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"I need a New PC!" 2012 Thread. Ivy, SSDs, and reading the OP. [Part 2]

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P

pax217

Member
I've got a Sidewinder X4, is this palm rest detachable? EDIT: Nevermind, turned it over... it's clearly not. :(

kharma45 said:
Catalyst won't let you change it, you'll need to use something like Sapphire's Trixx utility.
Click to expand...

Should I not be running Catalyst? I thought aftermarket drivers died with Omega...
 
P

Polishin8r

Member
Hello Gafers I am ready to build my first PC and would like your opinions and thoughts on this build. I would really like quality and energy efficient build so went with the parts that I hope will meet those requirements.

Will this set up be ok with the temperature? Will not run games on ultra or all that crazy stuff just care for stable frame-rate. but please let me know if I should get arctic 5 paste for the processor and extra fans because honestly idk

  • Budget: ~$1000
  • Main Use: Gaming ( Mostly older games on Steam, however would love to run Company of heroes 2 and Witcher 2 on high and decent fps ) , Emulation (PS2/Wii), Word a LOT of web browsing.
  • Monitor Resolution: 1080 P Asus 24''
  • SPECIFIC games that you MUST be able to play: Company of Heroes 2, Witcher 2 on high with at least 31 fps? ( used to gaming on ps3 so no worse than that)
  • When will you build?: want to build now but idk if its worth to wait in till Cyber Weekend?
  • Will you be overclocking?: No

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($214.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus P8Z77-V LK ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Samsung 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB Video Card ($317.86 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Titanium Grey) ATX Mid Tower Case ($124.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Rosewill Capstone 550W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1057.77
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

Will this set up be ok with the temperature? Will not run games on ultra or all that crazy stuff just care for stable frame-rate. But please let me know if I should get arctic 5 paste for the processor and extra fans because honestly idk

Once Again Thank you NeoGaf community for persuading me to do this!
THANK YOU FOR ALL THE HELP and Your time!
 
P

pax217

Member
Plishin8r said:
[*]SPECIFIC games that you MUST be able to play: Company of Heroes 2, Witcher 2 on high with at least 31 fps? ( used to gaming on ps3 so no worse than that)
Click to expand...

Albeit I'm not good with technicalities of PC building, based on what you've got there you should be able to run both on ultra at 60+fps
 
K

kharma45

Member
pax217 said:
I've got a Sidewinder X4, is this palm rest detachable?



Should I not be running Catalyst? I thought aftermarket drivers died with Omega...
Click to expand...

It's not an aftermarket driver it's a utility for overclocking. CCC is quite limited in this regard so something like MSI Afterburnerl, Sapphire Trixx or ASUS GPU Tweak lets you get a lot better overclocks out of your card as you're able to up the voltage and go beyond the artificial limits in CCC for clock and memory speeds.

Plishin8r said:
Hello Gafers I am ready to build my first PC and would like your opinions and thoughts on this build. I would really like quality and energy efficient build so went with the parts that I hope will meet those requirements.

Will this set up be ok with the temperature? Will not run games on ultra or all that crazy stuff just care for stable frame-rate. but please let me know if I should get arctic 5 paste for the processor and extra fans because honestly idk

  • Budget: ~$1000
  • Main Use: Gaming ( Mostly older games on Steam, however would love to run Company of heroes 2 and Witcher 2 on high and decent fps ) , Emulation (PS2/Wii), Word a LOT of web browsing.
  • Monitor Resolution: 1080 P Asus 24''
  • SPECIFIC games that you MUST be able to play: Company of Heroes 2, Witcher 2 on high with at least 31 fps? ( used to gaming on ps3 so no worse than that)
  • When will you build?: want to build now but idk if its worth to wait in till Cyber Weekend?
  • Will you be overclocking?: No

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($214.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus P8Z77-V LK ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Samsung 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($44.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 660 Ti 2GB Video Card ($317.86 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Titanium Grey) ATX Mid Tower Case ($124.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Rosewill Capstone 550W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1057.77
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

Will this set up be ok with the temperature? Will not run games on ultra or all that crazy stuff just care for stable frame-rate. But please let me know if I should get arctic 5 paste for the processor and extra fans because honestly idk

Once Again Thank you NeoGaf community for persuading me to do this!
THANK YOU FOR ALL THE HELP and Your time!
Click to expand...

