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"I Need a New PC!" 2015 Part 2. Read the OP. Rocking 2500K's until HBM2 and beyond.

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So, after that Firestrike/Oculus thread, I decided that I had a middling but very real interest in upgrading my PC. I still don't understand a lot of this stuff; I mostly relied on my cousin, but here's my current setup.

CPU: AMD FX-8320 Vishera

GPU: MSI R9 270

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-970A-UD3P

RAM: Adata 2x4GB DDR3

Storage: WD Blue 1TB (I also have an SSD, but I am having trouble getting it set up)

Power Supply: OCZ 700W (Not sure if this is the exact model)

Case: Thermaltake Chaser

Cooler: Enermax Liqtech 240

So my question is, if I wanted to upgrade the CPU and GPU, how high can I go before I have to replace other components?

For CPU, any upgrade would require replacing the motherboard. As RGM said, newer Intel chips would also require upgrading the RAM.

...but as I said in the other thread, if you only lightly game on PC and are satisfied with the performance you get right now, don't chase benchmarks just because they exist. If you're on a budget it's better to wait until you no longer get the performance you want, and then buy the best bang for the buck at that time. There are always new CPUs and GPUs on the horizon and cost/performance is always on the decline as more powerful parts are released.
 

Dahaka

Member
hey guys,

upgraded from DDR3 1333 to DDR3 2400. It shows 1200Mhz in CPU-Z. Shouldn't it show 800 and my mind tripple it? (as in DDR3)
 

RGM79

Member
hey all, are these video card and CPU temps ok for gaming under full load? PC feels hot and so does video card, but making sure. nothing is overclocked... I have a case fan on the side blowing air in and one on the back blowing air out.

VIDEO CARD IS A 6950

CPU IS AN I5 760
What CPU cooler do you have? The stock cooler? Is it dusty inside your PC?
 
hey all, are these video card and CPU temps ok for gaming under full load? PC feels hot and so does video card, but making sure. nothing is overclocked... I have a case fan on the side blowing air in and one on the back blowing air out.

VIDEO CARD IS A 6950

CPU IS AN I5 760

I think the radeon 6900 series has a max roof of 100c-105c if I'm not mistaken, so in that instance you should be fine at 77c. Anything over 85-90c would probably warrant a better aftermarket cooler and/or a reapplication of thermal paste for the heat sink just to be safe.

The processor is another story. I think 75c, especially judging by the hwmonito readings showing the cpu not even being at full load (disclamer: hwmonitor also has a problem of reading temperatures accurately from what I've seen, so your temps might not be accurate and could be off by a decent margin) could be a problem. I would think that a fresh coat of thermal paste and a decent aftermarket coolers could bring that temperature down by as much as 5-15C. It worked for me anyways. I was running at about 75c on my 4790k before I said, "Fuck it. It's time to reapply the thermal paste with my fumble fingers and "scared every second when I touch pc components mindset so just do it and get it over with" attitude, and my temperatures are around 65c-69c under full load when playing demanding games, so I must have done something right.

Will your cpu burn out over the next 6 hours? Probably not, but given my personal wariness and being super careful with owning a $2000+ computer (including monitor, keyboard and mouse costs of course) for the first time in OVER A DECADE, I stare at readouts and all the fancy numbers and readouts that various programs that display pretty much every facet of my computer's general status at any given time....I need to start playing more games and enjoy more of what my PC can offer in terms of overall entertainment.
 
I think the radeon 6900 series has a max roof of 100c-105c if I'm not mistaken, so in that instance you should be fine at 77c. Anything over 85-90c would probably warrant a better aftermarket cooler and/or a reapplication of thermal paste for the heat sink just to be safe.

The processor is another story. I think 75c, especially judging by the hwmonito readings showing the cpu not even being at full load (disclamer: hwmonitor also has a problem of reading temperatures accurately from what I've seen, so your temps might not be accurate and could be off by a decent margin) could be a problem. I would think that a fresh coat of thermal paste and a decent aftermarket coolers could bring that temperature down by as much as 5-15C. It worked for me anyways. I was running at about 75c on my 4790k before I said, "Fuck it. It's time to reapply the thermal paste with my fumble fingers and "scared every second when I touch pc components mindset so just do it and get it over with" attitude, and my temperatures are around 65c-69c under full load when playing demanding games, so I must have done something right.

