[Computer Build Thread] - Did you remember to plug in the CPU power cable?

Stilts

Day of the Bear wrote: »

Stilts are you looking to crossfire later? If not you can easily drop down to a lower wattage PSU for that system, it's gonna sip watts.

Yes, I am, actually.

I figure I can wait a year, buy a second 6850 to Crossfire, and that'll keep me up to speed fairly well.

Or with that much of a gap in between GPU purchases, would it just be better to buy a new single card?

Day of the Bear

Well given that most of the lower midrange cards don't tend to have explosive performance gaps like they used to, and there's no really huge new GPU tech in the pipeline, I think it's a very valid upgrade path.

I'll check some calcs when i'm off work but I suspect even in crossfire a pair of 6850s and an i3 2100 can get by on less power.

Stilts

Okay, cool, I'd appreciate that.

Day of the Bear

Also yeah I 100% concur with cases being worth the expense.

You could maybe snag a haf912 instead of that corsair, it's an easy case to build in with good thermals. I just don't like the looks, but it's really tough to beat at it's price point.

minor incident

Day of the Bear wrote: »

Well given that most of the lower midrange cards don't tend to have explosive performance gaps like they used to, and there's no really huge new GPU tech in the pipeline, I think it's a very valid upgrade path.

I'll check some calcs when i'm off work but I suspect even in crossfire a pair of 6850s and an i3 2100 can get by on less power.

I've run a very overclocked i5 with two 6950s on 650watts without a problem. I have almost no doubt you could still drop down a bit from there if you really wanted to.

Alecthar

I'm going to take the opposite tack from Day of the Bear here. 12 months from now will be over a year after the beginning of the most recent generation of cards from AMD, which means you could be looking at a new GPU release within months of that time (if it hasn't already started). So you'll have the problems of supply (unless you're willing to buy secondhand) and the fact that you'll be buying a 2 year old card. If you put away $20 a month for that year, you'll be able to purchase a card twice as expensive as the 6850 is today, and that could be some seriously impressive performance if, say, the 7950 has come down to what the 6950 is going for these days.

You'll save a not-negligible amount of money on the motherboard while you're at it, because there's no reason to buy a P67 board unless you have plans to upgrade to a K series proc.

Alecthar

minor incident wrote: »

Day of the Bear wrote: »

Well given that most of the lower midrange cards don't tend to have explosive performance gaps like they used to, and there's no really huge new GPU tech in the pipeline, I think it's a very valid upgrade path.

I'll check some calcs when i'm off work but I suspect even in crossfire a pair of 6850s and an i3 2100 can get by on less power.

I've run a very overclocked i5 with two 6950s on 650watts without a problem. I have almost no doubt you could still drop down a bit from there if you really wanted to.

I would call 650W for 2 6950s a good number. Not too high, not too low, but just right.

500W would almost certainly be enough for 2 6850s.

Stilts

Alecthar wrote: »

I'm going to take the opposite tack from Day of the Bear here. 12 months from now will be over a year after the beginning of the most recent generation of cards from AMD, which means you could be looking at a new GPU release within months of that time (if it hasn't already started). So you'll have the problems of supply (unless you're willing to buy secondhand) and the fact that you'll be buying a 2 year old card. If you put away $20 a month for that year, you'll be able to purchase a card twice as expensive as the 6850 is today, and that could be some seriously impressive performance if, say, the 7950 has come down to what the 6950 is going for these days.

You'll save a not-negligible amount of money on the motherboard while you're at it, because there's no reason to buy a P67 board unless you have plans to upgrade to a K series proc.

So if I ignore Crossfire and just go with a single card, what would the better motherboard choice be?

Day of the Bear

Yeah, that's what I'm thinking. A 2100 is a 65watt part, and part of that tdp covers the igpu that you'll never use on that motherboard.

