brain_stew
Member
Milpool said:
In games? Not at all, a little bit in GTA4 and ARMA2 perhaps. Unless you're using dual GPUs, you're not going to be CPU bottlecked at 1080p running a modern CPU at 3ghz+.
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Official "I need a new PC!!" 2009 Edition
- Thread starter VictimOfGrief
- Start date
In games? Not at all, a little bit in GTA4 and ARMA2 perhaps. Unless you're using dual GPUs, you're not going to be CPU bottlecked at 1080p running a modern CPU at 3ghz+.
The GT 240M will not do well with Crysis on High. 20fps at best, even at 1366x768.shadowsdarknes said:
More worth noting is that Nvidia has yet to release a driver which supports the new G200M cards, so you'll be stuck with the factory 32-bit Vista driver until the next update, which hopefully will be within the next few weeks.
A nicely configured VAIO FW is a better buy right now, and for the price, the Asus G51 is by far the best value.
Or even better yet, wait until mid-August to September, to see what new notebooks hit before schools back in session.
Psychotext
Member
Sadly that wont work for me because my TV and Monitor use different resolutions... or obviously it would be much easier.Manp said:
Ok I just ordered my PC. $1100 + tax - $100 MIR (Hopefully). NCIX has the worst price matching ever. Ugh. They said they couldn't match a price and gave me a price $1 more than I was trying to match EVEN THOUGH THE OTHER STORE WAS OWNED BY THEM. Gaawd. And the video card they rejected for was something they had on sale for a lower price just one week ago.
Anyway, for hackintosh people I'll have a topic up whenever they finish building it and tell me to pick it up. I didn't feel like fooling around with it so I paid the $50 for assembly + warranty.
Anyway, for hackintosh people I'll have a topic up whenever they finish building it and tell me to pick it up. I didn't feel like fooling around with it so I paid the $50 for assembly + warranty.
Any other GAFer swoop up a ati 4770 before they pulled them?
The OC-ing is amazing. Running stable at 900/1000.
$99 has never bought me so much silicon (40nm oxymoron rite?
)
I was wanting to wait it out for DX11 cards, but I put my 8800 to rest when I caught wind of the 4770s. Figured it was a cheap way to get the boost I needed to tide me over for the 3XX and 5XXX series cards.
Aside from poor yields, I bet ati pulled it because of the OC ability. It is insane. My half-brother has offered his 1gb 4850 and cash to trade. I'll never do it though. It runs better, and much much cooler. Core never get's anywhere near 70c under any amount of load at full OC 900/1000.
Such a great little card. If anyone in need of a GPU to hold them over, look for a 4770. Such a great value.
The OC-ing is amazing. Running stable at 900/1000.
$99 has never bought me so much silicon (40nm oxymoron rite?
)I was wanting to wait it out for DX11 cards, but I put my 8800 to rest when I caught wind of the 4770s. Figured it was a cheap way to get the boost I needed to tide me over for the 3XX and 5XXX series cards.
Aside from poor yields, I bet ati pulled it because of the OC ability. It is insane. My half-brother has offered his 1gb 4850 and cash to trade. I'll never do it though. It runs better, and much much cooler. Core never get's anywhere near 70c under any amount of load at full OC 900/1000.
Such a great little card. If anyone in need of a GPU to hold them over, look for a 4770. Such a great value.
Apparently after doing some research on various overclocking forums it's gonna require a lot of trial and error, and reboots to the BIOS and Windows for me to overclock my AMD Phenom x4 9550. I'm scared I'll break my system, I need to find a step by step process...
I might as well post what I see in CPU-Z, and my temps, so brain_stew and whoever else can give me more advice.
CPU-Z
Idle Temps
I might as well post what I see in CPU-Z, and my temps, so brain_stew and whoever else can give me more advice.
CPU-Z
Idle Temps
Crazymoogle
Member
Firestorm said:
Did you pricematch in-store or online? I'm told online is far easier. What's your setup?
So I figured out that the American Megatrends BIOS locks out any overclocking techniques so I went with software overclocking with NVCP. IT WORKS WONDERFULLY NOW THAT I KNOW WHAT I'M DOING.
The stock FSB is 200 MHz x 13. I went up to 228 MHz and no problem!
I just basically overclocked, without touching voltage (which I don't wanna do anyways), from 2.2 GHz stock to 2.5 GHz OC. I'll be keeping an eye on temperatures through tonight and hopefully I stay stable, even with CPU intensive programs. Wish me luck GAF!
(I wonder if I could do this with my old 2.2 GHz single core Athlon64...?)
