Welcome, Guest. Please login or register.
March 29, 2024, 05:25:50 AM

Login with username, password and session length

Search:     Advanced search
we're back, baby
*
Home Help Search Login Register
f13.net  |  f13.net General Forums  |  Gaming  |  Topic: The 'Build Me A PC' Thread 0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.
Pages: 1 ... 27 28 [29] 30 31 ... 96 Go Down Print
Author Topic: The 'Build Me A PC' Thread  (Read 854045 times)
Sky
Terracotta Army
Posts: 32117

I love my TV an' hug my TV an' call it 'George'.


Reply #980 on: November 23, 2011, 08:17:32 AM

What's with the dust sucker on the bottom of that thing?  why so serious?

I like those cases, hidden wire runs is a nice thing. I need to actually finish my build (couple more fans need installed), but I lose all momentum when stuff works well. But the expansions are packed tighter than a bingo hall with free candy. I want to get a pic up for grins. Runs great, looks  ACK!
Merusk
Terracotta Army
Posts: 27449

Badge Whore


Reply #981 on: November 23, 2011, 03:21:43 PM

Thanks for the guidance, Noisy. It's stuff like that I had no idea on.

However, providence being a bitch my funds were just slammed to repair the brake lights on the wife's car instead.  /sigh

The past cannot be changed. The future is yet within your power.
MisterNoisy
Terracotta Army
Posts: 1892


Reply #982 on: November 23, 2011, 03:34:40 PM

What's with the dust sucker on the bottom of that thing?  why so serious?

I like those cases, hidden wire runs is a nice thing. I need to actually finish my build (couple more fans need installed), but I lose all momentum when stuff works well. But the expansions are packed tighter than a bingo hall with free candy. I want to get a pic up for grins. Runs great, looks  ACK!

Just an additional intake fan - there's a removable/washable filter that covers the entire bottom of the chassis, so that should keep it from being too much of a dust collector.

Thanks for the guidance, Noisy. It's stuff like that I had no idea on.

However, providence being a bitch my funds were just slammed to repair the brake lights on the wife's car instead.  /sigh

Ack.  No fun.  On the bright side, Ivy Bridge and the new nVidia/AMD video cards should be out soon (I think that AMD will launch new cards in Q1, while nViidia is supposed to drop in Q2), so you may get to skip Sandy Bridge and the 6xxx/5xx cards altogether.

XBL GT:  Mister Noisy
PSN:  MisterNoisy
Steam UID:  MisterNoisy
Sky
Terracotta Army
Posts: 32117

I love my TV an' hug my TV an' call it 'George'.


Reply #983 on: November 23, 2011, 04:44:35 PM

my funds were just slammed to repair the brake lights on the wife's car
I'm guessing you don't mean replacing the bulbs?
Merusk
Terracotta Army
Posts: 27449

Badge Whore


Reply #984 on: November 23, 2011, 06:08:32 PM

No, the switch under the brake pedal went bad.  So that, along with the a put-off AC leak drained about $650.  So I'll just throw the rest into the Christmas & vacation pot and put the computer off until June or so.

Old and responsible sucks.  I miss young and heedless.

The past cannot be changed. The future is yet within your power.
fuser
Terracotta Army
Posts: 1572


Reply #985 on: November 23, 2011, 07:31:02 PM

My wireless router (Netgear WNR854t) seems to have given up the ghost this past week.

I reset it to factory settings, flashed the firmware, and it still only provides service reluctantly and intermittently.

So Im running to BestBuy this evening to get another one. Any solid performers out there these days? Im tired of the old standard of having to cycle the router off and on to get it to work every few hours. It ruins my gaming.
Belkin? Cisco? Stay with Netgear? Who should I be looking at?

It's probably too late but something to consider in the future is a RouterBoard. You can buy just the guts and use your own cards or buy a pre built device. The newest soho wifi model looks very nice for the $59 pricetag. It's built on Linux but has a nice web ui, cli and quite stable. Take a look at the webfig from their on-line demo / manual to see if it's too technical to use.
luckton
Terracotta Army
Posts: 5947


Reply #986 on: November 26, 2011, 02:27:01 PM

So, since I've picked up a bit of overtime at work, I've treated myself to a couple upgrades for my rig, which I haven't modified in over two years now.

First, I'm going from 4GB to 16GB of memory, thanks to a NewEgg sale of $54 for the 16GB kit.

