New PC?

New PC?

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oksnoop2
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Joined: 29 Aug 2009, 20:12

New PC?

Post by oksnoop2 »

http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/Publi ... r=20616948

My birthday is Nov. 2 and Christmas is shortly after that so I thinking about trying to cobble together a new PC. I've got a few old ATX cases, HDD's and maybe a power supply i could use. What do you think about the selection I've made? Also if anyone can recommend a case, hdd, and power supply that would be nice i guess.

Things I do with my PC.
Develop ct.
Make spring maps.
Type documents, chat, email, blah blah.
I also play tf2.
Some video editing.
I would probably use win7 and linux.

For once I would just like to not worry about graphics settings, slide all the sliders to the right and start playing.
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knorke
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Joined: 22 Feb 2006, 01:02

Re: New PC?

Post by knorke »

I think only 2 GB ram is not that much nowadays. So maybe more ram.
These threads always make me wonder, the graphic card almost has as much memory as i have for ram :shock: :regret:
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oksnoop2
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Joined: 29 Aug 2009, 20:12

Re: New PC?

Post by oksnoop2 »

It's 2 2gig sticks.
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smoth
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Re: New PC?

Post by smoth »

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Coresair
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Joined: 30 Dec 2009, 01:17

Re: New PC?

Post by Coresair »

If you can make the stretch, I would recommend getting a 1055T. The phenom II x4's are ok for the money, but pale compared to other available options. For 40 more dollars, the extra two cores will help you keep up with the intel offerings, and the 1055t can be overclocked a decent margin as well, despite the lack of a changeable multiplier. You could also go the other way and get near identical performance for 20$ less.

Your motherboard and ram choices look ok, but I think you can get better prices on ram if you buy a single 4GB kit. You dont need to worry about absurdly high speed ram past ddr3 1600, focus on tighter timings. You may want to look into a motherboard with the 890X chipset if you can find a cheap one with good reviews.

In terms of a nice affordable case, the HAF 912 is your best bet. If you want a more standard looking or slightly cheaper case this one has some good reviews on a few websites.

As far as power supplies go, you cannot skimp on this part. A poor PSU can slowly erode your costly components with voltage fluctuation/wobble or take out your components all together if it fails under pressure. I am running a similar rig on a 400W psu, But I would go with a good 450w or 500w for some extra headroom. This is a modernized and more powerful version of the PSU I have been running, I highly recommend it. But antec and seasonic also have very strong offerings for the same price, I recommend reading up on them and then choosing.

I have not researched hard drives lately, although I need to as mine is failing. But I have heard good things about the samsung spinpoint series.

As far as not worrying about game settings? that gpu will be great for you if you are running at 1080P or under. I own the same exact one and I love it. I will recommend this one instead. It is binned for better OC luck, as well as carrying a lifetime warranty and the ability to trade it in for new tech within 90 days.
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oksnoop2
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Re: New PC?

Post by oksnoop2 »

Thank You for taking the time to write up a reply.

I agree with most of you suggestions except the gfx card and ram. It seems to have only be a bit better but a 100 dollars more. I intend to keep the card for a while. EDIT also I could not find any single 4 gig sticks and having one point of failure makes me nervous.
Coresair
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Joined: 30 Dec 2009, 01:17

Re: New PC?

Post by Coresair »

Well my suggested gpu Is only 30$ more. Does it perform any better out of the box? no. The benefit of this card is the chip binning, and lifetime warranty. If you plan to keep the card for a more than two years, The warranty might be worth 30$, But thats up to you. Like I said I have the card you chose, and could not be happier.

Sorry about the ram confusion. I meant a 4GB kit, with two sticks. They are often cheaper than just buying individual sticks. I would go with this one. It might be a tad slower, But it has tighter timings (cas 7 opposed to 9) and is 15$ cheaper. I think the tighter timings would be more noticeably in day to day use than 200 more mhz.
==Troy==
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Joined: 29 Oct 2008, 15:55

Re: New PC?

Post by ==Troy== »

if you are getting a 6 core cpu, I recommend to at least get 8 GB of RAM. Especially for large spring maps and video editing.
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TradeMark
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Re: New PC?

Post by TradeMark »

Tip: Always check your mobo manual if the RAM is actually supported by your mobo. If its not in the list, it may not function well enough, or may even cause malfunctions. Looking only at the size of the ram or type/speed of the ram tells nothing about how it will work out. Some RAM just sucks, even though it has good specs.

