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[Lizardus]

This is probably a dangerous question to ask around these parts... but is this a good deal for $690?

http://www.dell.com/us/p/xps-8700/p...CJ&cid=24471&lid=566643&acd=10550055-1768450-

I'm finally upgrading from a Q6600 and have been building configs around i7-4770s, and then this deal comes along. The primary reason I was considering building a computer was because I figured it was cheaper than buying a pre-made one. But this seems like an exceptionally good price.

I plan on tossing the included card and swapping it in with a GTX 760, so I'm worried if:

a. The card will fit in this case.
b. The included power supply can support a card like that.

The only things I feel I'll be missing are an SSD (which I can throw in later), an overclockable mobo (I'm assuming), and a cool case. But I can live with that. Especially if I'm getting a wifi capable board, card reader, and Windows 7.

Please no.

I, too, used to have a prebuilt. It had i5 2500 and HD6850.

The thing is that these prebuilts have decent CPUs and GPUs but everything else is terrible (PSU, Motherboard, Case to name a few). They run very hot and upgrading them can be a challenge since the insides are filled with useless things like solid metal cases around HDD bay. Cable management is terrible too and good luck trying to fit in a second GPU if you want to in the future.

With the computer that you build yourself, you can see a HUGE difference in quality. It's really worth the extra money.

Just build it yourself, please. Just do it.

Wifi capable cards aren't that hard or expensive to come by. Do you really need a card reader? if so, buy an external one. Windows can be had for $10 off of Reddit.

EDIT: I mean, just look at the inside. Absolutely Disgusting

 

[MoonGred]

how much should I invest to get a solid gaming laptop ? One that can outlast, say, the PS4's lifecyle.

That can atleast play multi-platform titles on medium~high for a while ?

I'd recommend checking the laptop topic (can't link you as im on mobile, but it's in the op). It gets fairly expensive pretty quickly, laptop gpus are so far behind fullsized gpus and cost a lot more for far less bang. The higher end clevo I got last yr is starting to feel outdated already. I think I spent around 1700AUD.

 

[HeelPower]

I'd recommend checking the laptop topic (can't link you as im on mobile, but it's in the op). It gets fairly expensive pretty quickly, laptop gpus are so far behind fullsized gpus and cost a lot more for far less bang. The higher end clevo I got last yr is starting to feel outdated already. I think I spent around 1700AUD.

Apologies for posting in the wrong thread.I'll look there.

Thanks!

 

[DarkFlow]

Here's yet another question...So I have this Sony system in my room that I'd like to convert into a speaker system for my PC when I build it. Does anyone know how to do so, if its even possible? Here's a few images I just snapped of it.

Does it have a Aux input or rca plugs? You could use this of so. http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00004Z5CP/?tag=neogaf0e-20

 

[Asiriya]

Here's yet another question...So I have this Sony system in my room that I'd like to convert into a speaker system for my PC when I build it. Does anyone know how to do so, if its even possible? Here's a few images I just snapped of it.

I wanted to do this too, I think mine draw their power from the central tower thing so you can't use the speakers separately. As Darkflow said, if you have aux in it might work, think my housemate uses his that way.

 

[NaughtyPrawn]

Hey guys. I've been mulling over getting a new pc for a while now but I keep talking myself out of it. I've finally got to the point where I am almost ready to buy but I need someone to tell me whether its a good idea or not.

At the moment the games I mainly play are Titanfall, Diablo 3 and Dota 2. Out of games that are coming out this year that I'm possibly interested in are Evolve and Star Citizen (if its out this year). A lot of the other big multi platform titles I am likely to play on ps4 such as Batman arkham Knight, watch dogs, etc.

My current system specs are:

CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6700 @ 2.66GHz
RAM: 4.00 GB Dual-Channel DDR2 @ 398MHz (5-5-5-15)
Motherboard: Foxconn G31MX Series
Graphics: 1023MB GeForce GTX 460


Now I am looking at a budget for a new pc of around £1300.

