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[QuantumSquid]

Sorry about that yes larger size, thank you. Does these series of mice have any complementary keyboards? Or do you have any additional recommendations as well?

You won't find a good mouse with a free keyboard thrown in.

As for keyboards, I don't know nearly as much about them as I do about mice but a CM Storm Quickfire XT with your choice of several types of Cherry MX switch will do the job just fine for $80. Alternatively buy a cheap Logitech non-mechanical for $15 somewhere, they're fine too. Just not as nice and tactile as mechanicals.

 

[Sydle]

Would like some advice on refreshing anything in my current build from early 2013. I've never upgraded a computer and there's a possibility I'll get into VR later this year and I plan on transitioning away from Xbox One as MS makes their games available on Windows 10, so I'm just wondering which parts I should consider to replace if I want to make it through this year and next running great looking games.

Any input is greatly appreciated! Thank you. : )

CPU: Intel i7-3770K @ 3.5
Heatsink: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo 82.9
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4
Memory: Samsung 16GB DDR3 1600
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD7850 2GB
Power Supply: Seasonic M12II 620 Bronze

 

[LilJoka]

Would like some advice on refreshing anything in my current build from early 2013. I've never upgraded a computer and there's a possibility I'll get into VR later this year and I plan on transitioning away from Xbox One as MS makes their games available on Windows 10, so I'm just wondering which parts I should consider to replace if I want to make it through this year and next running great looking games.

Any input is greatly appreciated! Thank you. : )

CPU: Intel i7-3770K @ 3.5
Heatsink: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo 82.9
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4
Memory: Samsung 16GB DDR3 1600
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD7850 2GB
Power Supply: Seasonic M12II 620 Bronze

Overclock the i7 3770k, 4.2Ghz should be very easy at 1.2v or lower.
Samsung Green ram? That should hit 2133Mhz easy 1.5-1.6v CL11.

GPU of choice that fits budget is all thats needed, GTX 970/980Ti or wait for Pascal.

PSU is fine to keep.

 

[QuantumSquid]

Would like some advice on refreshing anything in my current build from early 2013. I've never upgraded a computer and there's a possibility I'll get into VR later this year and I plan on transitioning away from Xbox One as MS makes their games available on Windows 10, so I'm just wondering which parts I should consider to replace if I want to make it through this year and next running great looking games.

Any input is greatly appreciated! Thank you. : )

CPU: Intel i7-3770K @ 3.5
Heatsink: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo 82.9
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4
Memory: Samsung 16GB DDR3 1600
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD7850 2GB
Power Supply: Seasonic M12II 620 Bronze

Your system is fine except for the graphics card. 2GB of VRAM doesn't cut it for certain current games; it certainly won't for games coming out in 2016 and beyond.

Your current card is AMD so I assume you like them over NVIDIA. Pick up an R9 390 8GB and you should be set for a good while.

If going NVIDIA for your next card doesn't bother you then a GTX 970 will be fine too. Right now your video card is the only thing holding your performance back.

 

[Sydle]

Overclock the i7 3770k, 4.2Ghz should be very easy at 1.2v or lower.
Samsung Green ram? That should hit 2133Mhz easy 1.5-1.6v CL11.

GPU of choice that fits budget is all thats needed, GTX 970/980Ti or wait for Pascal.

PSU is fine to keep.

Your system is fine except for the graphics card. 2GB of VRAM doesn't cut it for certain current games; it certainly won't for games coming out in 2016 and beyond.

Your current card is AMD so I assume you like them over NVIDIA. Pick up an R9 390 8GB and you should be set for a good while.

If going NVIDIA for your next card doesn't bother you then a GTX 970 will be fine too. Right now your video card is the only thing holding your performance back.

Thank you both!

Not married to AMD, just found a good deal on it way back when. I think I've read that NVIDIA is more energy efficient, so I'd be fine going with it.

 

[QuantumSquid]

Thank you both!

Not married to AMD, just found a good deal on it way back when. I think I've read that NVIDIA is more energy efficient, so I'd be fine going with it.

Sure, just make sure that if you get an NVIDIA card, you uninstall all of your AMD drivers completely before installing the proper NVIDIA ones.

 

[Hands of Stone]

http://imgur.com/a/NQVQg

New pics.

Everything turns on but no video.

Anything obvious I'm missing?

