Register a SA Forums Account here!
JOINING THE SA FORUMS WILL REMOVE THIS BIG AD, THE ANNOYING UNDERLINED ADS, AND STUPID INTERSTITIAL ADS!!!

You can: log in, read the tech support FAQ, or request your lost password. This dumb message (and those ads) will appear on every screen until you register! Get rid of this crap by registering your own SA Forums Account and joining roughly 150,000 Goons, for the one-time price of $9.95! We charge money because it costs us money per month for bills, and since we don't believe in showing ads to our users, we try to make the money back through forum registrations.
 
  • Locked thread
Hace
Feb 13, 2012

<<Mobius 1, Engage.>>

deimos posted:

What? How is that EVGA not a good PSU?

It's only ok across the board, and it's also pretty loud apparently: http://www.hardocp.com/article/2014/05/16/evga_supernova_nex650g_650w_power_supply_review/9#.U6GuOfldWyo

Unless I'm missing something, the XFX unit is better in terms of acoustics/ripple/regulation, and is only slightly worse in terms of efficiency, as well as being semi-modular.

Adbot
ADBOT LOVES YOU

deimos
Nov 30, 2006

Forget it man this bat is whack, it's got poobrain!

Hace posted:

It's only ok across the board, and it's also pretty loud apparently: http://www.hardocp.com/article/2014/05/16/evga_supernova_nex650g_650w_power_supply_review/9#.U6GuOfldWyo

Unless I'm missing something, the XFX unit is better in terms of acoustics/ripple/regulation, and is only slightly worse in terms of efficiency, as well as being semi-modular.

The XFX is Bronze and more expensive. Also an EVGA review on HardOCP is bound to be biased, since they had a broohaha with them. They also mention it only has a 3 year warranty when it has a 5 year warranty.

An example of bias:

quote:

In the 80 Plus testing, this unit finished testing with efficiency values of 86.72%-89.91%-86.19% which means that it missed the 80 Plus Gold cutoffs across the board by up to 0.81%.

Less than 1% is considered passing by Jonnyguru because of possible equipment discrepancies (and HardOCP has also been more lenient of other manufacturers in terms of efficiency in other reviews).


edit:
Compare the above language about missing 80 Plus by <1% vs missing it by 2%:

quote:

In the 80 Plus efficiency tests, the Triathlor 650W was of 80.01%-87.37%-85.73% efficient. This means that at 20% load this unit missed the 80 Plus Bronze standards by a full 2%. While we do use different equipment from 80 Plus and there is always some component and unit to unit variation this miss on the low end is more than we would like to see from a unit to call it plausible.

deimos fucked around with this message at 16:37 on Jun 18, 2014

Zero VGS
Aug 16, 2002
ASK ME ABOUT HOW HUMAN LIVES THAT MADE VIDEO GAME CONTROLLERS ARE WORTH MORE
Lipstick Apathy
What would you guys say is the most cost effective Steam In Home Streaming box if I already have a monitor? Maybe just an Intel NUC?

teagone
Jun 10, 2003

That was pretty intense, huh?

Zero VGS posted:

What would you guys say is the most cost effective Steam In Home Streaming box if I already have a monitor? Maybe just an Intel NUC?

I'd say so. If you don't have spare parts laying around to put together a full build, getting an intel NUC to be a dedicated Steam streamer seems like the best solution price wise.

Woodburger
Dec 5, 2004

...Like a thousand other commanders on a thousand other battlefields, I wait for the dawn.

Schpyder posted:

Yeah, gonna go with "seriously misjudged" there.

I mean, if the A8 was a drop-in on your mobo, I guess it was okay, but the 6570 is literally one of the worst gaming cards ever made when compared to contemporaneous competition. I mean, it's already ancient, so it's going to be incredibly slow compared to anything halfway decent now. Dual monitors won't slow down gameplay unless you're playing on both of them. A 760 might bottleneck a little on the A8 depending on what resolution you're running at (performance for that A8 is sort of inbetween an i3 and i5 of the 3-series generation), but it shouldn't be anywhere near as much of a problem as that terrible, horrible, no good, very bad video card you currently have. A 760 will be a quantum leap for gaming, regardless of what resolution you're running at.

