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"I Need a New PC!" 2014 Part 1. 1080p and 60FPS is so last-gen and your 2500K is fine

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E

eznark

Banned
So it turns out the lightning got my monitor as well. Is the vg248qe still the go to for that price point? I know that there are exciting monitors coming down the pike and I will probably pick one up but for now I just need something to make my 780ti look good.


Also that MSI board linked on Tuesday is the one I went with and I got it for $60 off by purchasing it with a proc. I fucking love having a microcenter so close!
 
S

steadfast

Member
All parts for my new build are almost here.

i5 4670k
MSI Z87x-G45
16GB Kingston HyperX (Red, have to match)
Cooler Master 212 Plus with two 120mm fans

I'm bringing over my Crucial M4, Corsair 650W, and GTX 560 from my old build with the intention of waiting out another 6-12 months so see how Maxwell and Mantle shake out, but I can already feel myself getting impatient and wanting a new GPU much sooner than that.

I game at 1080p and don't have any real desire to move to 4k for a while, so if I do get antsy and decide to buy a GTX 760 sooner rather than wait, is there any real reason to go for the 4GB model?
 
poppabk

poppabk

Cheeks Spread for Digital Only Future
So how much of a difference will switching from 32bit to 64bit OS make. I am stuck on 32bit Windows 8, and as MS doesn't provide an easy way to make the switch I really don't want to make the change and also waste money on a copy of Windows I don't really need unless it is going to be worthwhile.
 
xBladeM6x

xBladeM6x

Member
After getting the initial rig, I've decided my next bulk purchase was going to be accessories. Here's what I picked up.

Corsair K70 Cherry Red MX Keyboard
Logitech G35 Headset
Apevia Red LED 120mm x3 Case Fans (Replace the non-led fans I currently have)
Steel Series 4HD Mouse Pad
Wireless Xbox 360 Controller + Adapter For Windows

Thoughts?
 
S

steadfast

Member
poppabk said:
So how much of a difference will switching from 32bit to 64bit OS make. I am stuck on 32bit Windows 8, and as MS doesn't provide an easy way to make the switch I really don't want to make the change and also waste money on a copy of Windows I don't really need unless it is going to be worthwhile.
Click to expand...

Do you want to use more than 4GB of RAM? If yes, you need 64-bit.
 
K

kennah

Member
poppabk said:
So how much of a difference will switching from 32bit to 64bit OS make. I am stuck on 32bit Windows 8, and as MS doesn't provide an easy way to make the switch I really don't want to make the change and also waste money on a copy of Windows I don't really need unless it is going to be worthwhile.
Click to expand...

Your key should work for both the 32 and 64 bit versions. You'd just need to reinstall, shouldn't need to purchase a new copy.
 
R

riflen

Member
Horse Armour said:
Can fans with 3 pin fan connectors change their speeds or do they just run at 100% all the time?
Click to expand...

You can always control a fan by controlling the voltage delivered to it. Typically you can do this by adding a resistor to the wire, or by using a basic fan controller.

3 pin tells you nothing on its own tbh, but there's a chance that the fan may support PWM.

PWM is a method of controlling the fan without adjusting the voltage. Find out if your fan supports PWM, or just try it out by connecting it to a header on your motherboard, download software like Open Hardware Monitor and try to adjust the RPM of the fan.
 
poppabk

poppabk

Cheeks Spread for Digital Only Future
steadfast said:
Do you want to use more than 4GB of RAM? If yes, you need 64-bit.
Click to expand...
I have 8GB in there but it is obviously only using 3.6 or so. But is there a significant impact on performance from going from 4GB to 8GB, and is that the only difference going from 32 to 64?
 
H

HoosTrax

Member
I think I just broke another Razer mouse (the Orochi)...the "Back" thumb button seems to have died. I think I'm done with Razer.

On my short list:

Logitech G9X - my tried and true, and it's the mouse I use at home, without a grip

CM Storm Spawn - I've tried this one at Microcenter. It's about the right size, but I think I'm going to hate that pinky shelf after a while

Mad Cat R.A.T. M - Microcenter doesn't have any yet unfortunately, so I can't try it out. Looks like it's about the right size though:
IMG_6227_medium.jpg
maxresdefault.jpg
Click to expand...
 
