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

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Kipp

but I am taking tiny steps forward
Thanks. What do you mean by claw grip?

Claw grip:

IMG_1988.JPG

Palm grip:

 

DietRob

i've been begging for over 5 years.
I'm in the process of ordering the components for the "Excellent - Best Overall". I've been searching around for a good deal on a good combo. I'm getting a 3750k. However, none of the suggested Mobo's are in any of the bundle deals.

What is a good replacement? Or do you know of some good deals on CPU/Mobo combos?
 

2San

Member
So I am thinking of upgrading my PC to something Medium spec level sometime next month. I was looking at a i5, GTX 660 and 16GB of RAM.

Assuming the leaked specs we are seeing of the PS4/Xbox 720 are reasonably close to the final specs, my question is will that rig of mine be good enough sometime till mid next gen (2015ish)?

Or should I wait a while longer?

Edit Worth mentioning, I dont really need 1080p60FPS on ultra for my gaming. Quite happy with 1080p30FPS on something like Med-high for most games.
I'd wait a bit the VRAM requirements seem to shot up quite a bit(if the leaks are true). The important bit isn't the system RAM, but the ram on your gpu. The GTX 660 only has 2GB, which isn't bad, but the PS4 seems to have 3,5GB reserved for gaming. There are new GPU's coming out in a few months as well. What kind of i5 where you looking at? The 3570K seems the best bang for your buck atm, really easy to overclock and should last you for a while.

Follow the guide in the OP for nice balanced systems. However a new thread should go up shortly as well. I'm no expert, unlike others in this thread. :p
 

Hazaro

relies on auto-aim
I'm in the process of ordering the components for the "Excellent - Best Overall". I've been searching around for a good deal on a good combo. I'm getting a 3750k. However, none of the suggested Mobo's are in any of the bundle deals.

What is a good replacement? Or do you know of some good deals on CPU/Mobo combos?
It's a copy paste job, but that is the updated Excellent build.
Usually combos are for motherboards which aren't selling, or are one they want to clear stock of. It's rare to find a good motherboard combo, or one that saves you any money.
Code:
$230	"i5 3570K 4C/4T @3.4
i7 3770K 4C/8T @3.5 (+$100)"

$135	"ASRock Z77 Extreme 4
ASUS P8Z77-V LK (+$5)"

$47	"Any 1.5V 2x4GB (8GB)
G.Skill Ares 1600Mhz or
Corsair Vengeance LP"

$300	"HD7950 / GTX 660Ti
HD7970 / GTX 670 (+$80)
GTX 680 2GB (+$200)"

$85	"WD Blue WD10EZEX 1TB
WD Green 2TB (+$25)
"
$65	"BP550 Plus 550W
SeaSonic M12II 650 (+$20)
"
$60	"BitFenix Shinobi or
HAF 912"
	ASUS DRW-24B1ST (+$21)
	
$30	CoolerMaster 212+ EVO
	Xonar DGX (+$40)
	"Crucial M4 64GB (+$75)
Samsung 830 64GB (+$75)
Or 128GB model (+$110)"
	
$952
 

garath

Member
Sensei RAW, but the Spawn is really good if you claw grip. Spawn has a slightly better sensor, Sensei has tons of sensor adjustments to really nail down the perfect settings.

Here's what the section will look like for the 2013 OP

I recently purchased a sensei raw and I've been real pleased with it. It tracks very well and now that I've pinned down a sensitivity I am really enjoying it for games.

The steelseries software is a little rough though. I've had a few issues where it kills all input to my computer. Updating the firmware on the mouse cleared it up but it has happened once since then. I'd say set it and forget it and you'd be fine.

Great mouse. Very comfortable for the palm grip. Best middle button click I've ever had.
 
I recently purchased a sensei raw and I've been real pleased with it. It tracks very well and now that I've pinned down a sensitivity I am really enjoying it for games.

The steelseries software is a little rough though. I've had a few issues where it kills all input to my computer. Updating the firmware on the mouse cleared it up but it has happened once since then. I'd say set it and forget it and you'd be fine.