 

[LilJoka]

http://imgur.com/a/NQVQg

New pics.

Everything turns on but no video.

Anything obvious I'm missing?

I don't know your specs but did you plug the display into the back of the GPU and not the motherboard outputs?

Edit wiring looks ok
Just make sure the ram stick furthest from the CPU is fully pushed in and check the GPU power plugs are clicked in all the way.

 

[Hands of Stone]

I don't know your specs but did you plug the display into the back of the GPU and not the motherboard outputs?

Edit wiring looks ok
Just make sure the ram stick furthest from the CPU is fully pushed in and check the GPU power plugs are clicked in all the way.

Tried out both hdmi slots, still nothing. Ram is fully in

 

[Muffin Awesome]

You won't find a good mouse with a free keyboard thrown in.

As for keyboards, I don't know nearly as much about them as I do about mice but a CM Storm Quickfire XT with your choice of several types of Cherry MX switch will do the job just fine for $80. Alternatively buy a cheap Logitech non-mechanical for $15 somewhere, they're fine too. Just not as nice and tactile as mechanicals.

Sorry doesn't have to be free, just do they have a matching set or anything like that? Thanks again.

 

[LilJoka]

Tried out both hdmi slots, still nothing. Ram is fully in

Monitor input correct? Try another cable?
Any motherboard LEDs to give you a clue?

 

[FletchKenn]

I spent $1000 on my pc build in 2008 I replaced the motherboard and processor but it still runs well. I went from a quadcore to a duo and sometimes it doesn't run as good as the old quad.

 

[Hands of Stone]

Monitor input correct? Try another cable?
Any motherboard LEDs to give you a clue?

Nah no LED's.
Tried two other cables as well, no dice.

I've also tried doing using 1 stick of ram and nothing.

 

[Kayant]

In the UK what is the best place to go for prebuilt stuff. I got a build for a friend for about £651 with pcspecialist - http://pastebin.com/qDftYRW1

Case
CORSAIR CARBIDE SERIES™ 200R COMPACT GAMING CASE

Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i5 Quad Core Processor i5-4460 (3.2GHz) 6MB Cache

Motherboard
ASUS® H81M-PLUS: Micro-ATX, LG1150, USB 3.0, SATA 6GBs

Memory (RAM)
8GB Kingston DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz (1 x 8GB)

Graphics Card
4GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 970 - 2 x DVI, HDMI, DP - GeForce GTX VR Ready!
Free Item: FREE RISE OF THE TOMB RAIDER with select GTX 9 Series GPUs!

1st Hard Disk
1TB SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 32MB CACHE

Power Supply
CORSAIR 650W VS SERIES™ VS-650 POWER SUPPLY

Processor Cooling
INTEL STANDARD CPU COOLER

Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING

Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)

Wireless/Wired Networking
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)

USB Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 4 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS

Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)

Operating System
NO OPERATING SYSTEM REQUIRED

Office Software
NO OFFICE SOFTWARE

Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE

Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)

Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)

Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 7 to 9 working days

Is there anywhere that can offer better parts at about the same price? Max budget of about £660.

Thanks

 

[LilJoka]

Nah no LED's.
Tried two other cables as well, no dice.

I've also tried doing using 1 stick of ram and nothing.

Remove the GPU and try onboard video.

 

[LostMyNarbles]

Can anyone look at my Mini-ITX built and/or give me some opinions on going the Mini-ITX route? I'm moving my setup around and am considering going from my big tower to a smaller case that I can just put on my desk. It's partly about wanting to conserve space and also I've been thinking that I don't really take advantage of having a big tower anyway as I only have two storage drives, no CD drive, and the case has only two fans since 1 broke.

The two biggest things I'm worried about are cooling, and making sure my current GPU fits into a new case. I ran the parts through pcpartpicker, but wanted to ask here for opinions. All of the parts in the build below are what I'm using in my current comp except I added the Motherboard and Case I'd like to use.
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/QbqcJx

 

[Hands of Stone]

Remove the GPU and try onboard video.

Tried that as well and nothing.

I still have the Hyper 212 on, you reckon I should remove it and either realign it or go back to using the stock cooler?

 

[opticalmace]

Tried that as well and nothing.

I still have the Hyper 212 on, you reckon I should remove it and either realign it or go back to using the stock cooler?

Have you tried DVI or VGA?

