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[BasicMath]

I need some advice about upgrading my current setup.

CPU: Intel i7 3770 @ 3.4Ghz
RAM: 8GB DDR3 @ 1600mhz
MB: Asus P8H77-I
HDD: Samsung 840 Evo 256GB + Seagate 2TB
GPU: Nvidia 670 2GB
PSU: OCZ 750w
Case: Bit Phenix Prodigy (mITX)

What would you guys suggest me to do? Should I scrap everything and start from scratch? I'm planning to keep my current 27" 1080p 60hz monitor for a couple of years and then probably upgrade to 1440p 144hz down the road.

Or should I keep pretty much everything and just get a new GPU?

Depends on what you're looking to do with that.

If you're just looking for gaming performance, I would only upgrade the GPU. You should be in no hurry to upgrade anything but that just yet especially considering that you're going to be doing 1080p for a few more years. A RX480/970GTX/980GTX/1070GTX/1080GTX/ and possibly even the 1060GTX would be a nice bump. Just depends on what you want to spend.

That 2GB VRAM is hurting you the most at the moment followed maybe by the 8GB of RAM that I'd honestly just keep until it's time to move to DDR4.

 

[pager99]

The stock cooler isn't GREAT. If you have good airflow it should be alright, but you're going to be doing CPU intensive tasks like rendering I would get the better cooler. Sorry about the OS, just had it in there.

Edit: if you're happy I'm happy.

Thanks dude I ordered them parts,after shipping and handling it came to just under a 1000 ,ive looked at a couple of how to pc build videos it looks doable but just have 2 questions , will I use the stock cooler in conjunction with the aftermarket cooler we bought or do I just leave stock cooler out?
Also the spare harddrives I have are all fat32 do I need to format before installing

Edit : btw anyone looking to get Windows 10 at.a.cheap price checkout this website
https://softwaregeeks.co.uk/product/windows-10-pro/ £21.99

Everyone should give a shootout to vector he aint getting paid for this shit

 

[vector824]

Thanks dude I ordered them parts,after shipping and handling it came to just under a 1000 ,ive looked at a couple of how to pc build videos it looks doable but just have 2 questions , will I use the stock cooler in conjunction with the aftermarket cooler we bought or do I just leave stock cooler out?
Also the spare harddrives I have are all fat32 do I need to format before installing

Edit : btw anyone looking to get Windows 10 at.a.cheap price checkout this website
https://softwaregeeks.co.uk/product/windows-10-pro/ £21.99

Everyone should give a shootout to vector he aint getting paid for this shit

Awesome man! You just use the Hyper 212 EVO. Definitely watch the videos to get an idea of what to do. It's not any harder than putting together a Lego set as long as you read the manuals and follow instructions. I would reformat to NTFS because its a better file system. Look that up too, because it's complicated for some reason if I remember correctly.

And thanks for the shoutout, I do it for the pleasure of helping you guys. It's not hard, it's just knowing WHAT to pick.

 

[Keyouta]

Looking for a good PC build for the gf. Keep in mind we're in Canada.
She's looking to spend $800 - $1000 for a computer and monitor. We may be able to use a used monitor and case, but not sure yet. Ideally to be built by the end of July. Using Win 7 and upgrading. Going to be used to play games, and do schoolwork.
I can build the system so no problems there. I was looking at the i3 6100 and only a 250GB SSD for storage.

 

[Megalosaro]

Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon RX 480 8GB Video Card

What's better? That Radeon card or an GTX970? I've really only been looking into that series, but I am not opposed to looking for better alternatives.

 

[super-famicom]

What's better? That Radeon card or an GTX970? I've really only been looking into that series, but I am not opposed to looking for better alternatives.

I'm looking to get the Sapphire Nitro RX480 for my build. Good performance for the price, and if Vulkan supports more games, even better.

 

[Aztechnology]

What's better? That Radeon card or an GTX970? I've really only been looking into that series, but I am not opposed to looking for better alternatives.