So what I'd like to know is. With my needs should I upgrade? Should I go for something cheaper? Should I just get a new gpu for the moment and wait?

Please help me decide GAF!

 

[crazepharmacist]

What's the easiest way to use wireless internet with a desktop computer? Is that just something desktop computers come with built-in nowadays?

I posted my impressions of the A/C Asus wireless adaptor a few pages back. Previously using a USB adaptor that would constantly drop connection, slow speeds etc. If you have to go wireless and play online games I think it's worth investing in a good wireless adaptor. The Asus one is PCIE but has a magnetic extension for the antennas so you can just plop it anywhere on the outside of your case. Really convenient and the actual card has a heatsink so heat shouldn't be an An issue. But overall very fast, low ping and supports A/C stanard so I'll be set when I upgrade my router.

 

[kiyomi]

what mobo would you recommend and how big is the gap in performance between these CPUs.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4440 3.1GHz Quad-Core Processor (£128.79 @ Ebuyer)
Motherboard: ASRock H87 Pro4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (£54.37 @ Amazon UK)
Total: £183.16
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-03-27 10:22 GMT+0000)

With the 4670K you're mostly paying for the ability to overclock, so if you're not going to do that, just grab a 4440. You should be fine, assuming gaming is all you're planning on doing. Review of the 4440 here.

Hey guys, what sata cables should I get for my HDD and SSD?

SSD: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk
HDD: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive

Does the power connector come with the PSU?

Your motherboard should have come with several SATA cables, no? I think they usually come with 4 or 6.

The PSU comes with all the requisite cables to power your motherboard.

What's the easiest way to use wireless internet with a desktop computer? Is that just something desktop computers come with built-in nowadays?

Some motherboards include wi-fi but they tend be the more expensive ones. Grab a PCI wi-fi card for £20 and you're golden.

Hey guys. I've been mulling over getting a new pc for a while now but I keep talking myself out of it. I've finally got to the point where I am almost ready to buy but I need someone to tell me whether its a good idea or not.

At the moment the games I mainly play are Titanfall, Diablo 3 and Dota 2. Out of games that are coming out this year that I'm possibly interested in are Evolve and Star Citizen (if its out this year). A lot of the other big multi platform titles I am likely to play on ps4 such as Batman arkham Knight, watch dogs, etc.

My current system specs are:

CPU: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6700 @ 2.66GHz
RAM: 4.00 GB Dual-Channel DDR2 @ 398MHz (5-5-5-15)
Motherboard: Foxconn G31MX Series
Graphics: 1023MB GeForce GTX 460


Now I am looking at a budget for a new pc of around £1300.

So what I'd like to know is. With my needs should I upgrade? Should I go for something cheaper? Should I just get a new gpu for the moment and wait?

Please help me decide GAF!

You have a great budget (particularly if you already have a good monitor), so I'd say absolutely yes to upgrading. Fill in the form in the OP and the thread can help you.

 

[Bleepey]

Grab an i5 4440 or 4570 instead then. Just make sure you get a decent but affordable mobo with any features you need and you should be good to go. You could probably save £40-70 doing this, and use that money on a 120GB SSD or step up to a GTX 760.

The difference in price between the i5 4670k and the CPUs you suggested are only about £10. So I am like fuck it YOLO. Unless you think I should get a non z87 mobo that's cheaper, which of these do you recommend?


MSI Z87-G41-PCMate ATX Motherboard (Intel Z87, 4x DDR3, DVI, HDMI, 4x USB3.0, GBE LAN, LGA1150 Socket)



http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00CXOMGEY/

MSI Z87M-G43 m-ATX Motherboard (Intel Z87, 4x DDR3, DVI, HDMI, 4x USB3.0, GBE LAN, LGA1150 Socket)




http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00CXOMKHM/

ASRock Z87 PRO3 Motherboard (Socket 1150, Z87 Express, DDR3, S-ATA 600, ATX, Haswell, Supports 4th Generation IntelCore Processors)

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00CYWDKWM/

 

[intheinbetween]

just received my Gigabyte GTX 780 OC Rev 2.0, can't wait to get home and install it on my rig

 

[kiyomi]

The difference in price between the i5 4670k and the CPUs you suggested are only about £10.