 

[LilJoka]

In the UK what is the best place to go for prebuilt stuff. I got a build for a friend for about £651 with pcspecialist - http://pastebin.com/qDftYRW1



Is there anywhere that can offer better parts at about the same price? Max budget of about £660.

Thanks

Its a fair price for a build with a few compromises:
Cannot overclock the CPU
PSU is ok but not amazing
Only a single ram module, ideally you would have pairs
You don't know what version 970 you are getting not hard disk. Most gigabyte g1 and MSI gamer 970 overclock to match 980's so it can make a difference. And reliability in terms of hard disk brand might be important to you.
Pretty good for the money though in terms of raw performance today. Just not as future proof as it could be. Consider spending more to save money later.

 

[Hustler]

Your Current Specs: i7 920 2.7hz / 6GB 1600 Ram Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD4P ATX LGA136 motherboard / gtx 275 / 600w psu / full size case/ 500gb HD.
Budget: Price Range + Country
Main Use: Gaming
Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080. Don't care about 4K or VR.
Looking to reuse any parts?: Will build new computer in the end, but piece by piece.

On order: Msi gtx 970 4GB(Pcpartpicker said its compatible with current MB). 256gb Samsung ssd.

A few questions:

Do I need to upgrade my motherboard? It lists 24GB capability on ram. I have 6 slots and 3 2 gig sticks now.
Should I upgrade my ram or get 3 more 2 gig sticks of the same kind for a total of 12 gigs?
In the next month, I'll buy a new cpu, an i5 or i7-4760k. Pcpartpicker also said its compatible with my current MB.

 

[LilJoka]

Can anyone look at my Mini-ITX built and/or give me some opinions on going the Mini-ITX route? I'm moving my setup around and am considering going from my big tower to a smaller case that I can just put on my desk. It's partly about wanting to conserve space and also I've been thinking that I don't really take advantage of having a big tower anyway as I only have two storage drives, no CD drive, and the case has only two fans since 1 broke.

The two biggest things I'm worried about are cooling, and making sure my current GPU fits into a new case. I ran the parts through pcpartpicker, but wanted to ask here for opinions. All of the parts in the build below are what I'm using in my current comp except I added the Motherboard and Case I'd like to use.
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/QbqcJx

Have you considered the Node 304?
Switch to the RMx 650W PSU
Really should try get low profile ram and ideally 2x8gb 1866 ddr3 CAS 10.
If you go with this case consider something from noctua's range for down facing CPU cooling.

You don't need to worry about cooling more than any other build.

It fits 320mm gpu length, yours is 270mm so that's fine.

Your Current Specs: i7 920 2.7hz / 6GB 1600 Ram Gigabyte GA-EX58-UD4P ATX LGA136 motherboard / gtx 275 / 600w psu / full size case/ 500gb HD.
Budget: Price Range + Country
Main Use: Gaming
Monitor Resolution: 1920x1080. Don't care about 4K or VR.
Looking to reuse any parts?: Will build new computer in the end, but piece by piece.

On order: Msi gtx 970 4GB(Pcpartpicker said its compatible with current MB). 256gb Samsung ssd.

A few questions:

Do I need to upgrade my motherboard? It lists 24GB capability on ram. I have 6 slots and 3 2 gig sticks now.
Should I upgrade my ram or get 3 more 2 gig sticks of the same kind for a total of 12 gigs?
In the next month, I'll buy a new cpu, an i5 or i7-4760k. Pcpartpicker also said its compatible with my current MB.

Really you should sell the tripple channel kit and buy a 2x8gb kit. After X58 we have gone to dual and quad channel, so you will want pairs of modules not tripples.

i7 4790k is socket 1150, it is not compatible with X58 socket 1366, you need a socket 1150 (z97) board for any Intel CPU with range 4xxx.

 

[zer0das]

I just wrapped putting in my new motherboard and CPU, overclocking, and getting all my files/software back onto my hard drive. Putting on an aftermarket cooler is an interesting experience if you're doing it for the first time. I'm going to keep my i5-6600k at 4.2 GHz for now, though I think I could hit 4.5 GHz and keep it stable pretty easily. My temperatures even under a prolonged stress test are quite low.

So now I just have to wait for Polaris and Pascal to hit and get a new GPU.