The stock FSB is 200 MHz x 13. I went up to 228 MHz and no problem!
I just basically overclocked, without touching voltage (which I don't wanna do anyways), from 2.2 GHz stock to 2.5 GHz OC. I'll be keeping an eye on temperatures through tonight and hopefully I stay stable, even with CPU intensive programs. Wish me luck GAF!
(I wonder if I could do this with my old 2.2 GHz single core Athlon64...?)
Online is easier, but I had to do it in-store because I wanted two HDDs from their in-store special today. 640GB WD Caviar Black for $69.99 each. Although I've been denied online too. I wanted a microSD card for $8 instead of $14 and they denied me with a freaking counter offer for me to accept/deny. They tried to haggle. Yeesh.Crazymoogle said:
I ordered:
Antec Three Hundred Mini Tower Gaming Case 300 - $53.99
Gigabyte EP45-UD3P ATX LGA775 P45 Motherboard - PMed to $153.09 instead of $145.40 (+$20 MIR)
BFG GeForce GTX 275 OC 896MB GDDR3 - PMed to 249.99 instead of $246.96 (+$30 MIR)
Intel Core 2 Quad Q9550 2.83GHZ Yorkfield 1333FSB 12MB - $249.79 after Price Match
Western Digital Caviar Black 640GB 7200RPM 32MB Dual Proc 3.5IN SATA Hard Drive - $69.99
Western Digital Caviar Black 640GB 7200RPM 32MB Dual Proc 3.5IN SATA Hard Drive - $69.99
Corsair XMS2 TWIN2X4096-6400C5C 4GB DDR2 2X2GB PC2-6400 DDR2-800 CL 5-5-5-18 240PIN Memory Kit - $61.99 (+$22 MIR)
OCZ ModXStream Pro 700W ATX 20/24PIN SLI Ready Modular Cables 135MM Fan 80PLUS Power Supply - $89.99 (+$30 MIR)
Samsung SH-S223F Black 22X DVD Writer SATA - $26.98
OCZ Gladiator Quad Heatpipe CPU Heatsink AM2 LGA775 S939 S940 S754 92MM Fan 1200-2800RPM 20-26.4DBA - PMed to $27.99 instead of $26.53
Arctic Cooling MX-2 Thermal Compound Paste NON-ELECTRICAL Conductive 4 Gram - PMed to $4.75
Zalman ZM-F3 120MM Sleeve Bearing Case Fan Black 900/1800RPM 20/34DBA 3PIN Connector - PMed to $6.40
PC Assembly and Testing with 1 Year Limited NCIX System Warranty - $41.09
Environment Levy Fee: $10
Subtotal: $1116.03
GST (5%): $55.80
PST (7%): $78.12
Total: $1249.95
$102 in Mail-in Rebates will bring that down as long as I receive them... PSU is currently out of stock so they said they'd email me if it's going to take too long to get it from another store. And the guy forgot to add my keyboard so I'll have to e-mail him. Just gonna grab this cheap $10 Logitech. Will probably buy this 23" Samsung P2350 from Future Shop as well. They're having a big sale on the 24th of August. Might use my dad's monitor 'til I find out more or attempt to price protect in case they have a nice price on it.
I got the paste and heatsink since I figure if I'm going to pay them to put it together, I might as well get them to get things ready for when I eventually overclock. They're professionals and I don't wanna screw it up!
TouchMyBox
Member
I think I'm gonna need a little advice over here.
I currently have this http://www.dlink.ca/products/?sec=0&pid=471 the Dlink WDA-2320, I love it and it's one of the best wireless cards I've used thus far.
The problem however is that I also own a HDA X-Plosion 7.1 Sound Card from Auzentech which is an awesome sounding sound card
Both are PCI devices, but my motherboard only has a single PCI port. Therefore I'm looking to upgrade to a PCI-E wifi card, what's the best I can do in the ~$50 range? N capability isn't important to me since I love my tomato wrt-54gl too much.
edit: on the other hand, this isn't too much than what a new wifi card would run me, and then I could have two computers with awesome sound cards. Anyone here have experience with these auzentech cards? is the forte a good upgrade?
I currently have this http://www.dlink.ca/products/?sec=0&pid=471 the Dlink WDA-2320, I love it and it's one of the best wireless cards I've used thus far.
