Support NeoGAF

[KiKaL]

Get the 95w X4 945, its otherwise solid.

I took your word on this and got everything else and the system is a beast! I love it, been playing FC2, Fear 2, UT3 all max'd. So happy with it.

 

[Hazaro]

I have it as linked and I changed the ratio from auto to 1:1 and have also tried 5:4.

Wait you still have an e6750 right?

Why the hell is your RAM at 1333 :lol (No benefit)

Set it to 1:1 (which means it will clock down to the MHz of your CPU, e.g. 333Mhz (x2) for 667) at stock.

Set your CPU voltage to 1.35V, bump the NB one step and bump CPU Mhz to 350, then higher to see if it's stable. You shouldn't be pushing at 1.5V off the bat.

I'd stay at 1.4V for everyday use.

 

[Polk]

I need a big comfy pc case. I was thinking about Raven 2, but it's too small (it need to be big enough for 275GTX).
So any recommendations?
I'm leaning to HAF 932 case which should be big enough.

 

[Salaadin]

Im trying to put together a decent gaming PC that can be easily upgraded in the future. I dont need to run the best graphics on the highest settings, but Id like something decent.

More importantly, I want something that can run Final Fantasy XIV well enough when that releases next year. My biggest problem is price. I dont want to spend too much and would like to keep it below $1000.00 but am willing to go above if I need to. Im kinda playing it by ear.

Getting a pre-made is an option but Ive always wanted to build a PC just for the experience from it so right now Im leaning towards that route.

I tried to follow the guides in the OP and this is what I came up with:



Case: Antec Twelve Hundred Black Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case

PSU: Antec EarthWatts EA650 650W Continuous Power ATX12V Ver.2.2 / EPS12V version 2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC "compatible with Core i7/Core i5 $219.98 combo deal with the case

Motherboard: ASUS M4A785TD-V EVO AM3 AMD 785G HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard $99.99

CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor $189.00

GPU: SAPPHIRE 100281SR Radeon HD 5870 (Cypress XT) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card w/ATI Eyefinity $379.99

Memory Kingston HyperX 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 Desktop Memory Model KHX1333C7D3K3/6GX $159.99

HDD:Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 ST3750528AS 750GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive 74.99


Theres some savings there and the PSU and Case come in a combo deal but its still going to cost me $1150.26 shipped, which is already higher than what I want to spend. Considering that Id still need a monitor, Windows 7 64bit, DVD burner, memory card slots (If i think Id need em) and anything else you guys might suggest, its pushing it.

First off, is all this going to work well enough together? Did I screw up somewhere in trying to figure this out for myself?

Secondly, right now Im saying that I wont be playing a ton of PC games. However, if I know myself, thatll quickly change once I own a PC good enough to play games. Is this good enough to run a lot of the stuff out there today?

Lastly, any help in knocking this price down will help greatly.One thing Ive considered is to buy it in pieces and work my way into building a full PC over the course of a few months.

Any suggestions regarding anything at all would also be great. Thanks.

 

[Firestorm]

Theres some savings there and the PSU and Case come in a combo deal but its still going to cost me $1150.26 shipped, which is already higher than what I want to spend. Considering that Id still need a monitor, Windows 7 64bit, DVD burner, memory card slots (If i think Id need em) and anything else you guys might suggest, its pushing it.

First off, is all this going to work well enough together? Did I screw up somewhere in trying to figure this out for myself?

Secondly, right now Im saying that I wont be playing a ton of PC games. However, if I know myself, thatll quickly change once I own a PC good enough to play games. Is this good enough to run a lot of the stuff out there today?

Lastly, any help in knocking this price down will help greatly.One thing Ive considered is to buy it in pieces and work my way into building a full PC over the course of a few months.

Any suggestions regarding anything at all would also be great. Thanks.

Video Card for $380: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814150443
Case + PSU for $110: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129024
Processor + RAM + Motherboard + HDD for $498: http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.262080
DVD Writer for $33: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151188

$1021
If you're a student Windows 7 is $30...

XFX 5850 is $80 less and should suit your needs fine.

But yeah, I wouldn't buy it in pieces. If you want this PC. Just save up until you can buy it all at once. Component prices generally go down.

 

[Façade]

I'm looking to buy my first gaming rig around christmas, but before I do I would like to have a bit of knowledge about what I will be buying.