 

[e90Mark]

I just wrapped putting in my new motherboard and CPU, overclocking, and getting all my files/software back onto my hard drive. Putting on an aftermarket cooler is an interesting experience if you're doing it for the first time. I'm going to keep my i5-6600k at 4.2 GHz for now, though I think I could hit 4.5 GHz and keep it stable pretty easily. My temperatures even under a prolonged stress test are quite low.

So now I just have to wait for Polaris and Pascal to hit and get a new GPU.

Congrats! Your 6600k will probably go farther. I'm at 4.5 @ 1.2. It's a great OC'er. Past that, I need more voltage.

What aftermarket cooler are you using?

 

[Kayant]

Its a fair price for a build with a few compromises:
Cannot overclock the CPU
PSU is ok but not amazing
Only a single ram module, ideally you would have pairs
You don't know what version 970 you are getting not hard disk. Most gigabyte g1 and MSI gamer 970 overclock to match 980's so it can make a difference. And reliability in terms of hard disk brand might be important to you.
Pretty good for the money though in terms of raw performance today. Just not as future proof as it could be. Consider spending more to save money later.

Yh that's what I though also. I don't think he's too worried about futureproofing but he does hope to maybe get a rift at some point. The CPU should be good right? That's one thing am not 100% sure on.

Yh actually forgot about hard disk. As long as it's from a decent brand it should be fine but like you said we don't know :/.

 

[Hands of Stone]

Have you tried DVI or VGA?

Nah nothing.

Once again I'm removing the Hyper 212 and placing the stock cooler again. That's really where all my problems began.

The whole reason being my cpu was overheating when playing newer games, like up to 95C.

 

[zer0das]

Congrats! Your 6600k will probably go farther. I'm at 4.5 @ 1.2. It's a great OC'er. Past that, I need more voltage.

What aftermarket cooler are you using?

Coolmaster Hyper 212 EVO. Boring, I know.

 

[Hands of Stone]

All these damn problems got me looking into a new CPU, I originally was gonna go for the i5 4590 as I could get it for a pretty good price since I live near a MicroCenter.

If the overheating problems persist I'm gonna go for it.

 

[Hustler]

Really you should sell the tripple channel kit and buy a 2x8gb kit. After X58 we have gone to dual and quad channel, so you will want pairs of modules not tripples.

i7 4790k is socket 1150, it is not compatible with X58 socket 1366, you need a socket 1150 (z97) board for any Intel CPU with range 4xxx.[/QUOTE]

Which motherboard would you recommend? I've seen a lot of asus hero vi and vii boards. Not worth getting ddr4 now right?

 

[SonicXtreme]

i built my computer (big tower) in early 2013 and it's getting a little sluggish, what upgrades do you think would give me the biggest bang for the buck? i'm not looking to be top end, but i could spend @ 150ish each on a CPU and GPU if they would be worth it (admittedly ideally i'd like to spend 100-130 on each if it would give me a noticable boost). would upgrading my motherboard make a difference or could i find pairings in cpu and gpus that would give me a big boost without bothering? again, this was made in jan 2013, so wondering if comprable picks from today's market would be worth doing.


CORSAIR CX 600W 80+ BRNZ ATX PSU (for reference)

GIGABYTE GTX650OC 2GB PCIE DDHV
GIGABYTE GA-970A-UD3 AM3+ ATX
AMD BOX AMD FX-4100 BLACK ED
CORSAIR 8GB 2X4 D3 1600 C9 DIMM

suggestions? i'll go to microcenter tomorrow if i get any good ones lol.

is this r9 what i would want? it's right in my price range so if that would be a big boost i'd def get it. sold out at my store though.

http://www.microcenter.com/product/424756/Radeon_R9_280x_3GB_DDR5_PCIe_Video_Card

is that d3 ram really holding me back? i haven't kept up with comp stuff for a few years

 

[Dick Justice]

Testing out Acronis True Image, and I'm curious about something. It offers an option to create recovery media in case of corruption or drive failure. Is that needed if I already have my original OS installation CD?

Also, I'm trying to install Windows 10 as a dual-boot OS alongside my current Win 7 installation. I use the media creation tool to create bootable media on my flash drive. However, after entering the product key and completing the install, it prompts a restart. When that happens, I get something exactly like this:

I tried with 8.1 (that's my original extra OS, before upgrading it to 10), but same result. In fact, with 8.1, it prompted me to remove my F: drive, which is an internal SSD. Unless it detected it differently due to being a new OS? Nevertheless, still ended up with the blue screen.

