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[gokieks]

As a heads up, Samsung F4 2TB HDDs are available for $100 at NewEgg today and tomorrow, with free UPS 3 day shipping (for me at least).

Still cursing myself for not buying them when they were $75 last year, but at that price I bought 3 and can finally expand my RAID-Z array again.

 

[Karmum]

UPS 3 day died a long time ago dude.

When? Cause my GTX 460 was free UPS 3 day shipping two weeks ago when I bought it.

On most of the promotional items I buy I get 4-7 egg saver. It used to be just about everything was UPS 3 day iirc.

Ah, go figure. I'll be glad if I get it on Saturday, the USPS is so fucking awful.

 

[mkenyon]

I'm not sure if I did it correctly but
I used the PCPartPicker site to get a rough idea where to get things (I'm in Canada so that probably changes everything though). Does anything look out of wack?

Go with low profile RAM outlined in the OP, but looks perfect other than that. 6870 is a killer card still.

As a heads up, Samsung F4 2TB HDDs are available for $100 at NewEgg today and tomorrow, with free UPS 3 day shipping (for me at least).

Still cursing myself for not buying them when they were $75 last year, but at that price I bought 3 and can finally expand my RAID-Z array again.

Dear god. Right after I blow my budget on the other parts too. Been needing to pick up 3 of these to rebuilt RAID 5 array with more space.

If you need data storage, RAID0 for recording, or even to install every game that you have bought and not played on Steam, then jump on this now.

 

[EarsOfASnake]

So, I nearly had the worst thing possible in computing happen to me today, lost a hard drive and all data. I managed to salvage the important stuff and the rest I can piece together from other devices. Anyway, I was looking at getting a NAS, I need something simple to use that can backup multiple computers and would love some simple media sharing, ideally I want to subscribe to some RSS feeds and get it to download from those at certain times. Suggestions?

 

[Coldsnap]

I really want to play day z with gaf. What are my options in using a keyboard / mouse with my HTPC/Controller setup? Keyboard/mouse on a lap tray? There has to be a more elegant solution and better for my back. Here's a pick for reference.

 

[blackprophesy]

So, I nearly had the worst thing possible in computing happen to me today, lost a hard drive and all data. I managed to salvage the important stuff and the rest I can piece together from other devices. Anyway, I was looking at getting a NAS, I need something simple to use that can backup multiple computers and would love some simple media sharing, ideally I want to subscribe to some RSS feeds and get it to download from those at certain times. Suggestions?

I've been looking at the Synology DS212 range which is a 2 bay NAS. Between the 212j (low end), 212 and 212+. The difference between the 3 being CPU speed, RAM and USB3/eSata ports. And yes it does media sharing including iTunes server.

 

[MrBig]

So, I nearly had the worst thing possible in computing happen to me today, lost a hard drive and all data. I managed to salvage the important stuff and the rest I can piece together from other devices. Anyway, I was looking at getting a NAS, I need something simple to use that can backup multiple computers and would love some simple media sharing, ideally I want to subscribe to some RSS feeds and get it to download from those at certain times. Suggestions?

Would it not be more cost effective to set up a raid array and have it configured as a network drive? That way you can push and control all your media from your primary computer.

 

[Caramuru]

Hi, guys! I'm building a new rig and I've already decided for this:

CPU: i5-3570K
Heatsink: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO
GPU: GeForce GTX 670


But I have doubts about this:

MB: ASUS Sabertooth Z77 or Gigabyte Z77X-UD5H
RAM: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2x8GB or 4x4GB?)
PSU: Corsair HX750 (Would I need HX850? Is HX650 good enough?)

Could you guys help me to decide?

Any other suggestions are welcome.

 

[EarsOfASnake]

Would it not be more cost effective to set up a raid array and have it configured as a network drive? That way you can push and control all your media from your primary computer.

I have no idea, a NAS was the first thing that came to mind but it a raid array would be better then I will look into that, any idea where to start?

 

[The Hermit]

I have 2 questions:
1- How is the standard P8P67 for overclocking? I will have this MB with an intel i5 2500k and a GTX 670.

2- What would be the best Mobo for that rig?

 

[MrBig]

I have no idea, a NAS was the first thing that came to mind but it a raid array would be better then I will look into that, any idea where to start?