As someone who owned the 970 and loved it. The 480 is a smarter buy. The 970 may be edging out the 480 in a few titles for now, but in the long run, especially with driver improvements, DX12/Vulcan, new console parity and longer term support the 480 I feel very comfortable saying will win out over the 970.

 

[Phanatic8390]

I am absolutely terrified of applying Thermal Paste for some reason. I've never done it before but I'm going to attempt it next week. The Artic Thermal guide says to use a line on Intel i7. The Intel guide says pea method.

What should I be doing? And good videos? I'm worried I'm going to apply too much or not enough.

 

[Sykotik]

I am absolutely terrified of applying Thermal Paste for some reason. I've never done it before but I'm going to attempt it next week. The Artic Thermal guide says to use a line on Intel i7. The Intel guide says pea method.

What should I be doing? And good videos? I'm worried I'm going to apply too much or not enough.

https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/Thermal-Paste-Application-Techniques-170/

It's not that bad, but I feel the same way as you and I've done it a handful of times.

I personally use the smooth spread technique, but may try the X way next time.

 

[Aztechnology]

I am absolutely terrified of applying Thermal Paste for some reason. I've never done it before but I'm going to attempt it next week. The Artic Thermal guide says to use a line on Intel i7. The Intel guide says pea method.

What should I be doing? And good videos? I'm worried I'm going to apply too much or not enough.

I do pea because radial on a square in my mind makes more sense. Never had an issue though and my stuff has always ran well and considered average at least, if not cool for the temps I should have (accounting for cooler types etc.) Don't be so worried about it, honestly. It's going to be fine just don't put a massive amount on. Better to feel you may have went slightly undersized. Between a grain of rice and a pea in reality IMO. You can always wipe it down with isopropyl alcohol and redo it if you need to.

 

[Arc07]

Soooo. I'm building a thing. It's my first time attempting a custom loop but I think it'll be easy. I did pick up about 3x more tubing than I'll need just incase.

Preview pic.

 

[timetokill]

Had a conversation with a kid today.

Him: "I heard you built your computer."
Me: "Yep, just built it a couple weeks ago."
Him: "Did you connect all the wires and diodes yourself or just buy a premade motherboard?"

...

 

[OraleeWey]

Had a conversation with a kid today.

Him: "I heard you built your computer."
Me: "Yep, just built it a couple weeks ago."
Him: "Did you connect all the wires and diodes yourself or just buy a premade motherboard?"

...

Come on m8 he's just a kid

 

[Megalosaro]

Soooo. I'm building a thing. It's my first time attempting a custom loop but I think it'll be easy. I did pick up about 3x more tubing than I'll need just incase.

Preview pic.

I've always been curious. What exactly do you get with a computer that costs that much? What can you do with it?

 

[gotoadgo]

Soooo. I'm building a thing. It's my first time attempting a custom loop but I think it'll be easy. I did pick up about 3x more tubing than I'll need just incase.

Preview pic.

That's like my new build on crack haha. Same colour scheme as me too! Though I'm going for more black in mine, the fans are completely black as is the ram.

http://au.pcpartpicker.com/list/cmrLJV

 

[KenPokesBarbie]

So I built a new pc last year but never bought a monitor. I just used a 1080p tv I had. That tv is now broken so I need to replace it with either a new TV or monitor. I'm really not sure which to get I split most of my gaming time between pc and ps4 pretty evenly. Than there is also the question of what resolution I should go for I currently have a 970 in my pc but I was planning on giving that to my brother and upgrading to a 1070 or 1080 not really sure yet. So should I get a 4k tv or 4k monitor or a 1440p monitor?

 

[timetokill]

Come on m8 he's just a kid

I'm not blaming him, I was just at a loss. The way he said it made it sound like it was lame to buy a motherboard, lol.

