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[Lactose_Intolerant]

I'm going to ask a dumb question but I need some help removing my current CPU cooler radiator.

I didn't build this PC, it came from CyberPowerPC. It has some stock CPU cooler that's pretty crap so I bought a new one but when I opened the case the radiator was on the front of the case and not the back (big image)



So I see the 4 tiny holes on each corner but I can't unscrew anything. They are incredibly tiny. It's like the thing is backwards. I don't even think I can remove the front of the case to take a look.

Am I just dumb or did they screw it up? I feel like I need to unscrew from the other side but I can't access that area.

Those spatula shaped holes are probably what holds the front on the frame. Looks like you push them in towards the center.

Also, it isn't a big deal if it is on the front. Though I would get a bottom fan if you don't have one already.

 

[City 17]

Guys... anyone?

One of my friends has to choose between (i3 6100 & 950) and (i5 6400 & 750Ti) combos. Which one would be better for gaming in the long run? (Consider that he's not into upgrades and he'll most def. have this system for 5 yrs or so )

He's on a budget and those two are more or less his only options due to regional pricing...

 

[chaosblade]

Guys... anyone?


He's on a budget and those two are more or less his only options due to regional pricing...

Neither are going to be any good long term. I'd say go with the 6400 because that actually has a possibility of being decent for a while. Both GPUs are low end and are not going to last 5 years regardless, so given the options he might as well go with the better CPU and assume the GPU will be upgraded later.

If he literally has no intention of upgrading those parts period, the PS4 Pro comes out next month.

 

[ColdDeckEd]

Guys... anyone?


He's on a budget and those two are more or less his only options due to regional pricing...

If this is strictly for gaming a 6100 is good enough the higher clock speed helps vs the 6400 even though it has 2 more real cores. And then save up a bit to get the newly released 1050 or 1050ti.

 

[mrklaw]

Whatever you decide, make sure the CPU has hardware decoding of h.265 (HEVC).
You can either build out of a NUC or a thin mini ITX form factor.
And as discussed be careful of the CPU model ending in U/M/T/S.

http://www.intel.co.uk/content/www/uk/en/processors/processor-numbers.html

Bought one with i3-6100T - was that not good? I don't currently have any h.265 content (encode all my rips currently in h.264 - should I change?)

 

[City 17]

Neither are going to be any good long term. I'd say go with the 6400 because that actually has a possibility of being decent for a while. Both GPUs are low end and are not going to last 5 years regardless, so given the options he might as well go with the better CPU and assume the GPU will be upgraded later.

If he literally has no intention of upgrading those parts period, the PS4 Pro comes out next month.

He's not into consoles, mostly strategic/CRPG games... and something like 900p30 would be fine.

If this is strictly for gaming a 6100 is good enough the higher clock speed helps vs the 6400 even though it has 2 more real cores. And then save up a bit to get the newly released 1050 or 1050ti.

I suggested the same re 1050, I'm not sure if he's gonna wait though.
If 6100 can get the job done (@mid/low settings 900p etc.) for the upcoming years that'd be enough.

 

[City 17]

Hey PC GAF, I have a couple of questions and I hope you'll be able to help me.

I'm thinking about upgrading my graphics card, since I'm still using GTX 560 Ti, and I'm now eyeing GTX 1060. As for the rest of my PC, it includes:

- AMD FX-8370E CPU @ 3.30GHz
- 8GB RAM (not sure about the exact model, but I think it's some cheapish Kingston module of 4GB x2)
- Gigabyte 990FXA-UD3 motherboard
- Seasonic S12 II Bronze 620W power supply
- 500GB HDD @ 7200 RPM
- 64bit Windows 10
- 900p LCD monitor (I also sometimes play PC games on my 1080p TV)

My potential new GPU options are GTX 1060 models with 3GB and 6GB of VRAM:

- I could get 3GB card for around 250 euros (available options: Gigabyte GTX 1060 Windforce / OC Edition, MSI GTX 1060 Armor / OC Edition, Zotac GTX 1060);
- or I could get 6GB card for 300 euros (available options: Asus GTX 1060 Turbo, Gigabyte GTX 1060 Windforce / OC Edition, MSI GTX 1060 OC Edition)

Should I go for 6GB model just to make my PC (somewhat) future-proof? Or should I be fine with the cheaper 3GB card? I doubt I'll upgrade my monitor, or my TV to some 1440p/G-sync/4K models any time soon. As for the price, 50 euro difference isn't too big of a factor, but I'd rather not spend that money if I won't feel the difference during the gameplay.

