Thank you for that. So, I can leave SLI out of the equation for now? I'm open to just leaving it, I've never had any problems with a single GPU anyway. The RAM situation is more critical, I think.
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"I Need a New PC!" 2015 Part 1. Read the OP and RISE ABOVE FORGED PRECISION SCIENCE
- Thread starter Hazaro
- Start date
- Status
Ideally boards in OP are best value:
GIGABYTE GA-Z97X-SLI ATX
ASRock Z97 Pro 4 ATX
Or if you 100% dont want to overclock the CPU (not advised, can reduce system longevity a lot):
Gigabyte GA-H97M-D3H mATX
Alright, thanks. What is the best way to check for thermal throttling? When i play far cry 4, MSI afterburner says that my GPU is running at around 60 percent (a gtx 970), my CPU cores run around 80 percent and my CPU temperatures are 99 degrees Celsius. I guess that means that my cpu is being throttled to 80 percent activity to keep it below 100 degrees?
Also, i thought the Gigabyte GA-Z97P-D3 was a Z series motherboard so it should let me overclock?
Wow, that is really weird. I don't suppose you could show us some pictures?
As far as I know, no connectors are supposed to be all curves.
kraspkibble
Permabanned.
Decided to get a Z97X SLI instead of MSI Z97 GAMING 5.
I only really want a board than can SLI and also it's still got red so it'll fit in with the red/black look i'm going for. getting an MSI 970 (though I love the green one!!) and some red RAM sticks.
build is:
i5-4690k (will overclock at some point)
8GB (will upgrade to 16gb)
Z97X SLI
MSI 970 (gonna get a second as soon as possible)
250GB Samsung SSD + 1TB 7200RPM HD
EVGA SuperNova 750W G2
Define R5
thoughts? i'm happy with 1080p 30-60fps with games at high/ultra settings. main games will be GTA V/WoW but obviously looking to run other games at decent settings.
total price is £1045 (this includes delivery and about £30 installation insurance...it's my first build).
I only really want a board than can SLI and also it's still got red so it'll fit in with the red/black look i'm going for. getting an MSI 970 (though I love the green one!!) and some red RAM sticks.
build is:
i5-4690k (will overclock at some point)
8GB (will upgrade to 16gb)
Z97X SLI
MSI 970 (gonna get a second as soon as possible)
250GB Samsung SSD + 1TB 7200RPM HD
EVGA SuperNova 750W G2
Define R5
thoughts? i'm happy with 1080p 30-60fps with games at high/ultra settings. main games will be GTA V/WoW but obviously looking to run other games at decent settings.
total price is £1045 (this includes delivery and about £30 installation insurance...it's my first build).
Assume you are using scan, wouldnt bother with installation insurance...
There is something called DOA, and unless a part looks physically damaged you are fine for an RMA process. If you think you may be dropping parts or throwing them at a wall, then insurance is a good idea.
Now sure why you want to SLI either, the 970 will reach your goals on its own.
Another option for a smaller rig:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor (£177.82 @ Amazon UK)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler (£24.97 @ Amazon UK)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97MX-Gaming 5 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (£109.20 @ Kustom PCs)
Memory: Kingston Fury Black Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory (£60.18 @ More Computers)
Storage: Crucial MX100 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (£79.00 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Toshiba 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£37.60 @ Aria PC)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card (£280.00 @ Aria PC)
Case: Corsair 350D MicroATX Mid Tower Case (£75.95 @ Amazon UK)
Power Supply: SeaSonic G 550W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (£79.00 @ Scan.co.uk)
Total: £923.72
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-01-19 13:13 GMT+0000
Well the CPU clock speed is reduced severley when you hit 99*c. So i dont even need you to check, im going to tell you its thermally throttling causing an even bigger bottleneck, and also possible CPU damage.
So you should go and check your CPU Cooling, remount it, new thermal paste. Clean the PC of dust and check temperatures again. Your CPU should run at about 60*c max.