Only thing I'd maybe think about is the GPU and PSU. For the GPU 7950 is worth a look unless you're set on nvidia (and in that case part of me would say go for the 670 if you can afford it) and I'd look too maybe at a better PSU but I'm just going by the Rosewill name, it could be perfectly good but imo it's best to stick to brands listed in the OP.
 
P

pax217

Member
Plishin8r said:
[*]When will you build?: want to build now but idk if its worth to wait in till Cyber Weekend?
Click to expand...

NewEgg puts hundreds of items on sale that weekend, but there's no guarantee the specific ones you want will be. There's a good chance a portion of them will, but others might not, so if you're OK with substituting some parts for ones that are on sale, then yes, wait for Thanksgiving weekend.
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
Like the hat? said:
I am building dumb and don't really have the time to learn how to put everything together, so I want to buy a prebuilt desktop. I'd like to be able to play stuff like Skyrim on decent settings, but nothing ridiculous.

Maximum budget is around $800 (but would of course prefer to be below that) and must come from Amazon. Would prefer if it was something with a monitor, but would be willing to deal. And I'd of course want to be able to upgrade in the future if I ever figure out how to do such a thing.

Sorry, I tried reading the thread but specs make my brain shut off. I am not good with computer.
Click to expand...
Just checked all the desktops on Amazon, and it's just not going to happen at that budget. If you can up it a bit more, check out the X51. But really, it's easier than a moderate Lego set to build. The 'time' to learn is a weekend building it and getting everything configured.

There are gaming PC's in your budget on Amazon, but they all have absolutely terrible processors and graphics cards that would get you 40-50% of the performance of even the 'Standard' $540 build in the OP. Any chance you are Pacific NW local?
ToyMachine228 said:
Scratch my last question. Got it figured out. Now, do I fold these tabs on this aluminum port guard to get them out of the way, or what?
Click to expand...
Hate those fuckers. I seriously don't even consider buying a motherboard that still uses those. Only the foam pads for me. Bend them out of the way if you need to, but you theoretically shouldn't have to. Never works out that way. Just make sure they don't short anything by touching powered stuff.
Plishin8r said:
Hello Gafers I am ready to build my first PC and would like your opinions and thoughts on this build. I would really like quality and energy efficient build so went with the parts that I hope will meet those requirements.

Will this set up be ok with the temperature? Will not run games on ultra or all that crazy stuff just care for stable frame-rate. but please let me know if I should get arctic 5 paste for the processor and extra fans because honestly idk
Click to expand...
Looks good. The paste that comes with the 212 is good. Swap the PSU for one in the OP. 7950>660Ti, and well worth the purchase. More VRAM, more memory bandwidth, insane overclocking headroom (you just move sliders). If you're absolutely set on the 660Ti, get the ASUS DCII, Gigabyte Windforce, or MSI Twin Frozr version. The R4 should be cheaper than that.

Don't worry about waiting for Cyber Monday/Black Friday sales. It's sucked the past two years. I was all set to spend well over $1k both times, and I think I've only made out with a Seasonic X750 for $95, and Sennheiser PC-350's for $50. It's almost all prebuilts/laptops or stuff that already goes on sale for the price a number of times throughout the months.

Also, you should really think about snagging a 120GB SSD when they pop up on sale for $70-90 (Crucial M4, Samsung 830, Corsair Force GT).

