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On October 06 2010 11:54 s0ftHanDs wrote:
Its a form factor that fits with an A/V setup in my living room, eliminating my massive pc on my floor and my standalone bluray player.... and being quiet...
Hmm.. sucks, I was really hoping this would play SC2.... sigh.
It said the process was quad core... and it is the more expensive option, with the processor before it being AMD Athlon™ II X2 P320 (2.1GHz/1MB cache)....
Sigh.. any one have an HTPC recommendations then?
Is something like this too large? You can build a real PC inside that's significantly better (i.e. can play SC2 on high easily) for significantly less. You're just limited to a micro-ATX motherboard and low-profile (half-height) cards.
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On October 06 2010 12:15 Myrmidon wrote:Show nested quote +On October 06 2010 11:54 s0ftHanDs wrote:
Its a form factor that fits with an A/V setup in my living room, eliminating my massive pc on my floor and my standalone bluray player.... and being quiet...
Hmm.. sucks, I was really hoping this would play SC2.... sigh.
It said the process was quad core... and it is the more expensive option, with the processor before it being AMD Athlon™ II X2 P320 (2.1GHz/1MB cache)....
Sigh.. any one have an HTPC recommendations then? Is something like this too large? You can build a real PC inside that's significantly better (i.e. can play SC2 on high easily) for significantly less. You're just limited to a micro-ATX motherboard and low-profile (half-height) cards.
I suppose that could work, though its approximately double the size of what I was looking at.
But, for my purposes I guess its not realistic to want to play and watch hd movies, gaming (sc2) on a 52" monitor at 1900x1080 resolution and have it all fit in an 8"x8" square.
The idea was to fit this into a rather minimal looking entertainment shelf
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Okay, for a mini-ITX form factor, it's possible, but it's going to be more expensive and much weaker. Something like this with a laptop Core i3 and a Nvidia GT425M could do 1080p SC2 on low. It gets 88.12 fps average on 1366x768 low settings according to the review.
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I read the exact same review already =) Seems decent, though I will be paying more, assuming its even available in canada. Would probably be closer to $1500 with shipping, taxes, duties, etc...
Maybe I need to see if I can build something then, and hopefully have it look good.
Looking on ncix.com right now...
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Hi guys
I’m a long time lurker of 8 years and a first time poster. The TL Health and Fitness thread almost got me, but watching videos and practice does wonders on proper clean and jerk technique. However, I’m really anal and indecisive when it comes to picking the right bang for buck purchase. So please point me towards the proper direction and hopefully, I can expand my computer hardware knowledge at the same time.
What is your budget?
The maximum budget is 800 USD, including the monitor. Basically, the lower we can keep the price while maximizing ‘future-proof’ capabilities, the bigger my monitor can be (at least 23’)
What is your resolution?
I’m aiming for a 1920x1080. However, my brother does have spare parts to give, which includes a GTX 260. He was saying that it should be good enough to run SC2 at high if not ultra so I don’t mind upgrading the GPU at a later time.
What are you using it for?
The majority of my computer usage will be from heavy gaming (SC2, Aion, and other Eastern MMOs) and streaming. I have a habit of having a foreign film and South Park episode streaming in the background while I game. I’m also looking to Fraps some MMO gameplay while having a high FPS.
What is your upgrade cycle?
My upgrade cycle is 3 years and if the rig can play new games in 4 years at medium – high setting then even better. The parts I’m willing to spend a little more on for higher end parts are monitor, HD, and case + heatsink since they are reusable in another build, right?
When do you plan on building it?
Currently, I’m leaning toward the i5-760 model since its been highly suggested in previous post as the most bang for buck in terms of gaming.
Do you plan on overclocking?
Yes, I’m definitely overclocking and would greatly appreciated a link to a recommended and trusted guide. The aim would be +4.0 ghz. Also, how would I go about overclocking the GPU?
Do you need an Operating System?
Yes. I’m a big time loyalist to WinXP though, but if there is a performance increase with Win7 then so be it.
Do you plan to add a second GPU for SLI or Crossfire?
Yes, if a dual setup of GTX 260 and GTX 460 is worth it. From previous posts, the double GTX 460 seems to be the most bang for buck, but its wasn’t mention with any other graphics card. This seems to determine if I should get a 8x/8x or a 16x/16x mobo right.