Will your cpu burn out over the next 6 hours? Probably not, but given my personal wariness and being super careful with owning a $2000+ computer (including monitor, keyboard and mouse costs of course) for the first time in OVER A DECADE, I stare at readouts and all the fancy numbers and readouts that various programs that display pretty much every facet of my computer's general status at any given time....I need to start playing more games and enjoy more of what my PC can offer in terms of overall entertainment.
appreciate the notes. If I re-apply the paste on processor, do I

1. use rubbing alcohol to get the old paste off?
2. just put a small dot of paste down and dont spread it out? let the heat spread it out?
 

knitoe

Member
its been YEARS and i bought this PC off someone

Arctic mx-4 is cheap and performs well, but I doubt it will make much of any difference in your case. Your temps of 70-80C is not unusual with the Intel stock cooler. If you want to really lower the cpu temps, get a after market cooler.
 
You'll want to upgrade to an Intel processor and motherboard. If you want the latest generation of Intel parts, that means buying new DDR4 RAM as well. What you should get will depend on what your budget for new parts is.

For CPU, any upgrade would require replacing the motherboard. As RGM said, newer Intel chips would also require upgrading the RAM.

...but as I said in the other thread, if you only lightly game on PC and are satisfied with the performance you get right now, don't chase benchmarks just because they exist. If you're on a budget it's better to wait until you no longer get the performance you want, and then buy the best bang for the buck at that time. There are always new CPUs and GPUs on the horizon and cost/performance is always on the decline as more powerful parts are released.

Thank you both for your input and advice. I'll consider everything you have said. :]
 
Arctic mx-4 is cheap and performs well, but I doubt it will make much of any difference in your case. Your temps of 70-80C is not unusual with the Intel stock cooler. If you want to really lower the cpu temps, get a after market cooler.

whats a good aftermarket cooler to go after for that chipset?
 

Robso

Member
I have doubts about the quality of that power supply. That PSU can only deliver 27 amps total on the dual 12V rails, which equals 324 watts. And while it's called "gold", it doesn't even say "80 plus" which means it failed to meet the most basic efficiency requirement for power supplies.

I'll bare that in mind, thanks.
 

the21O

Neo Member
Whats the best z170 motherboard I can get in for $150 or less. Thanks for all the help guys, apparently being a procrastinator makes it really hard to keep up with prices.
 

aznpxdd

Member
Decided to mildly refresh my system from 4 years ago. Added another 500gb SSD from Sandisk, Inno3D GTX980 and moved my parts to the Corsair 750D.

Love the case, very room and easy to work with, and great for managing cable. Think I did a pretty good job with it!

bTTN49n.jpg


xIgQNBC.jpg
 

Raxanas

Neo Member
I'll bare that in mind, thanks.

Hello.You definately need a new PSU anyways.The current one is a chinese unit that does not have even the basic protections in it.
Before you buy a new GPU please buy a quality PSU otherwise you risk damaging your components.
Your options are EVGA Supernova 650W G2,Corsair RM650X
for the top!If you want something cheaper ask us
 

Finaika

Member
Decided to mildly refresh my system from 4 years ago. Added another 500gb SSD from Sandisk, Inno3D GTX980 and moved my parts to the Corsair 750D.

Love the case, very room and easy to work with, and great for managing cable. Think I did a pretty good job with it!

Good job, that's a clean build.
 

inner-G

Banned
I pulled the trigger!

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($259.57 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper TX3 54.8 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($13.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170XP-SLI ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($118.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport LT 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($45.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport LT 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($45.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Sandisk SSD PLUS 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($44.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB FTW ACX 2.0 Video Card ($338.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair 100R ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair RM 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG WH14NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($39.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit) ($89.88 @ OutletPC)
Keyboard: Logitech MK120 Wired Slim Keyboard w/Optical Mouse ($9.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $1188.31
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-01-06 04:51 EST-0500

Mix/matched it all through newegg and Amazon with 2-day so I should be playing with it this weekend!

Decided to mildly refresh my system from 4 years ago. Added another 500gb SSD from Sandisk, Inno3D GTX980 and moved my parts to the Corsair 750D.

Love the case, very room and easy to work with, and great for managing cable. Think I did a pretty good job with it!
Looks nice! ASUS p8p67 board? I had one of those it was damn solid.
 
Decided to mildly refresh my system from 4 years ago. Added another 500gb SSD from Sandisk, Inno3D GTX980 and moved my parts to the Corsair 750D.

Love the case, very room and easy to work with, and great for managing cable. Think I did a pretty good job with it!