Great mouse. Very comfortable for the palm grip. Best middle button click I've ever had.

I'll probably end up buying a RAW in the future (Even though I have MX518/G400).

Did you get glossy or that rubber-looking one?
Also, have you used any other palm-grip you can compare it to?
Thanks, was just curious.

Thanks, Kipp!

Btw, for the health of your hand, if you spend long hours on the computer, a palm grip is better.
 

DietRob

i've been begging for over 5 years.
It's a copy paste job, but that is the updated Excellent build.
Usually combos are for motherboards which aren't selling, or are one they want to clear stock of. It's rare to find a good motherboard combo, or one that saves you any money.
Code:

I found a good deal on a 3750k for 189, at microcenter. I'm going to go ahead and order that. Then worry about the mobo later. Thanks for the updated Excellent Build.
 

garath

Member
I'll probably end up buying a RAW in the future (Even though I have MX518/G400).

Did you get glossy or that rubber-looking one?
Also, have you used any other palm-grip you can compare it to?
Thanks, was just curious.



Btw, for the health of your hand, if you spend long hours on the computer, a palm grip is better.

I got the rubber grip. Love it. No slippage here.

I actually replaced a mx518 for it. The sensei is a little lighter but the size is great. I was worried I wouldn't like it as much as I do because I was so used to the Logitech line (went from a mx500 to a mx518) but no problems. My only complaint is my fingers hit the right side buttons with my grip but I suspect they are just for lefty use anyways so I disabled them.

If sensitivity switching on the fly is your thing, the button on the sensei is far more usable and has an led light to show status. I never switch so it didn't do much for me.
 
I'd wait a bit the VRAM requirements seem to shot up quite a bit(if the leaks are true). The important bit isn't the system RAM, but the ram on your gpu. The GTX 660 only has 2GB, which isn't bad, but the PS4 seems to have 3,5GB reserved for gaming. There are new GPU's coming out in a few months as well. What kind of i5 where you looking at? The 3570K seems the best bang for your buck atm, really easy to overclock and should last you for a while.

Follow the guide in the OP for nice balanced systems. However a new thread should go up shortly as well. I'm no expert, unlike others in this thread. :p

Alright thanks.

I am ok with swapping out the GPU if I need to, just as long as the proccy is fine. And yeah, I its the 3570k I was looking at.
 

Shady859

Member
I found a good deal on a 3750k for 189, at microcenter. I'm going to go ahead and order that. Then worry about the mobo later. Thanks for the updated Excellent Build.

I bought that yesterday from Microcenter myself. You might not have noticed since they don't advertise it on the site but if you buy the 3750k with the ASUS P8Z77-V motherboard you get the board for a special combo price of $95 instead of the advertised $135 ($150 Newegg) plus it's got a $15 mail in rebate.. I remembered seeing the combo deal when I was tempted to build several months ago and it's still alive.


FINALLY after nearly pulling the trigger several times i'm a real PC gamer again. Well almost... I Already had a TB WD hard drive and thought I had a dvd drive until I went to install it and duh it's old school serial cable. :( Going to hit a couple local places today for that drive since Microcenter is a long haul.
 

DietRob

i've been begging for over 5 years.
I bought that yesterday from Microcenter myself. You might not have noticed since they don't advertise it on the site but if you buy the 3750k with the ASUS P8Z77-V motherboard you get the board for a special combo price of $95 instead of the advertised $135 ($150 Newegg) plus it's got a $15 mail in rebate.. I remembered seeing the combo deal when I was tempted to build several months ago and it's still alive.


FINALLY after nearly pulling the trigger several times i'm a real PC gamer again. Well almost... I Already had a TB WD hard drive and thought I had a dvd drive until I went to install it and duh it's old school serial cable. :( Going to hit a couple local places today for that drive since Microcenter is a long haul.

FYI, MICROCENTER has a combo deal; $40 off a selected MB purchased with a 3570k. Unless you meant the 3770k which is $230.

http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/cc7faafd#/cc7faafd/33


Wow. Thanks for the heads up guys. I was getting ready to leave for microcenter now. Glad I checked this thread first. I've had good luck with Asus mobo's so I'll bite.


