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Official "I need a new PC!!" 2009 Edition
- Thread starter VictimOfGrief
- Start date
Yeah, that is definitely acceptable.I thought he was talking about a C2d, I should have read more carefully and am stupid. Under 70C is safe, really even a little higher during Prime95 would be okay but pushing it. Prime95 will work your CPU harder than any game is likely to.
EDIT: Nope Prime95 has nothing to do with temps. I like Speedfan, but others prefer CoreTemp or RealTemp.
EDIT: Nope Prime95 has nothing to do with temps. I like Speedfan, but others prefer CoreTemp or RealTemp.
Parallax Scroll
Banned
Hmm, I only have one 4-pin connector from the PSU.RbBrdMan said:
Edit: I'm looking through all my crap for a 4 pin adapter, but I haven't found one yet.
Links to all software stuff is in the OP.VictimOfGrief said:
Utilities for any PC gamer:
Prime95 - Stress test the stability of your system on stock settings or your latest Overclock.
CPU-Z - Gathers system CPU, FSB, Vcore Voltage and memory timings presents it in a clean and tidy way.
Memtest - Having weird Blue screens or system errors? Download and run a full memory scan using Memtest.
GPU-Z - Gathers information on your Graphics card chipset, similar to that of CPU-Z but for your GPU.
HWmonitor - A must if you OC your equipment! Gives you a full range of temperatures, Voltage settings, fan speeds and more!
RealTemp - A utility to monitor the temperature of your CPU core(s).
RivaTuner - A Utility to manage GPU overclock, fan speed, and monitor about 25 other things all in 1 customizable screen.
NeoGAF's own PC Benchmarking thread - Have questions about your Futuremark score or want to show off your new overclock on your CPU/GPU? This thread is for you!
Also Hawkian, you may like Speedfan, but that doesn't mean it is correct. Use Coretemp + Realtemp to make sure if Speedfan is accurate. There can be a difference of -10C to 20C.
SapientWolf
Trucker Sexologist
Ooh, I forgot about my benchmarking thread. I guess I have to update it now. :lol I'll do it tomorrow after I get more bandwidth for my photobucket account. I still need to add the RE5 and SFIV benches.Hazaro said:
Romance Pie
Member
Hazaro said:
I used to use real temp, but then something went bung and it started reporting weird temps even though I didn't change anything in my pc. Speedfan temps were closer to my bios temps and there has not been any issue since.
Think you need to calm down as some programs work differently with different hardware.
Romance Pie
Member
Hazaro said:Did you update to the newest version of each program?
In nearly every instance I have seen Speedfan isn't accurate, so that's why I push for it.
*Also me and Hawkian are cool so no worries
Yeah when realtemp was spiking up and down 10°-20° I checked for the latest version, but still was not close to the bios temps. I found out about speedfan in the 2008 edition of this thread and has been good since, plus I like the smart hdd utility :]
Parallax Scroll
Banned
Yeah, I used that 2x2. But don't I need a second one?Hazaro said:
After reading the last posts in this thread I tried some extreme OC just for the sake of it and well, I can say I love my E8400 + Arctic Cooling Freezer Pro.
Managed to put this sweetie at 4GHz (9x450) and cores will go at 62ºC the most, while the CPU fan is at 66% of its max capacity when using Prime95. Btw, cores idle at 40ºC which is not really bad at all for air cooling.
Anyway, I'm stopping it and sending it back to the safe 3.6GHz I use because it says its using 1800 MHz on FSB and as far as I know, my mobo supports 1600 at most (as seen in the package). Don't know if it works that way but whatever.
Managed to put this sweetie at 4GHz (9x450) and cores will go at 62ºC the most, while the CPU fan is at 66% of its max capacity when using Prime95. Btw, cores idle at 40ºC which is not really bad at all for air cooling.
Anyway, I'm stopping it and sending it back to the safe 3.6GHz I use because it says its using 1800 MHz on FSB and as far as I know, my mobo supports 1600 at most (as seen in the package). Don't know if it works that way but whatever.
Using the 2x2 on the right side of the 8pin slot should work.Parallax Scroll said:
*But I read this a few posts back:
That is not a 12V spec'd PSU, pretty old also. You'd want around >28A on the 12V rail on something you'd buy today.
An Antec EARTHWATTS 380w should be ok. Are you sure you don't have that instead?
Also you mentioned you broke the mounting pins on both your heatsinks? An unsecured HS almost might cause your computer not to boot. (To test this use a pea-sized glob of AS5, if you aren't using a BB-sized amount already)
To make mounting using the pin method easier, make sure the clips on the pins have enough space inbetween them, but not so much you can't force it into the hole. I used my teeth to pinch/expand each leg.