Why is the PSU fan showing upside and not downside? Otherwise great build, I have the same chassis.
 
Decided to mildly refresh my system from 4 years ago. Added another 500gb SSD from Sandisk, Inno3D GTX980 and moved my parts to the Corsair 750D.

Love the case, very room and easy to work with, and great for managing cable. Think I did a pretty good job with it!

You'll get better cooling if you move the cooling fan to push through the cooler. The rear exhaust is plenty close enough to be your pull.
 
Should I be waiting for Polaris cards if I want to upgrade for VR devices? I'm still on the fence about the Rift and the Vive. Might end up waiting for both to be out before buying one.
 
2 questions:

I'm thinking of buying a new CPU cooler to overclock my bulldozer CPU, Is Zalman CNPS9700 LED a good choice? I can get it for pretty cheap, and seems to be fairly in line with the very popula 212 EVO?

Also, I have PC1333-9-9-9 RAM, would I gain much if at all by overclocking it to PC1600-11-11-11?
 

ISee

Member
Should I be waiting for Polaris cards if I want to upgrade for VR devices? I'm still on the fence about the Rift and the Vive. Might end up waiting for both to be out before buying one.

If you are satisfied with your current performance in games, then yes waiting for polaris/pascal is the way to go.
 

LilJoka

Member
Decided to mildly refresh my system from 4 years ago. Added another 500gb SSD from Sandisk, Inno3D GTX980 and moved my parts to the Corsair 750D.

Love the case, very room and easy to work with, and great for managing cable. Think I did a pretty good job with it!

CPU fan installed on the left for aesthetics? It needs to be in Pull config there, blowing to the rear exhaust. Conventionally installed on the right (push config) blowing air over the heatsink and out the rear exhaust.

2 questions:

I'm thinking of buying a new CPU cooler to overclock my bulldozer CPU, Is Zalman CNPS9700 LED a good choice? I can get it for pretty cheap, and seems to be fairly in line with the very popula 212 EVO?

Also, I have PC1333-9-9-9 RAM, would I gain much if at all by overclocking it to PC1600-11-11-11?

Nothing really, better off trying to tighten 1333Mhz timings to CL8.
Or atleast CL 9 1600Mhz.
 

ISee

Member
What is a 'good' USB 3.0 PCI-E expansion card?

Is PCI-E x1 fast enough or do I need something faster?
 
2 questions:

I'm thinking of buying a new CPU cooler to overclock my bulldozer CPU, Is Zalman CNPS9700 LED a good choice? I can get it for pretty cheap, and seems to be fairly in line with the very popula 212 EVO?

Also, I have PC1333-9-9-9 RAM, would I gain much if at all by overclocking it to PC1600-11-11-11?

The last Zalman I had was a pain in the ass to install. Quiet as a whisper, though. I ended up giving it away when I gave my Phenom CPU/mobo away. Too much hassle to reuse.

It was the round type Zalman, though...

 
Thanks for the replies, I'll keep the RAM at 1333-9-9-9 then. Could anyone explain why that's better than 1600-11-11-11 btw?

As for the cooler, I can get a Cooler Master Hyper TX3 or T4 at about the same price as the Zalman CNPS9700 LED. Would you recommend either? 212 EVO is out of the question, it's almost always out of stock and artificially costly where I live.
 

kennah

Member
Thanks for the replies, I'll keep the RAM at 1333-9-9-9 then. Could anyone explain why that's better than 1600-11-11-11 btw?

As for the cooler, I can get a Cooler Master Hyper TX3 or T4 at about the same price as the Zalman CNPS9700 LED. Would you recommend either? 212 EVO is out of the question, it's almost always out of stock and artificially costly where I live.
You want the first number to be high. And the second number to be low. CAs is the latency per clock (basically) on the ram.

A quick and dirty test is to divide the MHz by the CAs.

1333/9 = 148
1600/11 = 145

They perform almost the same.
 

Ceadeus

Member
You're in for a treat. Good luck with your build!


Thanks!

As you have the same card, would you please tell me what build you own and the result it achieves in games?

Because many YouTube video shows lower fps because of recording im not too sure about what im actually gonne get with this card and i5 4590 8gig 1600mhz.

Thank you
 
So guys i nave a r9 390, can i upgrade to the new driver suite? I need to do unistall something?


You could if you want, but an uninstall is not required.Once you're on the new radeon suite it will prompt you when new drivers are available and will allow you to update seamlessly.
 
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