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[Manp]

WTF?

How do you make an ISO with a retail version of W8?

build an USB drive installation with any tool (the official one will work as well), find a file named "ei.cfg" and edit it by changing [Channel] from Retail to OEM if your serial is actually an OEM serial.

that should work

 

[Gaf_SentMe]

Give us a budget. Otherwise there is no limit to how good you can make a PC.

Someone posted a build for you in the last page. Not sure what else you are looking for. That case can house up to a 7.8" graphics, of which the 670 mini will be the best buy. Anything better than that goes to 11 inch plus.

You will need a SFX power supply.

No you won't need a seperate cooler, just use the one Intel give.

Yea I got the build sorry for not being clearer. I have no budget and have changed from just indie gaming to an actual workhorse given all the advances on the mini front. My curiosity piqued as I read elsewhere that the 680 was a possible fit in this chassis(may be wrong). Wondered how far I can push the little guy. This seems to be the chassis max push:

Asus itx ROG board or ASUS Z87I-Deluxe
Intel 4770K or Intel 4570
Kingston Beast memory
Best card that will fit 200mm ___
Stable power supply for the GPU ___
Corsair H80

I know it's overkill for someone who isn't looking to overclock, but I don't mind being future proof. Especially since more mini GPUs may release down the road. So does this look right to you guys or am I off somewhere? Thanks for all the help and apologies for double dipping. It's just that there is not much helpful guidance on this case outside a foreign guide.

 

[Thorgal]

Yea, rubber sandals + fur coat for sure.

just to be absolutely sure .wear this underneath.

Edit: repeating my question to new page.

Question . are wireless keyboards just bad ?

The thing works fine for the most time although sometimes it stops working while playing a game.
also regularly i experience something like " lag " where when i am typing something nothing happens on screen for a sec or 2 and then suddenly the text appears with random letters missing.

so is it my board alone or all of them like that ?

 

[lostsupper]

Yea I got the build sorry for not being clearer. I have no budget and have changed from just indie gaming to an actual workhorse given all the advances on the mini front. My curiosity piqued as I read elsewhere that the 680 was a possible fit in this chassis(may be wrong). Wondered how far I can push the little guy. This seems to be the chassis max push:

Asus itx ROG board or ASUS Z87I-Deluxe
Intel 4770K or Intel 4570
Kingston Beast memory
Best card that will fit 200mm ___
Stable power supply for the GPU ___
Corsair H80

I know it's overkill for someone who isn't looking to overclock, but I don't mind being future proof. Especially since more mini GPUs may release down the road. So does this look right to you guys or am I off somewhere? Thanks for all the help and apologies for double dipping. It's just that there is not much helpful guidance on this case outside a foreign guide.

A lot of this is wasted money if you're not going to overclock.

 

[Trouble]

Speaking of 4K

This 4K TV can do 1080p at 120Hz.

It's on.

I was planning on buying a pair of 27" 1440 monitors soon, but damn, that's a tempting and cheaper alternative.

 

[Zaph]

Edit: repeating my question to new page.

Years ago I had the Logitech MX Keyboard + Mouse. It would often do exactly what you're describing; lag for a few seconds, then all text appearing at once (sometimes with inaccuracies). And the mouse would go into sleep mode frequently, needing an annoying 1 second to wake back up (it was horrible reading forums/articles when you regularly don't use your mouse for a couple minutes).

I dumped it and just went wired. Maybe there are some good ones out there, but unless you have a unique setup where your keyboard needs to be far away from your computer, what's the point?

 

[Addnan]

I was planning on buying a pair of 27" 1440 monitors soon, but damn, that's a tempting and cheaper alternative.

Don't think this has HDMI 2 yet and no input that can do 4K at 60hz. Might want to hold off until they update it.

 

[Gaf_SentMe]

A lot of this is wasted money if you're not going to overclock.

