for a power supply for that?

 

[scogoth]

Apologize in advance for the wall of text but think I am happy with this:

Your Current Specs:AMD Phenom II X6 1090T Black/G.SKILL Ripjaws 4GB DDR3/ASUS M4A88T-V EVO/EVGA GTX 460 SE (Fermi) 1GB/Corsair 750-Watt TX/Antec Three Hundred
Budget: $1000-$1200, US
Main Use: 3-4, Gaming mostly.
General Usage: 1080p playback, music and web browsing.
Monitor Resolution: 1920 x 1080 atm but possibility of 2560x1440/1600 in the next year.
List SPECIFIC games or applications that you MUST be able to run well: 60fps perferable in games. Will be playing Far Cry 3, Sleeping Dogs and Crysis 3 and care more about framerate than being at absolute 100% max settings but would still like to be able to run at higher settings. Only run Sleeping Dogs at 'normal' settings now with mostly good framerate.
Looking to reuse any parts?: Will be using 2x640GB WD Caviar Blue in a raid 1 array from my old build and upgrading to 2x1TB a few months after this build.
When will you build?: Next few months probably around May/June
Will you be overclocking?: No

Here's what I ended up with:

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/FRVk

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core
MOBO: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155
RAM: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600
SSD: Crucial M4 CT256M4SSD2 256GB
GPU: Sapphire Radeon HD 7970 GHz 3GB
Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 ATX Mid Tower
PSU: Corsair Pro 750W 80 PLUS Silver Certified
DVD Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS
Total: $1244.63
Tad over budget but worth it since the extra $$$ is going to the GPU.

I have 3 concerns

1)Going with 7970 ghz over gtx 670 ftw since most people here say is superior if I don't plan to SLI the 670s. Been an EVGA man forever so not sure if I should be going with SAPPHIRE Vapor-X 7970 GHz Edition for $460 currently or the GIGABYTE 7970 GHz Edition which is $30 cheaper. Don't plan to OC so not sure what the difference is.

2)Have some WD Blues which have served me very well but would there be a major difference if I snagged 2x1TB drives of going green over blue or should I just get whatever is cheaper?

3)Don't plan on OCing my CPU so any need for CPU Cooler? Never had one in previous builds and things seemed fine.

If you are building may/june thats Haswell territory, wait for some news and post again around that time.

2) Go blues, the greens are terribly slow

3) No OC? Don't get a 3570K, you are paying a premium for the K to enable OCing

Any of y'all use three monitor setups? How does that work for productivity? You can make the primary monitor the center screen in windows right?

Yes. Amazing. Depends on whether you are using windows multi monitor support or Surround/Eyefinitity. The latter make all three screens seem like one screen to the operating system.

 

[Smokey]

Any of y'all use three monitor setups? How does that work for productivity? You can make the primary monitor the center screen in windows right?

Yes.

Or you can change it to whatever you feel like. Lots of space to work with. Really comes in handy when I'm streaming to my channel.

 

[haikira]

Just ordered my second 670. Just one last question (I hope).

Found this in the box for my current 670 and as I've ordered an identical 670 again, i assume i'll have two. My question is. I notice there's two connectors on the cards that they can fit. Do i need to use both bridges and if not, which slots on the cards do i use?

 

[Smokey]

Just ordered my second 670. Just one last question (I hope).



Found this in the box for my current 670 and as I've ordered an identical 670 again, i assume i'll have two. My question is. I notice there's two connectors on the cards that they can fit. Do i need to use both bridges and if not, which slots on the cards do i use?

You use one bridge. You'd use both if you wanted to Quad-SLI.

 

[haikira]

You use one bridge. You'd use both if you wanted to Quad-SLI.

Does it matter if i use the left or right connections though?

 

[scogoth]

Does it matter if i use the left or right connections though?

Nope

 

[haikira]

Cheers scogoth and Smokey for the help.

Can't wait until tomorrow.

 

[kennah]

Parts arrived this morning. All that's left is Case and Motherboard and then doing the wonderful wonderful work of putting it all together. Thanks mkenyon!

 

[scogoth]

Parts arrived this morning. All that's left is Case and Motherboard and then doing the wonderful wonderful work of putting it all together. Thanks mkenyon!