The problem however is that I also own a HDA X-Plosion 7.1 Sound Card from Auzentech which is an awesome sounding sound card
Both are PCI devices, but my motherboard only has a single PCI port. Therefore I'm looking to upgrade to a PCI-E wifi card, what's the best I can do in the ~$50 range? N capability isn't important to me since I love my tomato wrt-54gl too much.
edit: on the other hand, this isn't too much than what a new wifi card would run me, and then I could have two computers with awesome sound cards. Anyone here have experience with these auzentech cards? is the forte a good upgrade?
TouchMyBox
Member
Krakatoa said:
I would be concerned that a smaller antenna wouldn't be ideal in my situation, and I would prefer to have everything inside the case.
Manp
Member
Psychotext said:
the gpu will do the scaling but if you want to use your tv native resolution you can just set it as the main monitor or set it up as an extended desktop and move your player to the secondary monitor.
it's a non issue since you can save as much profiles as you want for every possible setting you make.
Psychotext
Member
All I do at the moment is turn off the main monitor and turn on the TV in the Nvidia control panel. I'm just looking for a way to move it all to a one button solution. I wouldn't be surprised if there is a way of doing it... most things in Windows can be automated through scripting.Manp said:the gpu will do the scaling but if you want to use your tv native resolution you can just set it as the main monitor or set it up as an extended desktop and move your player to the secondary monitor.
it's a non issue since you can save as much profiles as you want for every possible setting you make.
Manp
Member
Psychotext said:
i'm talking about profiles in the Catalyst Control Center here since i have an ATI card atm. you chose all your settings (monitor off, tv on, desktop resolution = your TV resolution) and then you save them as a profile. then in a couple of clicks you can activate that profile and all your settings will be applied.
you can even assign that profile to a desktop icon or to a keyboard shortcut.
Pctx said:
Thanks, the HDT-RS1283 looks like a great cooler. Unfortunately, it costs a little bit more where I live (around $50), but it seems to be worth it, so I'm thinking about it.
Very nice. What do you use to oc the card? I can't get amd gpu clock tool to work, I'm probably doing something wrong though.kamspy said:
Psychotext
Member
Ahh ok, that sounds good. Useful too given I'm planning on going for a 4890.Manp said:i'm talking about profiles in the Catalyst Control Center here since i have an ATI card atm. you chose all your settings (monitor off, tv on, desktop resolution = your TV resolution) and then you save them as a profile. then in a couple of clicks you can activate that profile and all your settings will be applied.
you can even assign that profile to a desktop icon or to a keyboard shortcut.
OK - I got great advice here when buying my laptop, thanks again.
A friend of mine wants to buy a desktop, all-in-one deal (incl. monitor & printer) that will do basic functions & play the new Sims game.
That's it, nothing special or fancy, she wants to keep the price low.
Any ideas?
Thanks!
A friend of mine wants to buy a desktop, all-in-one deal (incl. monitor & printer) that will do basic functions & play the new Sims game.
That's it, nothing special or fancy, she wants to keep the price low.
Any ideas?
Thanks!
evil solrac v3.0
Member
what is a good to great power supply that is modular? i am tired of cable "management" and would rather have a PSU that i can connect only the cables i need.
Can someone give me some advice on building a new PC that will primarily used as an HTPC?
Currently I have 2 PCs at home, the first is a gaming machine (E8400, 8GB of RAM, 8800GTS 512), the second is a server (Athlon X2 2.7Ghz, 4 GB of RAM, numerous SATA hard drives on a board with a built in Radeon 3200).
I'm thinking of introducing a third PC into the mix (much to my wife's delight :lol ) - this PC will be based in the bedroom and will be used as an HTPC (running Windows 7 / Media Center). It will stream files from the server via wireless, or ethernet if I ever get around to cabling my house.
I have some spare parts that I plan on using in this build (500GB SATA HDD, DVB-T TV card, Microsoft ehome remote and maybe some of the RAM from my gaming machine).
The dilemma is should I be gunning for some lower power parts for use in my server, and look at re-purposing the server as the HTPC (power usage is a concern for me)?
My budget isn't huge, but what would fellow GAF members do given my situation?
I don't mind if my HTPC system is based on Intel or AMD.
Currently I have 2 PCs at home, the first is a gaming machine (E8400, 8GB of RAM, 8800GTS 512), the second is a server (Athlon X2 2.7Ghz, 4 GB of RAM, numerous SATA hard drives on a board with a built in Radeon 3200).
I'm thinking of introducing a third PC into the mix (much to my wife's delight :lol ) - this PC will be based in the bedroom and will be used as an HTPC (running Windows 7 / Media Center). It will stream files from the server via wireless, or ethernet if I ever get around to cabling my house.