Could anyone suggest some websites that will help me learn more about the components of pc's? Say, for instance, what I should be looking for in a gpu and what separates the best from the worst (apart from price)?

Also, what are the best pc specific gaming forums? Steam's look alright, but are there any better ones?

 

[Ryn]

I just put these parts together, before I order I just want to make sure if everything is okay/is there anything that could be swapped out to make it a little bit more cheaper:

Case: NZXT Beta Series CS-NT-BETA-B Black Steel / Plastic ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail $49.99
HD: Western Digital Caviar Blue WD6400AAKS 640GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - OEM $69.99
RAM: G.SKILL 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL8D-4GBHK - Retail $84.99
Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-MA790XT-UD4P AM3 DDR3 AMD 790X ATX AMD Motherboard - Retail $124.99
Processor: AMD Phenom II X2 550 Black Edition Callisto 3.1GHz Socket AM3 80W Dual-Core Processor Model HDZ550WFGIBOX - Retail $102.00
Power Supply: CORSAIR CMPSU-650TX 650W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 ... - Retail $99.99
Video Card: XFX HD-489A-ZDFC Radeon HD 4890 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card - Retail $194.99
DVD Drive: LG 22X DVD±R DVD Burner Black IDE Model GH22NP20 - OEM $29.99

Total w/ Promos + Shipping: $765.95

Thanks in advance.

 

[Hawkian]

I'm not sure how much upgrading to i5 would cost you, but I think you'd run into a CPU bottleneck with your 4890 and the phenom..

 

[AnkitT]

Quick question:
Will an ATI gfx card run on my 680iLT motherboard? Searched google, but it didnt give me a definitive answer.

 

[Ryn]

I was kind of thinking of knocking my video card down to the 4870, would that be better for it? I guess I don't really need the 4890 at the moment.

 

[BravoSuperStar]

Quick question:
Will an ATI gfx card run on my 680iLT motherboard? Searched google, but it didnt give me a definitive answer.

ya it will.

 

[Hawkian]

I was kind of thinking of knocking my video card down to the 4870, would that be better for it? I guess I don't really need the 4890 at the moment.

It depends on a lot of things- most importantly, what games do you want to be able to play at what resolution(s)?

 

[T-Matt]

I need a big comfy pc case. I was thinking about Raven 2, but it's too small (it need to be big enough for 275GTX).
So any recommendations?
I'm leaning to HAF 932 case which should be big enough.

I was thinking about getting this case too. It looks nice. Wonder if anyone has experience with it?

 

[Technosteve]

the haf cases are well designed, if you look up youtube for it. It has alot of smart features like slots on the motherboard tray to tuck your power cables in to and a nice system to keep all your wires clean.

 

[Ryn]

It depends on a lot of things- most importantly, what games do you want to be able to play at what resolution(s)?

Well I guess the most "demanding" games I play are Unreal Tournament 3, and Aion at the moment. Other than that just CounterStrike:Source. Just got finished playing Batman: Arkham Asylum. Looking into Bioshock. Nothing too over the top I think.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236059

This is the current monitor I have.

 

[Hawkian]

So are you playing in 1080p? The better graphics card will be worth the cash if so, especially for more demanding future games. If you're content to downscale a resolution notch or two, the difference will really probably be negligible.

 

[Firestorm]

I'm not sure how much upgrading to i5 would cost you, but I think you'd run into a CPU bottleneck with your 4890 and the phenom..

Not even close. The Phenom II X2 550 is a 3.1 GHz processor which he can unlock to 4 cores if he's lucky. Not even close to a bottleneck in games.

I'd get the 4890 for that monitor personally. I have the same one and I'm glad I went with the GTX 275, which is the nVidia equivalent.

 

[Niks]

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236059
This is the current monitor I have.

Would you recommend that monitor? It looks nice.

Question!
Would a HD5850 fit in an Antec Sonata case? Would a 500W power supply be sufficient?

 

[grap3fruitman]

Okay guys, I got my parts today and I'm in the middle of putting it together but I hit a little snag... I can't get the 5870 to fit in my Antec 900 case. I'm not kidding. There's like this plastic thing in the middle right on top of the cage for the hdds that looks like you can put a fan in, which you'd have to take out to put said fan in, but I can't seem to figure out how to take it out. Anyone have any ideas?

 

[Ryn]

Not even close. The Phenom II X2 550 is a 3.1 GHz processor which he can unlock to 4 cores if he's lucky. Not even close to a bottleneck in games.