Later I found out he's way into his arduino so it kind of came together, but at the time I was like, where did you get the idea that I'd build a motherboard?

 

[Aztechnology]

So I built a new pc last year but never bought a monitor. I just used a 1080p tv I had. That tv is now broken so I need to replace it with either a new TV or monitor. I'm really not sure which to get I split most of my gaming time between pc and ps4 pretty evenly. Than there is also the question of what resolution I should go for I currently have a 970 in my pc but I was planning on giving that to my brother and upgrading to a 1070 or 1080 not really sure yet. So should I get a 4k tv or 4k monitor or a 1440p monitor?

4k performance isn't really there yet unless you were wanting to play at locked 30 or lowered setting 60 fps. In addition the 4K TV market is still establishing itself and constantly making big leap on features so I'd wait to jump on a 4K TV (Unless you can find one with Dolby Digital, HDR10 and can so 1080p@120hz then it may be worth considering. However my recommendation is to go 1440p where the 1070 is definitely able to handle that resolution with relative ease with great performance.

TLDR 4k performance requires too much and the Tech is still emerging. Go with a 1440/144hz monitor.

 

[zoozilla]

Does anyone have any experience building a PC in Japan?

I've been browsing kakaku.com which is supposed to find the lowest prices on everything, and it looks like I'll be dealing with a limited selection and sky-high prices.

I mean, a 1070 is the equivalent of $600, and even a 480 is over $300.

I guess I'm just going to have to swallow these prices?

 

[Big Chungus]

anyone know if the msi 1070 gaming x will fit in a bitfenix prodigy case?

 

[Aztechnology]

Does anyone have any experience building a PC in Japan?

I've been browsing kakaku.com which is supposed to find the lowest prices on everything, and it looks like I'll be dealing with a limited selection and sky-high prices.

I mean, a 1070 is the equivalent of $600, and even a 480 is over $300.

I guess I'm just going to have to swallow these prices?

Economy of scale for sure. Japan has very little demand for PC hardware.

 

[Aztechnology]

anyone know if the msi 1070 gaming x will fit in a bitfenix prodigy case?

Edit: From an Overclocks review/article

Clearance between the GPU and the rear of the PSU is extremely tight. We mentioned earlier that it's best to have the fan facing outwards as to have the PSU rotated would mean the main 24 pin ATX supply would be directly in the path of the GPU. As it is the sockets on this modular PSU would impinge on the PCB of the GPU were it to extend much further. It's also worth considering that we're using a 160mm long PSU, as to use anything longer would drastically reduce the max GPU length from a very ample 320mm down to a paltry 230mm. As it is the ancillary power cables in the modular PSU would impinge on a GPU dropping the length down to 290mm or even 250mm should the lower rail be needed

So depending on your PSU it could be a extremely tight fit or not capable. What's your current GPU?

 

[Mutagenic]

I bought a new SSD but realized I have no more power cables to run to it from my power supply. My case has one cable running from the inside of the front panel. Would this be ok to use for the SSD? The cable looks like it has one less colored cable running off the back of it (4 smaller cables instead of 5).

 

[Ban Puncher]

Had my Asus PG279Q delivered today.


Retina burning awesomeness.

 

[Atraveller]

Had my Asus PG279Q delivered today.


Retina burning awesomeness.

You mean the tacky LED light on the stand?

 

[SpiritSlayer]

Haha! That's VERY close to the same build I have and it's quite fast. You'll be more than happy with it. And yeah sure as long as you don't mind loosing the data on them.



This gets you right on budget using what you picked out. I added the case I have, because it's great. Just buy two more 120mm fans.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($349.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170XP-SLI ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($118.88 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($79.88 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($91.62 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Blue 4TB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1070 8GB SC Gaming ACX 3.0 Video Card ($439.99 @ B&H)
Case: NZXT S340 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($64.95 @ Directron)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1382.18
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-07-14 17:32 EDT-0400

Thanks for the help man. Much appreciated.

