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"I need a New PC!" 2013 Part 2. Haswell = #IntelnoTIM, but free online. READ THE OP.

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So I'm really considering snagging a QNIX QX2710 1440p monitor. However, this means I'll likely need to upgrade my GPU to handle things at 1440p.

I'm not particularly interested in absolute top performance in all recent games, but if I could get something that could play most things in 1440p at a steady 30FPS at least, with settings at medium to high, that would be ideal.

My budget would be around $200 for a card...after looking around, it seems this GTX 660 might be the best option:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125443

Do you guys think that could handle most current games with medium to high settings, 30FPS, at 1440p along with my current i5 2500K and 8 GB DDR3 1333 RAM? I've been using a 1GB GTX 460 for ages now, and it handles pretty much everything I want at 1080p with my current build.
 
Ok back from holiday, I've spent hours looking at components, initially was going to switch to an atx build but have decided to go ahead with mini itx. How does this build look to you guys?
VJGp6Iq.png

The graphics card, is it intake? I am thinking in such a small case it should be intake. Or does the Node case have holes for the graphics card fans to blow out of the case?
 

Deitus

Member
I didn't get a response to my previous post(http://m.neogaf.com/showpost.php?p=80635477), probably because it was at the end of a page. I don't mean to be impatient, but it feels bad not having access to a PC, and I don't want to drag this out.

Basically, I don't have a functional PC or laptop at the moment, and my ultimate goal is to have a PC that will last well into the next generation of consoles. Obviously, it would be necessary to upgrade my GPU at some point,and maybe RAM, but I'd like at least the CPU/motherboard to last a while.

Would it make more sense to just build the new PC now and deal with the lack of a laptop later, or get a decent laptop now so I can take my time to build a PC, do all the research, and maybe wait to see if prices drop after the new consoles release? I am very inexperienced at all of this, and it's even more overwhelming trying to do everything on my phone. I don't travel often, so I don't often need a laptop, but when I do travel it is a bit inconvenient not having a working one. I can go a few months without playing high end PC games if I go the laptop route, but it's only worth doing that if there's a real cost savings for doing so.

Again, sorry for being so desperate. I'm just out of my depth and don't have anyone to go to for advice.
 
I didn't get a response to my previous post(http://m.neogaf.com/showpost.php?p=80635477), probably because it was at the end of a page. I don't mean to be impatient, but it feels bad not having access to a PC, and I don't want to drag this out.

Basically, I don't have a functional PC or laptop at the moment, and my ultimate goal is to have a PC that will last well into the next generation of consoles. Obviously, it would be necessary to upgrade my GPU at some point,and maybe RAM, but I'd like at least the CPU/motherboard to last a while.

Would it make more sense to just build the new PC now and deal with the lack of a laptop later, or get a decent laptop now so I can take my time to build a PC, do all the research, and maybe wait to see if prices drop after the new consoles release? I am very inexperienced at all of this, and it's even more overwhelming trying to do everything on my phone. I don't travel often, so I don't often need a laptop, but when I do travel it is a bit inconvenient not having a working one. I can go a few months without playing high end PC games if I go the laptop route, but it's only worth doing that if there's a real cost savings for doing so.

Again, sorry for being so desperate. I'm just out of my depth and don't have anyone to go to for advice.

PC's are a moving target so it's never a bad time to build.

The CPU's from a couple of years ago (sandy bridge) still kick ass so not much gain there. Get a current gen GPU and you're set.
 

cheapLEY

Neo Member
I've never built a PC before, but with most of the launch titles for the new consoles looking not-that-good, I've decided it's time to jump in while I evaluate the consoles.

I've done some research, but I'm still really new to this. Looking to build a good gaming PC, and also use it for some Photoshop/Illustrator art projects that I do.

I've always been a Mac guy, and I'll be keeping my iMac as well, so the main thing for this build is gaming.

Here's what I have so far, let me know what you think.

Like I said, I've never built a PC before, and most of this stuff is really new to me, so any help is greatly appreciated.
 