I'd get the 4890 for that monitor personally. I have the same one and I'm glad I went with the GTX 275, which is the nVidia equivalent.

*I'm a she, not a he lol, and nice.

Would you recommend that monitor? It looks nice.

YES. It is absolutely amazing, I actually chose it off of Firestorms thread he had up a while back about monitors. Thanks btw

 

[Firestorm]

YES. It is absolutely amazing, I actually chose it off of Firestorms thread he had up a while back about monitors. Thanks btw

hehe, np =P I found the default settings really bright and washed out so I played around with the settings a bit but after that it's pretty damn good! Almost feels too big. Don't think I'd ever go bigger than this.

Would you recommend that monitor? It looks nice.

Question!
Would a HD5850 fit in an Antec Sonata case? Would a 500W power supply be sufficient?

The Sonata III's power supply is enough. You might need to remove two of the HDD bays. I know the GTX series fits and I believe the 5870 is about that size?

 

[Hawkian]

The Phenom II X2 550 is a 3.1 GHz processor which he can unlock to 4 cores if she's lucky.

Though that's a faster Phenom than I thought, a dual core processor at 3.0ghz CAN still be a bottleneck in some games. It depends on your settings, really. I didn't know that unlocking extra cores was even in the realm of possibility. That changes things considerably. How would you have to be "lucky" to do it?

At 1080p, Crysis physics at very high could still be bottlenecked by a dual-core, 3ghz processor. I know it's nuts, but it's not a very efficiently coded engine. This would obviously be totally eliminated by the addition of two more cores.

Then again, based on the games she mentioned, this is likely to never become an issue. Bioshock is like the anti-Crysis, it seems to run flawlessly on just about any halfway decent rig and look damn good, too. Though if she does want to play everything in 1080p, I'd say go for the 4890 over the 4870.

 

[Salaadin]

I think this is what Im going to end up going with:
http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=15403048

Any thoughts, tips, suggestions?

Ill save for it over the next month or two. Hopefully the 5850 is back in stock soon so Im not left hanging too long.

 

[TheExodu5]

Anyone have experience with running Flight Simulator X here?

A friend's dad is building a PC and I'm helping him get suitable components. The advice he's gotten from Flight Sim forums has been pretty bad (a few people advised him a GTX 285 last night, lol).

Anyways, I do believe it's mostly CPU limited, but I don't know if it has any multicore/threading support. He's willing to spend up to maybe $1200-1300 though, so an Intel CPU is probably suitable. The HD5870 is looking real nice too.

Basically just need input on the CPU/Motherboard.

 

[garath]

I think this is what Im going to end up going with:
http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=15403048

Any thoughts, tips, suggestions?

Ill save for it over the next month or two. Hopefully the 5850 is back in stock soon so Im not left hanging too long.

That looks like a real solid build. Only one thing. You don't need 3 sticks of RAM. You need 2 (or 4, just buy them in pairs). It's a dual channel motherboard (all the LGA 1156 mobos are).

 

[rohlfinator]

Anyone have experience with running Flight Simulator X here?

A friend's dad is building a PC and I'm helping him get suitable components. The advice he's gotten from Flight Sim forums has been pretty bad (a few people advised him a GTX 285 last night, lol).

Anyways, I do believe it's mostly CPU limited, but I don't know if it has any multicore/threading support. He's willing to spend up to maybe $1200-1300 though, so an Intel CPU is probably suitable. The HD5870 is looking real nice too.

Basically just need input on the CPU/Motherboard.

http://www.anandtech.com/weblog/default.aspx#647
Here's a comparison of Lynnfield vs. Bloomfield in FSX. Looks like it really benefits from a high clock speed, so an OC'd i7 860 or 920 would be your best bet. I'd stick with the 860 if he wants to run at stock.

 

[brain_stew]

Im trying to put together a decent gaming PC that can be easily upgraded in the future. I dont need to run the best graphics on the highest settings, but Id like something decent.

More importantly, I want something that can run Final Fantasy XIV well enough when that releases next year. My biggest problem is price. I dont want to spend too much and would like to keep it below $1000.00 but am willing to go above if I need to. Im kinda playing it by ear.

Getting a pre-made is an option but Ive always wanted to build a PC just for the experience from it so right now Im leaning towards that route.

