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El Kabong posted:Is 4GBs of RAM enough for a mid-range gaming pc? I ask because I've seen a few benchmarks that show there is marginal difference, but the info was kind of old and I wanted to see what you all thought. RAM is cheap, and lots of things are not designed to be memory efficient. Chrome for example. Stepping up to 8 shouldn't cost you much more, and there's not a compelling reason to go with 4 if you're building a new machine.
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Jun 11, 2014 21:05
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DemonMage posted:RAM is cheap, and lots of things are not designed to be memory efficient. Chrome for example. Stepping up to 8 shouldn't cost you much more, and there's not a compelling reason to go with 4 if you're building a new machine. I see, thanks. One more question. The difference in price between the two options below is only $1. Given that, is 1866 the better choice even though it has a higher CAS value? DDR3-1600 CAS 9 DDR3-1866 CAS 10
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Jun 11, 2014 21:15
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El Kabong posted:I see, thanks.
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Jun 11, 2014 21:20
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Can you set up your SSD as a cache for a hard drive? I've heard you can do that but I'm not sure if that's correct.
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Jun 11, 2014 22:08
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Thumbtacks posted:Can you set up your SSD as a cache for a hard drive? I've heard you can do that but I'm not sure if that's correct. Why would you wanna do that over manual control of what is on your SSD vs what is not?
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Jun 11, 2014 22:16
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fletcher posted:Why would you wanna do that over manual control of what is on your SSD vs what is not? I know it used to be more popular when SSD's cost more. If you have a 64GB lying around and you don't want to constantly move stuff on and off of it I can still see it being useful. Like if you use photoshop a lot one week, but play some game a lot the next, or whatever it can make it "seem" like you have a large SSD. Plus the performance was nearly identical in many ways (but not in others). It's no longer as appealing though for sure. I'm pretty sure you just use Intel RST. There are some steps though, like it has to be in raid. I think there are, or were, ssd cache drives that included some software to make it even easier but I cant imagine those sell well anymore
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Jun 11, 2014 22:30
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Noxin of Shame posted:Awesome, thanks for the suggestions. Not really keen to invest the time into looking into Aussie shops, and the subsequent importing rules/costs. However, using a store or two that aren't in the PCPartsPicker merchant list, I've managed to get the price down to around $1700, which seems reasonable considering importing and all that. 'Sup kiwigoon. Try https://www.dtconline.co.nz and also pricespy.co.nz - I'd guess you can drop a few dollars from that price.
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Jun 11, 2014 23:21
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fletcher posted:Why would you wanna do that over manual control of what is on your SSD vs what is not? Just wondering. I take it from the responses that that's probably not a good idea. Guess I'll just put my OS on it and a few games I play frequently. Any other suggestions?
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Jun 12, 2014 00:12
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Rawrbomb posted:Ehh, I remember 4.4~ being the wall, unless you had a perfect CPU. The overclocking megathread would be a better point to get help with that though. Hace posted:On stock cooling maybe, but certainly not with a stupid fat heatsink bolted on. teh_Broseph posted:4.4 is the more like a starting point with a non-stock cooler for a 2500k. I also got a BSOD a couple times at 4.1, but I can't be sure that wasn't my video card. Still, I can pop into the OC Thread and ask about going higher, sure.
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Jun 12, 2014 01:41
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Auto-overclocking is some junk-rear end poo poo, manual overclocking is both more effective, and on occasion even safer than those kinds of utilities.
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Jun 12, 2014 01:44
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What's the recommended desktop speakers nowadays? My Logitech 5.1 is on the fritz. I really don't need the surround stuff, but would like something with decent bass. They will mostly be used to youtube, games and rocksmith.
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Jun 12, 2014 03:17
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crm posted:What's the recommended desktop speakers nowadays? My Logitech 5.1 is on the fritz. I've always been a fan of the Klipsch ProMedia 2.1. They have served me well for the past 10+ years. I haven't been able to turn on the bass knob for a few years since the lady below me gets pissed, but from what I remember it slaps pretty good.
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Jun 12, 2014 03:33
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sebmojo posted:'Sup kiwigoon. Try https://www.dtconline.co.nz and also pricespy.co.nz - I'd guess you can drop a few dollars from that price. Yeah PriceSpy is how I dropped a few hundred dollars. They have shopping list functionality now, email alerts for price drops and items coming into stock, as well as a really handy 'buy all your items from one store and pay x, or buy your items from 6 stores and pay y' feature. DTCOnline wasn't any cheaper, but I appreciate the link, because they apparently have the i5-4690K in stock...
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Jun 12, 2014 03:38
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Thumbtacks posted:Just wondering. I take it from the responses that that's probably not a good idea. No, that's the best way. Nothing wrong with caching really, it's just kind of a hassle, and there are limitations. Honestly the OS is the big one anyways (although caching does work for that, but there is a chance that can get "bumped" away so..)
