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[CyanideFuse]

MSI Afterburner for the graphs. Not processes though.

I assume I need something to show the processes? I have no idea what could be running the card at these numbers when simply logging into Windows 7.

Also, if I was to load a game when the frequencies are at these numbers would it mean that resources are being taken from the game? The frame rate on Shadow of Mordor was lower when I played it via logging into the HDD than via SSD (the game is stored on the HDD). It felt quite choppy.

 

[thequickandthedead]

How well reputed is YoYotech guys?

 

[Addnan]

Any nice looking blue SLI bridges? I will use my stock motherboard one for now but just want something that goes with the rest of the rig. It's the old MSI blue on the motherboard and Gigabyte cards. A mix of black and blue or just a blue bridge would be nice.

Don't even have a freaking window but since I am spending £600 on a pair of cards I want them to look pretty

 

[knitoe]

Any nice looking blue SLI bridges? I will use my stock motherboard one for now but just want something that goes with the rest of the rig. It's the old MSI blue on the motherboard and Gigabyte cards. A mix of black and blue or just a blue bridge would be nice.

Don't even have a freaking window but since I am spending £600 on a pair of cards I want them to look pretty

Nvidia and EVGA has SLI bridge that lights up, but they aren't blue / black. Google them to see pics.

 

[SparkTR]

Is is possible to set a DSR setting for individual games in the Nvidia control panel?

 

[xBladeM6x]

Is is possible to set a DSR setting for individual games in the Nvidia control panel?

Not necessarily, but what you do is enable the DSR in the control panel, and it just adds the option to set anything to the higher resolutions. For example, my desktop is 1080p by default, however when I play Alien Isolation, I have the in game resolution selected to be 1440p.

 

[fifasnipe2224]

Looking to get a new PSU for my 970. How can I be sure to get a PSU thats a bit more future proof? I know the 970 consume less power but what if I want to upgrade in the future to a more energy hungry card? Should I should for 600w/650w/750w ect.

 

[xBladeM6x]

Looking to get a new PSU for my 970. How can I be sure to get a PSU thats a bit more future proof? I know the 970 consume less power but what if I want to upgrade in the future to a more energy hungry card? Should I should for 600w/650w/750w ect.

750 is enough, even for SLI 970's. 850 if you want to give yourself even more headroom. With the way things are going, the wattage needed is going to go down anyways.

 

[Addnan]

Nvidia and EVGA has SLI bridge that lights up, but they aren't blue / black. Google them to see pics.

Thanks. I don't want the EVGA one because of the branding but might go for the Nvidia one if I can find it in the UK. Doesn't match colour scheme but it looks damn cool.

 

[Goldenmoney]

AMD Cuts Prices of R9 290 Series and R9 280 Series Even Further

• $399 - R9 290X
• $299 - R9 290
• $270 - R9 280X
• $229 - R9 285

GTX 970's reaction:

 

[thespot84]

GTX 970's reaction:

bill russel looks like a muppet

 

[hendersonhank]

My i5 2500k (currently at stock speed) and CM212 combo has been creeping up in temperature for the past few months. Now it sits at around 40+ even when idle. I'm thinking it's time to clean off the heatsink and reapply the thermal paste.

Any consensus on best paste? Also I only ever knew the "put a blob the size of a grain of rice and spread it evenly with a credit card" method, but now I am hearing about "put on a blob and just stick the heatsink on and let it spread itself out as it heats".

 

[ricki42]

Any consensus on best paste? Also I only ever knew the "put a blob the size of a grain of rice and spread it evenly with a credit card" method, but now I am hearing about "put on a blob and just stick the heatsink on and let it spread itself out as it heats".

I just used whatever paste came with the cooler. I have never tried spreading the paste out, I decided to just use a blob / line after watching this video. Has worked for me so far.

 

[Durante]

Every time I see Aqua-computer stuff I'm almost tempted to go water cooling again.

I had a custom loop with their very first version of the "cuplex" CPU cooler back in 2002 or so. I wish I had time for this fiddling now.

 

[zeroeffect]

I hate that motherboard so much it's not even funny. I would recommend something cheaper or considering going for a 5820K build. That motherboard is made for high-end overclocking and has tons of features I guarantee you'll never use. I also advise against SLi later down the road because inevitably it will be more trouble than it's worth, and a cheaper PSU since that whole system will draw less than 350W--the joy of Maxwell.