Ok. Thanks. I'll stick to what was recommended earlier and lightly tap into some better parts.

 

[Trouble]

Don't think this has HDMI 2 yet and no input that can do 4K at 60hz. Might want to hold off until they update it.

Yeah reading some reviews and 4K @ 30hz probably wouldn't be great for a general purpose monitor. Oh well.

 

[maneil99]

Is that 4k tv good, seems to cheap to be true..

 

[Felix Lighter]

I was planning on buying a pair of 27" 1440 monitors soon, but damn, that's a tempting and cheaper alternative.

TV upscaling can potentially add a lot of input lag.

 

[The_Hitcher89]

I don't think you can use the official USB thing for an OEM install.

Going to have to use something like this. http://rufus.akeo.ie/

ISOs at the bottom.

edit: or make an ISO from your disk in you laptop. http://www.maximumpc.com/article/features/how_install_windows_8_flash_drive_31384?page=0,1

DVD doesn't work as I'm going from 32-bit to 64, and I'm not sure where to download the Windows 8 ISO from, the one in that list needs a subscritpion

Why don't MS just sell bootable USB drives with Windows on them?

 

[Azulsky]

I was planning on buying a pair of 27" 1440 monitors soon, but damn, that's a tempting and cheaper alternative.

I think at least 1 company announced another IGZO 31.5'' screen.


Hoping they drive the price down.

You are obviously limited to 60Hz when outputting 4k content. I presume 120Hz is for upscaled content..

Asus has also promised a 39'' using the same panel as the Seiki. It will accept Display Port 1.2

http://www.techpowerup.com/184910/asus-ultra-hd-monitor-lineup-led-by-a-39-incher.html

 

[The_Hitcher89]

Has the Windows 8 ISO been replaced by the 8.1 preview ISO on the official MS site?

 

[Celcius]

Let's say you want to buy a new monitor and you need the screen to be perfect - zero tolerance for dead/stuck/bright pixels. Any recommendation for shops with policies like this or that will let you pay extra for the guarantee?

 

[Azulsky]

Let's say you want to buy a new monitor and you need the screen to be perfect - zero tolerance for dead/stuck/bright pixels. Any recommendation for shops with policies like this or that will let you pay extra for the guarantee?

Dell has Pixel Perfect guarantee for the Ultrasharp series.

 

[kidko]

Has the Windows 8 ISO been replaced by the 8.1 preview ISO on the official MS site?

You have a DVD, right? I used IsoDisk to make one

 

[kharma45]

DVD doesn't work as I'm going from 32-bit to 64, and I'm not sure where to download the Windows 8 ISO from, the one in that list needs a subscritpion

Why don't MS just sell bootable USB drives with Windows on them?

Tried these ideas?

You have a DVD, right? I used IsoDisk to make one

build an USB drive installation with any tool (the official one will work as well), find a file named "ei.cfg" and edit it by changing [Channel] from Retail to OEM if your serial is actually an OEM serial.

that should work

 

[Hazaro]

Something wonky going on with my computer. Games keep crashing either to desktop or getting a windows crashed message. Stable in Prime with temps from 57-63* at 4.8ghz. I think maybe it's my video card. I'm not sure what it is.

Downclock to 4.5 and update your GPU drivers

Is now a good time to buy a gaming PC?

I have a rough idea of what I want (16GB RAM, 256GB SSD, GTX 770 and a Core i7) and I have a budget of £1500.

I am not too desperate to play any games right now (and my notebook is just about running for my work stuff but it is overheating and it's not the quickest). But I would like one in time to play some of the big budget games coming out this year like Watch Dogs.

Are the likes of Intel, nVidia and ASUS going to release anything new before the big AAA games come out in November (and the next gen consoles)? Can I get even more for my money if I wait a few months?

New AMD cards soonish, but that's about it tmk.

Is getting a defective DX Clip-on mic pretty commmon? I have to put the mic right in front of my mouth for it to pick up my voice. Should I try ordering more then one next time?