I recommend taking a lot of time finding the most compatible RAM on your mobo, that is something you dont want to switch later, since you might need to switch whole mobo as well. So, choose good mobo that supports good RAM, check the RAM compatibility. Take time to select the mobo as it is the most important part on the computer. Dont rush on something thats supposed to last at least 4 years.

More RAM is not same as better, if the RAM sucks, you're fucked.
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zwzsg
Kernel Panic Co-Developer
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Re: New PC?

Post by zwzsg »

I had heard any RAM beyond 3 gig or so can't be used unless you have a 64 bit OS. Could someone more knownledgeable clear me on that?
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TradeMark
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Joined: 17 Feb 2006, 15:58

Re: New PC?

Post by TradeMark »

That is correct. I bought a laptop where they said 4gigs ram, and what did i get? 3 gigs! theres still 4 gigs in the slot though, but windows vista can only use 3 gigs on 32 bit system...
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aegis
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Re: New PC?

Post by aegis »

I've *never* had ram compatibility issues with good-quality ram and a modern generic mobo.

the only computer that ever rejected generic ram for me was an old dell. I've had no problems in countless other computers.

as for 8GB, things will run fine on 4GB if you're not trying to do something else while performing intensive tasks like rendering video or a map. 4GB would be a good start, just keep upgrading to 8GB or more in mind in the future.
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smoth
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Re: New PC?

Post by smoth »

zwzsg wrote:I had heard any RAM beyond 3 gig or so can't be used unless you have a 64 bit OS. Could someone more knownledgeable clear me on that?
It is an issue with how many bits of addressable memory. you can have a bit more than 3 but not over 4 on 32bit and IIRC video card memory counts against that total as well.

So you would want to go 64 bit anyway.
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Neddie
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Re: New PC?

Post by Neddie »

I've had some problems with motherboard-RAM compatibility in the past, having had three manufacturers separately rejected by one board in particular. Usually the RAM manufacturer has instructions to get you around these hurdles - G.Skill got back to me in a matter of minutes with a solution the last time I encountered a problem.
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TradeMark
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Re: New PC?

Post by TradeMark »

aegis wrote:I've *never* had ram compatibility issues with good-quality ram and a modern generic mobo.

the only computer that ever rejected generic ram for me was an old dell. I've had no problems in countless other computers.

as for 8GB, things will run fine on 4GB if you're not trying to do something else while performing intensive tasks like rendering video or a map. 4GB would be a good start, just keep upgrading to 8GB or more in mind in the future.
You might not see the problems when the only problem is that it runs 50% of the speed. Which is unacceptable if you paid a lot for the RAM.

At least check if your mobo supports this and that fast RAM, or else you might have to run the RAM with half of the speed etc, and thats waste of money then.
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oksnoop2
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Re: New PC?

Post by oksnoop2 »

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6820231189

So would that be a better choice for the mobo then what I have currently?
Coresair
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Joined: 30 Dec 2009, 01:17

Re: New PC?

Post by Coresair »

It is pretty slow by todays standard AND has loose timings. I would no recommend that ram.
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oksnoop2
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Joined: 29 Aug 2009, 20:12

Re: New PC?

Post by oksnoop2 »

On the motherboard spec page it lists this:
DDR3 1800(OC)/1600(OC)/1333/1066/800
What does the (OC) mean in that case?
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MidKnight
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Joined: 10 Sep 2008, 03:11

Re: New PC?

Post by MidKnight »

I agree with basically everything Coresair, aegis, and smoth have said here so far.

I'd like to add that I'm currently running on a 700W OCZ ModXStream PSU, which Is nice and quiet and has given me no problems thus far. I'm not too clear bout their reliability record, but OCZ PSUs are pretty nice, really quiet, and come with some pretty nice rebates.

Something else you may want to look for is modular functionality in the PSU; it'll make setting up the box and regulating airflow, etc. a lot easier.

Also, got with a 64-bit OS for sure. You'll be shooting yourself in the foot if you don't.

Good luck!
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Neddie
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Re: New PC?

Post by Neddie »

I highly recommend the modular Corsair power supplies. As for memory, I used to use G.Skill and am going to do a reevaluation of all the brands for my next computer.
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