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[koji kabuto]

Gaf Here is my questions!

1- What the hell is going on with AMD?? where is the HD 8000 series ? i want to get the HD 8970

2- Recommend me a good water cooling kit Please!

Also i have ended my 3770k vs 4770k debate and the winner is the 3770k for two reasons:

1- Better overclocking.
2- Temperature.

So here is my new build

CPU: I7 3770k
Motherboard: ASUS Maximus V EXTREME LGA 1155 Intel Z77

GPU : Not yet!!
RAM : Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 1600 MHz (I will get corsair dominator 2800 soon)

SSD: Samsung Electronics 840 Pro Series 2.5-Inch 256 GB .

 

[Sir Abacus]

2- Recommend me a good water cooling kit Please!

Corsair H80i.

 

[sgjackson]

I had this problem before a few years ago and in my case it came down to improper RAM timings. It was an Asus board though and with the MemOK button was an easy fix. I'm not sure if MSI has a similar function. Are those Crucial sticks? P67 board?

Turns out it was improperly seated RAM - reseated it and ran into another issue. Board didn't POST and the hex that flashes at the bottom right got stuck at B2. I switched out the video card for my old 560Ti and that apparently works - Googling showed a forum poster who fixed this by updating the BIOS. We'll see if that works.

As an aside, apparently if you install Windows 7 off a USB drive, you have to switch the USB ports when it says it can't find a CD/DVD device driver. That's...really weird.

 

[koji kabuto]

Corsair H80i.

Corsair closed loop water cooling is the best IMO (i have the H100) but this time i will need an open Loop because i'll have GPU OCed.

 

[Diablos]

Gaf Here is my questions!

1- What the hell is going on with AMD?? where is the HD 8000 series ? i want to get the HD 8970

2- Recommend me a good water cooling kit Please!

Also i have ended my 3770k vs 4770k debate and the winner is the 3770k for two reasons:

1- Better overclocking.
2- Temperature.

So here is my new build

CPU: I7 3770k
Motherboard: ASUS Maximus V EXTREME LGA 1155 Intel Z77



GPU : Not yet!!
RAM : Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 1600 MHz (I will get corsair dominator 2800 soon)

SSD: Samsung Electronics 840 Pro Series 2.5-Inch 256 GB .

That just might be the sexiest mobo I've ever seen.

 

[Mad Max]

Corsair closed loop water cooling is the best IMO (i have the H100) but this time i will need an open Loop because i'll have GPU OCed.

If you want a kit XSPC and EKWB sell some. However if you want a GPU full cover block I´d just pick out the parts seperately since you can buy better stuff and pick a nice full cover block to go with it.

What´s your budget?

 

[charlequin]

So Gaf, what's the best sub $150 wireless router? I'm getting 100 mbit (I hope I'm not confusing terms) and my old warrior WRT 54G is dying (even after DD-WRT micro).

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B006QB1RPY/?tag=neogaf0e-20

I bought this on stump's recommendation as - I quote - "the best wireless router," and I do not regret it.

As an aside, apparently if you install Windows 7 off a USB drive, you have to switch the USB ports when it says it can't find a CD/DVD device driver. That's...really weird.

This stumped me for about half an hour during my build. Luckily the guy who was helping me works in support, lol.

 

[koji kabuto]

If you want a kit XSPC and EKWB sell some. However if you want a GPU full cover block I´d just pick out the parts seperately since you can buy better stuff and pick a nice full cover block to go with it.

What´s your budget?

I was thinking about picking the parts separately like you said but i figured it was going to be alot of headache, My budget is around 250-300$ (GPU water blocks are not included in budget)

 

[kennah]

I was thinking about picking the parts separately like you said but i figured it was going to be alot of headache, My budget is around 250-300$ (GPU water blocks are not included in budget)

That won't be enough. Basic budget for a watercooling setup is as follows.

Pump 50-100
Reservoir - 30-60
Radiators - 100+ (you need at least 3x120mm rads)
Cpu block 50+
Gpu block 100+
Fittings $6-10 each and you'll need at least 10 plus angle adaptors
Tubing 10-20

Basically bank on about $600 to do a full custom loop properly. The cool thing is that most of the parts will carry forward through different builds.

 

[Adry9]

Hi gaf, I'm trying to build my first gaming PC for under 1000€, and this is what I came up with so far:

Budget: 1000€, Spain (I could ship from anywhere in Europe if the product is much cheaper).
Main Use: Gaming.
Monitor Resolution: Looking for 1080p and 60 fps.
Looking to reuse any parts?: Just a DVD burner and the keyboard.
When will you build?: This month.
Will you be overclocking?: Maybe.


CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4Ghz Box Socket 1155 (194.45€ @ Amazon)
CPU Cooling: COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO (26.53€ @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock PRO4 (101.87€ @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X DDR3 1600 PC3-12800 8GB 2x4GB CL9 (67.95€ @ PC Componentes)
SSD: Samsung 120GB 840 BASIC KIT (84.95€ @ Amazon)
HDD: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (59.95€ @ PC Componentes)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7950 With Boost 3GB GDDR5 (249€ @ PC Componentes)
Case: Cooler Master K280 Case (32.20€ @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair CX750M 750W 80 Plus Bronce Modular (94.43€ @ Amazon)
Total: 911.33€ + Shipping.

Also, I need a monitor under 200€, a gaming mouse, and a wireless network adapter. Thanks for the help!

 

[Addnan]

Hi gaf, I'm trying to build my first gaming PC for under 1000€, and this is what I came up with so far:

Budget: 1000€, Spain (I could ship from anywhere in Europe if the product is much cheaper).
Main Use: Gaming.
Monitor Resolution: Looking for 1080p and 60 fps.
Looking to reuse any parts?: Just a DVD burner and the keyboard.
When will you build?: This month.
Will you be overclocking?: Maybe.


CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4Ghz Box Socket 1155 (194.45€ @ Amazon)
CPU Cooling: COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO (26.53€ @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock PRO4 (101.87€ @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X DDR3 1600 PC3-12800 8GB 2x4GB CL9 (67.95€ @ PC Componentes)
SSD: Samsung 120GB 840 BASIC KIT (84.95€ @ Amazon)
HDD: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (59.95€ @ PC Componentes)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7950 With Boost 3GB GDDR5 (249€ @ PC Componentes)
Case: Cooler Master K280 Case (32.20€ @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair CX750M 750W 80 Plus Bronce Modular (94.43€ @ Amazon)
Total: 911.33€ + Shipping.

Also, I need a monitor under 200€, a gaming mouse, and a wireless network adapter. Thanks for the help!

Looks good, but Would change the power supply to something by Seasonic, XFX, Be-Quiet or at least a Corsair TX and not a CX.

http://www.amazon.es/dp/B003BIEOBY/ That's a good PSU. You can get lower wattage than the one I linked, but I can't seem to find it on Amazon.es

 

[Adry9]

Looks good, but Would change the power supply to something by Seasonic, XFX, Be-Quiet or at least a Corsair TX and not a CX.

http://www.amazon.es/dp/B003BIEOBY/ That's a good PSU. You can get lower wattage than the one I linked, but I can't seem to find it on Amazon.es

I'm looking for one that is modular and that has enough wattage to do crossfire in case I need to in the future. Would that one do the job?

 

[Shmowzow!]

Hi guys,

I've been looking at CPU's for a while now and can't decide between the AMD FX-8350 Black Edition and the i5 4670K.

The AMD specs seem way better than the Intel and it's cheaper. Probably because it doesn't have a GPU, which I don't need anyway. But everyone keeps telling me to get the Intel anyway. They don't seem to be able to formulate any solid arguments tho.

Anyone willing to make an argument here?

 

[kennah]

Hi guys,

I've been looking at CPU's for a while now and can't decide between the AMD FX-8350 Black Edition and the i5 4670K.

The AMD specs seem way better than the Intel and it's cheaper. Probably because it doesn't have a GPU, which I don't need anyway. But everyone keeps telling me to get the Intel anyway. They don't seem to be able to formulate any solid arguments tho.

Anyone willing to make an argument here?

The 8350 is way worse than the intel. Sure specs wise it sounds better, but its actual performance is way behind the intel. I'm sure someone will post benchmarks soon. The 8350 is only useful in multithreaded applications that can take advantage of all 8 cores at once. This MIGHT be applicable to games in the next couple years, but we don't know for sure how it will affect ports until they start to come out. Look up some benchmarks comparing the 8350 to the 3750K (the 4750k is about 5-10% faster). The other important thing is that the K series is designed for overclocking and will easily reach 4-4.2GHz and some will get to over 4.5.

 

[kharma45]

Hi guys,

I've been looking at CPU's for a while now and can't decide between the AMD FX-8350 Black Edition and the i5 4670K.

The AMD specs seem way better than the Intel and it's cheaper. Probably because it doesn't have a GPU, which I don't need anyway. But everyone keeps telling me to get the Intel anyway. They don't seem to be able to formulate any solid arguments tho.

Anyone willing to make an argument here?