PS: your 760 link goes to R9-270Xs instead.

Thanks for confirming this. Obviously I need to have a talk with the store who sold me this piece of poo poo.

The Lord Bude
May 23, 2007

ASK ME ABOUT MY SHITTY, BOUGIE INTERIOR DECORATING ADVICE

deimos posted:

You missed Super Flower, their quality can rival Delta, specially the Leadex platform (EVGA Supernova 750W+). And that monster titanium 1600W :eyepop:.

Do they make anything in the wattage range we suggest? I don't think I've ever come across them in this thread.

Grumpwagon
May 6, 2007
I am a giant assfuck who needs to harden the fuck up.

MaxxBot posted:

For those of you wanting to build cheap gaming PCs, this thing is going to be a godsend. It basically eliminates the need to ever buy an AMD CPU for a desktop and offers near i3 level performance for $75 when overclocked.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/pentium-g3258-overclocking-performance,3849.html

I'll be really interested in seeing if this could knock off our default ultra-cheap recommendation of a pre-built system (assuming the person was ok with OC, obviously).

HalloKitty
Sep 30, 2005

Adjust the bass and let the Alpine blast

Grumpwagon posted:

I'll be really interested in seeing if this could knock off our default ultra-cheap recommendation of a pre-built system (assuming the person was ok with OC, obviously).

It certainly makes an incredible value proposition, and I'd be tempted to suggest it if budget was tight. After all, leaving as much of the budget as possible for a better GPU is just the right balance when building a gaming PC with no cash.

Cross-quoting from Overclocking Megathread:

Krailor posted:

So this is interesting:

http://www.tomshardware.com/news/asus-overclocking-h87-h97-b85,27076.html

Apparently Asus decided that everyone should have the right to OC.

This news plus the unlocked Pentium? A small budget just got even more interesting.

HalloKitty fucked around with this message at 18:07 on Jun 18, 2014

The Lord Bude
May 23, 2007

ASK ME ABOUT MY SHITTY, BOUGIE INTERIOR DECORATING ADVICE

Woodburger posted:

Thanks for confirming this. Obviously I need to have a talk with the store who sold me this piece of poo poo.

To be clear, not only was that gpu from a previous generation when you bought it; (It came out in 2011, and you bought it in 2013) it's one of those super low end models that exist basically for 2 reasons:

Letting OEMs like dell claim that their PCs have dedicated graphics, and taking money from people who don't know what their buying. I wouldn't be surprised if even current integrated graphics can out perform it.

That AMD cpu wasn't worth purchasing either, AMD hasn't been competitive in a long time - It's also going to hold back your performance substantially. To be honest your entire computer needs replacing, but a new GPU will make the largest difference if you can't afford to do it all at once. I would be very worried about your power supply though, especially if it's older than the rest of the computer and especially if you relied on the sort of 'advice' that landed you a 6570 when you bought it - The last thing you need is your power supply blowing up your new card. (although to be honest I'd doubt it even has the appropriate wattage and PCIe connectors.)

I'd be curious to know what PSU you have (and also what you upgraded your CPU and GPU from).

If you were in Australia, and you told a salesperson what your needs were; and they sold you that you'd be legally entitled to a refund - I doubt the US has similar consumer protections though. I'd still kick up the biggest stink imaginable though and trash the reputation of that store as much as possible on general principle.

Grumpwagon
May 6, 2007
I am a giant assfuck who needs to harden the fuck up.

HalloKitty posted:

It certainly makes an incredible value proposition, and I'd be tempted to suggest it if budget was tight. After all, leaving as much of the budget as possible for a better GPU is just the right balance when building a gaming PC with no cash.

Cross-quoting from Overclocking Megathread:


This news plus the unlocked Pentium? A small budget just got even more interesting.

Here's a theoretical comparable build with the 4130 (set to $75) standing in for the new Pentium. For now, an ASUS H97 board starts at $98, and this ASRock Z97 is the same price, so I stuck with the Z. If ASUS released a lower cost board, or if ASRock got in on this, a $75 H97 board would bring the system price down another $25.

