137 replies to this topic

[Fyrwulf]

Catamount, on 16 January 2012 - 12:43 PM, said:

I'm curious, are you limited to the AGP bus or something?

Yes, actually. My Alienware is eight years old, so my choices are limited to that. As for my budget, I'm taking it from my tax returns and I expect to have the ability (although I wouldn't necessarily want) to spend upwards of $1200 dollars. Outright buying a new computer isn't an option, though, because of space constraints; I have nowhere to put my Alienware except the attic, and that's just outright impossible.

[Thorqemada]

Fyrwulf, on 16 January 2012 - 02:36 PM, said:

Yes, actually. My Alienware is eight years old, so my choices are limited to that. As for my budget, I'm taking it from my tax returns and I expect to have the ability (although I wouldn't necessarily want) to spend upwards of $1200 dollars. Outright buying a new computer isn't an option, though, because of space constraints; I have nowhere to put my Alienware except the attic, and that's just outright impossible.

Oh sorry, i thought it was a joke.

You wont like what you get - sell your Alienware, or gift it away and get yourself a new one as $1200 be enough to get a much better machine that fits into any size restrictions!

[Fyrwulf]

Thorqemada, on 16 January 2012 - 03:52 PM, said:

You wont like what you get - sell your Alienware, or gift it away and get yourself a new one as $1200 be enough to get a much better machine that fits into any size restrictions!

Why would this be necessary? CryEngine 3 supports DX9 and if I were inclined to I could upgrade to Windows 7 since I plan on buying an FX-60 and 4 gigs of RAM.

I do eventually plan on building a new computer, but I don't have the $3400 it's going to take.to build the kind of machine I want.

[Thorqemada]

Bcs you wont play a game that has around 2 to 5 fps.

http://www.overclock...or_hd3450/7.htm

[Fyrwulf]

Thorqemada, on 16 January 2012 - 04:40 PM, said:

Bcs you wont play a game that has around 2 to 5 fps.

http://www.overclock...or_hd3450/7.htm

And I found an HD4670 from HIS that will do a far better job. Plus, the guy was running Vista, of all abominations.

[Catamount]

Gremlich Johns, on 16 January 2012 - 02:31 PM, said:

I use a single overclocked EVGA GTX460 (nvidia) with the Arctic Cooling accelero extreme plus cooler. The thing idles at 25 deg C and 42 at loads. I am very happy with the card for now.

I currently have 8 GB system RAM, but I do graphics work (photography) (and perhaps some video in the future). When I bump up to an AMD 4100 FX 3.6 Black (AM3+) with an AM3+ mobo, I'll install the 16 GB RAM I purchased from newegg on sale for $80.

You're one of those rare people for whom 16GB actually makes sense, which is nice to see (that much RAM not going to a purely gaming machine).

It really is surprisingly easy to choke up huge amounts of RAM with photo editing, I know.

[Catamount]

Fyrwulf, on 16 January 2012 - 04:21 PM, said:

Why would this be necessary? CryEngine 3 supports DX9 and if I were inclined to I could upgrade to Windows 7 since I plan on buying an FX-60 and 4 gigs of RAM.

I do eventually plan on building a new computer, but I don't have the $3400 it's going to take.to build the kind of machine I want.

Do you mean the Athlon64 chip? I'll be honest. Games aren't exactly CPU-intensive these days, but I have serious doubts about the ability of a Socket-939 chip, any skt939 chip, to run MWO, even without knowing the system requirements. Even if you had that thing running at 4ghz on liquid, I'd have serious doubts abut an FX-60.

CPU lag isn't something that's easy to fix, either. If your GPU isn't up to the task of running a game at a given detail level, you can turn the graphical settings down.

If your CPU isn't running a game smoothly, your options are:

A.) Accept bad performance

B.) Don't play the game


I just don't see the wisdom if trying to upgrade a Socket 939 rig.


If we're just talking about a gaming machine here, with $1200, you could not only build the fastest rig that would even be practical for a single-monitor setup, but even if you had some extraordinary requirement for which $3500 made sense, you could likely half-build the system. You could knock out the CPU easily enough, and get the fastest chip that's practical right now, with more power than you'd need, or even more power than would even make sense at the moment, and still have enough left over for a decently high-end GPU setup.

If, later on, you really want to go overboard and toss four 7970s in with their own 1200W PSU, and get 6 monitors, and an $800 sound setup, and a personal robot to fetch coffee for you, then you can just upgrade the new rig with the additional $2000 or so


That is, unless you had some really extraordinary requirement for which a fast consumer CPU wasn't good enough.

Edited by Catamount, 16 January 2012 - 06:31 PM.

[Vulpesveritas]

Fyrwulf, on 16 January 2012 - 04:21 PM, said:

Why would this be necessary? CryEngine 3 supports DX9 and if I were inclined to I could upgrade to Windows 7 since I plan on buying an FX-60 and 4 gigs of RAM.

I do eventually plan on building a new computer, but I don't have the $3400 it's going to take.to build the kind of machine I want.

http://www.newegg.co...N82E16811235027
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16812119384 x2
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16813157281
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16817171057
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16819103961
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16820231461
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16822136769
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16827118040
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16835426020
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16835426030
________________________________________________________
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16814131394
= $1200. Which is a rather awesome setup.
Alternatively, if you don't have a monitor;
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16824236174
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16814161396
(replacing video card.)