Go for the 3570K and a good Z77 mobo. Should work out cheaper than the 4670K and will give stronger single threaded performance than the AMD CPU as well as using less power and will pumping out less heat that either of those two that you're looking at.

Hi gaf, I'm trying to build my first gaming PC for under 1000€, and this is what I came up with so far:

Budget: 1000€, Spain (I could ship from anywhere in Europe if the product is much cheaper).
Main Use: Gaming.
Monitor Resolution: Looking for 1080p and 60 fps.
Looking to reuse any parts?: Just a DVD burner and the keyboard.
When will you build?: This month.
Will you be overclocking?: Maybe.


CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4Ghz Box Socket 1155 (194.45€ @ Amazon)
CPU Cooling: COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO (26.53€ @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock PRO4 (101.87€ @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X DDR3 1600 PC3-12800 8GB 2x4GB CL9 (67.95€ @ PC Componentes)
SSD: Samsung 120GB 840 BASIC KIT (84.95€ @ Amazon)
HDD: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (59.95€ @ PC Componentes)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7950 With Boost 3GB GDDR5 (249€ @ PC Componentes)
Case: Cooler Master K280 Case (32.20€ @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair CX750M 750W 80 Plus Bronce Modular (94.43€ @ Amazon)
Total: 911.33€ + Shipping.

Also, I need a monitor under 200€, a gaming mouse, and a wireless network adapter. Thanks for the help!

I'm looking for one that is modular and that has enough wattage to do crossfire in case I need to in the future. Would that one do the job?

I would change a few things in your build. As has been said that PSU, if you really do want the option to Crossfire later you'll still want a better quality unit than that one. You'd be looking at a unit like this and whilst it's not modular it is a lot better quality http://www.amazon.es/dp/B0045L4BJ6/

I don't really recommend Crossfire (or even SLI really) if you can avoid it, imo you're always better off with one big single card.

You'd also want to change that mobo too, something like an MSI G45, GD55, Gigabyte Z77X-D3H are all better choices. Change your SSD to this http://www.amazon.es/dp/B00A1ZTZOG/

The 8350 is way worse than the intel. Sure specs wise it sounds better, but its actual performance is way behind the intel. I'm sure someone will post benchmarks soon. The 8350 is only useful in multithreaded applications that can take advantage of all 8 cores at once. This MIGHT be applicable to games in the next couple years, but we don't know for sure how it will affect ports until they start to come out. Look up some benchmarks comparing the 8350 to the 3750K (the 4750k is about 5-10% faster). The other important thing is that the K series is designed for overclocking and will easily reach 4-4.2GHz and some will get to over 4.5.

It's not as good but to say way worse is unkind, it's still a decent CPU.

 

[Addnan]

I'm looking for one that is modular and that has enough wattage to do crossfire in case I need to in the future. Would that one do the job?

Hmm, I don't think it will have enough PCI-E connectors, otherwise its a much better one than the CX.

This XFX has 2 6 pin and 2 6+2 pins, so it should be better. http://www.amazon.es/dp/B008O50WGA/

edit: But as above said by Kharma try to avoid multi cards/

 

[kharma45]

Hmm, I don't think it will have enough PCI-E connectors, otherwise its a much better one than the CX.

This XFX has 2 6 pin and 2 6+2 pins, so it should be better. http://www.amazon.es/dp/B008O50WGA/

edit: But as above said by Kharma try to avoid multi cards/

Good find with that XFX, better than the one I saw.

 

[dapperbandit]

I'd been humming and hawing over getting an Alienware X51

Then I saw this thread and realised I could probably save about £200 by getting a custom built.

I would have felt like a major pleb if I'd got the X51, so thanks for the info.

Two questions;

1) Has anybody ever had a really bad experience with a custom built PC they've ordered? I saw some sites talking about a 3 year warranty, which seems fairly generous.

2) Out of the sites that will build and ship a custom built pc for you, which has the best reputation? I'll be using a UK site btw.

 

[Adry9]

I would change a few things in your build. As has been said that PSU, if you really do want the option to Crossfire later you'll still want a better quality unit than that one. You'd be looking at a unit like this and whilst it's not modular it is a lot better quality http://www.amazon.es/dp/B0045L4BJ6/

I don't really recommend Crossfire (or even SLI really) if you can avoid it, imo you're always better off with one big single card.

You'd also want to change that mobo too, something like an MSI G45, GD55, Gigabyte Z77X-D3H are all better choices. Change your SSD to this http://www.amazon.es/dp/B00A1ZTZOG/

Hmm, I don't think it will have enough PCI-E connectors, otherwise its a much better one than the CX.