Honestly, it shows how low margin these systems must be for Dell, even factoring in high volume pricing.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/xFWjNG

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i3-4130 3.4GHz Dual-Core Processor (Purchased For $75.00)
Motherboard: ASRock Z97M Pro4 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($104.48 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Avexir Core series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($68.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.98 @ OutletPC)
Case: Rosewill FBM-01 MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA 430W 80+ Certified ATX Power Supply ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSB0 DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ OutletPC)
Keyboard: Rosewill RK-201 Wired Standard Keyboard ($4.99 @ Amazon)
Mouse: Microsoft Optical Mouse 200 for Business Wired Optical Mouse ($4.76 @ NCIX US)
Total: $458.15
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-06-18 13:23 EDT-0400



Here's a comparable Dell at $419 (i3-4130), no video card

http://outlet.us.dell.com/ARBOnlineSales/Online/SecondaryInventorySearch.aspx?c=us&l=en&s=dfh&cs=22&puid=8f2bbf5f

Processor: Intel Core 4th Generation i3-4130 processor (3MB Cache, up to 3.4 GHz)
Windows 8.1
1 TB SATA Hard Drive (7200 RPM)
8 GB Dual Channel DDR3 at 1600MHz (2x 4GB) Non-ECC
Tray load DVD Drive (Reads and Writes to DVD/CD)
Intel HD Integrated Graphics
Dell Outlet Inspiron 3847


EDIT: Just realized my build doesn't have a non-stock CPU cooler either.

VVV It does take into account the $0 shipping, but not any sort of deal. 25% off that system is absurd.

Grumpwagon fucked around with this message at 22:46 on Jun 18, 2014

Zero VGS
Aug 16, 2002
ASK ME ABOUT HOW HUMAN LIVES THAT MADE VIDEO GAME CONTROLLERS ARE WORTH MORE
Lipstick Apathy
I'll bet that Dell Outlet PC isn't even factoring that they spam you with 25% off coupons and have free shipping.

Zero VGS fucked around with this message at 19:58 on Jun 18, 2014

MisterAlex
Dec 4, 2004

For Blood, Comic Mischief, Mature Humor, Nudity, Strong Language, Suggestive Themes, Use of Alcohol, and Intense Violence.

Online Interactions Not Rated.
@deimos: Thanks for posting about that Seasonic 660 Platinum deal. The rep at Newegg approved my refund of the 550 Gold under Iron Egg Guarantee even though it's not the same item. So I got a nicer PSU for less. =)

Vlaphor
Dec 18, 2005

Lipstick Apathy
Looking to get a quick general consensus here. I have an i7 930 oc'd to 3.9. I'm looking at the new Devils Canyon I7 4790k, which Micro Center sells at $279. I'd also need a new mobo, and I might want to get a new case as well (mine is old and kinda banged up in some ways). My CPU cooler is a Hyper 212 evo, but I'm wondering if I should switch to water cooling for the new system (which I also want to OC). I'm trying to stay at around $500 or so for this. I game at 1080p and my current CPU has lasted me around 4 years and I'm hoping to get the same out of this purchase

Lyons
Mar 6, 2012

The Lord Bude posted:

Get a power supply in the vicinity of 500 to 550w. Anything made by Seasonic or delta is top notch. (Note that most companies don't build their own PSUs; so you need to see who the OEM is - the Antec true power classic line for eg is made by Seasonic. Antec is usually good because most of their stuff is seasonic or delta.)

I think there are nicer mid towers than the 500R. The Phanteks Enthoo Pro is particularly good, as is the Nanoxia DS1. I suggest manually checking the clearance for CPU coolers on whatever case you decide on - the manufacturer should list the maximum height of coolers that will fit in the case somewhere on the web page for that case.

Cool, thanks. Is this power supply decent?: http://pcpartpicker.com/part/seasonic-power-supply-s12ii620bronze I feel like I'm trying to scrimp too much on an essential item...

Regarding the Nanoxia case, how is it with cable management and filtering dust (the latter being very important)? I'm looking for something more oriented towards cooling than silence if I had to choose, so does it perform well in that regard, too?