Games-wise, I'd like to play titles like Forza Horizon 3, Battlefield 1, Dishonored 2, Gears of War 4, and maybe even RDR2, if it gets a late PC port somewhere down the line, in 2018. And yeah, I'd like to play them - at least those that are out today, or are coming out in the near future - with max-level details (but without some crazy levels of AA). I also have no problems with locking framerate to 30fps, if the games themselves are somewhat buggy, stuttery or unoptimized (like Forza Horizon 3, if it still isn't patched).

So, 3GB model or 6GB one? And which one of those listed above are the best? Any of them have some problems I should watch out for? Will my power supply be enough for the new card? Any special/concrete recommendations? Thanks in advance!

Edit: and I'm not into overclocking, forgot to mention that. Kinda scared of it, and I wouldn't want to breach the warranty I get with the card (forget my lack of knowledge on the matter; I could be wrong big time regarding this... probably am). I'd just like to stick my new card in the PC and reap the benefits after years of playing with GTX 560 Ti.

Your psu would be fine, you're not gonna need more than 400w.

I'd get the 6GB for future proofing (own the MSI Gaming X TwiNFrozr 6GB myself as it's incredibly cool/silent, but out of those three Windforce offers the best clock closely followed by MSI OC), 6GB might be too much for 900p, but even if you're not going to upgrade your monitor you can use it for downsampling from 1440p to 900p.

Re OC'ing: you most probably know this but just in case I've misunderstood your point, for a factory OC'ed card like MSI OC you get a boost to 1759 (small boost compared to basic models), you can change it anytime via an easy tool in windows... but if you OC'ed the said card manually, to something more than that, say 2000, that'll void the warranty.

 

[ColdDeckEd]

He's not into consoles, mostly strategic/CRPG games... and something like 900p30 would be fine.


I suggested the same re 1050, I'm not sure if he's gonna wait though.
If 6100 can get the job done (@mid/low settings 900p etc.) for the upcoming years that'd be enough.

The 1050 is already out so just make sure he checks the stores before ordering. If he likes strategy games that will make use of the extra cores the i5 might be a better choice. The i3 will be ok for now its got a higher clock speed so single threaded stuff like shooters, emulators, or action games will get slightly better fps. If he is looking to keep it for a long time and likes strategy games I think the i5 will suit him better.

 

[Jezbollah]

I'm going to ask a dumb question but I need some help removing my current CPU cooler radiator.

I didn't build this PC, it came from CyberPowerPC. It has some stock CPU cooler that's pretty crap so I bought a new one but when I opened the case the radiator was on the front of the case and not the back (big image)



So I see the 4 tiny holes on each corner but I can't unscrew anything. They are incredibly tiny. It's like the thing is backwards. I don't even think I can remove the front of the case to take a look.

Am I just dumb or did they screw it up? I feel like I need to unscrew from the other side but I can't access that area.

Your cooler looks like a Corsair H80. Those four screws would be to mount a 120mm fan in a Pull configuration.

You need to pull the front panel off - this will reveal the screws that hold the rad in and I suspect should show a 120mm fan sandwiched between the rad and the case in a Push configuration. Just unscrew the four screws and you should be able to pull out the radiator and fan. Be careful though as the fan will not be secure to anything other than these long screws.

The unit removed should look like this:

 

[T-Rex.]

Any recommendations on which brand of the RX 480 I should buy? I'm looking at getting it from Amazon UK but I don't know which to go for.

 

[LilJoka]

Bought one with i3-6100T - was that not good? I don't currently have any h.265 content (encode all my rips currently in h.264 - should I change?)

That will hardware decode 8bit HEVC (i3 6100), and software decode the following:

Full HD, 4k, all seems to work just as I want. I was especially happy to see that 4k@60fps 8-bit HEVC material was running smoothly on the NUC, with very low CPU usage. Playback of 10-bit HEVC material at 4k resolutions was not a success, as the NUC does not support hardware accelerated decoding of 10-bit HEVC. Thus CPU is used for the decoding and there isn’t enough power in the i3 processor to handle that.

