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[Computer Build Thread] - Bemoan the passing of the old thread, but celebrate the new!

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    DehumanizedDehumanized Registered User regular
    Alecthar wrote: »
    GnomeTank wrote: »
    @Durinia: Naja?

    I can't remember Naja Bo's forum name, but I know he works at Cray.
    So everyone is pretty much in agreement to go with a 1155 with a i7-3770?

    Well, 1155. The specific processor will be pretty dependent on your needs. Usually wouldn't recommend going with an i7-3770K over the venerable i5-3570K unless you know you are doing very specific CPU-intensive tasks like encoding lots of video. The difference between the two is hyperthreading, a tiny bump in clock speed, and 2MB of cache... but there's honestly not a lot out there that will truly bottleneck against the 3570K, especially with a decent overclock.

    Hell, there's not a lot of things out there that will bottleneck an i3-2130, but there are no K-model i3s.

    I would kill for an overclockable i3. That would be awesome.

    Yeah, that would be amazing. Intel probably figures that from the crowd who are interested in overclocking, few will give up on the idea on account of the $70 or so gap between an i5-3570K and a theoretical i3-2130K. :)

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    AlectharAlecthar Alan Shore We're not territorial about that sort of thing, are we?Registered User regular
    So everyone is pretty much in agreement to go with a 1155 with a i7-3770?

    Well, 1155. The specific processor will be pretty dependent on your needs. Usually wouldn't recommend going with an i7-3770K over the venerable i5-3570K unless you know you are doing very specific CPU-intensive tasks like encoding lots of video. The difference between the two is hyperthreading, a tiny bump in clock speed, and 2MB of cache... but there's honestly not a lot out there that will truly bottleneck against the 3570K, especially with a decent overclock.

    Hell, there's not a lot of things out there that will bottleneck an i3-2130, but there are no K-model i3s.

    I would kill for an overclockable i3. That would be awesome.

    Yeah, that would be amazing. Intel probably figures that from the crowd who are interested in overclocking, few will give up on the idea on account of the $70 or so gap between an i5-3570K and a theoretical i3-2130K. :)
    [/quote]

    True, but it's only been 2 generations since you could buy an i3-550 or an i5-650 and OC it till it screamed, and I'd love to be able to see something like that again.

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    TheCanManTheCanMan GT: Gasman122009 JerseyRegistered User regular
    Esh wrote: »
    So everyone is pretty much in agreement to go with a 1155 with a i7-3770?

    It's a good processor. I have one in my rig, but I had money to burn. I think an i5 is probably better bang for the buck though.

    Since you specifically mentioned video encoding it really depends on how much encoding you'll be doing and how tight your budget is. You'll be in the small minority where the i7 actually makes sense, but probably not if it means something like your GPU takes an unreasonable hit due to budgetary reasons.

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    CheerfulGeekCheerfulGeek Registered User regular
    Another question which possibly could save me money.. On my current computer I used a Windows Vista to Windows 7 upgrade. Would I be able to use my Windows Vista serial number again for my Windows 7 OS if I installed it on my new computer or should I just buy a new OEM copy of Windows 7? I've read that the OEM copies of Windows 7 don't transfer, but was wondering if the upgraded serials do.

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    AlectharAlecthar Alan Shore We're not territorial about that sort of thing, are we?Registered User regular
    edited August 2012
    Another question which possibly could save me money.. On my current computer I used a Windows Vista to Windows 7 upgrade. Would I be able to use my Windows Vista serial number again for my Windows 7 OS if I installed it on my new computer or should I just buy a new OEM copy of Windows 7? I've read that the OEM copies of Windows 7 don't transfer, but was wondering if the upgraded serials do.

    Just do a clean install using your upgrade copy of Windows 7. As long as you're not using the Vista license that you're "upgrading" from, you're within the EULA.

    Alecthar on
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    Bendery It Like BeckhamBendery It Like Beckham Hopeless Registered User regular
    Does anyone have any opinions on the sabertooth tuf series from asus?