Outside of some crazy high settings on Witcher 2, should play it well over 60 fps. Can't say for certain on Company of Heroes 2 though.
 
ss_lemonade

ss_lemonade

Member
golem said:
I have the CM690 II and have all the cables shoved back there as well, the rear panel goes on fine for me. Maybe try ziptie-ing the cables together so they have a more compact profile?
Click to expand...
Isn't the 690 II a bit more roomy than the original?

Jtwo said:
Hmmph. So I'm playing the intro of Crysis, which looks INSANE. Great graphics.
The game kinda flickers though.. The framerate is buttery smooth but I notice that like, the background flickers when I move the mouse very sligtly. Is this some weird setting I checked is anyone familiar with what I'm descrbing. Its a very strange effect, I didn't even notice until like 15 minutes in.


turns out it was the motion blur.
blech, dreadful. it was ruining my experience. turned it off and everything is perfect. The first time a tree fell in front of me while i was zoomed in i screamed.


hmm... nvm the flickering is still there :\ its mostly on the foliage. when there isnt much foliage it doesnt flicker.
Click to expand...
I think edgeAA 2 will fix the flickering IIRC. It adds a bit more blur but I honestly like it more than what they used for the sequel (which introduces motion blur). It also makes the vegetation look more full. Try opening the console (~) and first type the following to enable console commands:

con_restricted 0

Then type

r_useEdgeAA 2
 
R

Row

Banned
So I'm trying to figure out the parts I need for a decent mini-itx build, sofar I have:

Case Bitfenix Prodigy
Motherboard ASUS P8Z77-I Deluxe
CPU i5-3570k
GPU EVGA GTX 660ti
PSU SeaSonic S12II 620 Bronze 620W 
RAM Corsair Vengeance 2x4GB
Primary Drive Crucial M4 128GB SSD
Storage Drive Samsung 1TB HDD
CPU Cooling Noctua NH-U9B SE2 CPU cooler
Optical Drive Standard LG DVD drive

Sofar I'm looking at $1,600 canadian, but that's taking into account the monitor, keyboard, mouse, copy of windows 7 pro, and fans. This is my first time building a PC, let along one in a small case, and I want to make sure the parts are appropriate. The PSU, CPU cooling, and GPU I picked somewhat randomly. I'll be using this mainly for gaming.

Is a 620W PSU enough if I want to go for a GTX 670 or more in the future?
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
Row said:
So I'm trying to figure out the parts I need for a decent mini-itx build, sofar I have:

Case Bitfenix Prodigy
Motherboard ASUS P8Z77-I Deluxe
CPU i5-3570k
GPU EVGA GTX 660ti
PSU SeaSonic S12II 620 Bronze 620W 
RAM Corsair Vengeance 2x4GB
Primary Drive Crucial M4 128GB SSD
Storage Drive Samsung 1TB HDD
CPU Cooling Noctua NH-U9B SE2 CPU cooler
Optical Drive Standard LG DVD drive

Sofar I'm looking at $1,600 canadian, but that's taking into account the monitor, keyboard, mouse, copy of windows 7 pro, and fans. This is my first time building a PC, let along one in a small case, and I want to make sure the parts are appropriate. The PSU, CPU cooling, and GPU I picked somewhat randomly. I'll be using this mainly for gaming.

Is a 620W PSU enough if I want to go for a GTX 670 or more in the future?
Click to expand...
SFF Guide from the OP.

I don't know whether the U9B is compatible with the P8Z77-I. I really like sticking to the Corsair closed loop systems for these builds as it will always fit no problem. Otherwise the Noctua C12 will most definitely fit it, and provide some good cooling to the daughter VRM board.

Buy the Samsung 30nm RAM, or if not available, buy low profile RAM.

Go with the ASUS DCII, MSI Twin Frozr, or Gigabyte Windforce 660Ti if you're stuck on NVIDIA. If not, then go for the 7950 instead.

620W PSU is plenty of power. The modular version will save you major headaches.
 