Ignoarints
Nov 26, 2010

Vlaphor posted:

Looking to get a quick general consensus here. I have an i7 930 oc'd to 3.9. I'm looking at the new Devils Canyon I7 4790k, which Micro Center sells at $279. I'd also need a new mobo, and I might want to get a new case as well (mine is old and kinda banged up in some ways). My CPU cooler is a Hyper 212 evo, but I'm wondering if I should switch to water cooling for the new system (which I also want to OC). I'm trying to stay at around $500 or so for this. I game at 1080p and my current CPU has lasted me around 4 years and I'm hoping to get the same out of this purchase

I prefer water cooling, a lot prefer big air. High end you get a tad more performance out of water but you tend to spend $20-$30 more for that, and high end air in the $70 range will perform similarly while being quieter. It's unlikely to get this under $500 though. I'd re-use the 212 until you can spring for a cooler you want. That would give you a good amount of money to play with for the case.

I like water cooling simply because it doesn't place the comparable massive heatsink on the motherboard and it performs very well. The small addition of noise is worth it, many times over. However I do not have a quiet computer and moderate noise isn't a concern for me. But I wouldn't think water cooling is just inherently better.

Ignoarints fucked around with this message at 20:54 on Jun 18, 2014

Vlaphor
Dec 18, 2005

Lipstick Apathy
So an H80i wouldn't be too much better than a hyper 212 evo?

deimos
Nov 30, 2006

Forget it man this bat is whack, it's got poobrain!

Vlaphor posted:

So an H80i wouldn't be too much better than a hyper 212 evo?

Why are you comparing an $85 cooler to a $20 cooler?

Ignoarints
Nov 26, 2010

Vlaphor posted:

So an H80i wouldn't be too much better than a hyper 212 evo?

Oh yes, it would be. I was just comparing the difference between something like a phanteks tc14pe or noctua d14 to comparable water coolers. Since you're overclocking I'd go either route for sure

Vlaphor
Dec 18, 2005

Lipstick Apathy
That's the kind of comparison I was looking at.

deimos posted:

Why are you comparing an $85 cooler to a $20 cooler?

Because I know that hype can go a long way into determining the price of a component

LuckyCat
Jul 26, 2007

Grimey Drawer

Droid Washington posted:

Alright, here is what I have so far. I posted a page or two ago, but now I've bought some components and need help filling in the gap. I'm not really sure what mobo and memory to go with. For the mobo I need the ability to overclock and a solid NIC would be good as well. Maybe someone can recommend one with built-in wifi? Or is that pointless and I should just buy a Linksys NIC with antennae or something? This is for gaming only at 1920 x 1200, and my budget is very flexible.

The following is what I've paid for so far:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Phanteks PH-TC14PE_BK 78.1 CFM CPU Cooler ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 500GB mSATA Solid State Drive ($279.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 780 3GB Dual FTW ACX Video Card ($509.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Nanoxia Deep Silence 1 ATX Mid Tower Case (Purchased For $139.92)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 660W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (32/64-bit) ($104.29 @ NCIX US)
Total: $1419.16
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-06-18 02:10 EDT-0400

drat NIGGA posted:

How does this look for and the Mobo? Everyone in this thread is going to tell you to buy this wireless card. Also changed the SSD to make it ~$20 or so cheaper, but if you want and need the other one, change it back.

Also that power supply deal might be over. If it is, just get the Seasonic 550R

Thanks for your help, but there's no links! :) I was lucky enough to get the PSU deal before it expired too. Yay!

deimos
Nov 30, 2006

Forget it man this bat is whack, it's got poobrain!

Vlaphor posted:

Because I know that hype can go a long way into determining the price of a component

But the post you replied to clearly stated:

quote:

High end you get a tad more performance out of water but you tend to spend $20-$30 more for that, and high end air in the $70 range will perform similarly while being quieter.

DAMN NIGGA
Aug 15, 2008

by Lowtax

Droid Washington posted:

Thanks for your help, but there's no links! :) I was lucky enough to get the PSU deal before it expired too. Yay!

Oops forgot to post it ha. Awesome you got the PSU. And I also didn't see that you already bought everything so ignore the previous post :) . I originally wanted to link to this Mobo http://pcpartpicker.com/part/asrock-motherboard-z97extreme6

Ignoarints
Nov 26, 2010

Vlaphor posted:

That's the kind of comparison I was looking at.


