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[BolognaOni]

ok, my MOBO is not compatible, can you recomend me another motherboard, and RAM set.

Edit: above advice is good. I'd misread and thought you had a 2500k (unlocked CPU).

 

[Wastwood]

Any other features that are important to you? This is a pretty old socket now, so you may have to go refurbished.

With a decent cooler (CM hyper 212 is popular), you should easily be able to overclock a 2500k above 4 GHz, and if you're going to buy a new MB, I would reccomend that. Mine is at 4.5, and I could do 4.8 if I wanted to push it.

As far as RAM, any set you can get for cheap that has decent reviews works. 2x4gb (8gb total) is plenty for that hardware.

I was thinking about getting a new MOBO, and getting a new processor, to get 1080p 60fps, for the new games, obviously i dont want to break the bank, but in 8-10 months buy a new system.

I just want to try and get 1080/60 without breaking the bank right now.

 

[RGM79]

I was thinking about getting a new MOBO, and getting a new processor, to get 1080p 60fps, for the new games, obviously i dont want to break the bank, but in 8-10 months buy a new system.

I just want to try and get 1080/60 without breaking the bank right now.

Just wait. Your PC is already on an discontinued socket and chipset, and existing Z97 will be supplanted by Skylake/Z170 which should be coming next month. Z170 processors and motherboards will be incompatible with existing Z97 parts, so just hold off for a few more weeks, unless you absolutely don't mind spending the money now.

Well, performance wise buying now is OK, but if you're interested in being a little more futureproof in terms of upgrades (Z170 being newer means it will be supported after Z97 becomes discontinued) and tech (DDR4, USB 3.1, USB type C, Thunderbolt, etc).

Buying Z97 parts would be cheaper, though. Z170 will mainly support DDR4 (with some limited DDR3 support) so going with Z97 means you would be able to reuse your existing RAM with a Z97 motherboard.

 

[Maiden Voyage]

I picked up a MX100 256gb SSD from the Prime Day sales. Would it be better to move my Windows 8.1 current install and then upgrade to 10 or just wait until 10 comes out and install the upgrade then? Or does it not really matter either way?

 

[Lockman_321]

Hi Gaf. Finally built my gaming pc!happy with it so far just have a question about the mouse. I really want a wireless mouse however the current Microsoft one I have seems to have some kind of intermittent problem. Is this a general problem for wireless mice or is mine broken?

Just wondering if I should steer clear from a wireless one as I mainly built the pc for first person shooters.

 

[kek_lel]

1.Anyone here owning an EVGA 960 sc (single fan version)? Thinking of getting the 4gb version. Does it feature the 0db tech? Unfortunately there are no reviews available :/

2.The thing is I need a powerful enough card for 1080p ~60fps with medium/console like settings that is shorter than 22cm. Im happy to turn down a few settings since I dont notice a huge difference in picture quality anyways. The new Battlefront is the next big game Im gonna play.

960 4gb or 380 4gb sufficient ?!

3.At first the 970 came to mind so I bought one.
Yet all 4 GTX970 I ordered I returned after running a few games mainly because of coil whine issues that annoyed me very much.
Is the 960 different from the 970?
Its both maxwell so I suppose coil whine and power noise buzzing is the maxwell legacy or sth so... ?

4. Coil whine is the most annoying thing ever. I gathered some info on the r9 285 and therefore r9 380 and concluded they are kind of immune to coil whine and buzzing?


I do appreciate opinions and help!

EDIT: Im on an i5 4690k with 8gb ram and do have a radeon hd4670 graphics card that has survived from ancient times

 

[Jeff Stephen]

I've had a bit of trouble putting together a new PC with a $900 budget which will be used mainly for 3D modeling and 2D animation. This also includes the cost of a monitor and each time I've always gone over before reaching the PSU. If it helps I live nearby Microcenter, anything you guys can put together would be greatly appreciated.

Your Current Specs: n/a
Budget: Price Range + Country - $900
Main Use: Rate 1-5. 5 being Highest:
Gaming - 3
Emulation (PS2/Wii) - 1
Video Editing - 3
Streaming games in HD - 3
3D/Model work - 5 (Maya)
General Usage (Word, Web, 1080p playback) - 4
Monitor Resolution: What resolution will you be playing your games at? - 1080p
Are you going to upgrade later? No
Are you buying a new monitor? - Yes
List SPECIFIC games or applications that you MUST be able to run well: Will mostly be using Maya and a few 2D animation programs.
When will you build?: Do you have a deadline? July 17th
Will you be overclocking?: No

 

[DPB]

1.Anyone here owning an EVGA 960 sc (single fan version)? Thinking of getting the 4gb version. Does it feature the 0db tech? Unfortunately there are no reviews available :/

I actually have that exact card. Unfortunately, it does suffer from coil whine, even with vsync on. It's not incredibly loud (it's usually drowned out by my speakers) but it's enough to make me regret my purchase.