I have some spare parts that I plan on using in this build (500GB SATA HDD, DVB-T TV card, Microsoft ehome remote and maybe some of the RAM from my gaming machine).
The dilemma is should I be gunning for some lower power parts for use in my server, and look at re-purposing the server as the HTPC (power usage is a concern for me)?
My budget isn't huge, but what would fellow GAF members do given my situation?
I don't mind if my HTPC system is based on Intel or AMD.
vincent vega
Member
Not a pc, but is this a good choice for a school laptop?
http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/222148/HP-G70-460US-17-Widescreen-Notebook/
http://www.officedepot.com/a/products/222148/HP-G70-460US-17-Widescreen-Notebook/
brain_stew
Member
Seagoon said:
Tech Report's Swiss army Knife makes an excellent HTPC if you ask me:
http://techreport.com/articles.x/17102/10
Add this 4850, and the thing doubles up as an uber console for all of $600, whilst still remaining super tiny:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161244
brain_stew
Member
vincent vega said:
That's not a laptop. Its a desktop replacement, big, big difference.
brain_stew said:
Don't add a 4850 to an HTPC! He already has a gaming machine and has shown zero interest in gaming on this one.
Go with low power parts, such as the AMD 5050e 45W processor, and go with a motherboard that has an onboard GeForce 8400/9400, which support VP3 (mainly for VC-1 decoding). Go with something like a Western Digital 1TB Green Drive for your hard drive.
As for PSU...a small 250W-300W Antec should do the trick.
gregor7777
Banned
Bought a MX518 the other day, and man, I can't believe I've been using my MS optical for as long as I have. What a difference.
The on the fly sensitivity stuff is awesome.
The on the fly sensitivity stuff is awesome.
brain_stew
Member
TheExodu5 said:
The chosen motherboard already does have precisely that in an ITX form factor. Just letting him know that he has the "option" of using it for some living room gaming if he wants.
brain_stew said:
Fair enough. I'd go with a beefier CPU if ever it were to be using in gaming though.
gregor7777 said:
Join the club.
The MX518 is hands-down my favorite mouse ever. The best thing about it, which is the area where no other mouse beats it imo, is the awesome thumb buttons. They're above your thumb so you don't have to be afraid to press them while gripping your mouse, but they're big, easy to click, and very accessible when you need them.
If you play shooters like CoD4, I highly recommend doing something like mapping the forward thumb button to knife/melee, and the back thumb button to grenades.
If you use programs like Ventrilo a lot, either thumb button also works very well as a push-to-talk hotkey.
You should join my Vent server, gregor!
If you're not looking for gaming, then the 17" notebook is almost always too much, unless you need a 1080p or 1200p screen's real estate. Since the G70 is only 1440x900, the size is even less necessary. Since you want to go with the ~$500 budget, how about this HP G60t? It's a more compact 15.6" @ 1366x768, and starting @ $479.99. There's a free upgrade to 3GB also. Let me know if you'd like some more options, and I'll find a few more.vincent vega said:
One last EDIT: you can also upgrade to an LED screen for just +$30.00, a good deal.
brain_stew said:
Shitty post. If that's a desktop replacement I'm George Foreman.
That laptop seems to be comparable to the deals on slickdeals.net and similar sites so it's a good enough deal. The graphics card won't be good for much gaming if you were planning on anything like that.
brain_stew
Member
kpeezy said:
Any notebook with a 17" screen or larger is a desktop replacement as far as I'm concerned. It is not suitable for day to day portability. Moving from one location to another once a week? Sure, using on the go and away from an outlet on a regular basis and comfortable for regular carrying in a shoulder bag, hell no.
You're gaining nothing from the extra bulk with that machine and losing an awful lot, shitty purchase.
TheHeretic
Banned
Hey guys, need a little advice. My grandmother wants a computer, and knowing nothing about them she wants me to set it all up for her. All she's going to use it for is email and web browsing basically, though i'm sure she'll get into internet adventures at some point.
Problem is she's hard of sight, so a netbook is out of the question. The bigger the monitor the better for her. She also hates having wires everywhere and thinks computers are too big.
My builder instincts originally told me to build her a PC with a micro case, maybe even a HTPC sized PC for convenience. Her demands are so low I can put the cheapest components into it, but even that sized PC will probably annoy her.
So I was doing a little research and found the Asus EEE Box. Its Atom based and can output at high resolutions. Its also tiny and looks great. It doesn't have a DVD drive but Windows XP is preinstalled, along with Asus Express Gate which allows basic functionality without booting into Windows, which would be helpful if she's trying to find cruise the dictionary or something whilst playing scrabble. If she needs a DVD drive I can go external, no problem, and get the right monitor to suit her sight.
