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[Lv99 Slacker]

Confused nub, here:

I want to upgrade my comp a bit, but I'd like to stick with XP. Most of the new video cards I've seen on, for example, Newegg.com say "DirectX: DirectX 10" under specifications. Do I need to install Vista to use these video cards, or can I use DirectX 9 with them?

 

[godhandiscen]

Confused nub, here:

I want to upgrade my comp a bit, but I'd like to stick with XP. Most of the new video cards I've seen on, for example, Newegg.com say "DirectX: DirectX 10" under specifications. Do I need to install Vista to use these video cards, or can I use DirectX 9 with them?

Yes you can still use them with XP. The more important questions are what games do you want to play, what settings, and what's your budget.

 

[DarthWoo]

Eww, I went to Best Buy because I was nextdoor at a buffet for lunch. I wonder how they manage to sell their PC components at the prices they do. Everything was at least 50% higher than NewEgg's regular prices. That $95 PNY GF9600 was $150 there, and I think that was a sale price.

 

[Blizzard]

newegg is awesome. Plus someone gave me a tip from slickdeals...I'm wondering if I can make two orders of stuff to use two different codes.

I'm going to at least get the Antec 300 and a few other things with no shipping and decent prices, I think. I suppose I'll hold off on the hard drive and memory in case of discounts (does anyone expect there to be better deals than $84-20 rebate Corsair 4GB?)

Power supply options:

Thermaltake TR2 RX W0134RU 550W ATX12Vhttp://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817153059

Rosewill RP500-2 500W ATX12V v2.01
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817182016

Fanboy opinions clearly needed! Should I assume Thermaltake is the better manufacturer? If I can do two DIFFERENT orders and use one promo code in each, I can get the Thermaltake 550W for $68, $38 after rebate if the rebate works. And free shipping!

On the other hand, I can get the Rosewill for $50 (+$10 shipping) or $60 (for 550W), no rebates required. Help! ;( Oh, and of course that precious $12 weighs upon whether I can use multiple orders to use multiple promo codes in devious fashion.

 

[Blizzard]

Okay, I've convinced myself. Going to splurge and get the CMPSU-550VX. Turns out Amazon is better than Newegg in this department: Free shipping and a $15 rebate from the $85 purchase price.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000WU2FGK/?tag=neogaf0e-20

From everything I can find, I can at least be pretty sure the quality is going to be worth $10-20 extra with this one. =)

 

[Hazaro]

Okay, I've convinced myself. Going to splurge and get the CMPSU-550VX. Turns out Amazon is better than Newegg in this department: Free shipping and a $15 rebate from the $85 purchase price.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000WU2FGK/?tag=neogaf0e-20

From everything I can find, I can at least be pretty sure the quality is going to be worth $10-20 extra with this one. =)

Good choice.

Memory is crazy right now anyway.

4GB is cheaper than when I bought my standard 2GB sticks. Those Corsairs will do you good.

 

[Me_Marcadet]

Help me gaf please

My new assembled PC doesn't work. Everything seems ok but the graphics card has a red led and the fan doesn't spin.

I have a Sonata 3, P45 Q pro, 8400, 4850. I really don't see what the problem.

 

[Vorador]

Help me gaf please

My new assembled PC doesn't work. Every seems ok but the graphics card has a red led and the fan doesn't spin.

I have a Sonata 3, P45 Q pro, 8400, 4850. I really don't see what the problem.

I assume you've plugged in the additional power connector the graphics card needs. Check if the motherboard make some tones trough the speaker and if it does, check the manual to see what type of error it is giving.

 

[Me_Marcadet]

shame on me

I didn't know there are 12 volt connectors on new mother boards

 

[Vorador]

Ah, you forgot the molex connector some mobos need? :^P

Well, at least it's solved now.

 

[JoeMartin]

Well the new rig is here and assembled. In the process of install updates and drivers.

I was originally planning on doing a picture-ridden GAFography of my build, but I forgot my camera and just want to get it together. :lol

 

[Lv99 Slacker]

Yes you can still use them with XP. The more important questions are what games do you want to play, what settings, and what's your budget.

I honestly have not thought that far through in terms of what my budget is, the settings I use or anything. I was just really concerned that I'll be limited to AGP video cards, because of my decision to stick with XP. I'm honestly not really a hardcore pc gamer so I don't need bleeding edge hardware, though I guess it would be cool to be able to play games like Mass Effect and Bioshock without the game looking like ass. You know what's made me realize that I need to upgrade more than anything though? I can't view 1080p Apple trailers :'(. Too much slow down and stutter. Here's my current setup:

Pentium 4 2.6GHz
Asus P4P800 mobo
1gig of cheap, entry level Kingston ram
500GB Seagate Barracuda HD
Radeon 9800XT 256MB
Audigy 2 ZS
Antec TruePower 2.0 480watt

^Out of all of that, I'm only interested in keeping my HD and sound card. I guess my budget would be $600.