I haven't messed with raid since when you needed a specific controller for it. Today I assume you could just set up the raid array from the bios and then attach it as a network drive within windows on all the systems you want to share with. The only thing you would then need to purchase is a few HDDs. This is assuming you have ample space in your case and enough power for them.

 

[jackpottest]

Got my i5 2500K today.

I noticed that there is a small 'hole' in one of the strips of pre-applied thermal paste on the CPU fan heatsink. Is that normal/ok?

About to build, excited.

 

[EarsOfASnake]

I haven't messed with raid since when you needed a specific controller for it. Today I assume you could just set up the raid array from the bios and then attach it as a network drive within windows on all the systems you want to share with. The only thing you would then need to purchase is a few HDDs. This is assuming you have ample space in your case and enough power for them.

I will look into it but the idea was to have the device independent of a computer as I don't leave one on all the time. The DS212 looks like something to fit my needs and has some nice features but it is a little expensive.

 

[dskillzhtown]

As a heads up, Samsung F4 2TB HDDs are available for $100 at NewEgg today and tomorrow, with free UPS 3 day shipping (for me at least).

Still cursing myself for not buying them when they were $75 last year, but at that price I bought 3 and can finally expand my RAID-Z array again.

Nice. Might as add another couple of TBs to my PC.

 

[DeVeAn]

Worth doing more than 8GB RAM? Might have to replace and since its cheap was wondering.

 

[teh_pwn]

Worth doing more than 8GB RAM? Might have to replace and since its cheap was wondering.

For strictly gaming? Likely not yet. But if you do some heavy apps, even if not in parallel, yes because of standby cache.

 

[Slayer-33]

Order Summary

Dirt 3 Qty -$49.99

COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO RR-212E-20PK-R2 Continuous Direct Contact 120mm Sleeve CPU Cooler Compatible with latest Intel ...
Item #: N82E16835103099

$34.99

CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CML8GX3M2A1600C9W
Item #: N82E16820233199


$54.99

AMD Gift - Dirt3 Game Coupon - OEM
Item #: N82E16800995114


$49.99

ASUS HD7850-DC2-2GD5 Radeon HD 7850 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready CrossFireX Support Video Card
Item #: N82E16814121623


$259.99
Subtotal $349.97
Tax $0.00
UPS 3 DAYS $7.63
Rush Processing $2.99
Order Total $360.59

Feels good man

 

[ParityBit]

OK it appears it was not my motherboard. I say this because I just replaced my mobo and I still can not overclock the RAM.

So I called Amazon and I am returning my Corsair Vengeance Red 1866 (4x4; 2 different kits) Any suggestion on RAM to try? I want to order tonight from Amazon so I can get it for the weekend.

 

[MrBig]

Ugh, my 3570k just got dropped off and now it's just staring at me with the rest of this stuff
Wish I could just buy everything at once

 

[TheCrow]

OK it appears it was not my motherboard. I say this because I just replaced my mobo and I still can not overclock the RAM.

So I called Amazon and I am returning my Corsair Vengeance Red 1866 (4x4; 2 different kits) Any suggestion on RAM to try? I want to order tonight from Amazon so I can get it for the weekend.

The Samsung green ram Kenyon posted earlier. Relatively cheap and great over clockers. I think I'm currently running them at 2133mhz 10 10 10 24. Will try to push them more when I have time this weekend.

Would post a link but I'm currently in class.

 

[DeVeAn]

For strictly gaming? Likely not yet. But if you do some heavy apps, even if not in parallel, yes because of standby cache.

Thanks. I am strictly gaming.

 

[LogicStep]

How capable is the budget build in the OP? Someone I know wants a computer that can play Skyrim, doesn't have to look amazing or anything.

 

[Hazaro]

Got my i5 2500K today.

I noticed that there is a small 'hole' in one of the strips of pre-applied thermal paste on the CPU fan heatsink. Is that normal/ok?

About to build, excited.

Fine

Hi, guys! I'm building a new rig and I've already decided for this:

CPU: i5-3570K
Heatsink: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO
GPU: GeForce GTX 670


But I have doubts about this:

MB: ASUS Sabertooth Z77 or Gigabyte Z77X-UD5H
RAM: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2x8GB or 4x4GB?)
PSU: Corsair HX750 (Would I need HX850? Is HX650 good enough?)

Could you guys help me to decide?

Any other suggestions are welcome.