I'm not sure what the tdp of a 6850 is but I really doubt it's even 200. So ballparking says it should be fine on a solid 500watt unless you wanna stack up the HDDs or something

Stilts

Day of the Bear wrote: »

Yeah, that's what I'm thinking. A 2100 is a 65watt part, and part of that tdp covers the igpu that you'll never use on that motherboard.

I'm not sure what the tdp of a 6850 is but I really doubt it's even 200. So ballparking says it should be fine on a solid 500watt unless you wanna stack up the HDDs or something

Would this Antec 550 be good for that, then?

Day of the Bear

Hmmm alecthar definitely has a good point about video cards.

I'd say planning for crossfire is a good idea if you don't mind getting a used card, while focusing on the single card is a great idea for adding more punch later without as much upfront cost.

Point for sticking with single cards, no need to worry about crossfire headaches, and if vram usage jumps like it very well might you can get a card with more memory a year from now.

Alecthar

Stilts wrote: »

Day of the Bear wrote: »

Yeah, that's what I'm thinking. A 2100 is a 65watt part, and part of that tdp covers the igpu that you'll never use on that motherboard.

I'm not sure what the tdp of a 6850 is but I really doubt it's even 200. So ballparking says it should be fine on a solid 500watt unless you wanna stack up the HDDs or something

Would this Antec 550 be good for that, then?

It's not bad, but it's not great either. I'd go with this Silverstone supply if modular is important to you, and this Antec supply if it isn't. Both should be fine for the loads you're looking at.

Alecthar

Stilts wrote: »

Alecthar wrote: »

I'm going to take the opposite tack from Day of the Bear here. 12 months from now will be over a year after the beginning of the most recent generation of cards from AMD, which means you could be looking at a new GPU release within months of that time (if it hasn't already started). So you'll have the problems of supply (unless you're willing to buy secondhand) and the fact that you'll be buying a 2 year old card. If you put away $20 a month for that year, you'll be able to purchase a card twice as expensive as the 6850 is today, and that could be some seriously impressive performance if, say, the 7950 has come down to what the 6950 is going for these days.

You'll save a not-negligible amount of money on the motherboard while you're at it, because there's no reason to buy a P67 board unless you have plans to upgrade to a K series proc.

So if I ignore Crossfire and just go with a single card, what would the better motherboard choice be?

I believe that both Day of the Bear and I agree that the ASUS P8H67 is a good buy.

Day of the Bear

Alecthar wrote: »

Stilts wrote: »

Alecthar wrote: »

I'm going to take the opposite tack from Day of the Bear here. 12 months from now will be over a year after the beginning of the most recent generation of cards from AMD, which means you could be looking at a new GPU release within months of that time (if it hasn't already started). So you'll have the problems of supply (unless you're willing to buy secondhand) and the fact that you'll be buying a 2 year old card. If you put away $20 a month for that year, you'll be able to purchase a card twice as expensive as the 6850 is today, and that could be some seriously impressive performance if, say, the 7950 has come down to what the 6950 is going for these days.

You'll save a not-negligible amount of money on the motherboard while you're at it, because there's no reason to buy a P67 board unless you have plans to upgrade to a K series proc.

So if I ignore Crossfire and just go with a single card, what would the better motherboard choice be?

I believe that both Day of the Bear and I agree that the ASUS P8H67 is a good buy.

yeah i'll second that board.

Pariel

@Stilts
The BP-550 isn't bad (it's what's powering my machine, actually), but there are better options out there for the money:
This OCZ is a great deal if you get the MIR (which is always a question). There's also this XFX supply, which also has a MIR. Still, even without the MIR it's probably worth the extra cash for the extra power.

Stilts

Alecthar wrote: »

Stilts wrote: »

Day of the Bear wrote: »

Yeah, that's what I'm thinking. A 2100 is a 65watt part, and part of that tdp covers the igpu that you'll never use on that motherboard.

I'm not sure what the tdp of a 6850 is but I really doubt it's even 200. So ballparking says it should be fine on a solid 500watt unless you wanna stack up the HDDs or something

Would this Antec 550 be good for that, then?

