Desktop Computers

Falstaff

Falstaff

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Good points all around, and I agree with you... I was hoping this thing would be able to last for another 2-3 years with more ram and a new video card but I think not.

Do you have any suggestions? Otherwise I'm just going to start with the list mkopec posted above and go from there.
 
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Silence_sl

shitlord
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5
Eya, if you aren't hurting for a new PC right this moment, I'd wait for the new CPU architecture that's coming with Intel's "Haswell" codenamed product that's due in June.
 
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Silence_sl

shitlord
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mkopec_sl said:
First iteration of haswell is going tobe bugged. Not only that, its reported as only a 8-10% gain in performance over ivy bridge.

http://us.hardware.info/news/33716/u...intels-haswell

Not to say 10% performance boost is nothing, but its not something I would wait for.
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Haswell is at least as small a leap over SB that IB was. That's worth waiting for, not to mention all the other goodies that comes along with it.

The USB issue is...a non-issue.
 
Alkorin

Chancellor Alkorin

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Silence_sl said:
The USB issue is...a non-issue.
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This. It's an issue recovering from sleep with USB 3.0 devices. Can't remember the last time I put my desktop to sleep, and I'm probably not alone on this, since sleep mode causes a thousand different problems. If this is why you're worried about Haswell, don't be.
 
Joeboo

Joeboo

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Eyashusa_sl said:
Good points all around, and I agree with you... I was hoping this thing would be able to last for another 2-3 years with more ram and a new video card but I think not.

Do you have any suggestions? Otherwise I'm just going to start with the list mkopec posted above and go from there.
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That list mkopec put together is damn near exactly my PC that I built about 4 months ago, but I have an Intel SSD instead of a Samsung SSD, but both are great brands regardless. Very good starting point, and like what has been mentioned here a ton, get your processor+mobo in-store at Microcenter if you have one near you. You won't find a price anywhere as close to as low online. You might damn near get your motherboard for free compared to online prices.

edit - also, his 550W power supply should be plenty big for a lone video card. I went with a Seasonic 750W gold rated PSU when I built my system and its severe overkill, but I'm hoping that it lasts through several computers. I bought a backup UPS a while back and my PC(3570K, 660Ti, 1SSD and 2 standard HDs) along with my two 28" 1900x1200 monitors idles at about 240W and at max stress with CPUs and GPU all stressed to 100% it draws about 490W. For reference, when I turn off a monitor, they are about 40W apiece on the UPS, so I guess the actual computer itself is only about 410W at max load.. a 550W supply would be plenty as long as you don't get into 2 or 3 video cards.
 
Falstaff

Falstaff

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joeboo_sl said:
For anyone interested, here is the year-end CPU roundup from Tomshardware:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/...ison,3370.html

3DMark(gaming estimation) specifically:
res_syn_3dmark_combined.png
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Was going to ask about AMD vs Intel and started reading the thread from the beginning... I think this answers my question.
 
Noodleface

Noodleface

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Don't buy AMD.. seriously, don't. You will regret it, they are nothing but a huge letdown of a company when it comes to CPUs. It's cheaper to buy an i5 that will blow away even the top level AMD processors.
 
Alkorin

Chancellor Alkorin

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Sad, but true.

AMD seems to compare the FX 8350 to Ivy Bridge. If it's their top offering, and even the LGA2011 version of Sandy Bridge beats it (even if it's only by a hair), they've fallen further behind than I thought.
 
Zindan

Zindan

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So last August I built upgraded my computer with a new motherboard / cpu / ram. I got an Intel i5 3570k with a Zalman CNPS 20LQ water-cooler. System has been running great up until about a month or so ago. I've been unable to play the games I normally do (Tera / GW2), the games would lock up/crash at random. The past week things have gotten worse, the games will crash without fail after about an hour of play. Last night while playing Tera, I got a blue screen of death, and upon reboot, my bios posted a message saying my CPU was overheating. Sure enough, I go into the bios (Asus Sabertooth z77) and the cpu was at 68C.

So, is my cooler failing? I've had zero issues within Windows running normals apps / watching videos. Any suggestions on a replacement cpu cooler?
 
Ramar

Ramar

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Assuming you're overclocking... how aggressive is your overclock? Ivy Bridge Intel CPUs have less headroom than comparable Sandy Bridge parts because they used a thermal paste between the actual chip and the heat-spreader (Sandy Bridge used flux-less solder which is a much better thermal conductor). This affects how much heat your cooler can dissipate, and can make you thermally bound no matter how good your cooling solution is. I would start by backing off the overclock and seeing if that improves your stability. Some have had luck removing the heat-spreader, but that will void your warranty and potentially damage your processor.