And yes, misread, that board will allow overlocking.
Unlikely, maybe we are getting close to the new AMD GPUs arriving, which will probably match or just surpass the nVidia 9xx series.
Dragon1893
Member
Found a good deal for 8 gigs of 1866mhz corsair vengeance ram and only when I installed it did I realize that my mobo doesn't support ram higher than 1333mhz. That's disappointing.
I bought it mainly because I needed more ram and I know speed isn't a huge factor but still.
I bought it mainly because I needed more ram and I know speed isn't a huge factor but still.
Maybe I should already get an after market cooler to replace the stock Intel cooler I am currently using to get the temperatures even lower, and maybe overclock a little to bridge the gap until I really need to upgrade? Unfortunately, apparently my motherboard tray blocks to much of the back of my motherboard so I cant install coolers with a back plate
Are there any decent coolers that I can install without having to deal with this problem?
Not likely. It sounds like his computer is probably a prebuilt one, and that CPU is pretty weak for what he wants (and the motherboard likely too). Would likely need a general rebuild replacing the MB, CPU, and getting a GPU.
Dragon1893
Member
Regarding my above post I have a question and I'd really appreciate answers.
Since the memory I bought is 1866mhz (two 4gb sticks) and my old memory is 1333mhz (two 2gb sticks) I was going to sell the old one and not mix them.
But since they're all 1.5v and the new memory is running at 1333mhz anyway, would it be ok to mix them? The new ones are Corsair and the old ones are Kingston.
Thanks in advance.
Since the memory I bought is 1866mhz (two 4gb sticks) and my old memory is 1333mhz (two 2gb sticks) I was going to sell the old one and not mix them.
But since they're all 1.5v and the new memory is running at 1333mhz anyway, would it be ok to mix them? The new ones are Corsair and the old ones are Kingston.
Thanks in advance.
Anyone wanna answer this? I'm just gonna YOLO and grab it if you guys don't pipe up...
Should be fine to mix them. Just make sure to run them at the slower ones speed and timing.
TheSpoiler
Member
Wow, that is really weird. I don't suppose you could show us some pictures?
As far as I know, no connectors are supposed to be all curves.
Yup, it's off. When I got my PC it only came with one correct 4pin. And I THINK this particular PSU requires a molex to ATX adapter, because it's not supplying enough power with only the 4pin in the 8pin.
I'm leaving in a few hours to go get it (since they only have them at the microcenter and nowhere else in Chicago) so I'll keep you posted. Thanks for you help, as usual!
Dragon1893
Member
Like I said in my initial post, my mobo doesn't support higher than 1333 so they're forced to run at the same speed as the old ones.
Timing is the same. I guess I'll keep them for now and roll with 12gb.
nicoga3000
Saint Nic
Alright, well I ordered this one-day Prime - should be here tomorrow! Time to hawk my 770.
Maybe I should already get an after market cooler to replace the stock Intel cooler I am currently using to get the temperatures even lower, and maybe overclock a little to bridge the gap until I really need to upgrade? Unfortunately, apparently my motherboard tray blocks to much of the back of my motherboard so I cant install coolers with a back plate
Are there any decent coolers that I can install without having to deal with this problem?
The stock one shouldnt have this problem. Your cooler isnt mounted correctly.
Entered the queue for the EVGA 970 FTW+ step up from my FTW. They claim a few new things like the backplate, memory cooling, new straight heatpipe, 6 phase power, etc but the whole reason I'm stepping up is in hopes that this revision actually addresses the coil whine. I have to believe that they know it's a problem and this revision will tackle that and the rest of the features are just byproducts. They wouldn't come right out and say that the old versions are flawed so that's my hope.
Wouldn't it be a kicker to get a new one and have the whine be worse lol.
I've thrown a lot of money at this 970 all things considered (Original ASUS $330, $15 to RMA it, $380 for the new FTW, now ~$20 to step up). Very annoying. But in the end, if I end up with one without coil whine and as good of a performer as my current FTW, I'll be very happy.
