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5930 Posts
On January 18 2011 02:08 Fubb wrote:
Hey TL, i asked a friend of mine to 'build' a possible new PC for me. Now i'm here asking for some input on his choice and to ask a few questions.
The build:
--- cpu, either ---
ASRock 870 Extreme3, AM3, ATX
AMD Phenom II X6 1075T, AM3
--- or ---
Intel Core i5-2500 Box, LGA1155
MSI P67A-C43, Intel P67, ATX, DDR3
Get the Intel. Even in heavily threaded tasks, the i5 2500 is good enough to compete (maybe even beat) the X6. Since I'm assuming you're not overclocking (you are only getting the i5 2500 and not the K version), you might consider downgrading to a H67 board seeing you're probably not going to use any of the features offered by the P67 board.
Other stuff to note:
- The case is OK but I wouldn't trust any of the tool less options since its so cheap/plastic. It'll definitely be 0.6mm and really flimsy but you can't complain about it considering its good price.
- If you want to save money, get a cheaper power supply like an Antec Earthwatts 550W. Superflower, despite the hilarious name, isn't some crap company but you really don't need a 80+ Gold power supply.
- Could probably save cash by getting a Samsung F3 Spinpoint. They should be a lot cheaper than the WD Caviar Blacks and perform at such a level that you won't notice a difference between the two unless you purposely benchmark them.
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On January 17 2011 17:54 Myrmidon wrote:Is it that hard to look at xbitlabs yourself? Test setup is this. GPU is a HD 6970. The reason for the very low fps is because they're intentionally testing a very very large battle where the game is being bottlenecked by the CPU. Maybe the improvements in the branch prediction, micro-op caching, etc. make a bigger difference in SC2 than in synthetic CPU benchmarks and other tests. What CPU do you have? AnandTech results show an even bigger difference between i5-2500 and Phenom II X4 970 (pretty much same as 975) in their testing scenario. Likewise against i5-760. @-Jambi-: You can probably get better prices looking around, even just on newegg. Use combos, pick alternatives, etc. 750W is totally overkill even if you add in a second HD 6850 and overclock the crap out of everything. I'd try the 650W version or even this for $50. That GPU is sold out. CAS 7 RAM is nice I guess, but I'd either get a cheaper set or maybe a 2x4GB set. Maybe you want an aftermarket CPU cooler, or are you going to overclock on the stock cooler?
I'll probably do a moderate amount of overclocking, nothing too extreme as I don't want everything running hot and way past potential. Not really sure on the cooler and wondering what you think the stock cooler is good for and what are the possibilities of an aftermarket one?
Yea thanks for that, I talked to the guy and I can just put up an rma, and switch out the psu, I'll probably get the 650w antec, the rosewill seems like a good deal but just judgding from neweggs psu calculators if I add ram, another graphics card, and possibly another hd at a later time the rosewill will cut it too close to call. >> Actually if the 6850 doesn't go through and I go with just one hd 6950 ill probably go for the rosewill...
As for the ram, I was going for http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231440 it is also cas 7 and seems cheap with pretty low shipping costs, I'll probably just wait until that goes on sale and then pop it in at a later date. For now the kingston seems pretty dirt cheap (hopefully all the rebates go through), they are an alright brand, and it does come with a flash drive which I desperately need for school and such since some asshat stole my other one....
The gpu says processing on my account, if anything I can order it from amazon, or even get a diff maker or higher quality one (Like the hd 6950), if it doesn't go past the processing stage.
On a side note, you should really get paid for this Myrmidon or at least run your own pc building advice website lol, give that overpriced alienware a run for their money
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If you don't have plans for SLI or Crossfiring multiple GPUs, you could get a cheaper motherboard for sure. But if you really want that one, you can get the exact same thing in a combo and save $20 (and get Civ 5 for free too). I'm also guessing that you're going to want to overclock the CPU, since you got a i5-2500k and a higher-end mobo? You may want to consider a midrange aftermarket CPU cooler in the $25-40 range or so for that, to keep temperatures reasonable.This RAM has the same specs for $10 less.
Raidmax PSUs are often pretty suspect, though I don't know anything about that model. The label doesn't set off any red flags for me, but you can't really tell without a proper review. Anyway, if you have all these high-end computer components, I'd recommend powering them with a model known to be safe.
