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[lt519]

Hey all, have some quick questions about my rig. So, quick background so you can understand what I'm looking for...

At the end of last console gen I was interested in getting a new PC for the Steam sales since my laptop was about 5 years old. I decided on getting a desktop, but wanted a small form factor to put into my TV console and honestly had the extra money to throw into a pre-built since my time is more valuable. So I grabbed an X51 during a sale for cheap and called it a day, it's been fantastic for comfy couch gaming, but it's way weak for the current crop of games. Sadly one of my RAM chips is going bad and the PC only boots like 50% of the time, time to replace the bad chip. Well, while I'm in there I think I might throw a new graphics card in, but here lies the problem...I bought the 240w version without realizing it.

The basics of the build are: i5-2320, GT 545 1GB DDR5, and 8GB DDR3 RAM.

Here's are my questions: should I just replace the bad 4GB stick of RAM with another 4GB stick or just put the money into getting a 16GB kit? If I replace the graphics card I was thinking the GTX 970 and upgrading the PSU to 330W, but at that point I'm at $400ish before the cost of the RAM and mine as well start over. If I do go that route, will my CPU be a bottle neck? The other option is go a year behind and just buy a overclocked GTX 750 TI for like $100 which works with my current PSU, upgrade the RAM, call it a day and live with running games on Medium. Is my CPU still going to be a bottle neck? What would be a good upgrade for that? What is worth it (besides the obvious of just starting over)?

I know nothing

Edit: I should say money isn't really an issue, but it would pain be to start fresh as that'd seem like a waste (it's the principle!)

 

[LordAlu]

I couldn't believe how much faster an SSD would be over a HDD. My load times had become atrocious. I almost had to set aside 5 minutes to allow Windows to load up and sort itself out.

Saying that, when I first installed Windows 7 on the HDD, it didn't take any time to load. Over time the load speeds slowed down to a stupidly slow level.

I assume this will not be a similar issue on the SSD because it is so quick to begin with?

I've had Windows 8 (and then upgraded to 8.1) installed on my SSD since it came out in late October 2012. It still boots from cold into Windows in 10-12 seconds. I refuse to use a computer at work without an SSD now

 

[ricki42]

Got back from work. Thanks so much for the assistance.

New list: http://i.imgur.com/6G2sDz0.png

I changed the power supply as well. Hopefully, I picked the right thing this time lol.

Are you planning to use the stock CPU cooler? If you plan to overclock (since you got the unlocked chip) you should probably add a cooler.

 

[Khrno]

Yes, I run off a 750W Seasonic.

yes, easily. no problem at all

Awesome, thanks.

I had a 800w Corsair, really quiet, but I had some power problems at home and it died, it also took my 780 down with it, but at least everything else was fine.

So bought a 750w Thermaltake, not many options at the time, but it was bad purchase, that thing is noisy as fuck, next time I have extra money to spare I'll replace it for a quiet one.

 

[kennah]

Just a quick question to the PC Crew, my copy of Windows 7 will not seem to activate using the key I have. I think it's been used a few to many times after a reformat. Would you guys recommend me buy another copy of Windows 7 or making the jump to Windows 8?

Do a phone activation with Microsoft. Tell them that you upgraded

 

[bishopcruz]

I'm looking to get a monitor in the $150-ish range, hoping for 24" and I have heard there are some great deals. Any recommendations? I'd prefer to have speakers built in in order to make my life a little easier as well. Any recommendations?

I suppose my other option is the ASUS VG248QE but that seems a little pricy, but it does look very nice.

 

[bro1]

Just a quick question to the PC Crew, my copy of Windows 7 will not seem to activate using the key I have. I think it's been used a few to many times after a reformat. Would you guys recommend me buy another copy of Windows 7 or making the jump to Windows 8?

You can call MS and they will activate it for you.

 

[Goldenmoney]

Hey all, have some quick questions about my rig. So, quick background so you can understand what I'm looking for...