Of course I could build a more powerful PC for cheaper, but does anyone have any experience with the box? Heres a pic:
I should be able to get one for $500-$600 in Australia. A little expensive for what you get but she'd appreciate the form factor.
Edit: I can get the B202 model, Intel Atom 270 1.6 with max res output of 1600x1200 for under $400. The next step up is the B206, with dedicated graphics for 1080p for an extra 200 and some other bonuses (bigger HDD, etc). Tough call.
Problem is she's hard of sight, so a netbook is out of the question. The bigger the monitor the better for her. She also hates having wires everywhere and thinks computers are too big.
My builder instincts originally told me to build her a PC with a micro case, maybe even a HTPC sized PC for convenience. Her demands are so low I can put the cheapest components into it, but even that sized PC will probably annoy her.
So I was doing a little research and found the Asus EEE Box. Its Atom based and can output at high resolutions. Its also tiny and looks great. It doesn't have a DVD drive but Windows XP is preinstalled, along with Asus Express Gate which allows basic functionality without booting into Windows, which would be helpful if she's trying to find cruise the dictionary or something whilst playing scrabble. If she needs a DVD drive I can go external, no problem, and get the right monitor to suit her sight.
Of course I could build a more powerful PC for cheaper, but does anyone have any experience with the box? Heres a pic:
I should be able to get one for $500-$600 in Australia. A little expensive for what you get but she'd appreciate the form factor.
Edit: I can get the B202 model, Intel Atom 270 1.6 with max res output of 1600x1200 for under $400. The next step up is the B206, with dedicated graphics for 1080p for an extra 200 and some other bonuses (bigger HDD, etc). Tough call.
MWS Natural
Member
When are the damn X-25M G2's dropping??!! WTF is taking intel so long? I WANTZ ONE!
Rentahamster
Rodent Whores
They were available on Newegg but were sold out in like, 3 hours or something.MWS Natural said:
Psychotext
Member
Yeah, I'd like to grab one of them ready for my Windows 7 install.
GAF I need to get a decent gaming monitor. At the moment I'm sporting a Dell 24" 2407WFP-HC which doesn't have the best of black-levels or brightness. I'm looking for something around the same size, not sure if I should go for 2 monitors or just 1?
Been running my i7 build for a couple of weeks now, time to start overclocking this mother
I've found the bottleneck right now is my hard-drive which is just a standard Seagate SATA II 7200rpm. I want to get an Intel X-25 M, has anyone tried getting a couple of these in a RAID configuration?
Been running my i7 build for a couple of weeks now, time to start overclocking this mother
I've found the bottleneck right now is my hard-drive which is just a standard Seagate SATA II 7200rpm. I want to get an Intel X-25 M, has anyone tried getting a couple of these in a RAID configuration?
FrostuTheNinja
Member
I just thought I'd go ahead and ask in here...
I have a GT120 with a single PCI slot in my Q8200.
I'm thinking about getting a new video card. It doesn't really matter what kind, ATI or Nvidia, or even the price. My main concern is, what kind of difference in performance should I expect with upgrading from a GT120 to something else?
I have a GT120 with a single PCI slot in my Q8200.
I'm thinking about getting a new video card. It doesn't really matter what kind, ATI or Nvidia, or even the price. My main concern is, what kind of difference in performance should I expect with upgrading from a GT120 to something else?
BravoSuperStar
Member
Rentahamster said:
The first batch has been recalled by intel due to a firmware defect. Putting a bios password seems to corrupt the drive. New firmware is out, but intel still pulled the initial shipment, apparently.
http://www.tomshardware.com/news/Intel-Postville-SSD-Firmware-Newegg,8351.html
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129042Ysiadmihi said:
Very popular and general considered to be the best bang for your buck when it comes to a budget case.
lowlylowlycook
Member
FrostuTheNinja said:
Apparently it's the same as a 9500GT. Any $100 ATI 4850 will blow it out of the water.
FrostuTheNinja
Member
I'm lookin' at two different 4890s. Sapphire and Asus...
What would you all recommend?
I'm just here staring at these two... Wondering which one I should get.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102848
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121308
Edit:
Are these the only kind of differences between the branded cards?
What would you all recommend?
I'm just here staring at these two... Wondering which one I should get.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102848
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814121308
Edit:
Teetris said:
Are these the only kind of differences between the branded cards?