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Jun 12, 2014 03:48
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fletcher posted:I've always been a fan of the Klipsch ProMedia 2.1. They have served me well for the past 10+ years. I haven't been able to turn on the bass knob for a few years since the lady below me gets pissed, but from what I remember it slaps pretty good. Gonna second these. In the 4 years I've had them, I haven't needed to turn the bass dial past a couple notches. Maybe its only my unit, but the sound is warm and really great and balanced. edit: I bought mine used and maybe its an older version but there's no power switch and I have to plug/unplug it, probably been fixed in the newer ones.
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Jun 12, 2014 04:17
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I have the Harman Kardon Soundsticks III and they're pretty great. I actually took them off my PC and hooked them up to my turntable.
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Jun 12, 2014 04:27
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crm posted:What's the recommended desktop speakers nowadays? My Logitech 5.1 is on the fritz. If you don't want to spend enough for 'real' speakers, you could also consider Corsair's 2.1 system. It's very good for the price.
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Jun 12, 2014 04:29
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Hace posted:Auto-overclocking is some junk-rear end poo poo, manual overclocking is both more effective, and on occasion even safer than those kinds of utilities.
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Jun 12, 2014 04:47
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crm posted:What's the recommended desktop speakers nowadays? My Logitech 5.1 is on the fritz. There's actually a PC speakers thread over in IYG. But the general concensus is that most PC speakers are crap, and the ones that aren't cost about the same as a pair of powered bookshelf speakers (or a pair of passive bookshelf speakers + an amplifier). I haven't been following it real closely lately, but skimming through the last few pages, looks like the stock recommendations are: Powered: Audioengine A2+/A5+ (or the discontinued A2/A5 if you can find them...same speaker but without the integrated USD DAC the "+" versions have) or M-Audio AV-40. Not sure about M-Audio, but I know Audioengine has a factory refurbished section in their online store that can save you some cash. Passive: Whatever bookshelf speakers you like the sound of/fit your budget/have gotten good reviews + either a stereo receiver or a T-amp as an amplifier.
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Jun 12, 2014 06:22
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Cardboard Box A posted:Ah, thank you. I assumed since it was Gigabyte's board, they knew what they were doing (even if they were playing it safe). My mistake. Gigabyte is a pretty crappy brand, we tend to recommend people steer clear of their motherboards.
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Jun 12, 2014 06:36
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The Lord Bude posted:Gigabyte is a pretty crappy brand, we tend to recommend people steer clear of their motherboards. I've had Gigabytes software in particular do some really insane autotune poo poo. Like total max voltage with a huuuge overclock it tests for about 10 seconds then a huge green happy checkmark "Stable! + 93%"
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Jun 12, 2014 06:39
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The Lord Bude posted:Gigabyte is a pretty crappy brand, we tend to recommend people steer clear of their motherboards.
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Jun 12, 2014 08:11
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Am I going to want to disable TLER if I buy a WD Red for a non-NAS build, or is that not going to have appreciable performance on drive performance or longevity?
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Jun 12, 2014 09:55
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I recently updated my BIOS to install a new graphics card and ever since I've had problems with powering my system on and off; namely, when I shut down, the fans and lights in the tower stay on. The graphics card fans don't, though. I'm wondering if the BIOS update did something. Any ideas?
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Jun 12, 2014 15:21
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Just wanted to say thank you for maintaining this guide, ordered the "Goons will like this" set. Should I replace my 3-year-old power supply while I'm at it or leave it be if it's still chugging along alright? Ended up with this, total came to around $660 - coulda saved a bit shopping around I'm sure, I live in Japan though and nowhere has nearly as good customer service and returns as as Amazon.co.jp, though. ASUSTeK Intel H97 H97M-PLUS ElixerDDR3 PC3-12800 CL9 4GB x 2 Intel CPU Core-i5-4590 ZOTAC GeForce GTX760 2GB TwinCooler NicelyNice fucked around with this message at 16:37 on Jun 12, 2014 |
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Jun 12, 2014 16:32
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MaliciousOnion posted:I recently updated my BIOS to install a new graphics card and ever since I've had problems with powering my system on and off; namely, when I shut down, the fans and lights in the tower stay on. The graphics card fans don't, though. Post in the Haus of Tech Support subforum and follow the template and you will get help.
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Jun 12, 2014 17:57
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I'm building a new PC for gaming shortly, my friend won't shut the gently caress up about AMD. I was planning on going i7. Is there a compelling reason to look at AMD? Price is not a huge deal I would like to spend less than 350 or so on the chip if possible.
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Jun 12, 2014 18:03
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revmoo posted:I'm building a new PC for gaming shortly, my friend won't shut the gently caress up about AMD. I was planning on going i7. Is there a compelling reason to look at AMD? Price is not a huge deal I would like to spend less than 350 or so on the chip if possible. None. Get an i5 unless you're doing heavy video or science work. If you want to overclock, wait two weeks for devils canyon, if not get the one in the op.