This XFX has 2 6 pin and 2 6+2 pins, so it should be better. http://www.amazon.es/dp/B008O50WGA/

edit: But as above said by Kharma try to avoid multi cards/

Ok, so I changed the mobo to this one Gigabyte GA-Z77X-D3H (118.70€ @ Amazon) and the SSD to the Kingston one.

About the PSU, if I don't do crossfire what wattage should I be aiming for? Because I probably won't need 750W anymore, right?

 

[kharma45]

I'd been humming and hawing over getting an Alienware X51

Then I saw this thread and realised I could probably save about £200 by getting a custom built.

I would have felt like a major pleb if I'd got the X51, so thanks for the info.

Two questions;

1) Has anybody ever had a really bad experience with a custom built PC they've ordered? I saw some sites talking about a 3 year warranty, which seems fairly generous.

2) Out of the sites that will build and ship a custom built pc for you, which has the best reputation? I'll be using a UK site btw.

What sort of budget are you looking to spend?

With regards to custom builds, had one done myself a few years back and it was grand. Good sites would be Dino PC, PC Specialist, Cougar Extreme, Chillblast, Quiet PC, Computer Planet.

Ok, so I changed the mobo to this one Gigabyte GA-Z77X-D3H (118.70€ @ Amazon) and the SSD to the Kingston one.

About the PSU, if I don't do crossfire what wattage should I be aiming for? Because I probably won't need 750W anymore, right?

Around 500w or so.

 

[sgjackson]

Worked out the kinks and got everything running. Spent the morning overclocking - I've got an i5 2500k and a MSI P67A-G45 with a Corsair H100i.

Intel Burn Test straight up BSODs at 4.6GHz w/1.4v, but is perfectly happy at 4.5GHz w/1.36v. It's not temps either - those were very solidly at 70c under load, and stick around 65c under load at 1.36v. Either way, the latter VCore seems pretty close to what people are saying is safe for medium to long term OCs, but if I can figure out how to push another couple hundred megahertz out of it while staying around that VCore, I'm going to do it up.

 

[diamount]

Hmm,

Switch 810 vs Storm Trooper, the Switch is a bit more expensive on overclockers.co.uk. I'll be going the closed lc route.

 

[dapperbandit]

What sort of budget are you looking to spend?

With regards to custom builds, had one done myself a few years back and it was grand. Good sites would be Dino PC, PC Specialist, Cougar Extreme, Chillblast, Quiet PC, Computer Planet.

Thanks for the info.

Under £650 would be best.

I don't need it for video editing or 3D modelling or anything like that, just gaming.

A few examples of things I'd like to play: The Witcher 2, XCOM Enemy Unknown, Skyrim, Civilization V...

I've asked this question before and have never got to the bottom of it: roughly how much money does building yourself save? Or to put it another way, what does having the thing built for you add to the bill of a custom pc?

 

[Horse Armour]

Does anyone know when the next generation of SSDs is coming out? Seems like we've been stuck with the same $/GB for the last year and a bit.

 

[kharma45]

Thanks for the info.

Under £650 would be best.

I don't need it for video editing or 3D modelling or anything like that, just gaming.

A few examples of things I'd like to play: The Witcher 2, XCOM Enemy Unknown, Skyrim, Civilization V...

I've asked this question before and have never got to the bottom of it: roughly how much money does building yourself save? Or to put it another way, what does having the thing built for you add to the bill of a custom pc?

It can vary a lot, when I bought a custom build it worked out at the same price but I'd say at least £50 generally, plus building yourself means you get individual warranties for each component and generally better quality components.

With regards to building yourself for just over £650 you could get this (no SSD sadly, that's another £70 or so)

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (£172.53 @ Amazon UK)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (£23.62 @ Scan.co.uk)
Motherboard: MSI Z77A-GD55 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (£93.62 @ Ebuyer)
Memory: Patriot Intel Extreme Master, Limited Ed 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory (£41.45 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£49.98 @ Scan.co.uk)
Case: BitFenix Shinobi ATX Mid Tower Case (£49.90 @ Amazon UK)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£49.99 @ Scan.co.uk)
GPU: KFA2 GeForce GTX 760 EX OC 2GB GDDR5 (£199.99)
Total: £681.08
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-04 13:47 BST+0100)

To get it closer to £650 you could remove the Hyper 212 but then you won't be doing much overclocking. Otherwise you'll have to cut back on the GPU to say a 7850

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (£172.53 @ Amazon UK)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (£23.62 @ Scan.co.uk)
Motherboard: MSI Z77A-GD55 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (£93.62 @ Ebuyer)
Memory: Patriot Intel Extreme Master, Limited Ed 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory (£41.45 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£49.98 @ Scan.co.uk)
Case: BitFenix Shinobi ATX Mid Tower Case (£49.90 @ Amazon UK)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£49.99 @ Scan.co.uk)
Other: Sapphire HD 7850 OC Edition 2GB Dual DVI HDMI DisplayPort PCI-E Graphics Card With FREE Never Settle Reloaded download coupon (£136.98)
Total: £618.07
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-04 13:51 BST+0100)

You could maybe justify an SSD in that too like this http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00A1ZTZOG/

For that first PC I priced it up with Dino PC and you're talking over £800 for example.

