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[RGM79]

Looking to possibly upgrade mine and my wife's computers this season, since it's been a few years or so. I've always stuck with AMD CPUs and GPUs since they're so much cheaper, but every time I pop into one of these threads it feels almost exclusively Intel and Nvidia. Is the price difference really worth it? I pretty much only play Blizzard games on PC which are hardly intensive, so I certainly don't need to run AAA games on ultra at 60 fps.

Currently have:
AMD A6-3650 Llano Quad-Core 2.6 GHz Socket FM1
MSI A55M-P33 FM1 AMD A55 (Hudson D2) Micro ATX AMD Motherboard
MSI Radeon HD 7770 DirectX 11 R7770-PMD1GD5 1GB 128-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory
Plus a 460W PSU, 500gb HDD and 120gb SSD.

RAM should still be fine, but I'd really want to keep the CPU+Mobo+GPU under $500 since I'd be buying two of each. Or is the video card still okay and I'd benefit most from a new CPU? I really haven't kept up with what's what anymore, but I'm hitting all the links in the OP and researching my little heart out.

Didn't even know what those were until I looked them up but it's not something I'd use, so I'll probably stick with AMD. Thanks for the info!

Both computers are the same? I'd feel better if you could tell me what power supply you have (or take a picture of the PSU's side label) and what case you're putting the parts in so we know it will all fit and be compatible. However, I feel pretty safe recommending these parts:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($159.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Asus H81M-D PLUS Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($41.00 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB SSC ACX 2.0+ Video Card ($289.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $490.98
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-11-25 01:22 EST-0500

The R9 390 would be the GTX 970's direct competitor in the same price range. It does draw quite a lot more power than the GTX 970 and I would not feel comfortable recommending it for your computers when they only have 460 watt power supplies, though. Quite a few R9 390 cards are quite large as well and may or may not fit in whatever case you have.

Edit: I just realized that Amazon is out of stock on that graphics card. According to this Amazon page you can still put down an order and they still ship it once they get stock, but in case they don't honor the price, the next best GTX 970 to get for your budget would be this EVGA FTW model for $300 which as of last check is still in stock, or this Asus Strix model for $303 after rebate.

You didn't say what games you played exactly, but if you're not too big on graphics quality, then you could even just keep your existing graphics cards and save the money. A new CPU and motherboard will make everything feel faster and more responsive. It might even improve gaming performance substantially even paired with your old graphics cards, although it's hard to say for sure without specifics.

Or if you are interested in better looking graphics performance, then a cheaper graphics card around $200 would be in order, in which case you may want to consider the 4GB versions of the GTX 960 or R9 380.

Thanks for the feedback! The 970 is the Zotac GTX 970. The price seems to be wrong on the direct link to the page, their main page says that it is $100 off normal price:

http://www.canadacomputers.com/product_info.php?cPath=559&item_id=076658

Not the best GTX 970 in terms of clock speed and cooler, but it's hard to complain about the price. Most user reviews are very positive and average to a good score (4/5 on newegg and 4.6/5 on Amazon). Looks like a great deal.

Yeah, this actually worked. Honestly my only problem now is actually turning on the computer. I can't seem to get the power button to work. I did once, but then when I took out the GPU, they became unplugged and it hasn't worked since... Need to figure out where the power button cord goes.

Edit: Alright, it seems to not see the HDD there. I must have done something wrong.

Weird... My motherboard supports 24gb of RAM. I just installed them (made sure they were locked in tight), but it still says I only have 8 gb of RAM.

You got the computer to turn on but it doesn't detect the hard drive? Please ensure that the hard drive's power and data cables are plugged in and secure.

Was it dusty inside your PC? Perhaps there's some dust in the RAM slots.. clean them out carefully and reseat the RAM, maybe that will help. If not, then you'll need to do some trial and error - test each stick of RAM by itself, then use a known good stick of RAM to test each slot in turn.

 

[Xamdou]

So I Bought these SD 240gb ssd drive from http://www.bestbuy.com/site/sandisk...lack/3075012.p?id=1219570102967&skuId=3075012

How does it compare to this http://www.bestbuy.com/site/sandisk...lack/1160015.p?id=1219473300668&skuId=1160015

And the Samsung equivalent?

 

[Necrovex]

So I live in South Africa, and my Macbook Air died yesterday. Now I am in the market of finding a new stop-gap computer while I live in SA for a couple years (I'll get a new computer when I return to the states). If all goes well, I'll be getting insurance money, which will help me fund my computer.

But on the safe side, I want to factor it won't come in. I have been browsing computer that I can afford on my measly stipend. I want a Windows laptop that can play FO4, Witcher 3, and whatever comes out in the next two years. I don't need to play them on high setting, or even medium setting. I simply want to play them without the laptop blowing up. I found one computer, which may work, but I want to hear y'all's opinions first.

Lenovo laptop

This is the price range I am looking around, no more expensive than this, due to already pushing the budget to the max already.

 

[RGM79]

I would like to know if possible. Still following the Haz "Excellent-Overall" Build and what I should change from it.

Also, the router is in a very inconvenient place in my house. I forgot what the device is called but it allows your PC to have wireless internet, what do I buy to resolve this?

It's called a wifi adaptor. Here, I'll recommend a list of parts geared toward silence that has similar performance compared to the "excellent overall" build.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($299.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D15 82.5 CFM CPU Cooler ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus Z97-E/USB3.1 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-2400 Memory ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($147.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($50.15 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB SSC ACX 2.0+ Video Card ($289.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Fractal Design Define S ATX Mid Tower Case ($61.20 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA P2 650W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Wireless Network Adapter: Gigabyte GC-WB867D-I 802.11a/b/g/n/ac PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($25.50 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $1179.78
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-11-25 03:14 EST-0500

Edit: added the wifi adaptor that I forgot at first.

Is the price acceptable? If not, there are ways to bring down the cost like sticking with 8GB of RAM to start with, a smaller SSD, and/or getting a cheaper CPU cooler. I would have recommended the newer i7 6700K, but those are in short supply and priced at a ridiculous $400. Even the six core i7 5820K ($365) is cheaper than the quad core i7 6700K.

here's my rig:

Phenom 4x 965 BE 3.4ghz
8gb ddr3 1333
120 gb ssd corsair (which is dying, blue screen everytime, errors to copy and paste files)
GTX 680 2gb
2tb hdd seagate
win 7 64 bits

I don't have much money, something around 400$

How much is the i5 4670K costing you? Sorry, I realized I forgot the link for the motherboard, this is the Asus Z97-E for $80 after rebate at Newegg.

I'm looking into parts for a new computer and here's what I'm considering so far.

GPU: GTX 970
This one seems to be well-received, and $300 is kind of reaching my limit, especially with the 980 being around $200 more.