Overclockedbeje said:
Your mobo also only supports 1066/1333 RAM but you can certainly go past that.
That's a pretty nice chip you have there.
Parallax Scroll
Banned
So I don't need to plug anything into the left 4 pins on the mobo?Hazaro said:
It's a Truepower II. So I guess I should get a newer PSU?
I got a third HSF. I managed to install that one.
brain_stew
Member
beje said:After reading the last posts in this thread I tried some extreme OC just for the sake of it and well, I can say I love my E8400 + Arctic Cooling Freezer Pro.
Managed to put this sweetie at 4GHz (9x450) and cores will go at 62ºC the most, while the CPU fan is at 66% of its max capacity when using Prime95. Btw, cores idle at 40ºC which is not really bad at all for air cooling.
Anyway, I'm stopping it and sending it back to the safe 3.6GHz I use because it says its using 1800 MHz on FSB and as far as I know, my mobo supports 1600 at most (as seen in the package). Don't know if it works that way but whatever.
Prime95 will not stress a modern CPU, use OCCT instead.
Just the right should work, if not you might need to look into an adapter.Parallax Scroll said:
Did it come with the Sonata you bought?
If so you can easily tell if it's the old or new one. (Don't know why I jumped on it being the old one)
12V1 12V2
16A* 16A
That said it should be enough.
Parallax Scroll
Banned
Yeah, it came with the sonata. This was like 2 years ago.
Parallax Scroll
Banned
Hazaro said:
It matches this. So I guess it's the new one.
Now I have the 24-pin and 4-pin power plugged in, case power button hooked up, and the CPU fan plugged into CPU_FAN on the mobo. I hit power, the LEDs on the mobo light up, the PSU fan spins, but the CPU fan does not. I tried powering the system on and off several times, and each time I power it on, I see the CPU fan lurch slightly and then stop.
I made sure there aren't any cables blocking the fan, and it spins freely if I flick it with my finger, so it's not physically blocked.
Hazaro said:Overclocked
Your mobo also only supports 1066/1333 RAM but you can certainly go past that.
That's a pretty nice chip you have there.
Well, I'm not talking about the ability of my mobo (Asus P5Q) to pull that, but the safety of doing so, I mean, I bought it last january and I don't want to replace it before january comes again just because I went OMGWTFBBQ 4 GIGAHURTZ while the capacitators were silently suiciding
brain_stew said:
That's a bit excessive no? Unless hyperthreading really takes some of the load off? It might not be the MOST excessive CPU crunching you can do, but it's still a decent indicator of peak temps- what, practically speaking, will you be running that stresses your CPU more than Prime95?
Upgraded my PC a little -
Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU E8400 @ 3.00GHz (2 CPUs)
Memory: 2048MB RAM
Card name: ATI Radeon HD 4800 Series (it's a 4850)
I get pretty poor performance while playing WoW compared to my older tech, even though my tech now is better in everyway. Also, WoW uses 51% of my CPU the whole time, is that normal?
I then tried playing Crysis and got about 30 fps on all High settings.
Temperatures are normal when my pc is Idle and in use, so I dunno.. any ideas why my PC is underperforming?
Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU E8400 @ 3.00GHz (2 CPUs)
Memory: 2048MB RAM
Card name: ATI Radeon HD 4800 Series (it's a 4850)
I get pretty poor performance while playing WoW compared to my older tech, even though my tech now is better in everyway. Also, WoW uses 51% of my CPU the whole time, is that normal?
I then tried playing Crysis and got about 30 fps on all High settings.
Temperatures are normal when my pc is Idle and in use, so I dunno.. any ideas why my PC is underperforming?
WoW is weird. I have seen a lot of stuff about tweaking it to run better, let's see:
http://wow.allakhazam.com/db/guides.html?guide=405
What's funny is he says "Do you have an AMD 3400+ w/ 4 Gigs of RAM, an nVidia Dual 6800 256 Meg card, a RAID Hard Drive and a couple grand of top-end boards to hold it all together? I thought not."
It's a 2005 article Still, the tweaks might apply.
http://wow.allakhazam.com/db/guides.html?guide=405
What's funny is he says "Do you have an AMD 3400+ w/ 4 Gigs of RAM, an nVidia Dual 6800 256 Meg card, a RAID Hard Drive and a couple grand of top-end boards to hold it all together? I thought not."