Where are you buying your parts from?
Newegg, Fry’s, and Microcenter all works for me so whichever one adds up to the most bang for buck. One of the main question I wanted to ask is if I should wait for Black Thursday, Cyber Monday, or the new Intel Processor to come out. Hopefully each of those situation would lower the i5-760 + mobo price since they’re not upgradable.
So far.
1TB Hitachi 7200 HD from Amazon
i5-760 from microcenter
DDR3. The deal is for 8gb though. Is it worth the money or should I look for a 4gb deal?
8gb of DDR3
Those are the only deals that I found on slickdeals.net.
Spare Parts from Bro
PSU – 550 watt, I have no idea what the brand is.
GPU – GTX 260
Optical Drive – dvd/CD burner (its at least 10 years old tho)
Thank you for much for your time and for reading this. Please ask if I miss anything. Hopefully I can stop using this Dell Inspiron 6400 laptop + portable fan to pay SC2 lol. It’s a testament to how cheap plus broke I am lol (saving 800 dollars is hard work lol so I want to make it count).
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dasEs, if only the rest of the guys that want help with their new PC configuration, posted like you. Doing mighty fine for a first post. Someone from the U.S. will point you to US distro web-sites and will recommend parts according their price in no time. I'd recommend not getting a 2nd GTX 260 for SLI, and better try to replace the current one and get a single GTX 460 (or even game with the current GTX 260 till you have enough for GTX 460 or maybe do a price evaluation at that time with the items offered at the market). The reasons for this are numerous from SLI/Crossfire still having issues, they don't give that big of a boost, investing in out dated technology that will fail you in the near future etc. FragKrag and Myrmidon usually excel at knowing extra things, as Motherboards suitable for overclocking (which you said you'll do). Heed their advice. Cheers. 
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The GTX260 (216) is a very strong card for its age. Actually, a 192sp commonly overclocks higher than the 216SP model, if that's your thing. I personally haven't done much GPU OCing lately, but it's an option - depending on which one your brother is giving you. Also if you do get a GTX260, the 460's DX9 performance bump in SC2 isn't large enough to warrant that as a good use of money. If you must get a Fermi, I would suggest waiting for the "475" (or whatever the GF104 version of the 470 is).
http://www.techspot.com/review/305-starcraft2-performance/page7.html
(note the review uses a 3.7Ghz Nehalem, but you'll be above those clocks)
Overclocking:
4Ghz isn't difficult, especially with the higher multi of the 760. 22 x 181 BCLK should be a breeze. I wouldn't worry about 8x/8x vs. 16x/16x, after the study that [H]ardOCP performed.
Regarding price drops, until we hear of the SB price at Microcenter, we can only really guess. However a word of warning about supposed price drops. The 750 when I bought it was $149. I honestly doubt we will see any legit Intel quad-cores drop below that price. Look at how much the Yorkfield's still cost - it's a great indication of how Intel prefers to phase, and not cost cut. Maybe I'm proven wrong, but realistically I'm not anticipating a significant price drop.
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On October 06 2010 15:27 mav451 wrote:The GTX260 (216) is a very strong card for its age. Actually, a 192sp commonly overclocks higher than the 216SP model, if that's your thing. I personally haven't done much GPU OCing lately, but it's an option - depending on which one your brother is giving you. Also if you do get a GTX260, the 460's DX9 performance bump in SC2 isn't large enough to warrant that as a good use of money. If you must get a Fermi, I would suggest waiting for the "475" (or whatever the GF104 version of the 470 is). http://www.techspot.com/review/305-starcraft2-performance/page7.html(note the review uses a 3.7Ghz Nehalem, but you'll be above those clocks) Overclocking: 4Ghz isn't difficult, especially with the higher multi of the 760. 22 x 181 BCLK should be a breeze. I wouldn't worry about 8x/8x vs. 16x/16x, after the study that [H]ardOCP performed. Regarding price drops, until we hear of the SB price at Microcenter, we can only really guess. However a word of warning about supposed price drops. The 750 when I bought it was $149. I honestly doubt we will see any legit Intel quad-cores drop below that price. Look at how much the Yorkfield's still cost - it's a great indication of how Intel prefers to phase, and not cost cut. Maybe I'm proven wrong, but realistically I'm not anticipating a significant price drop.
u h whaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaat
the gtx 460 even tops the gtx 285 in some games so i dunno what you're talking about
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I said in SC2. Please read my post again.