I tried to follow the guides in the OP and this is what I came up with:



Case: Antec Twelve Hundred Black Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case

PSU: Antec EarthWatts EA650 650W Continuous Power ATX12V Ver.2.2 / EPS12V version 2.91 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC "compatible with Core i7/Core i5 $219.98 combo deal with the case

Motherboard: ASUS M4A785TD-V EVO AM3 AMD 785G HDMI ATX AMD Motherboard $99.99

CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 955 Black Edition Deneb 3.2GHz 4 x 512KB L2 Cache 6MB L3 Cache Socket AM3 125W Quad-Core Processor $189.00

GPU: SAPPHIRE 100281SR Radeon HD 5870 (Cypress XT) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFire Supported Video Card w/ATI Eyefinity $379.99

Memory Kingston HyperX 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 Desktop Memory Model KHX1333C7D3K3/6GX $159.99

HDD:Seagate Barracuda 7200.12 ST3750528AS 750GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive 74.99


Theres some savings there and the PSU and Case come in a combo deal but its still going to cost me $1150.26 shipped, which is already higher than what I want to spend. Considering that Id still need a monitor, Windows 7 64bit, DVD burner, memory card slots (If i think Id need em) and anything else you guys might suggest, its pushing it.

First off, is all this going to work well enough together? Did I screw up somewhere in trying to figure this out for myself?

Secondly, right now Im saying that I wont be playing a ton of PC games. However, if I know myself, thatll quickly change once I own a PC good enough to play games. Is this good enough to run a lot of the stuff out there today?

Lastly, any help in knocking this price down will help greatly.One thing Ive considered is to buy it in pieces and work my way into building a full PC over the course of a few months.

Any suggestions regarding anything at all would also be great. Thanks.

You can get an i5 750 for roughly the same price as that Phenom ii and it'll demolish it in performance, change that up.


You only need two RAM dimms, get some 2X2GB DDR3, no need for super fast stuff either. Don't spend anything more than ~$75 here.

I'd drop down to a 5850 personally, $120 saved, only 20% (at absolute most) performance lost, and a much lower power draw, its smaller too. Its still huge overkill for a FF XIV rig.


Edit: I see you've made some changes. You still need to change the RAM, this stuff will do:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231275

Change that HDD to the 640GB or 1TB model, it'll be faster.

 

[brain_stew]

Though that's a faster Phenom than I thought, a dual core processor at 3.0ghz CAN still be a bottleneck in some games. It depends on your settings, really. I didn't know that unlocking extra cores was even in the realm of possibility. That changes things considerably. How would you have to be "lucky" to do it?

At 1080p, Crysis physics at very high could still be bottlenecked by a dual-core, 3ghz processor. I know it's nuts, but it's not a very efficiently coded engine. This would obviously be totally eliminated by the addition of two more cores.

Then again, based on the games she mentioned, this is likely to never become an issue. Bioshock is like the anti-Crysis, it seems to run flawlessly on just about any halfway decent rig and look damn good, too. Though if she does want to play everything in 1080p, I'd say go for the 4890 over the 4870.

No it wouldn't considering Crysis doesn't make any sort of meaningful use of any more than two threads.

3ghz Phenom ii or Core 2 is not going to bottleneck you in Crysis, unless you're running a 5850/5870 at 720p or something.

Core unlocking is not something you should in anyway rely upon, if it happends, great, if not well there's nothing lost either.

 

[Binabik15]

I´m looking at this, built with the help of the budget thread OP

-cpu: AMD Phenom II X4 945 Box 95W (energy efficient) ~135 euro (phenom 955 isn´t much more, but ee sounds good for my inner hippe)

-mainboard: MSI K9A2 CF-F ~60 euro, this is the MSI 790X Crossfire from the budget thread, right?

-psu: OCZ StealthXStream 500W ~47 euro

-RAM: OCZ 4GB DDR2 800 ~65 euro

-case: Coolermaster Elite 330 ~30 euro (the one with a windo is only ten more for extra e-peen )

But I have one of those huge cases standing around

it´s ancient, but if the mainboard would fit in that´s 30 euro less!

-drives: I still have a drive that I could salvage (again)

-hdd: WD Caviar SE16 250GB SATA II 16MB ~36 euro

I have access to two 500 gig externals, so no need for terrabytes of hdd space

-graphics card: that´s the real question, isn´t it?

