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5930 Posts
Wndows 7 is literally $30 for a full retail version, why buy from anywhere but Microsoft.
I wouldn't bother with a OCZ SSD (especially a Vertex 2) right now considering they're huge assholes (same drives will perform differently by a large amount due to the fact they might actually be using different parts). Go with a Corsair or Patriot or similar Sandforce SSD.
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@fredguy
Nvidia's equivalent to the Radeon 6950 2GB would be the GTX 560 which retails for $250. Both these cards have great overclocking potential. However, the MSI GTX 560 Twin Frozr for $250 ($230 after mail in rebate - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127565 ) or the Gigabyte GTX 560 OC for $235 ($215 after mail in rebate - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814125363 ) come with better heatsinks and binned higher so you will most likely get a better overclock and temps with these as opposed to the stock XFX Radeon HD6950 I linked you.
The Radeon 6950 2GB just offers a better value since it can potentially be flashed to a Radeon 6970 ($360 value) and still has decent overclocking potential even with the stock heatsink.
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On April 07 2011 13:00 Womwomwom wrote:
Wndows 7 is literally $30 for a full retail version, why buy from anywhere but Microsoft.
I wouldn't bother with a OCZ SSD (especially a Vertex 2) right now considering they're huge assholes (same drives will perform differently by a large amount due to the fact they might actually be using different parts). Go with a Corsair or Patriot or similar Sandforce SSD.
Well you need a valid .edu last time I checked. If you had a valid .edu, why not just get it for free from MSDNAA?
Well the Vertex 2 is ~$40 less expensive than any 120gb equivalent SSD. Regardless if its 25nm or 32nm, it's still miles ahead of what you get with a HDD. I guess with his budget, it doesn't really matter if he wants to spend an extra $40 for a faster / more reliable SSD.
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5930 Posts
On April 07 2011 13:07 skyR wrote:Show nested quote +On April 07 2011 13:00 Womwomwom wrote:
Wndows 7 is literally $30 for a full retail version, why buy from anywhere but Microsoft.
I wouldn't bother with a OCZ SSD (especially a Vertex 2) right now considering they're huge assholes (same drives will perform differently by a large amount due to the fact they might actually be using different parts). Go with a Corsair or Patriot or similar Sandforce SSD. Well you need a valid .edu last time I checked. If you had a valid .edu, why not just get it for free from MSDNAA?
If you get hold of an email with .edu in it, it will still work. If you have an alumni email account it still works. Microsoft doesn't care at all that your duping them, they're more than happy that you've actually paying cash for Windows 7.
The problem with MSDNAA is that I don't think all places offer it to all students. I believe my university only offers it to students doing science and engineering subjects and even then its still $10.
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I get Windows Server 2008 R2, Visual Studio 2010, and a few other goodies for free through MSDNAA, but no Windows 7. Likewise, I'm not sure which students get access. All students can purchase Windows 7 for $15 from a store on campus though, so I never really bothered looking at other options.
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Current Hardware
• Gigabyte P35-DS3R
• Intel Core Duo E6600 @ 3.0Ghz
• 4Gb RAM 800Mhz (A Data 4x1GB)
• ASUS Radeon EAH6850 DirectCU *Purchased yesterday, Driver Version 11.3
• Themaltake toughpower 600W
• 1 WD Blue 320GB *OS Win7 Pro 64bit
• 1 WD Green 1TB *Currently where all games are installed
• 1 DVD-RW Dual Layer burner
• Fans 80mm x1, 120mm x2
Now for the small issue; this has only risen since the purchase of the new GPU, I seem to have random drops in FPS e.g. SCII FPS sits around 90-100 on high then it will drop to 25-30 and spike back up again? Now I’m not sure if it’s because the current hardware isn’t unlocking the full potential of the 6850? This is where the advice comes in….
If it is hardware related that’s ok as I can budget around $600 for RAM, CPU and mobo.
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5930 Posts
Its your CPU, the 6850 isn't a weak card let me guess your computer struggles when there's a large battle? You only need to spend $300 or so to get a i5-2400, cheapass 1155 motherboard, and 4GB of RAM to get a computer that won't struggle in the majority of games out there.
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If it randomly drops, it may be a problem with the card. Have you checked the temperatures with MSI Afterburner and have you tried to see if this problem exists in other games?
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The issue even occurs not long after the first pylon is built, and I've notice graphical glitches on Crysis 1 and it’s a little laggy some times.