S

scogoth

Member
Screw you OCZ if you won't let me buy your gold RAM anymore, I'LL MAKE IT!

3r1Pq.jpg
Click to expand...
 
P

Polishin8r

Member
Thraktor said:
Overclocking is easy to do and will help a lot with PS2 and Wii emulation, and as you've already got a 3570K and CM 212 on your list you can easily go over 4GHz without having to worry about temperatures.
Click to expand...

wow thx for letting me know :D and thank's everyone for the replies!
 
B

BolognaSoup

Member
Has anyone else ever experienced big slow down from Chrome? On W7 64 for some reason Chrome just runs really slow for me lately. Only extensions I have installed are dictionary and that other one. I've tried to clearing my cache, cookies, etc., restarting and before long at all or right away it's slow again. Just loading up pages on khan academy or google maps for example are extremely slow. IE and Opera are fast for me though.
 
P

pax217

Member
Your only extensions are dictionary and dictionary... you mean.

I haven't experienced many problems but I've been hearing about a lot. I can't help but wonder now that Google's gotten their quick browser onto so many clients that they're integrating stuff they didn't initially have so that Google can Google...?
 
P

Polishin8r

Member
BolognaSoup said:
Has anyone else ever experienced big slow down from Chrome? On W7 64 for some reason Chrome just runs really slow for me lately. Only extensions I have installed are dictionary and adblock. I've tried to clearing my cache, cookies, etc., restarting and before long at all or right away it's slow again. Just loading up pages on khan academy or google maps for example are extremely slow. IE and Opera are fast for me though.
Click to expand...

try reinstalling it
 
C

chaosblade

Unconfirmed Member
Glad I never cared about making the inside look good. Get the cables out of the way to help airflow a little, but nothing beyond that. Edit: Wow. I can't say I've ever seen that happen before. I admit I laughed seeing that.


So, is there a more adequate troubleshooting thread for specific game issues? I don't come across game issues often, and this is the first one that Google hasn't solved and I'm at a loss.

Age of Empires 2 won't start with dual monitors, I get the DirectDraw support error unless I disable the second monitor. I'm assuming it's just AMD's drivers because I'm positive it worked at some point before, but that's a blind guess at this point.


Edit: Figures once I post I'll figure it out. Discussed it with a friend and came up with an idea - my second monitor is in portrait mode. Used to have it landscape, and I guess DirectDraw freaks out if you have a wonky resolution with horizontal+vertical monitors.
 
D

Deleted member 22576

Unconfirmed Member
Ok, so this Crysis flickering issue. I don't know what to do, the usual google search trial and error hasn't gotten me anywhere. I see a lot of people have had this issue, but I cant find a solution that works for me.

Been playing a lot of Just Cause 2. Very VERY impressive, and fun as hell. Incredible game. Can't believe I got it for 3 bucks, lol. I decided to a roll a siren in Borderlands2. Only played the beginning, amazing. Can't wait to play that game. I just really want to play Crysis, goddamnit. FarCry1 is my favorite shooter of all time and I want to get the REAL Crysis expeirenece.

The computer is surprisinlgy quiet.
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
But what about the blue RAM and expansion slots?

Empty your wallet. The hobbyist Gods only accept donations in loonies.
 
L

Ledsen

Member
Plishin8r said:
[*]Budget: ~$1000
[*]SPECIFIC games that you MUST be able to play: Company of Heroes 2, Witcher 2 on high with at least 31 fps? ( used to gaming on ps3 so no worse than that)
Click to expand...

It's always funny to see how low the expectations of console gamers are... with a $1000 system you'll crush the consoles into fine dust with your ultra settings, 1080p, 60 fps, crispy AA god-tier image quality. You're entering the next generation here, kiddo.
 
D

deleted

Member
I have a problem with my new graphics card:

I got the Gigabyte GeForce GTX 660 OC and I can't seem to gt the fan clock below 40%.
I downloaded the MSI Afterburner Tool and also tried the ASUS and Gigabyte ones, but none of them allows me to go below 40%.