Let's talk cases. I need one with a top vent for the liquid cooler I'm putting in. CORSAIR Hydro Series H80 (CWCH80) High Performance Liquid CPU Cooler

Any good recommendation. I DO NOT WANT ANY LED LIGHTS ON THE THING.
 
FYI, MICROCENTER has a combo deal; $40 off a selected MB purchased with a 3570k. Unless you meant the 3770k which is $230.

http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/cc7faafd#/cc7faafd/33

Wow, that could save me about 70 bucks on my build. I need to get out there this weekend.

Edit: Hmm, closest is out in Nassau county, so I need to rent a car to get out there. If I grab a case while I"m out there I'll be saving about 20 on shipping, and 70 on deals, but I'll need the car for 2 hours, which would run about 30 bucks. I think it's still worth it.

Edit again: After factoring in rebates, and going to a cheaper case (same price range but on sale), I can drop 150 off the price. That puts me back under a thousand, even with the 264 gb Samsung SSD. Sweet :).
 

Necrovex

Member
My birthday is in a few months, and I am looking to possibly upgrade one of my PC parts. I am looking at upgrading the CPU or GPU, and I want to know which would be more beneficial to upgrade.

This is my CPU.

This is my GPU.

If you pick CPU or GPU, let me know of what item I should get too. I am a heavy PC gamer, and I want to emulate my Wii/PS2 games onto my PC. I appreciate it, PC-Gaf!
 

kharma45

Member
New Ivy Bridge Celeron's and Pentium's on the way. I'd imagine the Haswell ones will be a long way off if they're only properly releasing these ones now.

My birthday is in a few months, and I am looking to possibly upgrade one of my PC parts. I am looking at upgrading the CPU or GPU, and I want to know which would be more beneficial to upgrade.

This is my CPU.

This is my GPU.

If you pick CPU or GPU, let me know of what item I should get too. I am a heavy PC gamer, and I want to emulate my Wii/PS2 games onto my PC. I appreciate it, PC-Gaf!

What I'd do is get a good cooler for you i7 if you don't have one already and overclock the nuts off it :) then get yourself a new GPU, and what to get would depend on your budget.

570 is still a good card too so if you were to sell it you'd likely get a decent bit of cash for it.
 

2San

Member
If you pick CPU or GPU, let me know of what item I should get too. I am a heavy PC gamer, and I want to emulate my Wii/PS2 games onto my PC. I appreciate it, PC-Gaf!
Not sure what might be more beneficial, but remember when upgrading to current good CPU's you will need to upgrade your motherboard as well. Emulation is very CPU bound afaik.

I'd say go for CPU+Mobo those microcenter seem like very good value. Your GPU is fine for now, but will probably demand an upgrade when Next-gen hits full force.
 

keiichi

Member
In topic with the Microcenter love, they will also price match items from newegg/amazon/whatever. It may depend on store but I was able to PM the 256gb Samsung pro ssd for $220.
 

kharma45

Member
So, looking at budget cases.

Anetc One, Antec 302, Fractal Design Core 3000, Corsair Carbide 200R, Zalman Z11 Plus or Casecom 6788/Rosewill Challenger?

Leaning towards the 200R at present since the Z11 is OOS.
 

mkenyon

Banned
Just when you thought it would never see a consumer release....

NVIDIA makes GeForce Titan with Kepler GK110

According SweClockers sources the launch of the GeForce Titanium to resemble that of the GeForce GTX 690th Partner Manufacturers must follow Nvidia's reference design to the letter and can not even put their own stickers on graphics cards. The performance is estimated at about 85 percent of a Geforce GTX 690 .

My wallet is ready for SLI.
 

SoulClap

Member
According SweClockers sources the launch of the GeForce Titanium to resemble that of the GeForce GTX 690th Partner Manufacturers must follow Nvidia's reference design to the letter and can not even put their own stickers on graphics cards. The performance is estimated at about 85 percent of a Geforce GTX 690 .X 690 ..


Oh man, I hope there'll be non reference revisions down the road. Never again for stock coolers with me.
 