A

Anustart

Member
So last night I was playing Crysis 2 on my 760 and I was getting sub-40 fps quite often, when the previous times I played the game I noticed no such drops and everything felt fluid :(

I'm worried!
 
S

steadfast

Member
poppabk said:
I have 8GB in there but it is obviously only using 3.6 or so. But is there a significant impact on performance from going from 4GB to 8GB, and is that the only difference going from 32 to 64?
Click to expand...

Doubling your available RAM will make a great difference
 
P

Prophet Steve

Member
poppabk said:
So how much of a difference will switching from 32bit to 64bit OS make. I am stuck on 32bit Windows 8, and as MS doesn't provide an easy way to make the switch I really don't want to make the change and also waste money on a copy of Windows I don't really need unless it is going to be worthwhile.
Click to expand...

Recently I did something with my RAM and forgot to put it back in so I had 4 GB instead of 8 GB. I had a lot of times during those few weeks where I thought my PC was being too slow until I figured out what the problem was. And now it runs smooth again.

I do run a lot of programs though and did not have the problem consistently. Although I thought you could switch between Windows 8 32 bit and 64 bit without paying?
 
M

MadSexual

Member
Anustart said:
So last night I was playing Crysis 2 on my 760 and I was getting sub-40 fps quite often, when the previous times I played the game I noticed no such drops and everything felt fluid :(

I'm worried!
Click to expand...
Are you playing with DX11 enabled? From what I've read, they totally half assed the DX11 support and threw on a bunch of poorly optimized tesselation after development was mostly finished. I can't even play it on an AMD card. Tick it back down to DX10 mode and your FPS will soar. It still looks plenty beautiful with the framerate you expect.
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
Azzurri said:
Corsair is doing an AMA on Reddit and offer 25% off their website (CESREDDIT)
Click to expand...
That makes the Air 540 quite a good deal. I'd jump on that if you're in the market for a nice case.
HoosTrax said:
I think I just broke another Razer mouse (the Orochi)...the "Back" thumb button seems to have died. I think I'm done with Razer.

On my short list:

Logitech G9X - my tried and true, and it's the mouse I use at home, without a grip

CM Storm Spawn - I've tried this one at Microcenter. It's about the right size, but I think I'm going to hate that pinky shelf after a while

Mad Cat R.A.T. M - Microcenter doesn't have any yet unfortunately, so I can't try it out. Looks like it's about the right size though:
Click to expand...
If you use a claw grip, go for the Spawn.
 
A

Anustart

Member
MadSexual said:
Are you playing with DX11 enabled? From what I've read, they totally half assed the DX11 support and threw on a bunch of poorly optimized tesselation after development was mostly finished. I can't even play it on an AMD card. Tick it back down to DX10 mode and your FPS will soar. It still looks plenty beautiful with the framerate you expect.
Click to expand...

Thanks, will give it a go!
 
poppabk

poppabk

Cheeks Spread for Digital Only Future
Prophet Steve said:
Recently I did something with my RAM and forgot to put it back in so I had 4 GB instead of 8 GB. I had a lot of times during those few weeks where I thought my PC was being too slow until I figured out what the problem was. And now it runs smooth again.

I do run a lot of programs though and did not have the problem consistently. Although I thought you could switch between Windows 8 32 bit and 64 bit without paying?
Click to expand...
I only have an upgrade license, which is supposedly locked to whatever version you upgraded from (Vista 32bit business in my case!).
 
K

kennah

Member
poppabk said:
I only have an upgrade license, which is supposedly locked to whatever version you upgraded from (Vista 32bit business in my case!).
Click to expand...

1. Do a clean install from your 64 bit disc. Leave the license blank. Get it to boot into Windows.

2. Run the Upgrade installer from within your clean unlicensed install.

3. Upgrade the install you just installed.

4. When it asks for it the second time - put in your upgrade license key.

5. Profit.
 
A

Angelus Errare

Banned
Got some new parts in and I'm thinking my mobos' SATA controller is hella outdated or something. I got a MSI Z87-GD65, put a fresh HDD in and because I couldn't find any USB thumb drives, I decided to install W7 via DVD; get everything up and running. Hit the power button, everything boots (and by everything I mean just the HDD+DVD drive). Unexpected error; fluke? Maybe, reset and try again. Alright the "boot from CD/DVD" prompts comes up. Hit a random key, the windows files start loading. About 40% in it stops loading and sits there...unexpected I/O error. Must be the DVD drive, so I test the DVD drive on my old PC. Works fine, test it on an older PC...works fine. I grumble then suck it up and use my iPod as a boot device. Alright, now we're getting somewhere! Try to install to the new HDD...I/O error. Try said HDD in another PC; works fine and passes all checks (which it should since it's brand new!). Decide to try an older SSD...I/O error. Decide to try a random HDD...I/O error.