 

[dapperbandit]

It can vary a lot, when I bought a custom build it worked out at the same price but I'd say at least £50 generally, plus building yourself means you get individual warranties for each component and generally better quality components.

With regards to building yourself for just over £650 you could get this (no SSD sadly, that's another £70 or so)

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (£172.53 @ Amazon UK)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (£23.62 @ Scan.co.uk)
Motherboard: MSI Z77A-GD55 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (£93.62 @ Ebuyer)
Memory: Patriot Intel Extreme Master, Limited Ed 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory (£41.45 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£49.98 @ Scan.co.uk)
Case: BitFenix Shinobi ATX Mid Tower Case (£49.90 @ Amazon UK)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£49.99 @ Scan.co.uk)
GPU: KFA2 GeForce GTX 760 EX OC 2GB GDDR5 (£199.99)
Total: £681.08
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-04 13:47 BST+0100)

To get it closer to £650 you could remove the Hyper 212 but then you won't be doing much overclocking. Otherwise you'll have to cut back on the GPU to say a 7850

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (£172.53 @ Amazon UK)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (£23.62 @ Scan.co.uk)
Motherboard: MSI Z77A-GD55 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard (£93.62 @ Ebuyer)
Memory: Patriot Intel Extreme Master, Limited Ed 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory (£41.45 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£49.98 @ Scan.co.uk)
Case: BitFenix Shinobi ATX Mid Tower Case (£49.90 @ Amazon UK)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply (£49.99 @ Scan.co.uk)
Other: Sapphire HD 7850 OC Edition 2GB Dual DVI HDMI DisplayPort PCI-E Graphics Card With FREE Never Settle Reloaded download coupon (£136.98)
Total: £618.07
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-04 13:51 BST+0100)

You could maybe justify an SSD in that too like this http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00A1ZTZOG/

Thanks, I understand there could be a lot variation with things like delivery costs and so on complicating matters.

As for that build, it's kind of pushing it price wise, I think that's mostly down to the GPU, it kind of seems like overkill. I'll be getting a PS4 for things like Battlefield 4 and so on, so I don't need a graphics card for demanding FPS games really.

Ah I posted after you'd edited in that second build.

I don't really have any aspirations for overclocking.

 

[kharma45]

Thanks, I understand there could be a lot variation with things like delivery costs and so on complicating matters.

As for that build, it's kind of pushing it price wise, I think that's mostly down to the GPU, it kind of seems like overkill. I'll be getting a PS4 for things like Battlefield 4 and so on, so I don't need a graphics card for demanding FPS games really.

Ah I posted after you'd edited in that second build.

I don't really have any aspirations for overclocking.

Over clocking is easy to do and can bring great performance benefit in games, no reason frankly not to do it. Second build might suit you then, it's a nice enough build that should do you ok. You also get two free games with that GPU.

First build I thought was pushing it a bit, and you're right it is the GPU pushing that price up but it is frankly a beast for the price.

 

[koji kabuto]

That won't be enough. Basic budget for a watercooling setup is as follows.

Pump 50-100
Reservoir - 30-60
Radiators - 100+ (you need at least 3x120mm rads)
Cpu block 50+
Gpu block 100+
Fittings $6-10 each and you'll need at least 10 plus angle adaptors
Tubing 10-20

Basically bank on about $600 to do a full custom loop properly. The cool thing is that most of the parts will carry forward through different builds.

I'm Okay with $600, What good radiator and reservoir do suggest?

 

[kennah]

I'm Okay with $600, What good radiator and reservoir do suggest?

Oy.... There are so many variables. mkenyon is a better guy to ask when he wakes up. For starters - what case do you have and what country are you in? Case is a big factor for what will actually fit inside and country is a big factor for what you'll actually be able to buy.

And a lot of watercooling is personal preferences on aesthetics. Will post some recommendations and you can say if you like them or not

 

[Adry9]

Around 500w or so.