 

[Ban Puncher]

You mean the tacky LED light on the stand?

I just figured out how to turn that on.

 

[Oare]

Does anyone have any experience building a PC in Japan?

I've been browsing kakaku.com which is supposed to find the lowest prices on everything, and it looks like I'll be dealing with a limited selection and sky-high prices.

I mean, a 1070 is the equivalent of $600, and even a 480 is over $300.

I guess I'm just going to have to swallow these prices?

It's the infamous "ASK tax" - where ASK is the name of a big importer.
They've become so well-known for their gouging their name is now a meme on 2ch.

For more expensive chips like the 1070, people usually recommend importing directly from the US through Amazon, their sending fees are only about 40$ for fast(ish) delivery. Some brands have decent international warranty (EVGA, I think?).
It's not always a practical solution, though; and for cheaper chips like the RX 480, sending fees alone will bring the price up to standard Japanese retail levels.

Waiting ~6 months post-release is often a good idea. Most retailers lower their margins quite a bit after some time, and prices tend to drop closer to US levels (while staying more expensive, though).
Going second-hand is also usually a good way to save some money. Second-hand goods sold in Japan are often in stellar shape.

 

[Cuban Legend]

So i snagged an ASUS 1070 STRIX to prep for my all new build. I'd liek to aim for performance longevity but...

I'm stuck deciding between the 4790K and the 6700k. Ive seen the higher single core and dual core performance the 4790K has over the Skylake, is it true? If so, why do i keep seeing recommendations in this thread for the 6700K? I'd genuinely like to know what I'm missing here.

is the 4-6% performance increase of the Skylake really worth it?
is the faster DDR4 performance increase of Skylake over DDR3 in Haswell, really worth it? (as seen in the popular DigitalFoundry i5 6500 video)
Will the performance gap between the two CPUs become wider over time (and has it so far?) since the Skylake has better multhreaded performance?

If both cpus can easily last another 4 years and still not be bottlenecked, is there any reason to choose the Skylake over the Haswell? if so what reason? I dont feel the argument about picking the 6700k for the socket's for future CPU upgrade compatibility is valid if the 6700K will still be viable well past the life of the socket itself. (kinda like the 2600Ks people still rock)

I'll be building a mini-itx build that I plan to last for 5 years by the way. I'll be using it for 50% high end PC gaming, and 50% Dolphin Emulation too. the two build below are what I'm considering, only difference is the cpu/mobo/ram and +$100 USD for Skylake
Haswell build: https://pcpartpicker.com/user/CubanLegend/saved/#view=Tn3frH
Skylake build: https://pcpartpicker.com/user/CubanLegend/saved/#view=fvzmP6

EDIT:
I found a sorta compelling argument for the Sklake 6700K on a tomshardware thread.

That said, I'm on a heavily overclocked i7 2600k for the last 4 years, and Ill be building a Sky Lake build this fall. I have been tempted to snatch up parts right now and build it, but unfortunately I'll have to wait because I want to use a 2x16GB DDR4 3000+ kit, and some sort of NVME system drive, rather than something that's on the verge of becoming obsolete like a SATA drive, and it will take some time for those parts to settle down to good prices. I'm also hoping Fractal Design will get off their ass and update the Define Mini before I pull the trigger (╯°□°)╯︵ ┻━┻

My reasons for choosing Sky Lake are several.
1: having faster memory certainly helps with my work, and DDR4 is getting faster by the day. I do work in Maya/Mental Ray, video editing, etc.
2: 16GB RAM modules. They're coming.
3: 5% faster is 5% faster.
4: I can afford to wait.
5: I'll probably use this system for 4 years or so, and in 2 years I don't want to be shopping for equipment and hindered by the fact that I don't have a USB 3.1 port or a type C connector.
6: more PCIE lanes for better drive connections is worth having.

