Also would I have an issue with my copy of Win7 if I did end up just getting the new mobo/CPU? Couldn't I just say hey my mobo burned out and I needed to buy a new one, same computer still?
If by "issue" you mean not conforming to the EULA then yes, you'd have an issue. Microsoft considers changing the motherboard to be the creation of a new system/computer and you'd need a new license. They make exception if you replaced the motherboard with the same model motherboard in which case you may re-activate if you needed to.
If by "issue" you mean will it work/activate then no you probably wouldn't have an issue: you could probably get around activation/validation.
I want to get a blu-dray drive for my new build, but all the comments on newegg about either not having any software to play it, OR the software that comes with them being the devil incarnate, makes me a bit wary.
Any advice/suggestions on getting good software to play blu-ray?
Also would I have an issue with my copy of Win7 if I did end up just getting the new mobo/CPU? Couldn't I just say hey my mobo burned out and I needed to buy a new one, same computer still?
If by "issue" you mean not conforming to the EULA then yes, you'd have an issue. Microsoft considers changing the motherboard to be the creation of a new system/computer and you'd need a new license. They make exception if you replaced the motherboard with the same model motherboard in which case you may re-activate if you needed to.
If by "issue" you mean will it work/activate then no you probably wouldn't have an issue: you could probably get around activation/validation.
even if your key doesn't work I've actually called microsoft before and they gave me a new key after saying I had to replace my motherboard for my computer no hassle. I gave them the key on my disk and they gave me a new activation for it.
I want to get a blu-dray drive for my new build, but all the comments on newegg about either not having any software to play it, OR the software that comes with them being the devil incarnate, makes me a bit wary.
Any advice/suggestions on getting good software to play blu-ray?
PowerDVD 10 seems to be the only good option for PC Blu.
Question: Once I build a new comp, can I just drop in My Documents into it for my old PC and be ok? You know games saves and configs are in there mostly I think.
I want to get a blu-dray drive for my new build, but all the comments on newegg about either not having any software to play it, OR the software that comes with them being the devil incarnate, makes me a bit wary.
Any advice/suggestions on getting good software to play blu-ray?
PowerDVD 10 seems to be the only good option for PC Blu.
Question: Once I build a new comp, can I just drop in My Documents into it for my old PC and be ok? You know games saves and configs are in there mostly I think.
Tentatively, yes. Sometimes there are issues with ownership, but it's just a matter of taking ownership of those files, which adds a bit of a pain in the rear to the whole process, but it's still doable.
Two quick questions regarding my build.
First, got the HD 5770 today (gotta love Newegg's fast shipping) and I'm loving the framerate on RIFT now. It's like playing a whole new game. However, it seems to run a lot hotter than my 9800 GT, even under the same loads. A few hours of Civ 5 tonight and the case was burning up.
I looked at the monitor for the system and realized that the auto fan speed was limiting itself at 50%. I tried raising it to 75% or so and noticed a marked decrease in temperature.
My question is, is there any harm in letting the fan run at 70-80% speeds as long as the computer is on? I've never had to tinker with fanspeed before, and I don't want to end up wearing out the bearings or fan motor any time soon. Should I only bring up the speed when I'm gaming, or is it safe to just let it spin all the time? The noise doesn't bother me, and I live in a small apartment so even a few extra degrees from the tower heats the room quickly.
Second quick question, sorta related, is would it be worth it to downgrade my monitor for performance reasons? I bought a 23 inch 1920x1080 monitor a while ago to use for HD gaming and movies, but I no longer own any consoles and with my budget for upgrades being tight, the extra strain on my system isn't really worth it. My girlfriend has a build very similar to mine, except her monitor is considerably smaller, and pretty much every game she plays runs better on her machine. Would it be worth it to downgrade? Would I see a difference in framerate even going down to, say, 1600x1200? or would I need to go smaller?
Well, if your monitor is 23" that means you've got a pretty high dot pitch (or is it low...big pixels, is what I'm saying), so downgrading in resolution would probably mean downgrading in size.
At which point...why downgrade? You can simply select the lower resolution, tell your monitor and video card not to scale it up, and have the smaller picture on your current monitor. I can't imagine the "black bars" bothering you enough to throw away that desktop real estate in less-demanding game or other desktop apps.
I did this for a while on a couple games, until I finally decided that fuck it, I didn't even mind it upscaled from 720p to 1080p (native resolution be damned).