CPU: i5 6500
I'll be honest, I'm kind of guessing here. I picked this one because last time I got a CPU, which was 8 years ago, $200 got me the one that's still serving me today. This one also appears to be using Intel's newest architecture, Skylake, which from what I've read seems to be very well-received. Apparently the 6500 is a step down and $50 less than the earlier released 6600. What's the difference between the two of them? Is the 6500 worth using, or is it pointless to not just get the 6600 instead? The next one up seems to be the i7 6700, which is over $400 and way out of my price range.

Motherboard: I have no idea what to look for in a motherboard. I just searched Amazon for "LGA 1151" after the socket listed on the CPU, and I found a range of prices. This one is the cheapest, but I don't really know what that entails. Obviously I would need room for the video card and the memory. The GTX 970 card I'm looking at looks like it's double-wide so I assume it wouldn't fit in the one I linked that only has one PCI-E slot? Also, about the slots for memory, 16GB in the form of two 8GB cards in the $100 range seems to be widely available. Is there any reason I would need more than that? I'm not really sure what a good amount of memory is for new computers these days. Aside from the component slots and the various ports that would go on the outside, what else is there to consider in a motherboard.

I'm hoping to reuse as many parts as I can from my current computer. It's power supply is 500W. Will that be enough for these parts?

I can't really answer all of these with 100% certainty. I CAN say that I have a 1080 monitor that I'm satisfied with and don't have any intentions of replacing, and I also have no intention of overclocking. I don't know what SuperSampling or CUDA are. My main intended use is gaming.

Do you prefer to order from Amazon only, or are other retailers okay? To address your points..

That price for that model of GTX 970 isn't that great. There's the faster "FTW" version of that same graphics card for $300.

There's not a lot of difference between the i5 6500 and the i5 6600. They are literally just a small step in performance apart from each other (300MHz difference in maximum turbo speed). It's fine to get the 6500 if you want to save yourself $50. I wouldn't recommend you get the i7 6700 either, they're in low supply and overpriced at the moment. I don't see where the i5 6500 and 6600 are priced $50 apart, though. The difference is closer to $20~30.

A cheaper motherboard means less functionality, connectivity, and expandability, but performance is roughly similar across all motherboards. In other words, what motherboard you get determines what you can plug into it and what it can support in terms of peripherals. I wouldn't go for that Gigabyte motherboard, too many unknowns and it's possible that it is of cheap quality and poor design. Going off what few reviews there are, I would be inclined to recommend the Gigabyte GA-H170M-D3H ($78) or the ASRock H170 Pro4 ($84) as they appear to have the most positive user reviews and may be a good indicator of build quality (still too early to tell sometimes). The most important thing about a motherboard might be the connectivity - USB 3.1 and USB type C ports are becoming more common. You may want that, and it seems that you may have to spend more for a higher end motherboard to get that built in. Otherwise, there are add-in PCI-E cards that can also give you those ports.

You don't need to worry about the graphics card taking up two slots, that has nothing to do with the motherboard's layout. As long as there is a PCI-E slot, it will fit. What case you have will matter more about whether the graphics card fits or not. The EVGA is a fairly average-sized card, I feel fairly confident that it will fit your case unless it is unusually small. Yes, 16GB of RAM is quite enough for the majority of home users and I cannot really imagine a scenario where you would run into issues because 16GB wasn't enough. Can you tell us the exact model number of your power supply? In theory 500 watts is enough to cover your needs, but not all 500 watt power supplies are actually good or produce 500 watts for the important 12V voltage rail.

• ASRock H81M-ITX LGA 1150 Intel H81 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 Mini ITX Intel Motherboard
• Silverstone Raven Z RVZ02B-W mITX Case Window 1XODD 2X2.5IN 2XUSB3.0 1XPCI-E x16 No PSU - Black
• Silverstone SFX-SERIES SX500-LG 500W SFX-L Form Factor 12V 80PLUS Gold Modular Power Supply

Just need an LGA1150 mITX cooler. Any recommendations? $60 CAD or under, please.

Given the size of the case and how small the available space for a CPU cooler is (58mm) it looks like your best bet would be the Silverstone AR06 air cooler. It was pretty much made for that case in the first place. It's $48 from Directcanada, you can probably get NCIX to pricematch them.

Ugh, I'm having second thoughts about purchasing the 6600k now after the comments about games utilizing more cores. Where's the cheapest place to purchase a 6700? Everywhere I look it's like $430 to $450, which is quite obscene! Should I consider getting a Haswell i7? Wouldn't that mean I'd be stuck with an older chipset? Or will it not matter? Ugh, the confusion!

The i7 6700K is at a high price right now because it's been in low supply for months and retailers realized they could gouge customers by charging over $400 for it even when the MSRP is only $350.

The Haswell i7 4790K is an option. Sure it's an older chipset with a bit less connectivity and a CPU socket that is being phased out, but performance-wise it's quite hard to beat for how much it costs. Or consider the i7 5820K ($365) which is cheaper than the i7 6700K and has six cores and 12 processing threads.

Well in all practicality.. there's nothing wrong with the i5 6600K. Both the i5 6600K and i7 6700K are quad core processors, the only real difference of the i7 6700K is that it has hyperthreading. Sure, the i7 6700K can have a bit of a lead in certain games, but your i7 6600K isn't exactly going to be obsolete or woefully underpowered for the next several years. You can always overclock as well.

 

[Timedog]

What are the rumors for when Zen is coming out in 2016, and how much more powerful it'll be? I really want to bite the bullet and get a new cpu and mobo, but I can stand to wait til 2016 if I have to on my now approaching 7 year old cpu if the increased performance is really good over the top cpus right now.

Also, just bought a NZXT phantom 630, and need a graphics card (getting this right away). I'm thinking maybe a 390 because it's at least on par with 970 in dx11 if not better at around the same price, and may be significantly better in dx12 (cue outraged responses).

 

[RGM79]

What are the rumors for when Zen and Skylake (or whatever the new process shrink intel cpus are called) are coming out in 2016, and how much more powerful they'll be? I really want to bite the bullet and get a new cpu and mobo, but I can stand to wait til 2016 if I have to on my now approaching 7 year old cpu if the increased performance is really good over the top cpus right now.

Also, just bought a NZXT phantom 630, and need a graphics card (getting this right away). I'm thinking maybe a 390 because it's at least on par with 970 in dx11 if not better at around the same price, and may be significantly better in dx12 (cue outraged responses).

We know absolutely nothing. It's just too far away to know anything about next year's processors. Skylake just launched a few months ago and we only got concrete performance benchmarks for that at about the same time that it launched. We almost never know until actual review sites can get their hands on production processors to test. There was always some hearsay (mostly WCCFTech rumor mill) that Skylake was going to shake things up and be quite a strong leap over existing processors, but here we are again with the same slight gains that came with the last couple of generations.