It's a 2005 article
Still, the tweaks might apply.Zaraki_Kenpachi
Member
I have an e6750, what should my voltage be at? I'm at 3.2GHz and 1.3V but when I do the occt test like less than a minute in it says error on core 1. Is my voltage too low?
I have 4 wires from my case that I don't know where to hook up.
1. There's an ac 97 that runs off my hd audio cord, I'm assuming this is for a 3rd party sound card which idont have or need.
2. A pin hdd led cord
3. A reset sw 2pin cord.
4. A pwr sw cord 2pin cord
5. A firewire cord 8 pin which I just plugged into a slot called f_USB.
The 2 pin cords are colored differently and don't correspond to coloring on my mobo. There is a place where I think they could go but there are - and + signs on those connections which make me nervous.
Basically, does it matter where I plug this shot in as long as I have them inputted into proper conections on the mobo with the proper # of pins?
1. There's an ac 97 that runs off my hd audio cord, I'm assuming this is for a 3rd party sound card which idont have or need.
2. A pin hdd led cord
3. A reset sw 2pin cord.
4. A pwr sw cord 2pin cord
5. A firewire cord 8 pin which I just plugged into a slot called f_USB.
The 2 pin cords are colored differently and don't correspond to coloring on my mobo. There is a place where I think they could go but there are - and + signs on those connections which make me nervous.
Basically, does it matter where I plug this shot in as long as I have them inputted into proper conections on the mobo with the proper # of pins?
Ac97 is an alternative. Think of it like the Xbox 360 composite/component cable.Timedog said:
Those connect from your case to your motherboard. There should be a page in the motherboard manual that shows you how to plug those in. The pwr button's probably pretty useful.Timedog said:
OH DEAR GOD NO.Timedog said:
NEVER PLUG FIREWIRE INTO USB OR VISE VERSA. UNDO THIS NOW.
Seriously, there's likely a warning in the manual that it might cause damage to your motherboard if you try to use the port like this. Unfortunately, Firewire and USB have identical-looking connections on the motherboard. Be careful when plugging Firewire/Usb cables into those ports on your motherboards. Always double-check with the manual that you've plugged them into the right ones.
EDIT: Looking up the specs, it seems that this would probably just cause your device to not work. FireWire ports put out up to ~30V, while USB ports put out about 5V. As you might notice, if you're running 30V out from your motherboard's firewire port into your case's usb port, you could potentially fry any USB device you try to use through that port. Your problem is much safer in that your firewire devices just won't work when you give them 5V and they want 30... but let it be a cautionary tale for reading the manual before you start plugging cables into slots.
Yes, it matters. Your motherboard manual will have a page with a layout explaining how to connect those. Polarity matters with LED. Be sure to match up the diagram in your manual with the markings on the cables.Timedog said:
Is the power / reset on the right polarities? One review on newegg mentioned that a PSU did not have enough power to boot because of CPU req. but I find that hard to believe.Parallax Scroll said:
3.2 might be too high, that is around the threshold where OC's on those C2D's taper off harshly. I'd try to get ~3.0 stable at a nice voltage first and see where you can go from there.Zaraki_Kenpachi said:
Your motherboard manual should tell you where to place everything and the direction.Timedog said:
You should have one, if you don't just go to the manf. website and download it.
1. That is (an option?) for sound
2,3,4 all go into the small rectangle with pins sticking up. Check manual.
5. Goes into the 1934 (or firewire slot)
Parallax Scroll
Banned
I think so. I flipped the power switch connector and got the same result. Reset is not plugged in.
My current rig is an E7200@3.2(or is it 3.6, i can never remember) with a 512mb 4850. All running on my 24" monitor so resolution in gaming is always 1920x1200. I've never cared much for AA/AF uber settings and all that jazz. If i can turn it on then awesome, if i can't then no big deal.
Current idea for a new rig.
CPU: i7 860
Ram: 8GB. Probably gskill ripjaws 4GB sets x 2. Although im unsure if i should go 1600 or 2000mhz speed. I will consider overclocking the cpu.
Motherboard: Gigabyte-P55-UD4P
PSU: Corsair HX-620
GPU: ATi 5850 (Maybe HiS version. My 4850 is a HIS, no issues, also the cheapest). I was thinking about a 5870 but they are $170 on average more.
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U12P SE - Maybe this.
OS: OEM W7 Pro.
Side ideas - Things im thinking about unsure if i actually need them.
Sound card: I'm currently on a Audigy 2zs and i haven't used on board in years. My speakers are logitech Z680s, so a few years old. They still seem to work :lol . I thought about a new sound card, unless people here say the on board is good enough?