 

[General Lee]

i built my computer (big tower) in early 2013 and it's getting a little sluggish, what upgrades do you think would give me the biggest bang for the buck? i'm not looking to be top end, but i could spend @ 150ish each on a CPU and GPU if they would be worth it (admittedly ideally i'd like to spend 100-130 on each if it would give me a noticable boost). would upgrading my motherboard make a difference or could i find pairings in cpu and gpus that would give me a big boost without bothering? again, this was made in jan 2013, so wondering if comprable picks from today's market would be worth doing.


CORSAIR CX 600W 80+ BRNZ ATX PSU (for reference)

GIGABYTE GTX650OC 2GB PCIE DDHV
GIGABYTE GA-970A-UD3 AM3+ ATX
AMD BOX AMD FX-4100 BLACK ED
CORSAIR 8GB 2X4 D3 1600 C9 DIMM

suggestions? i'll go to microcenter tomorrow if i get any good ones lol.

is this r9 what i would want? it's right in my price range so if that would be a big boost i'd def get it. sold out at my store though.

http://www.microcenter.com/product/424756/Radeon_R9_280x_3GB_DDR5_PCIe_Video_Card

is that d3 ram really holding me back? i haven't kept up with comp stuff for a few years

You could probably get an FX-8350 for that AM3+ mobo which should be a decent upgrade. I haven't checked AMD cpu compatibility situation lately so I'd check first if your old mobo supports it.

A 280X is a decent GPU, but honestly a 390 or even a used 290 would a big jump in terms of performance and a better deal.

The RAM is still perfectly fine for a system like that even after the upgrades.

 

[mullet2000]

Hi guys, two quick questions.

I'm thinking of going from a GTX 970 (Asus) to a GTX 980 Ti (undecided which brand).

Firstly, I was looking at dimension sizes and I think I understand the answer to this already, but just to be sure - is there much of a size difference between the two cards? I ask because my 970 doesn't leave much room in my case as it is.

Secondly, I'm currently using a Bronze 600w PSU with my current build (i5 4690, ASUS Z87-A ATX LGA1150 motherboard, 8 GB of RAM). Would I still be good going from the 970 to 980 ti? Not planning to do any overclocking.

 

[SonicXtreme]

You could probably get an FX-8350 for that AM3+ mobo which should be a decent upgrade. I haven't checked AMD cpu compatibility situation lately so I'd check first if your old mobo supports it.

A 280X is a decent GPU, but honestly a 390 or even a used 290 would a big jump in terms of performance and a better deal.

The RAM is still perfectly fine for a system like that even after the upgrades.

thank you after a little more research i'm leaning towards this gpu (due to availability at microcenter at the moment lol)

http://www.microcenter.com/product/441660/GeForce_GTX_770_2GB_PCIe_Video_Card_(REFURBISHED)

8350 a little pricey upgrade, i was debating maybe a 6300 since that'd only be about $90, but i have to do more research to see if they'd be worth dropping down money from my 4100 black....the GPU seems to be a huge upgrade for sure, just debating if i really wanna spend more than $100 for the cpu too lol, esp since microcenter always bundles cpu/mobos which, even though it shouldn't, is annoying because i dont feel the need to upgrade my mobo for those kinds of parts but spending money on a cpu means one would be $40 cheap so i feel lame not taking advantage of it lol. good to know not to mess with the ram though, that 770 should really kick things up i think!

 

[BPoole]

I just upgraded from a 2500k to a 6600k and I am a bit underwhelmed.

Is there really this little small of an improvement in the past 5 years since I bought the 2500k?

 

[longdi]

It is a 23% increase on cpu physics, sounds about ok-ish.

 

[RGM79]

thank you after a little more research i'm leaning towards this gpu (due to availability at microcenter at the moment lol)

http://www.microcenter.com/product/441660/GeForce_GTX_770_2GB_PCIe_Video_Card_(REFURBISHED)

8350 a little pricey upgrade, i was debating maybe a 6300 since that'd only be about $90, but i have to do more research to see if they'd be worth dropping down money from my 4100 black....the GPU seems to be a huge upgrade for sure, just debating if i really wanna spend more than $100 for the cpu too lol, esp since microcenter always bundles cpu/mobos which, even though it shouldn't, is annoying because i dont feel the need to upgrade my mobo for those kinds of parts but spending money on a cpu means one would be $40 cheap so i feel lame not taking advantage of it lol. good to know not to mess with the ram though, that 770 should really kick things up i think!