Deitus

Member
PC's are a moving target so it's never a bad time to build.

The CPU's from a couple of years ago (sandy bridge) still kick ass so not much gain there. Get a current gen GPU and you're set.

Thanks.

What intimidates me about building a PC are the logistics. I can fake my way through picking a CPU and GPU if needed, though I'd probably want help picking the best ones in my price range. And most of the major parts connect in fairly obvious ways. But figuring out how much power I need, what size case is needed, and heat management, I don't even know where to start. And I definitely don't want to risk frying anything. Is there a guide somewhere on this I can read?
 

kennah

Member
Thanks.

What intimidates me about building a PC are the logistics. I can fake my way through picking a CPU and GPU if needed, though I'd probably want help picking the best ones in my price range. And most of the major parts connect in fairly obvious ways. But figuring out how much power I need, what size case is needed, and heat management, I don't even know where to start. And I definitely don't want to risk frying anything. Is there a guide somewhere on this I can read?
The OP...
 
Thanks.

What intimidates me about building a PC are the logistics. I can fake my way through picking a CPU and GPU if needed, though I'd probably want help picking the best ones in my price range. And most of the major parts connect in fairly obvious ways. But figuring out how much power I need, what size case is needed, and heat management, I don't even know where to start. And I definitely don't want to risk frying anything. Is there a guide somewhere on this I can read?

PC's these days are amazingly easy to put together. Just make sure you have another device with a web browser so you can follow the instruction in the OP if needed.

A 650w PSU is more than enough for even a high end rig. Plenty of cases are in the OP. All of them will come with enough fans and such.

You're honestly building it up to be more than what it is. We're here to help man!
 

RSTEIN

Comics, serious business!
So recently there was a huge rainstorm in Toronto. Many of my coworkers had flooding in their basements. My PC is in the basement so if I ever got just a bit of water it would be totally fried. Of course I'd lose all my basement carpet and probably baseboards but it has always bugged me that my PC is sitting right on the floor. Plus since it's on carpet there isn't much air getting sucked up through the fan I put on the bottom. I didn't want to rest it on a piece of wood or something.

So I went to Home Depot and got these:

lqN0c6T.png


Then flipped them upside down:

IUaqruA.png


The R4 legs fit very right in them!

NWQvH3A.png


Not sure if I'm totally in love with the look but it makes me sleep better at night! $20 for avoiding $1,500 in damage! (And the bonus of better airflow.)
 

Deitus

Member
The OP...

Yes, the OP is very thorough, but for my level of knowledge, it wasn't answering the questions I had. I just have no idea what power of fans I need, and which size heatsinks, and which fit on whatever motherboard I choose.

PC's these days are amazingly easy to put together. Just make sure you have another device with a web browser so you can follow the instruction in the OP if needed.

A 650w PSU is more than enough for even a high end rig. Plenty of cases are in the OP. All of them will come with enough fans and such.

You're honestly building it up to be more than what it is. We're here to help man!

Ah, I didn't know the cases came with fans. And 650w might be enough for a high end rig, but wouldn't it be overkill for a midrange build? And it's there a downside to too powerful a PSU other than cost and form factor?

As for cases is it better to skew larger to avoid risking not enough room, and for better heat dissipation. I see the cases in the OP, but I don't know what factors go into picking one over the other.
 

kharma45

Member
Yes, the OP is very thorough, but for my level of knowledge, it wasn't answering the questions I had. I just have no idea what power of fans I need, and which size heatsinks, and which fit on whatever motherboard I choose.

Ah, I didn't know the cases came with fans. And 650w might be enough for a high end rig, but wouldn't it be overkill for a midrange build? And it's there a downside to too powerful a PSU other than cost and form factor?

As for cases is it better to skew larger to avoid risking not enough room, and for better heat dissipation. I see the cases in the OP, but I don't know what factors go into picking one over the other.

Fill out the questions in the OP and we can help out properly.
 
