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[Chocobro]

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.

That's what I figured; thought I would go the extra step to keep everything nice and cool.
Now I'm unsure about buying a GPU...None of my friends have a spare GPU I can use until I see how Maxwell impacts everything. I'm in a similar situation as ZootedGranny except I don't have a current PC to use (my brother has my PC with the 8800 GTS).
1) I can buy an EVGA GTX 760, potentially sell it to my brother for when he builds a PC in either late 2014 or early 2015, and buy a Maxwell GPU if they are reasonably priced.
2) Just buy the GTX 760 and ride it out until I need to upgrade the GPU.
3) Just wait until Maxwell with all the PC parts I bought sit around for months lol.
4) ???

I haven't read too much into Maxwell and all that stuff, but how big is it expected to be?

Random note: My friend said I bought my PC parts a year too early :T

 

[antonz]

Sigh my R9 290 is faulty. Started black screening like a mofo today doing nothing but even just viewing Gaf. So disappointed and somewhat annoyed because newegg has none in stock so how can I exchange and I sure as hell don't want a refund because 290s are $100 more now than when I bought it.

 

[scogoth]

That's what I figured; thought I would go the extra step to keep everything nice and cool.
Now I'm unsure about buying a GPU...None of my friends have a spare GPU I can use until I see how Maxwell impacts everything. I'm in a similar situation as ZootedGranny except I don't have a current PC to use (my brother has my PC with the 8800 GTS).
1) I can buy an EVGA GTX 760, potentially sell it to my brother for when he builds a PC in either late 2014 or early 2015, and buy a Maxwell GPU if they are reasonably priced.
2) Just buy the GTX 760 and ride it out until I need to upgrade the GPU.
3) Just wait until Maxwell with all the PC parts I bought sit around for months lol.
4) ???

I haven't read too much into Maxwell and all that stuff, but how big is it expected to be?

Random note: My friend said I bought my PC parts a year too early :T

Nvidia says maxell will be big, but of course they would say that. I would say 1 and/or 2 is a good bet if you are ok with not running high on super punishing games. Option 4 is buy the best GPU you can afford and sell it when maxwell comes out.

 

[LiquidMetal14]

Here's the source. Sorry if I messed up the link, I'm using a tablet.

Thanks. Will keep an eye out in February.

 

[BiggNife]

Alright PC-GAF, so I'm planning to build my first PC and I'm aiming for something in between the Standard and Great builds listed in the OP.

This is what I'm looking at right now:

Processor: Intel Core i5-4570 3.2GHz LGA 1150 Quad-Core Desktop Processor

Motherboard: MSI H81M-P33 LGA 1150 Intel H81 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard

Graphics Card: ASUS GeForce GTX 760 GTX760-DC2OC-2GD5 Video Card

RAM: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory

HDD: Seagate ST310005N1A1AS-RK 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive

Power Supply: Antec Basiq power VP-450 450W Power Supply

Case: Corsair Carbide Series 200R Black Steel / Plastic compact ATX Mid Tower Case

Total comes to $724.93 on Newegg, which was what I was more or less aiming for.

Some notes:

-I'm not planning to overclock my CPU, which is why I didn't pick the 4670k. This also lets me choose a cheaper motherboard.

-Picked the GTX 760 because I'm interested in stuff like Shadowplay and I don't want to deal with AMD's driver problems. Also the the gap in performance between the 760 and 770 seems pretty marginal.

-I'll get more RAM later. 8 gigs should be enough for now.

Does this look good? Am I making any huge mistakes? This is my first time doing anything like this so I freely admit to being a novice at this.

 

[Setre]

Couple of quick questions guys/gals. Should I upgrade to Windows 8.1 or stay with 7? 16 GB vs 32 GB of DDR3-1600 RAM? Might want to eventually do some video editing on the side.

 

[tr4656]

Alright PC-GAF, so I'm planning to build my first PC and I'm aiming for something in between the Standard and Great builds listed in the OP.

This is what I'm looking at right now:

Processor: Intel Core i5-4570 3.2GHz LGA 1150 Quad-Core Desktop Processor

Motherboard: MSI H81M-P33 LGA 1150 Intel H81 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Micro ATX Intel Motherboard

Graphics Card: ASUS GeForce GTX 760 GTX760-DC2OC-2GD5 Video Card

RAM: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory

HDD: Seagate ST310005N1A1AS-RK 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive

Power Supply: Antec Basiq power VP-450 450W Power Supply

Case: Corsair Carbide Series 200R Black Steel / Plastic compact ATX Mid Tower Case

Total comes to $724.93 on Newegg, which was what I was more or less aiming for.