He is getting a free GTX260. Playing at high means he can calmly wait for the 475 or 6000 series from ATi.
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Lost his mind at SB, dur.
@DasEs
RAM price has gone down recently, about 37 per 2 gigs? Get 4gb, you'll be fine for now. There's always time later to upgrade.
We really need to know the name, brand, and specs of that PSU. It could be really old, or just perfect for your build.
i5-760 from MC, $170
Hyper-212 from MC $30
I'm really bad at finding Intel mobos -.-, just too many abbreviations
GTX 260 is sufficient for the time being and will save a lot of money.
This is still a really good combo deal if your PSU ends up not being the best, but if it is just getting the case if good too, $120
http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.523811
RAM, 2x2gb Mushkin kit for $69
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820146748
Not too big of a supporter of Hitachi; they always get poor reviews for their HDs on newegg.
seagate barracuda 7200.12 for $55 after promo code
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148433
It's pretty messy, I haven't done this in a while, but hopefully you get the message.
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@skyR - If I upgrade later(say, from 8GB RAM to 12GB RAM), it will be more expensive than if I get the full 12GB now. So why not have it now? Same logic goes behind the GPU/CPU upgrade.
@FabledIntegral - Yes, a $3000 gaming computer seems like a massive overkill now, but it makes sense in a couple of years. Doesn't it? I want to build my system having long term pricing in mind AND it will handle new games. See, you got a $2500 computer 4 years ago and you have to get a new one. Might as well go the full length and maximize its life time. What's the point of upgrading in 4 years? I want to upgrade let's say, in 6 years. I don't want to worry about adding a new cpu, video card, ram, every other year.
@Caphe - thanks for the link ( http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/newegg-combo-toms-hardware,2753.html ) , it was worth checking it out. But:
He's paying $870 for the i7-970 instead of $1000 for the i7-980x - only $130 difference. If I'm going to pay $870 for the processor, I might as well go the extra $130 to get the best on the market. They used OC, which I am REALLY reluctant to do on such an expensive processor. In my opinion, OC has too many disadvantages - it overheats faster, so it will require more cooling; it eats more electricity, not to mention you risk destroying your CPU.
Their system is only 6GB of RAM, which will quickly become obsolete in 2 years. I want to build my system having long term pricing in mind. It's 2GB X 3, occupying all RAM Slots. When I have to upgrade I have to sell the old RAM sticks and buy 4GB sticks. I will also be using the computer for graphic design. Running multiple programs at the same time eats up memory.
They use 2 video cards, Nvidia, so the cost of the electricity bill over a couple of years will be too high. Do any of these reviews take into consideration the real cost of electricity over 5 years by using SLI/Crossfire?
They have no SSD. If you're buying a $2000 computer without SSD in 2010, you're getting robbed.
I'm not a casual gamer. I'm not a pro, but I play many hours a day. I don't want to see any hiccups in my gaming experience.
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@ggofthejungle, well thats article is just for reference. I got what you meant.
Anyway, I'd suggest you wait a little bit for ATI to reveal there 6000 series card to see If its much more powerful than current Nvidia 4xx or ATI 5xxx series.
I myself would not go for i7-970 though, i7-960 is a much better choice(they chose i7-970 'cos they want to burn the 2000 quick :D). You can get a SSD and extra RAM out of that price difference.
But if you must buy now.
i7-960
GTX480, I figure you dont want the ATI 5970 cos its basically 2 GPU put together on one PCB board and that eats up alot of electricity
12GB of RAM
120GB SSD for applications & 1TB HDD for storage
Graphic cards is what eating your power. You can find all the Nvidia/ATI video card review on Tomshardware, and most of them have the power effeciency test. I'd suggest you read the review for GTX480 and ATI 5870/5970.
Maybe this is just me, but I think no matter how much you spend now, it is not guaranteed that your PC will runs games 5-6 years later at max detail. You dont know what crazy stuffs are coming at you. Right now its DX11 games, that make many DX9/DX10 cards unable to run the game at its best even these card got the raw speed, they just dont have the technology.