Case: I currently have a CM 690. I was looking at something bigger to fit the 5870 in but if i decide to go the 5850 route, i may not need one. However i would like my case to have less mesh/holes, so that equals less dust as my room is awesome at collecting dust. Yes i do clean it!
I think that's it? :lol . If anyone has any suggestions on things to change please by all means, let me know. However i do live in Australia so there's always the chance that what you suggest doesn't exist.
Current idea for a new rig.
CPU: i7 860
Ram: 8GB. Probably gskill ripjaws 4GB sets x 2. Although im unsure if i should go 1600 or 2000mhz speed. I will consider overclocking the cpu.
Motherboard: Gigabyte-P55-UD4P
PSU: Corsair HX-620
GPU: ATi 5850 (Maybe HiS version. My 4850 is a HIS, no issues, also the cheapest). I was thinking about a 5870 but they are $170 on average more.
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U12P SE - Maybe this.
OS: OEM W7 Pro.
Side ideas - Things im thinking about unsure if i actually need them.
Sound card: I'm currently on a Audigy 2zs and i haven't used on board in years. My speakers are logitech Z680s, so a few years old. They still seem to work :lol . I thought about a new sound card, unless people here say the on board is good enough?
Case: I currently have a CM 690. I was looking at something bigger to fit the 5870 in but if i decide to go the 5850 route, i may not need one. However i would like my case to have less mesh/holes, so that equals less dust as my room is awesome at collecting dust. Yes i do clean it!
I think that's it? :lol . If anyone has any suggestions on things to change please by all means, let me know. However i do live in Australia so there's always the chance that what you suggest doesn't exist.
When the computer is off, unplug the power connector, then hold down the power button.Parallax Scroll said:
Let go of the power button, then reconnect the power, wait a bit, then try and see if it turns on.
If not I'd double and then triple check everything. (Wires, screws, connections, etc)
Look for anything loose or dirty/dusty as well. (Screw behind the mobo is the infamous answer)
I'd just drop in a 5850 into your current system and OC to 3.6Ghz or higher. I think you'd be fine for that if you are just planning to do games on it.evlcookie said:
I'd keep the sound card if it works with Win7, my AV-710 still provides a noticeable pants blowing off difference from my onboard sound on my P5B. (Note I am not an audiophile by any means).
Hazaro said:
I thought about that. But i know GTA4 for example is CPU limited and a quad would help it by a fair bit, along with a new GPU. Sure it's only GTA4 and it's not worth spending all this money on, but that's just my poor example.
As for the sound card. I don't think creative have official drivers for the A2Zs under W7. I was looking at picking up one of the ASUS ones that people crap on about but maybe not on day 1 of the pc purchase.
I would still love a new system for that new system smell. And i do have a SSD sitting here waiting patiently to be an OS drive. With windows 7 release fast approaching it felt like a good time to do a full upgrade, as full as i can do anyway.
So does anybody have a AMD Phenom II X3 710? How well does it overclock?
For $100 it seems like a good deal for a budget processor for a M-ATX build I trying to keep under $500.
Hopefully I can find a decent micro-atx mobo.
Let's say I'm just gonna have one harddrive and the most powerful card I'd get would be a 5850 at most, how many watts should I be looking for in a power supply?
I can't go too overboard since I'm using a Micro-ATX case and it doesn't have that much space for a powersupply.
For $100 it seems like a good deal for a budget processor for a M-ATX build I trying to keep under $500.
Hopefully I can find a decent micro-atx mobo.
Let's say I'm just gonna have one harddrive and the most powerful card I'd get would be a 5850 at most, how many watts should I be looking for in a power supply?
I can't go too overboard since I'm using a Micro-ATX case and it doesn't have that much space for a powersupply.
got it working and got windows xp installed. I'm using it right now. The resolution is really really small right now but i think that's cause I havent installed the drivers for my gpu yet.
1. The cpu is running (I think) really hot. It gets up to about 55c when i check it in the bios. It's an i5. Maybe I installed the heatsink/fan or thermal paste wrong? I have an antec 900 case with a huge fan on top, 2 medium fans in front of the hard drive cages, and 1 medium sized fan in the back, so I thought it would keep it pretty cool. The air coming out of the case is cool.
2. It's not reading one of my harddrives. I'll check the connections and make sure they're solid.
3. I'm getting free Windows 7 through MSDNAA pretty soon after I email my instructor. Anyone with tips or a good online guide for reformating your HDD and doing a fresh install? I only installed XP so I can do some homework this weekend.