Sabretooth is massive overkill, unsure on GB boards. HX650 more than enough for any single card. 2x8GB leaves you room for expansion... but if 4x4GB is like $30 cheaper go for that imo.

I have 2 questions:
1- How is the standard P8P67 for overclocking? I will have this MB with an intel i5 2500k and a GTX 670.

2- What would be the best Mobo for that rig?

The Samsung green ram Kenyon posted earlier. Relatively cheap and great over clockers. I think I'm currently running them at 2133mhz 10 10 10 24. Will try to push them more when I have time this weekend.

Would post a link but I'm currently in class.

1) Great
2) Mobos improve with extra power regulators, then features you probably don't need. Above $180 you actually get different quality components which are usually massive overkill.

How capable is the budget build in the OP? Someone I know wants a computer that can play Skyrim, doesn't have to look amazing or anything.

Very capable. Budgeting up to the 2120 and 6870 are very big helpful jumps though.

 

[ParityBit]

Is there a chance this OC issue could be my CPU? How would I be able to tell if it was that or my RAM?

 

[TheCrow]

Here the link to the ram I was talking about. I ended up getting 4 of them since the 8gb kits are sold out.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820147094

 

[Big Chungus]

What would be better to have,

a gaming mouse + generic keyboard

OR

a gaming keyboard+generic mouse?

I can't afford both, the games I play are Tribes, Dota 2 and soon Diablo 3.

 

[MrBig]

What would be better to have,

a gaming mouse + generic keyboard

OR

a gaming keyboard+generic mouse?

I can't afford both, the games I play are Tribes, Dota 2 and soon Diablo 3.

A mechanical keyboard with cherry reds is bliss. Not having to reset a key like you have to do for each press of a rubber dome keyboard is great for gaming, and the super low activation force is great for typing.

A mouse like the G500 or anything with high DPI has benefits beyond gaming. At a DPI of 5700 that the G500 maxes at, you do not have to move your wrist to move the cursor across the screen or anywhere, this greatly reduces strain on your wrist so helps to keep your joints from deteriorating as opposed to continuously pivoting it.

I would get a better mouse just because if your job is done on a computer or you just spend a lot of time on it you have to consider the long term effects of what you're doing to yourself.

 

[mkenyon]

A mechanical keyboard with cherry reds is bliss.

Soooooooo this. Reds are king of MX switches.

Get that plus a CM Storm Xornet. Awesome gaming mouse without any of the frills or crazy expensive materials, but a better sensor than most. I've seen them around for $25-30.

 

[ParityBit]

A mechanical keyboard with cherry reds is bliss.

I got the Corsair X60 and I LOVE it! That and my G9x mouse are amazing. If my machine would only work correctly!

 

[Hazaro]

$20 membrane keyboard and $10 Microsoft Optical are fine enough.

COME AT ME

 

[mkenyon]

$20 membrane keyboard and $10 Microsoft Optical are fine enough.

COME AT ME

This is also true. Though mechanical prices are coming down as more and more get made seemingly.

 

[vitaflo]

So I got a Radeon 7870 (Sapphire) and the new Asus P8Z77-V mobo with the 2500k and am having a weird issue. When playing games (usually SC2 but it happened in WoW and Portal as well), at random times (from 10 mins in, to 2 hours) the monitor will lose signal (as if the comp went to sleep), and the audio from the computer turn into a constant buzz sound. Nothing responds (mic cuts out on my headset when playing with friends), but the fans still run. Have to hard reset.

Since I don't get a blue screen there's no dump and no errors thrown in my logs, but since the video card is no longer producing a signal when this happens I can't see what happened on screen at all. I'm thinking it's the vid card, but the audio buzz and USB mic dying at the same time leads me to wonder. I've done all the burn in tests and the only time it did this same thing is when I OC'd the GPU and ran Furmark. All of this happens even when I run the 2500k and GPU at stock speeds. Heat isn't an issue (45c temps stock speeds), and Memtest86 runs with no errors so I doubt it's the RAM.

Anyone have any ideas?

 

[clav]

$20 membrane keyboard

Grrrrr

and $10 Microsoft Optical are fine enough.

I'm ok with this.

 

[abasm]

A mechanical keyboard with cherry reds is bliss. Not having to reset a key like you have to do for each press of a rubber dome keyboard is great for gaming, and the super low activation force is great for typing.