5-6 years from now, maybe DX12/DX13 who knows? I'm sure that even an 5970(most powerful video card on the planet rightnow) will not be able to run some DX12 games at max.
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On October 06 2010 18:35 ggofthejungle wrote:@skyR - If I upgrade later(say, from 8GB RAM to 12GB RAM), it will be more expensive than if I get the full 12GB now. So why not have it now? Same logic goes behind the GPU/CPU upgrade. @FabledIntegral - Yes, a $3000 gaming computer seems like a massive overkill now, but it makes sense in a couple of years. Doesn't it? I want to build my system having long term pricing in mind AND it will handle new games. See, you got a $2500 computer 4 years ago and you have to get a new one. Might as well go the full length and maximize its life time. What's the point of upgrading in 4 years? I want to upgrade let's say, in 6 years. I don't want to worry about adding a new cpu, video card, ram, every other year.@Caphe - thanks for the link ( http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/newegg-combo-toms-hardware,2753.html ) , it was worth checking it out. But: He's paying $870 for the i7-970 instead of $1000 for the i7-980x - only $130 difference. If I'm going to pay $870 for the processor, I might as well go the extra $130 to get the best on the market. They used OC, which I am REALLY reluctant to do on such an expensive processor. In my opinion, OC has too many disadvantages - it overheats faster, so it will require more cooling; it eats more electricity, not to mention you risk destroying your CPU. Their system is only 6GB of RAM, which will quickly become obsolete in 2 years. I want to build my system having long term pricing in mind. It's 2GB X 3, occupying all RAM Slots. When I have to upgrade I have to sell the old RAM sticks and buy 4GB sticks. I will also be using the computer for graphic design. Running multiple programs at the same time eats up memory. They use 2 video cards, Nvidia, so the cost of the electricity bill over a couple of years will be too high. Do any of these reviews take into consideration the real cost of electricity over 5 years by using SLI/Crossfire?They have no SSD. If you're buying a $2000 computer without SSD in 2010, you're getting robbed. I'm not a casual gamer. I'm not a pro, but I play many hours a day. I don't want to see any hiccups in my gaming experience.
unless you're planning on playing crysis, sc2, wow, video encoding, running windows, and streaming 7 videos at the same time, the chances of you using anywhere CLOSE to 12 gb of ram at the same time are pretty much 0, so yes, it is a waste of money to buy 12 gb of ram. The chances of 12 gb becoming standard any time soon are low. And if you're buying a $3000 system, why are you buying a motherboard that's so low quality / has so few features that it only has 3 ram slots?
Look at the top video cards from 6 years ago...they don't even meet the minimum specs for starcraft. Trying to make a build that will last for 6 years is retarded
And you act like they aren't overclocking that 980x...guess what, it's roughly the same processor, they're just running at a higher clock speed...and that is what overclocking is!
And let's be honest here, if you're worried about an electricity bill being a little higher from over clocking, then are you sure you should be buying a $3000 computer?
You seem to already be set in your mindset for what you want to buy though, so why are you bothering to ask for advice? Everyone here will tell you that spending 3k on a computer is stupid, it's better to spend $1500 and get a top of the line machine now, and then spend $1500 again in 3 years (when that money will be worth a little less) and get a machine that's twice as powerful. It's just the more economical way to do things. A bit more of a hassle, yes, but you end up with a much more powerful computer down the road. I don't know why you think that a $1k computer will only allow you to run at low settings for all games, you can get a really good computer with that budget.