Definitely look into HEVC, much smaller file sizes for the same quality, approx 35-45% file size saving.

 

[robotrock]

So, a couple quick questions before I attempt to remove the thermal paste:

1. Is that thermal paste on my CPU even removable with just rubbing alcohol?

2. Do I apply pressure a good amount of pressure when I wipe the CPU with the rubbing alcohol dabbed paper towel?

I got it

 

[Jezbollah]

So, a couple quick questions before I attempt to remove the thermal paste:

1. Is that thermal paste on my CPU even removable with just rubbing alcohol?

2. Do I apply pressure a good amount of pressure when I wipe the CPU with the rubbing alcohol dabbed paper towel?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x9MJUuU58vE

 

[LilJoka]

So, a couple quick questions before I attempt to remove the thermal paste:

1. Is that thermal paste on my CPU even removable with just rubbing alcohol?

2. Do I apply pressure a good amount of pressure when I wipe the CPU with the rubbing alcohol dabbed paper towel?

I usually use a dry paper towel to get the bulk of it off.
Then I use the rubbing alcohol on the paper towel to get the rest off.
If I cant be bothered with rubbing alcohol I use a few drops of water on the paper towel.
Rubbing alcohol is the best way to shave the last 1-2* of temps off.

Yes you can apply pressure, as much as you want really, no way youll need enough pressure to cause damage by just trying to remove thermal paste.

 

[AAMARMO]

The moment when you just ordered i5 6600k and it goes down in price .

 

[mrklaw]

That will hardware decode 8bit HEVC (i3 6100), and software decode the following:


Definitely look into HEVC, much smaller file sizes for the same quality, approx 35-45% file size saving.

Cheers, will look into it. Hopefully handbrake works with that format well and plex is ok with it

 

[Diprosalic]

What's a good cheap monitor 1080p/60fps for mostly browsing, youtube and light gaming (1-2 rounds of LoL a months and 5-6 indies a year)

The cheaper the better.

Once i'll go all in on pc gaming i move it to my second monitor and buy a real good one.

 

[hooijdonk17]

So rumour has it that RX 470 and RX 470 are going down in price by $10? That makes the 4GB 470 a no brainer buy in its price bracket really..

 

[Burgess_101]

Cheers, will look into it. Hopefully handbrake works with that format well and plex is ok with it

I am currently in the process of ripping my blurays to my server and Handbrake has support for H265 and so does Plex. Though for the encoding it will take some tinkering to get right.

 

[Mahnmut]

Guys, I want to upgrade my aging rig with a new CG.
I currently have a GTX670, an I5 3750k and 8Go DDR3. I want to do a small upgrade now and enjoy BF1, Gears 4, Titanfall 2 on my 1080p setup. I'll build a brand new PC when I'll buy a 4K TV (probably during next year). I was thinking about a 480 or a 1060. What do you guys think ? Thanks

 

[Jezbollah]

Guys, I want to upgrade my aging rig with a new CG.
I currently have a GTX670, an I5 3750k and 8Go DDR3. I want to do a small upgrade now and enjoy BF1, Gears 4, Titanfall 2 on my 1080p setup. I'll build a brand new PC when I'll buy a 4K TV (probably during next year). I was thinking about a 480 or a 1060. What do you guys think ? Thanks

The RX480 is clearly the cheaper card, and the 1060 is much better performing... So it's really down to how much you want to spend over 7-10 fps average more than you get with the 1060 at a chunk more.

It really comes down to the experience you want now vs saving some money to put to your new PC.

 

[LordAlu]

What's a good cheap monitor 1080p/60fps for mostly browsing, youtube and light gaming (1-2 rounds of LoL a months and 5-6 indies a year)

The cheaper the better.

Once i'll go all in on pc gaming i move it to my second monitor and buy a real good one.

Depends on other things too - how big a monitor do you want, does it need speakers and what input are you planning on using?

