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[Roland1979]

Alright, i mounted the CM 412s. Placing the CPU was easy. I use rubber throwaway gloves and made sure to touch grounded metal often (yes even with rubber gloves, just to be sure), and when careful it's placed within a minute. But the back-plate / retainer combination of the Cooler Master Hyper 412s (and i would imagine the 212 as well) is quite the pain in the ass. The documentation is not very clear, but seeing it in a YouTube video made it visually a lot easier to understand. I used a pea sized dot of thermal paste but got a tiny bit on the motherboard, because of that awesome

Spoiler

#sarcasm

retainer i had to remove the heat sink a single time because a screw at one corners came loose. I used a microfiber cloth with a tiny bit of alcohol, but i can SEE some residue. I whent over it like 20 times, but there's still some left. It must be a extremely tiny bit, and only in the very fine grooves of the MB, but still. Is this going to be problematic? It's the Cooler Master thermal paste that came with it and from what i understand it's conductive. Other then that i must say it's firmly mounted so I'm pleased. It's already late here so i call it a day, browse some GAF and get back to it tomorrow.

 

[Garrus Vakarian]

I just picked up an SSD (Samsung 840 EVO 250 GB) and I am thinking of having it as my main disk with miscellaneous stuff on the old HDD. Will this create a conflict with anything?

The idea of having two seperate windows installs on two disks connected at once has me worried, windows being windows.

Technically I can run with just the SSD since my current usage is only 125 GB, but I don't want my 7200RPM drive to go to waste.

Should I be fine?

 

[ZootedGranny]

During Black Friday, I bought a 1080p monitor, new case (Fractal Arc Midi R2) and PSU (Rosewill Hive 750), and now I've got the itch to upgrade after transferring over my old setup.

How old? An 8400 C2D with a 9600 GT that I built back in 08.

I've decided to build around an overclocked i5-4670K, and I'd be upgrading it for gaming, but the catch is that I'm not building it to play anything incredibly demanding. I generally play the big titles on consoles only because that's where my friends are, and save PC gaming for exclusive titles and any older title I can catch on a Steam sale, like New Vegas or Skyrim.

In the immediate future, I'd like to keep a gpu purchase around $200-250.

Obviously my 9600 will be a huge bottleneck, but what's the best option currently:

-stay with my 9600 and wait until Maxwell launches for the benefit of price drops/new tech?
-upgrade to something like a 650 Ti and make another upgrade down the road in 12-18 months?
-go with a GTX 760 and ride it out for a while.

 

[Roland1979]

Technically I can run with just the SSD since my current usage is only 125 GB, but I don't want my 7200RPM drive to go to waste.

How large is your HDD?

 

[Hazaro]

My point is if it is worth it. As i looked stock without K goes max +400Mhz. Which would put it at 3.8Ghz

K goes to even 4.6 on good mobo.

Now if i consider i have cheaper mobo i will get something more like 4.2 - 4.3 which would be difference of only 400-500Mhz which is small.


oh i saw 3470 benchmarks..

No reason to buy 3570k or without k. 3470 can be OC up to 3.8 on stock cooling cost way less and with changed cooling it can go to even 4.1-4.2.

aaaaand done. Bought for 170$ including tax.

I wonder if my 775 mugen scythe will fit somehow to 1150.. but i doubt it.

Non K multi is almost never at max and is usually one core. Not the same. Get the K.

Anyone have experience with the 10% off promo by using Masterpass on Newegg (or anywhere)? I'm thinking about buying the CPU cooler, SSD, and HDD off Newegg and be done with it lol. Prices are below.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor (Purchased For $217.74)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z87X-UD3H ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (Purchased For $149.99)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory (Purchased For $109.99)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($169.95 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($65.95 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card ($249.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case (Purchased For $74.99)
Power Supply: Rosewill Hive 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (Purchased For $64.99)
Total: $1188.57
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-12-10 21:14 EST-0500)

With the 10% promo, the Noctua NH-D14 will be $76.49, Sammy 840 EVO will be $152.96, and the WD HDD will be $59.36. That totals $288.81 vs the original $320.89.