    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131821

    Only reason I am interested is the 5 year warranty, but I'm not sure if that's worth the extra $100 over this lovely little lady

    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131837

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    GnomeTankGnomeTank What the what? Portland, OregonRegistered User regular
    edited August 2012
    How rough are you on laptops? When I was married, my wife was so destructive to laptops, I would have paid 100 bucks for that warranty in a heart beat.

    I wouldn't now, because I am very careful and easy with my equipment. You just need to gauge how likely it is that you'll use it.

    GnomeTank on
    Sagroth wrote: »
    Oh c'mon FyreWulff, no one's gonna pay to visit Uranus.
    Steam: Brainling, XBL / PSN: GnomeTank, NintendoID: Brainling, FF14: Zillius Rosh SFV: Brainling
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    cardboard delusionscardboard delusions USAgent PSN: USAgent31Registered User regular
    Newegg has 240GB OCZ Agility 3 2.5" SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (AGT3-25SAT3-240G) + $20 Newegg Promotional Gift Card for $149.99 - $10 rebate = $139.99 with free shipping

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    Apothe0sisApothe0sis Have you ever questioned the nature of your reality? Registered User regular
    So, my new power supply arrived!

    A picture of my workstation at the moment

    Thanks @Alecthar

    You can see the fanless 460W power supply, 2 x DVD drives which I need because of reasons, and a little tube of arctic silver because I'm pretty sure I didn't put any in when I first built my NAS and it seems to be idling at around 70C which sounds a little high.

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    DuriniaDurinia Evolved from Space Potatoes Registered User regular
    Not sure if anyone else has seen this, but Tech Report has a VERY interesting article up on rethinking how we measure performance on GPUs, given average FPS is largely over the perception limit.

    http://techreport.com/articles.x/21516

    Among their findings: Looking for spiky behavior is interesting, and Multi-GPU (SLI/CXF) jitter is real.

    For business reasons, I must preserve the outward sign of sanity.
    --Mark Twain
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    GaslightGaslight Registered User regular
    There are compelling arguments that the "perception limit" for frame rate is mythical or impossible to quantify.

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    DuriniaDurinia Evolved from Space Potatoes Registered User regular
    Gaslight wrote: »
    There are compelling arguments that the "perception limit" for frame rate is mythical or impossible to quantify.

    This is true. That said, the analysis he does (which isn't by any means perfect, but is interesting) gives some insights into what other metrics might be interesting beyond just average FPS, regardless of how good that is.

    For business reasons, I must preserve the outward sign of sanity.
    --Mark Twain
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    Donovan PuppyfuckerDonovan Puppyfucker A dagger in the dark is worth a thousand swords in the morningRegistered User regular
    Gaslight wrote: »
    There are compelling arguments that the "perception limit" for frame rate is mythical or impossible to quantify.

    Supposedly the human eye can't really tell the difference over about 60 fps, but having experienced a game as graphically simple as Minecraft at 20 fps, 60 fps, and 320 fps, I can subjectively observe that the difference between the two higher numbers may not have been 'measurable' with the naked eye, but movement within the game certainly seemed 'smoother'.

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    MisterMMisterM UKRegistered User regular
    edited August 2012
    If I have an extra £50 to spend on my new build, would that be better spent on going from a 6850 to a 7850 or by including a small (60gb) SSD in my build.

    This is with an i5-2400 and I have a 22" monitor @ 1920x1080.

    MisterM on
    SCII-EU: MisterM.868 // LoL-EU-West: MisterM868 // Diablo3: MisterM#2476
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    GaslightGaslight Registered User regular
    Go with the video card upgrade. A 60GB SSD is too small to be useful IMO. I have a 120GB I got back in May and I badly wish I had held out for 240-256GB, since the prices have come down to be about the same now. 60GB will barely hold Windows and a few programs.

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    minirhyderminirhyder BerlinRegistered User regular
    Agree, go for the graphics update, however I strongly encourage you to spend the extra $90 on a 128GB SSD. You will not regret it so hard.