So recently there was a huge rainstorm in Toronto. Many of my coworkers had flooding in their basements. My PC is in the basement so if I ever got just a bit of water it would be totally fried. Of course I'd lose all my basement carpet and probably baseboards but it has always bugged me that my PC is sitting right on the floor. Plus since it's on carpet there isn't much air getting sucked up through the fan I put on the bottom. I didn't want to rest it on a piece of wood or something.

So I went to Home Depot and got these:

http://i.imgur.com/lqN0c6T.png

Then flipped them upside down:

http://i.imgur.com/IUaqruA.png

The R4 legs fit very right in them!

http://i.imgur.com/NWQvH3A.png

Not sure if I'm totally in love with the look but it makes me sleep better at night! $20 for avoiding $1,500 in damage! (And the bonus of better airflow.)
I would get a cheap table or something to put it on. If your basement gets flooded I still think your PC is a gone.

Plus it may be good to invest in a sub-pump with battery backup or something along those lines if your basement is finished.
 

Skel1ingt0n

I can't *believe* these lazy developers keep making file sizes so damn large. Btw, how does technology work?
I would get a cheap table or something to put it on. If your basement gets flooded I still think your PC is a gone.

Plus it may be good to invest in a sub-pump with battery backup or something along those lines if your basement is finished.

Yeah - I second the table idea. I have a little black side table that perfectly fits my tower. It keeps it a foot and a half off the ground, better airflow, looks nicer, easier to reach... etc...
 

RSTEIN

Comics, serious business!
I would get a cheap table or something to put it on. If your basement gets flooded I still think your PC is a gone.

Plus it may be good to invest in a sub-pump with battery backup or something along those lines if your basement is finished.

Yeah, if there's a huge flood then it would be toast. I wanted to get it off the floor if it got damp. The carpet is sitting on tile + padding. So there's an inch. Now I have a good inch of clearance off the carpet. So there'd have to be more than 2 inches of water in the whole basement (it's quite big) for there to be an issue. Something would have to go seriously wrong for that to occur.
 
Is there a down side to having a small form factor build? I mean it seems like the part prices are comparable and they can handle the new graphics cards, so why wouldn't you want a smaller machine?
 

kennah

Member
Hotter and usually can't fit a full size graphics card inside.
Lies.

The only problem with SFF is no extra slots for multi gpu or to add a sound card.

Smaller issues are : limited to 16 gig of ram, less sata ports/space to put internal hard drives, potential loss of optical drive, more specific parts needed for cooling/nor everything fits on everything.

If you have the time to research and can be a bit picky/patient with your parts sff is totally the way to go. Feel free to post questions in the thread or pm for advice/builds.

I'm a total sff convert. Love my Compact Splash
 
Yeah, if there's a huge flood then it would be toast. I wanted to get it off the floor if it got damp. The carpet is sitting on tile + padding. So there's an inch. Now I have a good inch of clearance off the carpet. So there'd have to be more than 2 inches of water in the whole basement (it's quite big) for there to be an issue. Something would have to go seriously wrong for that to occur.
When I was a teenager our basement flooded and it was at least over 6 inches. The plastic floater that raises and lowers the arm to turn on the sub pump had a crack in it, it filled with water and never floated to the surface.

I would suggest maybe looking into this since you have what appears to be a desk or counter it is sitting under: Link
 

kharma45

Member
I've always though the 350D was a lovely looking mATX case but it's expensive. There is either the Fractal Design Core 1000 at the low end or it, very little in between.
 

Deitus

Member
Fill out the questions in the OP and we can help out properly.

Fair enough. I was trying to get a general knowledge base before I got into specifics, but might as well jump right into it.

Your Current Specs: CPU / RAM / Motherboard / GPU (Graphics) / PSU (Power Supply) / Case / HDD (Hard Drive)

CPU: Intel core i7 920 (8 MB L3 cache, 2.66 Ghz
RAM: 6 GB Tri-channel DDR3 (6 1 GB sticks)
GPU: ATI Radeon HD 4850 512 MB
HDD: Western Digital 1.0 TB SATA 64 MB cache

The rest is irrelevant I think, since I won't be reusing it.