No, you were right the first time. The OEM license is tied to the motherboard. It's not transferable to a new motherboard. You could transfer the license and motherboard to another user, but you may not transfer just the OEM license itself.
However, per Microsoft's byzantine licensing agreements, if you bought an OEM licensed copy of Windows and used it on a system you built yourself, then you were already in violation of the OEM EULA, unless you did so before microsoft amended the OEM EULA (sometime in 2009 I think). They revised the OEM EULA so that those who buy OEM licensed copies of Windows and use it on their own machines are running unlicensed software.
Basically, if you want to build your own machine Microsoft wants you to buy the retail product, as OEM product is reserved for resellers.
Oh, well damn, I guess I'll have to either get retail or "sell" my next build to someone.
Edit- And how many motherboards can I install a retail copy to? Just the one or as many as I want?
You can deactivate the retail copy and move it between computers, that's basically the difference between it and the OEM version.
Honestly, the most cost-effective solution is to buy a Home Premium upgrade 3 pack. Just install it once as a clean install (you can try to see if your key will let you do only this step, sometimes it works). Then just install it again as an upgrade installation and put your upgrade key in. You get a clean windows 7 home premium install for around 120-150 bucks, and 2 more copies for future builds/other 'puters, and as long as you own a version of Windows Vista or XP, you're not breaking the Terms of Use/EULA, as you are permitted to upgrade from those installations, even if they aren't present on your computer at the time. The "double install" method exists (and is Microsoft recommended for XP upgrades) for such situations.
I had a lot of problems doing this when my laptop HD died on me, but there are ways to basically wipe the authentication key from the system entirely. The system will believe you have no key, throws a fit (and says this OS may have been pirated) and then you can authenticate normally with an upgrade version (of 7). As long as you're paying for it, I don't think there are any big problems with getting around the byzantine authentication process. It does require some cmd line commands and experimentation but its doable.
I want to upgrade for some games coming out this year, but also it has been having trouble on games already released. SC2 will run slower in the highest setting in large battles, TF2 even runs slow with maxed graphics, what should I consider upgrading that wouldn't cost a lot? Basically, what would give me the most bang for buck?
Only one (major) problem.... what motherboard should I get? I want it to be SLI-able, 6GB to take advantage of the SSD, Case is ATX/mini-ATX, 1155 CPU. I blatantly stole the HyperAquaBlast's build as a base but the motherboard he ordered is out and newegg's pickings are slim.
Any recommendations? And any problems with the above?
Ah so the motherboard shortage is due to a recall. Hmmm maybe I should step back from the Sandy Bridge CPU then? What would be the best CPU for ~$250?
ed
Talking out loud, I guess according to Tom's Hardware the difference between the Core i7-2600(K) and Core i5-2500K is fairly negligible so I'll save myself a 50 bucks there. But that still leaves me with the motherboard problem
Only one (major) problem.... what motherboard should I get? I want it to be SLI-able, 6GB to take advantage of the SSD, Case is ATX/mini-ATX, 1155 CPU. I blatantly stole the HyperAquaBlast's build as a base but the motherboard he ordered is out and newegg's pickings are slim.
Any recommendations? And any problems with the above?
The SSD is only 3gb/s so sata 6gb/s won't make a difference. Though it seems ALL the socket 1155 ones have that so no problems there.
The 2600K is only $15 more right now, but it won't make a difference if you don't overclock it.
Also make sure you have enough SATA cables. None of your drives come with one.
Unless you're planning on playing bluray movies, you can skip getting a bluray drive.
So guys I ordered a new PC the other day and it should be here anytime soon. I'm planning on writing a little how to guide to build a PC if anyone is interested.
I want to get a blu-dray drive for my new build, but all the comments on newegg about either not having any software to play it, OR the software that comes with them being the devil incarnate, makes me a bit wary.
Any advice/suggestions on getting good software to play blu-ray?
PowerDVD 10 seems to be the only good option for PC Blu.
Question: Once I build a new comp, can I just drop in My Documents into it for my old PC and be ok? You know games saves and configs are in there mostly I think.
Tentatively, yes. Sometimes there are issues with ownership, but it's just a matter of taking ownership of those files, which adds a bit of a pain in the rear to the whole process, but it's still doable.
Yeah I ask cause when I did a upgrade from Vista to 7 I had issues of profiles not being usable or I couldn't delete some files that were brought over in the Old Windows Vista folder. And that was on a virtually same machine.