-4870 (one gig) is between 120 euro and 200 ( :lol )
-4890 is 150+
-5850 is listed at 210 euro upwards (a CLUB3D), asus and xfx around 220/230 (and they´re all not available yet)

The 5850 should be future proof with DX11, and I really don´t want to upgrade anytime soon. And the price won´t come down in the near future anyway, right?

So will everything bottleneck anything else, will stuff not be able to plug into something else, will it blow up, how many fans etc?

And I might want to hook it up to a Logitech Z5500, do I need a sound card or anything?

OS will be Windows 7 if they sell it to students at a decent price in Germany, if not, this pc might never be built.

Spoiler

Hopefully I´ll be able to buy most things (everything except the card D over my dad, then 19% VAT could be shaved off from all the prices

 

[Daeda]

Ordered a few new parts for my pc today.

Intel Core 2 Quad 9550 to replace my core 2 duo 6400. No i7 since I'm keeping my S775 motherboard
Ati Radeon HD 5850 to replace my Nvidia Geforce 7600GS
1 TB extra Harddisk space, bringing it to 1,25 TB
4 GB extra DDR2 Memory, bringing it to a total of 6GB

Should be the upgrade i need after 3 years..

 

[Hitmeneer]

I am looking for a new student PC, that is silent & a bit powerful so I can play games from time to time and do 3D moddeling.

AMD Phenom II X4 810
Scythe Mugen 2
Gigabyte GA-MA790XT-UD4P (seemed to have a good price/quality ratio)
2x2 GB RAM (Corsair/Kingston)
Radeon HD 5850
Samsung 500 GB HDD
Antec Solo case
Corsair HX-520 power supply
DVD player
Windows 7 (true MSDNAA)

Any suggestions or thinks you would change?

I also have an 'old' 8800 GT. It isn't really worth to use it in the here above mentioned setup in place of the HD5850, is it?

 

[Hawkian]

Very nice including the monitor. You might be able to save a little by going for a nine hundred instead of the twelve hundred case, but up to you.

 

[brain_stew]

I´m looking at this, built with the help of the budget thread OP

-cpu: AMD Phenom II X4 945 Box 95W (energy efficient) ~135 euro (phenom 955 isn´t much more, but ee sounds good for my inner hippe)

-mainboard: MSI K9A2 CF-F ~60 euro, this is the MSI 790X Crossfire from the budget thread, right?

-psu: OCZ StealthXStream 500W ~47 euro

-RAM: OCZ 4GB DDR2 800 ~65 euro

-case: Coolermaster Elite 330 ~30 euro (the one with a windo is only ten more for extra e-peen )

But I have one of those huge cases standing around

it´s ancient, but if the mainboard would fit in that´s 30 euro less!

-drives: I still have a drive that I could salvage (again)

-hdd: WD Caviar SE16 250GB SATA II 16MB ~36 euro

I have access to two 500 gig externals, so no need for terrabytes of hdd space

-graphics card: that´s the real question, isn´t it?

-4870 (one gig) is between 120 euro and 200 ( :lol )
-4890 is 150+
-5850 is listed at 210 euro upwards (a CLUB3D), asus and xfx around 220/230 (and they´re all not available yet)

The 5850 should be future proof with DX11, and I really don´t want to upgrade anytime soon. And the price won´t come down in the near future anyway, right?

So will everything bottleneck anything else, will stuff not be able to plug into something else, will it blow up, how many fans etc?

And I might want to hook it up to a Logitech Z5500, do I need a sound card or anything?

OS will be Windows 7 if they sell it to students at a decent price in Germany, if not, this pc might never be built.

Spoiler

Hopefully I´ll be able to buy most things (everything except the card D over my dad, then 19% VAT could be shaved off from all the prices

HDDs have got much faster over recent years, get yourself a new one, make sure its a 320GB, 640GB or 1TB drive for the higher platter density, as that means it'll run faster.

All 5850s are the same atm, just get the cheapest one.

You'd be better off with a core i5/P55 build now.

 

[Binabik15]

HDDs have got much faster over recent years, get yourself a new one, make sure its a 320GB, 640GB or 1TB drive for the higher platter density, as that means it'll run faster.

All 5850s are the same atm, just get the cheapest one.

You'd be better off with a core i5/P55 build now.

No, I was talking about a dvd drive

What mainboard would be the best for a i5? And which i5?

PS: Forgot the "THANKS!"

 

[rbenchley]

Though that's a faster Phenom than I thought, a dual core processor at 3.0ghz CAN still be a bottleneck in some games. It depends on your settings, really. I didn't know that unlocking extra cores was even in the realm of possibility. That changes things considerably. How would you have to be "lucky" to do it?