A mouse like the G500 or anything with high DPI has benefits beyond gaming. At a DPI of 5700 that the G500 maxes at, you do not have to move your wrist to move the cursor across the screen or anywhere, this greatly reduces strain on your wrist so helps to keep your joints from deteriorating as opposed to continuously pivoting it.

I would get a better mouse just because if your job is done on a computer or you just spend a lot of time on it you have to consider the long term effects of what you're doing to yourself.

To add to this, I'm using a mechanical keyboard with Cherry Blues, and I actually look forward to typing now. Membrane keyboards and optical mice are fine in the way that mechanical HDDs are fine. Once you go SSD, you don't go back. Same difference.

 

[Hazaro]

Grrrrr

My Saitek Eclipse iswas great, dealwithit.

Mech KB's are really nice, but I think slightly overrated. (DAS with MX Blue's here).

 

[hyduK]

Soooooooo this. Reds are king of MX switches.

Get that plus a CM Storm Xornet. Awesome gaming mouse without any of the frills or crazy expensive materials, but a better sensor than most. I've seen them around for $25-30.

MX Blacks for life.

 

[TheExodu5]

Got the Ikea Galant set up. Not a big desk, since my new room isn't huge or anything. The desk is 24"x48". Still plenty of space for 32" display though. I love having the big open space. The adjustable legs are perfect as I can have my keyboard and mouse at armrest level. Very comfortable. Still waiting on my monitor stand to raise it up a few inches.

I got my Lian-Li V700, so I'll work on swapping the internals from my HAF X to that this weekend.

My Saitek Eclipse iswas great, dealwithit.

Mech KB's are really nice, but I think slightly overrated. (DAS with MX Blue's here).

I don't like my mech keyboard (WASD with MX Browns). I prefer my Logitech Illuminated.

 

[HyperionX]

Currently planning on getting this setup:

Barebones PC: Shuttle SZ77R5 $359.99
Memory: Kingston Technology HyperX 8 GB (2x4GB) 1600MHZ DDR3 $47.99
GPU: Asus GTX680-2GD5 GeForce GTX 680 2GB $499.99
CPU: Intel Core i5-3570K 3.4Ghz $229.99
SSD: Crucial 128 GB m4 $124.99
HDD: Seagate Barracuda 3TB 7200RPM $159.99
DVD drive: Samsung 22X DVDRW $16.99
WiFi Card: Intel 112BN.HMWWB Centrino Wireless-N 1000 $18.99
OS: Windows 7 Ultimate SP1 64-bit $189.99

About $1709 subtotal. Throw in one of those fancy mechanical keyboard and two 21.5" LCD monitors and its $2159. Since this is my first build, will see how this turns out. Wish me luck!

 

[MBison]

Aie, ok I'm getting frustrated. I know you guys helped me a bit back in the thread but I just want to clarify step by step instructions to try and fix my issue.

I have a Radeon 7970 with 3 gig RAM. I had 12.3 drivers and tried to put on 12.4 drivers but it still reported as 12.3 drivers. The auto-update told me to update again to 12.4 so I tried it via the update and again, 12.3 drivers are reported in the Catalyst software section. However, there seems to be further mess up since I did this because I believe my card is only reporting 1 gig of RAM now. Although the hardware section of the Catalyst Control Center says 3 gig, the System Information section (via the button at the top) says 1,000,000,000 byes available for Adapter RAM. What made me look is running Crysis, which I'm running at max with hi-res textures added and increased draw distance. Previously it ran okay dipping to 25ish in some areas. But now it was running like 50+ everywhere but I was noticing more texture pop-in. When I do r_displayinfo 1 it says MEM = 1000K.

So I tried uninstalling the AMD Display Driver and the Catalyst Control Center via the new driver installation. ie: when you first run the driver download it gives you the option to uninstall. So I selected that and used Custom and selected just the AMD Display Driver and the Catalyst Control Center. It uninstalled and asked me to reboot. I did.

Then I re-ran the 12.4 driver install, installed and ... still 12.3. And still System Information reporting 1 gig though the Hardware section of the Catalyst Center still says 3 gig.

Ugh, annoying! Crysis runs better, heh, but of course more texture pop-in. I would like to fix this obviously.

Beyond just uninstalling and reinstalling the drivers, what else should I do step by step cause I want to get this right. And should I be using the uninstall routine from the 12.4 driver installation or should I uninstall using something else?