Aight thanks. Also, I've been looking at this tower Thermaltake Commander MS-I (40.83€ @ Amazon) it's only 8€ more expensive and it seems to have a better cooling system and a window. What do you think?

 

[kennah]

Aight thanks. Also, I've been looking at this tower Thermaltake Commander MS-I (40.83€ @ Amazon) it's only 8€ more expensive and it seems to have a better cooling system and a window. What do you think?

Cases are mostly personal preference, if you like the look of it go for it. Everything runs cooler than it used to so airflow is a little less important, as long as you have some you're usually ok. The Shinobi is designed to be quiet and that is a very important factor these days. Gone are the days of the windtunnel loud beast of a machine - and I couldn't be happier. Can't wait to have my full water loop done and have a basically noiseless machine.

 

[kharma45]

Aight thanks. Also, I've been looking at this tower Thermaltake Commander MS-I (40.83€ @ Amazon) it's only 8€ more expensive and it seems to have a better cooling system and a window. What do you think?

It looks pretty fucking hideous to be honest would prefer the Antec One http://www.amazon.es/dp/B006TVQU6C/

It's all personal preference though for looks. I love the Zalman Z11 for instance and my brother detests it.

 

[dapperbandit]

Over clocking is easy to do and can bring great performance benefit in games, no reason frankly not to do it. Second build might suit you then, it's a nice enough build that should do you ok. You also get two free games with that GPU.

First build I thought was pushing it a bit, and you're right it is the GPU pushing that price up but it is frankly a beast for the price.

I'm just a little conservative when it comes to things like over clocking since this whole thing is water I've never dipped my toes in.

As for that GPU, I had a look, it seems very good value for the power it has, it's just a shame my budget doesn't stretch that far. Understand my budget is the way it is because I'm moving into a new flat and I have a long list of things that I need including a desk.

The second build has an AMD card...I've never owned a computer that didn't use Nvidia, what sort of differences can i expect? I heard AMD don't release drivers for their cards.

Thanks by the way, you're answers are helping me a lot.

 

[Paracelsus]

Are there chances to get an IPS panel without glow without going EIZO? The U2412M does have it, and I don't like the color uniformity either, probably it's because of the gloss, or is it unbalanced backlight, I don't know.

 

[Adry9]

Cases are mostly personal preference, if you like the look of it go for it. Everything runs cooler than it used to so airflow is a little less important, as long as you have some you're usually ok. The Shinobi is designed to be quiet and that is a very important factor these days. Gone are the days of the windtunnel loud beast of a machine - and I couldn't be happier. Can't wait to have my full water loop done and have a basically noiseless machine.

Ok, it isn't as important as I though then.

It looks pretty fucking hideous to be honest would prefer the Antec One http://www.amazon.es/dp/B006TVQU6C/

It's all personal preference though for looks. I love the Zalman Z11 for instance and my brother detests it.

Hahahah, I think the Zalman Z11 looks great, a bit out of the budget I wanted for the case tho.

 

[TouchMyBox]

Yes, I know. I still think that's a bit overkill

All my opinion, of course!

All games look great at 1080p and so I don't see the need to strive for more, but if you have the money to do it, more power to you.

Whenever I play games at 1080p these days it looks quite dated, heck it's only a little higher res than the resolution I was gaming at 12 years ago (1600x1200)

 

[kharma45]

I'm just a little conservative when it comes to things like over clocking since this whole thing is water I've never dipped my toes in.

As for that GPU, I had a look, it seems very good value for the power it has, it's just a shame my budget doesn't stretch that far. Understand my budget is the way it is because I'm moving into a new flat and I have a long list of things that I need including a desk.

The second build has an AMD card...I've never owned a computer that didn't use Nvidia, what sort of differences can i expect? I heard AMD don't release drivers for their cards.

Thanks by the way, you're answers are helping me a lot.

Roger that. Well if you're moving flat we'll definitely stick to well within your budget and the second build is as I said still a very good one. Whoever told you AMD don't release drivers for their cards needs a slap they do release them, and quality wise there is little in it between them and Nvidia. You don't however get as many features as Nvidia as they've stuff like PhysX, however they personally matter little to me. If you were to go Nvidia you'd be looking at say a 660 which will be an extra tenner or so, and you get Metro: Last Light with it for free instead of BioShock Infinite and Tomb Raider http://www.dabs.com/products/msi-ge...4_1372944649_735a93125c1a20090e48d9f32791fcfb I would lean myself towards the AMD card but you'll not go wrong with either one.