I have a hard time trusting other mobo brands. The one Haz recommends in OP the Gigabyte Z97X-SOC Force is great value because I can get it around $180...but it seems like a board that's built for people who just want to extreme OC at subzero temps just because they can. It doesn't seem to have many gaming features. This one at least has several gaming features I could use to go along with OC capability.

Is a 5820k build even viable for that budget? I could be wrong but games don't seem to get huge performance boosts on a 5820K even overclocked? I would need to up the budget on DDR4 and a more expensive motherboard, right? DDR4 is going for insane prices right now. I'm not sure I could wiggle a build like that into 2k or if it's worth it? If you think I can wiggle a 5820K build into $2k budget and it's better for gaming than a 4790K build with 980 I'm open to suggestions. I didn't even think that was viable so I didn't even really research that. You have me intrigued to go look at it now.

I reccommend a asus z97 mother board, 140 bucks and way more sensible. I also recommend a different cpu cooler. that 212 gets pretty loud and for 20 bucks more you can get a noctua that will be quieter and oc a little more.

I'd research power requirements of your rig way more, 980s are power efficient. Even with future-proofing in mind, most people won't ever need more than 750-850 watts

I only put that in there because I planned to SLI in a few months. But yeah, if I don't then I could definitely slice budget there. What ASUS Z97 would you recommend for a gamer who wants OC capability?

 

[MC_Hify]

So I put together this build:

[PCPartPicker part list](http://pcpartpicker.com/p/qfcTjX) / [Price breakdown by merchant](http://pcpartpicker.com/p/qfcTjX/by_merchant/)

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
**CPU** | [Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3GHz 6-Core Processor](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/intel-cpu-bx80648i75820k) | $378.92 @ Amazon
**CPU Cooler** | [Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/cooler-master-cpu-cooler-rr212e20pkr2) | $28.99 @ Micro Center
**Motherboard** | [MSI X99S SLI Plus ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/msi-motherboard-x99ssliplus) | $224.99 @ Amazon
**Memory** | [Crucial Ballistix Sport 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/crucial-memory-bls4k8g4d240fsa) | $449.99 @ Newegg
**Storage** | [Samsung 850 Pro Series 1TB 2.5" Solid State Drive](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/samsung-internal-hard-drive-mz7ke1t0bw) | $649.99 @ Amazon
**Storage** | [Western Digital WD Blue 1TB 2.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/western-digital-internal-hard-drive-wd10spcx) | $96.48 @ SuperBiiz
**Video Card** | [EVGA GeForce GTX 980 4GB Superclocked Video Card](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-video-card-04gp42982kr) | $575.91 @ Newegg
**Case** | [Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/fractal-design-case-fdcadefr4bl) | $109.98 @ OutletPC
**Power Supply** | [Cooler Master V850 850W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/cooler-master-power-supply-rs850afbag1us) | $159.99 @ Newegg
**Optical Drive** | [Asus BC-12B1ST/BLK/B/AS Blu-Ray Reader, DVD/CD Writer](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/asus-optical-drive-bc12b1stblkbas) | $57.31 @ OutletPC
**Monitor** | [Asus PB287Q 60Hz 28.0" Monitor](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/asus-monitor-pb287q) | $609.99 @ Amazon
| | **Total**
| Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available | $3342.54
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-08 13:22 EDT-0400 |

It works pretty well, except the monitor is not always detected when Windows starts, I'm using a DisplayPort. The BIOS screen comes up but when "Windows is starting" goes away, about half the time the screen goes black and stays that way. I hit the reset button and when Windows starts back up again the screen will be detected. Anyone have any ideas about this?

 

[ZombieFred]

Awww yes, I've got all my new PC (mark 3) build up and running now! Some pictures of before and after!

Now I just want to double check that my temps are fine with you guys.

(The bottom one I was scratching my head on with the max temp as the past ten minutes it's been between 40/50. Just caught it on the image I'd presume?)

That is my CPU and my sli GTX 970S ARE AT 55 idle. Is that fine enough? I have the H60 Cooler with the Maximus V2 Ranger/850 PSU so how much would I be able to overclock the processor on average as I have not done much on this before? Thanks in advance guys!