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo water

Spoiler

dinoc that block!

 

[musicjunkie]

3) No OC? Don't get a 3570K, you are paying a premium for the K to enable OCing

Which i5 would you recommend then? just 3570 or go down to 2500?

Also thanks for the quick info/reply.

 

[kennah]

Which i5 would you recommend then? just 3570 or go down to 2500?

Also thanks for the quick info/reply.

Or you could get a $30 cooler and an extra 1GHz for minimal work and risk.

Yes, that is +30% faster.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo water

Spoiler

dinoc that block!

I have no idea what you're talking about. Probably gonna be a while before I go water anyway

 

[mkenyon]

Any of y'all use three monitor setups? How does that work for productivity? You can make the primary monitor the center screen in windows right?

Here's my work workstation. I prefer the side monitors in portrait as it keeps the whole thing a bit more compact. Works nicely.

I use two monitors at home though, and as far as gaming/multimedia goes, I can't imagine using more than that.

Do you have to go under water to OC the 3820 to 5.0GHz? Or will something like the Noctua NH-D14 suffice?

It will entirely depend on the proc in question, but the D14 should get it pretty far.

oooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo water

Spoiler

dinoc that block!

Nah, that's the acrylic/nickel block. Gotta see dat mayhem's pastel through the Prodigy window

Does anyone knows is it is worth upgrading my current ram (DDR3 1333) to the maximum supported by my MB (DDR 2400)?

I have a core i5 3570k, HD7970,SSD, the mobo is a MSI ZH77A-G41.

Short answer: No.

Long answer: Any memory above 1333 is an Overclock. Anything above 1600 cannot be set in an XMP. When you buy "2400MHz RAM", you are buying RAM that was binned to probably be able to do 2400MHz, but is no guarantee that it will run at that speed. It's a combination of your motherboard's power delivery quality, how well the RAM was binned, and your processor's internal memory controller silicon lottery.

If you were able to get it there, it would offer minimal gains in performance, and nothing even remotely 'worth it' in terms of how much money you spend on it.

 

[DagsJT]

I hate this thread. Seeing people getting excited about new kit gives me an upgrade itch.

 

[kennah]

Nah, that's the acrylic/nickel block. Gotta see dat mayhem's pastel through the Prodigy window

According to Bitfenix there are currently no plans for an Orange window I think having the one black side on an all orange case would look kinda silly too

And that's assuming this block will even work in that case

 

[mkenyon]

I hate this thread. Seeing people getting excited about new kit gives me an upgrade itch.

Embrace it!

According to Bitfenix there are currently no plans for an Orange window I think having the one black side on an all orange case would look kinda silly too

And that's assuming this block will even work in that case

It will, you will just need to use a few low profile angle adapters.

You could get two black doors. Go all Halloween on it. Maybe with some Mayhem's Pastel Orange?

 

[scogoth]

Embrace it!

It will, you will just need to use a few low profile angle adapters.

You could get two black doors. Go all Halloween on it. Maybe with some Mayhem's Pastel Orange?

ugly orange....

 

[JoseDFrog]

Just got my Define XL R2 and I must say this thing is huge and heavy... makes my old p182 look so puny by comparison

 

[mkenyon]

ugly orange....

Just had a genius idea. Make it the GAF box. Neogaf case badge on the front, go orange and grey.

Could even add it to the NeoGAF store!

Just got my Define XL R2 and I must say this thing is huge and heavy... makes my old p182 look so puny by comparison

Mega jelly. That case is epic in every sense of the word. Post pics when done!

 

[scogoth]

Just had a genius idea. Make it the GAF box. Neogaf case badge on the front, go orange and grey.

Could even add it to the NeoGAF store!

Mega jelly. That case is epic in every sense of the word. Post pics when done!

With the dark grey yes. With black I think it would look ugly

 

[killertofu]

Parts have arrived. Lets do this.

 

[JoseDFrog]

Parts have arrived. Lets do this.

I recognize that video card!

 

[kennah]

Just had a genius idea. Make it the GAF box. Neogaf case badge on the front, go orange and grey.

Could even add it to the NeoGAF store!

With the dark grey yes. With black I think it would look ugly

I guess I could get a white one and dirty it up a bit.

Hmm....