At the end of last console gen I was interested in getting a new PC for the Steam sales since my laptop was about 5 years old. I decided on getting a desktop, but wanted a small form factor to put into my TV console and honestly had the extra money to throw into a pre-built since my time is more valuable. So I grabbed an X51 during a sale for cheap and called it a day, it's been fantastic for comfy couch gaming, but it's way weak for the current crop of games. Sadly one of my RAM chips is going bad and the PC only boots like 50% of the time, time to replace the bad chip. Well, while I'm in there I think I might throw a new graphics card in, but here lies the problem...I bought the 240w version without realizing it.

The basics of the build are: i5-2320, GT 545 1GB DDR5, and 8GB DDR3 RAM.

Here's are my questions: should I just replace the bad 4GB stick of RAM with another 4GB stick or just put the money into getting a 16GB kit? If I replace the graphics card I was thinking the GTX 970 and upgrading the PSU to 330W, but at that point I'm at $400ish before the cost of the RAM and mine as well start over. If I do go that route, will my CPU be a bottle neck? The other option is go a year behind and just buy a overclocked GTX 750 TI for like $100 which works with my current PSU, upgrade the RAM, call it a day and live with running games on Medium. Is my CPU still going to be a bottle neck? What would be a good upgrade for that? What is worth it (besides the obvious of just starting over)?

I know nothing

Edit: I should say money isn't really an issue, but it would pain be to start fresh as that'd seem like a waste (it's the principle!)

Nvidia recommends a minimum power supply of 500W for the GTX 970, 300W for the GTX 750 Ti. I would also make sure whichever card you get is small enough to fit in your case. I think your cpu would be a bottleneck as well, though I'm not sure on this. 8GB is still enough for gaming. You could try adding a new 4GB stick, but I've never tried this and have heard two different sticks don't work well together.

 

[lt519]

Nvidia recommends a minimum power supply of 500W for the GTX 970, 300W for the GTX 750 Ti. I would also make sure whichever card you get is small enough to fit in your case. I think your cpu would be a bottleneck as well, though I'm not sure on this. 8GB is still enough for gaming. You could try adding a new 4GB stick, but I've never tried this and have heard two different sticks don't work well together.

The 750 TI actually has a lower TDP than the GT 545 which I am currently running overclocked which is OEM approved. Several people on the Alienware forums have run that successfully since it's release. The 750 TI definitely fits in the case, there's an empty slot for the fan if I buy the overclocked EVGA model.

There's been talk of the 970 working fine with the 330W PSU but they haven't been running it for very long, so I am more hesitant about that. Fitting this one in the case might take some mods, it's something I would have to look more into.

Thanks for the info on the RAM, 16GB isn't much more expensive, I'll probably just drop the money on them and if I ever need it I'll have it. Maybe only install one stick for now.

Edit: Could you educate me on why the CPU would be a bottleneck? When I say I know nothing, it's the truth. Thanks!

 

[Arren]

Hi guys, i just wish to thank you first of all for all the great insight and help that this thread has provided. I was able to build my first PC by employing the components suggested here and, needless to say, it is such a satisfying sensation to see all that hard work producing so nice results. It's all thanks to your expertise and support.

I have a few quick questions which I hope you can assist me in resolving:

1) As I wrote also in the dedicated thread, my MSI GTX 970 seems affected by the coil whine problem. It really just creeped out during the Windows Experience Index process and I wonder if that's a reason justified enough to be worried. I haven't had time to test anything else, but it was fairly audible even though my closed XL R2 is supposed to be fairly soundproof. Can coil whine go away over time?

2) Can you recommend me a good chiclet-style keyboard? I love the Apple one, but that poses some difficulties in regards to entering the Bios, so I'd like some compact, quiet and preferably wired alternative.

3) My i7 4790k + Noctua Dh-15 sits at about 20C in idle. Is it a good temperature and should I be able to apply some small overclock, without fearing some long-term consequences?

Thanks in advance!