It's not bad, but it's not great either. I'd go with this Silverstone supply if modular is important to you, and this Antec supply if it isn't. Both should be fine for the loads you're looking at.

Yeah, I really want a modular PSU if at all possible, so I'll go with the Silverstone.

I also switched my case from the 500r to the 400r, since there didn't seem to be much benefit to going with the 500r (for my build, anyway). So with those changes you've suggested, I'm down to $811, which is...pretty great!

But Alecthar, you were saying I should switch to a cheaper mobo, since I wouldn't be taking advantage of the P67 with a single card. Any suggestions for what to switch to?

initiatefailure

I've never not gotten an MIR. Are there a lot of people who've had the opposite experience? Because I always hear about how hit or miss they are.

Stilts

Day of the Bear wrote: »

Alecthar wrote: »

Stilts wrote: »

Alecthar wrote: »

I'm going to take the opposite tack from Day of the Bear here. 12 months from now will be over a year after the beginning of the most recent generation of cards from AMD, which means you could be looking at a new GPU release within months of that time (if it hasn't already started). So you'll have the problems of supply (unless you're willing to buy secondhand) and the fact that you'll be buying a 2 year old card. If you put away $20 a month for that year, you'll be able to purchase a card twice as expensive as the 6850 is today, and that could be some seriously impressive performance if, say, the 7950 has come down to what the 6950 is going for these days.

You'll save a not-negligible amount of money on the motherboard while you're at it, because there's no reason to buy a P67 board unless you have plans to upgrade to a K series proc.

So if I ignore Crossfire and just go with a single card, what would the better motherboard choice be?

I believe that both Day of the Bear and I agree that the ASUS P8H67 is a good buy.

yeah i'll second that board.

There is some weird shit going on with this thread, 'cuz I did not see these posts until after I asked for the second time.

So, uh, my bad! And thanks for the suggestion.

emp123

initiatefailure wrote: »

I've never not gotten an MIR. Are there a lot of people who've had the opposite experience? Because I always hear about how hit or miss they are.

I do a lot of MIRs and Ive only had issues with one - I got it and a couple months later they canceled the check and then I never did anything about it because the company was based out of Taiwan and fuck it.

Day of the Bear

Stilts wrote: »

Day of the Bear wrote: »

Alecthar wrote: »

Stilts wrote: »

Alecthar wrote: »

I'm going to take the opposite tack from Day of the Bear here. 12 months from now will be over a year after the beginning of the most recent generation of cards from AMD, which means you could be looking at a new GPU release within months of that time (if it hasn't already started). So you'll have the problems of supply (unless you're willing to buy secondhand) and the fact that you'll be buying a 2 year old card. If you put away $20 a month for that year, you'll be able to purchase a card twice as expensive as the 6850 is today, and that could be some seriously impressive performance if, say, the 7950 has come down to what the 6950 is going for these days.

You'll save a not-negligible amount of money on the motherboard while you're at it, because there's no reason to buy a P67 board unless you have plans to upgrade to a K series proc.

So if I ignore Crossfire and just go with a single card, what would the better motherboard choice be?

I believe that both Day of the Bear and I agree that the ASUS P8H67 is a good buy.

yeah i'll second that board.

There is some weird shit going on with this thread, 'cuz I did not see these posts until after I asked for the second time.

So, uh, my bad! And thanks for the suggestion.

's all good, it happens.

tsmvengy

tsmvengy wrote:

Got my SSD in the mail. Should I do a fresh install of windows or can I pare down my hard drive partition to under 128 GB and transfer?

I got BOTP'd. Any advice?

Day of the Bear

I'd personally do a clean install if I were you.

It'll work if you cut down your install and clone it over, but it's a good excuse to start over fresh. Just pull what you need off the old drive after you've got the ssd up and running.

cardboard delusions

Anyone know why the Sapphire 7950 OC edition completely disappeared off Newegg? Was there an issue with it?

tsmvengy

Day of the Bear wrote: »

I'd personally do a clean install if I were you.