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    MisterMMisterM UKRegistered User regular
    I think I'll get a 7850 and then get an SSD next month once I get paid again. If I install Windows on a 128-256gb partition I can always clone it onto the SSD, m i rite?

    SCII-EU: MisterM.868 // LoL-EU-West: MisterM868 // Diablo3: MisterM#2476
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    AlectharAlecthar Alan Shore We're not territorial about that sort of thing, are we?Registered User regular
    MisterM wrote: »
    I think I'll get a 7850 and then get an SSD next month once I get paid again. If I install Windows on a 128-256gb partition I can always clone it onto the SSD, m i rite?

    No. Even if the image is cloned correctly your Windows install will not be optimized for use on an SSD. TRIM will be disabled, Defragmentation will be enabled, along with a number of other performance tweaks that Windows 7 does automatically upon installation on an SSD. Most of these can be changed by the user, but it can be time-consuming and tricky. You also won't have the opportunity to place your full Users folders on another drive, a valuable convenience that helps you keep as much space empty in your SSD as possible.

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    MisterMMisterM UKRegistered User regular
    Oh. Balls. I don't mind doing a reinstall in a month.

    SCII-EU: MisterM.868 // LoL-EU-West: MisterM868 // Diablo3: MisterM#2476
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    Forbe!Forbe! Registered User regular
    So, I'm posting this from my new rig. I'm having a bit of trouble getting my hard drives to get recognized in windows. They show up in the BIOS, but when I try to boot windows with both drives connected it stalls (compared to the instant boot I get off the SSD)

    bv2ylq8pac8s.png
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    CokebotleCokebotle 穴掘りの 電車内Registered User regular
    Hey, so I've got a question for you guys.

    I finally bought parts and am assembling my computer. I'm plugging stuff in, and wanted to ask about my CoolerMaster RC 371 case with its built-in front panel and my Gigabyte Z77-UDH3 mobo. So I plug in bits for the power and reset switches, the HDD light, and the audio (HD audio plug, not AC '97). For the 1 USB3 port that it has, I plugged it into the mobo's USB 3.0 plug, but for the 1 USB 2.0, the plug is different. On the mobo, the plug is 2 rows of 9 plugs (the left-most one doesn't have a plug, just an empty space) whereas the case's plug is 1 row of 4 plugs (with a space for the 5th, but no plug there). It looks like it will fit fine into the top half of the mobo plug.

    Would it be fine to connect the USB 2.0 plug I have into the top half of the plug without the bottom half, or not? Or should I just get the Gigabyte optional front plug to be safe with everything? Thanks for the help!

    工事中
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    ArtreusArtreus I'm a wizard And that looks fucked upRegistered User regular
    Hey, one of my friends wants to play Guild Wars 2 but can I run it or one of those websites is telling her that her graphics card is somewhat lacking.

    Turns out she has a Geforce 9100. I looked it up and asked more about it. apparently she has an hp p6310y desktop. Google is telling me that that is an integrated graphics card.

    So her solution here would be to get an actual graphics card, right? It looks like the motherboard would support one. It just looks like the other issue she is going to run into is power. That thing also looks to have a 300 watt power supply.

    So, are there any affordably priced graphics cards that are going to fall under those power requirements and still run that game? Or is she going to have to swap out the power supply and spend more on a card to get any performance re: video games

    http://atlanticus.tumblr.com/ PSN: Atlanticus 3DS: 1590-4692-3954 Steam: Artreus
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    AlectharAlecthar Alan Shore We're not territorial about that sort of thing, are we?Registered User regular
    Cokebotle wrote: »
    Hey, so I've got a question for you guys.

    I finally bought parts and am assembling my computer. I'm plugging stuff in, and wanted to ask about my CoolerMaster RC 371 case with its built-in front panel and my Gigabyte Z77-UDH3 mobo. So I plug in bits for the power and reset switches, the HDD light, and the audio (HD audio plug, not AC '97). For the 1 USB3 port that it has, I plugged it into the mobo's USB 3.0 plug, but for the 1 USB 2.0, the plug is different. On the mobo, the plug is 2 rows of 9 plugs (the left-most one doesn't have a plug, just an empty space) whereas the case's plug is 1 row of 4 plugs (with a space for the 5th, but no plug there). It looks like it will fit fine into the top half of the mobo plug.