 

[riflen]

Every time I see Aqua-computer stuff I'm almost tempted to go water cooling again.

I had a custom loop with their very first version of the "cuplex" CPU cooler back in 2002 or so. I wish I had time for this fiddling now.

I saw this today too. Over time I've cooled 4 GPUs with their kryographics blocks and been very pleased each time with the quality and the results. I'm looking forward to getting their blocks for whatever GM200 card arrives.

 

[matrixman92]

so, my zotac video card died and now they have offered to send me a replacement.

This is the one I had: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814500312

And now they are offering me the Amp edition of it. In laymans terms, can anyone tell me what this means in terms of better performance or something. Or are they pretty much the exact same? I dont know much about the terms used for this kind of stuff

http://zotacusa.com/geforce-gtx-760-zt-70402-10p.html

 

[ricki42]

so, my zotac video card died and now they have offered to send me a replacement.

This is the one I had: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814500312

And now they are offering me the Amp edition of it. In laymans terms, can anyone tell me what this means in terms of better performance or something. Or are they pretty much the exact same? I dont know much about the terms used for this kind of stuff

http://zotacusa.com/geforce-gtx-760-zt-70402-10p.html

If the cards you linked are correct, you actually had a 4GB card and they are offering to replace it with a 2GB card. The replacement card has considerably higher clock speeds, though.
I don't know if I would want to go for a 2GB card at this point, though in games that don't need as much VRAM the higher clock speed will give you better performance. But I'm no expert either.

 

[ekgrey]

so, my zotac video card died and now they have offered to send me a replacement.

This is the one I had: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814500312

And now they are offering me the Amp edition of it. In laymans terms, can anyone tell me what this means in terms of better performance or something. Or are they pretty much the exact same? I dont know much about the terms used for this kind of stuff

http://zotacusa.com/geforce-gtx-760-zt-70402-10p.html

it's just clocked a little faster. though the Newegg link you gave is for the 4GB version and the Amp one is 2GB. i assume one of those is wrong. hopefully they're not offering you a slightly faster card but with half the VRAM.

edit: beaten like Adam Jensen's face. but yeah, that part has to be a mistake.

 

[publicpwnerer]

Considering a large portion of AAA games this gen will require tons of VRAM, wouldn't it be worth waiting for the 6GB+ cards?

I know Shadows of Mordor is only a single example, but the different with Ultra textures is pretty immense.

 

[kennah]

Considering a large portion of AAA games this gen will require tons of VRAM, wouldn't it be worth waiting for the 6GB+ cards?

I know Shadows of Mordor is only a single example, but the different with Ultra textures is pretty immense. Ideally, should I be upgrading slightly over time, or am I okay with buying an entirely new system every 4-5 years?

Or you can buy midrange now then upgrade when it becomes a necessity. No point in waiting. You'll always be waiting.

 

[tm24]

Out of curiousity, how long does a PSU last? Bought this for my first build 4 years ago, and was wondering if should just reuse it or buy a new one.

 

[Rufus]

The caps will eventually go (sooner the hotter it runs), but if it's still good and fulfills your requirements then why not keep it? Always a good idea to put away a little money so that you can replace it immediately, as with all things, really.

 

[matrixman92]

If the cards you linked are correct, you actually had a 4GB card and they are offering to replace it with a 2GB card. The replacement card has considerably higher clock speeds, though.
I don't know if I would want to go for a 2GB card at this point, though in games that don't need as much VRAM the higher clock speed will give you better performance. But I'm no expert either.

it's just clocked a little faster. though the Newegg link you gave is for the 4GB version and the Amp one is 2GB. i assume one of those is wrong. hopefully they're not offering you a slightly faster card but with half the VRAM.

edit: beaten like Adam Jensen's face. but yeah, that part has to be a mistake.

shit, thanks for letting me know. I didnt notice that. Those are the correct links. The newegg one is straight from my original order, and the other is straight from the email from Zotac. Thanks for the help

 

[axb2013]

What he said, the temps, the workload and power grid issues all effect durability.
For example, a PSU rated for 600W but never drawing more than 400W and kept cooled will last longer than a unit that draw 500W
You should expect up to 10 years on good PSU's that stayed cool and was operating below it's rated workload

 

[UnObtainium17]

MSI 970 back in stock at NE.