The two and three core Phenom II CPUs are quad cores that have one or two cores locked at the factory due to stability issues during testing. Certain motherboards will allow you to unlock the dormant cores. If you're going to try unlocking the extra cores, put the system through its paces with Prime95 to make sure that the CPU can handle it. A lot of people are able to unlock the extra cores and maintain stability with a good aftermarket hsf. Other people can unlock the cores, but the system is unstable. I have the 550, and I was unable to boot until I reset the BIOS and disabled the option to activate the extra cores. It's a crapshoot on whether you'll be able to activate the extra cores, but it's worth a try. Here's a good guide to the unlock process: http://www.overclock.net/amd-cpus/535501-amd-phenom-ii-core-unlocking-guide.html

 

[brain_stew]

No, I was talking about a dvd drive

What mainboard would be the best for a i5? And which i5?

PS: Forgot the "THANKS!"

If its an IDE drive I'd still switch it out, fuck dealing with those huge ass cables, they're terrible for airflow as well.

Both ASUS and Gigabyte have some excellent but affordable P55 mobos, choose depending on what features you want.

The two and three core Phenom II CPUs are quad cores that have one or two cores locked at the factory due to stability issues during testing. Certain motherboards will allow you to unlock the dormant cores. If you're going to try unlocking the extra cores, put the system through its paces with Prime95 to make sure that the CPU can handle it. A lot of people are able to unlock the extra cores and maintain stability with a good aftermarket hsf. Other people can unlock the cores, but the system is unstable. I have the 550, and I was unable to boot until I reset the BIOS and disabled the option to activate the extra cores. It's a crapshoot on whether you'll be able to activate the extra cores, but it's worth a try. Here's a good guide to the unlock process: http://www.overclock.net/amd-cpus/535501-amd-phenom-ii-core-unlocking-guide.html

Prime95 isn't going to do that these days. Use OCCT instead, both of its tests are much more stressful than Prime95 which has had its day.

 

[Salaadin]

Thanks so much for the tips guys.

I changed it around as you suggested but didnt update the HDD. Ill get to that in a bit.

Do I need a full size Case? Will the Antec 900 case work for me? I have no idea where to look to make sure everything will fit.

I only ask because newegg has a combo for the Antec 900 and the Antec EA650 power supply:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129064

Thatd save me a chunk of money if I got that combo instead. Thoughts? Would I be better off spending the extra 90 bucks on the Corsair PSU and full tower case?

 

[Binabik15]

If its an IDE drive I'd still switch it out, fuck dealing with those huge ass cables, they're terrible for airflow as well.

Both ASUS and Gigabyte have some excellent but affordable P55 mobos, choose depending on what features you want.

Okay, the new one would also match the case colour :lol

About the motherboards, tell me what features I should want. I want this thing to play on my 1080p tv with much better IQ than my consoles, preferably hook up to a Logitech Z 5500, and have wireless internet so that I don´t need to put a damn cable into my room for *censored* steam or other programs that want me to be online while playing.

This might become one of those "4th console" pcs, just for gaming, not bluray or anything.

 

[brain_stew]

Okay, the new one would also match the case colour :lol

About the motherboards, tell me what features I should want. I want this thing to play on my 1080p tv with much better IQ than my consoles, preferably hook up to a Logitech Z 5500, and have wireless internet so that I don´t need to put a damn cable into my room for *censored* steam or other programs that want me to be online while playing.

This might become one of those "4th console" pcs, just for gaming, not bluray or anything.

Honestly even the lower end models are pretty damn feature packed, a lot of the higher end features are targetted at OCers. Since you might be using it in your living room, getting an m-ATX board and m-ATX case might be the way to go.

 

[rohlfinator]

Do I need a full size Case? Will the Antec 900 case work for me? I have no idea where to look to make sure everything will fit.

I only ask because newegg has a combo for the Antec 900 and the Antec EA650 power supply:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129064

Thatd save me a chunk of money if I got that combo instead. Thoughts? Would I be better off spending the extra 90 bucks on the Corsair PSU and full tower case?

Yeah, that case should work fine. The main things you need to check are the motherboard size and the graphics card length, and you're fine on both those.

 

[brain_stew]

Thanks so much for the tips guys.

I changed it around as you suggested but didnt update the HDD. Ill get to that in a bit.