Budget: Price Range + Country

It's hard to pin down an exact range, since I don't have a good baseline for cost vs performance. Let's start with $1000 and I'll readjust as necessary. I'm in the US.

Main Use: Rate 1-5. 5 being Highest: Light Gaming, Gaming, Emulation (PS2/Wii), Video Editing, Streaming games in HD, 3D/Model work (and what program), General Usage (Word, Web, 1080p playback).

Gaming and general usage would be 5s. I might do some emulation (PS2 and earlier), but it's not a priority, so 3. No idea what is meant by light gaming, and I won't be doing any of the rest.

Monitor Resolution: What resolution will you be playing your games at? Are you going to upgrade later? Are you buying a new monitor?

My monitor is 1080p, and I have no plans to upgrade.

List SPECIFIC games or applications that you MUST be able to run well: Is 30FPS acceptable? 60? 120? How important is PhysX / SuperSampling / CUDA to you?

This is hard because I'm mainly interested in future proofing at the moment. But I assume a PC that will last will be able to run current games well. So Bioshock Infinite was the last AAA PC game I played, and I had to turn the settings down and still had bad framerate. I'd like to be able to run it at 1080p, 60 fps, at high settings. For future games, I'm not as concerned about framerate and physx or fancy effects. As long as I can continue to run games at 1080p and a solid 30 fps and some AA for a while without having to run at absolute minimum settings.

Looking to reuse any parts?: List make and model (e.g. Corsair 520HX, 640GB SATA HDD, Antec 900)

I will reuse my HDD (Western Digital WD10EARS) and my optical drive (don't know make/model, but it's a 16x CD/DVD burner)

When will you build?: Do you have a deadline?

No set deadline, but I'd like to move quickly so I can have a PC again.

Will you be overclocking?: Yes, No, Maybe (This means yes!)

Definitely won't be messing with that for now. I'll stick to the basics while I'm still learning.
 

kharma45

Member
Fair enough. I was trying to get a general knowledge base before I got into specifics, but might as well jump right into it.

Your Current Specs: CPU / RAM / Motherboard / GPU (Graphics) / PSU (Power Supply) / Case / HDD (Hard Drive)

CPU: Intel core i7 920 (8 MB L3 cache, 2.66 Ghz
RAM: 6 GB Tri-channel DDR3 (6 1 GB sticks)
GPU: ATI Radeon HD 4850 512 MB
HDD: Western Digital 1.0 TB SATA 64 MB cache

The rest is irrelevant I think, since I won't be reusing it.


Budget: Price Range + Country

It's hard to pin down an exact range, since I don't have a good baseline for cost vs performance. Let's start with $1000 and I'll readjust as necessary. I'm in the US.

Main Use: Rate 1-5. 5 being Highest: Light Gaming, Gaming, Emulation (PS2/Wii), Video Editing, Streaming games in HD, 3D/Model work (and what program), General Usage (Word, Web, 1080p playback).

Gaming and general usage would be 5s. I might do some emulation (PS2 and earlier), but it's not a priority, so 3. No idea what is meant by light gaming, and I won't be doing any of the rest.

Monitor Resolution: What resolution will you be playing your games at? Are you going to upgrade later? Are you buying a new monitor?

My monitor is 1080p, and I have no plans to upgrade.

List SPECIFIC games or applications that you MUST be able to run well: Is 30FPS acceptable? 60? 120? How important is PhysX / SuperSampling / CUDA to you?

This is hard because I'm mainly interested in future proofing at the moment. But I assume a PC that will last will be able to run current games well. So Bioshock Infinite was the last AAA PC game I played, and I had to turn the settings down and still had bad framerate. I'd like to be able to run it at 1080p, 60 fps, at high settings. For future games, I'm not as concerned about framerate and physx or fancy effects. As long as I can continue to run games at 1080p and a solid 30 fps and some AA for a while without having to run at absolute minimum settings.