AFAIK, almost all 960s and 380s switch their fans off when idle. As you said, I would probably get a 380 instead if it's less likely to suffer from coil whine, or at least avoid this particular 960.

 

[Jag]

Cheapest 240GB SSD I can get with good performance right this second?

You are in luck. The Crucial MX100 256gb is one of the few things on Prime sale right now. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KFAGCWK/?tag=neogaf0e-20

I'm personally going for the MX200 which is the higher end model and probably won't be on discount.

 

[RootCause]

is the corsair vengeance(not pro) good enough for gaming?

 

[kek_lel]

I actually have that exact card. Unfortunately, it does suffer from coil whine, even with vsync on. It's not incredibly loud (it's usually drowned out by my speakers) but it's enough to make me regret my purchase.

AFAIK, almost all 960s and 380s switch their fans off when idle. As you said, I would probably get a 380 instead if it's less likely to suffer from coil whine, or at least avoid this particular 960.

Thanks for your response.
Thats pretty sad to hear. Does it at least do well performance wise?

btw. here is how I came to that conclusion with a bunch of youtube videos:
GTX 960
Palit GTX 960 Super JetStream Noise test
MSI GTX 960 Gaming Noise test
Gigabyte 960 G1 GAMING Noise test

vs
R9 285
Sapphire R9 285 OC Noise test
ASUS STRIX DC2OC R9 285 Noise test

Computerbase: asus 285 vs some 960s
While the buzzing seems to be very low on these 285 models their fans are slightly louder. It is possible that there is buzzing on the 285 models but it is simply drowned out by the fans so this comparison is not 100% positive.

There are more cards to compare on this youtube channel like some 970s, 980s and more. Pretty interesting.

 

[hooijdonk17]

265 for sure. I'd go for a 270 if you can afford it though; it's AMD's fastest for a single 6-pin connector. A 270 is essentially double your 7700 in everything (Shaders, ROPs, bus width) so that makes it a good minimum upgrade card imo.

Yeah I just crunched all the numbers and both the R7 360 and R7 370 are terrible value for money at the moment. R7 265 and R9 270 are really sweet for the price/perf ratio.

Is there any difference between the 270 and 270X other than the clockspeed difference? Do they use different power connectors?

 

[DPB]

Thanks for your response.
Thats pretty sad to hear. Does it at least do well performance wise?

I haven't really used it much yet, I've only had it for a few days. My main reason for buying it was to replace a 660 which sounded horrible even when idle. That card was a cacophony of noises - a high pitch whine, hiss and drone, all at the same time. This does at least improve on that, but I'd be sending it back if I hadn't already cut the barcode off the box for a cashback offer.

 

[EscoBlades]

Budget? Sounds like Haswell-E might work nicely for you.

About $3500 CAD in total. What are the benefits of Haswell-E? Thanks for the help by the way.

 

[kek_lel]

I haven't really used it much yet, I've only had it for a few days. My main reason for buying it was to replace a 660 which sounded horrible even when idle. That card was a cacophony of noises - a high pitch whine, hiss and drone, all at the same time. This does at least improve on that, but I'd be sending it back if I hadn't already cut the barcode off the box for a cashback offer.

Ugh thats bad :/
Seems like I was lucky dodgeing this one since I wanted to take advantage of the current 25€ evga cashback offering on 960 graphics cards as well.
Good luck with your card though.

 

[Train of Midnight]

Any good PC component deals for Prime day?

 

[Duebrithil]

Since it's one of the deals on Amazon, is the Samsung 850 EVO 1TB a good replacement for a mechanical hard drive? It's seems like either Samsung or Crucial are the ones to get, but if there's a better alternative I don't mind holding up on this one.

 

[Jag]

Corsair Obsidian Series 750D on sale for $118. Was holding out for the Enthoo Pro which is $100 on Amazon. Not sure which one to get???

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EB6O4N8/?tag=neogaf0e-20

 

[kharma45]

Yeah I just crunched all the numbers and both the R7 360 and R7 370 are terrible value for money at the moment. R7 265 and R9 270 are really sweet for the price/perf ratio.