 

[riflen]

Now that the 970 hype had died down a bit, I'm hoping I can get some thoughts.

I'm currently running 2 7970GEs. They're good, but the constant lag in drivers and features, as well as performance issues with stuff like ENBs (I run a heavily modded Skyrim), make me think about switching to nVidia for the first time.

Would 2 970s be a large enough jump to justify an upgrade?

Just a heads up that a lot of games released in the last few months cannot support SLI because of engine incompatibility. Depending on what you want to play, this might leave a bad taste in your mouth. Adjust expectations accordingly.

 

[zero shift]

Well after all this time I finally found a setting to pass under a long term load in Prime95.

I downclocked to 4.4GHZ and updated the Bios (mine was really out of date).

However now I get two Bios flash screens before starting up for some reason...

I will still test for 4.5GHZ, but it is good to know that I have found something.

 

[Afro]

you guys are probably sick of these questions, but will my i7 3770 (non-k) bottleneck a 970? thanks.

 

[Addnan]

you guys are probably sick of these questions, but will my i7 3770 (non-k) bottleneck a 970? thanks.

no

 

[CyanideFuse]

I've had Windows 8 (and then upgraded to 8.1) installed on my SSD since it came out in late October 2012. It still boots from cold into Windows in 10-12 seconds. I refuse to use a computer at work without an SSD now

I never truly believed people when they said how good it would be for load times. On occasions I was almost put off loading my PC because it took so long.

 

[Goldenmoney]

The 750 TI actually has a lower TDP than the GT 545 which I am currently running overclocked which is OEM approved. Several people on the Alienware forums have run that successfully since it's release. The 750 TI definitely fits in the case, there's an empty slot for the fan if I buy the overclocked EVGA model.

There's been talk of the 970 working fine with the 330W PSU but they haven't been running it for very long, so I am more hesitant about that. Fitting this one in the case might take some mods, it's something I would have to look more into.

Thanks for the info on the RAM, 16GB isn't much more expensive, I'll probably just drop the money on them and if I ever need it I'll have it. Maybe only install one stick for now.

Edit: Could you educate me on why the CPU would be a bottleneck? When I say I know nothing, it's the truth. Thanks!

I mostly go by what I've read in this thread, that's where I get all my knowledge from lol. From what I've seen, clock speed or instructions per clock is the most important factor for gaming. It's why the 2500k is still a beast because it can overclock to 4.6 ghz, and it's why the overclockable pentium anniversary is the budget champion right now.

It looks like your cpu is locked to 3.0 ghz, so it could be a limiting factor for gaming.

 

[ab.aeterno]

Just a heads up that a lot of games released in the last few months cannot support SLI because of engine incompatibility. Depending on what you want to play, this might leave a bad taste in your mouth. Adjust expectations accordingly.

Thanks for the heads up. Though, I figure it can't be worse than CrossFire for support, which I am currently using.

 

[lt519]

I mostly go by what I've read in this thread, that's where I get all my knowledge from lol. From what I've seen, clock speed or instructions per clock is the most important factor for gaming. It's why the 2500k is still a beast because it can overclock to 4.6 ghz, and it's why the overclockable pentium anniversary is the budget champion right now.

It looks like your cpu is locked to 3.0 ghz, so it could be a limiting factor for gaming.

Right, I gathered as much, I just wasn't sure what that threshold for gaming was. Unfortunately I think going for a 2500k, especially overclocked, would put me into the upgraded PSU column which then just blows up the entire PC since I already need new RAM and a GPU. Hmmmm. Starting to lean towards blowing it all up...

 

[garath]

Well after all this time I finally found a setting to pass under a long term load in Prime95.

I downclocked to 4.4GHZ and updated the Bios (mine was really out of date).

However now I get two Bios flash screens before starting up for some reason...

I will still test for 4.5GHZ, but it is good to know that I have found something.

As a word of warning for the future, always be cautious when updating a BIOS. I never do so unless there is a very specific reason to. It is rarely a smooth process and a lot can go wrong, including bricking the motherboard.