It's pretty ridiculous because the temp is only at 28°C without load and the GPU could be much more quiet. What to do? Can I override the min % setting somewhere?

Edit: My Bios version shows: 80.06.10.00.3d, but on the Gigabyte site there is another one 80.04.4B.00.26 - the last one is older, right? Or do bios version follow other naming specifications?
 
F

flyinpiranha

Member
So my work has given me a copy of Win 8. I just recently reinstalled 7 Enterprise due to upgrading my PC and going with an SSD ... so if I was going to install this, now would be the time.

Are there any hurdles using Win 8 with Steam or any other (newer) games or software? I've read a few threads about some developers are "afraid" but I haven't had any real world experience with it.
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
Those fans at 40% should basically be inaudible. A lot of fans can't go below that kind of voltage without stopping, so it might be built in to go no lower. I'd do some google-fu if I were you.

If you are in the market for a new good PSU, buy the Seasonic X750 on Newegg right now!

$100 w/ Promo Code EMCYTZT2397. That's like 40% off.
flyinpiranha said:
So my work has given me a copy of Win 8. I just recently reinstalled 7 Enterprise due to upgrading my PC and going with an SSD ... so if I was going to install this, now would be the time.

Are there any hurdles using Win 8 with Steam or any other (newer) games or software? I've read a few threads about some developers are "afraid" but I haven't had any real world experience with it.
Click to expand...
Wait until the coast is clear. Don't be a Guinea Pig. As far as I'm concerned, Win 7 is the pinnacle of a workstation OS.

There's no reason why you won't be able to do it down the line once the bugs are sorted out.
 
F

flyinpiranha

Member
mkenyon said:
Wait until the coast is clear. Don't be a Guinea Pig. As far as I'm concerned, Win 7 is the pinnacle of a workstation OS.

There's no reason why you won't be able to do it down the line once the bugs are sorted out.
Click to expand...

Yeah, noticed on their site that the Naga and G13 seem to be getting a lot of "incompatible". I'll just run it in VMWare and get used to it then when the first SP comes out probably go from there. I love Win7 and on an SSD seems perfect for what I'm using it for.

It's just that upgrade bug ...
 
J

Jburton

Banned
flyinpiranha said:
So my work has given me a copy of Win 8. I just recently reinstalled 7 Enterprise due to upgrading my PC and going with an SSD ... so if I was going to install this, now would be the time.

Are there any hurdles using Win 8 with Steam or any other (newer) games or software? I've read a few threads about some developers are "afraid" but I haven't had any real world experience with it.
Click to expand...

Have had zero issues with Windows 8 and Steam / Gaming.
 
M

mkenyon

Banned
That's the thing about new operating systems, don't go looking for advice on forums when the only people saying 'it is crap' and 'no problems!' is going to be entirely anecdotal. The only partly empirical evidence we have to go on is in previous launches. It's best to just wait. If Win 7 wasn't as awesome as it is, it might be worth it to jump in to play with a new OS. But Win 7 is just sooooooooo good.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

If there is anyone Pacific NW Local that is looking to buy a custom full tower case, going to be selling my Shinobi XL. Asking $100. Shipping it would make it more expensive than buying a new case I think.

Hdamal.jpg


Switching to a Lian Li PC-7HX for a case mod competition.
 
S

Shambles

Member
golem said:
I have the CM690 II and have all the cables shoved back there as well, the rear panel goes on fine for me. Maybe try ziptie-ing the cables together so they have a more compact profile?
Click to expand...

I found the 690 II to be pretty tight behind the motherboard tray. Most of your cables will fit fine but depending on how the 24-pin motherboard cable is wrapped it can be tight. I have to apply a fair bit of force on the door to squish in close enough to be able to slide the door shut. It's a great case but I wish it had a bit more space like the 500R does back there.
 
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