Necrovex

Member
New Ivy Bridge Celeron's and Pentium's on the way. I'd imagine the Haswell ones will be a long way off if they're only properly releasing these ones now.



What I'd do is get a good cooler for you i7 if you don't have one already and overclock the nuts off it :) then get yourself a new GPU, and what to get would depend on your budget.

570 is still a good card too so if you were to sell it you'd likely get a decent bit of cash for it.

I have a pretty good cooling unit, but I am very unfamiliar with the overclocking scene. I have a program for the CPU, but it seems Intel locked my particular CPU chip, so I would have to mess with the BIOS. I am not brave enough to mess around in there, not without a very useful guide on hand.

Not sure what might be more beneficial, but remember when upgrading to current good CPU's you will need to upgrade your motherboard as well. Emulation is very CPU bound afaik.

I'd say go for CPU+Mobo those microcenter seem like very good value. Your GPU is fine for now, but will probably demand an upgrade when Next-gen hits full force.

Yeah, I was thinking of holding off from GPU upgrading until the next generation of consoles came out.
 

mkenyon

Banned
Oh man, I hope there'll be non reference revisions down the road. Never again for stock coolers with me.
The last card they did this with, the GTX690, had pretty good results. They might have a really nice design with this one as well.

In either case, I think a waterblock or two will be in order.
 

GK86

Homeland Security Fail
Ok, guys, lets talk about cleaning. What are the do's, and don'ts?

Maybe it is because my case is black, but it seems to attract a lot of dust. I opened it up, and the mobo, and fans were dusty. I managed to clean the fans, and some of the inside, but I'm not sure how to go about cleaning the mobo.
 

mtosh

Banned
Ok, guys, lets talk about cleaning. What are the do's, and don'ts?

Maybe it is because my case is black, but it seems to attract a lot of dust. I opened it up, and the mobo, and fans were dusty. I managed to clean the fans, and some of the inside, but I'm not sure how to go about cleaning the mobo.

Compressed air! That and rubbing alcohol 90%+ and cleaning swabs =)
 

cackhyena

Member
So I keep having to install the latest driver for my 670 if I want XCOM not to be unplayable. That's been the only fix. I have to do it every time before I start up the game, though. Otherwise It literally takes my mouse ten seconds just to get to the menu options. It's that bad. Can anyone tell me what's going on here? Is the update not taking or something?
 

bro1

Banned
Sounds to me like one or both of your GPU's were borked.

Those temps are definately too high IMO. Yes EVGA will say they are in spec (because they are... just), but the reality is that in a case like yours the temps should have been hovering between 70-75 or so as a maximum. http://www.hardwarezone.com.sg/feature-nvidia-geforce-gtx-660-ti-sli-performance-analysis/temperature-power-consumption-results-3 Those are the Ti versions, so if anything your temps should be lower.

Yeh, just do a clean install since it wont have much on it anyway, that way you can be sure.

Have the new GTX 670 in there and it's super quiet compared to the dual 660s I had running. It's running so fast I think it may crash at any given time!

Decided to install Windows 8 too this time just for the hell of it. Easiset install ever.

Ran Uningine Heaven and no artifacts either so all is good.
 

Dave_6

Member
Here's my updated build as of this morning: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/yASi

Haven't ordered anything yet. Also have no idea on a monitor, KB or mouse yet (leaning towards a Steelseries) and no idea on using a SSD or not. Again, this is all new to me yet I don't want something that will be 'outdated' in ~6 months.

Since I have fallen in love with the Bitfenix Prodigy, I think I am going to change my build to a SFF (That case would look awesome sitting with my home theater setup). Most of the main components are the same as the ^ build I posted the other day. Here's the updated one: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/yZo7

Not sure on a CPU cooler except for maybe the H60. Could I still fit an optical drive in that case with an H60? Or would the Hyper 212 fit instead?
 

mkenyon

Banned
Yes, I corrected the error of it being there. :p

This one is much better.
Since I have fallen in love with the Bitfenix Prodigy, I think I am going to change my build to a SFF (That case would look awesome sitting with my home theater setup). Most of the main components are the same as the ^ build I posted the other day. Here's the updated one: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/yZo7

Not sure on a CPU cooler except for maybe the H60. Could I still fit an optical drive in that case with an H60? Or would the Hyper 212 fit instead?
I'm not certain on the 212 fitting in there. The Gemini II does, Noctua NH-C12 does as well. H60 will fit in there no problem with an optical drive. You just put the radiator on the exhaust, which is where it should be anyway.
 