If you're actually only going to run one GPU, you don't need over 500W really, unless you've got some monster setup for ridiculous overclocks on a GTX 480. This Antec Neo Eco 520C (review, internally is pretty much the same as this) is good:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371030
For dual GTX 460 (overclocked is okay), dual HD 6950, or less power-hungry; or if you want a modular unit, try this XFX 650W XXX Edition (review):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207002
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Hey TL, I recently bought an Inspiron 530 (not with gaming in mind), and recently got fed up with the quality of SC2 it puts out. It has problems running low settings (no surprise). Every now and then I'll get a lag spike, and when the unit count rises, my game gets slower. I'm asking you all if it was possible to buy one component, possibly around 50-100 dollars, in order to make it run smoothly on low settings. Thanks a bunch.
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5930 Posts
Likely not, the power supplies used with prebuilts like Dells are awful and can only supply as much power as required...while there isn't anything wrong with Dell doing this to save $$$, it limited you upgrading to better parts.
Even then replacing any other parts would be near impossible. Most ATX power supplies probably wouldn't fit (fucking annoying), the BIOS probably wouldn't recognize a new CPU, etc etc. That computer is so old that you may as well do a complete upgrade because there's nothing you can do to get acceptable performance on a Celeron.
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It seems like there are quite a few Inspiron 530 variants and models. What are your exact CPU and GPU models? The more information about the motherboard, power supply, etc. you can find, the better. Depending on the motherboard, it may or may not be possible to upgrade the CPU to some specific things. It's probably worth the time to open up the computer to see what's inside. For the power supply, see what the label says about wattages, current, etc.
Actually, a lot of Dells have low-end but decent Delta-manufactured PSUs. Some higher-end prebuilts have even better stuff. Most of the time, there is enough power capacity to upgrade to a GPU on the level of a HD 5670 (already way way overkill for low settings).
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On January 19 2011 06:52 Myrmidon wrote:If you don't have plans for SLI or Crossfiring multiple GPUs, you could get a cheaper motherboard for sure. But if you really want that one, you can get the exact same thing in a combo and save $20 (and get Civ 5 for free too). I'm also guessing that you're going to want to overclock the CPU, since you got a i5-2500k and a higher-end mobo? You may want to consider a midrange aftermarket CPU cooler in the $25-40 range or so for that, to keep temperatures reasonable. This RAM has the same specs for $10 less. Raidmax PSUs are often pretty suspect, though I don't know anything about that model. The label doesn't set off any red flags for me, but you can't really tell without a proper review. Anyway, if you have all these high-end computer components, I'd recommend powering them with a model known to be safe. If you're actually only going to run one GPU, you don't need over 500W really, unless you've got some monster setup for ridiculous overclocks on a GTX 480. This Antec Neo Eco 520C ( review, internally is pretty much the same as this) is good: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371030For dual GTX 460 (overclocked is okay), dual HD 6950, or less power-hungry; or if you want a modular unit, try this XFX 650W XXX Edition ( review): http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817207002
Thanks for the feed back! I was going to edit the post and say that I planned on doing SLI within 6months. As for the PSU being a Raidmax one, I feel I can trust 4 eggs with 300 reviews and it happens to be in a bundle with the RAM I posted, but if you think I should get a different one let me know. I also do plan on overclocking, so I do plan on buying an aftermarket cooler.
edit: The PSU, RAM bundle saves me 35 bucks, and I'm all about saving the money ^^
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I looked at it some more. Original assessment by me was that it was probably bad but not terrible, and it would most likely be fine on a single GPU setup. Short answer, now that I know you're thinking about SLI and overclocking: definitely do not get that Raidmax. Longer answer: + Show Spoiler +Pretty much nobody buying a part like that on newegg has the equipment or expertise to evaluate something like that. And looking through a few pages of reviews, nobody seems to be running a system that takes anywhere close to 730W. One newegg review says a Phenom II X4 + Crossfire HD 4870 worked, but crashed when overclocked. That person may or may not have been fully stress testing the system.
You'll notice that they don't give a total +12V max current rating, which every respected PSU does. There is a very high amount listed for +3V and +5V, which indicates that it's an old design originally intended for older systems that used to use +3V and +5V more. Almost all power draw in modern computers comes from the +12V output. Not having active power factor correction is not a big deal at all, but pretty much all good PSUs have that these days and that one does not.