If you aren't overclocking, I would try re-seating the cooler and applying a new layer of thermal paste; a very thin layer is all you need. If the fan on the radiator is working, I wouldn't think that it's the cooler itself, but I have no experience with those self contained water cooler.
 
mkopec

mkopec

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Zindan_sl said:
So last August I built upgraded my computer with a new motherboard / cpu / ram. I got an Intel i5 3570k with a Zalman CNPS 20LQ water-cooler. System has been running great up until about a month or so ago. I've been unable to play the games I normally do (Tera / GW2), the games would lock up/crash at random. The past week things have gotten worse, the games will crash without fail after about an hour of play. Last night while playing Tera, I got a blue screen of death, and upon reboot, my bios posted a message saying my CPU was overheating. Sure enough, I go into the bios (Asus Sabertooth z77) and the cpu was at 68C.

So, is my cooler failing? I've had zero issues within Windows running normals apps / watching videos. Any suggestions on a replacement cpu cooler?
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Throw that zalman POS out the window and get a CM212. I have the same chip mildly OC @4.2 and here are my temps..

rrr_img_18001.jpg
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rrr_img_18001.jpg


rrr_img_18002.jpg
 
gogusrl

gogusrl

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That says nothing about the cm212 and everything about how lucky you are that your ihs makes good contact with your chip.

The 3570k i built for a friend had a thermalright hr-02 on it and was running at 55-60C stock speeds and over 90C at anything over 4ghz. Reseated the cooler 3 times, then tried my own (Scythe Mugen 3) and got the same results before giving up.
 
Zindan

Zindan

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My cm212 will be here Thursday, but I think I might have fixed the issue. I haven't been OC'ing my cpu at all, just letting it run at the "Normal" setting in the Asus bios (3.4ghz). I saw a can of compressed air in one of my storage boxes, and decided to use it on my computer. Sure enough, the heatsink unit of the watercooler was pretty dusty. Was able to play Tera/GW2 last night for quite awhile, no crash. Feel like a noob now. haha.
 
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errr_sl

shitlord
11
0
Building a new rig. Have most of the details worked out. The few things I am on the fence about are monitor and video card.

I was debating on a 24" setup (Dell U2412), but I soon realized that I am already prepared to spend $2k or whatever on the entire thing so might as well go with a larger display since that's really what I'd prefer.

The monitor I have been looking at is the Dell U2713HMhttp://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...irtualParent=1

It's not 120hz, but I don't know of IPS panels that are. I do want to game at 1440p. To power this I've decided to go with a 7970 3gb card. I'm sure this will push the display just fine at "high" settings (albeit not ultra or anything) on most games. Future proofing I can always add another 7970 card as well.

Lastly, power source. Corsair has done me well in the past. Suggestions on which PS to go with bearing in mind I might want to crossfire two 7970's and would rather not have to get another PS to account for it.


Thanks for any criticism or opinions.

quick edit: I can post full details about the rest of the setup if it matters.
 
mkopec

mkopec

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I would go for the GTX 670 myself and then add sli GTX 670 later since crossfire is garbage. Microstuttering is horrendous on crossfire.
http://www.rerolled.org/showthread.p...l=1#post132853

As far as PSU goes here are some good ones...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817703036
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817207022
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817207013
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817151088

Have you checked out the 3 panel setups? IMO I would rather go with 3 cheap 1080p monitors than one 1440p. Then you will be gaming like a boss.
 
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errr_sl

shitlord
11
0
mkopec_sl said:
I would go for the GTX 670 myself and then add sli GTX 670 later since crossfire is garbage. Microstuttering is horrendous on crossfire.
http://www.rerolled.org/showthread.p...l=1#post132853

As far as PSU goes here are some good ones...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817703036
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817207022
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817207013
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817151088

Have you checked out the 3 panel setups? IMO I would rather go with 3 cheap 1080p monitors than one 1440p. Then you will be gaming like a boss.
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Thank you for the links on the PS. I will look into them.

I thought about the 670 and even the 680 although I think the 680 is overpriced, but never the less both of these and the amd counterparts are all good cards. My logic was that on a single card setup the 7970 would be a great choice. It can obviously power a 1440p 27" monitor without much trouble on solid settings. I have future plans of doing a 3 panel setup except just with the 27" monitors as a possibility. I am not sure in the long run if I want that or not. I'd need to find someone with the multi-monitor setup and see it for myself.

In the end nvidia is the better choice for sli/xfire (heard the new amd drivers are much better?), but the 7970 seems like the better single card.

Ehhhh what to do... fuckkkk.
 
gogusrl

gogusrl

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I'd never go back to 1080. There are 120hz IPS monitors (http://overlordcomputer.com/) but there are some caveats. As for the video card, if you plan on throwing a second card, go with nvidia (670), if you're staying single card go with ati (7970).
 
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