Looks good. Noctua cooler is super overkill, but very nice. If you don't plan on pushing your CPU to the edge you can get a cheaper rifle cooler.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i3-4130 3.4GHz Dual-Core Processor ($119.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus Z87I-DELUXE Mini ITX LGA1150 Motherboard ($185.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($52.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($79.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: PNY GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card ($236.98 @ B&H)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 120 Advanced (Black) Mini ITX Tower Case ($35.99 @ Microcenter)
Power Supply: Antec Basiq Plus 550W 80+ Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($64.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $856.87
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-12-10 21:34 EST-0500)

I put together the above tentative build for a living room console equivalent, using the CM 120 SFF build as a general guideline, but as it's my first PC build ever, I'm second guessing some of my choices:

1) Would upgrading to an i5 CPU be worth the extra $55?
2) Am I going overboard with the motherboard? The Z87I seems closest to the recommended but discontinued P8H77-I, but it's a lot more expensive than something like the MSI H81I. Does the ASUS have some quality of life features that make it worth the premium?
3) Will the plastic on the RAM make them too tight to fix next to each other on the MB? I've read elsewhere about bulk causing issues.
4) Would the GTX 670 add enough longevity to be worth an extra $45?
5) For someone who won't try to overclock, at least at first, is the stock heatsink good enough?

Sorry for all the questions, but I'm new to the PC building game. Any other comments on the build are welcomed.

i5 is worth it. The ASUS board can overclock and should be built much better and have more/better features (Which you probably won't use sans likely better onboard audio). IMO as well you should get the 4670K because overclocking can give you a 25%+ speed boost and Intel shows no signs of advancing clock speed at all so it'll last a good long while.

I can't check everything, but the Gigabyte could be a better choice for you: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128615

RAM will fit next to each other, the issue is with taller RAM blocking large heatsinks, sink you have an ITX build you can't install those coolers anyway.

By the time your 760 is outdated you can just upgrade. It's a good card for the price (and small as well).

Stock is okaaaaaaay (Intel keeps making them smaller). A small 92mm heatsink would be fantastic if it fits in your case.

Alright, i mounted the CM 412s. Placing the CPU was easy. I use rubber throwaway gloves and made sure to touch grounded metal often (yes even with rubber gloves, just to be sure), and when careful it's placed within a minute. But the back-plate / retainer combination of the Cooler Master Hyper 412s (and i would imagine the 212 as well) is quite the pain in the ass. The documentation is not very clear, but seeing it in a YouTube video made it visually a lot easier to understand. I used a pea sized dot of thermal paste but got a tiny bit on the motherboard, because of that awesome

Spoiler

#sarcasm

retainer i had to remove the heat sink a single time because a screw at one corners came loose. I used a microfiber cloth with a tiny bit of alcohol, but i can SEE some residue. I whent over it like 20 times, but there's still some left. It must be a extremely tiny bit, and only in the very fine grooves of the MB, but still. Is this going to be problematic? It's the Cooler Master thermal paste that came with it and from what i understand it's conductive. Other then that i must say it's firmly mounted so I'm pleased. It's already late here so i call it a day, browse some GAF and get back to it tomorrow.

Yeah they need better documentation for sure, and there are easier installs. Can't beat the price though!

I just picked up an SSD (Samsung 840 EVO 250 GB) and I am thinking of having it as my main disk with miscellaneous stuff on the old HDD. Will this create a conflict with anything?

The idea of having two seperate windows installs on two disks connected at once has me worried, windows being windows.

Technically I can run with just the SSD since my current usage is only 125 GB, but I don't want my 7200RPM drive to go to waste.

Should I be fine?

Fine, just set boot drive in BIOS.

During Black Friday, I bought a 1080p monitor, new case (Fractal Arc Midi R2) and PSU (Rosewill Hive 750), and now I've got the itch to upgrade after transferring over my old setup.

How old? An 8400 C2D with a 9600 GT that I built back in 08.

I've decided to build around an overclocked i5-4670K, and I'd be upgrading it for gaming, but the catch is that I'm not building it to play anything incredibly demanding. I generally play the big titles on consoles only because that's where my friends are, and save PC gaming for exclusive titles and any older title I can catch on a Steam sale, like New Vegas or Skyrim.

In the immediate future, I'd like to keep a gpu purchase around $200-250.

Obviously my 9600 will be a huge bottleneck, but what's the best option currently:

-stay with my 9600 and wait until Maxwell launches for the benefit of price drops/new tech?
-upgrade to something like a 650 Ti and make another upgrade down the road in 12-18 months?
-go with a GTX 760 and ride it out for a while.

I'd go with a used 670 or 660 or 760. If you want new just grab a 760 with a nice cooler.

 

[Garrus Vakarian]

During Black Friday, I bought a 1080p monitor, new case (Fractal Arc Midi R2) and PSU (Rosewill Hive 750), and now I've got the itch to upgrade after transferring over my old setup.