Let's assume the unit can actually do 730W continuous (maybe it's more like 730W peak, or less, and who knows if voltages are in spec at that load). Since it's an old 3.3V/5V-heavy design, it's probably equivalent more or less to a modern 500W PSU or so in terms of powering any modern computer, which takes most of the power from +12V. It's difficult to say exactly without knowing more.
i.e. It's not really a deal, so forget about it.
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On January 19 2011 10:13 Myrmidon wrote:I looked at it some more. Original assessment by me was that it was probably bad but not terrible, and it would most likely be fine on a single GPU setup. Short answer, now that I know you're thinking about SLI and overclocking: definitely do not get that Raidmax. Longer answer: + Show Spoiler +Pretty much nobody buying a part like that on newegg has the equipment or expertise to evaluate something like that. And looking through a few pages of reviews, nobody seems to be running a system that takes anywhere close to 730W. One newegg review says a Phenom II X4 + Crossfire HD 4870 worked, but crashed when overclocked. That person may or may not have been fully stress testing the system.
You'll notice that they don't give a total +12V max current rating, which every respected PSU does. There is a very high amount listed for +3V and +5V, which indicates that it's an old design originally intended for older systems that used to use +3V and +5V more. Almost all power draw in modern computers comes from the +12V output. Not having active power factor correction is not a big deal at all, but pretty much all good PSUs have that these days and that one does not.
Let's assume the unit can actually do 730W continuous (maybe it's more like 730W peak, or less, and who knows if voltages are in spec at that load). Since it's an old 3.3V/5V-heavy design, it's probably equivalent more or less to a modern 500W PSU or so in terms of powering any modern computer, which takes most of the power from +12V. It's difficult to say exactly without knowing more.
i.e. It's not really a deal, so forget about it.
Well, my friend... My knowledge of computer parts is nil compared to your's, so thank you. I'm getting the PSU you suggested and this RAM (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231225). 8gb isn't necessary. lol.
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On January 19 2011 09:40 Myrmidon wrote:
It seems like there are quite a few Inspiron 530 variants and models. What are your exact CPU and GPU models? The more information about the motherboard, power supply, etc. you can find, the better. Depending on the motherboard, it may or may not be possible to upgrade the CPU to some specific things. It's probably worth the time to open up the computer to see what's inside. For the power supply, see what the label says about wattages, current, etc.
Actually, a lot of Dells have low-end but decent Delta-manufactured PSUs. Some higher-end prebuilts have even better stuff. Most of the time, there is enough power capacity to upgrade to a GPU on the level of a HD 5670 (already way way overkill for low settings).
Hey, thanks for the respond. Not sure if this is what you want, but this is what I could find.
System Model: Inspiron 530
BIOS: Phoenix - AwardBIOS v6.00PG
Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Duo CPU E7400 @ 2.80GHz (2 CPUs), ~2.8GHz
Memory: 6132MB RAM
Card name: Intel(R) G33/G31 Express Chipset Family
Manufacturer: Intel Corporation
Chip type: Intel(R) GMA 3100
DAC type: Internal
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Hello TL, I figured my first post should be about getting a computer to actually play the game that most people are here for: SC2. Thanks in advance for the help. Now onto the questions to help you guys get me from point A to point B.
What is your budget?
400-600 USD
What is your resolution?
1024x768 or the next non-wide screen resolution up from that.
What are you using it for?
All Gaming, mainly Starcraft 2 and probably the new Oblivion Elder Scrolls V coming out on 11.11.11.
What is your upgrade cycle?
I will be upgrading after I have a more stable job, probably a year or two.
When do you plan on building it?
As soon as possible, I rather get it quicker than wait around for an amazing deal.
Do you plan on overclocking?
No
Do you need an Operating System?
Yes, but I can probably find one via school or friends. Cap the build at 500 USD just incase I have to buy one for 100 USD
Do you plan to add a second GPU for SLI or Crossfire?
Not on this initial build, probably when I do my next computer build
Where are you buying your parts from?
Newegg or wherever the best deals are. The shipping is going to be to St. Louis if that helps on figuring out the shipping costs included.
Extra:
I am looking for something that can run SC2 flawlessly on low to medium. It doesn't need to be fancy, just needs to be cheap and cost effective.
Again, thank you for your time and I look forward to seeing what build(s) everyone comes up with.