A GTX 770 2GB model for $180 isn't worth it. You can get the newer GTX 960 or R9 380 4GB models for a little bit more and performance-wise they're slightly better. Some of those cards require rebates to come close to $190, though. However, those newer cards will benefit more from future driver updates while Kepler-based graphics cards like the GTX 770 are already on the wayside. Plus, that GTX 770 only has a 90 day warranty. The extra cost of a newer graphics card is much more worth it for the warranty and better performance.

Hi guys, two quick questions.

I'm thinking of going from a GTX 970 (Asus) to a GTX 980 Ti (undecided which brand).

Firstly, I was looking at dimension sizes and I think I understand the answer to this already, but just to be sure - is there much of a size difference between the two cards? I ask because my 970 doesn't leave much room in my case as it is.

Secondly, I'm currently using a Bronze 600w PSU with my current build (i5 4690, ASUS Z87-A ATX LGA1150 motherboard, 8 GB of RAM). Would I still be good going from the 970 to 980 ti? Not planning to do any overclocking.

Different graphics cards have different lengths. There are twin and triple fan versions of the GTX 980 Ti which range from 270~320mm in length, which is quite a difference from your Asus Strix GTX 970 which is 280mm long. If you're looking for compact models, I think MSI or EVGA's models of the GTX 980 Ti are better suited for you.

If you're not overclocking, a 600 watt power supply should be fine. What model and brand is it, though?

Testing out Acronis True Image, and I'm curious about something. It offers an option to create recovery media in case of corruption or drive failure. Is that needed if I already have my original OS installation CD?

Also, I'm trying to install Windows 10 as a dual-boot OS alongside my current Win 7 installation. I use the media creation tool to create bootable media on my flash drive. However, after entering the product key and completing the install, it prompts a restart. When that happens, I get something exactly like this:

http://i.stack.imgur.com/37dHQ.jpg

I tried with 8.1 (that's my original extra OS, before upgrading it to 10), but same result. In fact, with 8.1, it prompted me to remove my F: drive, which is an internal SSD. Unless it detected it differently due to being a new OS? Nevertheless, still ended up with the blue screen.

The recovery media is just something that boots up to a version of Acronis True Image that you can use without needing Windows to be installed. In case something happens to your installation of Windows and you still need to make some partition changes.

If you just do a normal installation of Windows 10, that won't allow you to dual boot with an existing installation of Windows 7. I have no idea what happened to your files, but you should refer to a guide like this for specific steps in setting up a dual boot environment.

 

[BIGWORM]

Digging this big ol' beast of a case, the Phanteks Enthoo Pro. This is the first full ATX tower I've ever owned. So much room!

 

[BPoole]

It is a 23% increase on cpu physics, sounds about ok-ish.

I guess I was just expecting more since it had been so long since I upgraded my CPU. That CPU was apart of my original build and every part had been replaced since then. Performance wise I haven't noticed any difference in games.

 

[mullet2000]

Different graphics cards have different lengths. There are twin and triple fan versions of the GTX 980 Ti which range from 270~320mm in length, which is quite a difference from your Asus Strix GTX 970 which is 280mm long. If you're looking for compact models, I think MSI or EVGA's models of the GTX 980 Ti are better suited for you.

If you're not overclocking, a 600 watt power supply should be fine. What model and brand is it, though?

Thanks for the info. The PSU is an EVGA.

 

[Condom]

I guess I was just expecting more since it had been so long since I upgraded my CPU. That CPU was apart of my original build and every part had been replaced since then. Performance wise I haven't noticed any difference in games.

The 2500k is made with magic.

 

[longdi]

I guess I was just expecting more since it had been so long since I upgraded my CPU. That CPU was apart of my original build and every part had been replaced since then. Performance wise I haven't noticed any difference in games.

I guess you need to play games like GTA5, Witcher3, 40p Battlefront etc that stresses the CPU more and requires more DDR bandwidth to feel the difference in minimal fps.