Looking to reuse any parts?: List make and model (e.g. Corsair 520HX, 640GB SATA HDD, Antec 900)

I will reuse my HDD (Western Digital WD10EARS) and my optical drive (don't know make/model, but it's a 16x CD/DVD burner)

When will you build?: Do you have a deadline?

No set deadline, but I'd like to move quickly so I can have a PC again.

Will you be overclocking?: Yes, No, Maybe (This means yes!)

Definitely won't be messing with that for now. I'll stick to the basics while I'm still learning.

You say your PSU is fine in that other post but have you tried it on its own using the paperclip test, or swapped another unit in to your PC to see what it does?
 

kennah

Member
Dude. Your CPU is fine. Get a 760 and an SSD and you are good to go.

If you haven't already - get a good cooler and overclock a little.
 

Deitus

Member
You say your PSU is fine in that other post but have you tried it on its own using the paperclip test, or swapped another unit in to your PC to see what it does?

I did the paperclip test, and tested the voltage output. I don't have a spare.

Dude. Your CPU is fine. Get a 760 and an SSD and you are good to go.

If you haven't already - get a good cooler and overclock a little.

The problem is either my cpu or mobo is not powering on. If it worked I'd keep it.
 

RSTEIN

Comics, serious business!
When I was a teenager our basement flooded and it was at least over 6 inches. The plastic floater that raises and lowers the arm to turn on the sub pump had a crack in it, it filled with water and never floated to the surface.

I would suggest maybe looking into this since you have what appears to be a desk or counter it is sitting under: Link

Thanks, that's a good option.
 

kharma45

Member
I did the paperclip test, and tested the voltage output. I don't have a spare.

The problem is either my cpu or mono is not powering on. If it worked I'd keep it.

I'm out of ideas then. Hopefully someone else might have a brainwave but it's possible your mobo has died. CPUs rarely fail. Here's a rough idea of what you could go for

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.98 @ Outlet PC)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ Outlet PC)
Motherboard: MSI Z87-G45 Gaming ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($149.98 @ Outlet PC)
Memory: Patriot Intel Extreme Master, Limited Ed 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($57.34 @ Amazon)
Storage: Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($79.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($203.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case ($89.99 @ Microcenter)
Power Supply: Antec Basiq Plus 550W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $906.23
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-09-08 20:19 EDT-0400)

Haswell is great for emulation. I've included that cooler as overclocking is so easy to do you might as well, 20-30% improvement for the sake of changing two values in the BIOS.

Great quality case, solid modular PSU, good mobo and a great value GPU with free games. You could also re-use your RAM but you'd be limited then to 4GB as each would be a 1GB DIMM using all of the slots on the mobo. Deals come and go on PC components, it could all very well change up until you hit the buy button.
 
I gotta be honest, the 2 recommended cases for the "Extreme" line having only 2 USB 3.0 slots makes me wonder about the rest of the items on that list.

There has to be some decent 4 USB 3.0 cases out there now.

If I'm wrong break out the tar and feather.
 

kennah

Member
I gotta be honest, the 2 recommended cases for the "Extreme" line having only 2 USB 3.0 slots makes me wonder about the rest of the items on that list.
Case is always a personal preference. The ones recommended are a mix of solid features/are generally easy to work in.

Front ports are a convenience. There will still be 4+ in the back/you could put an add in front bay. Really needing more than 4 simultanious ports on the front is pretty niche.

Also - motherboards with more than one usb3 header are pretty rare.
 

Deitus

Member
I'm out of ideas then. Hopefully someone else might have a brainwave but it's possible your mobo has died. CPUs rarely fail. Here's a rough idea of what you could go for

Haswell is great for emulation. I've included that cooler as overclocking is so easy to do you might as well, 20-30% improvement for the sake of changing two values in the BIOS.

Great quality case, solid modular PSU, good mobo and a great value GPU with free games. You could also re-use your RAM but you'd be limited then to 4GB as each would be a 1GB DIMM using all of the slots on the mobo. Deals come and go on PC components, it could all very well change up until you hit the buy button.