So I live in South Africa, and my Macbook Air died yesterday. Now I am in the market of finding a new stop-gap computer while I live in SA for a couple years (I'll get a new computer when I return to the states). If all goes well, I'll be getting insurance money, which will help me fund my computer.

But on the safe side, I want to factor it won't come in. I have been browsing computer that I can afford on my measly stipend. I want a Windows laptop that can play FO4, Witcher 3, and whatever comes out in the next two years. I don't need to play them on high setting, or even medium setting. I simply want to play them without the laptop blowing up. I found one computer, which may work, but I want to hear y'all's opinions first.

Lenovo laptop

This is the price range I am looking around, no more expensive than this, due to already pushing the budget to the max already.

That laptop has Intel integrated 5500 graphics. See here for more info and test results but to put it short, Fallout 4 and The Witcher 3 are already unplayable even at the absolute lowest settings at 1024x768. This Acer laptop for 8000 Rand might do better because it does have an Nvidia 840M graphics chipset which is quite a bit more capable, but it also has a somewhat less capable i3 processor. According to the same website above the 840M may just prove barely capable of playing The Witcher 3 at the very lowest settings and resolution.

 

[Spikematic]

What does the rest of your build look like? Budget?

It's always a balance. Yes, an i7 would give you some improved performance.. but if that means you end up with a weaker video card then it'll likely perform worse overall. There are a lot of factors at play.

Here's my build:

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor
CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i GTX 70.7 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler (Already own)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170MX-Gaming 5 Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Superclocked ACX 2.0+ Video Card (Already own)
Case: Corsair Air 240 MicroATX Mid Tower Case (Already own)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA 1000G2 1000W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply (Already own)

The 6700k at the moment is going well beyond my budget.

The i7 6700K is at a high price right now because it's been in low supply for months and retailers realized they could gouge customers by charging over $400 for it even when the MSRP is only $350.

The Haswell i7 4790K is an option. Sure it's an older chipset with a bit less connectivity and a CPU socket that is being phased out, but performance-wise it's quite hard to beat for how much it costs. Or consider the i7 5820K ($365) which is cheaper than the i7 6700K and has six cores and 12 processing threads.

Well in all practicality.. there's nothing wrong with the i5 6600K. Both the i5 6600K and i7 6700K are quad core processors, the only real difference of the i7 6700K is that it has hyperthreading. Sure, the i7 6700K can have a bit of a lead in certain games, but your i7 6600K isn't exactly going to be obsolete or woefully underpowered for the next several years. You can always overclock as well.

The 6600k is costing me around $256 (tax included) over here, while the 6700k is costing me around $465 (it'll probably cost even more on newegg and Amazon after factoring in tax). As for the 5820k, that's costing me around $408 (here as well as in the US after tax). The 4790k is around $325 after tax.

So the 5820k is $152 more and the 6700k is $209 more. I think that's quite a lot of money, especially since I still need to buy a monitor. However, I COULD still increase my budget IF the difference in performance is going to be significant. But like you said, I could always overclock the 6600k and the differences in frame rates don't really look that high in the long run. Meanwhile, the 4790k is $69 more. But like you said, it's old and being phased out. Not sure how much that would impact me futureproofing wise. Hmmm!

 

[Necrovex]

That laptop has Intel integrated 5500 graphics. See here for more info and test results but to put it short, Fallout 4 and The Witcher 3 are already unplayable even at the absolute lowest settings at 1024x768. This Acer laptop for 8000 Rand might do better because it does have an Nvidia 840M graphics chipset which is quite a bit more capable, but it also has a somewhat less capable i3 processor. According to the same website above the 840M may just prove barely capable of playing The Witcher 3 at the very lowest settings and resolution.

Thanks for the answer. I'll avoid that laptop then. If I get my full claims on my Macbook, I'll have around 15K (rands) to spend. From the site I linked, would there be any that would do a sufficient job to play new games on a decent setting until 2018?

 

[RGM79]

Thanks for the answer. I'll avoid that laptop then. If I get my full claims on my Macbook, I'll have around 15K (rands) to spend. From the site I linked, would there be any that would do a sufficient job to play new games on a decent setting until 2018?

Depends on what you mean by "decent setting". I had a look through the catalogue for laptops costing 15000 Rands and less, and this Gigabyte laptop had the strongest graphics card among all of them, a Nvidia 760M. The notebookcheck website doesn't list any Witcher 3 benchmarks because it is an older graphics chipset, but you might be able to achieve a decent framerate at alright settings. This person on the Geforce forums reports that his customized settings at 720p plays at up to 40FPS. Of course, playing at lower settings should yield a better framerate, but by how much I cannot be certain. This youtube video shows a test run on laptop specs that are sort of similar to that of the Gigabyte laptop and it seems to run decently. Same processor and graphics chipset, but much more RAM installed. Not sure if that would make a difference.

In any case, I highly doubt it'd be very good for the next three years. A midrange desktop graphics card might even have some trouble lasting that long.

 

[RGM79]

Here's my build:

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor
CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i GTX 70.7 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler (Already own)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170MX-Gaming 5 Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Superclocked ACX 2.0+ Video Card (Already own)
Case: Corsair Air 240 MicroATX Mid Tower Case (Already own)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA 1000G2 1000W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply (Already own)

The 6700k at the moment is going well beyond my budget.



The 6600k is costing me around $256 (tax included) over here, while the 6700k is costing me around $465 (it'll probably cost even more on newegg and Amazon after factoring in tax). As for the 5820k, that's costing me around $408 (here as well as in the US after tax). The 4790k is around $325 after tax.

So the 5820k is $152 more and the 6700k is $209 more. I think that's quite a lot of money, especially since I still need to buy a monitor. However, I COULD still increase my budget IF the difference in performance is going to be significant. But like you said, I could always overclock the 6600k and the differences in frame rates don't really look that high in the long run. Meanwhile, the 4790k is $69 more. But like you said, it's old and being phased out. Not sure how much that would impact me futureproofing wise. Hmmm!

That's a pity. If you cut back on the CPU cooler, SSD, case, and power supply, you would have been able to afford the 6700K if you were willing to pay the exorbitant prices they're charging right now.

 

[Spikematic]

That's a pity. If you cut back on the CPU cooler, SSD, case, and power supply, you would have been able to afford the 6700K if you were willing to pay the exorbitant prices they're charging right now.