Wouldn't surprise me.
Make sure mic input volume in Windows is 100% and you are using the rear port. Might need mic boost on as well.

 

[Trouble]

I think at least 1 company announced another IGZO 31.5'' screen.


Hoping they drive the price down.

You are obviously limited to 60Hz when outputting 4k content. I presume 120Hz is for upscaled content..

Asus has also promised a 39'' using the same panel as the Seiki. It will accept Display Port 1.2

http://www.techpowerup.com/184910/asus-ultra-hd-monitor-lineup-led-by-a-39-incher.html

The PQ321 is going to sell for $3799 tho D:

 

[hellclerk]

Hey guys, wondering what the effective give and take is between memory clock and core clock. I'm looking at a couple of 7850s to hold me over until the 9k+ midrange series comes out, and was looking at these two cards. The Power Color has a higher core clock (1000MHz vs. 860MHz), but the Sapphire has the higher memory clock (4800MHz vs 1225MHz). They both cost the same, and have roughly similar ratings, so I was wondering which is better?

 

[Zeth]

Ok so I'm thinking onboard audio doesn't cut it even for a cheap headset/mic? I just picked up a cheap Logitech headset (G 230), and they're fine, but the mic output is super quiet and static-filled on the front and rear mic connections.

Will something like this boost the mic quality or is it a one-way thing for output?

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829132020

or the dgx
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829132052&Tpk=xonar dgx

 

[Smokey]

FYI:

If anybody has the Sennheiser PC 363D headphones along with Windows 8, or were interested in them, the updated W8 driver is here under downloads.

Now you might say that's obvious, but if you go to the Sennheiser 363D USA page there is no download area. The two pages look exactly a like with the same text and everything except for that download area..

Their website is so confusing. I gave up on using the 363D's awhile ago due to no updated W8 driver, but apparently it was at the first link all along. No idea why they don't have it on the USA website....Took random googling to even get to the site.

 

[Azulsky]

The PQ321 is going to sell for $3799 tho D:

PQ321 has been out for a few weeks at least. Amazon has it for 3500.

I want to say it was Panasonic who was demoing another 31'' monitor at IFA.

I think 2k would be my tipping point. I have a feels that this is still about 2 years off.

If the Asus 39'' is $1k I will look into it. I have been reading mixed feelings on the VA panel technology itself when it comes to response time.

 

[DomZ]

Built this awhile ago as an emergency PC that I needed. Looking for upgrades on the CPU/GPU and motherboard if I need to switch cpu brand

• Your Current Specs: Pentium g620/ 8GB DDR3 / Biostar H61MGC 1155 Socket / AMD 6670 / 450w Antec / NZXT 210 Source / 500GB HDD
• Budget: 200-350 for upgrades-USA
• Main use: Moderate Gaming and mainly general usage. No photo editing, ect.
• Monitor resolution: 1440x900 atm.
• List SPECIFIC games or applications that you MUST be able to run well: 30FPS-60 is acceptable. PhysX and things similar aren't important.
• Looking to reuse any parts?: Everything other than the CPU/GPU and possibly the motherboard(1155),

 

[kennah]

FYI:

If anybody has the Sennheiser PC 363D headphones along with Windows 8, or were interested in them, the updated W8 driver is here under downloads.

Now you might say that's obvious, but if you go to the Sennheiser 363D USA page there is no download area. The two pages look exactly a like with the same text and everything except for that download area..

Their website is so confusing. I gave up on using the 363D's awhile ago due to no updated W8 driver, but apparently it was at the first link all along. No idea why they don't have it on the USA website....Took random googling to even get to the site.

This kind of thing used to be (kinda still is) a problem with finding motherboard drivers. They wouldn't exist on the USA site, but would be on the International site. Or viceversa.

 

[Sqrt_minus_one]

Edit: repeating my question to new page.