 

[Damerman]

I'm looking for a used one, it's around $150 for a 3-9 month-old card in my city. Well, my budget is very limited for the moment. I'm not from the US, unfortunately.

I'll sell you a nearly 2 year(bought January 2013) old HIS IceQ 7950 for 120$ US dollars... if you wanna PM me, we can figure out how to go about it.

 

[zeroeffect]

EVGA 980s SC in stock at Amazon right now. Thinking about canceling my stock EVGA 980 and just ordering the SC for $20 more. Has a delivery estimate for me today - november 19th yet it no longer lists Amazon as a seller.

 

[Randam]

looking for a external soundcard, to hook my Astro A40s to.

 

[ipitydatfu]

well the gpu died. got myself a r260x

never knew how big my old 4870 is. RIP sweet prince. it was a great 6 years

 

[Bananajama]

Going back to the drawing board on my build
Abandoning the Red/Black theme and going for cost effectiveness...

 

[L.O.R.D]

just saw this photo

and that make me thinking

but not right now , maybe when DDR4 memory become more common

whats better , 3 monitors 1080P with 120 HZ or 3 1440P with 60 HZ ?
is there 120 HZ 1440P monitor ?
if i want to build this config with 3 1440P monitors and i want the performance to last long time
what cards , cpu should i get ?
is there a borderless monitors ? i hate those borders , or at least , i want a thin border monitors

i am noob in PC gaming , last PC i build was from 2006 ( i guess ) with NX 6600 GT ( AGP port )

 

[garath]

EVGA 980s SC in stock at Amazon right now. Thinking about canceling my stock EVGA 980 and just ordering the SC for $20 more. Has a delivery estimate for me today - november 19th yet it no longer lists Amazon as a seller.

I probably would. I like factory overclocks to boot.

 

[zeroeffect]

I went ahead and paid the extra $20 for the EVGA 980 SC on Amazon and canceled my stock 980 order. Just fyi if anyone is curious...the delivery estimate is November 10th with Prime shipping. Seems they have to process the order an extra day or 2 it says.

 

[Jakoozie89]

Allright, so I've ordered a msi gtx 970. My question is, will my stock i5 3570k be a bottle neck in newer games?

I do have the possibility of overclocking with my noctua nh d14, but I recently bought a fractal design r4 to try and make my PC as quiet as possible, and I won't have many fans in my case.

 

[zeroeffect]

It appears Amazon is running a free game promotion with that EVGA GTX 980 too. It said it in my order when I checked out. No idea what the game promotion is. I'd imagine if Newegg or someone is running one it's the exact same.

Just looked it up. It seems Ubisoft is running a promotion with them. You get a choice of FC4, AC:Unity, etc. Awesome! I planned on getting those anyway. Just saved me $60.

 

[Yudoken]

My rig:
i7 2600k
Zotac 560ti 2gb
2x2gb and 1x 4gb
Windows 7 x64
Arctic cpu cooler
MSI motherboard
Corsair 750W (full modular/silent)
(I'm not at home and don't know everything)

I want to overclock my processor to about 4,2ghz stable and under 75 under load but I somehow don't find a list which options has to be on/off/changed exactly.
I've already had it running on that clock but somehow hwmonitor told me that the voltage was about 1.35X and that's too high.

I have a click bios and it would br great if someone could help me out!
I'm gonna upgrade next year to a graphics card (probably 970) and SSD.

 

[Kevyt]

Question: Has anyone ever RMA'd something to Sapphire before?

I'm not sure what the protocols/guidelines for RMA are... but I RMA'd my Sapphire R9 290 Tri-x for a fan failure and coil whining after less than a month from purchase. Althon Micro took care of the issue (they're Sapphire's RMA apparently) and sent me in a 290 Vapor-X. The thing is that the 290 Vapor-X is in used condition. How do I know this? The card has dents and scratches all over front. Not to mention it seems someone took a marker and drew all over the backplate (Vapor-X cards have backplates). So the card looks like it's years old... Is this acceptable? I'm only asking because it seems like they give you a card that has been used that they have fixed when you want to replace your card. But I just emailed them back saying this was unacceptable. My Tri-X (aside from the dead fan, coil whine, and artifacts) was in much better physical condition. Heck it was in almost brand new condition! I'm not sure if anyone has had a similar experience. I hope Althon Micro understands where I'm coming from.