I actually managed to snag a very good deal for the power supply, that's the only reason I got a 1000w one instead of like 750. I actually wanted an matx build and this was the cheapest case available here. As for the cooler, I got a good deal for it as well, although I now kinda wish I had saved like $50 and gone for a Noctua air one instead. Oh well. I could hold off on the SSD for now and use that money to buy a better processor instead (since I already have a 250gb 840 evo I could install Windows and my main games on). But again, that'd boil down to how significant of a difference hyperthreading/extra cores will have on games in the near future.

 

[Necrovex]

Depends on what you mean by "decent setting". I had a look through the catalogue for laptops costing 15000 Rands and less, and this Gigabyte laptop had the strongest graphics card among all of them, a Nvidia 760M. The notebookcheck website doesn't list any Witcher 3 benchmarks because it is an older graphics chipset, but you might be able to achieve a decent framerate at alright settings. This person on the Geforce forums reports that his customized settings at 720p plays at up to 40FPS. Of course, playing at lower settings should yield a better framerate, but by how much I cannot be certain. This youtube video shows a test run on laptop specs that are sort of similar to that of the Gigabyte laptop and it seems to run decently. Same processor and graphics chipset, but much more RAM installed. Not sure if that would make a difference.

In any case, I highly doubt it'd be very good for the next three years. A midrange desktop graphics card might even have some trouble lasting that long.

My definition is "Being able to play on low setting without much technical issues due to bad specs."

If I get the full money requested, I'm eyeballing this particular laptop. The I7, 8GB of rams, and the graphic card seems decent (I have no idea what a good laptop graphic card is though).

 

[RGM79]

My definition is "Being able to play on low setting without much technical issues due to bad specs."

If I get the full money requested, I'm eyeballing this particular laptop. The I7, 8GB of rams, and the graphic card seems decent (I have no idea what a good laptop graphic card is though).

Huh, I went back to read your earlier post and just realized it said "around 15K". For some reason I thought it said "under 15k" so I only looked at those ones. I think I need to sleep now.

Yeah, the 960M is quite good and should work decently, then. Maybe still not "last for 3 years from now" good but not bad at all. In any case, The Witcher 3 and Fallout 4 are playable although TW3 may still require lower settings.

 

[UnrealEck]

Still stuck deciding between the AOC G2460PG and the Acer XB270HUbprz.

Not sure how long a 980 Ti can keep 80+ FPS up (or even 60 in some games) at 1440p without having to start turning down settings.
Plus the Acers seem to have major light bleed problems. I've never used an IPS display so I don't know much about it. From pictures, it looks pretty damn bad, especially when you consider why you bought IPS in the first place.

edit: looking at the O.G. ROG Swift (TN) now too. It's essentially the Acer, but with better quality control but not an IPS.

 

[Necrovex]

Huh, I went back to read your earlier post and just realized it said "around 15K". For some reason I thought it said "under 15k" so I only looked at those ones. I think I need to sleep now.

Yeah, the 960M is quite good and should work decently, then. Maybe still not "last for 3 years from now" good but not bad at all. In any case, The Witcher 3 and Fallout 4 are playable although TW3 may still require lower settings.

That may very well do the job then. Thanks for all the assistance!

 

[EatChildren]

My ASUS 1440p@60hz monitor came back from replay. On the plus side, the screen flickering (under certain conditions) is gone, the report citing replacement of the display. Seems it was just shitty.

Unfortunately the return unit isn't without problems either.
- 1 x traditionally dead/busted pixel near the top of the screen (tiny shimmer of red/green/blue visible on a black background)
- 2 x glowing pixels, one middle-left the other middle-bottom. Both only show up on white/light backgrounds, and the bottom one is particularly bright. They don't seem like dead pixels so much as a weird light glow from behind the monitor, but with a precise point.
- 1 x weird small smudge middle right. It's like a permanent mark on the monitor, as no amount of cleaning will remove it.

The question is: is this worth going through ASUS warranty service again? It was pretty painless last time, but mean, calling up and going "hey you fixed my issue, but now it's got shitty new problems, fix it again please" is gonna be annoying.

 

[pislit]

What's the best low profile heatsink that can handle overclocking?

 

[Celegus]

Both computers are the same? I'd feel better if you could tell me what power supply you have (or take a picture of the PSU's side label) and what case you're putting the parts in so we know it will all fit and be compatible. However, I feel pretty safe recommending these parts:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($159.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Asus H81M-D PLUS Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($41.00 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB SSC ACX 2.0+ Video Card ($289.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $490.98
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-11-25 01:22 EST-0500

The R9 390 would be the GTX 970's direct competitor in the same price range. It does draw quite a lot more power than the GTX 970 and I would not feel comfortable recommending it for your computers when they only have 460 watt power supplies, though. Quite a few R9 390 cards are quite large as well and may or may not fit in whatever case you have.

Edit: I just realized that Amazon is out of stock on that graphics card. According to this Amazon page you can still put down an order and they still ship it once they get stock, but in case they don't honor the price, the next best GTX 970 to get for your budget would be this EVGA FTW model for $300 which as of last check is still in stock, or this Asus Strix model for $303 after rebate.

You didn't say what games you played exactly, but if you're not too big on graphics quality, then you could even just keep your existing graphics cards and save the money. A new CPU and motherboard will make everything feel faster and more responsive. It might even improve gaming performance substantially even paired with your old graphics cards, although it's hard to say for sure without specifics.

Or if you are interested in better looking graphics performance, then a cheaper graphics card around $200 would be in order, in which case you may want to consider the 4GB versions of the GTX 960 or R9 380.

Thanks for the response! I was looking at the AMD FX 8350, but might go the Intel way after all. That thing doesn't look bad. GPU is probably a bit overkill, I'll keep an eye out for a 4gb 960 or R9 380. I really only play Heroes of the Storm, Diablo 3, Hearthstone, and Overwatch when that comes out. But the option to play other stuff will be nice, and perhaps finally comparable to a console. Checked some PSU calculators and 460 doesn't sound like quite enough, so that will probably also need replaced. The case is decent size but I've had it for over 10 years so I'm not opposed to a new one.

 

[RGM79]

What's the best low profile heatsink that can handle overclocking?

What case is this heatsink going in? What are the rest of your system specs? You'll likely want the largest air cooler you can fit into whatever build you're planning, or perhaps a water cooler may fit.

 

[Relix]

Is the 970FTW the best 970 Model?

Is it truly limited to 3.5 and how has this affected games?

 

[OriginofHysteria]

Does anyone know of any Black Friday/Cyber Monday deals upcoming for PC parts? Specifically GPUs (GTX 970 or GTX 980ti)

 

[Relix]

Ah fuck it, pulled the trigger. Got a 970GTX FTW on NewEgg for $300, includes either Ass Creed or the new Tom Clancy game.