Le siiiiigh. Oh well, that's the way the cookie crumbles.
 
B

bigkrev

Member
Guys, is there a consensus cheap ($20 or under) speaker set, or should I just buy whatever I think looks cool? Gonna use a headset for real gaming, but for Youtube and the like want some speakers
 
C

Crimsonsky

Member
delirium said:
Someone is selling this PC locally for $600. Good deal?

Core i5-4670K Haswell quad core 3.4GHz with boost to 3.8
Corsair gaming 8Gb ram
2TB hard drive
Bluray/dvd burner drive
750W PSU
ATI Radeon HD 6950 2GB with unlocked shaders. It performs as a 6970
Cooler master case with front USB hookups and audio connections
Motherboard is a Z87A
Comes with a netgear wireless adapter
Click to expand...

I just sold a card similar to that one for 230 on ebay. Mine was a Sapphire, but the make doesn't really matter. So I'd buy it, sell the graphics card and use that to buy a good one and you should be good.
 
K

kris.

Banned
bigkrev said:
Guys, is there a consensus cheap ($20 or under) speaker set, or should I just buy whatever I think looks cool? Gonna use a headset for real gaming, but for Youtube and the like want some speakers
Click to expand...

spend a little more and get these. they sound fantastic and they're only $35
 
O

optimiss

Junior Member
As someone who hasn't built a PC in the last 7 years, the information in this thread was indispensable in getting me back up to speed on the latest hardware. I'm still waiting on some shipments to come in, but once it is built I'll come back and share it here. Thanks!

Also, I'd just like to point out how awesome Newegg's customer service is. I ordered a Bitfenix Prodigy case from them which arrived with a big chip in the plastic handle. After a quick phonecall they over-nighted a new case to me free of charge! I have 30 days to ship the broken one back to them on their dime. I am very glad I ordered from them even though it was slightly more expensive for a few of the items. Amazon on the other hand has yet to ship my order from 4 days ago. :/
 
M

Megasoum

Banned
So how are the performance of SSHD generally compared to a SSD?

Right now I have a 120gb SSD and a 1Tb HDD. With the size of games growing constantly it's starting to get tight on my 120gb.

I'm not sure if I should buy another 120gb to put next to my other one. Buy a 240gb SSD and resell the 120gb or keep the 120 and replace my 1TB with a 1(or 2) TB SSHD.
 
K

kennah

Member
Megasoum said:
So how are the performance of SSHD generally compared to a SSD?

Right now I have a 120gb SSD and a 1Tb HDD. With the size of games growing constantly it's starting to get tight on my 120gb.

I'm not sure if I should buy another 120gb to put next to my other one. Buy a 240gb SSD and resell the 120gb or keep the 120 and replace my 1TB with a 1(or 2) TB SSHD.
Click to expand...

I don't think an SSHD would super improve performance for games - unless you're playing the same game over and over and over again. It would still have to cache the data the first time you play it - meaning it would pull that data from the rotational. So load times would get faster as you play and the more often you play... but I don't think the advantage would be worth the extra expense.
 
G

garath

Member
HoosTrax said:
I think I just broke another Razer mouse (the Orochi)...the "Back" thumb button seems to have died. I think I'm done with Razer.

On my short list:

Logitech G9X - my tried and true, and it's the mouse I use at home, without a grip

CM Storm Spawn - I've tried this one at Microcenter. It's about the right size, but I think I'm going to hate that pinky shelf after a while

Mad Cat R.A.T. M - Microcenter doesn't have any yet unfortunately, so I can't try it out. Looks like it's about the right size though:
Click to expand...

I love my Steelseries Sensei RAW. I switched from my old reliable Logitech MX518. I was looking for something a little more low profile to support my fingertip grip. Sensei has worked out perfectly. I've had it for about a year now and wouldn't switch back to logitech for gaming.