Asus STRIX 970 at TigerDirect

 

[yulian]

Needing help from the wise and powerful folks in this thread. I am in search of RAM to finish my new build. Anyone know of any good deals on DDR3 2133 or 2400?

 

[matrixman92]

shit, thanks for letting me know. I didnt notice that. Those are the correct links. The newegg one is straight from my original order, and the other is straight from the email from Zotac. Thanks for the help

can someone help me again. I told them that it was half of the RAM. They replied with "Maybe you are unaware that this unit has the new chipset Maxwell, which is the new release. We go by NVIDIA standards and by their performance specs of the specified item. I went by NVIDIA's determination on performance. "

So is it a better card? I dont understand. Why would I want a 2 gb card over a 4gb card?

 

[kennah]

can someone help me again. I told them that it was half of the RAM. They replied with "Maybe you are unaware that this unit has the new chipset Maxwell, which is the new release. We go by NVIDIA standards and by their performance specs of the specified item. I went by NVIDIA's determination on performance. "

So is it a better card? I dont understand. Why would I want a 2 gb card over a 4gb card?

They are full of Shit. Hold your ground

 

[zeroeffect]

Good lord Zotac has awful CS. Reading your story just proves all the horror stories I've heard about them. I will never buy anything from that company lol.

 

[matrixman92]

They are full of Shit. Hold your ground

Figured as much, emailed back and told them that it is not a fair exchange because it is less powerful.

Good lord Zotac has awful CS. Reading your story just proves all the horror stories I've heard about them. I will never buy anything from that company lol.

Yeah, they are pretty terrible and extremely rude. I went on their live chat one time and asked if my video card had arrived for their testing process. The guy literally said "I am sure it will show up soon, just chill out." I said thanks and he ended it with "No probs".

 

[ekgrey]

ugh. what a bunch of clowns. if they keep fucking with you, take it to the twitters. sure nvidia would love the world to see one of their partners lying to a customer.

 

[mkenyon]

can someone help me again. I told them that it was half of the RAM. They replied with "Maybe you are unaware that this unit has the new chipset Maxwell, which is the new release. We go by NVIDIA standards and by their performance specs of the specified item. I went by NVIDIA's determination on performance. "

So is it a better card? I dont understand. Why would I want a 2 gb card over a 4gb card?

They're both Kepler. The rep is either clueless or lying.

 

[luxarific]

Needing help from the wise and powerful folks in this thread. I am in search of RAM to finish my new build. Anyone know of any good deals on DDR3 2133 or 2400?

Cheapest I've seen is about $100 per 8GB stick for 2133. Prices won't drop significantly until next year probably.

 

[jfoul]

Shell Shocker
$69.99 - Fractal Design Define R4 Blackout Silent ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

 

[paskowitz]

Shell Shocker
$69.99 - Fractal Design Define R4 Blackout Silent ATX Mid Tower Computer Case

That is a damn good deal.

I own this case and highly recommend it. Build quality is great, layout is logical, it is actually quite and blends in well to any home decor.

 

[Felix Lighter]

Having my SSD loose here shouldn't cause me any issues right? This is looking in with the front of the case off. It's just below the DVD drive. I'd like to keep it here because it will allow me to not have to run another sata power cord.

 

[opticalmace]

It's fine, though I would put it flat so it can't fall over.

 

[Felix Lighter]

It's fine, though I would put it flat so it can't fall over.

I would if I could but that's the way it wants to stand. It won't lay so I'm not too worried that it will fall over.

 

[matrixman92]

just decided to go ahead and call Zotac because their emails stopped after I argued that the card they were going to send was worse than the one I sent for replacement. They said they are looking into getting me a different card. They made it sound like they are some great company by doing that. They literally said "We help the customer more than other companies by offering different video cards for an exchange" .....not to mention the card offered first was worse, wtf. They also said it will take a day to a couple of days to come to a decision on a new card....wow

 

[Ultrabum]

Having my SSD loose here shouldn't cause me any issues right? This is looking in with the front of the case off. It's just below the DVD drive. I'd like to keep it here because it will allow me to not have to run another sata power cord.