 

[apieceofstrange]

So I think I'm getting close to pulling the trigger on this build:

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($399.99 @ NCIX US)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U12S 55.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($63.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming 7 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($169.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($82.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($147.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($69.75 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Superclocked+ ACX 2.0+ Video Card ($619.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($96.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($18.89 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit) ($84.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1845.54

I plan on buying all the parts on Newegg and Amazon.

One thing I keep going back and forth on is between the 6700K and the 5820K. Currently, the 5820K is $375 vs. $420 for the 6700K. Based on my research, most people are saying the 5820K is the way better value for the money. I'm still kind of leaning towards the 6700K because I feel it will be more future proof being a newer chip. Not sure what the right call is here.

Also, how is Gigabyte for motherboards? I know most people prefer ASUS, but I recently had an ASUS router die on me after less than a year so I am hesitant to give them money again. One thing that is kind of scary is that there seems to be an alarming amount of negative user reviews for almost every motherboard I have looked at, regardless of brand. The Gigabyte has the fewest negative reviews I have seen which is why I am leaning towards it.

Finally, with all the black friday promotions going on Newegg right now, is it safe to pull the trigger or would it be better to wait until it is actually Black Friday for potentially better deals?

 

[UnrealEck]

S
Also, how is Gigabyte for motherboards? I know most people prefer ASUS, but I recently had an ASUS router die on me after less than a year so I am hesitant to give them money again. One thing that is kind of scary is that there seems to be an alarming amount of negative user reviews for almost every motherboard I have looked at, regardless of brand. The Gigabyte has the fewest negative reviews I have seen which is why I am leaning towards it.

You're going to have issues with literally any brand. It's just luck of the draw.
ASRock, Gigabyte, MSI, ASUS, Biostar are all going to be as good as each other. I wouldn't put much value in the brand past maybe customer service. I'd look at the board's features, layout, warranty and price.

 

[Blitzhex]

So, the corsair link connection on the new RM850i PSU is pretty cool. TinyTomLogan says it's as accurate as his multi thousand dollar psu testing equipment.

Anyway my OC'd 4690k 4.6ghz at 1.28v and oc'd 980ti at 1440/7600 at 1.24v use 88-100 watts at idle with 87% efficiency.
At max load in Witcher 3 gpu at 99% and cpu at 90%~ the system uses about 400 watts at 92% efficiency. I could easily go SLI with this PSU. I'm kinda destroying its ripple suppression by using braided cable extensions though, since the caps in the cables need to be near the power inputs for maximum effect.

The psu is also dead quiet, runs at 33c the whole time and fans don't spin at all.
Love this thing, it has also got a 10/10 by johnnyguru.

 

[Durante]

One thing I keep going back and forth on is between the 6700K and the 5820K. Currently, the 5820K is $375 vs. $420 for the 6700K. Based on my research, most people are saying the 5820K is the way better value for the money. I'm still kind of leaning towards the 6700K because I feel it will be more future proof being a newer chip. Not sure what the right call is here.

There's absolutely no way a 6700K is ever going to be more "future proof" than a 5820K. The latter is quite simply a lot more CPU.

 

[Jeff Stephen]

So I picked up a new 1 TB drive to store my games library and am running my OS off an SSD. What would be recommended for my mechanical drive? Initalize as MBR or GPT?
Nvm.

 

[ncslamm]

Ok guys I wanted to post this here before I head into work. I figure that would give enough time for the gurus to come up with a few options. I'm looking to build my first gaming pc. I've never built one but I have a good understanding of how it's done. I figure if I run into any hiccups along the way then I can always ask you guys or check youtube.

Since this is a first time build I want to start somewhere in the middle ground as far as performance goes. I don't need the best of the best and all that. My main use for this PC will be games and maybe some video editing later on. I have no parts on hand, peripherals, accessories, or windows. I currently use a MBA for all of my school work but was just given access to MS Office 365 from the university so I can use this for projects and papers as well.

My budget for the parts is around $800. I would like to play Overwatch, CS:GO, Fallout, Skyrim, and the Blizzard games at 60fps on medium/high settings. You don't have to include windows in this price.

My budget for the accessories/peripherals is $400. This should include Keyboard (mechanical), mouse, and monitor (BenQ?). If there's room left in the budget then recommend a headset.

My budget isn't really a hard number but I would like to be in the ballpark. If it goes over the budget by $100 or so that's fine. Thanks in advance to anyone who responds.

 

[GiJoccin]

Quick question, I've been contemplating building a new pc, my current one is just over 4 years old. Based on the CPU conversation, I'm wondering if I should go for a GPU upgrade, and delay buying a new computer for maybe 2 years.

I've got an i5-2500k 3.3 ghz, 8 gb ddr3 ram, and a 1.28 gb gtx 570 graphics card (refurb, my first one died literally days before warranty ended)

Would it be worth it to drop 2-300 on a new GPU? I'd like to play witcher 3, which absolutely chugs on my current rig, and xcom 2

Currently eying http://m.newegg.com/Product/index?itemnumber=14-487-088 290 currently

 

[Chinbo37]

Ive got a logitech unifying receiver connected to a logitech MX anywhere mouse and a logitech keyboard (not sure which one I can confirm if necessary).

Ive had a weird issue the last couple months where when I start my computer and it goes to my password screen (windows 8.1), neither my keyboard nor mouse work. Nothing. I have to hard reset my computer using the case power button. When I start it again the keyboard and mouse work no problem.

Same thing everytime.

Anyone have any ideas of what is going on? I tried unpairing both devices and repairing them but it didnt change anything.

Any ideas?

 

[Dreams-Visions]

GAF, please help me make a decision here. I'm looking at the Black Friday deals and am looking at these 3 specifically:

http://www.microsoftstore.com/store...4-Curved-Monitor---U3415W/productID.313212500 3440x1440, 21:9 @ 34" - $700 tomorrow

http://www.microsoftstore.com/store...-Gaming-Monitor---S2716DG/productID.327395700 2560x1440, 144Hz, Gsync @ 28" - $600 tomorrow

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/samsung...lack/5484022.p?id=1219133600805&skuId=5484022 4K, FreeSync @ 28" - $350 tomorrow

Primary purpose will be gaming (75%), movie watching (15%) and web browsing. I have a high quality work/business monitor so it won't be for those sorts of applications. I've had several Dell monitors in the past and they've all been problem-free so my inclination is to stay with them unless a deal out there is flat out better by a company that makes monitors at the same level of quality.

I'm driving it with a 970FTW+ which is probably not enough to game at max resolution for the most demanding games so if I were going with the 4K, I'd play at a lower resolution until next year when I'd upgrade my whole system for something that's ready to handle VR. My primiary monitor is a 24" so I don't know what to think of a 34" even in concept. If anyone has had experience with these or similarly spec'd monitors I'd really appreciate the feedback.