Wouldn't it be a kicker to get a new one and have the whine be worse lol.
I've thrown a lot of money at this 970 all things considered (Original ASUS $330, $15 to RMA it, $380 for the new FTW, now ~$20 to step up). Very annoying. But in the end, if I end up with one without coil whine and as good of a performer as my current FTW, I'll be very happy.
lordfuzzybutt
Member
Be prepared for absolute disappointment.
Jk, good luck
Haha. I am prepared. It's basically costing me $20 to find out ($10 to ship to them, $10 for shipping back) and I'm out my 970 for a couple weeks (using my old 660 in its stead). The coil whine of the FTW is pretty tolerable all things considered but it's still there. I have hopes. Lol
lordfuzzybutt
Member
FWIW, consider this, all the money you spent up until now for that is still slightly cheaper than what I had to pay for my MSI 970, which was 398 euros.
FWIW, consider this, all the money you spent up until now for that is still slightly cheaper than what I had to pay for my MSI 970, which was 398 euros.
And still $160+ cheaper than the 980. I call worth! (the justifications are strong) lol.
I recently bought a XL2411Z and noticed that it has pretty bad colors compared to my VS247H-P and the viewing angle is also pretty bad. The only good things it has atm (which are also its main selling points) is the high refresh rate and the blur reduction.
I'm noticing a yellowish tint at the top of the screen (which is probably the color shift as it seems to lessen when I stand up) and additionally I'm noticing that the top part and bottom is a bit darker than the center part of the screen. The top-left corner of the screen is even darker and yellow than the rest...
I've created an example of how it looks like (I noticed horrible blacks and banding during this...) and it looks like the following to me: http://abload.de/img/xl2411zcgjxf.png
I'm using standard picture mode with blur reduction on and the strobe utility at 120hz with the VT trick but this also happens at the default settings.
Is this normal? If so I'll likely get a different monitor.
I'm noticing a yellowish tint at the top of the screen (which is probably the color shift as it seems to lessen when I stand up) and additionally I'm noticing that the top part and bottom is a bit darker than the center part of the screen. The top-left corner of the screen is even darker and yellow than the rest...
I've created an example of how it looks like (I noticed horrible blacks and banding during this...) and it looks like the following to me: http://abload.de/img/xl2411zcgjxf.png
I'm using standard picture mode with blur reduction on and the strobe utility at 120hz with the VT trick but this also happens at the default settings.
Is this normal? If so I'll likely get a different monitor.
kraspkibble
Permabanned.
yep, it's scan i'm looking to buy from. to be honest the only thing i'm worried about installing is the motherboard/cpu. that's all i'd really take insurance for but it's either for everything or nothing unless i start placing separate orders and then i'm gonna need to pay extra shipping. so should i not bother with the insurance?
and thanks for the build suggestion! i'll look into the new parts you've given! also i suppose i could leave SLI for now if a single GPU will do me well but it's good to keep the option there if i ever change my mind in the future.
It's not that bad to be honest - just as parts it doesn't come out much cheaper:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor (£173.94 @ Aria PC)
Motherboard: Asus Z97M-PLUS Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (£89.98 @ Amazon UK)
Memory: Kingston Fury Red Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£56.96 @ Ebuyer)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£40.39 @ Aria PC)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB Video Card (£269.96 @ Scan.co.uk)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case (£43.48 @ Aria PC)
Power Supply: be quiet! 530W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (£53.99 @ Aria PC)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer (£10.46 @ Aria PC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) (£72.35 @ Aria PC)
Wireless Network Adapter: TP-Link TL-WN851ND 802.11b/g/n PCI Wi-Fi Adapter (£11.95 @ CCL Computers)
Total: £823.46
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-01-19 18:34 GMT+0000
£30 for labour and testing ain't that bad really. Shame it's only a one year warranty with them.
Dollars or Pounds or Euros?