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A question to quell any last doubts:
As you guys might remember, the basics of my build include an i5-2400 (Sandy Bridge) and a HD 6870. I know the exact power usage (~437W with everything running 100% and power being pulled to all USB ports, etc.) but wasn't sure about cooling. I have a HAF 912 case and that comes with, I believe, two fans. Combined with the design to facilitate airflow, I shouldn't have to buy anything else for cooling, right? A non-overclocked CPU also means I don't have to find a heatsink, correct? I'm almost positive that I'm right, but I'd hate to have to put off building any more than I already have to (getting it delivered to my parents house instead of my apartment because delivery guys just leave stuff at the door; probably won't see the parts until the 15th or 16th even though they might all arrive by the end of this week).
And an update: the Spinpoint and the video card both came back in stock today so I grabbed them the second I saw the emails! Everything is ordered and good to go! ^_^
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Thanks a lot for your help skyR, but I am definitely going to need to do some changes to the computer. With taxes, shipping, insurance and recycling fee I am sitting at $869.31
With my keyboard (30) and the monitor around 130 I'll be at 1030.00 Which is quite a bit over my budget.
I can compromise on the monitor and maybe get the cheapest one on the site, which is 89.99
http://ncix.com/products/?sku=58841&vpn=G925HD&manufacture=BenQ
and that will put my total to $984.93
so I'm kinda hoping you can help me out in making a few cuts, even if it means having to upgrade something within 2 years.
Also, I'm wondering if the computer will come within 2 weeks or not. I kinda don't really want to get the computer before I finish all of my finals (I haven't played sc2 in so long I will just want to binge) so I want to know when I should buy it lol.
edit:
Sorry guys I didn't see myrmidon's post.
By changing that my total comes to $913.99 which is a little bit over budget, but that's okay.
Now my question is this, should I downgrade something else and upgrade my monitor? or will downgrading something else make more of a difference than having a better monitor?
I don't have so much an issue about upgrading stuff in about 2 years or so, it's just that this summer I gotta buy this computer plus a laptop. And I don't want to go too much over my budget for both.
edit 2:
I'll repost the build
Get a Core i3-2100 for $120, instead of the i5-2400 for $187:
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=58339&promoid=1306
Asrock H67M @ $100 (pricematch with http://www.canadacomputers.com/product_info.php?item_id=037627 )
http://ncix.com/products/?sku=59672
ASUS Radeon HD6850 @ $164 ($144 after mail in rebate) (pricematched with http://www.directcanada.com/products/?sku=10530BD8785 )
http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=56356
Mushkin 2x2GB 1333MHz @ $40 ($30 after mail in rebate)
http://ncix.com/products/?sku=55546&promoid=1312
Western Digital Caviar Black 500GB @ $44 (pricematched with http://www.bestdirect.ca/products/232142/Western_Digital/WD5002AALX/ )
http://ncix.com/products/?sku=57432
Corsair CX430 @ $30
http://ncix.com/products/?sku=54842&promoid=1312
Coolermaster Elite 370 @ $40
http://ncix.com/products/?sku=54275&promoid=1312
DVD Drive @ $17 (pricematched with http://www.bestdirect.ca/products/223566/Samsung/SH_S223C_BEBE_OEM/ )
http://ncix.com/products/?sku=46792
Windows 7 Home Premium x64 @ $94 (pricematched with http://www.bestdirect.ca/products/222137/MICROSOFT/GFC_00599/ )
http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=45271
BenQ G925HD 18.5IN Widescreen LCD Monitor 1366X768 40000:1DC 5ms DVI-D VGA
http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=58841
Checkout Summary
Shipping & Handling: $33.95
Shipping Insurance: $12.36
Electronics Recycling Fee : $22.00
Important Notice:
Please note that system assembly adds 2-4 business days processing time to your order if all parts are in stock.
--------------------------------------------------------------------
Subtotal: $870.47
No PST - Outside BC residents: $0.00
GST(5%): $43.52
YOUR TOTAL: CAD $913.99
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@MiXyass
You can get a core i3 2100 bundle for $190 as opposed to $220 when purchased with the Asrock H67 and core i3 2100. But you'll be losing USB 3.0 and SATA 3.0 by grabbing the bundle.