Is there any difference between the 270 and 270X other than the clockspeed difference? Do they use different power connectors?

270X has an extra connector so can deliver more power to the card, and therefore in theory OC better. In theory obviously since all chips aren't born equal, some will OC will some won't.

Since it's one of the deals on Amazon, is the Samsung 850 EVO 1TB a good replacement for a mechanical hard drive? It's seems like either Samsung or Crucial are the ones to get, but if there's a better alternative I don't mind holding up on this one.

It's fine, but I'm still iffy on Samsung TLC after the issues with the 840 and 840 Evo. You won't go wrong with Crucial either. Just get whatever is cheapest out of the 850 Evo, MX100, BX100 and MX200.

 

[Blitzhex]

Corsair Obsidian Series 750D on sale for $118. Was holding out for the Enthoo Pro which is $100 on Amazon. Not sure which one to get???

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00EB6O4N8/?tag=neogaf0e-20

The Enthoo is the better deal, in terms of price and functionality, but the 750D wins in terms of looks. Don't know about the Enthoo pro build quality, but my 350D is pretty sturdy, all metal except for the front panel.

 

[RootCause]

The Enthoo is the better deal, in terms of price and functionality, but the 750D wins in terms of looks. Don't know about the Enthoo pro build quality, but my 350D is pretty sturdy, all metal except for the front panel.

My pro arrived yesterday. It's built pretty well too.

 

[RootCause]

Should I cancel my Sandisk ssd 240GB for the MX100 256GB? Difference would be $13.

 

[Jag]

Should I cancel my Sandisk ssd 240GB for the MX100 256GB? Difference would be $13.

Sorry no idea, but your avatar compliments your post lol.

 

[Zoned]

Was looking for gtx 970 for 250$ or so but can't find anything. Although I can get r9 280x for 179$ shipped. Should I pull the trigger? Or should I go for 970?

 

[RootCause]

Oh, you!
Though, if anyone is still around. Please chime in. The sandisk drive is their latest(2015) entry level ssd(Ssd plus). Haven't seen much reviews for it. So I'm kinda concerned. Lol

 

[Jeff Stephen]

Oh, you!
Though, if anyone is still around. Please chime in. The sandisk drive is their latest(2015) entry level ssd(Ssd plus). Haven't seen much reviews for it. So I'm kinda concerned. Lol

Stick with whichever has a longer warranty I say. I picked up the 256GB MX100 last year, no complaints here.

 

[Jag]

Welp. I've had a number of things in my cart for my new build and got total purchase paralysis.

Think I'm going to wait a bit and see what happens with the new mobos next month. Trying to build this way is too stressful. Even for stock parts like cases and PSUs. The urge to impulse buy is so strong and just feels ... wrong.

 

[hitgirl]

Is there a cost efficient way to add a radiator and closed loop cooling system to a 980? Right now I'm running a h100i as an exhaust, 2 140mm fans as intake, with a Asus 780. So my rig is a bit setup for CPU cooling, though the 2 140mm fans as intake straight into what the graphics card sucks in is nice. I was thinking though of moving the emphasis on GPU cooling.

 

[RootCause]

Stick with whichever has a longer warranty I say. I picked up the 256GB MX100 last year, no complaints here.

It's got 3 year warranty. Probably the same as mx100?

 

[Sullichin]

Currently have 8GB of RAM. Decided to upgrade to 16GB and bought 2x 8GB Patriot Viper sticks:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00453R90W/?tag=neogaf0e-20

I was under the assumption that I only had 2 DIMM slots so I thought i'd be replacing my current RAM.. but I looked up my mobo and I have 4DIMM slots/32GB max memory. So I can have a needless 24GB RAM now...whatever!

What's the best arrangement for 24GB RAM with 2x4GB sticks and 2x8GB sticks? I should just put the pairs next to each other right?

 

[opticalmace]

Currently have 8GB of RAM. Decided to upgrade to 16GB and bought 2x 8GB Patriot Viper sticks:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00453R90W/?tag=neogaf0e-20

I was under the assumption that I only had 2 DIMM slots so I thought i'd be replacing my current RAM.. but I looked up my mobo and I have 4DIMM slots/32GB max memory. So I can have a needless 24GB RAM now...whatever!

What's the best arrangement for 24GB RAM with 2x4GB sticks and 2x8GB sticks? I should just put the pairs next to each other right?

Usually alternate, check your mobo manual. They're often colour coded as well.

 

[Kayant]

It's got 3 year warranty. Probably the same as mx100?