Second, NewEgg was also seeling the OCZ Agility 3 60GB for 64.99 with rebate.  I figure a $1 a gig for a cutting edge SSD was decent enough.  I haven't played with the tech yet, so I'm gonna play it safe and just use it as a boot drive for now, and regulate my current VelociRaptor to Program Files, Users files and the Page File.

Thoughts?

"Those lights, combined with the polygamous Nazi mushrooms, will mess you up."

"Tuning me out doesn't magically change the design or implementation of said design. Though, that'd be neat if it did." -schild
Reg
Terracotta Army
Posts: 5270


Reply #987 on: November 26, 2011, 03:23:06 PM

I've heard that for most applications you wouldn't even notice the difference between 4gig and 16 but if I'm wrong let me know. It's a nice cheap upgrade if it's worth doing.
luckton
Terracotta Army
Posts: 5947


Reply #988 on: November 26, 2011, 04:28:16 PM

I've heard that for most applications you wouldn't even notice the difference between 4gig and 16 but if I'm wrong let me know. It's a nice cheap upgrade if it's worth doing.
It's worth it right now for x64 Win7 apps and services, as they can address the extra memory.  Once more games and apps go x64, such as what WoW Pandaria may be bringing, it'll be a nice boost for them as well.

"Those lights, combined with the polygamous Nazi mushrooms, will mess you up."

"Tuning me out doesn't magically change the design or implementation of said design. Though, that'd be neat if it did." -schild
Sky
Terracotta Army
Posts: 32117

I love my TV an' hug my TV an' call it 'George'.


Reply #989 on: November 26, 2011, 11:02:58 PM

I've got 8GB in the machine right now and didn't pay much for it....but it's so damned tempting to buy more ram with prices in the gutter.
MisterNoisy
Terracotta Army
Posts: 1892


Reply #990 on: November 29, 2011, 06:49:51 AM

I've got 8GB in the machine right now and didn't pay much for it....but it's so damned tempting to buy more ram with prices in the gutter.

I'm in the same boat - about to pull the trigger on 2 more 8GB kits - one to match the 8GB kit in my main gaming desktop, and one to replace the 4GB kit in my HTPC/portable gaming box.  Even if I never see any benefit, it's cheap enough to not really care if I do.

XBL GT:  Mister Noisy
PSN:  MisterNoisy
Steam UID:  MisterNoisy
luckton
Terracotta Army
Posts: 5947


Reply #991 on: November 29, 2011, 06:53:13 AM

I've got 8GB in the machine right now and didn't pay much for it....but it's so damned tempting to buy more ram with prices in the gutter.

I'm in the same boat - about to pull the trigger on 2 more 8GB kits - one to match the 8GB kit in my main gaming desktop, and one to replace the 4GB kit in my HTPC/portable gaming box.  Even if I never see any benefit, it's cheap enough to not really care if I do.

Like I said, future=proofing isn't a bad thing.  As more programs go x64, so too will the memory footprint for those apps increase. 

For example, running SWTOR this weekend, I noticed that it consumed about 1.5GB of memory while running  ACK!.  I can only imagine how much more it could consume once it has more room to grow.

"Those lights, combined with the polygamous Nazi mushrooms, will mess you up."

"Tuning me out doesn't magically change the design or implementation of said design. Though, that'd be neat if it did." -schild
Sand
Terracotta Army
Posts: 1750


Reply #992 on: November 29, 2011, 10:58:00 AM

Vista x32 limited usable memory to around 3-4 gigs of RAM. Anything more and it wouldnt recognize or use it.

With the update to Windows 7 is this still a x32 limitation? Do I need to go x64 in order to use anything over 4 gigs?


Basically wondering if I need to plop down $200 bucks to update my OS, in order to add more RAM.
luckton
Terracotta Army
Posts: 5947


Reply #993 on: November 29, 2011, 11:05:38 AM

Vista x32 limited usable memory to around 3-4 gigs of RAM. Anything more and it wouldnt recognize or use it.

With the update to Windows 7 is this still a x32 limitation? Do I need to go x64 in order to use anything over 4 gigs?


Basically wondering if I need to plop down $200 bucks to update my OS, in order to add more RAM.

Yes, you need to go x64 in order for Windows to address and utilize more than 4GB of memory.  It's a computer architectural thing, based on the bits of information that the processor can address at any given time. 

"Those lights, combined with the polygamous Nazi mushrooms, will mess you up."

"Tuning me out doesn't magically change the design or implementation of said design. Though, that'd be neat if it did." -schild
01101010
Terracotta Army
Posts: 12002

You call it an accident. I call it justice.