As for overclocking the CPU (GPU can be done too, again it's very easy) you're literally changing two values for Ivy Bridge really at a basic level, the multiplier and the voltage. With the 3570K you should all being well be able to push it up to somewhere between 4.3-4.5 GHz.

 

[kennah]

I'm just a little conservative when it comes to things like over clocking since this whole thing is water I've never dipped my toes in.

As for that GPU, I had a look, it seems very good value for the power it has, it's just a shame my budget doesn't stretch that far. Understand my budget is the way it is because I'm moving into a new flat and I have a long list of things that I need including a desk.

The second build has an AMD card...I've never owned a computer that didn't use Nvidia, what sort of differences can i expect? I heard AMD don't release drivers for their cards.

Thanks by the way, you're answers are helping me a lot.

Nvidia - physx, better 3d, better multigpu
Amd - tressfx, cheaper, better for opencl (some video editing and all mining applications).

Bang for buck AMD was king until the 760 was released. 7850 is still a solid card though.

Driver problem is irrelevant. Amd and nvidia both have history of screwing the pooch on that. Amd recently released a set of drivers that improved all their gpu performance and they are working on fixing their multigpu issues.

Edit: yeah overclocking. The K series is designed for it. A cheap cooler gets you an extra ghz of linear performance. That means it is 25-30% faster.

 

[dapperbandit]

As for overclocking the CPU (GPU can be done too, again it's very easy) you're literally changing two values for Ivy Bridge really at a basic level, the multiplier and the voltage. With the 3570K you should all being well be able to push it up to somewhere between 4.3-4.5 GHz.

Well if it's that easy then as you say there's no reason not to. Especially if, as kennah says, overclocking can make the thing run 25-30% faster.

I'll certainly look into it when I get the thing together...speaking of which, I'm still a little uncertain about building it...I have a steady hand and I'm sure I'll get a bazillion manuals with all the components, it's just certain things sound like they could screw up, like applying thermal paste. Is that as tricky as it gets? Also, I've noticed the (cheaper) build doesn't include an OS.

 

[kharma45]

Well if it's that easy then as you say there's no reason not to. Especially if, as kennah says, overclocking can make the thing run 25-30% faster.

I'll certainly look into it when I get the thing together...speaking of which, I'm still a little uncertain about building it...I have a steady hand and I'm sure I'll get a bazillion manuals with all the components, it's just certain things sound like they could screw up, like applying thermal paste. Is that as tricky as it gets? Also, I've noticed the (cheaper) build doesn't include an OS.

We don't bother including OSs with the builds as a lot of people either own their own copy of Windows that they can transfer over or have access to cheap copies say through educational institutions.

The trickiest bit will be attaching the Hyper 212 cooler, it can be fiddly at times but if you manage it OK the rest is simple as anything. It's just a matter of making sure everything is connected and pressed in properly. Typical mistakes are things like forgetting to plug the 6-pin power cable into a GPU for example (if that is what it takes, some take more) or not having the RAM seated properly.

Edit - That RAM is picked has went on back order, instead there is this stuff http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00453P7K6/

 

[PaineReign]

Spending my 4th building my first PC!

One problem though: I got the whole thing built and it "works" (fans spin, and even get the "beep" from the computer) but my monitor gets no signal.

However, when I remove the video card (Gigabyte GTX 660) from the motherboard (Gigabyte Z87) the computer would boot fine and I was able to install windows and whatnot.

When I went back and reinstalled the video card, once again, the system would not boot. Any ideas where I can start troubleshooting? To reiterate, the fan on the graphics card do spin when I turn on the computer (so I know it is getting power) and I get the booting "beep", I just receive no signal. Any ideas?

 

[Diablos]

Hi guys,

I've been looking at CPU's for a while now and can't decide between the AMD FX-8350 Black Edition and the i5 4670K.

The AMD specs seem way better than the Intel and it's cheaper. Probably because it doesn't have a GPU, which I don't need anyway. But everyone keeps telling me to get the Intel anyway. They don't seem to be able to formulate any solid arguments tho.

Anyone willing to make an argument here?

I'd get the i5-4670 if you can afford it.

Otherwise, if you are going AMD just get the FX 6300 (which is what I have). The 8350 uses a fuckton of power and has problems staying at safe temps under load -- so realize you are going to need to invest in a better cooler, and if you want something good you are going to have to spend at least another $40-50. At that point you are nearing the i5 territory in pricing which kind of defeats the purpose of getting the AMD chip in the first place.

Everyone is loving their FX 6300 because it overclocks like a champ and even at stock can basically handle everything you throw at it if you have the right GPU, all for <$120. It's vintage AMD price/performance ratio goodness. The 8350, imo, doesn't really provide that given the fact that it has utter shit stock cooling.