It'll work if you cut down your install and clone it over, but it's a good excuse to start over fresh. Just pull what you need off the old drive after you've got the ssd up and running.

Is there an easy way to copy my current users folder over to a new windows install?

Also, I'm not quite sure what I should and shouldn't be putting on the SSD. I know I should put my OS there, but should I be installing programs and steam and games to the SSD?

Veldrin

So it has been almost 4 years since I've had jump back into the PC market, but it looks like my current rig is finally giving up the ghost, so it's time for a fresh start.

I'm a little out of the loop with what's hot these days, but I think I've managed to sort out what I'm going for:

Intel Core i5 2500K
CoolerMaster Hyper 212 EVO CPU Cooler
Gigabyte Radeon HD6870 Overclocked Edition
G.Skill Ripjaws F3-12800CL9D-8GBRL 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3
ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 Motherboard
Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB WD1002FAEX
Corsair TX-650 V2 Power Supply
Corsair Carbide 400R Black Mid-Tower Case

Anyone have any changes they'd recommend?

minor incident

That PSU is overkill unless you plan to crossfire a second video card down the line. Otherwise, it sounds like a solid build. More or less my standard recommendation for a build in that price range.

Alecthar

XFX 650W over the Corsair version any day. Admittedly it's more expensive for essentially an identical supply (both PSUs are built on the same Seasonic platform) but the Corsair version is shorted 2 PCI-E power leads in a transparent, bullshit attempt to make you move up to the 750W model. Also, I'd consider just buying an SSD, given the prices HDDs are still going for these days. A 128GB Crucial M4 is one of the best options, and will run you about 40 bucks more (money you could find in your budget by going with the Cooler Master HAF 912, if necessary).

And personally, I'd eat the additional $10 and go with the Extreme4. It's a better board overall.

Alecthar

Whoops, this is probably the best deal around for a 650W supply, NZXT Hale82 650W. Partially modular, based on the same Seasonic platform as the Corsair and the XFX, and priced (particularly with the code) virtually the same.

minor incident

@Alecthar - the forums are bitchy about URLs now. They get mucked up if you don't include the http://

Alecthar

Thanks for the heads up, fixed.

Eat it You Nasty Pig.

Veldrin wrote: »

So it has been almost 4 years since I've had jump back into the PC market, but it looks like my current rig is finally giving up the ghost, so it's time for a fresh start.

I'm a little out of the loop with what's hot these days, but I think I've managed to sort out what I'm going for:

Intel Core i5 2500K
CoolerMaster Hyper 212 EVO CPU Cooler
Gigabyte Radeon HD6870 Overclocked Edition
G.Skill Ripjaws F3-12800CL9D-8GBRL 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3
ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 Motherboard
Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB WD1002FAEX
Corsair TX-650 V2 Power Supply
Corsair Carbide 400R Black Mid-Tower Case

Anyone have any changes they'd recommend?

I just built almost this exact thing; been super happy with it.

the only minor tweak I would make is maybe step up to a larger psu to give yourself headroom to overlock/crossfire bigger cards in the future or add an SSD

but the the other 650 already suggested would probably be fine

minirhyder

Veldrin wrote: »

So it has been almost 4 years since I've had jump back into the PC market, but it looks like my current rig is finally giving up the ghost, so it's time for a fresh start.

I'm a little out of the loop with what's hot these days, but I think I've managed to sort out what I'm going for:

Intel Core i5 2500K
CoolerMaster Hyper 212 EVO CPU Cooler
Gigabyte Radeon HD6870 Overclocked Edition
G.Skill Ripjaws F3-12800CL9D-8GBRL 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3
ASRock Z68 Extreme3 Gen3 Motherboard
Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB WD1002FAEX
Corsair TX-650 V2 Power Supply
Corsair Carbide 400R Black Mid-Tower Case

Anyone have any changes they'd recommend?