Because I know that hype can go a long way into determining the price of a component

This statement is correct but not in that way. I'm cherry picking the best air coolers and comparing them to the best AIO water coolers. The overpriced hype part of it will be between similarly priced air coolers and to a smaller degree the same with water coolers. An evo 212 is good for the money, but there is a lot of room for improvement (for overclocking) and you aren't wasting money by moving up. There are surely $70 air coolers that an evo 212 can outperform, but that's because they're lovely. There's a lot less variation in AIO performance except the fans brands choose, although an important distinction.

Again, I prefer water coolers, but unless you simply don't want a huge heatsink on your CPU (I dont, but most care less) or get a badass sale price on one, I generally think its best to go all out or just get big air - one of the two I listed above although others probably know which one to choose (or I might be outdated as well). At the moment, I like the Kraken's numbers. X40 with another 140mm fan (not a cheap fan, btw), or an x60 if space and budget allows. A lot of other options can be disappointing in one way or another compared to the best air coolers until you get in the lower price ranges.

Anyways... either or you can't go wrong.

deimos
Nov 30, 2006

Forget it man this bat is whack, it's got poobrain!

Ignoarints posted:

There's a lot less variation in AIO performance except the fans brands choose, although an important distinction.

That's because there's what, two AIO manufacturers?

SolitarySolidarity
Dec 29, 2012

Evolve. Control. Combine.
About a year ago I put together a list of parts for a custom PC but I never got around to finishing it. Could you guys tell me if my remaining parts are still worth getting or if they're already dated? My current hard drive is insanely dated and my power supply can't handle the newer video cards so I'd like to upgrade those items.

Currently Own:
PSU: Corsair vx550w
CPU: Intel i5 3570k @ 3.4
Motherboard: Asus P8 Z77-V LX
Memory: 8GB RAM
OP: Windows 7 (currently on 32bit which locks my RAM, but I believe I can switch to 64bit when I install a new HDD)


Buying:
Power Supply: Corsair HX850 850w Modular Power Supply - 80+ Gold (or 750)
HDD: WD Black 2 TB Desktop Hard Drive (7200RPM, 64MB Cache)

I'd like to do a fair bit of gaming. I don't need everything on ultra but I'd like it to look nice. In a few months I'll be upgrading my old ATI 4870. I heard the WD Velociraptor HDDs are nice for gaming but I'd be spending the same money on half the space so I'm not sure if the benefits are worth it.

Also, in terms of cooling will a few fans be enough if I'm not overclocking? I have one intake in the front and two outtake in the back, plus the CPU fan out the side.

SolitarySolidarity fucked around with this message at 00:42 on Jun 19, 2014

Ignoarints
Nov 26, 2010

deimos posted:

That's because there's what, two AIO manufacturers?

As far as I know. I just think of them as "thats the round one" and "thats the square one".

I am pretty convinced we are in an early stage of AIO's and that there will be developments as time goes on, which may cause them to pull away in performance a little. Shrouds, radiator cores that aren't just basically off the shelf mass production automotive designs, stuff like that. The concept of these radiators is to simply be good enough and cheap enough to make a lot of, something that doesn't necessarily fit with the idea of overclocking. They remind me of the early square block heatsinks on CPUs from a long time ago. This is based on nothing but guessing, but I'm going to guess we'll see exotic looking radiators in the same way we see exotic looking air coolers at some point here

bike appreciator
Mar 19, 2011

EDIT: I'm a loving moron

bike appreciator fucked around with this message at 00:27 on Jun 19, 2014

beejay
Apr 7, 2002

SolitarySolidarity posted:

About a year ago I put together a list of parts for a custom PC but I never got around to building it. Could you guys tell me if my parts are still worth getting or if they're already dated? My current hard drive is insanely dated and my power supply can't handle the newer video cards so I'd like to upgrade those items.

Current:
CPU: Intel i5 3570k @ 3.4
Motherboard: Asus P8 Z77-V LX
Memory: 8GB RAM
OP: Windows 7 (currently on 32bit which locks my RAM, but I believe I can switch to 64bit when I install a new HDD)


Buying:
Power Supply: Corsair HX850 850w Modular Power Supply - 80+ Gold (or 750)
HDD: WD Black 2 TB Desktop Hard Drive (7200RPM, 64MB Cache)

I'd like to do a fair bit of gaming. I don't need everything on ultra but I'd like it to look nice. In a few months I'll be upgrading my old ATI 4870. I heard the WD Velociraptor HDDs are nice for gaming but I'd be spending the same money on half the space so I'm not sure if the benefits are worth it.