I'm a fan. 2 of the 3 cards I've owned have been EVGA. My new 460 fits well, runs well and I think one model of EVGAs 460 line is hands down the best performing in the series. It's named something like 460 1gb EE FTW. That may or may not be it.
Ah, that's what I was afraid of. Monitors are confusing. Probably I'm going to have to just go to a Fry's or Best Buy and take a look at this stuff in person...
What are the most vital specs to look at when buying a monitor for gaming?
Fast response times are pretty necessary for a good gameplay experience. Seeing the monitor is useful for testing the actual response time (the reported response times are often useless). Good color / contrast is always a plus, but again, the reported contrast ratios are almost useless without seeing it in person.
I just got last night at Fry's after buying and returning a Samsung LED (BX2431) and an LG LED (M2380D).
Probably the FASTEST LCD monitor I've ever seen. Very small amount of ghosting with black text on white backgrounds, otherwise almost none of the smearing that is typical with all LCDs. Also has great, even color for an LED LCD (the Sammy and the LG had horribly overblown blues and purples, both with a lot of color overbleed). Not the smallest or lightest monitor available (power supply is built in, while most LED LCDs have an external power brick), but I buy monitors to look at them, not carry them around :P
LED LCDs make life so much nicer when I'm doing my design work. After using it for a while I'm starting to notice little halos around a lot of text and images on my laptop or secondary LCD monitor that the LED just doesn't have.
I looked up a lot of things when I was picking up a monitor and all the stats really do mean something, just maybe some of those things don't apply to you. But for the type of work I do a fair number of them where actually important, even things you might not think about like if you can adjust the height.
Tom's Hardware says a pair of reference 460s in SLI slightly outperforms a single reference 480.
So I'm guessing a single 580 is probably a little bit better than the 460s. If it were me, I'd get a pair of 560 Tis, oh wait, that is what I'm going to do...
Well I'd probably get the single 580 and sell my 460 to say my boyfriend for a fair 100-130 bucks, for the power savings and to make sure it actually fits. But what would I get a bigger jump in game performance from, going from a 460 that I've only had for a few months to a 580, or upgrading my 3 year old mobo/CPU/RAM combo to a kick ass Sandy Bridge setup?
They're pretty equivalent, with the 460s beating out the 580 in some cases, and the 580 beating out the 460s in others.
Yeah I looked at the stats and figured it out, as you can see my previous post explains why I'd rather go for a single 580 than dual 460s. Now Is the new question that I asked a the end of my above post.
I'm definitely going to check out as many as I can in local stores. My budget for a monitor is actually a little up in the air right now - once I finalize my computer order and check to see exactly how much disposable income I have left I figure I'll spend as much as I can on one. Honestly, for now I would be perfectly happy with a 20in 1600x900 screen, but I'm just thinking that when I upgrade my comp a few years down the line I'd be nice not to have to get a new monitor to take advantage of it.
Also, a dumb question but one that has been bugging me: If I have a monitor that has a native resolution of 1920x1080, will I have image quality problems when playing a game at a lower resolution like 1600x900?
Telex on
0
Options
CarbonFireSee youin the countryRegistered Userregular
I'm definitely going to check out as many as I can in local stores. My budget for a monitor is actually a little up in the air right now - once I finalize my computer order and check to see exactly how much disposable income I have left I figure I'll spend as much as I can on one. Honestly, for now I would be perfectly happy with a 20in 1600x900 screen, but I'm just thinking that when I upgrade my comp a few years down the line I'd be nice not to have to get a new monitor to take advantage of it.
Also, a dumb question but one that has been bugging me: If I have a monitor that has a native resolution of 1920x1080, will I have image quality problems when playing a game at a lower resolution like 1600x900?
Not really a dumb question, its an important distinction, especially for people who play games.
Only buy as much monitor as your graphics card is able to reasonably support. If your graphics card can't support the games you want to play at 1080p, get a smaller monitor. Downscaling to a lower resolution will create a muddy, lower quality image. If the extra screen real estate for non-gaming activities is worth it for having your games look like crap, then go for a bigger monitor. Otherwise, look for the screen size (resolution) based on your graphics card and the games you want to play.
Now some monitors (like the one I posted above) will display the proper pixel-accurate resolution for a game running at a lower resolution, with a black border around the game window. This may be preferable for some rather than settling for a smaller display.
Well, if your monitor is 23" that means you've got a pretty high dot pitch (or is it low...big pixels, is what I'm saying), so downgrading in resolution would probably mean downgrading in size.