Thanks! Now I'm waiting till tomorrow morning for a rival quote (same machine, except for 16GB RAM, 2TB HDD and a much bigger case). If that comes anywhere near the £850 mark, I'll take that one, but I have my doubts it will. Either way, I've got this machine on a lock until 3pm tomorrow afternoon, so the deal will be done by then. There's no rush, after all.
Dollars
KevMan1815
Member
I ordered the ASUS Strix GTX 970 off of Amazon this weekend and received it today. Stupid me didn't think to check if that Pick Your Path promotion was still going on. Anyway, it wasn't listed in the product description when I went back to it (figures), and I can't seem to find any trace of it ever being through Amazon despite the site being listed as a qualifying retailer. Did this promotion end already?
Hey thread, I'm back looking to build an HTPC this time.
Have to admit I'm honestly not sure where to begin spec-wise.
Budget: 200-ish euros? Not counting the case.
Main Use: Kodi/Plex/Netflix/General 1080p playback box with large storage.
Monitor Resolution: 1080p video projector.
I'd like to use the Silverstone RVZ01 mini-itx case I got from a friend.
Don't care for gaming on this at all, except maybe the odd 2D indie game here and there, if even that. Is that kind of budget realistic in the first place?
Have to admit I'm honestly not sure where to begin spec-wise.
Budget: 200-ish euros? Not counting the case.
Main Use: Kodi/Plex/Netflix/General 1080p playback box with large storage.
Monitor Resolution: 1080p video projector.
I'd like to use the Silverstone RVZ01 mini-itx case I got from a friend.
Don't care for gaming on this at all, except maybe the odd 2D indie game here and there, if even that. Is that kind of budget realistic in the first place?
Have you tried AOC? They do a pretty good 21:9 2560x1080 monitor that's not expensive.
A Pentium, 4GB RAM and H81 board is all you need for a single 1080p transcode. Use a tiny SSD for the OS, normal mechanical drives for storage, job done
adamantypants
Member
I can't look at the pic as I'm at work right now. But any noticeable color banding or light bleed should call for an RMA. You should go that route. I personally tried a 144 hz monitor for like a week before I decided it wasn't worth the dramatic drop in image quality.
Echoing lordalu here, if that's all you're trying to achieve, it should be doable.
Is the rest of the PC the same as the one you listed? Then it's alright, I think. Nice to have companies competing to give you a good price.
What model of motherboard do you have, exactly? Or tell us your system specs in general.
Make sure you only have the new RAM installed, then go into BIOS/UEFI settings and look for a setting called XMP and enable it, then your memory will run at the higher speed. Intel-compatible motherboards as far back as X58/P55 (5~7 years ago) will support XMP, but I'm not sure about AMD.
That depends on factors like your case and motherboard model. What are your system's specs? External power supplies are uncommon and not a standardized thing. so I can't really recommend a power supply without knowing anything further.
michaelius
Banned
I have that Z97 mobo - nothing great but it works and overclocks.
You should be dancing in the street, but quietly kicking yourself because you didn't save $200 and get the only slightly less capable 970 instead.
Competition is amazing. Here's hoping I get a good deal tomorrow. Fingers crossed.
It works and overclocks?! That's exactly what I wanted! Thanks for the advice!
So my PC turns 4 years old this year and ususally that means I'm going to build a new one. The question is, do I need to tho?
I'm thinking that maybe a new GPU is sufficient enough to make the PC go for another for another 2-3 years. I'm playing on a native 1080p monitor and I'm not a uber graphic whore, so 'high' is more than good enough for me.
Processor: i5-2500k 4x 3,3 ghz overclocked to 4,2ghz
Main board: MSI MS-7681 (P67A-GD65 with P67 Chipset)
RAM: 16 GB DDR3
(GPU: 560 GTX TI)
Is it worth it, or is my processor too much of a bottle neck? If so, I assume I need a new main board as well, since an upgrade will not fit into my mainboards socket?