I would suggest getting that system instead, upgrading what parts necessary.
(or if you're an Intel person and don't want an AMD CPU;)
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16819115073
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16813157253

And if you strongly prefer Nvidea over AMD/ATI and are willing to get something which is -slightly- slower than the factory OC'd AMD card above;
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16814130593


And if you don't have a monitor and for some reason you want a Nvidea card despite it being slower frame per second wise, creates more heat, and uses more power; http://www.newegg.co...N82E16814130652



Thoughts. Oh and it's an FX-8120.

Also, for a quick something that should play MWO at medium-high settings at 720p:
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16834158196
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16834131183
http://www.newegg.co...N82E16834157877

Edited by Vulpesveritas, 16 January 2012 - 06:52 PM.

[Catamount]

Besides, Fyrwulf, who can resist the temptation of having a new, shiny PC to stare at


You know you want to...

[Fyrwulf]

That's... Actually a rather solid starting point. It's certainly smarter than doing what I planned on doing. I'm certainly going to shop around to save some money, because I rather have an NZXT Phantom case and at the very least a VGA to DVI converter is going to be necessary for my present monitor.

[Vulpesveritas]

Sent PM. Anyhow I would also suggest investing in an LED monitor and an 80+ platinum PSU, as between the two you'll be saving a considerable bit on your power bill over time compared to what you likely currently have. Also, lower heat output, and likely longer lifespan for the parts.

[Catamount]

Frywulf, it would help to give an idea of what kind of finished product you're looking for too.

Vulpes posted a good build from what I could see with my cursory glance (lot of driving today, little forum time ), which is no surprise, but knowing the specifics could help tailor that further. For instance, if you're going to pile video cards in there, investing in a full tower case might be advisable (and while that PSU is overkill for most PCs, WHO KNOWS what you're planning on doing with that budget ).

[Vulpesveritas]

There's always this at 550watts, $160 http://www.newegg.co...N82E16817121080

[Morashtak]

Not voting just yet - from the responses given in various threads it looks like it's a toss up in the price range I'm thinking about right now but could change later.

Have liked how Nvidia gets the driver updates out early and often but that won't be the deal maker if AMD has their drivers up to speed in the next 4-5 months. Will be keeping on eye on announcements in the next 2-3 months. Will be making a final decision after March.

[Vulpesveritas]

well it depends in the price range for your GPU. Sub-$300 AMD is faster. $500+ AMD is faster. Tossup at $300-400. $400-500 Nvidea has a slight lead on single cards, but if Crossfire/SLI are taken into account it is a tossup as well, better fps w/ dual Radeon HD 6870s, lower power consumption with an OC 570. the 580 is out of the question now that the Radeon HD 7970 is out, $50 more and faster in every respect.

[Fyrwulf]

Catamount, on 16 January 2012 - 08:42 PM, said:

Frywulf, it would help to give an idea of what kind of finished product you're looking for too.

Vulpes posted a good build from what I could see with my cursory glance (lot of driving today, little forum time ), which is no surprise, but knowing the specifics could help tailor that further. For instance, if you're going to pile video cards in there, investing in a full tower case might be advisable (and while that PSU is overkill for most PCs, WHO KNOWS what you're planning on doing with that budget ).

My build is looking to be the following:

NZXT Phantom Black
Rosewill Capstone 650w
ASRock Extreme3 Mobo
AMD FX-8120 (cooled by NZXT Havik 140 w/ Arctic Silver 5 TIM)
Sapphire Radeon HD6870
G.SKILL Sniper RAM (2x4gb)
WD Raptor 72GB (already have, so no cost)
WD Caviar Blue 500GB

plus any incidentals like SATA cables. Comes out to under $950 after shopping around on Google.

[Vulpesveritas]

Dude don't get AS5. there are much better TIMs out there now, most people use it due to it being popular. I personally like GELID GC-Extreme. it's in the top 5 most thermally conductive non-corrosive TIMs, however it also lasts longer before you need to reapply it compared to other TIMs. And it's the same cost as AS5.

[Vincent Vascaul]

Frywurf, you are better off getting a 5870 than a 6870 the 5870 actualy beches better or just save a little more and grab the 6950 they will be at the $200 price mark soon enough. Also AMD all the way, I keep trying to like Nvidia but I just dont seem tp get along with their cards (nothing against 'em though)

[Catamount]

Thermal performance for thermal compound is really not relevant. The difference between even the best and the worst is a matter of 2-3C at load (unless you botch the application).

In fact, I read a review once, not too long ago, where they compared different brands of thermal paste to common household substances, like peanut butter and mayonaise and toothpaste, and they worked about as well as the most expensive thermal paste out there (though you still wouldn't want to use them, because they wouldn't last very long ).


The moral of the story is that when it comes to thermal paste, the biggest difference is in ease of use. AS5 isn't terrible hard to apply, but it's not the easiest either, and it's conductive, which means there's a risk, a small one, but an unnecessary one, that you'll break something with the stuff.

Frankly, I'd just stick with stock thermal compound that comes with your CPU or whatever heat sink you buy, that is, unless 2-3C actually matters, and it might if you're doing ridiculous overclocking (and have a VERY stable room temperature).

[Vulpesveritas]

or your OCD about cooling like myself and want a non-electrically conductive TIM which lasts 4-6 years min before reapplication is needed i.e. It will last easily until I build my next PC.