How old? An 8400 C2D with a 9600 GT that I built back in 08.

I've decided to build around an overclocked i5-4670K, and I'd be upgrading it for gaming, but the catch is that I'm not building it to play anything incredibly demanding. I generally play the big titles on consoles only because that's where my friends are, and save PC gaming for exclusive titles and any older title I can catch on a Steam sale, like New Vegas or Skyrim.

In the immediate future, I'd like to keep a gpu purchase around $200-250.

Obviously my 9600 will be a huge bottleneck, but what's the best option currently:

-stay with my 9600 and wait until Maxwell launches for the benefit of price drops/new tech?
-upgrade to something like a 650 Ti and make another upgrade down the road in 12-18 months?
-go with a GTX 760 and ride it out for a while.

I'd go with a 270X/7870/660ti and then upgrade at the end of next year when the card manufacturers make the jump to 20nm (i.e. Maxwell).

That is the $200 price range for cards at the moment, you'll get good performance in stuff like BF4, and will still hold up even next year. Hell, I get 50+ fps consistently in BF4 on a med/high mix with my stock 4670K and 6870, so I think for your uses that $200 card range would be perfect.

 

[Garrus Vakarian]

How large is your HDD?

500 GB

 

[Roland1979]

500 GB

Big enough to keep using that's for sure. If you need more room later you can buy a second cheap HDD, move the files over and reformat that 500 GB drive. But like Hazaro said, you can set the BIOS to boot from one drive over the other and in which order. I have no idea how obvious it's still is if there is booting problems with the first drive since it will still boot.

 

[rudieboy77]

After trying to figure out what board to get, I bought a Gigabyte GA-Z87X-UD4H last night for $150. It was on sale and only $18 more than the UD3H, so I figured it was worth it to get it. Then this morning the price went up to $190, so I guess I got it at the right time.

 

[Garrus Vakarian]

Big enough to keep using that's for sure. If you need more room later you can buy a second cheap HDD, move the files over and reformat that 500 GB drive. But like Hazaro said, you can set the BIOS to boot from one drive over the other and in which order. I have no idea how obvious it's still is if there is booting problems with the first drive since it will still boot.

Yeah that is true, I have a TB external as well but I don't know about the reliability of those things. Hopefully things will just work if I set the SSD to first boot priority, plug it in the first SATA 3 port, enable AHCI, etc.

Thanks, also to Hazaro.

 

[Roland1979]

I used a pea sized dot of thermal paste but got a tiny bit on the motherboard. I used a microfiber cloth with a tiny bit of alcohol, but i can SEE some residue. Is this going to be problematic?

If anyone knows...

Never mind. The CM paste (orange cap) is only conducting heat, not electricity. It's also only a very tiny amount and nothing got into the CPU or any plugs, just the flat surface of the MoBo.

 

[Hazaro]

If anyone knows...

Clean it off with more alcohol and cloth.

 

[Roland1979]

Clean it off with more alcohol and cloth.

There's no longer anything coming off. It's barely visible. I will do it however, just to be sure.

 

[TheFLYINGManga_Ka]

Guys, I have a question. I was able to test out my gtx 780 sc with my cousins computer (he wanted to check it out as well.) He has a i7 4770k (not overclocked)

Anyway, playing Tomb Raider and testing the benchmark at ultimate on 1080p, how come we could only get 59 avg fps with TressFX on and only 62 avg fps with off? I read reviews saying they averaged over 100fps on 1080p without TressFX.

What setting did we do wrong? Is it their processor which they were using a 4.6 overclocked on like 4 cores and just better parts? Does all that factor in?

Why couldn't we get it to 100fps?

Is it because these reviewers are over clocking? Does the sc acx overclocked automatically or is that something I have to so?

 

[Hazaro]

Guys, I have a question. I was able to test out my gtx 780 sc with my cousins computer (he wanted to check it out as well.) He has a i7 4770k (not overclocked)

Anyway, playing Tomb Raider and testing the benchmark at ultimate on 1080p, how come we could only get 59 avg fps with TressFX on and only 62 avg fps with off? I read reviews saying they averaged over 100fps on 1080p without TressFX.

What setting did we do wrong? Is it their processor which they were using a 4.6 overclocked on like 4 cores and just better parts? Does all that factor in?

Why couldn't we get it to 100fps?