 

[Me_Marcadet]

I have a weird bug with trackmania nation forever



I've searched trough the web and didn't see this problem. Anyone know how to solve it ?
TNF is running from steam and I'm on vista 64.


I have also a question about the EPU 6 engine. Is it safe and did it alter performances ?

Thank you

 

[Blizzard]

Ordered so far, from newegg and Amazon (all three orders have shipped...yay superfast shipping, mostly free):

Corsair 550W supply, Corsair 4 GB memory, Antec 300 case, some DVD burner without Lightscribe (Samsung maybe), Vista Home Premium 64-bit OEM.
Also got the VisionTek 4850 for like $174 after rebate, including shipping (ugh).

Assuming all three rebates go through, my total so far is $480.88.

Remaining items to get:

* Hard disk, presumably the WD 640GB one. $85 without any deals.
* Intel E8400, $170 without any deals
* LCD monitor, probably 22"-24", probably around $200
* Miscellaneous (thermal paste with expensive shipping, second SATA cable, maybe keyboard+mouse, maybe DVI cable) - $?
* And maybe my biggest unknown, THE MOTHERBOARD!

So if I go with an $100 estimate on the motherboard, this would run me like $1050 at least. Which is not MUCH over $1000, but I was really hoping I could get a decent gaming system for less than $1000. >_>

So uh...any more advice? The bonus is I stop posting as much after I get my last few parts.

 

[Hazaro]

LCD monitor in that range you are looking at a 22" Acer or BenQ(On sale)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824009094

Mobo, P5K/P5Q/P35-DS3 would be my picks.

Personally I'd get a used DS3 for like $70 though. :lol

Paste get Ceramique / AS5

 

[Goldrusher]

And does anyone know good webshops shipping to Europe ? I always hear about newegg, does something like that exist for Europe ?

.

 

[Nemo]

Okay, so the E5200 is finally available over here. 70 euros, not bad.

Now the big question obviously is, how does it fare against the E7200/E8400 in gaming? I've read a bit in this thread and found that the E7200/E8400 in gaming are practically the same. So the 3MB/4MB cache difference is not noticable. However, somewhere else I read the difference between 2MB (E5200) and 3MB is pretty big, like 10fps big. Can someone maybe explain this to me?

I'll be using the E5200 in combination with a 4850.

 

[Blizzard]

FINALLY considering last parts:

I think I'll just go with the GIGABYTE GA-EP35-DS3L LGA 775 Intel P35.
Argh at it being $95 with shipping.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128337

It looks like I'll run just over $1000, so I suppose my gaming computer experiment fails. For monitors, if anyone has ANY input on these four I would appreciate it (PM me if you like), please:

Acer: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824009145
Acer: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824009094
Asus: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236028
Samsung: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824001270

And what's the difference between the two Acer's? The more expensive one has more/higher reviews, but LESS contrast. Am I missing something I should know about the first model? >_>

 

[Hazaro]

Get the one with HDCP

 

[Blizzard]

Get the one with HDCP

All four have HDCP...or is that what you meant? >____>

 

[Antagon]

.

Here in Holland there are quite a few good and cheap webshops, that generally offer more services then Newegg as well. I'd imagine that that's the case for most countries here.

Got in my system last week, I love it. Went for the standard E8400 and HD4850 combo and it's running everything I try pretty well. Although I do have to say that I'm mainly playing at 1280x960/1024 on a 17" CRT.

The Antec P182 and Freezer 7 Pro also made it completely quiet. Only problem I have is that I got a reference HD4850, but it seems to stay under 80 degrees, so that's not even that bad either.

 

[Nemo]

Here in Holland there are quite a few good and cheap webshops, that generally offer more services then Newegg as well. I'd imagine that that's the case for most countries here.

Got in my system last week, I love it. Went for the standard E8400 and HD4850 combo and it's running everything I try pretty well. Although I do have to say that I'm mainly playing at 1280x960/1024 on a 17" CRT.

The Antec P182 and Freezer 7 Pro also made it completely quiet. Only problem I have is that I got a reference HD4850, but it seems to stay under 80 degrees, so that's not even that bad either.

What webshop you went with? Also, what mobo?