I don't know what website you're looking at but a 4440 is £128.79 while a 4670K is £169.99. So it's not a £10 difference, it's a £41 difference.

Not sure about those motherboards you selected, I'd venture they're not on the great side for OC'ing.

 

[kinggroin]

Anyone have a used i5/mthrbrd/RAM combo they're selling?

My Phenom Ii finally took s dump after all these years :-(

 

[Lexxism]

just received my Gigabyte GTX 780 OC Rev 2.0, can't wait to get home and install it on my rig

Is it possible to take a picture of the adapters that comes with it? Ty

 

[Bleepey]

I don't know what website you're looking at but a 4440 is £128.79 while a 4670K is £169.99. So it's not a £10 difference, it's a £41 difference.

Not sure about those motherboards you selected, I'd venture they're not on the great side for OC'ing.

It's £155 on Amazon.

 

[kiyomi]

It's £155 on Amazon.

i5 4440 - £128.94

i5 4670K - £166.99

 

[Bleepey]

i5 4440 - £128.94

i5 4670K - £166.99

http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00CO8TBR4/

 

[wilflare]

okay.. I upgraded to a Asus RT68U...
solid speeds on direct (wired) connection
950DL/450UL

but my WiFi speeds (with the devices in the same room as the router) are horrid.
any ideas what's going on?

 

[kiyomi]

That's a 4670, not a 4670K.

The 'K' model has an unlocked multiplier and can be overclocked. The 'non-K' 4670 cannot.

 

[Nakazato]

thoughts on this power supply


Reposting need go see if this ps is worth me buying

 

[Bleepey]

That's a 4670, not a 4670K.

The 'K' model has an unlocked multiplier and can be overclocked. The 'non-K' 4670 cannot.

Honestly. I am exhausted. What would you recommend?. £230ish mobo and CPU budget. I know very little so I think I might just follow what you say. I don't know about OCing. I don't know if it's easy or hard. I barely know about RAM. I want the best value I can get for ram + mobo + CPU for a budget of £270. What do you suggest?

 

[Mad Max]

thoughts on this power supply


Reposting need go see if this ps is worth me buying

If you want a cheap PSU just get this one: http://www.tigerdirect.com/applications/SearchTools/item-details.asp?EdpNo=54280&CatId=4324

 

[kiyomi]

Honestly. I am exhausted. What would you recommend?. £230ish mobo and CPU budget. I know very little so I think I might just follow what you say. I don't know about OCing. I don't know if it's easy or hard. I barely know about RAM. I want the best value I can get for ram + mobo + CPU for a budget of £270. What do you suggest?

Okay, sorry.

You already know that you need a Z87 motherboard to overclock a 4670K, or at least you seem to. My issue with you buying the 4670K is that if you buy it at £167, you're only left with £63 to spend on your motherboard, which is not really recommended for a quality overclock. Most boards recommended in this thread for the 4670K are upwards of £80 or better yet £100. The other problem with overclocking in your budget is that you'd need an aftermarket heatsink, which is a minimum of another £25. Hence why I recommended you the combo I did before. I didn't realise your budget was £270 for the lot, so:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (£158.00 @ Amazon UK)
Motherboard: ASRock H87 Pro4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (£54.37 @ Amazon UK)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£59.68 @ Ebuyer)
Total: £272.05
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-03-27 12:32 GMT+0000)

This'll serve you nicely.

 

[LilJoka]

Honestly. I am exhausted. What would you recommend?. £230ish mobo and CPU budget. I know very little so I think I might just follow what you say. I don't know about OCing. I don't know if it's easy or hard. I barely know about RAM. I want the best value I can get for ram + mobo + CPU for a budget of £270. What do you suggest?

The only way you are going to get a decent CPU ram and mobo at £270 is scan.co.uk today only bundles. Currently their single bundle listed is pretty competitive. Usually they have many bundles, wait till about 2pm for it to refresh today.