Dave_6

Member
I'm not certain on the 212 fitting in there. The Gemini II does, Noctua NH-C12 does as well. H60 will fit in there no problem with an optical drive. You just put the radiator on the exhaust, which is where it should be anyway.

Cool, thanks. H60 it will be then if I go this route.
 

nbthedude

Member
Can anyone talk me out of going with a 7950 and instead jumping camp over to Nvida? If so what Nvida card should I be looking at?

The 7950 is a great card and is much better priced than the competition. I have a 7970 and love it. Also since both the next gen consoles will be running on similar architecture you should be in good shape in the future. It also overclocks well.

The rough Nvidia equivalent is the 670.


You can get a 3GB Saphire 7950 for $279 with free shipping whereas the cheapest 2GB Geforce 670 right now seems to run at about $40-$50 more than that.
 

DietRob

i've been begging for over 5 years.
The 7950 is a great card and is much better priced than the competition. I have a 7970 and love it. Also since both the next gen consoles will be running on similar architecture you should be in good shape in the future. It also overclocks well.

The rough Nvidia equivalent is the 670.

510473hda5.png



You can get a 3GB Saphire 7950 for $279 with free shipping whereas the cheapest 2GB Geforce 670 right now seems to run at about $40-$50 more than that.

Thanks for the feedback. I didn't see the 7950 on that chart anywhere though. The card I linked in my post before this was a gigabyte friends have gotten nice results from them. What about Saphire any negative feedback for them as a mfg?
 

mkenyon

Banned
Can anyone talk me out of going with a 7950 (specifically this one) and instead jumping camp over to Nvida? If so what Nvida card should I be looking at?
From another thread:

Only assuming that the drivers to fix frame latency issues are correct.

Gotta drop the FPS comparisons, they're limited and inaccurate.

Courtesy of TechReport's overview of the new beta drivers.

skyrim-99th.gif


skyrim-latency.gif


skyrim-beyond-50.gif


This same comparison generally holds true for 7970 vs. 680.

I'm not trying to talk you out of it, but it's good to take note of. I think the 7950 will have better longevity than the 660Ti though.
 

LiquidMetal14

hide your water-based mammals
Before I pull the trigger, Newegg has the Samsung ran but only in the single config. If I get 4 of these, it would be in quad channel correct? I'm pretty sure I don't need that fancy quad channel kit ram as long as I have 4 sticks of this.

I pulled the trigger. They don't have the 2 stick kits so I bought 4 individual kits for about 92 shipped.
 

kharma45

Member
And if AMD keep working at it I don't see why they couldn't have the frame latency sorted within the next two driver releases like they plan to.
 

mkenyon

Banned
And if AMD keep working at it I don't see why they couldn't have the frame latency sorted within the next two driver releases like they plan to.
Yep yep. Here's hoping.
Before I pull the trigger, Newegg has the Samsung ran but only in the single config. If I get 4 of these, it would be in quad channel correct? I'm pretty sure I don't need that fancy quad channel kit ram as long as I have 4 sticks of this.

I pulled the trigger. They don't have the 2 stick kits so I bought 4 individual kits for about 92 shipped.
It's cool.
 

nbthedude

Member
Thanks for the feedback. I didn't see the 7950 on that chart anywhere though. The card I linked in my post before this was a gigabyte friends have gotten nice results from them. What about Saphire any negative feedback for them as a mfg?

Yeah the 7950 falls somewhere between the 660ti and the 670 depending upon the game. But AMD's drivers have made up some serious ground in the last six months.

I personally have had a number of Sapphire cards and never had a problem with any of them. My current 7970OC is a Sapphire.
 
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