 

[opticalmace]

Digging this big ol' beast of a case, the Phanteks Enthoo Pro. This is the first full ATX tower I've ever owned. So much room!

Awesome. I have the same case, love it.

Pro tip, if you don't use the HDD cages take them out. The system runs a bit cooler with them removed (per some benchmarks on the internet somewhere).

 

[Lunar FC]

It took a blood sacrifice from my brothers computer to get my new rig running. What a day.

 

[Smokey]

I finally caved and upgraded to W10. Kind of want to do a fresh install. For those that have used the "Reset" option within W10, did it work as advertised?

 

[Gumbie]

I finally caved and upgraded to W10. Kind of want to do a fresh install. For those that have used the "Reset" option within W10, did it work as advertised?

Worked as advertised.

 

[knitoe]

I guess I was just expecting more since it had been so long since I upgraded my CPU. That CPU was apart of my original build and every part had been replaced since then. Performance wise I haven't noticed any difference in games.

OC the CPU to 4.2-4.5GHz then you will see a bigger improvement. But, yeah, CPU performance advancement has been slowed for years now due to lack of competition for Intel.

 

[BIGWORM]

Awesome. I have the same case, love it.

Pro tip, if you don't use the HDD cages take them out. The system runs a bit cooler with them removed (per some benchmarks on the internet somewhere).

Already pulled out the top cage. I was able to fit my 4 hard drives in the bottom cage (2x 2.5" and 2 3.5") using the Icy Dock 2x2.5" adapter that fits 2 2.5" hard drives into one 3.5" bay. I got a 120MM mounted on the side of the bottom hard drive cage to pull more air in from the front 200mm intake. So roomy in this thing!

 

[SonicXtreme]

A GTX 770 2GB model for $180 isn't worth it. You can get the newer GTX 960 or R9 380 4GB models for a little bit more and performance-wise they're slightly better. Some of those cards require rebates to come close to $190, though. However, those newer cards will benefit more from future driver updates while Kepler-based graphics cards like the GTX 770 are already on the wayside. Plus, that GTX 770 only has a 90 day warranty. The extra cost of a newer graphics card is much more worth it for the warranty and better performance.



Different graphics cards have different lengths. There are twin and triple fan versions of the GTX 980 Ti which range from 270~320mm in length, which is quite a difference from your Asus Strix GTX 970 which is 280mm long. If you're looking for compact models, I think MSI or EVGA's models of the GTX 980 Ti are better suited for you.

If you're not overclocking, a 600 watt power supply should be fine. What model and brand is it, though?



The recovery media is just something that boots up to a version of Acronis True Image that you can use without needing Windows to be installed. In case something happens to your installation of Windows and you still need to make some partition changes.

If you just do a normal installation of Windows 10, that won't allow you to dual boot with an existing installation of Windows 7. I have no idea what happened to your files, but you should refer to a guide like this for specific steps in setting up a dual boot environment.

I want to stick with nvidia, but on toms hardware 770 is listed above the 960, I did before decide 960 but this tier list swayed me. But it's not right?

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gpu-hierarchy,4388.html

 

[RGM79]

I want to stick with nvidia, but on toms hardware 770 is listed above the 960, I did before decide 960 but this tier list swayed me. But it's not right?

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gpu-hierarchy,4388.html

The list that Tom's Hardware provides are generalized rankings, the GTX 770's performance can vary from game to game and according to drivers. The 2GB of VRAM can limit the GTX 770 in some situations. Also I don't like that it only has a 90 day warranty. It's your choice, though.

If you look at the individual games from the TechPowerUp review link (I know the linked review is for the R9 390, but the charts list multiple graphics cards), you'll see how well the GTX 770 performs against the R9 380, which is generally on par with the GTX 960. In some games like MGSV:TPP and Battlefield 4, the GTX 770 performs rather well and pulls ahead of the R9 380. In other titles like GTAV, The Witcher 3, and COD:AW, the GTX 770 is slower than the R9 380.

I'm not sure why the GTX 770 performs so poorly in GTAV from TPU's results. It shouldn't be that bad.

 

[Massa]

I finally caved and upgraded to W10. Kind of want to do a fresh install. For those that have used the "Reset" option within W10, did it work as advertised?

I'd recommend grabbing your Windows 10 key with "Produkey" and downloading the ISO from Microsoft to do a fresh install.