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When using this resource, please read FragKrag's opening post. The Tech Support forum regulars have helped create countless of desktop systems without any compensation. The least you can do is provide all of the information required for them to help you properly. |
Hi everyone, I've been gaming on my 3 year old integrated graphics laptop for a bit too long now and am starting to feel the need for an upgrade.  I've never built my own PC before.
What is your budget?
Somewhere in the $800-$1000 range, I think. I'm not looking for a real monster of a computer, just something that can handle recent games on medium settings without setting the desk on fire.
What is your resolution?
As I said I've been playing on a laptop, I don't have a monitor. Will probably go for something mid size, please make some recommendations here too.
What are you using it for?
Almost entirely gaming. My main thing these days is League of Legends but I'd like to be able to play other games too.
What is your upgrade cycle?
Pretty long, probably 2 years at least.
When do you plan on building it?
Soon. Would like to get it before the summer weather really kicks in and my laptop melts.
Do you plan on overclocking?
No.
Do you need an Operating System?
Yes.
Do you plan to add a second GPU for SLI or Crossfire?
No.
Where are you buying your parts from?
I'm not really sure. I live in Toronto.
Thanks for help! 
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On June 15 2013 06:22 arb wrote:
What is your budget?
6-700$ preferably.
What is your resolution?
Resolution for this monitor is 1280x1024 which isnt bad, resolution doesnt really matter to me anyways(unless its like 800x600 or something -_-)
What are you using it for?
Gaming mostly, SC2/BW/LoL
Streaming : don't wanna stream super high def but it would be nice to be able to
What is your upgrade cycle?
Not often at all.
When do you plan on building it?
Within the next week or two.
Do you plan on overclocking?
No
Do you need an Operating System?
Yes
Do you plan to add a second GPU for SLI or Crossfire?
No
Where are you buying your parts from?
Internet. I live in the USA and theres no decent places nearby to pick stuff up from
I'll bump just cause i'm not sure how much my computers got left in it ._. and im not tech savvy.
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Hello,
Plan to move to a smaller case (Bitfenix Prodigy) as I am moving my computer around a lot.Therefore, will be buying a new case, new motherboard.
Bitfenix Prodigy @ $70 http://www.bitfenix.com/global/en/products/chassis/prodigy/
Gigabyte Z77N-WIFI @ $120 http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=4337#ov
Any alternatives/should I be sticking to the HAF 912?
I have already checked myself but do you see any issues in regards to heatsink/ram and psu not fitting?
- hyper 212 plus @ 120 x 79.7 x 158.5 mm has no issues with height clearance but will it block the RAM?
- XFX Core Edition 450W @ 140mm x 86mm x 150mm should also be fine "Power Supply PS2 ATX (bottom, multi direction), PSU cage depth 180mm, max PSU depth 160mm"
As always, thanks for the help.
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Thanks for the feedback. I might be trying to justify the purchase because I think it looks nice but here is my reasoning:
- Computer is moved with a car so its not solely the size that matters but picking up the computer from desk/car/car/desk.
- I have been laying the 912 on its side to reduce the pressure on the contact point of mobo/gpu and mobo/heatsink. Due to the layout of Prodigy, id be able to put it down on its legs and together with the handles, I am hoping that these 2 points will make carrying the case more enjoyable.
What you got me to think about:
- I wouldn't have to buy a new motherboard if I go with a mATX case and there seems to be many small ones. (huge deal)
- From my limited research (after your post), the SG04B-FH would be amazing but its too expensive in Canada.
- No need for handles if the size is so small.
To do list:
- Look at more mITX cases
I realize its not very fun to give feedback on these matters but its highly appreciated.
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The SG04 cases have the problem that the PSU is installed above the CPU socket. You'll need a special CPU cooler because of that.
You can drill holes and put handles (something random from a home improvement store) on any case, I suppose, though no idea if you can create something good looking like that. You might be able to find a suitcase lined with some kind of foam that can fit an SG09 or SG10 case and transport it like that. It should also just fit in a bag for carrying. In the car you can lay it on its side so that CPU cooler sits upright.
Do you really already have an mATX board? You said you have an ATX case. ATX boards are not the same as mATX. There's no really small cases for ATX, nothing as interesting as the SG09/10. The most interesting I can find is this case: http://www.coolermaster-usa.com/product.php?product_id=10020. That HAF-XB also has handles for carrying with two hands.
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On June 18 2013 00:26 Ropid wrote:The SG04 cases have the problem that the PSU is installed above the CPU socket. You'll need a special CPU cooler because of that. You can drill holes and put handles (something random from a home improvement store) on any case, I suppose, though no idea if you can create something good looking like that. You might be able to find a suitcase lined with some kind of foam that can fit an SG09 or SG10 case and transport it like that. It should also just fit in a bag for carrying. In the car you can lay it on its side so that CPU cooler sits upright. Do you really already have an mATX board? You said you have an ATX case. ATX boards are not the same as mATX. There's no really small cases for ATX, nothing as interesting as the SG09/10. The most interesting I can find is this case: http://www.coolermaster-usa.com/product.php?product_id=10020. That HAF-XB also has handles for carrying with two hands.