1. The cpu is running (I think) really hot. It gets up to about 55c when i check it in the bios. It's an i5. Maybe I installed the heatsink/fan or thermal paste wrong? I have an antec 900 case with a huge fan on top, 2 medium fans in front of the hard drive cages, and 1 medium sized fan in the back, so I thought it would keep it pretty cool. The air coming out of the case is cool.
2. It's not reading one of my harddrives. I'll check the connections and make sure they're solid.
3. I'm getting free Windows 7 through MSDNAA pretty soon after I email my instructor. Anyone with tips or a good online guide for reformating your HDD and doing a fresh install? I only installed XP so I can do some homework this weekend.
1. Install GPU drivers, use coretemp, realtemp, speedfanTimedog said:
p), or anything else to check CPU in windows.If the temp is still high, reseat the heatsink (make sure you have thermal paste and the plastic tape is off).
2. Check connection, and/or try another SATA slot (usually best to start with SATA0)
Hazaro said:1. Install GPU drivers, use coretemp, realtemp, speedfan
If the temp is still high, reseat the heatsink (make sure you have thermal paste and the plastic tape is off).
2. Check connection, and/or try another SATA slot (usually best to start with SATA0)
realtemp is saying it's ~30c at 0.5% load right now. This seems more like it. I'm guessing this is pretty normal than? Will I be able to overclock it a bit at this temp? Nothing big, maybe .4 gigahertz? I'm planning on getting an aftermarket cooler at some point, just not now.
I'm gonna check the connections on the HDD right now, and or change the SATA slot. I'll report back with my findings!
It's a whole different world from current HDD's.Crunched said:
It's difficult to narrow down, but perhaps you'd like to enlighten yourself in this current 27 page article?
http://anandtech.com/storage/showdoc.aspx?i=3631
SSD's do have some pretty nice upsides though. If you are interested I'd read the article though.
http://anandtech.com/storage/showdoc.aspx?i=3631&p=21
*Dammit now I want one.
jiggyed around some cables, all HDDs are being read now. Awesome. Everything seems good now except the inside of the case is a mess, I'll need to do something about that.
Now I just need to know if I can overclock it a bit with stock cooling when it runs at 30c idle.
Now I just need to know if I can overclock it a bit with stock cooling when it runs at 30c idle.
SapientWolf
Trucker Sexologist
Doesn't sleeping your computer instead of turning it off equalize the load times?Hazaro said:It's a whole different world from current HDD's.
It's difficult to narrow down, but perhaps you'd like to enlighten yourself in this current 27 page article?
http://anandtech.com/storage/showdoc.aspx?i=3631
SSD's do have some pretty nice upsides though. If you are interested I'd read the article though.
http://anandtech.com/storage/showdoc.aspx?i=3631&p=21
*Dammit now I want one.
MDSLKTR
Member
GAF, i was thinking of scrapping the idea of buying an itouch 64gig and buying a good pc for christmas instead.
This is what i might buy.
Am i getting screwed over with the price since it's a major retailer?
CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 925 (2.8GHz)
Ram: 8GB PC2-6400 DDR2
GPU: ATI Radeon HD 4650
Hard-drive: 750GB 7200RPM
No idea about about the cooling and the motherboard. I was planning on getting a 5850 down the road. My gaming is mostly on the hdtv with a 1360*768 resolution.
I will get crysis at 60fps with that right :lol ?
This is what i might buy.
Am i getting screwed over with the price since it's a major retailer?
CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 925 (2.8GHz)
Ram: 8GB PC2-6400 DDR2
GPU: ATI Radeon HD 4650
Hard-drive: 750GB 7200RPM
No idea about about the cooling and the motherboard. I was planning on getting a 5850 down the road. My gaming is mostly on the hdtv with a 1360*768 resolution.
I will get crysis at 60fps with that right :lol ?
Zaraki_Kenpachi
Member
Does anyone know what the safe voltage range for a core 2 duo is?
brain_stew
Member
MDSLKTR said:
No, not even close. Its very unlikely the PSU in that thing will support a 5850 either.
Put together a custom Core i5 750, 4GB RAM, 5850/5770 rig on NCIX and pay the $50 for them to build it for you. You'll get a much better rig, with better components throughout and a real upgrade path.
Zaraki_Kenpachi
Member
Toby said:
Only 1.5. :/ I don't know if I can get to 3.6 then.
Nvm, seems I've been running it too high.
brain_stew
Member
Zaraki_Kenpachi said:
Make sure nothing else is restricting your OC like memory speed, MCH voltage, FSB voltage etc.