You could also downgrade the graphics card to a GTX 550 for $150 ($140 with promotional gift card, $120 after mail in rebate): http://ncix.com/products/?sku=59501&promoid=1312
It's best to keep a ~22" monitor with a 1920x1080 resolution. Unless of course you can deal with the small resolution... =\
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@Char711:
How do you know the exact power usage? If you use a power usage estimator that looks at what parts you have, you get a very rough approximation (usually overinflated a bit) at best. Non-overclocked CPU means the stock cooler that comes should be sufficient. HAF 912 has plenty of cooling for a build like that.
@MiXyass:
Personally, I'd rather have a better monitor and step down the video card. The GTS 450 is still pretty strong and can run SC2 on high and possibly ultra depending on the resolution and desired fps:
http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=57924
edit: GTS 450 is not far behind the GTX 550 at all, so I think the above for $110 is a better deal than a GTX 550, if you're not counting on the MIR.
If you can do without USB3 support on the motherboard (you can probably get an add-on card if needed) and some other features, you could go for a cheaper motherboard. This is the cheapest one listed on NCIX (I didn't bother looking for pricematching, though you can try that):
http://ncix.com/products/?sku=59106
Take the bundle if you want to give up features, nevermind.
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On April 07 2011 07:47 Silentness wrote:Show nested quote +On April 06 2011 23:02 Legatus Lanius wrote:On April 06 2011 15:21 Myrmidon wrote:On April 06 2011 15:05 Legatus Lanius wrote:
is there any difference between the ud3 and ud3r gigabyte p67 mobos? i mean important differences UD3R has a different color.  Aside from that, the voltage regulation modules are different. I'm not sure about the other components, but from pictures you can see the UD3R has a 8+2 phase design, while the UD3 has a 4+1 phase design. This should effect overclocking in theory, but it looks like the UD3 VRMs are decent enough unless you're trying to break 5.0 GHz or something like that. ah thanks, was wondering why it was 20 bucks extra :X Do NOT be cheap on purchasing a quality VRM phase motherboard. You can fry up your board if you get one of those cheap 4+1 phase designs that claim to work really well. Hell the recent GTX 590 video card was supposedly blowing up motherboards because of the phase design on the mobo. I'd go with the 8+2 phase design... if it's only $20 more get it! 2 things you should never go cheap on is your power supply and your motherboard. Unless you want to blow shit up and have to get brand new parts or even worse a fire. >.< It's ok to avoid expensive boards that have all that extra features shit on it like SLI, USB 3, Bluetooth, but if it has crappy VRM phase design avoid it like the plague.
i dont know about the actual quality of the material, but according to http://www.overclock.net/intel-motherboards/916189-official-intel-p67-sandy-bridge-motherboard.html the ud3 and the asus p67 have the same number of phases edit: nvm read it wrong lol, it has 6
and apparantly my board has 18 phases lol
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Okay guys, I'm a little bit confused here
So I should trade the
ASUS Radeon HD 6850 DirectCU 790MHZ 1GB 4.0GHZ GDDR5 2XDVI DisplayPort HDMI PCI-E Video Card $177.21
for the MSI GeForce GTS 450 Fermi OC 850MHZ 4GHZ 1024MB 1GB GDDR5 2XDVI Mini-HDMI DX11 PCI-E Video Card
http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=57924
$110.00
and then trade the intel processor and the motherboard for
this combo?
http://www.ncix.com/products/?sku=59963&vpn=H61M-D2P-B3&i3 2100&manufacture=Bundle Deals
On there I see $220.00, but it says it gives me free shipping so that's an extra savings of $30.00
But I'm not sure if that's the bundle that you guys are talking about. Could one of you guys check that link please?
Now, when you guys say I'll be losing USB 3.0 and SATA 3.0
what does that really mean?
Am I not going to be able to plug anything through USB? (my mouse needs a USB) and I have no idea what SATA is lol
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sata is what you plug your harddrives into. sata 3 is faster than sata 2 but you dont have a ssd do you? so you wont notice the difference. usb3 is faster than usb 2. will you be using external harddrives/copying big files from usb sticks? as far as i know, keyboards/mice wont be affected by usb2/usb3 speeds
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Well I have an external hard drive that I use for backing up my files, I don't know if that affects anything (I don't mind if transfer time becomes slower, I only connect this about once every 3 months) But being able to still do this would be an asset. Only thing I'll need the USB for would be my mouse (until I get a different one, although I kinda like mine) connecting my iPod, and that's pretty much it.
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well then usb2 will be fine
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EPT