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@PheNOM_: No problem. One thing: with a Sandy Bridge system, you want 2 or 4 (not 3) sticks of RAM so you can use the dual-channel architecture. You can go with 2 sticks of 2GB DDR3 RAM now and maybe add 2 more modules later if more RAM is needed.
@nhoJJohn: Good thing you posted that. Those specs are very different than those in the link you had. Your CPU is good enough for most games, definitely. Your problem is that you're using Intel's terrible integrated graphics processing unit from 3 generations ago. Check the power supply, but most likely it'll be able to handle a lower-power GPU like any of the below.
If you want to run on medium/high, get this for $80:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814102870
If you're sure all you want to do is play on low, get this for $35 (or the second for $40 - $20 MIR, whichever you prefer, as they're the same):
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125337
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125250
@Demonace34: Here's a very quick build for a little under $500. "Quick" means I did this in a rush, but the computer itself should be fairly fast too.  CPU and motherboard are on the weaker side, but this should be fairly upgradable, and it should play SC2 in general on very high settings. You'll be able to turn up most graphical settings all the way, especially at those resolutions.
+ Show Spoiler [build] +
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Thanks for the info. Now i'm just having a hard time ordering the stuff, because Newegg and Paypal hate me.
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On January 19 2011 14:19 PheNOM_ wrote:
Thanks for the info. Now i'm just having a hard time ordering the stuff, because Newegg and Paypal hate me.
Same here. Thanks to living at college and paypal refusing to ship to a different address than a billing address.
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On January 19 2011 16:12 holynorth wrote:Show nested quote +On January 19 2011 14:19 PheNOM_ wrote:
Thanks for the info. Now i'm just having a hard time ordering the stuff, because Newegg and Paypal hate me. Same here. Thanks to living at college and paypal refusing to ship to a different address than a billing address.
ZOMG! I'm glad we can cry together. I too am at college. How are you going about fixing it?
edit: I kept getting this message "The seller of this item requires you to provide a Confirmed Address for delivery. To confirm your address, please add a credit card below." I wanted to kill someone. I tried for an hour to make it work.
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On January 19 2011 17:29 PheNOM_ wrote:Show nested quote +On January 19 2011 16:12 holynorth wrote:On January 19 2011 14:19 PheNOM_ wrote:
Thanks for the info. Now i'm just having a hard time ordering the stuff, because Newegg and Paypal hate me. Same here. Thanks to living at college and paypal refusing to ship to a different address than a billing address. ZOMG! I'm glad we can cry together. I too am at college. How are you going about fixing it?
I have not found a reliable method to get around this which results in me still having no desktop for gaming. However, I do know that you can contact UPS and have them change the address they deliver too. You have to pay new base shipping charges for this, but it's a start.
I've also debated on going to the store and picking up one of those massive prepaid cards. They have charges to set them up, like twelve dollars, but it's one of the few options we have for now.
Edit: just found an actual fix. Call your bank, or your parents if you are under them can call the bank, and have them set up an alternate address under the card. It doesn't replace your billing address but it allows for sites like this to use a different shipping address.
If you're like me and are doing this so they don't realize you are spending 500+ on something you don't need, say it's for smaller purchases or something.
+ Show Spoiler +
Please contact the bank that issued your credit card and have your shipping address listed as an alternate address in that bank's memo field. Please note this only takes 5 minutes and you will never have to do it again once this is completed. Please also make sure your credit card issuer bank's phone number is correctly listed in your Newegg.com account information.
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Thanks man, I appreciate it. Glad that things worked out okay and I can go back to playing SC2. Cheers.
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got a question for u guys.
which sandy bridge should i get if i were just going for hardcore gaming? is it really necessary to get the more expensive one's for overclock feature for future upgrades? does the on board graphic thingy on sandy bridge affect a discrete graphic cards?
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On January 19 2011 21:08 Shizuru~ wrote:
got a question for u guys.
which sandy bridge should i get if i were just going for hardcore gaming? is it really necessary to get the more expensive one's for overclock feature for future upgrades? does the on board graphic thingy on sandy bridge affect a discrete graphic cards?
Its not really neccessary to overclock. It can give you some more power, but it will get less and less energy efficient the more you overclock and you should use better cooling. Most people who overclock just do it because they can and they like to tweak their system, not because they need the additonal power.
You should go with the i5-2400, which is very good in price/performance. The integrated graphic won't do anything when you use a discrete one, don't worry about that.
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EPT