Just wanted to say thanks for the info and that I do have a mATX board (GA-Z68MA-D2H-B3: Micro ATX Form Factor; 24.4cm x 24.4cm)
Will go look around and come back later with more questions
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Was thinking of buying a second SSD drive, and was told there was a 24hr sale going on today at a local shop.
http://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX39617
Sandisk Extreme SATA III Solid State Drive, 240GB (SDSSDX-240G-G25) for $159.99
thoughts? any concerns? pick it up after work?
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If you trust Sandforce then go for it.
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On June 18 2013 00:03 Ata wrote:Thanks for the feedback. I might be trying to justify the purchase because I think it looks nice but here is my reasoning: - Computer is moved with a car so its not solely the size that matters but picking up the computer from desk/car/car/desk. - I have been laying the 912 on its side to reduce the pressure on the contact point of mobo/gpu and mobo/heatsink. Due to the layout of Prodigy, id be able to put it down on its legs and together with the handles, I am hoping that these 2 points will make carrying the case more enjoyable. What you got me to think about: - I wouldn't have to buy a new motherboard if I go with a mATX case and there seems to be many small ones. (huge deal) - From my limited research (after your post), the SG04B-FH would be amazing but its too expensive in Canada. - No need for handles if the size is so small. To do list: - Look at more mITX cases I realize its not very fun to give feedback on these matters but its highly appreciated.
I just bought a Bitfenix Prodigy, and let me tell you, its as small as they get if you still want to do things like watercooling. I heard, shortly after buying, that Bitfenix is coming out with a new smaller version without the handles too.
Now the SG04 is super nice and small if thats what you want, awesome mITX.
Personally, the TJ08E is what I would go for if I want a small yet capable and silent mATX, or if you want, say a h100i in a mATX, the 350D, which doesnt appear much smaller than small ATX cases, but those wont fit h100is or the like.
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Hi, I'm currently looking at laptops for college and the one that I think I'm going to buy is (second one from left) this. It has a father's day coupon and it allows me to use amazon payments (I have gift cards) so I think it's a good deal. Is it really a good deal or is it one of those fake sales where it's actually the regular price? I'm also looking for other suggestions if this one isn't good.
I'm probably going to do a little gaming (low SC2) and everything a CS major does.
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United Kingdom20323 Posts
Hey guys, i think i can get some pretty crazy results with Haswell overclocking and RAM overclocking.
It seemed really crazy to me before to attempt these kind of results, but it looks great so far.
On this bench i have ~24fps (very reproducable) minimum on 3.6ghz CPU and 1600 RAM, but 35fps minimum on 4.5ghz CPU and 2000 RAM. I might be able to get 4.8ghz, 2400 RAM numbers soon. Loosened timings, but i don't think it matters.
46% higher minimums on moderate on 25% higher CPU frequency, 25% higher RAM frequency, lets see what happens if i make that 33% higher cpu frequency, 50% higher RAM frequency
From these results also btw, i think it's a no brainer to pick up some 2000-2400mhz cas 9-12 RAM for sc2 and probably other stuff if it's not ridiculously expensive. If it adds $20-40 to an $800 build i'd say totally go for it if you are doing a moderate CPU OC. Here in the UK, you can aparantly get like 2200cas10 RAM for only ~£14 more than the cheapest ddr3 8gb listed on ocuk that i checked very easily, which makes it a pretty unquestionable buy i think, especially with haswell's better IMC
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Canada13395 Posts
On June 17 2013 04:08 ZeromuS wrote:Show nested quote +On June 17 2013 03:45 Cyro wrote:
What games? Sc2 is known to stutter like a bitch especially if you have not already ran through all of the models/animations/sounds etc, but even then some if you have.
My benchmark for example, it's less than a minute long but i have to run it on average like 4 or 5 times to get a run that doesn't have a 0.5-2second stutter in it, just cause it's a thing that happens in sc2 every few game minutes SC2, league, skyrim you name it I get the odd hiccup. Ill run another memtest while im out for the night and come back tomorrow to trouble shoot based on the tips here I guess. Oh well, as long as I can sort it out eventually
Still getting hiccups. I tried playing on my laptop on the same wireless bridge for network access and its not network related. I get less hiccups on my laptop without running the preloader than I do on my desktop (after running the hots asset preloader).
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On June 18 2013 10:21 ZeromuS wrote:Show nested quote +On June 17 2013 04:08 ZeromuS wrote:On June 17 2013 03:45 Cyro wrote:
What games? Sc2 is known to stutter like a bitch especially if you have not already ran through all of the models/animations/sounds etc, but even then some if you have.
My benchmark for example, it's less than a minute long but i have to run it on average like 4 or 5 times to get a run that doesn't have a 0.5-2second stutter in it, just cause it's a thing that happens in sc2 every few game minutes SC2, league, skyrim you name it I get the odd hiccup. Ill run another memtest while im out for the night and come back tomorrow to trouble shoot based on the tips here I guess. Oh well, as long as I can sort it out eventually Still getting hiccups. I tried playing on my laptop on the same wireless bridge for network access and its not network related. I get less hiccups on my laptop without running the preloader than I do on my desktop (after running the hots asset preloader).
Just wanted to throw in, I had problems with the newest NVidia drivers (320.xx). There were shorter and longer freezes. Perhaps that could be related? A very short freeze could be described as some kind of hiccup. All problems disappeared going back to 314.22.
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EPT