 

[Ganzor]

Have a hard choice choosing between the R9 fury Nitro or the RX 480 Nitro. I can get them both for the same price (330euro). I only game at 1080p 144hz though, but from what i have seen on avg the fury is only 13% (https://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/AMD/RX_480/24.html) but at a higher powerdraw and half the Memory. When the 480 is overclocked it will bridge the powergap even more but so will the powerdraw.

 

[cartoon_soldier]

It should be fine. What is your motherboard?

Asus Maximus VI Gene Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard

Thanks!

 

[lordfuzzybutt]

Asus Maximus VI Gene Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard

Thanks!

Yep you are fine with that board. Go on ahead. You can either download from that link I posted earlier. Or this direct link from your motherboard support page. Should be no different.

http://dlcdnet.asus.com/pub/ASUS/misc/sata/IRST_V14_5_0_1081_WHQL.zip

 

[Putosaure]

Well, first timer in this topic, I'm on the fence buying a new PC because my old 560 is becoming out of date.

My picks were :
MB : Asus Z170-P
CPU : Core i5 6600
GPU : MSI GeForce GTX 1070 Aero OC - 8 Go
RAM : G.Skill Ripjaws V Silver DDR4 2 x 8 Go 3200 MHz CAS 16
Power Supply : Cooler Master G750M Bronze Modular - 750W
HDD : Seagate 2 TB (Barracuda 7200.14 series)
SSD : (I already have a SSD on my actual setup with my system on it, I can reuse it)
Optical drive : Blu-ray player / Bluray - BC-12D2HT/BLK/B/AS Black - OEM
Case : Aerocool V2X - Green Edition
(I have no clue if the case is okay, but I don't want something too big)

Is this setup correct ?

 

[Xyphie]

MB : Asus Z170-P
CPU : Intel Core i5 4690K

These are incompatible. You need a LGA1151 CPU.

 

[Ulysses 31]

I just figured out how to turn that on.

Where's this from exactly?

I vaguely remember it being from some twisted violent music video. >.>

 

[Putosaure]

These are incompatible. You need a LGA1151 CPU.

Oh okay.
Changed to a Core i5 6600 then, thanks !

 

[Majine]

Where's this from exactly?

I vaguely remember it being from some twisted violent music video. >.>

Dye - Fantasy (NSFW)

 

[Lockjaw333]

I said screw it and just bought a new case and psu. Went with the NZXT S340 and a 750W evga GQ.

Planning on using my 212 evo cooler on the 6600k. Is it worth it though to buy one of the NZXT water coolers? X61 is about $115. Nice thing is that its made for my case, but I'm not sure the extra expense is worth it?

 

[vector824]

I said screw it and just bought a new case and psu. Went with the NZXT S340 and a 750W evga GQ.

Planning on using my 212 evo cooler on the 6600k. Is it worth it though to buy one of the NZXT water coolers? X61 is about $115. Nice thing is that its made for my case, but I'm not sure the extra expense is worth it?

Unless you're going crazy on the OC a 212 evo is fine.

Well, first timer in this topic, I'm on the fence buying a new PC because my old 560 is becoming out of date.

My picks were :
MB : Asus Z170-P
CPU : Core i5 6600
GPU : MSI GeForce GTX 1070 Aero OC - 8 Go
RAM : G.Skill Aegis DDR4 16 Go 2400 MHz CAS 15
Power Supply : Cooler Master G750M Bronze Modular - 750W
HDD : Seagate 2 TB (Barracuda 7200.14 series)
SSD : (I already have a SSD on my actual setup with my system on it, I can reuse it)
Optical drive : Blu-ray player / Bluray - BC-12D2HT/BLK/B/AS Black - OEM
Case : Aerocool V2X - Green Edition
(I have no clue if the case is okay, but I don't want something too big)

Is this setup correct ?

Go with 3000mhz ram.

 

[Makoto-Yuki]

I said screw it and just bought a new case and psu. Went with the NZXT S340 and a 750W evga GQ.