Help me GAF, you're my only hope. I can buy all of them and return the ones I don't like if need be (free returns), but that just seems excessive.

 

[killertofu]

Posted this in the Buy/Sell thread but maybe here would be better:

Trying to compartmentalizae my computer, thus moving from an R4 to a Node 304.

I want to keep my i5 3750k so I'm looking for an accompanying mini ITX motherboard to slot it in.


Dooooes anyone here have one that they might want to get rid of?

 

[isamu]

Which day is typically known to have the best deals for PC parts....Black Friday or Cyber Monday? I'm particularly looking at NewEgg and Amazon.

 

[kennah]

Posted this in the Buy/Sell thread but maybe here would be better:

Trying to compartmentalizae my computer, thus moving from an R4 to a Node 304.

I want to keep my i5 3750k so I'm looking for an accompanying mini ITX motherboard to slot it in.


Dooooes anyone here have one that they might want to get rid of?

Having done something similar, don't bother. The z77 itx boards aren't all that great. While the z97 boards are amazing. Just sell your existing kit and upgrade!

 

[killertofu]

Having done something similar, don't bother. The z77 itx boards aren't all that great. While the z97 boards are amazing. Just sell your existing kit and upgrade!

I'm trying to just minimize the damage to my wallet as much as possible...

I essentially built it a few years ago to do freelance work but now that I work somewhere with a 5k iMac...I don't really see the point of it. So I kind of just want to make it into a storage hub.

Edit:
Seagate NAS HDD ST4000VN000 4TB 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s Internal Hard Drive http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=22-178-393

Is this the best price per gig I'll be able to find? I'm not really on par with HDD prices

 

[ISee]

Quick question, I've been contemplating building a new pc, my current one is just over 4 years old. Based on the CPU conversation, I'm wondering if I should go for a GPU upgrade, and delay buying a new computer for maybe 2 years.

I've got an i5-2500k 3.3 ghz, 8 gb ddr3 ram, and a 1.28 gb gtx 570 graphics card (refurb, my first one died literally days before warranty ended)

Would it be worth it to drop 2-300 on a new GPU? I'd like to play witcher 3, which absolutely chugs on my current rig, and xcom 2

Currently eying http://m.newegg.com/Product/index?itemnumber=14-487-088 290 currently

Right now your 2500k + a 970 should be enough to play all current games on High/ultra settings (FullHD/60fps). Especially if you OC your CPU a bit. Still in some games you'll hit your CPU limit (e.g. I am hitting high CPU loads in the Witcher 3 on my 3570k during certain situations). Upgrading to faster ram can help in those CPU bottleneck situations so this might be another tip for you to maximize your CPU performance if you decide to not upgrade it (going from ddr3 1600 to 2400 gave me around +7 fps during high load cpu situations in w3).

So right now you should be good. Are you future proof? No, but you could be able to hold out 12-18 more months.

 

[Dreams-Visions]

I'm trying to just minimize the damage to my wallet as much as possible...

I essentially built it a few years ago to do freelance work but now that I work somewhere with a 5k iMac...I don't really see the point of it. So I kind of just want to make it into a storage hub.

Edit:
Seagate NAS HDD ST4000VN000 4TB 64MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s Internal Hard Drive http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=22-178-393

Is this the best price per gig I'll be able to find? I'm not really on par with HDD prices

I think Seagate HDDs are still on the "questionable purchase" list.

Maybe someone else can confirm.

 

[Syril]

970: good choice.
CPU: 6500 is fine, but if you want extra longevity you should consider springing for the 6600K. It is faster and can be overclocked, meaning it'll last you longer. You would need to get a cooler to go with it (standard being the coolermaster hyper 212 evo).
Mobo: if you decide to go for the 6600K, you'll want a Z170 board. Someone else can give you some suggestions there.
RAM: 16GB is more than enough.

What PSU do you currently have? What make and what model?

It's an Antec Earthwatts EA-500D. I took a picture of the label in case I'm leaving anything out without realizing it.

Do you prefer to order from Amazon only, or are other retailers okay? To address your points..

I brought up Amazon mainly because I've bought computer parts from them before, and I've had good experiences with them with returns and replacements. I don't particularly have a problem with other stores, but for expensive purchases like these, I'd rather stick with B&M stores or online stores I've used before like Amazon or Newegg. That PCPartPicker site lists SuperBiiz, but I'm not familiar with that at all, and when I searched for comments about it, some of them were talking about them having a tendency to ship and charge for similar items when an item they ordered was out of stock.

That price for that model of GTX 970 isn't that great. There's the faster "FTW" version of that same graphics card for $300.

Ah, thanks for that. I wasn't really aware of the different models of that card.

There's not a lot of difference between the i5 6500 and the i5 6600. They are literally just a small step in performance apart from each other (300MHz difference in maximum turbo speed). It's fine to get the 6500 if you want to save yourself $50. I wouldn't recommend you get the i7 6700 either, they're in low supply and overpriced at the moment. I don't see where the i5 6500 and 6600 are priced $50 apart, though. The difference is closer to $20~30.

When I was looking on Amazon to start with, the price listed for the 6600 was $254 or so, but now it seems like they were just out of stock at the moment and put up the price of a third-party seller. It looks like the actual price is $230 though. Looking around some more, I also found that Micro Center sells the i5 6600k for $230. Now, I understand that the k means that it can be overclocked? I looked at a comparison between the 6600 and 6600k, and it looks like at its base level, the 6600k is very insignificantly better and also consumes significantly more power, so it seems that since I don't intend on overclocking, there's no real reason to get the 6600k over the 6600?

A cheaper motherboard means less functionality, connectivity, and expandability, but performance is roughly similar across all motherboards. In other words, what motherboard you get determines what you can plug into it and what it can support in terms of peripherals. I wouldn't go for that Gigabyte motherboard, too many unknowns and it's possible that it is of cheap quality and poor design. Going off what few reviews there are, I would be inclined to recommend the Gigabyte GA-H170M-D3H ($78) or the ASRock H170 Pro4 ($84) as they appear to have the most positive user reviews and may be a good indicator of build quality (still too early to tell sometimes). The most important thing about a motherboard might be the connectivity - USB 3.1 and USB type C ports are becoming more common. You may want that, and it seems that you may have to spend more for a higher end motherboard to get that built in. Otherwise, there are add-in PCI-E cards that can also give you those ports.