    Would it be fine to connect the USB 2.0 plug I have into the top half of the plug without the bottom half, or not? Or should I just get the Gigabyte optional front plug to be safe with everything? Thanks for the help!

    Plug it into the top row of pins, it'll be fine.
    Artreus wrote: »
    Hey, one of my friends wants to play Guild Wars 2 but can I run it or one of those websites is telling her that her graphics card is somewhat lacking.

    Turns out she has a Geforce 9100. I looked it up and asked more about it. apparently she has an hp p6310y desktop. Google is telling me that that is an integrated graphics card.

    So her solution here would be to get an actual graphics card, right? It looks like the motherboard would support one. It just looks like the other issue she is going to run into is power. That thing also looks to have a 300 watt power supply.

    So, are there any affordably priced graphics cards that are going to fall under those power requirements and still run that game? Or is she going to have to swap out the power supply and spend more on a card to get any performance re: video games

    Radeon 7750. If possible, get one of the higher clocked versions (880 or 900 Mhz) for best performance. It's basically the best video card that doesn't demand PCI-E power leads.
    Forbe! wrote: »
    So, I'm posting this from my new rig. I'm having a bit of trouble getting my hard drives to get recognized in windows. They show up in the BIOS, but when I try to boot windows with both drives connected it stalls (compared to the instant boot I get off the SSD)

    So the PC boots with just the SSD, but not with both the SSD and the HDD connected?

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    Donovan PuppyfuckerDonovan Puppyfucker A dagger in the dark is worth a thousand swords in the morningRegistered User regular
    Alecthar wrote: »
    Radeon 7750. If possible, get one of the higher clocked versions (880 or 900 Mhz) for best performance. It's basically the best video card that doesn't demand PCI-E power leads.

    Dang, single slot thickness, too. Listen to this man, @Artreus.

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    CokebotleCokebotle 穴掘りの 電車内Registered User regular
    Alecthar wrote: »
    Cokebotle wrote: »
    Hey, so I've got a question for you guys.

    I finally bought parts and am assembling my computer. I'm plugging stuff in, and wanted to ask about my CoolerMaster RC 371 case with its built-in front panel and my Gigabyte Z77-UDH3 mobo. So I plug in bits for the power and reset switches, the HDD light, and the audio (HD audio plug, not AC '97). For the 1 USB3 port that it has, I plugged it into the mobo's USB 3.0 plug, but for the 1 USB 2.0, the plug is different. On the mobo, the plug is 2 rows of 9 plugs (the left-most one doesn't have a plug, just an empty space) whereas the case's plug is 1 row of 4 plugs (with a space for the 5th, but no plug there). It looks like it will fit fine into the top half of the mobo plug.

    Would it be fine to connect the USB 2.0 plug I have into the top half of the plug without the bottom half, or not? Or should I just get the Gigabyte optional front plug to be safe with everything? Thanks for the help!

    Plug it into the top row of pins, it'll be fine.

    Good to know, just wanted to make sure. Thanks!

    工事中
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    ArtreusArtreus I'm a wizard And that looks fucked upRegistered User regular
    Thanks a bunch for the recommendation!

    Is the PCI express 3.0 x16 going to work?

    I am bad at hardware, so I'm not sure if the 3.0 is on the card side or the motherboard side

    http://atlanticus.tumblr.com/ PSN: Atlanticus 3DS: 1590-4692-3954 Steam: Artreus
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    Donovan PuppyfuckerDonovan Puppyfucker A dagger in the dark is worth a thousand swords in the morningRegistered User regular
    Artreus wrote: »
    Thanks a bunch for the recommendation!

    Is the PCI express 3.0 x16 going to work?