Guys, I want to upgrade my aging rig with a new CG.
I currently have a GTX670, an I5 3750k and 8Go DDR3. I want to do a small upgrade now and enjoy BF1, Gears 4, Titanfall 2 on my 1080p setup. I'll build a brand new PC when I'll buy a 4K TV (probably during next year). I was thinking about a 480 or a 1060. What do you guys think ? Thanks

For new games like that with Direct X 12 support I'd choose the RX 480, but you really can't go wrong with either.

 

[Filth]

Almost done...

What are those things that hold the video card cables straight and clean ?

 

[paskowitz]

What are those things that hold the video card cables straight and clean ?

Mnpctech metal cables combs. A worthy investment.

 

[Filth]

Mnpctech metal cables combs. A worthy investment.

You sir are a gentleman and a scholar. I was wondering why everyones cables looked so neat and my shit looked like it just woke up and rolled out of bed.

 

[Filth]

Mnpctech metal cables combs. A worthy investment.

Are yours the stealth ones? Or billets ?

 

[Diprosalic]

Depends on other things too - how big a monitor do you want, does it need speakers and what input are you planning on using?

24 with 27" inch max

no speakers needed
input is hdmi.

 

[LordAlu]

24 with 27" inch max

no speakers needed
input is hdmi.

Cheap: Something like the BenQ GL2460HM or LG24M38H.
Decent: AOC i2476Vwm, Acer G25HL, Iiyama XU2492HSU or similar.

 

[The Chef]

Got a RAM question.

I use After Effects every day which I know is a RAM hog. At work, we got Mac Pros with freaking 64GB of ram. When I saw them I was like "Dear god talk about overkill". Our previous machines had 32GB which even then I thought it was a bit insane.

The jump from 32 to 64 to me didn't like alter time and space as one may expect.

So for my new machine I'm building I selected 16GB DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 3000 (PC4 24000)

I feel like this will be sufficient for my work needs but would like some other impressions as well.

 

[bearbomb]

Hey PC gaf. I have a few questions for you.

First off I'm working with a
I5-2500K (not OC'd not very familiar with how to do it and apparently I would need some extra cooling?)
8GB ram
GTX 960

I don't really have many performance issues but I would like to run stuff a little better.

I am in the market for a SSD (I have one from when I built the system but it's only 64gb and enough for just the OS) big enough to fit the games I frequent. So that will happen eventually.

My real question is should I try and save up to upgrade to an I5 or I7 skylake? I've read that it isn't that drastic of an upgrade for me from the i5-2500k and that it might be worth it to wait a generation or two (which seems like a long time?) but some newer games like Battlefield One my processor isn't even at the minimum spec and it has me worried for the future a bit.

Advise me o' great PC gods!

 

[chaosblade]

Hey PC gaf. I have a few questions for you.

First off I'm working with a
I5-2500K (not OC'd not very familiar with how to do it and apparently I would need some extra cooling?)
8GB ram
GTX 960

I don't really have many performance issues but I would like to run stuff a little better.

I am in the market for a SSD (I have one from when I built the system but it's only 64gb and enough for just the OS) big enough to fit the games I frequent. So that will happen eventually.

My real question is should I try and save up to upgrade to an I5 or I7 skylake? I've read that it isn't that drastic of an upgrade for me from the i5-2500k and that it might be worth it to wait a generation or two (which seems like a long time?) but some newer games like Battlefield One my processor isn't even at the minimum spec and it has me worried for the future a bit.

Advise me o' great PC gods!

SSD won't do much for most games, but it will make your PC as a whole much faster and snappier. You should definitely get one. Edit: glossed the fact you already have a small SSD, getting something bigger than 64GB would still be good.

As far as upgrading goes, get a nice cooler first. Cryorig H7 would work well, or you could spend more and get something better. Overclock that CPU, 2500Ks can frequently hit 4.5GHz pretty easily. If you have been using it at stock speeds that will provide a nice improvement and get some more life out of that CPU, plus you can keep using that cooler when you upgrade.

Wouldn't bother with the RAM if you are thinking about a new CPU in the not too distant future. You would be replacing it with DDR4 anyway.

GPU is kind of up to you, if you are content with the performance you are getting out of it then keep it for a while.

 

[bearbomb]

GPU is kind of up to you, if you are content with the performance you are getting out of it then keep it for a while.