I wish AMD would come out with a 95W version of the 8350.

 

[SenatorBot]

I'm trying to build a basic desktop for as cheap as possible because I don't really game much and even if I do, it's games that don't require much processing grunt as I mostly play GoG games and the occasional LoL/Dota2.

What do you guys think of this?

I'm wonder with the socket choices I could possibly upgrade in a few years when I get more cash. Trying to keep it as cheap as possible.

http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/p/1dcze

 

[Addnan]

I'm trying to build a basic desktop for as cheap as possible because I don't really game much and even if I do, it's games that don't require much processing grunt as I mostly play GoG games and the occasional LoL/Dota2.

What do you guys think of this?

I'm wonder with the socket choices I could possibly upgrade in a few years when I get more cash. Trying to keep it as cheap as possible.

http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/p/1dcze

It's pretty decent for an entry level PC

You will be able to upgrade the CPU to an i3 or and i5 when you have the funds to do so.

 

[koji kabuto]

Oy.... There are so many variables. mkenyon is a better guy to ask when he wakes up. For starters - what case do you have and what country are you in? Case is a big factor for what will actually fit inside and country is a big factor for what you'll actually be able to buy.

And a lot of watercooling is personal preferences on aesthetics. Will post some recommendations and you can say if you like them or not

I got the exact same case (phobya test bench)
And the exact motherboard (ASUS Maximus V EXTREME)
I Would really love to have the same water cooling loop like this one.

And i do live in saudi arabia but don't worry about that we have alot of 3rd party services in here that can buy anything from anywhere for small amount of fee (around $15)
The only thing that i can't buy is liquid or flammables.

 

[Jibbajabbawockky]

Got my EVGA GTX 760 yesterday and stuck it in.

WOW

I'm guessing its because the 760 is replacing my humble, 3 year old 5770 but I am pretty damn impressed with the 760. I was worried about some reviews saying the ACX cooling was noisy but compared to my 5770, this thing is damn near silent. I guess I had just gotten so accustomed to playing games at around 30 FPS that having everything running smooth at 60 FPS looks weird. Its also nice to finally see superfluous PhysX effects in the Arkham games or the nifty looking water in Just Cause 2.

Only negative is that I can definitely feel the heat generated by the 760 when playing a game. With my Storm Scout case it has the side window with the open grills and its placed down under my desk, so I can feel all the hot air pushing out of my case way more with the 760. I guess its good that the hot air seems to be getting out of my case, but it gets far warmer than my 5770 ever did.

 

[Diablos]

I got the exact same case (phobya test bench)
And the exact motherboard (ASUS Maximus V EXTREME)
I Would really love to have the same water cooling loop like this one.




And i do live in saudi arabia but don't worry about that we have alot of 3rd party services in here that can buy anything from anywhere for small amount of fee (around $15)
The only thing that i can't buy is liquid or flammables.

Oh man, that looks ridiculous.

 

[kennah]

I got the exact same case (phobya test bench)
And the exact motherboard (ASUS Maximus V EXTREME)
I Would really love to have the same water cooling loop like this one.




And i do live in saudi arabia but don't worry about that we have alot of 3rd party services in here that can buy anything from anywhere for small amount of fee (around $15)
The only thing that i can't buy is liquid or flammables.

They detail all the parts you need in the page you pulled that image from

Wasserkühlung (Water cooling)
EK Water Blocks EK-Supreme LT AMD Acetal Top - CPU Block
EK Water Blocks EK-FC7970 - GPU Block
EK Water Blocks EK-DCP 4.0 - Pump
EK Water Blocks EK-Multioption RES 250 - Tube reservoir
Alphacool NexXxoS Xtreme III 360 Radiator Rev.2 - The giant radiator at the bottom
Noiseblocker NB-BlackSilentPRO PL-PS 3x - the fans on the radiator
Alphacool Heatmaster II - fan and pump controller, kind of unnecessary
Aquacomputer Durchflusssensor "high flow" G1/4 - flow sensor, unnecessary
13/10 Anschlüsse - fittings
Masterkleer Schlauch PVC 12,7/9,5mm - tubing

 

[Thorgal]

Small question : When using two cards in SLI is their a general preference or recommendation to use either Fans or water for Cooling ?

 

[kennah]

Small question : When using two cards in SLI is their a general preference or recommendation to use either Fans or water for Cooling ?

Up to you. Lots of people do water because it is quieter and cooler. Two reference cards blast out a lot of heat and noise. There are adapters and fittings that directly link up multiple cards. it looks pretty cool to do that way.