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On October 06 2010 18:35 ggofthejungle wrote:@skyR - If I upgrade later(say, from 8GB RAM to 12GB RAM), it will be more expensive than if I get the full 12GB now. So why not have it now? Same logic goes behind the GPU/CPU upgrade. @FabledIntegral - Yes, a $3000 gaming computer seems like a massive overkill now, but it makes sense in a couple of years. Doesn't it? I want to build my system having long term pricing in mind AND it will handle new games. See, you got a $2500 computer 4 years ago and you have to get a new one. Might as well go the full length and maximize its life time. What's the point of upgrading in 4 years? I want to upgrade let's say, in 6 years. I don't want to worry about adding a new cpu, video card, ram, every other year.@Caphe - thanks for the link ( http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/newegg-combo-toms-hardware,2753.html ) , it was worth checking it out. But: He's paying $870 for the i7-970 instead of $1000 for the i7-980x - only $130 difference. If I'm going to pay $870 for the processor, I might as well go the extra $130 to get the best on the market. They used OC, which I am REALLY reluctant to do on such an expensive processor. In my opinion, OC has too many disadvantages - it overheats faster, so it will require more cooling; it eats more electricity, not to mention you risk destroying your CPU. Their system is only 6GB of RAM, which will quickly become obsolete in 2 years. I want to build my system having long term pricing in mind. It's 2GB X 3, occupying all RAM Slots. When I have to upgrade I have to sell the old RAM sticks and buy 4GB sticks. I will also be using the computer for graphic design. Running multiple programs at the same time eats up memory. They use 2 video cards, Nvidia, so the cost of the electricity bill over a couple of years will be too high. Do any of these reviews take into consideration the real cost of electricity over 5 years by using SLI/Crossfire?They have no SSD. If you're buying a $2000 computer without SSD in 2010, you're getting robbed. I'm not a casual gamer. I'm not a pro, but I play many hours a day. I don't want to see any hiccups in my gaming experience.
The X58 chipset has 6 dimm slots not 3. If you go with 2x3gb (6gb), you can easily upgrade with another 2x3gb in the future if you are needing more ram. It's going to be cheaper than getting the initial 12gb because you're going to be buying off newegg and ddr3 prices are indeed going to drop. Remember 3 years ago, 6gb was around $300 but now you can find 6gb for $100.
Your logic is flawed since 4 years ago, the 8800 GTX was the best performing card and its MSRP was $600. Fast forward to 2010 and we have the GTX 460 which is $200 and doubles the performance of the 8800 GTX. There is never a point where you should get a $500 (GTX 480) video card unless you plan on doing cuda, folding, playing at a resolution above 1920x1200, or just an enthusiast who upgrades every generation of technology.
The i7 970 is nearly the exact same as a i7 980x. The 980x is just more expensive because it has unlocked multipliers and a slightly higher multiplier. If you are not overclocking than getting a 980x is sort of pointless.
Overclocking has no disadvantages if done right. You can't destroy your CPU from overclocking unless you increase the voltage significantly (1.6v or higher). Sometmes you don't even have to increase the voltage to get a decent overclock.
If you spent $3000 four years (2006) for a 8800gtx, 8gb of DDR2, and QX6850 (note these were the best at the time). Your computer would be obsolete right now.
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Actually in the past there have been plenty of reports of Intel CPUs that have gone bad because they went over the 1.45V limit or something.
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On October 06 2010 18:35 ggofthejungle wrote:
@FabledIntegral - Yes, a $3000 gaming computer seems like a massive overkill now, but it makes sense in a couple of years. Doesn't it? I want to build my system having long term pricing in mind AND it will handle new games. See, you got a $2500 computer 4 years ago and you have to get a new one. Might as well go the full length and maximize its life time. What's the point of upgrading in 4 years? I want to upgrade let's say, in 6 years. I don't want to worry about adding a new cpu, video card, ram, every other year.
hmmm i'll repost htis later
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Hey all,
I'm looking into replacing my main drive (1TB barracuda that is slowly driving on me) with an SSD. I've been looking through different reviews/ratings, and it seems everyone suggests a different one.
What I'm looking for is:
- Fairly cheap price. $100 - $150.
- Decent speed.
- 40GB-64GB preferably
I was considering buying the Kingston SSDNow V-Series 64GB for $90 (on sale here for $50 off), but some people say it is considerably slower than other SSDs. What I'm wondering is will this still be an enormous difference in comparison to my barracuda, and is it considerably slower than others hence should I look towards a faster SSD?
I'll be using it as my boot drive (windows 7) and probably just the few main programs/games that I play (<40GB).
I'm Canadian so I'd be looking at sources like NCIX/Newegg/MemoryExpress.
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Alright I need some opinions.
I RMA'd a XFX 8800GT and they are replacing it with a Radeon HD 5670.
I never used ATI cards so I don't know what to expect. Is the a good replacement? Using TomsHardware site it shows the ATI card under the 8800gt and 9800gt in overall performance.
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EPT