 

[Diomedes]

Hey, Ive been considering the following and wondering if I should go for it. Currently have a MSI 770 4GB and an Asus VE247H, could I reasonably get a MSI 970 4GB and an ROG Swift panel and experience the glory? Would there be any SLI issues to contend with having a 970 and a 770 in tandem? the DRAM should not be an issue since they're both 4 GB right? I don't know this side very well. Connection-wise, I'd nee two Displayport cables yes? or would DVI-Ds be sufficient? Any other issues I would need to watch out for?

Thanks.

 

[Kevyt]

Hey, Ive been considering the following and wondering if I should go for it. Currently have a MSI 770 4GB and an Asus VE247H, could I reasonably get a MSI 970 4GB and an ROG Swift panel and experience the glory? Would there be any SLI issues to contend with having a 970 and a 770 in tandem? the DRAM should not be an issue since they're both 4 GB right? I don't know this side very well. Connection-wise, I'd nee two Displayport cables yes? or would DVI-Ds be sufficient? Any other issues I would need to watch out for?

Thanks.

No, you can't SLI a 970 and a 770. They have to be the same cards, same family and same variation. For example you can't pair a 780 and a 980 in SLI. But you could have your 770 as a Physx dedicated card. Although, I would not advice that. For SLI, you would need two 770's (for a 770 SLI setup) or 970's (for a 970 SLI setup), doesn't matter which brand (MSI, gigabyte, etc..)

 

[axb2013]

Allright, so I've ordered a msi gtx 970. My question is, will my stock i5 3570k be a bottle neck in newer games?

I do have the possibility of overclocking with my noctua nh d14, but I recently bought a fractal design r4 to try and make my PC as quiet as possible, and I won't have many fans in my case.

Don't even worry about that CPU/GPU combo. You need to step down all the way into i-3's to start bottlenecking video cards. If you insist on overclocking that CPU, go for a 10% OC and call it a day.

 

[Diomedes]

No, you can't SLI a 970 and a 770. They have to be the same cards, same family and same variation. For example you can't pair a 780 and a 980 in SLI. But you could have your 770 as a Physx dedicated card. Although, I would not advice that. For SLI, you would need two 770's (for a 770 SLI setup) or 970's (for a 970 SLI setup), doesn't matter which brand (MSI, gigabyte, etc..)

Alright, good to know, thanks. Now time for a decision, hmm.

 

[Jakoozie89]

Don't even worry about that CPU/GPU combo. You need to step down all the way into i-3's to start bottlenecking video cards. If you insist on overclocking that CPU, go for a 10% OC and call it a day.

Alright, cool I don't actually want to overclock. I have done so before, but would prefer to keep temps, noise and watts down if possible. Sick of noisy components.

 

[opticalmace]

Alright, good to know, thanks. Now time for a decision, hmm.

Check out this article: http://www.anandtech.com/show/6994/nvidia-geforce-gtx-770-review (bearing in mind it's the 2GB version they review)

It looks like a 770 at 1440p can keep pretty decent frame rates at high-ish settings in most games they tested. Combining that with Gsync would probably work quite well, since Gsync is most effective in that 40~50 fps kind of range (very approximately). I would go for the monitor before the video card if I were you.

Won't work if you're a "maxed settings only" kind of person, but that's silly imho.

edit: apparently someone on gaf has a 770 4GB and an ROG Swift, you could ask him/her about it: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showpost.php?p=137474716&postcount=6948

 

[M.D]

Does anyone know if Gigabyte products (motherboards in particular) have international warranty?