At which point...why downgrade? You can simply select the lower resolution, tell your monitor and video card not to scale it up, and have the smaller picture on your current monitor. I can't imagine the "black bars" bothering you enough to throw away that desktop real estate in less-demanding game or other desktop apps.
I did this for a while on a couple games, until I finally decided that fuck it, I didn't even mind it upscaled from 720p to 1080p (native resolution be damned).
I don't think I've ever seen a game that will let me downgrade the resolution, and play fullscreen with black bars rather than stretching to fit the window, which just makes everything look like poop.
Also, I don't really use my desktop resolution for much. Sometimes it's useful when writing papers to be able to have 2 documents open at once, but it's not a crucial part of the experience for me.
Fast response times are pretty necessary for a good gameplay experience. Seeing the monitor is useful for testing the actual response time (the reported response times are often useless). Good color / contrast is always a plus, but again, the reported contrast ratios are almost useless without seeing it in person.
I just got last night at Fry's after buying and returning a Samsung LED (BX2431) and an LG LED (M2380D).
Asus VH238H 23" 1920x1080 LED LCD
Speak of the devil! That's my monitor, and I can vouch for it being pretty damn awesome. My only complaint would be the slightly flimsy base, which will make it wiggle a bit if the desk does. Otherwise, I've been happy with it for ages and would heartily recommend it to anyone else, assuming they have the system to support gaming and watching videos at those resolutions. Probably my only complaint would be that it's a pain finding wallpaper for it, haha.
I'm definitely going to check out as many as I can in local stores. My budget for a monitor is actually a little up in the air right now - once I finalize my computer order and check to see exactly how much disposable income I have left I figure I'll spend as much as I can on one. Honestly, for now I would be perfectly happy with a 20in 1600x900 screen, but I'm just thinking that when I upgrade my comp a few years down the line I'd be nice not to have to get a new monitor to take advantage of it.
Also, a dumb question but one that has been bugging me: If I have a monitor that has a native resolution of 1920x1080, will I have image quality problems when playing a game at a lower resolution like 1600x900?
Not really a dumb question, its an important distinction, especially for people who play games.
Only buy as much monitor as your graphics card is able to reasonably support. If your graphics card can't support the games you want to play at 1080p, get a smaller monitor. Downscaling to a lower resolution will create a muddy, lower quality image. If the extra screen real estate for non-gaming activities is worth it for having your games look like crap, then go for a bigger monitor. Otherwise, look for the screen size (resolution) based on your graphics card and the games you want to play.
Now some monitors (like the one I posted above) will display the proper pixel-accurate resolution for a game running at a lower resolution, with a black border around the game window. This may be preferable for some rather than settling for a smaller display.
Found a P8P67 Pro on NCIX.com finally. Overpaid a bit but it was the last component I needed for my build. Should make the newegg order tonight and get everything once PAXEast is over
Well, if your monitor is 23" that means you've got a pretty high dot pitch (or is it low...big pixels, is what I'm saying), so downgrading in resolution would probably mean downgrading in size.
At which point...why downgrade? You can simply select the lower resolution, tell your monitor and video card not to scale it up, and have the smaller picture on your current monitor. I can't imagine the "black bars" bothering you enough to throw away that desktop real estate in less-demanding game or other desktop apps.
I did this for a while on a couple games, until I finally decided that fuck it, I didn't even mind it upscaled from 720p to 1080p (native resolution be damned).
I don't think I've ever seen a game that will let me downgrade the resolution, and play fullscreen with black bars rather than stretching to fit the window, which just makes everything look like poop.
It's not the game that would do it. The game has no idea what the hell is showing up on your screen, it sets the resolution (say to 1600x900 instead of 1920x1080) and goes on its merry way.
How those 1600x900 pixels are presented on your monitor is determined by your video card and/or monitor. In general it's possible to have it presented at a 1-to-1 pixel ratio (with black bars around the image), you just have to find the proper setting (on both the monitor and video driver software). Once you get it set up properly on the monitor and video driver software, it should work properly for every game.
EDIT: On my monitor in particular, it's kinda stupid...it will automatically upscale to full screen for any standard TV resolution (480p, 720p, and then 1080p is native), but for any other resolution it will present 1-to-1 unless you tell it to. So I can play a game at 1600x900 at 1-to-1 with black bars, but bump down to 720p and the monitor wants to upscale it. Silly.
I keep wanting to build a Sandy Bridge rig but I look at my subtotal and back to my OC'd E7200 and honestly, that CPU is chugging along fine for the medium-ish gaming I do. I'll wait for Ivy Bridge at a minimum.