Damn all of you and your ideas.

 

[scogoth]

I guess I could get a white one and dirty it up a bit.

Hmm....


Damn all of you and your ideas.

I learned the hard way that its best to no listen to mkenyon. He'll poison you with cool ideas and next thing you know you have dumped all your money into a computer =P

Spoiler

I should have gotten two pumps and a sleeving kit.....

 

[kennah]

I learned the hard way that its best to no listen to mkenyon. He'll poison you with cool ideas and next thing you know you have dumped all your money into a computer =P

That train has sailed, lol. These parts are just going to stare at me calling for the next month or so until my income tax return comes in.

Install meeeee..... overclock meeee.... watercoool meeeeee.....

 

[Labombadog]

Getting an itch to upgrade my graphic card. I currently have a 6950 ATI 2gb card. Should I upgrade now or wait for Titan to come out?

I don't necesarily need a new GPU....Just getting that itch.

 

[scogoth]

Getting an itch to upgrade my graphic card. I currently have a 6950 ATI 2gb card. Should I upgrade now or wait for Titan to come out?

I don't necesarily need a new GPU....Just getting that itch.

4 Titan Hydrocoppers is the way to go I think. I mean what else can play Crysis at 10800 x 3840 downsampled to 5400x1920?

If you think of it that way it makes great economic sense. So kennah you know what you now must do.

 

[Labombadog]

4 Titan Hydrocoppers is the way to go I think. I mean what else can play Crysis at 10800 x 3840 downsampled to 5400x1920?

If you think of it that way it makes great economic sense!

Good call.

Pre-Ordering now.

 

[v0mitg0d]

Hola mr mkenyon!

So I'm putting the breaks on that (awesome) gaming build you recommended due to funding, so more on that in the next couple of months.

I do have two scenarios I'm faced with where I could use your advice (both involve family members):

1) Laptop, budget $900-$1000: This user requires technical support & solid warranty, will be used for some minor gaming but mostly browsing internet and photoshop.

2) Desktop, budget $700: Good news is we already purchased a GTX560SE so we need a machine that will support that card and push through games. Already own KB+M and monitor. Needs good tech support, warranty and build quality. I'd rather not go with Dell but if that's what you like then that's totally cool.


Thanks in advanced!

Actually anyone can weigh in if they like, not just mkenyon.

 

[Smokey]

Getting an itch to upgrade my graphic card. I currently have a 6950 ATI 2gb card. Should I upgrade now or wait for Titan to come out?

I don't necesarily need a new GPU....Just getting that itch.

Titan is aimed at people who game at 2560x1600, or use a triple monitor setup. I guess if you have a 120hz monitor as well it could help you out. IMO for the price of the card it doesn't make that much sense to me to just get one considering how the 7970 ghz and 680 cards perform for literally hundreds of dollars less. SLI Titans is where they really shine IMO. It also cost $2,000 but hey

 

[Bucket-o-roadkill]

I posted yesterday asking for some advice about my Windows 8 installation which is totally screwed, after getting home from work earlier now I'm back and begging for help!

I'm trying to update my SSD firmware by booting to USB. I'm using the weird W8 interface to be able to do this. However my machine will NOT shut down or reboot on its own. The screen goes off and it just shits there, I can hear the machines fans going and it's basically.. Getting VERY HOT. I've just had to take out the SSD and put in another HDD just to stop the thing freezing on start up. Please could someone share some advice on this? What the hell is going on.

 

[mkenyon]

Actually anyone can weigh in if they like, not just mkenyon.

Sorry I missed this!

Go for option 2, except build it yourself!

All the parts you get have a warranty and service. Plus GAF tech support > Dell/HP/whoever

I posted yesterday asking for some advice about my Windows 8 installation which is totally screwed, after getting home from work earlier now I'm back and begging for help!

I'm trying to update my SSD firmware by booting to USB. I'm using the weird W8 interface to be able to do this. However my machine will NOT shut down or reboot on its own. The screen goes off and it just shits there, I can hear the machines fans going and it's basically.. Getting VERY HOT. I've just had to take out the SSD and put in another HDD just to stop the thing freezing on start up. Please could someone share some advice on this? What the hell is going on.

Can you get into BIOS? What is your CPU temp there?