I hate stuff not working right! I just dont want to screw something up.

Please help!

 

[Big Chungus]

Got the Ikea Galant set up. Not a big desk, since my new room isn't huge or anything. The desk is 24"x48". Still plenty of space for 32" display though. I love having the big open space. The adjustable legs are perfect as I can have my keyboard and mouse at armrest level. Very comfortable. Still waiting on my monitor stand to raise it up a few inches.

I got my Lian-Li V700, so I'll work on swapping the internals from my HAF X to that this weekend.



I don't like my mech keyboard (WASD with MX Browns). I prefer my Logitech Illuminated.

That's a nice desk, i'm looking at the ikea site and was wondering what color is your top?

Also which keyboard are you using?

 

[TheExodu5]

That's a nice desk, i'm looking at the ikea site and was wondering what color is your top?

Also which keyboard are you using?

It's the black-brown top.

My keyboard is the Logitech Illuminated keyboard.

 

[FieryBalrog]

Nervous but excited. In celebration of D3, ordered the following parts off Hazaro's list:

i3 2120 CPU
GTX 460 GPU
ASUS motherboard
8GB GSkill RAM
Antec 450W power supply
Source 210 case
Samsung 500gb HDD
random optical drive

& a $100 copy of Windows.

Total: $653 + shipping.

Can't wait!

 

[Wolf Akela]

Enjoy the game on max!

 

[MBison]

In regards to my problem a few posts back, I was going to try and Roll Back the driver. Is that done just through the Control Panel, Hardware, Device Manager, Display adapters, Driver section? Just hit Roll Back Driver and follow the prompts.

PS: I hate stuff not working right.

 

[Hazaro]

Note: I'm away on secret srs bsns for two+ days. Enjoy the 6am PST 670 launch!

Nervous but excited. In celebration of D3, ordered the following parts off Hazaro's list:

i3 2120 CPU
GTX 460 GPU
ASUS motherboard
8GB GSkill RAM
Antec 450W power supply
Source 210 case
Samsung 500gb HDD
random optical drive

& a $100 copy of Windows.

Total: $653 + shipping.

Can't wait!

I ordered that build (Seagate HDD) but with the $55 ASRock board. $515 total, $490AR no shipping.
<3 Amazon.

It'll slay Diablo no problem.

 

[Sethos]

I love how that damn Samsung 1TB HDD is holding up my last parts, starting to fear I won't be building this weekend ... Dammit.

 

[MBison]

I ran CPU-Z to see what it reported about my 7970 and it also reports that I have only 1 GIG of RAM available.

I assume this is likely a driver issue and somehow the driver installation didn't damage the card somehow?

Hate.

I can do a System Restore dated 5/5 (which is after I got the 7970 but before today's fun debacle)... would that be wise or dangerous?

UPDATE:

Okay, so if I right click, go to Screen Resolution and Advanced, I get this report:

Total Available Graphics Memory: 6891 MB
Dedicated Video Memory: 3072 MB
System Video Memory: 0 MB
Shared System Memory: 3819 MB

That seems to be reporting correctly. But why are other things seeming to report incorrectly?

 

[1-D_FTW]

Mech KB's are really nice, but I think slightly overrated. (DAS with MX Blue's here).

I honestly don't see any real benefit for gaming, but if you do a lot of typing... *swoon*.

 

[ParityBit]

That's a nice desk, i'm looking at the ikea site and was wondering what color is your top?

Also which keyboard are you using?

I have the "glass" top. Not the black glass or the white glass, but the glass glass. (It is really a cool frosted glass) I hope to post pics soon.

 

[TheThunder]

$20 membrane keyboard and $10 Microsoft Optical are fine enough.

COME AT ME

Pretty much

Then again, I never tried a mechanical so I don't know what I'm missing, maybe if I found one locally for cheap I'll give it a whirl.

Got the Ikea Galant set up. Not a big desk, since my new room isn't huge or anything. The desk is 24"x48". Still plenty of space for 32" display though. I love having the big open space. The adjustable legs are perfect as I can have my keyboard and mouse at armrest level. Very comfortable. Still waiting on my monitor stand to raise it up a few inches.

Forget about the PC, I want that chair!

I'll step by my IKEA soon and see if they have something similar because that looks sweet.