Mine is fine I have not encountered any extreme lag like you say but have you tried switching the USB port the receiver is plugged into? I swear there is a slight delay on mine when plugged into the USB port on my monitor as opposed to the laptop itself.

 

[Addnan]

Built this awhile ago as an emergency PC that I needed. Looking for upgrades on the CPU/GPU and motherboard if I need to switch cpu brand

• Your Current Specs: Pentium g620/ 8GB / Biostar H61MGC 1155 Socket / AMD 6670 / 450w Antec / NZXT 210 Source / 500GB HDD
• Budget: 200-350 for upgrades-USA
• Main use: Moderate Gaming and mainly general usage. No photo editing, ect.
• Monitor resolution: 1440x900 atm.
• List SPECIFIC games or applications that you MUST be able to run well: 30FPS-60 is acceptable. PhysX and things similar aren't important.
• Looking to reuse any parts?: Everything other than the CPU/GPU and possibly the motherboard(1155),

Upgrade to an i5 Ivy Bridge 1155. 3570 would be the best you can get, or 3770 if you want to go i7. No point though if you are just gaming. You can get a 7850 for $130 after rebate.

 

[Thorgal]

Years ago I had the Logitech MX Keyboard + Mouse. It would often do exactly what you're describing; lag for a few seconds, then all text appearing at once (sometimes with inaccuracies). And the mouse would go into sleep mode frequently, needing an annoying 1 second to wake back up (it was horrible reading forums/articles when you regularly don't use your mouse for a couple minutes).

I dumped it and just went wired. Maybe there are some good ones out there, but unless you have a unique setup where your keyboard needs to be far away from your computer, what's the point?

yeah .luckily most action-y games have controller support so i don't have to deal with the keyboard. Still it sucks when you write some long post then realize a part of the letters are gone .

 

[Danj]

Is there an "I need a new monitor" thread to complement this one? Once PS4 hits I am gonna have 4 HDMI devices including my PC. I decided I don't really have room for a fancy schmancy 5.1 receiver setup, so I got myself a 5-way HDMI switch box from Maplin, but now I need a 24" full HD monitor with a headphone socket (and preferably also the least-terrible pair of built in speakers possible).

Any recommendations?

 

[Zaph]

Lots of good recommendations in the OP. If you're okay with dropping £280, maybe treat yourself to a VG248QE? 2w speakers, 144hz and ridiculously low latency.

 

[Sorta Maximus]

Ok so I have this 4 year old PC system that I inherited, I plan on using it for another year or two as my only system before upgrading to/waiting for Haswell Extreme. I'm trying to see of it could handle a modern GPU and thus some modern video gaming, or if I would be bottlenecked in a severe way.

ASUS M4A78-E AM2+/AM3 AMD 790GX HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131368

North Bridge
AMD 790GX
South Bridge
AMD SB750

And it has this CPU:

AMD Phenom II X3 720 2.8GHz Socket AM3 95W Triple-Core Black Processor HDZ720WFGIBOX

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103649

It seems to run windows 8.1 ok, a bit sluggish here and there compared to the best out today but I think that an SSD would help with that (it has a 640GB WD Black at the moment). DDR2 800 Ram is maxed with 4 slots filled with 6GBs (1GB x 2 and 2GB x 2). 650w Corsair PSU.

I just want to know if I get a modern GPU and play a Bioshock Infinite level of game or perhaps Batman Arkham Origins.

The PCI expansion slots:

Expansion Slots
PCI Express 2.0 x16
2 x PCI Express 2.0 x16
(Single x16 or Dual x8)
PCI Express x1
2
PCI Slots
2

I forget is PCI 3 backwards compatible or not?

 

[Danj]

Lots of good recommendations in the OP. If you're okay with dropping £280, maybe treat yourself to a VG248QE? 2w speakers, 144hz and ridiculously low latency.