And to the post above, for £20 more you can make it a Z87 board and a K spec CPU.

If you get a certain number of posts on hexus forums, you get free next day shipping at scan.co.uk. I use this to scout today only section over a week to save lots of money.

 

[kennah]

I've got my eye on one of MK's small builds, but can't decide whether to go for a modular psu or not. This would be my first build after a 10yr absence. I've read some old posts about the downsides of modular, and am doubting whether they're still that much of an issue. Cable management is a pet peeve of mine.

Get the modular. What case did you have in mind?

 

[kiyomi]

And to the post above, for £20 more you can make it a Z87 board and a K spec CPU.

Technically? Yes. Is it recommended? Not really.

I just don't want him to cheap out on a Z87 motherboard. The non-K 4670 or even a 4570/4440 will be absolutely fine. And don't forget the cost of the heatsink needed for overclocking.

 

[LilJoka]

Technically? Yes. Is it recommended? Not really.

I just don't want him to cheap out on a Z87 motherboard. The non-K 4670 or even a 4570/4440 will be absolutely fine. And don't forget the cost of the heatsink needed for overclocking.

This is very true, I know with my 3770 I overclocked to 4.2ghz. Is this the same story with Haswell chips? (Non-K)

 

[kharma45]

Technically? Yes. Is it recommended? Not really.

I just don't want him to cheap out on a Z87 motherboard. The non-K 4670 or even a 4570/4440 will be absolutely fine. And don't forget the cost of the heatsink needed for overclocking.

£25 isn't that much for a good heatsink. Plus it's quieter than the rubbish stock fan too.

 

[LilJoka]

Looks like you can't force 1c Turbo on 4c with haswell non k chips which is a shame.

 

[kiyomi]

£25 isn't that much for a good heatsink. Plus it's quieter than the rubbish stock fan too.

The heatsink alone isn't so much of an issue, but getting a more solid Z87 mobo, as well as the K model, the cost adds up.

When you add up a 212 Evo (£25), the move up to a K model (£9), and a better motherboard than the MSI Z87-G41-PC Mate (in the region of another ~£30-40) we're talking about another £60+ on top of his relatively tight budget.

That's all.

 

[LilJoka]

The heatsink alone isn't so much of an issue, but getting a more solid Z87 mobo, as well as the K model, the cost adds up.

When you add up a 212 Evo (£25), the move up to a K model (£9), and a better motherboard than the MSI Z87-G41-PC Mate (in the region of another ~£30-40) we're talking about another £60+ on top of his relatively tight budget.

That's all.

You don't necessarily have to buy the heatsink now, maybe in a year when you feel down on power. With a non k you have no option at all, I think even a basic z87 will get 4.2ghz.

 

[rocK`]

Thoughts? Kind of ready to pull the trigger:

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3gLiH

Was hoping to pair it with two 4K monitors. Week also SLI another 770.

 

[kharma45]

You don't necessarily have to buy the heatsink now, maybe in a year when you feel down on power. With a non k you have no option at all, I think even a basic z87 will get 4.2ghz.

It will. Motherboard matters a lot less now, its starting to edge towards the CPU lottery and how good your chip is.

 

[opticalmace]

I just realized I have my PC about 2 feet from our main TV and I haven't tried hooking them together yet. D'oh. I think I'm going to try Portal 2 on it.

Not sure if it'll be comfortable enough with just a gamepad... though I don't really want to sit on the couch with a keyboard and mouse. What does comfy couch GAF do? Just gamepad it?

Thoughts? Kind of ready to pull the trigger:

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3gLiH

Was hoping to pair it with two 4K monitors. Week also SLI another 770.

If I were gonna do 4K I would get more VRAM. I haven't been following this stuff much lately but presumably there are cards with >2GB of VRAM?

Also I would go for a bigger SSD and cheaper secondary HDD, personally.

I feel like if you're putting down $1600 for a gaming rig (which I presume it to be) you should probably spend more than $300 on a graphics card. Heck, the $750 build from Tom's Hardware had the same GPU!