Is it because these reviewers are over clocking? Does the sc acx overclocked automatically or is that something I have to so?

Sounds like the .ini for the engine cap is enabled at FPS=62

 

[TheFLYINGManga_Ka]

Shoot nvm. It turns out vsync was the culprit!

It really destroys the performance. Without it we got up to 120fps! Even with TressFX we got up to 90.

Is vsync on a hdtv as a monitor a bad mix?

 

[jediyoshi]

Hah, the 270x I bought is back in stock and they bumped the price up $10
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202063

Shoot nvm. It turns out vsync was the culprit!

It really destroys the performance. Without it we got up to 120fps! Even with TressFX we got up to 90.

Is vsync on a hdtv as a monitor a bad mix?

It's not so much destroying performance as it is doing specifically what it's meant to do, syncing the refresh rates of your monitor (likely 60) and the game.

 

[tr4656]

Hah, the 270x I bought is back in stock and they bumped the price up $10
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202063



It's not so much destroying performance as it is doing specifically what it's meant to do, syncing the refresh rates of your monitor (likely 60) and the game.

$10 isn't too bad.

 

[jediyoshi]

$10 isn't too bad.

Looking at it now, I think my bummer is that they have a 4GB version for $30 more I think I would've sprang for if it were available at the time.

 

[CRS]

Couldn't finish the transfer since things came up but here's a few pictures of the rig so far.

Out with the old, in with the new.

My original M4 with a new buddy.

The rig so far.

 

[Perkel]

Non K multi is almost never at max and is usually one core. Not the same. Get the K.

Got 3470 already. Who know maybe i will get K later but i saw ton of benchmarks and difference is not worth additional 20% price. Imo better would for rest of that money to get second HD6870 which is cheap now and i will have performance of top PC.

Only thing i will need to change for second HD6870 will be PSU since my PSU doesn't have 2 GPU connectors.

 

[Hironobu Sakaguchi]

this is for a friend of mine

he wants to know the best models out there for these geforces cards , leave the price aside, i want to know the best ones for each one of these

gtx 770 --- considering http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CZ58WQ2/?tag=neogaf0e-20
gtx 780 ---- considering http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ER8HDME/?tag=neogaf0e-20
gtx 780ti --- considering http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00GMTGJIU/?tag=neogaf0e-20

are they good or are there better ones?

a sooner reply would be appreciated cause he's ready to buy

 

[Addnan]

EVGA Classified.

 

[Hironobu Sakaguchi]

EVGA GeForce GTX770 SuperClocked with EVGA ACX

EVGA GeForce GTX770 Classified with EVGA ACX


EVGA GeForce GTX780 SuperClocked w/EVGA ACX

EVGA GeForce GTX 780 Classified w/ ACX


EVGA GeForce GTX 780 Ti Superclocked w/ACX

 

[ScOULaris]

So I recently put together a gaming rig, and I've run into a strange problem. Since I don't have speakers yet, I've been using my Sony PS3 Bluetooth headset for audio/mic. I've noticed that whenever I use it for a few minutes, however, it seems to cause the USB wi-fi adapter that is connected to another port on the same hub to lose its connection. It took me a while to figure out that it was the headset causing this, but I am pretty certain since I can easily reproduce it. I first noticed this happening when trying to talk to friends over Steam/Mumble with the headset mic.

Uninstalling the headset from the device manager, switching USB ports, and then reinstalling it seemed to help a bit. I can now talk to people without it crashing. But now I just booted up the tutorial for Dota 2, using my headphones for audio, and when I came out of the game I saw that I had lost my connection again.

Anybody ever heard of something like this? The USB ports that I am using are part of my AMD motherboard. I also have two USB ports on the front of my case, but they are 3.0 and don't seem to work with my Wi-Fi receiver.

Edit: I'm using Windows 8.1 Pro x64.

 

[tmarg]

Anybody ever heard of something like this?

On the build I just finished, the wifi card was causing all the audio coming out of the rear audio port to come out garbled. It seems wifi can cause a lot of interference. Try moving stuff around. As far as I know, USB 3.0 is fully backwards compatible, so I don't know why that would cause problems with your card.

 

[Roland1979]

Looking at it now, I think my bummer is that they have a 4GB version for $30 more I think I would've sprang for if it were available at the time.

Look at the speeds of that card. Very likely to be lower clocked. Otherwise $30 would be a steal. But if you're not going to address all that memory it still not going to do you much. But yeah, at the same speeds for $30 you could not afford to pass up on it. Seriously doubt they are the same tough.

here's a few pictures of the rig so far.