The software is the only weak spot. I had some install pains with needing to update the firmware on the mouse and the windows software hanging initially. I worked through it and it's been running smoothly ever since.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008OQTQSO/?tag=neogaf0e-20

edit: Amazon shows me buying it 1/6/13. So had it for a full year. Very happy with it.
 
K

kennah

Member
I wasn't expecting to like the Storm Spawn, but it feels pretty good. Still want to get my hands on a Sensei RAW to try out.
 
T

Turbowaffles

Member
Moral Panic said:
What brand PSU? (why does it have led lights)

Try taking out the GPU if you have a modern socket, then try removing and reseating the ram.
Click to expand...
I'm late but I tried what you suggested. Took out the GPU, reseated the RAM, but it's doing the same thing it did in my video. :/

Any other ideas?
 
A

asdad123

Member
A couple weeks ago I saw someone here recommending a guy on Reddit selling Windows 8 for $25. Does anyone have that link?

Building a new PC for my brother and he needs windows.
 
D

Dr.Acula

Banned
riflen said:
You could check for newer firmware for the OCZ. The vertex 2 was flakey for some.
Click to expand...

Blew, happened again without the drive attached.

The problem seems really common, there's no real fix, could be either GFX card or PS. Mulling over if it's worth pulling my old 460 out and testing with it...
 
M

Mr. Wonderful

Member
Megasoum said:
So how are the performance of SSHD generally compared to a SSD?

Right now I have a 120gb SSD and a 1Tb HDD. With the size of games growing constantly it's starting to get tight on my 120gb.

I'm not sure if I should buy another 120gb to put next to my other one. Buy a 240gb SSD and resell the 120gb or keep the 120 and replace my 1TB with a 1(or 2) TB SSHD.
Click to expand...

Buy and then resell the 120GB. That's what I did with my SSDs when I was in college. The problem is though, you're going to just as quickly hit that capacity limit with 240GB again, especially with how big games are getting (assuming you want to leave a game or two on the SSD).

I've always been of the opinion of doing it right, and doing it right the first time. If you can afford it, grab a 512GB, sell your 120GB, and use the TB as an archive. If you can't afford it, consider waiting until the new SSDs come out this summer, which should come with another drop in price/GB.
 
N

NoRéN

Member
chaosblade said:
Smartpost sucks. Sat in Atlanta for two days because why not.

Now for that rebate...

o2hew8H.jpg
Click to expand...

MSI has never let me down when it comes to rebates. Just make sure to follow the instructions and don't opt for the "rush processing" thing. They're quick anyway.
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
Mr. Wonderful said:
Buy and then resell the 120GB. That's what I did with my SSDs when I was in college. The problem is though, you're going to just as quickly hit that capacity limit with 240GB again, especially with how big games are getting (assuming you want to leave a game or two on the SSD).

I've always been of the opinion of doing it right, and doing it right the first time. If you can afford it, grab a 512GB, sell your 120GB, and use the TB as an archive. If you can't afford it, consider waiting until the new SSDs come out this summer, which should come with another drop in price/GB.
Click to expand...
I guess it's a matter of bandwidth, right?

I have 250GB on my main gaming machine, and never fret too much. I can have a really large number of games installed at any time, but I'm really only playing maybe 2-4 different games in a given week. If I need to make space, delete one, start a download, and at 3-7MB/sec, it doesn't take too long to get anything.
bodyboarder said:
Any fractal core 1000 owners here? Anything really bad to say about the case.
Click to expand...
Have two I built at my work. They're really basic, but great. Not really meant for a gaming rig though. Looking for ITX or mATX in particular?
 
B

bodyboarder

Member
mkenyon said:
Have two I built at my work. They're really basic, but great. Not really meant for a gaming rig though. Looking for ITX or mATX in particular?
Click to expand...

Mainly for a small gaming box (nothing high end mind you hence the need for a cheap case). Not to fussed either way on itx or matx. Basically just after a small cheap gaming box that takes full size PSUs.
 
H

HoosTrax

Member
The Core 1000 is an incredibly tight fit if you're using a board that's the maximum allowed size for mATX size (a square). The case is kind of shallow, so the part of the case where the 5.25" bays are located is going to be like 1 mm from the right edge of the motherboard, and you'll have to ease the board in at an angle.

The case uses the old-school PSU on top layout. There is no real cable management / concealment.

You get what you paid for, but at least the paint job is high quality for the price tag.
 
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