However, My GPU (HD4850 512MB) is sluggish at times on my 1920x1200 monitor, but I've been looking at this non-reference 6850 and will probably get it so I don't have to think about upgrading for awhile. I'm partial to this specific non-reference cooler since the Techreport review on the 6870 version w/the same cooler have shown it to be very quiet and reasonably cool - the favorable reviews on Newegg further reinforce my anticipation that it carries over into other 6xx0 versions as well.
I want to upgrade for some games coming out this year, but also it has been having trouble on games already released. SC2 will run slower in the highest setting in large battles, TF2 even runs slow with maxed graphics, what should I consider upgrading that wouldn't cost a lot? Basically, what would give me the most bang for buck?
My CPU is OCed to about 3.8 I think.
Given the OC'd CPU, the only question I have is what resolution you're using - I imagine it's 1080p.
From a distance your only real choice for upgrading is the GPU and you'd have to spend at least $250 for a direct upgrade (HD 6950/GTX 560) that constitutes a significant improvement from a single HD4890 1GB. A cheaper option is to find a used HD 4890 and crossfire it up - that 750W PSU should have the overhead to maintain CF'd HD4890s and would cost about half that.
Edit: Example of used HD4890s for sale, go ahead and haggle another 10% if you're a bad enough dude
Hmm so my computer should be running things pretty decently then?
The HD 4890 is a fine GPU, that's just the most upgradable part of your rig today. If you can get by without maximum settings for 6-9 months you can see what the Radeon 7000-series (2nd-half 2011) and/or GeForce 600-series (ETA unknown) has to offer when they debut.
I'm a fan. 2 of the 3 cards I've owned have been EVGA. My new 460 fits well, runs well and I think one model of EVGAs 460 line is hands down the best performing in the series. It's named something like 460 1gb EE FTW. That may or may not be it.
I also like EVGA as a vendor too. My last build used an EVGA 8800GT, and my encounters with their support was good. They don't offer quite as airtight warranties as they used to, but you can still get cards from them with really good coverage. I didn't go with them for my current build because the difference between buying from them or Gigabyte came down to something like $130, due to a ridiculous sale price I got on a pair of GTX 460s.
Dehumanized on
0
Options
The_SpaniardIt's never lupinesIrvine, CaliforniaRegistered Userregular
edited March 2011
Damn, I keep getting such mixed suggestions. Some people are telling me to go Sandy Bridge, others are telling me to go GTX 580. This 3D mark report of each upgrade path shows the 580 getting a much higher score than the Sandy, but this review of the Sandy shows amazing frame increases over my current CPU.
Current Stats:
Operating System: Windows 7 Professional 64-bit (6.1, Build 7600) (7600.win7_gdr.101026-1503)
System Model: NFORCE 680i LT SLI
BIOS: Phoenix - AwardBIOS v6.00PG Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Quad CPU Q6600 @ 2.40GHz (4 CPUs), ~2.4GHz
Memory: 4096MB RAM
DirectX Version: DirectX 11
Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460
Power Supply: BFG 650w
Drives: Primary 1TB, Slave 300GB
Anything else you'd upgrade first or instead?
Found your problem! Overclocking your CPU is far and away the best bang/$ you can do right now.
Quality coolers:
120mm - Cooler Master Hyper 212: Stalwart standby, very cost-efficient for what it does
92mm - Scythe SCSMZ-2000: Should fit on 98% of motherboards, space-efficient as well as respectable upgrade to cooling
ITX - Scythe SCSK-1100: should fit on 100% of motherboards, but less potent than other choices
Edit: less smugness
Zoelef on
0
Options
The_SpaniardIt's never lupinesIrvine, CaliforniaRegistered Userregular
Current Stats:
Operating System: Windows 7 Professional 64-bit (6.1, Build 7600) (7600.win7_gdr.101026-1503)
System Model: NFORCE 680i LT SLI
BIOS: Phoenix - AwardBIOS v6.00PG Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Quad CPU Q6600 @ 2.40GHz (4 CPUs), ~2.4GHz
Memory: 4096MB RAM
DirectX Version: DirectX 11
Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460
Power Supply: BFG 650w
Drives: Primary 1TB, Slave 300GB
Anything else you'd upgrade first or instead?
Found your problem! Overclocking your CPU is far and away the best bang/$ you can do right now.