Also, in terms of cooling will a few fans be enough if I'm not overclocking? I have one intake in the front and two outtake in the back, plus the CPU fan out the side.

You need to start over. There have been new releases since that processor/motherboard and are still around the same price points. If you're not overclocking you don't need a K processor and a Z board. Whatever fans come with the case you buy will be fine.

In terms of hard drives... Velociraptor is not good, don't do that. Get a solid state drive and a WD Blue for other storage, don't get a black, they are not necessary.

Either power supply is overkill and way more than you need to spend. Get a 550 or 650 from the OP.

SolitarySolidarity
Dec 29, 2012

Evolve. Control. Combine.

beejay posted:

You need to start over. There have been new releases since that processor/motherboard and are still around the same price points. If you're not overclocking you don't need a K processor and a Z board. Whatever fans come with the case you buy will be fine.

In terms of hard drives... Velociraptor is not good, don't do that. Get a solid state drive and a WD Blue for other storage, don't get a black, they are not necessary.

Either power supply is overkill and way more than you need to spend. Get a 550 or 650 from the OP.

I already own the Z77 & 3570k. Are they not good anymore? I should just scrap this thing?


I already have a Corsair vx550w, but I thought that was a little weak by todays standard? I was originally shopping for a 7970 but I think I may switch to nVidia.

SolitarySolidarity fucked around with this message at 00:44 on Jun 19, 2014

beejay
Apr 7, 2002

Oh you own the CPU and mobo already? I misread and thought you were planning to buy them. No they are still totally fine, I'm running them right now and still loving it. They are overclocking parts though, so you could do that.

SolitarySolidarity
Dec 29, 2012

Evolve. Control. Combine.

beejay posted:

Oh you own the CPU and mobo already? I misread and thought you were planning to buy them. No they are still totally fine, I'm running them right now and still loving it. They are overclocking parts though, so you could do that.

Thank goodness. You freaked me out there. I'm not ready for a full PC upgrade haha.

Monday_
Feb 18, 2006

Worked-up silent dork without sex ability seeks oblivion and demise.
The Great Twist

SolitarySolidarity posted:

I already own the Z77 & 3570k. Are they not good anymore? I should just scrap this thing?


I already have a Corsair vx550w, but I thought that was a little weak by todays standard? I was originally shopping for a 7970 but I think I may switch to nVidia.

That PSU got really good reviews when it was released, but that was back in 2007. I'd get a new one if it's more than 2-3 years old. 550W is fine for a single video card.

Locke Dunnegan
Apr 25, 2005

Respectable Bespectacled Receptacle
So it turns out Newegg does have 12-month financing, somehow I missed it and thought they only had 6-month when I checked before. After honing my search I found this tower on sale, and am wondering how solid that is. The graphics card isn't very good apparently, but I can't find the specs for the motherboard anywhere, and I am not knowledgeable about upgrades, so I don't know what to look for for a possible upgrade that will be compatible. If I want to stay under, say, $900, what are some options for upgrading this machine?

Or if any of this pile is a better fit that would also be good to know.

DAMN NIGGA
Aug 15, 2008

by Lowtax

Locke Dunnegan posted:

So it turns out Newegg does have 12-month financing, somehow I missed it and thought they only had 6-month when I checked before. After honing my search I found this tower on sale, and am wondering how solid that is. The graphics card isn't very good apparently, but I can't find the specs for the motherboard anywhere, and I am not knowledgeable about upgrades, so I don't know what to look for for a possible upgrade that will be compatible. If I want to stay under, say, $900, what are some options for upgrading this machine?

Or if any of this pile is a better fit that would also be good to know.