Do I need a full size Case? Will the Antec 900 case work for me? I have no idea where to look to make sure everything will fit.

I only ask because newegg has a combo for the Antec 900 and the Antec EA650 power supply:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129064

Thatd save me a chunk of money if I got that combo instead. Thoughts? Would I be better off spending the extra 90 bucks on the Corsair PSU and full tower case?

You'll be fine with that combo. In a worst case scenario you'd have to remove a HDD bay, but that's no biggie, 4 HDD slots is more than enough.

 

[Salaadin]

Thanks so much again guys.

http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=15403048
And thats the most recent update.

I preordered the 5850 on amazon so I can at least guarantee myself one without having to stalk newegg for it until it comes in.

Are these prices/combo deals pretty set? If it takes a while for the 5850, I dont want to lose out on any deals thatd Id get if I bought now.

 

[Binabik15]

Honestly even the lower end models are pretty damn feature packed, a lot of the higher end features are targetted at OCers. Since you might be using it in your living room, getting an m-ATX board and m-ATX case might be the way to go.

The i5 seems to be a bit more expensive than the phenom 945, how much of a boost would it give?

 

[Rogosh]

Created a potential build for what might end up being sooner than I originally planned. I made a list on newegg, but I don't use that feature on the site much and am not sure how long it will take for the shared list to appear on the public wish list tab.

Anywho, here is the build. Extra money has been allocated for the case/power supply/Motherboard. I'm wanting a PC that's a great starting point to add on too for additional needs in the future.

Antec P183
Antec TruePower New TP-750 Blue 750W
ASUS P6T LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard
Intel Core i7 920
Radeon HD 5850
CORSAIR XMS3 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 1600
Western Digital 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive
CD/DVD Burner combo
Bluray Drive (optional at this point, may remove depending on budget when i order)
Wireless Card

I'm not an experienced PC builder. This build is slightly over budget at current hardware prices ($1,378). I was shooting for $1,200-$1300, but I don't plan on buying it right away if i don't have too, so time may cure this problem.

 

[Hawkian]

how much better are i5s than phenoms?

A gabazillion.

Well, not really. But the Intel i line is delectably overclockable even with stock cooling, and if you're even considering maybe possibly wanting to overclock, the $30 bucks extra is probably well-spent.

 

[Zaraki_Kenpachi]

Wait you still have an e6750 right?

Why the hell is your RAM at 1333 :lol (No benefit)

Set it to 1:1 (which means it will clock down to the MHz of your CPU, e.g. 333Mhz (x2) for 667) at stock.

Set your CPU voltage to 1.35V, bump the NB one step and bump CPU Mhz to 350, then higher to see if it's stable. You shouldn't be pushing at 1.5V off the bat.

I'd stay at 1.4V for everyday use.

It's not the ram it's the fsb. 1333/4 * 8= 2.66Ghz?

 

[Hitmeneer]

A gabazillion.

Well, not really. But the Intel i line is delectably overclockable even with stock cooling, and if you're even considering maybe possibly wanting to overclock, the $30 bucks extra is probably well-spent.

Remember that motherboards for Intel are also a bit more expensive. But yeah, if you want to overclock, go for the I5. Otherwise, the cheaper Phenom's have an great price/performance ratio, especially if you are mainly using it for games.

 

[DaCocoBrova]

I'm ballin' on a budget and want to do a slight upgrade. I want to keep my Dell Dimension 9150 case, but I want to put in a motherboard that can take a much better CPU (currently it has a Pentium D, first gen dual core CPU). What options do I have?

Here's what it looks like...

 

[Technosteve]

I'm ballin' on a budget and want to do a slight upgrade. I want to keep my Dell Dimension 9150 case, but I want to put in a motherboard that can take a much better CPU (currently it has a Pentium D, first gen dual core CPU). What options do I have?

Here's what it looks like...

get a new case, that thing is custom designed to put dell parts inside, you will have problems getting the cooling right and where do you put hard disks in that beast

 

[Loxley]

Quick question with regards to sound cards; are they relatively easy to install for someone has about zero experience actually installing PC components? I only ask because I bought a pair of headphones that have the option of 5.1 surround sound, but my current sound card doesn't have the proper ports to use the surround sound, and so I was thinking of picking up this guy.

These are the headphones I'm currently using, in case you're curious (or if it should matter at all with regards to the type of sound card I get).