Some notes:

-I'm not planning to overclock my CPU, which is why I didn't pick the 4670k. This also lets me choose a cheaper motherboard.

-Picked the GTX 760 because I'm interested in stuff like Shadowplay and I don't want to deal with AMD's driver problems. Also the the gap in performance between the 760 and 770 seems pretty marginal.

-I'll get more RAM later. 8 gigs should be enough for now.

Does this look good? Am I making any huge mistakes? This is my first time doing anything like this so I freely admit to being a novice at this.

I'd go for http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2iXKL. 1230 v3 is basically a cheaper i7.

Couple of quick questions guys/gals. Should I upgrade to Windows 8.1 or stay with 7? 16 GB vs 32 GB of DDR3-1600 RAM? Might want to eventually do some video editing on the side.

Windows 8.1 and 16GB should be fine.

 

[CreepingFear]

Couple of quick questions guys/gals. Should I upgrade to Windows 8.1 or stay with 7? 16 GB vs 32 GB of DDR3-1600 RAM? Might want to eventually do some video editing on the side.

8.1. If you are someone that absolutely needs a start menu for some reason, just use the free classic shell program. 32 GB will help with video editing, but I don't think it's worth it if you are just editing videos casually.

 

[ezekial45]

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.

Yeah, that actually sounds pretty good. I was worried about the wifi signal for where I'm going to place this, so actually having a hard connection for internet sounds good to me.


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833109056

How's this one? It's actually cheaper than that wifi network card I was going to buy.

 

[tr4656]

Yeah, that actually sounds pretty good. I was worried about the wifi signal for where I'm going to place this, so actually having a hard connection for internet sounds good to me.


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16833109056

How's this one? It's actually cheaper than that wifi network card I was going to buy.

Amazon reviews (http://amzn.com/B00FF8ZRPU) seem to be decent. It should be okay.

 

[Hazaro]

Couple of quick questions guys/gals. Should I upgrade to Windows 8.1 or stay with 7? 16 GB vs 32 GB of DDR3-1600 RAM? Might want to eventually do some video editing on the side.

7 and 16GB is perfectly fine unless you are dealing with massive videos.

 

[golem]

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 have the 3.25 it isn't loud at all

 

[BiggNife]

I'd go for http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2iXKL. 1230 v3 is basically a cheaper i7.

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind.

Is there a reason you picked the ASRock motherboard and the MSI GTX760 over the MSI motherboard and ASUS GTX760 I picked? Just a matter of preference?

 

[Coldsnap]

When these samsung 840 MSATA coming out?

 

[scogoth]

I have the 3.25 it isn't loud at all

Best and worst news, there goes a big chunk of change. EK makes nice stuff but it sure ain't cheap.

 

[rudieboy77]

Finally got all my parts sorted out, still trying to choose between a keyboard or a orbweaver, then I have to pick a mouse.

CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor paid $213
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler paid $33
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z87X-UD4H ATX LGA1150 Motherboard paid $150
Memory: G.Skill Sniper 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory paid $49
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive paid $50
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB Video Card paid $240
Case: Fractal Design Arc Midi R2 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case paid $50
Power Supply: Rosewill Hive 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply paid $65
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer paid $15

 

[tr4656]

Thanks, I'll keep that in mind.

Is there a reason you picked the ASRock motherboard and the MSI GTX760 over the MSI motherboard and ASUS GTX760 I picked? Just a matter of preference?

It is mostly preference but I'm convinced (with some data via reviews) that MSI Twin Frozrs are the best GPUs.

Finally got all my parts sorted out, still trying to choose between a keyboard or a orbweaver, then I have to pick a mouse.

CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor paid $213
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler paid $33
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z87X-UD4H ATX LGA1150 Motherboard paid $150
Memory: G.Skill Sniper 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory paid $49
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive paid $50
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7970 GHz Edition 3GB Video Card paid $240
Case: Fractal Design Arc Midi R2 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case paid $50
Power Supply: Rosewill Hive 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply paid $65
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer paid $15

Keyboard. Go mechanical.

 

[rudieboy77]

Keyboard. Go mechanical.

I have played console games so long, I almost feel like a gamepad might be better, but I'm thinking I'll get a mech. keyboard and just practice till I get used to it. BB is having some good sales on coolermaster keyboard mouse combos right now.

 

[cuevas. PhD.]

Another Fan question:

I got this CPU cooler: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835181030

and this case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139009

The case has 4 fans (2 in the front, 1 side, 1 back)

SHould I remove the fan on the back and put it facing upwards (there are 2 slots for fans to face up) and put the cooler fan where that one is?