Planning on using my 212 evo cooler on the 6600k. Is it worth it though to buy one of the NZXT water coolers? X61 is about $115. Nice thing is that its made for my case, but I'm not sure the extra expense is worth it?

the 212 is great. i'd only go the water cooling route if i was wanting to get every last bit of performance. i overclocked my i7-6700K to 4.5Ghz (stock 4.0, turbo 4.2) and after about an hour of Prime95 Blend it didn't pass 76C. during games it is way cooler. right now just using my computer for normal usage (browsing/spotify) my CPU is going as low as 21C but is sitting mostly around 24C.

 

[Putosaure]

Go with 3000mhz ram.

Okay, then changed to this :
G.Skill Ripjaws V Silver DDR4 2 x 8 Go 3200 MHz CAS 16

 

[mrklaw]

anyone know if the msi 1070 gaming x will fit in a bitfenix prodigy case?

A gigabyte G1 1080 will, it's a little tight against the HDD cages but manageable. Don't know how different the gaming X is in size compared to the gigabyte.

 

[Sanic]

I have the option to buy a used 970 for $170 or a new AMD 480 8GB. I understand they're roughly similar in performance. I'm just curious if it's worth paying the additional money for the extra vram and a new product. Thoughts?

 

[r3n4ud]

Just wanna say the nh-d15 cooler is a behemoth. Jesus.

Was oc'ing i7 6700k to 4.5 with mid-30's temps using evo 212. Once I swapped it for d15, temps went down to 26-27. Will be trying a higher oc for sure.

 

[vector824]

I have the option to buy a used 970 for $170 or a new AMD 480 8GB. I understand they're roughly similar in performance. I'm just curious if it's worth paying the additional money for the extra vram and a new product. Thoughts?

Yes, because NVidia has a habit of not supporting older cards, the 480 outperforms the 970 in every benchmark I've seen; even matching a 980 in some circumstances. The 480 will get better (and already has in just a week) for many years to come, plus DX12 support, Vulcan, 8gb VRAM etc... You're only talking $80 more for WAY over twice the card.

 

[Atraveller]

Just wanna say the nh-d15 cooler is a behemoth. Jesus.

Was oc'ing i7 6700k to 4.5 with mid-30's temps using evo 212. Once I swapped it for d15, temps went down to 26-27. Will be trying a higher oc for sure.

What was your room temperature?

 

[Lockjaw333]

the 212 is great. i'd only go the water cooling route if i was wanting to get every last bit of performance. i overclocked my i7-6700K to 4.5Ghz (stock 4.0, turbo 4.2) and after about an hour of Prime95 Blend it didn't pass 76C. during games it is way cooler. right now just using my computer for normal usage (browsing/spotify) my CPU is going as low as 21C but is sitting mostly around 24C.

I'll stick with the 212 then unless I see temps I don't like.

Your temps are interesting. In my current lian li case with a 2500k, the 212 evo has my cpu at about 35c idle and 65c under load. Makes me think either my case didn't have good air flow, or the 2500k just generates more heat than a 6600k.

 

[r3n4ud]

What was your room temperature?

Sitting at 19 celcius

 

[knitoe]

Just wanna say the nh-d15 cooler is a behemoth. Jesus.

Was oc'ing i7 6700k to 4.5 with mid-30's temps using evo 212. Once I swapped it for d15, temps went down to 26-27. Will be trying a higher oc for sure.

Those must be idle temps. If yes, they don't meant much other then telling if you put the cooler on correctly or wrong. Now, tell us the 100% load stress test temps.

 

[r3n4ud]

Those must be idle temps. If yes, they don't meant much other then telling if you put the cooler on correctly or wrong. Now, tell us the 100% load stress test temps.

Under load d15 is mid 50's and evo 212 was mid 60's to mid 70's.

Just that the d15 is huge. Swallows the mb lol