Just my $0.02.

 

[kiyomi]

You don't necessarily have to buy the heatsink now, maybe in a year when you feel down on power.

That's true.

It will. Motherboard matters a lot less now, its starting to edge towards the CPU lottery and how good your chip is.

Fair enough, it's just that you yourself advised me to stay away from all the Z87 ATX motherboards in the <£90 range, just a few weeks ago.

I'll defer to your guys' opinions here since you're more experienced, just offering my own thoughts given the budget etc. He can't really go too far wrong.

 

[dwells]

[removed]

 

[User 73706]

I posted my impressions of the A/C Asus wireless adaptor a few pages back. Previously using a USB adaptor that would constantly drop connection, slow speeds etc. If you have to go wireless and play online games I think it's worth investing in a good wireless adaptor. The Asus one is PCIE but has a magnetic extension for the antennas so you can just plop it anywhere on the outside of your case. Really convenient and the actual card has a heatsink so heat shouldn't be an An issue. But overall very fast, low ping and supports A/C stanard so I'll be set when I upgrade my router.

Some motherboards include wi-fi but they tend be the more expensive ones. Grab a PCI wi-fi card for £20 and you're golden.

Are you guys talking about this?

To clarify on my current wifi situation, we actually have an ASUS router already, but it'll probably get moved out to the dining room where our old computer is going to go. From there, my new computer's going to be installed in the guest bedroom. It should be able to get a signal fine, but it needs an adapter, is all.

 

[LilJoka]

That's true.



Fair enough, it's just that you yourself advised me to stay away from all the Z87 ATX motherboards in the <£90 range, just a few weeks ago.

I'll defer to your guys' opinions here since you're more experienced, just offering my own thoughts given the budget etc. He can't really go too far wrong.

Reading more reviews and other opinions of the £50-£80 Z87 id be inclined to stay away now.
Bleepey stick with non-k non-z config.

 

[laoni]

I'm looking to do my very first build next week, and just remembered this thread was here XD So, I just wanted to ask how the build looked to your more experienced eyes.


Your Current Specs: Toshiba Satellite L850/01R, a laptop. It runs things rather well, except that it overheats quite quickly in summer, so I can't even really use it to do my school work.
Budget: ~$1500 (including shipping), Australia. I can go maybe $100-150 over.
Main Use: Main use would be gaming (Mostly Final Fantasy XIV) as well as my university work (Pathology).
Monitor Resolution: I'll be buying a monitor, the ASUS VS247HR. My main thng was I wanted a 23"+ screen with a HDMI port. I'd like to be able to run games through ot
List SPECIFIC games or applications that you MUST be able to run well: I'd like to be able to run FFXIV 1080/60, but other than that, just running smoothly would be nice.
Will you be overclocking?: No, I don't plan to, being my first build and all. Maybe later, but I don't really know

I tried to put it in PC Part Picker but couldn't find everything, so this is the link to my PCCaseGear wishlist

http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?main_page=wish_lists&wlcId=232690&action=wish_lists

Which equals, uhh, exactly $1500 (I didn't realise this before now XD) To get a -K CPU and a HSF, it's $1588. Do you think it would be worth spending the bit extra to get these, if I'm not feeling like overclocking any time soon?

I'd appreciate any thoughts you guys might have, and thanks.

 

[kharma45]

Fair enough, it's just that you yourself advised me to stay away from all the Z87 ATX motherboards in the <£90 range, just a few weeks ago.

I'll defer to your guys' opinions here since you're more experienced, just offering my own thoughts given the budget etc. He can't really go too far wrong.

It depends on the OC you're looking for and the features of the mobo. You had a much better budget to work with so we could ensure better quality items that are more feature rich and help towards a good OC.

Since we're extremely budget limited here with little flexibility the cheaper Z87 boards, whilst not the best, are in my view acceptable at this end. The lowest I'd ideally want to go is something like the Z87-D3H from Gigabyte or the Biostar Z87W but even they cost too much here so sacrifices need to be made.