 

[thespot84]

after UPS took two solid weeks to deliver the cooler my build is done. Corsair neglected to inform me that the drivers for the cooler don't work in 8.1, so won't be OCing until those are out.

List:

PCPartPicker part list /
CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($215.00)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i 77.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($65.00)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z87X-UD4H ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($140.00)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($52.99)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($159.99)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 770 2GB Video Card ($310.00)
Case: Corsair 550D ATX Mid Tower Case ($125.00)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 660W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.99)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 Pro - 64-bit - OEM (64-bit) ($69.99)
Total: $1217.96

and crappy cell phone in-case pic:

 

[maneil99]

Got a random dispaly crash when playing Crysis 1. 780 is OC and I am using 8.1
I have 30 + hours of BF4, tons of metro last light and I have done multiple firemark extreme tests. Should I conclude its a game issue, possibly with windows? I rebooted the computer and played through fine both non OC and OCed.

Game is 8 years old and made for Vista. What do you guys think?

 

[maneil99]

Couple of quick questions guys/gals. Should I upgrade to Windows 8.1 or stay with 7? 16 GB vs 32 GB of DDR3-1600 RAM? Might want to eventually do some video editing on the side.

8.1 if its cheap!

 

[cuevas. PhD.]

after UPS took two solid weeks to deliver the cooler my build is done. Corsair neglected to inform me that the drivers for the cooler don't work in 8.1, so won't be OCing until those are out.


and crappy cell phone in-case pic:

Nice! And you answered my question

 

[Chocobro]

Nvidia says maxell will be big, but of course they would say that. I would say 1 and/or 2 is a good bet if you are ok with not running high on super punishing games. Option 4 is buy the best GPU you can afford and sell it when maxwell comes out.

Thanks for your opinion! I'm sure the GTX 760 can run most modern games (I haven't looked at benchmarks for BF4 though) right now at 60+ fps on medium to high settings, so I'm OK with that. It's more about the future I'm uncertain about.

Then this brings up a few questions that may have been discussed earlier:
1) EVGA GTX 760 w/ ACX or MSI GTX 760 TF?
2a) 2GB or 4GB for playing on 1080p? (which ties with 2b)
2b) How will 2GB hypothetically do in next-gen ports or games like Cyberpunk 2077, Witcher 3, The Division, Titanfall, Watch Dogs, etc.?

Slightly random thought: Maybe the 2GB will last me until a Maxwell GPU, but I'm unsure if it'll be enough for my brother and he might want something higher-end when he builds his PC.

 

[TheFLYINGManga_Ka]

What's the best water cooler that can replace a stock fan? Maybe one that prevents leakage and lasts long?

 

[CRS]

Hyper 212 EVO

 

[NoRéN]

Hyper 212 EVO

My evo has water in it?

 

[TheFLYINGManga_Ka]

Hyper 212 EVO

At first I thought I read "Hydro!" LoL!

Thanks for the info though. That is a nice fan but it's kind of huge. Didn't know it was a skyscraper.

Really solid cooling fan for sure.

 

[NoRéN]

It's dependable as fuck.

But if you want water cooling( looks so good and saves space) you could even go with a corsair h60. Recommended in th OP.

 

[Anton668]

What's the best water cooler that can replace a stock fan? Maybe one that prevents leakage and lasts long?

first off, the question is a bit vague. Without more info, one could answer - a $400 or so custom water loop.

so, is there a budget? arent you the one who continually asks about pre-builts? has something changed on that front? I ask because some cases lend themselves better to water cooling than others. remember, you asked for "the best" so that opens up the field quite a bit.

pretty much, is there a budget? what case is it going into? closed loop or custom? more info would be much more helpful.

 

[CRS]

My evo has water in it?

Oops. I missed the water part, haha.

 

[Serandur]

I was waiting and looking forward to seeing what aftermarket 290s would do, then as I hear news about Gigabyte and Asus releasing aftermarket 290Xs I take a look at prices on Newegg. What in the name of Poseidon happened to the prices on not only both 290s, but also the 280X?! Why coin miners, WHY?!?!?! Back to waiting for Maxwell I guess.

 

[kennah]

My evo has water in it?

Technically yes. There is water in the copper tubes.

And flying manga - we would need to know what case it is going into because not every cooler fits in every case.

 

[scogoth]

Why are Canadians up so late/early?

 

[Rufus]

Why are Canadians up so late/early?

Catching the only sunlight of the day.

 

[Azulsky]

Whats the skinny on metal selection for waterblocks. My initial assumptions are that you dont want to mix and match but the cooling performance diff is negligible and otherwise its all about looks.

I guess if i still want to do the copper tubing then I should get the Cu blocks right?