 

[Hajaz]

youll get raped by customs if you try to import pc components from the US to EU , especially now with the low dollar. trust me, its not worth it

 

[Antagon]

What webshop you went with? Also, what mobo?

I got the stuff at Azerty. And the mobo is a Gigabyte GA-EP45-DS3L. Pretty basic, but it gets the job done.

Edit: Also played the crysis demo with this. It runs perfect at a combination of high / very high and looks damn good.

 

[Bulla564]

AM I GOING OVERBOARD??

Ok, so I am planning to update my 2002 PC that is still sporting my 128MB ati 9800 Pro. I want to go all out with my next gaming rig, as I intend for it to last me at least 4 years.

I had set myself a budget of $2000, and after going through newegg, I still ended up over my budget (monitor included). Obviously, here are the two MONSTERS that I intend to get:

SAPPHIRE 100251SR Radeon HD 4870 X2 2GB 512-bit (256-bit x 2) GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP $559.99
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9650 3.0GHz 12MB L2 Cache LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Processor - Retail $554.99

On this board:
ASUS P5E LGA 775 Intel X38 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail $224.99


I want to go top tier, without paying for one of those ridiculous Intel Extreme cpus.

QUESTION

- Should I expect cheaper prices or better parts by the end of October?
- Should I get a 750W power supply?
- How ridiculous is it to pay $1000 just for the CPU and vid card?

 

[Blizzard]

AM I GOING OVERBOARD??

- How ridiculous is it to pay $1000 just for the CPU and vid card?

I don't know much, but I'd say it's a bit steep. In particular, people are still suggesting that the quad doesn't add too much advantage unless you're incredibly heavy at multitasking, you're doing video encoding or editing or something, or you're running games that can take advantage of the multiple cores. Granted, some games will probably do this more in the future, but eh.

On another note, since no one else has still responded about my monitor list (;_, I'm going to try to check a couple of actual stores in the area and see if I can find one to look at before I order something.

 

[SRG01]

AM I GOING OVERBOARD??

Ok, so I am planning to update my 2002 PC that is still sporting my 128MB ati 9800 Pro. I want to go all out with my next gaming rig, as I intend for it to last me at least 4 years.

I had set myself a budget of $2000, and after going through newegg, I still ended up over my budget (monitor included). Obviously, here are the two MONSTERS that I intend to get:

SAPPHIRE 100251SR Radeon HD 4870 X2 2GB 512-bit (256-bit x 2) GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP $559.99
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9650 3.0GHz 12MB L2 Cache LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Processor - Retail $554.99

On this board:
ASUS P5E LGA 775 Intel X38 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail $224.99


I want to go top tier, without paying for one of those ridiculous Intel Extreme cpus.

QUESTION

- Should I expect cheaper prices or better parts by the end of October?
- Should I get a 750W power supply?
- How ridiculous is it to pay $1000 just for the CPU and vid card?

It's totally ridiculous. Just get the Q6600 (or whatever number it was :lol) and just OC the hell out of it. Or even better, just stick with dual core and go with the E8400 or the newly released E5200.

 

[Des0lar]

Ok guys, my PC is slowly starting to die, so I thought it was time for an upgrade.
Current Setup is a Intel 3Ghz Hyper Threading (the fake dual-core :lol ) 1Gb of noname RAM and a GeForce 6600GT.

I'm thinking about getting Intel Core Duo E8400, a Radeon 4870, 4GB RAM.

So far so good, but I still don't know what Mainboard to get. Should have Crossfire X support.
Also I'd need some overclocking advice
Your recommendations GAF? Good choices?

Thanks in advance

 

[Ikuu]

I'd say $550 for the CPU is insane, you can build an entire system for near that (with an 8800/4850), just get like a Q6600 or one of those awesome Dual Cores that can OC something stupid.

 

[luffeN]

hey guys!

bought a new pc with

-xp sp3
-quad core q6600
-sapphire radeon 4870
-asus p5q mobo

I have a strange problem which, when searching the net, also a few people have. when I play counterstrike all of a sudden the video signal goes off, pc completely freezes, comes back with sound and everything alive but the picture. friend and I searched the net and it was said that if the GPU isn't used enough, it will switch from 3D to 2D mode thus causing the problem while playing CS.

does anyone have a solution for this?

 

[otake]

the girlfriend said what I always wanted to hear: "I want you to buy or build me a gaming rig to play spore". I practically orgasmed then and there. She'll take my current rig and allow me to build a new one. I am actually thinking of going all amd. 790fx line. unfortunately, I have not kept up with amd cpu's. anyone want to give me some their take on this idea?