Iirc i think its the same personally would still go crucial because of the brand and reputation, reviews of that line of SSD. In terms of ram like you said earlier it really doesn't matter in terms of gaming. Ram does little to performance at most speeds with the exception of integrated/apu graphics where it matters. So go with the one you like best/warranty.

 

[Alucrid]

It looks like one of the front USB ports on my fractal r5 is dead. I'm assuming it's the port itself since the other working port shares then same wire connecting to the motherboard? Anyone know how easy it as to replace?

 

[King Gilga]

You think the xbone wireless controller adapter will work on 360 controllers as well? Or no chance?

 

[Sullichin]

Usually alternate, check your mobo manual. They're often colour coded as well.

Thanks! Now that I think about it, I think they are color coded on my mobo.

 

[Felix Lighter]

You think the xbone wireless controller adapter will work on 360 controllers as well? Or no chance?

It's not impossible but I doubt it.

 

[Jag]

How is this SAMSUNG 850 EVO MZ-75E500B/AM 2.5" 500GB SATA III for $150 via Newegg and Ebay for a desktop gaming build?

 

[RGM79]

How is this SAMSUNG 850 EVO MZ-75E500B/AM 2.5" 500GB SATA III for $150 via Newegg and Ebay for a desktop gaming build?

Great price. Hard to pass up an offer like that.

You think the xbone wireless controller adapter will work on 360 controllers as well? Or no chance?

I am 99% sure it requires a different adaptor. They're not even interchangeably sync-able on the consoles, so it seems unlikely to work that way for PCs.

It looks like one of the front USB ports on my fractal r5 is dead. I'm assuming it's the port itself since the other working port shares then same wire connecting to the motherboard? Anyone know how easy it as to replace?

I replaced the USB 2.0 ports on my Define R3 with a USB 3.0 kit for the Define R4. Works just fine. It was a bit of a pain to pry off the old front panel kit, I don't remember exactly how it went other than that it required a bit of prying but a quick search shows that there are guided repair videos for what you want to do. NCIX used to carry the USB upgrade/repair kits for Fractal cases, but not anymore, it seems.

Was looking for gtx 970 for 250$ or so but can't find anything. Although I can get r9 280x for 179$ shipped. Should I pull the trigger? Or should I go for 970?

What are your specs, your budget, and what kind of performance are you looking for? The 280X and GTX 970 aren't in the same performance bracket, so to speak.

 

[j-wood]

Will this be an upgrade from my asrock p67 extreme4?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CRJUG10/?tag=neogaf0e-20

If so, will current 2600k work with it?

 

[kharma45]

Will this be an upgrade from my asrock p67 extreme4?

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00CRJUG10/?tag=neogaf0e-20

If so, will current 2600k work with it?

Your 2600K won't. You need a socket 1155 board. What makes you want to upgrade?

 

[j-wood]

Oh damn, I forgot mine was 1150. Nothing really, my pc is still good. That mobo is just an upcoming deal and I was curious.

 

[kharma45]

I wouldn't upgrade a motherboard just for the sake of it.

 

[Jag]

Great price. Hard to pass up an offer like that.

I know, my first purchase today. Almost bit on the Corsair Obsidian 750D too, but decided to hold out for the Enthoo Pro for less money.

 

[Kayant]

About $3500 CAD in total. What are the benefits of Haswell-E? Thanks for the help by the way.

Something like this -

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3GHz 6-Core Processor ($478.32 @ Amazon Canada)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D15 82.5 CFM CPU Cooler ($109.95 @ Amazon Canada)
Motherboard: MSI X99S SLI Plus ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($249.99 @ NCIX)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($149.99 @ Memory Express)
Storage: Crucial BX100 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($209.98 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Toshiba 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($114.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Superclocked+ ACX 2.0+ Video Card ($884.99 @ Memory Express)
Case: Phanteks PH-ES614PC_BK ATX Full Tower Case ($139.99 @ Amazon Canada)
Power Supply: EVGA 850W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($162.59 @ NCIX)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSB0 DVD/CD Writer ($14.88 @ Canada Computers)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 OEM (64-bit) ($164.99 @ Memory Express)
Sound Card: Creative Labs Sound Blaster Zx 24-bit 192 KHz Sound Card ($139.99 @ Canada Computers)
Monitor: BenQ XL2420Z 144Hz 24.0" Monitor ($329.99 @ Canada Computers)
Monitor: BenQ XL2420Z 144Hz 24.0" Monitor ($329.99 @ Canada Computers)
Total: $3480.63
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-15 13:50 EDT-0400

The benefit for you would be the extra CPU cores which should help in your very high end streaming and video editing . In terms of gaming there isn't as much benefit especially because of the default clock speeds but you have a great CPU cooler and an overclock able chip - So overclock that beast!.