I've got the bolded stuff on my system and it runs pretty great so far.

Veldrin

Thanks for that guys. Swapped the board and the PSU as recommended, just in case I decide to crossfire later.

All paid for and on its way. Aw yis.

Gilbert0

Tax return time means new build time. I'm thinking of trying to go down to a small form factor PC because I just don't do enough gaming. Last 2 games I've done have been Portal 2 and before that the original Portal. My PC has become a movie watcher and a work machine.

Anyone have any opinions on the Alienware X51 ( review )? It's soooo close to what I think I want. Small case but decent hardware. Only 2 problems I see are no blu-ray player (yet) and no option for a second (SSD) hard drive.

Anyone else have anything like this? Or build something like this?

Shen

Looking to (finally) gradually pull the trigger on this build over the next couple of months:

http://www.scan.co.uk/savedbasket/88c89ebdccd64ba48ee4ef499703a5a3

620W Antec Neo Eco PSU
Coolermaster Hyper TX3 cooler
i5 2500k CPU
120GB OCZ Agility 3 SSD
Geforce GTX 570 GPU
8GB 1600mhz RAM
Corsair Carbide 300R Case
500GB Hitachi 7200rpm HD
Asus P8Z68-V Gen 3 Mobo


Any last suggestions/refinements?

Edit: Going to be used for gaming at 1920x1080.

Alecthar

I register no objections. 2 notes: Sandforce SSDs are not the most reliable available, and that PSU is insufficient for SLI'd 570s, if that's something you plan on.

Shen

How about the Crucial M4 128GB? Little steeper but I've heard good things about it.

Adding in an extra card down the line does seem like it'd be a good way to bolster flagging performance, as I'd like this computer to last 3-4 years. Would the PSU be able to handle two 6950s? £60 more for the ~10% performance the 570 has over a 6950 probably isn't worth it anyways.

Alecthar

Gilbert0 wrote: »

Tax return time means new build time. I'm thinking of trying to go down to a small form factor PC because I just don't do enough gaming. Last 2 games I've done have been Portal 2 and before that the original Portal. My PC has become a movie watcher and a work machine.

Anyone have any opinions on the Alienware X51 ( review )? It's soooo close to what I think I want. Small case but decent hardware. Only 2 problems I see are no blu-ray player (yet) and no option for a second (SSD) hard drive.

Anyone else have anything like this? Or build something like this?

The problem I see is that the highest tier model is the only one with the 555 GT, which is significantly more powerful than the 545 GT in the other models. Double the CUDA cores, nearly double the texture fill rate more powerful. The proc in that machine (i7-2600) and the price involved is pretty excessive though. If you could get an i3 model with a 555 GT I'd say go for it, but as it is...only you can decide if it's worth the price, but it wouldn't be to me.

In general, though, what constitutes "small enough"? Is there a case you've seen around that you think you could work with?

Pariel

The M4 is an excellent drive. I'm running two Agility 3s with no issues, given their performance it didn't seem worth it to me to grab a more expensive drive. Guess I'll find it if that was the case if they fail.

Alecthar

Shen wrote: »

How about the Crucial M4 128GB? Little steeper but I've heard good things about it.

Adding in an extra card down the line does seem like it'd be a good way to bolster flagging performance, as I'd like this computer to last 3-4 years. Would the PSU be able to handle two 6950s? £60 more for the ~10% performance the 570 has over a 6950 probably isn't worth it anyways.

I'd want 650W for 2 6950s. And make sure the PSU you do go with has 4 PCI-E power leads, you'll need all of them if you want to power 2 cards.

I really like the M4, it's very solid. Sandforce drives have gotten better, and aren't really at increased risk of total drive failure, but they have persistent BSOD issues. Firmware updates have resolved some of them, but unfortunately not all. Anandtech has mentioned some continuing issues, and my own Corsair Force GT still occasionally gives me trouble.