    I am bad at hardware, so I'm not sure if the 3.0 is on the card side or the motherboard side

    Yep. PCI Express standards are backwards compatible. The card complies to the 3.0 standard, but can talk to the 1.0 slot no worries. It's just that with the newer standards, the amount of data the slot can handle is much greater. If you were to put a really powerful card like a GTX690 in a 1.0 slot, you would 'throttle' the cards performance, because whilst it is capable of computing a staggering amount of data, the slot can only supply a portion of that to the card.

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    Forbe!Forbe! Registered User regular
    Alecthar wrote: »
    Forbe! wrote: »
    So, I'm posting this from my new rig. I'm having a bit of trouble getting my hard drives to get recognized in windows. They show up in the BIOS, but when I try to boot windows with both drives connected it stalls (compared to the instant boot I get off the SSD)

    So the PC boots with just the SSD, but not with both the SSD and the HDD connected?

    Well, my 1TB HDD from my last computer is recognized, and I can pull it up and access all the files just fine. However, the other HDD I purchased new is not allowing me to initialize in the disk management menu. It will show up in the BIOS, and I've gotten it to the point where the computer will get to windows with all 3 drives connected, I just cant get it to work.

    bv2ylq8pac8s.png
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    ArtreusArtreus I'm a wizard And that looks fucked upRegistered User regular
    Thanks for the help

    http://atlanticus.tumblr.com/ PSN: Atlanticus 3DS: 1590-4692-3954 Steam: Artreus
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    Lucky CynicLucky Cynic Registered User regular
    So guys, should I upgrade my current PC or just go ahead and build a new one? I have a Core 2 Quad Q9550 Intel Processor, 5gigs of DDR2 Corsair ram (240 pin, I think...), and a 280GTX from back in the day. I was thinking what if took out the hard drive and put in an SSD, changed out the ram with 8 gigs of something stupid fast, and got a 6600 GTI...

    Or would my CPU be a pretty bad bottle neck and should I just look at getting an entirely new PC while cannibalizing a few choice bits? Also, how long do PSU's last? I've had this particular PSU since 2008 and it is med-high end Antec...

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    tsmvengytsmvengy Registered User regular
    So guys, should I upgrade my current PC or just go ahead and build a new one? I have a Core 2 Quad Q9550 Intel Processor, 5gigs of DDR2 Corsair ram (240 pin, I think...), and a 280GTX from back in the day. I was thinking what if took out the hard drive and put in an SSD, changed out the ram with 8 gigs of something stupid fast, and got a 6600 GTI...

    Or would my CPU be a pretty bad bottle neck and should I just look at getting an entirely new PC while cannibalizing a few choice bits? Also, how long do PSU's last? I've had this particular PSU since 2008 and it is med-high end Antec...

    Upgrade the GPU (at minimum a 560ti, more if you are comfortable with the budget) and see how you feel about the performance. If you aren't impressed then upgrade the CPU/mobo/RAM. I would not recommend getting more DDR2, it will be more expensive than DDR3 and is a dead end when you decide to upgrade your CPU, which will probably be soonish.

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    emp123emp123 Registered User regular
    Is there anything wrong with the Agility 3 SSDs? Amazon has a 180GB one for $99.99 and my sister would like a SSD. If it matters, its going in a brand new Macbook Pro.

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    EternalMeshEternalMesh Registered User regular
    edited August 2012
    Damn double posts. lol

    EternalMesh on
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    EternalMeshEternalMesh Registered User regular
    edited August 2012
    Do you guys recommend multiple video cards? like one for gaming and one for professional use like VFX and animation? Just a thought.

    EternalMesh on
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    MisterMMisterM UKRegistered User regular
    Quick question, can a 6450 run minecraft half-decently? I'd be happy with a smooth 30fps.

    I'm building a really cheap PC for the inlaws and the man of the house is obsessed with MC and often stays round their house.

    This will be with a AMD X4 2.6GHz if that makes much difference.