You don't need to worry about the graphics card taking up two slots, that has nothing to do with the motherboard's layout. As long as there is a PCI-E slot, it will fit. What case you have will matter more about whether the graphics card fits or not. The EVGA is a fairly average-sized card, I feel fairly confident that it will fit your case unless it is unusually small. Yes, 16GB of RAM is quite enough for the majority of home users and I cannot really imagine a scenario where you would run into issues because 16GB wasn't enough. Can you tell us the exact model number of your power supply? In theory 500 watts is enough to cover your needs, but not all 500 watt power supplies are actually good or produce 500 watts for the important 12V voltage rail.

Thanks for the information about motherboards. The ASRock one looks pretty solid, and from what I was reading the space between the PCI-E slots on it is a good thing. I also found this other Gigabyte one that has a USB Type C port, and the red USB port is apparently a special type that has power even when the computer is off.

 

[RGM79]

Is the 970FTW the best 970 Model?

Is it truly limited to 3.5 and how has this affected games?

Ah fuck it, pulled the trigger. Got a 970GTX FTW on NewEgg for $300, includes either Ass Creed or the new Tom Clancy game.

No, there are other models of the GTX 970 that are better, but $300 isn't a bad price for that model that you bought.

No, the GTX 970 isn't limited to 3.5GB of VRAM. It has 4GB of VRAM, but the first 3.5GB perform at full speed while the rest run at a much slower speed. If you want a more detailed explanation, read here. As far as I know, there are no games that the GTX 970 cannot handle specifically due to the 3.5GB VRAM design. Nvidia knew from the beginning and the GTX 970 was designed to at least try to prevent accessing the last 0.5GB of VRAM as much as possible. Guru3D tried to see what would happen with Shadow of Mordor's high VRAM usage on a GTX 970 and it was actually handled very well.

So I picked up a new 1 TB drive to store my games library and am running my OS off an SSD. What would be recommended for my mechanical drive? Initalize as MBR or GPT?
Nvm.

I don't think it really matters. GPT is the newer one that newer OS can read.

Ok guys I wanted to post this here before I head into work. I figure that would give enough time for the gurus to come up with a few options. I'm looking to build my first gaming pc. I've never built one but I have a good understanding of how it's done. I figure if I run into any hiccups along the way then I can always ask you guys or check youtube.

Since this is a first time build I want to start somewhere in the middle ground as far as performance goes. I don't need the best of the best and all that. My main use for this PC will be games and maybe some video editing later on. I have no parts on hand, peripherals, accessories, or windows. I currently use a MBA for all of my school work but was just given access to MS Office 365 from the university so I can use this for projects and papers as well.

My budget for the parts is around $800. I would like to play Overwatch, CS:GO, Fallout, Skyrim, and the Blizzard games at 60fps on medium/high settings. You don't have to include windows in this price.

My budget for the accessories/peripherals is $400. This should include Keyboard (mechanical), mouse, and monitor (BenQ?). If there's room left in the budget then recommend a headset.

My budget isn't really a hard number but I would like to be in the ballpark. If it goes over the budget by $100 or so that's fine. Thanks in advance to anyone who responds.

Here's a parts list that suits your needs.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($254.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170XP-SLI ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($109.89 @ OutletPC)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 970 4GB STRIX Video Card ($303.49 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($42.99 @ Micro Center)
Power Supply: XFX TS 650W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $866.32
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-11-25 16:42 EST-0500

I'm not much for peripherals, though. Hopefully someone else can chime in.

 

[RGM79]

Second post because the first one was getting long.

Quick question, I've been contemplating building a new pc, my current one is just over 4 years old. Based on the CPU conversation, I'm wondering if I should go for a GPU upgrade, and delay buying a new computer for maybe 2 years.

I've got an i5-2500k 3.3 ghz, 8 gb ddr3 ram, and a 1.28 gb gtx 570 graphics card (refurb, my first one died literally days before warranty ended)

Would it be worth it to drop 2-300 on a new GPU? I'd like to play witcher 3, which absolutely chugs on my current rig, and xcom 2

Currently eying http://m.newegg.com/Product/index?itemnumber=14-487-088 290 currently

Yeah, it'd be worth it. That card for $290 is a decent deal, that's the same price that the exact EVGA model was going for at Amazon yesterday when they sold out.

It's an Antec Earthwatts EA-500D. I took a picture of the label in case I'm leaving anything out without realizing it.

I brought up Amazon mainly because I've bought computer parts from them before, and I've had good experiences with them with returns and replacements. I don't particularly have a problem with other stores, but for expensive purchases like these, I'd rather stick with B&M stores or online stores I've used before like Amazon or Newegg. That PCPartPicker site lists SuperBiiz, but I'm not familiar with that at all, and when I searched for comments about it, some of them were talking about them having a tendency to ship and charge for similar items when an item they ordered was out of stock.

Ah, thanks for that. I wasn't really aware of the different models of that card.

When I was looking on Amazon to start with, the price listed for the 6600 was $254 or so, but now it seems like they were just out of stock at the moment and put up the price of a third-party seller. It looks like the actual price is $230 though. Looking around some more, I also found that Micro Center sells the i5 6600k for $230. Now, I understand that the k means that it can be overclocked? I looked at a comparison between the 6600 and 6600k, and it looks like at its base level, the 6600k is very insignificantly better and also consumes significantly more power, so it seems that since I don't intend on overclocking, there's no real reason to get the 6600k over the 6600?

Thanks for the information about motherboards. The ASRock one looks pretty solid, and from what I was reading the space between the PCI-E slots on it is a good thing. I also found this other Gigabyte one that has a USB Type C port, and the red USB port is apparently a special type that has power even when the computer is off.

That 500 watt PSU is a bit low but okay if you're sure you won't be wanting to overclock. We tend to recommend K model processors whenever possible because their ability to be overclocked allows them to be useful for longer before they feel outdated and need to be replaced, but if you'd rather save the money and not bother, then that's up to you.

That Gigabyte motherboard you linked to seems nice going by the specs, but the user reviews are a little iffy. Out of 9 newegg reviews, about half are positive and the other half is negative. Three negative reviews indicate that the motherboard was dead when they received it, and two others mentioned defective sound chipsets. There's a two star review at the Amazon link you posted that also mentions issues with the audio (phantom plugging and unplugging).

That red USB port you are talking about is for USB 3.1 which is a new version with faster speeds and extra features.

 

[pislit]

What case is this heatsink going in? What are the rest of your system specs? You'll likely want the largest air cooler you can fit into whatever build you're planning, or perhaps a water cooler may fit.

I'm planning to buy the DAN A4 case once it becomes available. So whatever that can fit on that. I will use the heatsink as of this moment on my i7-3770 mini-itx set-up until the case becomes available and I will use it on a brand new Skylake set-up.

My current HSF is cheapo Intel stock heatsink-like, so I'm just going to replace with a low profile one to be used later on on the Skylake.