 

[kiyomi]

^ Thanks for the clarification, Kharma.

Are you guys talking about this?

To clarify on my current wifi situation, we actually have an ASUS router already, but it'll probably get moved out to the dining room where our old computer is going to go. From there, my new computer's going to be installed in the guest bedroom. It should be able to get a signal fine, but it needs an adapter, is all.

USB wireless adapters don't tend to work so well. Something along the lines of;

ASUS PCE-N53 Dual-Band Wireless-N600 Adapter

TP-LINK TL-WDN4800 Dual Band Wireless N900 PCI Express Adapter

 

[Lamassu]

Gaming at 1080p only and I have a GTX660 Ti and a 3570k (stock speed), is it worth upgrading my GPU, and what would be the biggest card upgrade at the lowest price over my current card?

 

[michaelius]

Gaming at 1080p only and I have a GTX660 Ti and a 3570k (stock speed), is it worth upgrading my GPU, and what would be the biggest card upgrade at the lowest price over my current card?

Bare minimum GTX 770 which would be around 30% faster which isn't worth the hassle.

First non pointless upgrade would be 780.

 

[Lamassu]

Bare minimum GTX 770 which would be around 30% faster which isn't worth the hassle.

First non pointless upgrade would be 780.

Cool, thanks.

 

[User 73706]

Okay, I think I have everything laid out how I want it, just have one last question. I need someone to explain this to me like I'm 5. I purchased Windows 8 for a 32-bit computer back when they were doing the $15 sale. I want my upcoming 64-bit computer to run Windows 8 and then upgrade to 8.1 (which is free).

I did read the Microsoft installation guide in the OP. Now, since this is a completely new computer, can I use my activation code to download the .iso for Windows 8 and put it on a flash drive to boot the new computer with it? Or will my best bet just be buying a physicsl 64-bit OS disc, and booting it with that?

Finally, how does the solid state drive actually work from an interface standpoint? Does it just operate as another storage destination with faster load times, or what?

 

[riflen]

Thoughts? Kind of ready to pull the trigger:

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3gLiH

Was hoping to pair it with two 4K monitors. Week also SLI another 770.

Well personally, I think the 770 is too weak for UHD gaming. Even in SLI you'll probably have to use medium or lower settings to get close to a 60fps average in a lot of titles released in the last few years. It's really a 1920x1080 or 2560x1440 GPU.

Also, some UHD displays out there only refresh at 30Hz, so avoid those at all costs.

 

[dwells]

[never mind]

 

[killertofu]

Not sure how many video editors we have in this thread but I have a

3.4 i5 clocked at 4.0 (I think)
GTX 670
16 GB of ram

running a hackintosh. I just timed a 6 minute long video at Youtube settings 720p and it took 18:40. I have Cuda running as well.

Is that a little slow for anyone else of am I just really impatient

*Edit* This is for rendering

 

[TC McQueen]

Not sure how many video editors we have in this thread but I have a

3.4 i5 clocked at 4.0 (I think)
GTX 670
16 GB of ram

running a hackintosh. I just timed a 6 minute long video at Youtube settings 720p and it took 18:40. I have Cuda running as well.

Is that a little slow for anyone else of am I just really impatient

Are you saying it took almost 19 minutes to play a YouTube video or that it'll take 19 minutes to render a 6 minute long video? Because if it's the latter, that seems reasonable, given how long video editors take to render stuff. If it's the former, your internet might be a problem.

 

[Bleepey]

So what's the final verdict?

 

[kennah]

Not sure how many video editors we have in this thread but I have a

3.4 i5 clocked at 4.0 (I think)
GTX 670
16 GB of ram

running a hackintosh. I just timed a 6 minute long video at Youtube settings 720p and it took 18:40. I have Cuda running as well.

Is that a little slow for anyone else of am I just really impatient

What software? Seems a little long to me. Also what are you using for your data management? If it is all running off of the same 5400 RPM hard drive, then it's probably about right. Check your CPU usage age while rendering. If it is less than 100% you're getting bottlenecked by your disk speed.