Quality coolers:
120mm - Cooler Master Hyper 212: Stalwart standby, very cost-efficient for what it does
92mm - Scythe SCSMZ-2000: Should fit on 98% of motherboards, space-efficient as well as respectable upgrade to cooling
ITX - Scythe SCSK-1100: should fit on 100% of motherboards, but less potent than other choices
Edit: less smugness
My case has 2x240mm case fans (one is a bit stuck at the moment though) and a third fan in the back for a wind tunnel effect. This is what is on my current CPU http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835106102 So what kind of CPU overclocking do I want to do, how much and how do I do it?
Then after I do that, any more comments on if I want the 580 or the Sandy?
Current Stats:
Operating System: Windows 7 Professional 64-bit (6.1, Build 7600) (7600.win7_gdr.101026-1503)
System Model: NFORCE 680i LT SLI
BIOS: Phoenix - AwardBIOS v6.00PG Processor: Intel(R) Core(TM)2 Quad CPU Q6600 @ 2.40GHz (4 CPUs), ~2.4GHz
Memory: 4096MB RAM
DirectX Version: DirectX 11
Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 460
Power Supply: BFG 650w
Drives: Primary 1TB, Slave 300GB
Anything else you'd upgrade first or instead?
Found your problem! Overclocking your CPU is far and away the best bang/$ you can do right now.
Quality coolers:
120mm - Cooler Master Hyper 212: Stalwart standby, very cost-efficient for what it does
92mm - Scythe SCSMZ-2000: Should fit on 98% of motherboards, space-efficient as well as respectable upgrade to cooling
ITX - Scythe SCSK-1100: should fit on 100% of motherboards, but less potent than other choices
Edit: less smugness
My case has 2x240mm case fans (one is a bit stuck at the moment though) and a third fan in the back for a wind tunnel effect. This is what is on my current CPU http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835106102 So what kind of CPU overclocking do I want to do, how much and how do I do it?
Then after I do that, any more comments on if I want the 580 or the Sandy?
Regarding Sandy Bridge - you'll need not only the new CPU but a new mother board as it uses a 1155 socket and that's a new one. There's a pretty severe shortage of those right now, it took me a couple hours to find a good one today. There was a recall and supply hasn't caught back up yet.
The_SpaniardIt's never lupinesIrvine, CaliforniaRegistered Userregular
edited March 2011
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kf_hSIpa0A This look good for my Q6600? Should I just follow that step by step or is it a bit too much? I want to play it safe for my first CPU OC, and not reach for the stars. So I really don't know if that video displays a safe OC or a risky one. If you guys say if I'd be good following that step by step, I'll start there.
Posts
If by "issue" you mean not conforming to the EULA then yes, you'd have an issue. Microsoft considers changing the motherboard to be the creation of a new system/computer and you'd need a new license. They make exception if you replaced the motherboard with the same model motherboard in which case you may re-activate if you needed to.
If by "issue" you mean will it work/activate then no you probably wouldn't have an issue: you could probably get around activation/validation.
Any advice/suggestions on getting good software to play blu-ray?
even if your key doesn't work I've actually called microsoft before and they gave me a new key after saying I had to replace my motherboard for my computer no hassle. I gave them the key on my disk and they gave me a new activation for it.
PowerDVD 10 seems to be the only good option for PC Blu.
Question: Once I build a new comp, can I just drop in My Documents into it for my old PC and be ok? You know games saves and configs are in there mostly I think.
Tentatively, yes. Sometimes there are issues with ownership, but it's just a matter of taking ownership of those files, which adds a bit of a pain in the rear to the whole process, but it's still doable.
Well, if your monitor is 23" that means you've got a pretty high dot pitch (or is it low...big pixels, is what I'm saying), so downgrading in resolution would probably mean downgrading in size.
At which point...why downgrade? You can simply select the lower resolution, tell your monitor and video card not to scale it up, and have the smaller picture on your current monitor. I can't imagine the "black bars" bothering you enough to throw away that desktop real estate in less-demanding game or other desktop apps.
I did this for a while on a couple games, until I finally decided that fuck it, I didn't even mind it upscaled from 720p to 1080p (native resolution be damned).
QEDMF xbl: PantsB G+
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703009
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819103471
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136319
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231219
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813128387
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814161276
I want to upgrade for some games coming out this year, but also it has been having trouble on games already released. SC2 will run slower in the highest setting in large battles, TF2 even runs slow with maxed graphics, what should I consider upgrading that wouldn't cost a lot? Basically, what would give me the most bang for buck?
My CPU is OCed to about 3.8 I think.