 

[RGM79]

I'm planning to buy the DAN A4 case once it becomes available. So whatever that can fit on that. I will use the heatsink as of this moment on my i7-3770 mini-itx set-up until the case becomes available and I will use it on a brand new Skylake set-up.

My current HSF is cheapo Intel stock heatsink-like, so I'm just going to replace with a low profile one to be used later on on the Skylake.

That's a beautiful case. Overclocking in such a small case can be troublesome because of the limited space available. Normally I'd have to research for coolers that are specifically designed to be under 48mm in height which usually means not-so-great cooling performance.

Luckily, there's a HardOCP forum thread for the DAN A4 that tackles this issue. Scroll down to the cooling spoiler tag and click on it to display the test results for the best possible coolers for the case. They went out to find the best possible cooler setup paired with a low profile fan. Coolers that wouldn't normally fit in the DAN A4 with a standard fan but fits when mounted a certain way with a specific fan. It looks like overclocking is possible with a low profile cooler - the best one is the Cooltek LP53 paired with either a Noctua or Thermalright fan. It doesn't seem to be easy to be or available, though. Otherwise your best bet would be the Xigmatek or Silverstone coolers.

 

[pislit]

That's a beautiful case. Overclocking in such a small case can be troublesome because of the limited space available. Normally I'd have to research for coolers that are specifically designed to be under 48mm in height which usually means not-so-great cooling performance.

Luckily, there's a HardOCP forum thread for the DAN A4 that tackles this issue. Scroll down to the cooling spoiler tag and click on it to display the test results for the best possible coolers for the case. They went out to find the best possible cooler setup paired with a low profile fan. Coolers that wouldn't normally fit in the DAN A4 with a standard fan but fits when mounted a certain way with a specific fan. It looks like overclocking is possible with a low profile cooler - the best one is the Cooltek LP53 paired with either a Noctua or Thermalright fan. It doesn't seem to be easy to be or available, though. Otherwise your best bet would be the Xigmatek or Silverstone coolers.

Yeah, I went over the list of recommended low profile heatsink. Only the Noctua L9i, and the Xigmateks are available in my country (Philippines.) I actually do not have plans in overclocking knowing the size of the case and the ambient temperature of my country. However, ATM, there are no non-overclocking Skylake motherboards available for sale here, might as well buy a K-variant. But hopefully, when the case becomes available for purchase, the H(?) Skylake mobo might be available, so yeah I just want to buy the best low profile heatsink. I'd probably go with Xigmatek Praeton, this is good, yes?

I really like this case because I travel frequently with my PC, the volume is just perfect for a backpack as opposed to wielding a gymbag to the mountains. LOL.

 

[RGM79]

Yeah, I went over the list of recommended low profile heatsink. Only the Noctua L9i, and the Xigmateks are available in my country (Philippines.) I actually do not have plans in overclocking knowing the size of the case and the ambient temperature of my country. However, ATM, there are no non-overclocking Skylake motherboards available for sale here, might as well buy a K-variant. But hopefully, when the case becomes available for purchase, the H(?) Skylake mobo might be available, so yeah I just want to buy the best low profile heatsink. I'd probably go with Xigmatek Praeton, this is good, yes?

I really like this case because I travel frequently with my PC, the volume is just perfect for a backpack as opposed to wielding a gymbag to the mountains. LOL.

Seems kind of a waste to get a K model processor and the best possible cooler but buy an H series motherboard and not bother overclocking. Unless it costs that much more, consider buying a Z170 motherboard just to leave the option of overclocking available in the future.

The Praeton isn't as good as the Janus though, do you realize that? I'm not sure why you're asking for the best possible cooler if you're not interested in it. Does your existing heatsink fit in the DAN A4? You might as well save the money and keep using that instead if it already suits your purposes just fine and you aren't overclocking.

 

[Timedog]

What are some skylake mobos and ram I should be looking into. I'll do my own research too, but what are some ones that people seem to like?

 

[pislit]

Seems kind of a waste to get a K model processor and the best possible cooler but buy an H series motherboard and not bother overclocking. Unless it costs that much more, consider buying a Z170 motherboard just to leave the option of overclocking available in the future.

The Praeton isn't as good as the Janus though, do you realize that? I'm not sure why you're asking for the best possible cooler if you're not interested in it. Does your existing heatsink fit in the DAN A4? You might as well save the money and keep using that instead if it already suits your purposes just fine and you aren't overclocking.

I didn't know that Janusis better than Praeton, so Janus it is. My current cooler is shit (40 degrees Celcius browsing, office work, but goes up to 80 when playing games) though (no-name heatsink that I bought for cheap), so I have to buy a new one ASAP, might as well the one that I can use in the future.

 

[opticalmace]

What are some skylake mobos and ram I should be looking into. I'll do my own research too, but what are some ones that people seem to like?

IMO:
Gigabyte z170x-ud3
Asus z170-A
G.Skill DDR4-3000

 

[LQX]

What are some skylake mobos and ram I should be looking into. I'll do my own research too, but what are some ones that people seem to like?

Newegg has the ROG Hero for $185 after rebate. You can then get another $25 off if you use Visa checkout and if you have a Amex card there is the potential to get another $25 off if you add the Newegg offer to your card from the site. I don't think you will get a better deal on such good motherboard anytime soon. Buying mine to stash until the prices of the CPU's settle.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813132565

 

[Syril]

That 500 watt PSU is a bit low but okay if you're sure you won't be wanting to overclock. We tend to recommend K model processors whenever possible because their ability to be overclocked allows them to be useful for longer before they feel outdated and need to be replaced, but if you'd rather save the money and not bother, then that's up to you.

That Gigabyte motherboard you linked to seems nice going by the specs, but the user reviews are a little iffy. Out of 9 newegg reviews, about half are positive and the other half is negative. Three negative reviews indicate that the motherboard was dead when they received it, and two others mentioned defective sound chipsets. There's a two star review at the Amazon link you posted that also mentions issues with the audio (phantom plugging and unplugging).

That red USB port you are talking about is for USB 3.1 which is a new version with faster speeds and extra features.

So it looks like the main question for me right now is do I think I would potentially want to overclock. In that case, I should find out what it takes to be able to overclock and how much cost that would add. Let's suppose I get the 6600k and want to overclock with it. That needs a cooler right? What would be a recommended one? Would I also need a special motherboard for overclocking to work? How strong a PSU would I need?

 

[KissVibes]

Took about 8 total hours to build my new desk and then arrange monitors while finding long enough cords for them. I need to see if longer displayport cables exist and if theit quality depreciates the longer they are (maybe that's only optical cables haha)

Anyways, I had to put my new pg279q monitor in between my old ones because I don't have a long enough displayport cable. I'm scared to turn it on haha

Yo man, what is with those giant ass Yu-Gi-Oh pendants?