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Jun 12, 2014 18:06
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Are i5s really good? I've got an older one and I've never really been impressed with it. I think like to go with a little more performance on the CPU side of things (I like to play FSX which STILL taxes my CPU even though it's an eight-year old game. The plan for this box is to rack it and stick it in my basement and use it for steam in-home streaming so I have a little overhead there as well. Edit: The chip I was looking at was the 3770k. Little outside my budget but I'm willing to spend the extra cash for extra performance. Also waiting a few weeks is not an issue. revmoo fucked around with this message at 18:13 on Jun 12, 2014 |
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Jun 12, 2014 18:11
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revmoo posted:Are i5s really good? I've got an older one and I've never really been impressed with it. I think like to go with a little more performance on the CPU side of things (I like to play FSX which STILL taxes my CPU even though it's an eight-year old game. Which games are you going to play that are capable of using 8 cores? Also unless you have an unlimited budget, the $100 you save on the cpu will buy you a massive increase in graphics card oomph, which will have far more impact on games than the 4 hyperthread cores. It's all explained very well in the op.
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Jun 12, 2014 18:15
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My ASUS Z87-A motherboard alleges to have a header for a legacy serial port. Does anyone know where I'd get an adapter? Will this work? http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-StarTech-com-Serial-to-IDC-Header-Slot-Plate-Adapte-/380345537473?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item588e5c53c1 It would be nice because I have old Cisco equipment with console ports.
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Jun 12, 2014 18:15
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tarbrush posted:Which games are you going to play that are capable of using 8 cores? How about this: PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/n4tWBm Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/n4tWBm/by_merchant/ CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($339.99 @ Amazon) Motherboard: Asus B85-PLUS ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($98.98 @ SuperBiiz) Memory: Corsair Vengeance LP 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($315.98 @ Newegg) Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($109.99 @ Best Buy) Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 750 Ti 2GB FTW ACX Video Card ($139.99 @ Newegg) Total: $1004.93 Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-06-12 13:20 EDT-0400 Looking at the price on the 4790k it seems like the way to go. What about the video card? Should I go for something better. I realize this is probably a mildly overpowered build but I'm not too worried about it.
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Jun 12, 2014 18:22
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revmoo posted:How about this: Read the OP. Really. You've built a machine to sequence genomes not play games.
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Jun 12, 2014 18:28
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That gpu will struggle with modern games at high settings, while the cpu is overkill. Your build isn't so much overpowered as it is bottlenecked, sort of like hot-rodding a car with old tires and expecting it do anything more than a slow burnout. Definitely give the OP a thorough read before you commit to buying any parts. Edit: Didnt see the 32gbs of ram. I'm going to run with the car metaphor and say that's the equivalent of installing 16 cupholders in a passenger sedan. Assuming you are only gaming, anyways. Fruits of the sea fucked around with this message at 18:33 on Jun 12, 2014 |
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Jun 12, 2014 18:29
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revmoo posted:Are i5s really good? I've got an older one and I've never really been impressed with it. I think like to go with a little more performance on the CPU side of things (I like to play FSX which STILL taxes my CPU even though it's an eight-year old game. What's your current setup, just out of curiosity.
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Jun 12, 2014 18:30
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tarbrush posted:Read the OP. Really. You've built a machine to sequence genomes not play games. ~my PhD scientist boyfriend~ sequences genomes all day and he does it on a Dell i5 Ivy Bridge in the MIT lab. Which coincidentally you can buy complete from Dell Outlet for like $400 these days.
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Jun 12, 2014 18:35
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Zero VGS posted:~my PhD scientist boyfriend~ sequences genomes all day and he does it on a Dell i5 Ivy Bridge in the MIT lab. Which coincidentally you can buy complete from Dell Outlet for like $400 these days. If there was a smily for blowing a raspberry at you, I would be using it. Instead, you'll have to use your imagination 
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Jun 12, 2014 18:37
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revmoo posted:Are i5s really good? I've got an older one and I've never really been impressed with it. I think your misconception about what parts you need is rooted in this statement. Intel's been calling processors "i5" since 2008. They get better every year. An i5 that just came out is more than twice as fast as one of the first processors they called an i5. It is rather dumb, but that's how it is.
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Jun 12, 2014 18:46
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revmoo posted:Are i5s really good? I've got an older one and I've never really been impressed with it. Then you'd REALLY not be impressed by AMD. Anyways I'm bored so here's a system that would fit your needs much, much better. http://pcpartpicker.com/user/MaxxBot/saved/QLndnQ MaxxBot fucked around with this message at 19:00 on Jun 12, 2014 |
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Jun 12, 2014 18:57
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MaxxBot posted:Then you'd REALLY not be impressed by AMD. I don't get it, you gave me a parts list with half the ram, a much weaker CPU and a bunch of parts I don't need and it costs the same as the list I picked. I think the video card recommendation is good though, I'll up my budget a little bit for the GPU. I don't mind overpowered, but I certainly want to avoid bottlenecks. I rotate all my hardware through my various PCs over time so I don't mind going for a mildly overpowered build. Hell, my router has a Core 2 Duo and 4 gigabit NICs. Who knows, I may be using it for actual number crunching in the future so I'm happy to pay extra for added versatility with my hardware.
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Jun 12, 2014 19:07
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