A new mobo/RAM should cost around $150-200 depending on how much you want to spend.
Can anyone recommend a motherboard for me? I think this is my build
Antec Nine Hundred Two V3 Black Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case
Hard Drive Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 ST31500341AS 1.5TB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
SSD OCZ Vertex 2 OCZSSD2-2VTXE60G 2.5" 60GB SATA II MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
Graphics Card MSI N560GTX-TI Twin Frozr II/OC GeForce GTX 560 Ti (Fermi) 1GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
Power CORSAIR CMPSU-750TX 750W ATX12V / EPS12V SLI Ready CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Compatible with Core i7 Power Supply
Media - SAMSUNG Black Blu-ray Drive SATA Model SH-B123L LightScribe Support - OEM
Cooling - ZALMAN CNPS9700 LED 110mm 2 Ball CPU Cooler (might cut this out, I don't really OC)
OS Windows 7 Home Premium OEM
CPU Intel Core i7-2600 Sandy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 1155 95W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80623I72600 - Yes a bit overboard perhaps but I doubt I'll regret it
Only one (major) problem.... what motherboard should I get? I want it to be SLI-able, 6GB to take advantage of the SSD, Case is ATX/mini-ATX, 1155 CPU. I blatantly stole the HyperAquaBlast's build as a base but the motherboard he ordered is out and newegg's pickings are slim.
Any recommendations? And any problems with the above?
ed
Oops left out
G.SKILL Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666)
QEDMF xbl: PantsB G+
ed
Talking out loud, I guess according to Tom's Hardware the difference between the Core i7-2600(K) and Core i5-2500K is fairly negligible so I'll save myself a 50 bucks there. But that still leaves me with the motherboard problem
QEDMF xbl: PantsB G+
The SSD is only 3gb/s so sata 6gb/s won't make a difference. Though it seems ALL the socket 1155 ones have that so no problems there.
The 2600K is only $15 more right now, but it won't make a difference if you don't overclock it.
Also make sure you have enough SATA cables. None of your drives come with one.
Unless you're planning on playing bluray movies, you can skip getting a bluray drive.
Yeah I ask cause when I did a upgrade from Vista to 7 I had issues of profiles not being usable or I couldn't delete some files that were brought over in the Old Windows Vista folder. And that was on a virtually same machine.
I'm a fan. 2 of the 3 cards I've owned have been EVGA. My new 460 fits well, runs well and I think one model of EVGAs 460 line is hands down the best performing in the series. It's named something like 460 1gb EE FTW. That may or may not be it.
I just got last night at Fry's after buying and returning a Samsung LED (BX2431) and an LG LED (M2380D).
Asus VH238H 23" 1920x1080 LED LCD
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16824236117&Tpk=vh238h
http://www.frys.com/search?search_type=regular&sqxts=1&query_string=vh238h&submit.x=0&submit.y=0&cat=0
HDMI, DVI, VGA, Audio out, Speakers (which suck, ignore them)
Probably the FASTEST LCD monitor I've ever seen. Very small amount of ghosting with black text on white backgrounds, otherwise almost none of the smearing that is typical with all LCDs. Also has great, even color for an LED LCD (the Sammy and the LG had horribly overblown blues and purples, both with a lot of color overbleed). Not the smallest or lightest monitor available (power supply is built in, while most LED LCDs have an external power brick), but I buy monitors to look at them, not carry them around :P
I looked up a lot of things when I was picking up a monitor and all the stats really do mean something, just maybe some of those things don't apply to you. But for the type of work I do a fair number of them where actually important, even things you might not think about like if you can adjust the height.
I'm definitely going to check out as many as I can in local stores. My budget for a monitor is actually a little up in the air right now - once I finalize my computer order and check to see exactly how much disposable income I have left I figure I'll spend as much as I can on one. Honestly, for now I would be perfectly happy with a 20in 1600x900 screen, but I'm just thinking that when I upgrade my comp a few years down the line I'd be nice not to have to get a new monitor to take advantage of it.
Also, a dumb question but one that has been bugging me: If I have a monitor that has a native resolution of 1920x1080, will I have image quality problems when playing a game at a lower resolution like 1600x900?
Not really a dumb question, its an important distinction, especially for people who play games.
Only buy as much monitor as your graphics card is able to reasonably support. If your graphics card can't support the games you want to play at 1080p, get a smaller monitor. Downscaling to a lower resolution will create a muddy, lower quality image. If the extra screen real estate for non-gaming activities is worth it for having your games look like crap, then go for a bigger monitor. Otherwise, look for the screen size (resolution) based on your graphics card and the games you want to play.