I'm not a expert and assuming the CPU fan is pulling air. Is it not better to mount it on the other side and have it blowing air? So part of that air will cool the MoBo.

 

[chaosblade]

I'm not a expert and assuming the CPU fan is pulling air. Is it not better to mount it on the other side and have it blowing air? So part of that air will cool the MoBo.

Can't tell from the picture but it could be a RAM height issue forcing him to put it on that side.

I would think push configs work better than pull though, especially since you have the rear exhaust pulling too in most cases.

 

[CRS]

Yeah, the RAM was making the fan placement on that side a little difficult so I had to put it on the other side.

Won't be an issue for too long though.

 

[kennah]

Yeah, the RAM was making the fan placement on that side a little difficult so I had to put it on the other side.

Won't be an issue for too long though.

Going water?

 

[CRS]

Going water?

Yep. Parts should by arriving the end of the week and early next week too.

 

[kennah]

Yep. Parts should by arriving the end of the week and early next week too.

Exciting I've been trying to do that myself for a few months. Two rads and a pump away from done.

 

[scogoth]

Exciting I've been trying to do that myself for a few months. Two rads and a pump away from done.

Want a cheap D5?

 

[TheFLYINGManga_Ka]

Another prebuilt pc question:

If I'm not over clocking, would the fans and cooling from prebuilt pc, the installed gpu, and psu be pretty sufficient?

Would the extra psu power and gpu cause more overheating and be dangerous to the CPU?

This is playing at max settings without over clocking.

 

[kennah]

Want a cheap D5?

That pump is bigger than my case. I need a DDC to match the top and res I already have. Just stuff keeps coming up that I can spend that $300 on instead. I'll get to it at income tax refund time at the latest.

Spoiler

I saw your earlier post and really considered attempting

 

[Nakazato]

just got 4 gigs of ddr 3 1333 for 22 dollars... Good deal ?

 

[kennah]

just got 4 gigs of ddr 3 1333 for 22 dollars... Good deal ?

Not really. Single stick or paired ram?

 

[Nakazato]

Not really. Single stick or paired ram?

single

 

[kennah]

single

Yeah, not a great deal. But about the best you'll find in the current state of things.

 

[LeGourmand]

Only two part missing,

GPU, via UPS with a tracking that never updated and CPU that should arrive by the end of the week! Be great if i could get everything for the weekend.

Btw anynews on gsync? I still need to buy new monitors

 

[scogoth]

That pump is bigger than my case. I need a DDC to match the top and res I already have. Just stuff keeps coming up that I can spend that $300 on instead. I'll get to it at income tax refund time at the latest.

Spoiler

I saw your earlier post and really considered attempting

Well hurry up and get the DDC 3.25 and let me know if it's too loud because I'm thinking of going dual DDC =P

 

[Future PhaZe]

For gaming purposes is it worth upgrading from an i53570k to an i7-4770 ?

 

[kharma45]

For gaming purposes is it worth upgrading from an i53570k to an i7-4770 ?

At present no, not at all. Performance difference between the two architectures is minimal outside of emulation, you'll need a new mobo and few if any games can make use of the extra threads. Just overclock your 3570K if you haven't already.

 

[kennah]

Well hurry up and get the DDC 3.25 and let me know if it's too loud because I'm thinking of going dual DDC =P

I'll get right on that.

 

[ezekial45]

Hey all, is this a good wifi Network Card to go with? I don't want to spend money a USB wifi card that's gonna go out on me.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833166076

 

[kharma45]

If you can I'd recommend Power line adapters/home plugs over Wifi.

 

[ezekial45]

If you can I'd recommend Power line adapters/home plugs over Wifi.

I've never heard of those, what are they?

 

[FreddieQuell]

I've never heard of those, what are they?

You get them in pairs (or more maybe, not sure) and each unit plugs into a power outlet in your home. You plug your ethernet from your router/modem into one of them and plug your pc's ethernet into the other one. The internet signal is sent over your house's power lines.

I haven't used them personally, but they are supposed to be a lot better than a wifi signal having to go through multiple walls.

 

[thespot84]

Thought my water cooler would come with thermal paste. Guess not. Any recommendations? Going to head over to micro center in an hour or so.

 

[tr4656]

Thought my water cooler would come with thermal paste. Guess not. Any recommendations? Going to head over to micro center in an hour or so.

Shin Etsu or PK-1/PK-2.