 

[SuperSonic1305]

How long can I go without upgrading my i7930? I'm strongly considering impulse buying a 980. Will my cpu fall behind this gen?

 

[kennah]

Until you find it no longer acceptable. They don't expire.

 

[Fezan]

So how good is AMD 8320 black edition. I am getting it for $170 . Want to make a new pc with m9 270x

 

[kennah]

For $170 you may as well get an Anniversary Pentium and a better Gpu.

 

[kharma45]

Or an i3.

Don't go AMD just.

 

[The Bookerman]

Ok i have a question: i just switched gpu's : from a 560ti to a 970. For some odd reason, my windows 7 takes 5 to 8 seconds longer to boot(to login screen)

I have unistalled all of my drivers and the problem is still there. Installed all of them back, boot time unaffected.


Anybody got ideas?

 

[Couchaddict]

Ok i have a question: i just switched gpu's : from a 560ti to a 970. For some odd reason, my windows 7 takes 5 to 8 seconds longer to boot(to login screen)

I have unistalled all of my drivers and the problem is still there. Installed all of them back, boot time unaffected.


Anybody got ideas?

Power issue? Your 970 might be sucking more juice then the 560ti?

 

[DEATH™]

Guys, I am trying to build a rig to use next semester and I am totally confused and scared... please help.

Budget: 800-1000 dollars
Use: Mostly Digital Painting (Photoshop and Painter), Programming and AutoCAD. I just need it to be open for upgrades later on the line when I get more money and upgrade it for gaming later...
No Overclocking, well, not yet anyway lol.
Little twist, I might need Mac OSX on it (basically a hackintosh). My fam is so used to Mac that they can't go back but I need a Windows too, and I'm getting frustrated now at how expensive Macs are and how they aren't open to upgrades later.

I searched for hackintosh stuff and I'm willing to even go for 2 hard drives to make a dual boot system. I'm just confused on what specs do I go for both being a hackintosh and a good digital painting rig, considering corel painter eats alot of processing power and ram...

Also I do not know if I should just buy a already built PC since a family member pushes it out because of warranty, but I feel like I won't achieve the things I need in a long run...

 

[kennah]

Guys, I am trying to build a rig to use next semester and I am totally confused and scared... please help.

Budget: 800-1000 dollars
Use: Mostly Digital Painting (Photoshop and Painter), Programming and AutoCAD. I just need it to be open for upgrades later on the line when I get more money and upgrade it for gaming later...
No Overclocking, well, not yet anyway lol.
Little twist, I might need Mac OSX on it (basically a hackintosh). My fam is so used to Mac that they can't go back but I need a Windows too, and I'm getting frustrated now at how expensive Macs are and how they aren't open to upgrades later.

I searched for hackintosh stuff and I'm willing to even go for 2 hard drives to make a dual boot system. I'm just confused on what specs do I go for both being a hackintosh and a good digital painting rig, considering corel painter eats alot of processing power and ram...

Also I do not know if I should just buy a already built PC since a family member pushes it out because of warranty, but I feel like I won't achieve the things I need in a long run...

tonymacx86.com

Basically - Hackintosh works best with hardware the closest matches the production systems. For some reason Gigabyte motherboards work the best. Nvidia GPUS are a bit more solid on the platform than AMD ones are (though AMD stuff is starting to get more common).

You can handle your own warranty stuff. If anything goes wrong you just fill out forms or call the company for the component.

And you would be supporting your own hackintosh install anyway, I can't think of any prebuilt company that would support it.

 

[The Bookerman]

Power issue? Your 970 might be sucking more juice then the 560ti?

I got a 550w power supply. Should be enough from what i heard here?

 

[Damerman]

Will the H100i fit into the Rosewill Thor V2 case?

 

[axb2013]

I got a 550w power supply. Should be enough from what i heard here?

Not all 550W PSU's are the same. Some quality units with a higher efficiency rating can drive an SLI setup too. For a single GPU, even the not so great 550W PSU's are fine.