Thanks a lot. I'll look more in-depth into those parts later tonight. I figured I wouldn't be able to reuse my RAM for that exact reason. It seems not a lot of mobos have 6 RAM slots, and I don't want to downgrade.

I was sort if hoping that someone would have a magic fix, but I followed a number of guides on troubleshooting an issue like this, and got to the part in all of them where they said "if you get this far your motherboard is probably dead", so I wasn't hopeful. I'll settle for having the info needed to rebuild, which looks like I'm off to a good start on.
 

kennah

Member
Thanks a lot. I'll look more in-depth into those parts later tonight. I figured I wouldn't be able to reuse my RAM for that exact reason. It seems not a lot of mobos have 6 RAM slots, and I don't want to downgrade.

I was sort if hoping that someone would have a magic fix, but I followed a number of guides on troubleshooting an issue like this, and got to the part in all of them where they said "if you get this far your motherboard is probably dead", so I wasn't hopeful. I'll settle for having the info needed to rebuild, which looks like I'm off to a good start on.
If it's any comfort, your cpu is still worth between 100-150. Ram is 5-10 per stick (keep 4 until you want to upgrade)
 

kennah

Member
Amazon has a nice bundle right now, wondering if this mobo is good enough.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EQC80SC/?tag=neogaf0e-20

Actually had the Pro model in my pcpart list, but this one is just the Plus
Differences seem to be

8vs 12 power phases (better overclocking)

Better sound on the pro (who cares for most use)

Two more pcie1x slots (who cares)

Wifi on the pro.

You'd probably be fine on the plus unless you are trying for super massive overclocks.

I have to ask - do you really need the i7?
 

Timan

Developer
Differences seem to be

8vs 12 power phases (better overclocking)

Better sound on the pro (who cares for most use)

Two more pcie1x slots (who cares)

Wifi on the pro.

You'd probably be fine on the plus unless you are trying for super massive overclocks.

I have to ask - do you really need the i7?

Well basically the same price if you picked the top of the line i5 with the same mobo and memory. So i7 is free?
 

vilmer_

Member
Anyone else with a Samsung SSD using the magician software notice mouse/cursor lag while it's booting up after a system restart? It's driving me crazy lol.
 

wutwutwut

Member
Finally gotten around to speccing a new PC. I already have a 1080p monitor and have no plans to go beyond that (my dual 30" monitors at work is more than enough 30", thanks).

Money isn't really an object, but can anyone spot any obvious bottlenecks?
CPU: i5-3570K - $220
Motherboard: ASUS P8Z77-V VX - $130
Case: Corsair Obsidian 550D - $130 (a bit overkill, but I really like the look)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Blu 16GB - $106
Graphics: EVGA GTX760 - $250
PSU: Antec BP550 Plus - $65
SSD: Samsung 840, 250 GB - $160
Extra storage: WD Blue 1 TB - $69

Total: $1130

edit: I should add that all figures are in USD and quotes are from Amazon. That 2-day Prime shipping, and it's cheapest or close to it anyway.

edit: doh, added two GTX by mistake. It's actually 1130, not 1380. :)
 

kennah

Member
Well basically the same price if you picked the top of the line i5 with the same mobo and memory. So i7 is free?
Right. The ram. It is shitty big heatsink stuff. So if you want to overclock you'd need to use an H60 or other closed loop
 
Newegg has listed:


MicroATX Desktop (23)
MicroATX Mid Tower (20)
MicroATX Mini Tower (41)
MicroATX Slim Case (9)
Mini-ITX Desktop (19)
Mini-ITX Tower (41)

What is the difference here and what should I be looking at for SFF?
 

kennah

Member
Newegg has listed:


MicroATX Desktop (23)
MicroATX Mid Tower (20)
MicroATX Mini Tower (41)
MicroATX Slim Case (9)
Mini-ITX Desktop (19)
Mini-ITX Tower (41)

What is the difference here and what should I be looking at for SFF?
You can't really go by that. A lot of those are bigger towers that list the smaller boards as compatible.

What do you want out of your sff? Look at the guide in the OP for the most common cases.
 
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