Oh, doh, should have checked the OP. I... could afford £280, but that's more than I was hoping to spend on it... I don't really need a super duper monitor, my current one is an iiyama ProLite E2475HDS and I've been perfectly happy with it, so just something of similar capability to what I've got but with better speakers and a headphone socket would do.

EDIT: plus it doesn't look like it comes with 3D glasses? and the 3D glasses are like an extra hundred quid, so no that's definitely not on the cards. I have no need for 3D, so no point in spending the extra on a monitor that supports it if I'm not gonna use it.

 

[statham]

it looks like my wireless card is dieing, are those usb wireless adapters any good?

 

[Addnan]

it looks like my wireless card is dieing, are those usb wireless adapters any good?

No.

 

[Unknown One]

it looks like my wireless card is dieing, are those usb wireless adapters any good?

Get yourself a quality one. I have been using mines for 2 years now.

 

[statham]

Get yourself a quality one. I have been using mines for 2 years now.

No.

okay, will do.

any suggestions?

 

[Unknown One]

The one I bought is a wireless b from Belkin a while back. It's constantly used and still running great. Actually my wireless card in my laptop burnt out and I'm using the adapter currently.

 

[t-ramp]

Ok so I have this 4 year old PC system that I inherited, I plan on using it for another year or two as my only system before upgrading to/waiting for Haswell Extreme. I'm trying to see of it could handle a modern GPU and thus some modern video gaming, or if I would be bottlenecked in a severe way.

ASUS M4A78-E AM2+/AM3 AMD 790GX HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131368

North Bridge
AMD 790GX
South Bridge
AMD SB750

And it has this CPU:

AMD Phenom II X3 720 2.8GHz Socket AM3 95W Triple-Core Black Processor HDZ720WFGIBOX

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103649

It seems to run windows 8.1 ok, a bit sluggish here and there compared to the best out today but I think that an SSD would help with that (it has a 640GB WD Black at the moment). DDR2 800 Ram is maxed with 4 slots filled with 6GBs (1GB x 2 and 2GB x 2). 650w Corsair PSU.

I just want to know if I get a modern GPU and play a Bioshock Infinite level of game or perhaps Batman Arkham Origins.

The PCI expansion slots:

Expansion Slots
PCI Express 2.0 x16
2 x PCI Express 2.0 x16
(Single x16 or Dual x8)
PCI Express x1
2
PCI Slots
2

I forget is PCI 3 backwards compatible or not?

You'd be fine with a new card. Might have to drop a few settings in those games, but there shouldn't be any issues. The 720 might unlock to a quad-core, by the way.

 

[Addnan]

Don't the USB wireless generally have pretty bad range in comparison to the dedicated ones.

 

[Sorta Maximus]

You'd be fine with a new card. Might have to drop a few settings in those games, but there shouldn't be any issues. The 720 might unlock to a quad-core, by the way.

Yes I remember that 4th core thing too. Never tested it yet. Funny, I built this for a non gaming internet browsing only family member and I really pushed for better parts. Glad I did cus I sold my high end PC super system and got this one back.

And to answer my own question PCI 3 GPUs are backwards compatible with PCI 2 slots.

No upgraded mobo chipsets for Ivy Bridge Extreme is a disappointment for sure. And I don't want a TIM saddled Ivy Bridge or Haswell CPU. Sandy Bridge as is the X79 chipset (Sandy Bridge Extreme and Ivy Bridge Extreme). So I'm waiting for the presumably better Haswell Extreme chipset with Fluxless Soddered CPUs.

 

[The_Hitcher89]

Tried these ideas?