Thanks! I think I'm going to buy a cooler master 212 as I am in Canada and that cryorig doesn't seem available here. Hopefully I can manage it myself haha.

As far as GPU goes, is that something I can OC too? I've never done it either

 

[mrklaw]

I am currently in the process of ripping my blurays to my server and Handbrake has support for H265 and so does Plex. Though for the encoding it will take some tinkering to get right.

Happy to hear your settings as a start point. I remember settling on h.264 used to be a pain when it was new but it's much simpler now. So anything that'll get me up to speed a little quicker would be appreciated

 

[paskowitz]

Great picture my man, awesome stuff, I like the braided tubing!

Are yours the stealth ones? Or billets ?

Billet. The Stealth ones are acrylic, billet is aluminum. They are are really nice!

 

[z3phon]

Billet. The Stealth ones are acrylic, billet is aluminum. They are are really nice!

What are those cable organizing combs called? I got ones from cable mod but they look like crap.

 

[Burgess_101]

Happy to hear your settings as a start point. I remember settling on h.264 used to be a pain when it was new but it's much simpler now. So anything that'll get me up to speed a little quicker would be appreciated

http://goughlui.com/2016/08/27/video-compression-testing-x264-vs-x265-crf-in-handbrake-0-10-5/

I found this to be a very useful in-depth article. A lot of guides I found to be lacking, this one provides a lot of evidence for a multitude of settings.

I'm still figuring out what's best myself to be honest, only just started.

 

[paskowitz]

What are those cable organizing combs called? I got ones from cable mod but they look like crap.

Mnpctech billet cables combs. A worthy investment.

^

Side note, adding braiding to soft tubing, like I did, makes the soft tubing bend and look like hardline tubing. However, if you want to do this you need to get fittings with a slightly (and I do mean SLIGHTLY) larger outer diameter than your tubing. You cannot get the braiding on with matching tubing and fittings.

 

[Avenger54321]

The moment when you just ordered i5 6600k and it goes down in price .

Where did you order it from? If it's Newegg, they may give you a gift card to compensate. I ordered a i5-6500 and literally the next day it goes on sale for $10 less. I got in contact with customer support and they sent me a $10 gift card via email 15 mins later. If it's not Newegg, it doesn't hurt to try still wherever you ordered from.

 

[BizzyBum]

Can you remove the front panel of the case?

The front panel probably comes off somehow. Might use clips or screws somewhere.

You say "some stock cooler" but it's a 120mm AIO? Is it some really high end AMD CPU, because I'm not aware of anything else that uses AIO coolers as stock, and those things are so power hungry I doubt anything will get "good" temps with them.

Those spatula shaped holes are probably what holds the front on the frame. Looks like you push them in towards the center.

Also, it isn't a big deal if it is on the front. Though I would get a bottom fan if you don't have one already.

Your cooler looks like a Corsair H80. Those four screws would be to mount a 120mm fan in a Pull configuration.

You need to pull the front panel off - this will reveal the screws that hold the rad in and I suspect should show a 120mm fan sandwiched between the rad and the case in a Push configuration. Just unscrew the four screws and you should be able to pull out the radiator and fan. Be careful though as the fan will not be secure to anything other than these long screws.

The unit removed should look like this:

Yeah, looks like I have to remove the front panel somehow. At first glance I didn't see a way but I'll have to look harder or play around with it when I open it again.

It's not the H80. Going by the order page it's an Asetek 550LC 120mm Liquid Cooling CPU Cooler. Not sure if that's bad but my temps sure are. If that's not a bad cooler then it's possible it's busted or installed incorrectly.

 

[patapuf]

So, i just got a 1080 and an i6700k and i'm still stuck on my old monitor.

What's a good one to get if i'm not looking for 4k. Or where is a good site to look for one?

Edit: i just read the OP, i guess the ASUS VG248QE would be a good choice?

 

[BizzyBum]

edit: nm, read your post wrong.

 

[kuYuri]

So, i just got a 1080 and an i6700k and i'm still stuck on my old monitor.

What's a good one to get if i'm not looking for 4k. Or where is a good site to look for one?

Edit: i just read the OP, i guess the ASUS VG248QE would be a good choice?

I would say go 1440p or above on an i7 6700K/GTX 1080.