 

[Cheeto]

hey guys!

bought a new pc with

-xp sp3
-quad core q6600
-sapphire radeon 4870
-asus p5q mobo

I have a strange problem which, when searching the net, also a few people have. when I play counterstrike all of a sudden the video signal goes off, pc completely freezes, comes back with sound and everything alive but the picture. friend and I searched the net and it was said that if the GPU isn't used enough, it will switch from 3D to 2D mode thus causing the problem while playing CS.

does anyone have a solution for this?

There should be an option in the ATI tools if you installed the entire catalyst control center.

 

[ColdDeckEd]

the girlfriend said what I always wanted to hear: "I want you to buy or build me a gaming rig to play spore". I practically orgasmed then and there. She'll take my current rig and allow me to build a new one. I am actually thinking of going all amd. 790fx line. unfortunately, I have not kept up with amd cpu's. anyone want to give me some their take on this idea?

I think the concensus is if you aren't going to be overclocking, then AMDs are just as good as Intels. However, the insane overclocking headroom of the Core2 does add alot of performance/value, if you are willing to take the risks.

 

[brain_stew]

Oops.

 

[zoku88]

I think the concensus is if you aren't going to be overclocking, then AMDs are just as good as Intels. However, the insane overclocking headroom of the Core2 does add alot of performance/value, if you are willing to take the risks.

That's not really true...., For the same price, the Core 2's are just better than the AMD's...

I wouldn't buy an AMD chip nowadays unless I was paying less than $100...

 

[Cheeto]

I think the concensus is if you aren't going to be overclocking, then AMDs are just as good as Intels. However, the insane overclocking headroom of the Core2 does add alot of performance/value, if you are willing to take the risks.

Uhh, not really. Core2's out perform AMDs out of the box, for equal or less money.

 

[VictimOfGrief]

AM I GOING OVERBOARD??

Ok, so I am planning to update my 2002 PC that is still sporting my 128MB ati 9800 Pro. I want to go all out with my next gaming rig, as I intend for it to last me at least 4 years.

I had set myself a budget of $2000, and after going through newegg, I still ended up over my budget (monitor included). Obviously, here are the two MONSTERS that I intend to get:

SAPPHIRE 100251SR Radeon HD 4870 X2 2GB 512-bit (256-bit x 2) GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP $559.99
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9650 3.0GHz 12MB L2 Cache LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Processor - Retail $554.99

On this board:
ASUS P5E LGA 775 Intel X38 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail $224.99


I want to go top tier, without paying for one of those ridiculous Intel Extreme cpus.

QUESTION

- Should I expect cheaper prices or better parts by the end of October?
- Should I get a 750W power supply?
- How ridiculous is it to pay $1000 just for the CPU and vid card?

Unless you game @ 2560x1600, the 4870x2 is overkill.

Unless you do video encoding 24/7/365, the Q9650 is overkill

A P45 mobo is a better deal (and newer) than the X38/X48 models and you usually get more for your buck.

Prices towards end of this month will be cheaper as it will be the final prep of liquidation before Intel's new chip hits the consumer market + revisions of current cards out there.

750W power supply--- are you going to run cross-fire anytime soon? If not, a 600W will do you fine.

IMO, it's a waste spending $1k on both the CPU/GPU as you can get a 4870/280 + a Q6600 and overclock for a hell of a lot less. Plus that gives you money for monitors, mouse, keyboard, etc.

 

[Tathanen]

So hey, I want to overclock an E8600 to 4.0ghz, but ONLY if I don't have to worry whatsoever about it damaging it, or needing additional cooling, or having to do anything particularly byzantine. My understanding is that the E8600 is extremely overclockable, and hitting 4.0 can indeed be achieved by merely setting it as such in the BIOS, and not having to worry about anything else.

Has anyone done this, or heard anything authoritative about it? Do you know if there are any items I'd have to change in the BIOS other than the clock speed?

 

[Baconbitz]

I have a 5 year old laptop and the screen cracked a few days ago. Its about 300 dollars to replace the screen in the nearest store to me. A. Is it worth it to get it replaced or should I just buy a new one, and B. Is there any better solutions for getting it repaired since I allready have had it repaired once?

 

[derder]

AM I GOING OVERBOARD??

Ok, so I am planning to update my 2002 PC that is still sporting my 128MB ati 9800 Pro. I want to go all out with my next gaming rig, as I intend for it to last me at least 4 years.