    SCII-EU: MisterM.868 // LoL-EU-West: MisterM868 // Diablo3: MisterM#2476
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    EternalMeshEternalMesh Registered User regular
    edited August 2012
    Hey guys. I'm new to the whole building computers scene. I grew up on PC, switched to mac for college (designs and stuff) now I'd like to build my own gaming rig/workstation. I'm a 3D animator (nothing too intensive) so I'm sure a high end gaming PC would work fine for that. Beat of a processor, lots of RAM, good brutal graphics card. Cause sometimes those scenes ya animate are just so damn dense. Not to mention BEAUTIFUL GAAAAMES!!!

    Me and my friend were looking over stuff, he says AMD is the way to go but I keep hearing Intel.
    My budget is like 1-2,000. I'd prefer closer to 1,000 if possible but I'm willing to wiggle if necessary. I want a beast that'll last me a while and play some sexy games. I've already got a mouse, keyboard, and monitor.

    I thought I'd post here and get some feedback.

    newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103960

    newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131754

    newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231460

    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202001

    newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119234

    newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148337

    newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106369

    EternalMesh on
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    emp123emp123 Registered User regular
    Hey guys. I'm new to the whole building computers scene. I grew up on PC, switched to mac for college (designs and stuff) now I'd like to build my own gaming rig/workstation. I'm a 3D animator (nothing too intensive) so I'm sure a high end gaming PC would work fine for that. Beat of a processor, lots of RAM, good brutal graphics card. Cause sometimes those scenes ya animate are just so damn dense. Not to mention BEAUTIFUL GAAAAMES!!!

    Me and my friend were looking over stuff, he says AMD is the way to go but I keep hearing Intel.
    My budget is like 1-2,000. I'd prefer closer to 1,000 if possible but I'm willing to wiggle if necessary. I want a beast that'll last me a while and play some sexy games.

    I thought I'd post here and get some feedback.

    newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103960

    newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131754

    newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231460

    http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202001

    newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119234

    newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822148337

    newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827106369

    Intel performs better than AMD in almost every situation nowadays. I believe AMD has a better CPU/GPU integration if you were going for a HTPC, but if youre not looking to do that Intel is the way to go.

    I dont know how much rendering you do but if you do a lot of it you may benefit from the hyperthreading available on the i7 chips.

    CPU:
    If you do a lot of rendering:
    Do you have any interest in overclocking?

    If yes then i7 3770k
    If no then i7 3770

    If you dont do a lot of rendering, or you just want to save money:
    Do you have any interest in overclocking?
    if yes i5 3570k
    if no i5 3570

    Video Card:
    I dont know what resolution you game at, so the 7970 may be beneficial to you, however, if you game at around 1920x1080, this GTX 670 will do you just fine and save you about $85.

    Motherboard:
    Asus P8Z77-V

    RAM:
    Corsair 8GB DDR3 1600

    Case:
    Do you need a full tower?
    If no and you want to keep the same look then something like the HAF 922 or the HAF XM. If you wanted to change looks you could go with something like the Corsair 600T or the Fractal Design R4. Really, there are a lot of options in this field, these are just some of the more popular cases. Basically I was looking for a case with solid cable management options and a lower price.

    PSU:
    SLI Setup:
    Seasonic X-850
    Corsair AX850

    Single Card Setup:
    I'll let someone else talk about this, I think the Antec Neo 520w is pretty good but admittedly PSUs are my weakest spot.

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    CaptainBeyondCaptainBeyond I've been out walking Registered User regular
    Guys, some years ago SOMEONE (I think it was Atlus, but I'm not sure) released a dual graphics card. That is, a card with two identical chipsets on one card. The whole thing was gold. Its not that MSI thing. Any ideas?

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    EternalMeshEternalMesh Registered User regular
    emp123 you are a saint. I felt like I was drowning in components and reviews. Anyone else is welcome to weigh in :D

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    EternalMeshEternalMesh Registered User regular
    edited August 2012
    Is a full tower necessary? It would be nice for it to be smaller, but I don't want to sacrifice hardware space if you think that'll be an issue. I'm flexible on just about everything. Also, since I'm new at this I don't know how to overclock. Why wouldnt you want to? Does it make things unstable or is it just a question of cooling?

    EternalMesh on
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