Now some monitors (like the one I posted above) will display the proper pixel-accurate resolution for a game running at a lower resolution, with a black border around the game window. This may be preferable for some rather than settling for a smaller display.
I don't think I've ever seen a game that will let me downgrade the resolution, and play fullscreen with black bars rather than stretching to fit the window, which just makes everything look like poop.
Also, I don't really use my desktop resolution for much. Sometimes it's useful when writing papers to be able to have 2 documents open at once, but it's not a crucial part of the experience for me.
Speak of the devil! That's my monitor, and I can vouch for it being pretty damn awesome. My only complaint would be the slightly flimsy base, which will make it wiggle a bit if the desk does. Otherwise, I've been happy with it for ages and would heartily recommend it to anyone else, assuming they have the system to support gaming and watching videos at those resolutions. Probably my only complaint would be that it's a pain finding wallpaper for it, haha.
Steam | XBL: Elazual | Last.fm
Just the info I needed, thank you very much
QEDMF xbl: PantsB G+
It's not the game that would do it. The game has no idea what the hell is showing up on your screen, it sets the resolution (say to 1600x900 instead of 1920x1080) and goes on its merry way.
How those 1600x900 pixels are presented on your monitor is determined by your video card and/or monitor. In general it's possible to have it presented at a 1-to-1 pixel ratio (with black bars around the image), you just have to find the proper setting (on both the monitor and video driver software). Once you get it set up properly on the monitor and video driver software, it should work properly for every game.
EDIT: On my monitor in particular, it's kinda stupid...it will automatically upscale to full screen for any standard TV resolution (480p, 720p, and then 1080p is native), but for any other resolution it will present 1-to-1 unless you tell it to. So I can play a game at 1600x900 at 1-to-1 with black bars, but bump down to 720p and the monitor wants to upscale it. Silly.
However, My GPU (HD4850 512MB) is sluggish at times on my 1920x1200 monitor, but I've been looking at this non-reference 6850 and will probably get it so I don't have to think about upgrading for awhile. I'm partial to this specific non-reference cooler since the Techreport review on the 6870 version w/the same cooler have shown it to be very quiet and reasonably cool - the favorable reviews on Newegg further reinforce my anticipation that it carries over into other 6xx0 versions as well.
Would that be better than just plain upgrading to 8gigs of RAM?
Given the OC'd CPU, the only question I have is what resolution you're using - I imagine it's 1080p.
From a distance your only real choice for upgrading is the GPU and you'd have to spend at least $250 for a direct upgrade (HD 6950/GTX 560) that constitutes a significant improvement from a single HD4890 1GB. A cheaper option is to find a used HD 4890 and crossfire it up - that 750W PSU should have the overhead to maintain CF'd HD4890s and would cost about half that.
Edit: Example of used HD4890s for sale, go ahead and haggle another 10% if you're a bad enough dude
The HD 4890 is a fine GPU, that's just the most upgradable part of your rig today. If you can get by without maximum settings for 6-9 months you can see what the Radeon 7000-series (2nd-half 2011) and/or GeForce 600-series (ETA unknown) has to offer when they debut.
I also like EVGA as a vendor too. My last build used an EVGA 8800GT, and my encounters with their support was good. They don't offer quite as airtight warranties as they used to, but you can still get cards from them with really good coverage. I didn't go with them for my current build because the difference between buying from them or Gigabyte came down to something like $130, due to a ridiculous sale price I got on a pair of GTX 460s.
http://3dmark.com/compare/3dm11/318528/3dm11/451364
http://www.anandtech.com/show/4083/the-sandy-bridge-review-intel-core-i7-2600k-i5-2500k-core-i3-2100-tested/20
Look at the Core 2 Quad Q6600 vs the i7-2600k.
Crap how do I decide?
Found your problem! Overclocking your CPU is far and away the best bang/$ you can do right now.
Quality coolers:
120mm - Cooler Master Hyper 212: Stalwart standby, very cost-efficient for what it does
92mm - Scythe SCSMZ-2000: Should fit on 98% of motherboards, space-efficient as well as respectable upgrade to cooling
ITX - Scythe SCSK-1100: should fit on 100% of motherboards, but less potent than other choices
Edit: less smugness
Then after I do that, any more comments on if I want the 580 or the Sandy?
QEDMF xbl: PantsB G+