I had set myself a budget of $2000, and after going through newegg, I still ended up over my budget (monitor included). Obviously, here are the two MONSTERS that I intend to get:

SAPPHIRE 100251SR Radeon HD 4870 X2 2GB 512-bit (256-bit x 2) GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP $559.99
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9650 3.0GHz 12MB L2 Cache LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Processor - Retail $554.99

On this board:
ASUS P5E LGA 775 Intel X38 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail $224.99


I want to go top tier, without paying for one of those ridiculous Intel Extreme cpus.

QUESTION

- Should I expect cheaper prices or better parts by the end of October?
- Should I get a 750W power supply?
- How ridiculous is it to pay $1000 just for the CPU and vid card?

I would just get a Q6600/E8400 and a 4870 with a p45 mobo and invest the rest of that money into a something much more noticeable/practical.

Like a ridiculous speaker setup/monitor.

 

[SRG01]

That's not really true...., For the same price, the Core 2's are just better than the AMD's...

I wouldn't buy an AMD chip nowadays unless I was paying less than $100...

Are we counting motherboard costs? Total costs have always favored AMD in the low-medium range, considering that Intel still has no non-OC solution for the X2 5xxx+ pricepoint/performance. The only processor that comes near it in cost is the E4xxx and performs worse pre-OC.

Unfortunately, the typical consumer is convinced that a higher price equals better performance -- especially for white-box machines. That's where Intel has an edge in the market, considering many of the Intel boxes offered today offer similar GPU performance as compared to the AMD ones. You have to wonder why many of these machines are still loaded with onboard graphics...

That being said, I'm probably going with the E5200 for my next system, but I'm not a typical consumer.

I have a 5 year old laptop and the screen cracked a few days ago. Its about 300 dollars to replace the screen in the nearest store to me. A. Is it worth it to get it replaced or should I just buy a new one, and B. Is there any better solutions for getting it repaired since I allready have had it repaired once?

Just buy a new one. You'd be surprised at how cheap notebooks go for these days.

 

[otake]

I think the concensus is if you aren't going to be overclocking, then AMDs are just as good as Intels. However, the insane overclocking headroom of the Core2 does add alot of performance/value, if you are willing to take the risks.

do want to overclock but I do conservative overclocks only and I've read good things about amd's overclocking tools. anyone used them?

 

[ColdDeckEd]

Uhh, not really. Core2's out perform AMDs out of the box, for equal or less money.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a big fan of the Core2, what I was trying to say was that at stock speeds they are COMPARABLE, never did I say AMDs are better in any way.

 

[brain_stew]

do want to overclock but I do conservative overclocks only and I've read good things about amd's overclocking tools. anyone used them?

You should only ever be using the BIOS to OC anyway, and there's plenty of Intel boards with a fully featured BIOS.

 

[TxdoHawk]

AM I GOING OVERBOARD??

Ok, so I am planning to update my 2002 PC that is still sporting my 128MB ati 9800 Pro. I want to go all out with my next gaming rig, as I intend for it to last me at least 4 years.

Terrible, terrible line of thought for PC building. What you generally want to do is buy parts with high price-to-performance ratios. This will force you to upgrade slightly more often, but you'll save a ton of money in the long run. See the other replys for specific examples, I just wanted to give you the general idea as to why you shouldn't do this.

 

[zoku88]

I have a 5 year old laptop and the screen cracked a few days ago. Its about 300 dollars to replace the screen in the nearest store to me. A. Is it worth it to get it replaced or should I just buy a new one, and B. Is there any better solutions for getting it repaired since I allready have had it repaired once?

A 5 year old notebook seems like it might be worse than the subnotebooks that sell for $300 these days. I would replace it with something...

 

[Bulla564]

Very good advise guys...

Now I am leaning towards the Q6600/P45/4870 combo, and it would be my first time overclocking.

I know we know very little about games like Alan Wake, but can I expect to run past and near future games at MAX around a 1600×1200 resolution? 1280×1024?

 

[ColdDeckEd]

Very good advise guys...

Now I am leaning towards the Q6600/P45/4870 combo, and it would be my first time overclocking.

I know we know very little about games like Alan Wake, but can I expect to run past and near future games at MAX around a 1600×1200 resolution? 1280×1024?

With an overclocked q6600 and 4870? No doubt.

If it doesn't just add another 4870

 

[careful]

At 1920x1080 and paired with a solid card like a 4870X2 or 280GTX, would I see much benefits to overclock an E8400 beyond the stock 3ghz?

 

[VictimOfGrief]

At 1920x1080 and paired with a solid card like a 4870X2 or 280GTX, would I see much benefits to overclock an E8400 beyond the stock 3ghz?

No point. Bottleneck is not the CPU at or above that resolution.