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/intel-core-i7-5960x-haswell-e-cpu,review-33029-5.html
http://www.anandtech.com/show/8426/...view-core-i7-5960x-i7-5930k-i7-5820k-tested/5

Some things to note -

Is the sound card really needed? Sounds is on motherboard is quite good for majority of users. You can drop that to save more money if not needed.

The DVD/CD writer is another thing that isn't really needed if the only thing you need it for is to install the OS. You can do that will a USB.

In terms of Windows you can try to get to you can get it for a lot cheaper by going through reddit -

Windows 7/8.1 licenses can be bought from reddit's microsoftsoftwareswap for $20 USD or less. These are most likely legitimate keys that are resold from educational programs like Technet or Dreamspark. However, you are dealing with a person instead of a retailer, and informal Windows keys sales are not approved by Microsoft and probably breaking some licensing agreement, but it's not illegal. The risks involved are that the person could be selling you a fake or used key, or that Microsoft may refuse to give you support and/or deactivate your license and refuse to reactivate it. That's not very likely, usually it only happens if the seller and their list of sold keys was caught. We've had people here using those keys without issues for a long time and others who say Microsoft deactivated their key after several months.

Alternative build with Devil's Canyon -

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($402.89 @ Newegg Canada)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D15 82.5 CFM CPU Cooler ($109.95 @ Amazon Canada)
Motherboard: MSI Z97M Gaming Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($179.99 @ NCIX)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Z Series 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($245.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Storage: Crucial BX100 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($209.98 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Toshiba 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($114.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Superclocked+ ACX 2.0+ Video Card ($884.99 @ Memory Express)
Case: Phanteks PH-ES614PC_BK ATX Full Tower Case ($139.99 @ Amazon Canada)
Power Supply: EVGA 850W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($162.59 @ NCIX)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSB0 DVD/CD Writer ($14.88 @ Canada Computers)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 OEM (64-bit) ($164.99 @ Memory Express)
Sound Card: Creative Labs Sound Blaster Zx 24-bit 192 KHz Sound Card ($139.99 @ Canada Computers)
Monitor: BenQ XL2420Z 144Hz 24.0" Monitor ($329.99 @ Canada Computers)
Monitor: BenQ XL2420Z 144Hz 24.0" Monitor ($329.99 @ Canada Computers)
Total: $3431.19
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-15 14:19 EDT-0400

Probably more optimisations can be made to reduce to price but I will leave you with people more familiar with the Canada market.

 

[Phanatic8390]

How is this SAMSUNG 850 EVO MZ-75E500B/AM 2.5" 500GB SATA III for $150 via Newegg and Ebay for a desktop gaming build?

Just snagged this.

Anyone have suggestions for install? Take the time for a clean OS install or just clone? It's been at least 3 years since I last did a fresh install.

And if cloning is the Samsung software good?

 

[Stubo]

Just thought I'd post a quick note that the Noctua NH-D15S is definitely worth a look for anyone considering the regular NH-D15

The heatsink is offset on the S model to solve the compatibility issues with the top PCI slot, which is an important consideration for some motherboards, especially when you're looking at X99 boards. You can also add another fan to maintain the level of performance if you wish.

 

[Jag]

Just snagged this.

Anyone have suggestions for install? Take the time for a clean OS install or just clone? It's been at least 3 years since I last did a fresh install.

And if cloning is the Samsung software good?

I always do a clean OS install and keep the storage drive intact.

 

[Phanatic8390]

I always do a clean OS install and keep the storage drive intact.

Yeah that's what I'm leaning towards. Can I just do a fresh install on the SSD and then plug my HDD back in and transfer files that way?

I've got 512 GB HDD so everything will fit. At least it would be faster through SATA and then I could format my HDD after everything is set up for additional storage.

 

[pureIsometric]

Can anyone help us out. I want to build a quiet small form factor gaming + programming pc with a budget of €2000.

 

[Willectro]

Just thought I'd post a quick note that the Noctua NH-D15S is definitely worth a look for anyone considering the regular NH-D15

The heatsink is offset on the S model to solve the compatibility issues with the top PCI slot, which is an important consideration for some motherboards, especially when you're looking at X99 boards. You can also add another fan to maintain the level of performance if you wish.

Wow, that's a great change to an already stellar product. It's still overkill for most, but definitely a good premium upgrade.