Honestly, I wouldn't trust the pre-built ones from Newegg. How does this look? If you're a student you can get Windows for like $20 cheaper ( wasn't sure if you had an OS already). And the optical drive isn't really necessary so you could shave another $20 there. Or replace the CPU with an i3 but I'm not to sure about your gaming needs.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4590 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI H97M-G43 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($95.66 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: MSI Radeon R7 265 2GB Video Card ($149.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master N200 MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($54.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Rosewill Capstone 450W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSB0 DVD/CD Writer ($19.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($92.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $820.57
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-06-18 20:40 EDT-0400

Ignoarints
Nov 26, 2010

Locke Dunnegan posted:

So it turns out Newegg does have 12-month financing, somehow I missed it and thought they only had 6-month when I checked before. After honing my search I found this tower on sale, and am wondering how solid that is. The graphics card isn't very good apparently, but I can't find the specs for the motherboard anywhere, and I am not knowledgeable about upgrades, so I don't know what to look for for a possible upgrade that will be compatible. If I want to stay under, say, $900, what are some options for upgrading this machine?

Or if any of this pile is a better fit that would also be good to know.

As far as pre builts go, that's not the worst thing I've ever seen. But yes that graphics card is bad. I'm not even sure that's better than the on board graphics. The real plus, cost wise, is the i7 and 16gb of ram however you have to have the need for those things to matter. For gaming, this is a very unbalanced computer. Plus it's refurbished.

Tell us your needs and we can recommend something. In all likelihood you'll find a i5 based build far more appropriate and solid, with far superior graphics capability, and probably just as importantly you'll know exactly what parts are going into it. The downside is it will simply cost a bit more than that for sure.

Locke Dunnegan
Apr 25, 2005

Respectable Bespectacled Receptacle
Yeah, thanks, that piecemeal build does look better and more balanced. My needs really are for mid-level gaming, nothing crazy fancy (obviously given the budget). Something that would run, say, Civ V, Wildstar, League of Legends, but nothing like whatever the new Crysis-level games would be. Looking at the benchmarks for the i3 and up, I'd hope for at least an i5.

EDIT: And my dad is self-employed as a computer/network tech, so although he can't help me much with picking parts out, he always has a spare copy of Windows around if I need it, so no worries on the cost of an OS.

EDIT: I can't find any benchmarks for that graphics card. Also, it is out of stock on Newegg.

Locke Dunnegan fucked around with this message at 02:44 on Jun 19, 2014

endlessmonotony
Nov 4, 2009

by Fritz the Horse
I'm considering a new build.

Budget's around 1200 euro, it's general use, casual gaming and I also store full hard drive images.

Processor: Intel i5-4590
Motherboard: Asus H97-Pro
Memory: 2x 8gb Kingston HyperX 1600mhz 1.5v
Graphics card: Asus GeForce 750 Ti 2GB (without factory OC)
SSD: Intel 530 180gb
Hard drive #1: Seagate Barracuda 2TB
Hard drive #2: WD Red 2TB
Power Supply: Seasonic G-550
CPU Fan: Noctua NH-U12S
Case: Antec Three Hundred Two

I've got an USB-connected optical drive so that isn't a problem.

I'm wondering if there's any problems with that setup. The power consumption of the system is actually a massive concern, especially while gaming, due to location of the system.

I'm also wondering if it would be worth it to wait for Devil's Canyon - i5-4690K and Asus Z97-Pro - but I don't actually know if it would have any advantages, especially since I'm not planning on overclocking.

And finally I also am curious about the differences between i5-4570 and i5-4590, especially at full load. i5-4570 might be cheaper, and taking less power is a plus.

beejay
Apr 7, 2002

Locke Dunnegan posted:

EDIT: I can't find any benchmarks for that graphics card. Also, it is out of stock on Newegg.

Maybe try an R9 270, one of the XFX ones listed here is $149 after rebate: http://pcpartpicker.com/parts/video-card/#c=154

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/radeon-r9-270-review-benchmarks,3669.html

beejay fucked around with this message at 03:07 on Jun 19, 2014

Lafarg
Jul 23, 2012

The H97 motherboard may be a bit superfluous. Unless you plan on doing any overclocking or adding a second video card. Probably go with a non-overclocking board listed in the OP.

Adbot
ADBOT LOVES YOU

beejay
Apr 7, 2002

H97 is the non-overclocking board in the OP.

  • Locked thread