 

[patapuf]

I would say go 1440p or above on an i7 6700K/GTX 1080.

Right, so something like the ASUS ROG Swift PG278Q ?

 

[paskowitz]

So, i just got a 1080 and an i6700k and i'm still stuck on my old monitor.

What's a good one to get if i'm not looking for 4k. Or where is a good site to look for one?

Edit: i just read the OP, i guess the ASUS VG248QE would be a good choice?

If you have the money the Acer Predator X34 or Asus ROG PG348Q are phenomenal monitors.

 

[opticalmace]

Right, so something like the ASUS ROG Swift PG278Q ?

That's the old (TN) model. Look at the Asus PG279Q, Acer XB271HU or the slightly older Acer XB270HU if you find a nice deal.

 

[mrklaw]

Right, so something like the ASUS ROG Swift PG278Q ?

I went with a 34" 21:9 and its gorgeous. But ROG swifts are very well regarded

 

[Beeblebrox]

Your psu would be fine, you're not gonna need more than 400w.

I'd get the 6GB for future proofing (own the MSI Gaming X TwiNFrozr 6GB myself as it's incredibly cool/silent, but out of those three Windforce offers the best clock closely followed by MSI OC), 6GB might be too much for 900p, but even if you're not going to upgrade your monitor you can use it for downsampling from 1440p to 900p.

Re OC'ing: you most probably know this but just in case I've misunderstood your point, for a factory OC'ed card like MSI OC you get a boost to 1759 (small boost compared to basic models), you can change it anytime via an easy tool in windows... but if you OC'ed the said card manually, to something more than that, say 2000, that'll void the warranty.

Thanks! I went with Gigabyte GTX 1060 Windforce / OC Edition for 300€ in the end. And now I play the waiting game - the guy I ordered it from said it should arrive in 10 days or so. As for the overclocking, I'll avoid it for now, since I should be more than fine with factory settings, especially on 900p.

 

[patapuf]

Ty for all the recommendations guys, looks like the monitor will end up a bit more expensive than anticipated but i might as well.

I went with a 34" 21:9 and its gorgeous. But ROG swifts are very well regarded

Do games reliably support 21:9?

 

[iRAWRasaurus]

Didnt want to make a thread for this, but I think my hard drive is dying. Its making noise like a grinding sound. Is there anyway for me to check if my hard drive is dying? I already bought a 2 TB replacement that should be here Friday.

 

[Mineshaft_Gap]

So I just bought an i7-6700K and a Asus Z170I Gaming MINI ITX board.

I'm somewhat disappointed in the overclocking. I haven't found a stable OC yet. Aida 64 failed after about 45 minutes @ 4.6GHz and 1.310VCORE (manual). I bumped it up to 1.325V but haven't had a chance to run a long stability test yet. Am I wrong for thinking this is kind of shitty?

A few questions though. Once I find a stable OC, what's the ideal situation w/ regards to the voltage? I don't want it to constantly be fed a 1.325 CPU core voltage even when it's in idle so what do I do? Set it to adaptive Set it to auto? If I set it to auto or adaptive what do I need to do in order to ensure the max voltage is what I'd like for it to be (1.325 for example). Is that how that works, do I set a voltage ceiling? How do I do that? Argh!

Another question:

Thankfully, this MOBO supports PWM on all the fan headers. Is there any way I can tie the case fan speed to the CPU AND the GPU temp? I want them to rev up for both the CPU AND the GPU since airflow inside the case is fairly restrictive.

Another question: I've got a very similar setup to Linus in his Evolv ITX video. Here's a screenshot.

I have an Noctual NH-D15 which I'm finding a lot easier to manage, performs about as well if not better while being significantly quieter and less wonky than the Corsair 100i V2 water cooler. I can't recommended it highly enough HOWEVER... like the setup pictured above... there's isn't an exhaust fan. The reason for this is that the Noctua cooler doesn't allow for enough clearance to fit a full thickness 120 or 140MM fan behind the leftmost tower. There's about an inch of clearance - a couple MM more and there'd be room but unfortunately there isn't.

My question, is this a big deal or does it not matter since the fins are so close to the exhaust vent anyway? There are thin profile 140 and 120MM fans. Do you think it would be a wise investment or do you think it won't make much of a difference?