I've had 2 SSD's stuck to the bottom of my case with adhesive command strips for several years, no problems.

 

[The Llama]

I would if I could but that's the way it wants to stand. It won't lay so I'm not too worried that it will fall over.

I'd use some tape or something just to hold it down a bit but you can leave it like that and you'll be fine as long as you're not moving your computer around (and even then it'll likely be fine, I'd just worry about it coming lose and getting knocked around).

 

[tarheel91]

Had to return the 1440p 21:9 LG panel for back light bleed. Going back to 16:9 1080p feels like going back to the stone age, damn.

 

[Felix Lighter]

I'll get some tape under it to keep it from sliding when moving but it'll have to remain upright, unfortunately. Thanks guys for the reassurance.

 

[Hindl]

Alright guys want final clearance on my build, let me know what you think:

[PCPartPicker part list](http://pcpartpicker.com/p/77t76h) / [Price breakdown by merchant](http://pcpartpicker.com/p/77t76h/by_merchant/)

Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
**CPU** | [Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/intel-cpu-bx80646i74790k) | $279.99 @ Micro Center
**CPU Cooler** | [Noctua NH-U12S 55.0 CFM CPU Cooler](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/noctua-cpu-cooler-nhu12s) | $49.99 @ NCIX US
**Motherboard** | [Gigabyte GA-Z97X-UD3H ATX LGA1150 Motherboard](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/gigabyte-motherboard-gaz97xud3h) | $135.99 @ NCIX US
**Memory** | [G.Skill Ares Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/gskill-memory-f31866c10d16gab) | $158.99 @ Newegg
**Storage** | [Crucial MX100 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/crucial-internal-hard-drive-ct256mx100ssd1) | $109.99 @ Micro Center
**Video Card** | [MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Video Card](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/msi-video-card-gtx9704gd5toc) | $339.98 @ NCIX US
**Case** | [Fractal Design Define R4 Blackout ATX Mid Tower Case](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/fractal-design-case-fdcadefr4blo) | $69.99 @ Newegg
**Power Supply** | [Cooler Master GXII 750W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/cooler-master-power-supply-rs750acaab1us) | $74.25 @ Newegg
**Optical Drive** | [Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer](http://pcpartpicker.com/part/lite-on-optical-drive-ihas124-04) | $19.98 @ OutletPC
| | **Total**
| Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available | $1239.15
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-08 21:10 EDT-0400 |

I'm biting on the Case and Power Supply tonight due to price drops. For everything else, few questions I have:

I'm mainly using this for gaming, Oculus Rift Development, and Unreal/Unity Development. So is the 4790K/Mobo gonna be enough? Or would Rift and Unreal Development push me for the multimedia 5820K/Mobo combo?

Also, any parts that can be taken out or replaced? I was going to go with CM Hyper 212 EVO but if the Noctua fan is quieter I'll gladly pay the extra $20.

Thoughts?

 

[zeroeffect]

What does GAF think about a Z97 Sabertooth Mark 2 for gaming and overclock purposes? Seems like ASUS is pretty comfortable giving it a 5 year warranty too so I guess it's built pretty amazing.

 

[The Llama]

Alright guys want final clearance on my build, let me know what you think:



I'm biting on the Case and Power Supply tonight due to price drops. For everything else, few questions I have:

I'm mainly using this for gaming, Oculus Rift Development, and Unreal/Unity Development. So is the 4790K/Mobo gonna be enough? Or would Rift and Unreal Development push me for the multimedia 5820K/Mobo combo?

Also, any parts that can be taken out or replaced? I was going to go with CM Hyper 212 EVO but if the Noctua fan is quieter I'll gladly pay the extra $20.

Thoughts?

I admittedly don't know how loud or quiet the 212 Evo is, but I can say for certain that Noctua fans are VERY quiet. Some of the quietest in the industry AFAIK. Plus they look cool (though they don't match with anything haha).

Honestly I wouldn't get a DVD drive unless this is some sort of HTPC setup (in which case you'd probably want a bluray drive anyway) but that's just personal preference.

 

[rocK`]

Looking to splurge on a very high end pc. Spending around 3k. Any thoughts on builds?

Also, are there comparable monitors to the rog swift? It's sold it everywhere.