Kinda revisiting this after these puppies arrived yesterday.

 

[riflen]

Whats the skinny on metal selection for waterblocks. My initial assumptions are that you dont want to mix and match but the cooling performance diff is negligible and otherwise its all about looks.

I guess if i still want to do the copper tubing then I should get the Cu blocks right?

Kinda revisiting this after these puppies arrived yesterday.

I assume you're referring to corrosion? Essentially, it wont matter. All parts today are either copper or nickel-plated copper. Copper and nickel wont react in any meaningful manner, especially as you'll be using de-ionised coolant.

I did avoid a silver coil myself, but even that should be OK in the loop with copper, brass and nickel.

Good luck with the GPUs. I myself put two EVGA 780Ti SC under water this month and I'm very happy with the results and performance.

 

[Azulsky]

I assume you're referring to corrosion? Essentially, it wont matter. All parts today are either copper or nickel-plated copper. Copper and nickel wont react in any meaningful manner, especially as you'll be using de-ionised coolant.

I did avoid a silver coil myself, but even that should be OK in the loop with copper, brass and nickel.

Good luck with the GPUs. I myself put two EVGA 780Ti SC under water this month and I'm very happy with the results and performance.

What waterblock did you go with if I might ask. Im looking at EK's selection at the moment.

 

[Nakazato]

Got case last night just need mobo and hdd

Going to use my 5750 till I upgrade it and processor next year.

1st new pc since 2006

 

[batman2million]

Any word on BF4 and mantle? Weren't we supposed to see something by now? I'm assuming with all the mess that BF4 is right now, we won't be seeing anything anytime soon.

 

[Stet]

Mother of god.

 

[riflen]

What waterblock did you go with if I might ask. Im looking at EK's selection at the moment.

I prefer AquaComputer blocks myself. Selection seemed to be limited to AquaComputer or EK right now because these cards are so new.
I bought mine direct from AquaComputer in Germany. I'm very pleased with them.

 

[Azulsky]

I prefer AquaComputer blocks myself. Selection seemed to be limited to AquaComputer or EK right now because these cards are so new.
I bought mine direct from AquaComputer in Germany. I'm very pleased with them.

Thanks a bunch. It looks like XSPC has updated their raystorm blocks to a new series called razor that is compatible with the 780ti.

I need to do more research still but thanks again for info.

 

[riflen]

Thanks a bunch. It looks like XSPC has updated their raystorm blocks to a new series called razor that is compatible with the 780ti.

I need to do more research still but thanks again for info.

You're welcome. Have fun with the build.

 

[maneil99]

Got a random dispaly crash when playing Crysis 1. 780 is OC and I am using 8.1
I have 30 + hours of BF4, tons of metro last light and I have done multiple firemark extreme tests. Should I conclude its a game issue, possibly with windows? I rebooted the computer and played through fine both non OC and OCed.

Game is 8 years old and made for Vista. What do you guys think?

bump

 

[riflen]

bump

Crysis and Crysis Warhead are pretty flakey under Windows 7 and 8. I have the Steam versions and I have to remove all the FMV files to get them to launch without crashing.

 

[mkenyon]

I prefer AquaComputer blocks myself. Selection seemed to be limited to AquaComputer or EK right now because these cards are so new.
I bought mine direct from AquaComputer in Germany. I'm very pleased with them.

I'll only purchase AC and EK stuff myself. +1 to this.

 

[t-ramp]

after UPS took two solid weeks to deliver the cooler my build is done. Corsair neglected to inform me that the drivers for the cooler don't work in 8.1, so won't be OCing until those are out.

...

and crappy cell phone in-case pic:

Looks good.

I swapped out my motherboard the other day. Somehow I broke two of the RAM slots on my Asus, which also had some shutdown/standby issues and intermittently non-working front USB ports. I replaced it with a Gigabyte Z68 I got from OCN and all's good.

 

[scogoth]

I prefer AquaComputer blocks myself. Selection seemed to be limited to AquaComputer or EK right now because these cards are so new.
I bought mine direct from AquaComputer in Germany. I'm very pleased with them.

Do not use EK nickel with silver coil. I know there is a lot of debate and science discussion online about wether it does or does not matter but I can say from first hand experience having nickel, copper and silver coil with deionized water completely ruined my EK blocks. Stick with all copper or don't use silver. I'm now running EK nickel with biocides and no silver and have no issues

 

[RedBullEnergy]

Quick question. Got 2 cards in my hand.. EVGA 780 Superclocked and not superclocked.. I guess it just means one has been OC'd. Should I choose one over the other? I'm not OC'ing anything else in my build and want stability.