Plan on upgrading in around 5-6 months, when will a new wave of mid-budget GPUs hit the shelve? Or should I keep an eye on current GPUs that will hopefully be cheaper in a few months?
I'm thinking that maybe a new GPU is sufficient enough to make the PC go for another for another 2-3 years. I'm playing on a native 1080p monitor and I'm not a uber graphic whore, so 'high' is more than good enough for me.
Processor: i5-2500k 4x 3,3 ghz overclocked to 4,2ghz
Main board: MSI MS-7681 (P67A-GD65 with P67 Chipset)
RAM: 16 GB DDR3
(GPU: 560 GTX TI)
Is it worth it, or is my processor too much of a bottle neck? If so, I assume I need a new main board as well, since an upgrade will not fit into my mainboards socket?
Plan on upgrading in around 5-6 months, when will a new wave of mid-budget GPUs hit the shelve? Or should I keep an eye on current GPUs that will hopefully be cheaper in a few months?
You will be just fine with the overclocked 2500K. AMD's flagship R9 390/390X is supposed to debut sometime in the next couple of months, but that might be out of your price range. How much were you looking to spend on a graphics card upgrade?
Around 300€ seems affordable, so the 970 is certainly an option (by then, 350€ would be okay too). I'm also a bit Nvidia biased, since I had trouble with AMD in the past.
Didn't see a graphic card benchmark in the OP, is there one where I can see how they fare against each other? I assumed the 970 would be a good fit, but I'm not sure if there are better options.
edit:
Also, which brand would be the best? Asus, MSI, GIGABYTE? Where is the difference?
Hey guys, Just a quick question. Ive just ordered a Dell Ultrasharp U3415W 21:9 monitor and i was wondering if a single Sapphire R9 290 is good enough to handle most games 21:9 1440p. I also have a i7 4790k and 16gb ram but with some of the spec lists of upcoming games would i need to be looking at a second gpu or an upgrade?
You may want to check out this thread: http://www.neogaf.com/forum/showthread.php?t=897689&highlight=gtx+970
Anandtech's GPU bench shows relative performance for all of their graphics cards that they've reviewed. You can list all graphics cards by game performance, or select one or two GPUs to look at comparatively.
Gamegpu.ru does graphics card and CPU benchmarks for a lot of games if you're looking for game-specific benchmarks and framerate performance, they're the source of the graphs from the post I showed you. However, their website is in Russian and it is somewhat hard to navigate.
A single R9 290 or GTX 970 should do alright at 1440p if you turn down some settings. You don't need SLI or crossfire unless you absolutely want the highest framerate, and SLI/crossfire doesn't even work with all games.
There are somewhat faster cards like the GTX 980 or R9 290X, but the higher price doesn't quite justify the small performance increase.
dancrane212
Member
Thinking of upgrading the video card in my living room PC. Anyone has any suggestions for a 300 watt, low profile bracket video card?
Not looking for anything too fancy just something that will handel last gen games better than the cheap gt610 I put in there. I was looking at the visiontek 7750 so far.
Not looking for anything too fancy just something that will handel last gen games better than the cheap gt610 I put in there. I was looking at the visiontek 7750 so far.
Ahh ok, well i figured it could do 1440p but since the new monitor is an ultrawide i didnt know if that would push it over needing another one. TBH ive never had any problems with any games so far.
Your best bet would be the GTX 750 Ti, there are low profile versions by MSI ($154) and Gigabyte ($150). Either model should be just fine on a 300 watt power supply. I can't tell if the MSI model comes with a low profile bracket, although it looks like it could be used with one. The Gigabyte model does have a low profile bracket as shown in the product gallery.
True, the ultrawide Dell's 3440x1440 is a bit harder to run than the 2560x1440 resolutions listed in that framerate performance comparsion, but the performance shouldn't be too much worse. Those graphics cards can even do some light 4K gaming. If the framerate is low, then you'll have to turn down settings or buy another GTX 970 or R9 290 to run dual graphics cards for a boost in some games.
- Status