Will try them tomorrow, thanks guys

Building this thing is surprisingly physically tiring, the cooler was unexepctedly difficult for me

@kharma, that case is sturdy as fuck

 

[kharma45]

Will try them tomorrow, thanks guys

Building this thing is surprisingly physically tiring, the cooler was unexepctedly difficult for me

@kharma, that case is sturdy as fuck

Well you did want something good quality

 

[kidko]

After doing my cooler last night I realized that every time I do one of those, I get tense and sorta hold my breath, or take shallow breaths, until it's finally done and I take a huge breath of relief. It's kinda tense making sure you do each step quickly, to avoid dust and crap blowing into any of the connections, but also carefully, so you get the paste on there just right, and the tension on the screws perfect.

When you're done, though, feelsgoodman.gif

 

[The_Hitcher89]

After doing my cooler last night I realized that every time I do one of those, I get tense and sorta hold my breath, or take shallow breaths, until it's finally done and I take a huge breath of relief. It's kinda tense making sure you do each step quickly, to avoid dust and crap blowing into any of the connections, but also carefully, so you get the paste on there just right, and the tension on the screws perfect.

When you're done, though, feelsgoodman.gif

I was shitting myself throughout.

How do I put the bracket on?
How do I hold the motherboard ina way whih lets me keep the screws in, and trun it upside down to apply the backplate?
How much paste do I need?
Am I putting too much pressure on the CPU?
Why won't these screws line up?

Been pretty plain sailing since though

 

[Clawww]

After doing my cooler last night I realized that every time I do one of those, I get tense and sorta hold my breath, or take shallow breaths, until it's finally done and I take a huge breath of relief. It's kinda tense making sure you do each step quickly, to avoid dust and crap blowing into any of the connections, but also carefully, so you get the paste on there just right, and the tension on the screws perfect.

When you're done, though, feelsgoodman.gif

I'm pretty sure my cooler installation was sloppy as fuck, but so far so good... >_>

 

[kidko]

I was shitting myself throughout.

How do I put the bracket on?
How do I hold the motherboard ina way whih lets me keep the screws in, and trun it upside down to apply the backplate?
How much paste do I need?
Am I putting too much pressure on the CPU?
Why won't these screws line up?

Been pretty plain sailing since though

Yeah, and you're all trying to read this shitty instruction pamphlet that has 50 languages on it and is folded up into a tiny wad that unravels into this huge sheet with crappy line art and Engrish text.

I'm pretty sure my cooler installation was sloppy as fuck, but so far so good... >_>

If your temps look ok then you probably pulled it off just fine.

 

[PoweredBySoy]

I need a quick answer, GAF!

I'm building my wife an ITX computer because she's going to start working from home, and for this she would like dual monitors. Can I do a dual-monitor setup without using a graphics card?

Right now it's an i5 Haswell with a single DVI in the back of the ITX motherboard. Can I just got a DVI splitter and I'm good to go, or will I need some sort of graphics card?

Gracias.


Here's the motherboard if that helps:
http://www.microcenter.com/product/417349/GA-Z87N-WIFI_LGA_1150_mini_ITX_Intel_Motehrboard

2x HDMI. Would that do it?

 

[The_Hitcher89]

Yeah, and you're all trying to read this shitty instruction pamphlet that has 50 languages on it and is folded up into a tiny wad that unravels into this huge sheet with crappy line art and Engrish text.



If your temps look ok then you probably pulled it off just fine.

Took me ages to realise that 2/3 of the instructions pertained to a different tyope of mothrboard, and the fan assembly was only relevant if you wanted to attach another fan or if the default one broke

 

[Azulsky]

I need a quick answer, GAF!

I'm building my wife an ITX computer because she's going to start working from home, and for this she would like dual monitors. Can I do a dual-monitor setup without using a graphics card?

Right now it's an i5 Haswell with a single DVI in the back of the ITX motherboard. Can I just got a DVI splitter and I'm good to go, or will I need some sort of graphics card?

Gracias.


Here's the motherboard if that helps:
http://www.microcenter.com/product/417349/GA-Z87N-WIFI_LGA_1150_mini_ITX_Intel_Motehrboard

2x HDMI. Would that do it?

Yep!