Reply #994 on: November 29, 2011, 11:09:42 AM

Newegg dropped OEM Win7 home premium to $80 last week. FYI. Usually $100... which is appalling to me.

Does any one know where the love of God goes...When the waves turn the minutes to hours? -G. Lightfoot
luckton
Terracotta Army
Posts: 5947


Reply #995 on: November 30, 2011, 03:24:40 AM

UPS sez my stuff's out for delivery right now  Woot!

"Those lights, combined with the polygamous Nazi mushrooms, will mess you up."

"Tuning me out doesn't magically change the design or implementation of said design. Though, that'd be neat if it did." -schild
luckton
Terracotta Army
Posts: 5947


Reply #996 on: November 30, 2011, 06:32:58 PM

Gear has arrived.  Started with the 16GB.  My board only picked up half on boot, and Win7 actually saw all 16 but said only 8 was usable  ACK!

A flash-update of the BIOS solved nothing, but apparently playing musical chairs with the sticks fixed it.  Go figure.   why so serious?  Phase 1 complete.

SSD hooked up and powered on.  Looks like I got a newer one...already has the latest firmware on it from OCZ, which I'm told is a good thing based on previous reviews of the Agility 3.

Backing up and deactivating softwares now.  Will rearrange drives and do the fresh Win7 install in the morning.  So looking forward to the speed ^_^

"Those lights, combined with the polygamous Nazi mushrooms, will mess you up."

"Tuning me out doesn't magically change the design or implementation of said design. Though, that'd be neat if it did." -schild
luckton
Terracotta Army
Posts: 5947


Reply #997 on: December 01, 2011, 05:56:52 PM

SSD install went off without a hitch.  Everything's smooth like butter now  DRILLING AND MANLINESS

WEI Numbers before the memory and SSD
CPU:        7.3
Memory:   7.4
Graphics:   7.7
Prime HD: 5.9

New numbers:
CPU:        7.3
Memory:   7.5
Graphics:   7.7
Prime HD: 7.7

 awesome, for real

I think I should be good to go for at least a couple more years.

"Those lights, combined with the polygamous Nazi mushrooms, will mess you up."

"Tuning me out doesn't magically change the design or implementation of said design. Though, that'd be neat if it did." -schild
Minvaren
Terracotta Army
Posts: 1676


Reply #998 on: December 02, 2011, 06:16:48 PM

Once you meet or exceed 4GB of memory, you can likely kill your swap file for a minor speed boost.

TOR, DA, and Witcher 2 (anyone see a pattern here?   why so serious?) all complained about this though, so I recently upgraded to 8GB.  Could probably put 32GB of DDR3 in a machine for what I spent on the DDR2 for my motherboard, though.   huh


"There are many things of which a wise man might wish to remain ignorant." - Ralph Waldo Emerson
Murgos
Terracotta Army
Posts: 7474


Reply #999 on: December 03, 2011, 05:17:33 AM

Once you meet or exceed 4GB of memory, you can likely kill your swap file for a minor speed boost.

This is a poor idea.  Total virtual memory addressing for each program running on a system can well exceed 4GB.  The increased penalty to checking the cache (page swap file) on a cache miss when you are already reading from disk should be trivially small and on a read hit (data is in the swap file) the benefit can be quite large.

Unless you have a recent study that demonstrates some poorly known feature of Windows Memory Management to back this up?

"You have all recieved youre last warning. I am in the process of currently tracking all of youre ips and pinging your home adressess. you should not have commencemed a war with me" - Aaron Rayburn
01101010
Terracotta Army
Posts: 12002

You call it an accident. I call it justice.


Reply #1000 on: December 03, 2011, 06:26:03 AM

Why the hell does my computer part shopping always grind to a halt when choosing a mobo? CPU, no worries. Ram, need speed, but overall pretty easy. PSU I know what companies I have had good success with. Mobo...errr, ummm.. weeks of research.

Does any one know where the love of God goes...When the waves turn the minutes to hours? -G. Lightfoot
Engels
Terracotta Army
Posts: 9029

inflicts shingles.


Reply #1001 on: December 03, 2011, 11:37:19 AM

Break it down to features. Do you need two separate raid controllers? Probably not. Do you want USB3 or SATAIII? How many PCI-E slots do you need? Two if you're going SLI. Do you care about using the new types of GUI BIOS configs? If so, stick to Asus. If you don't, go for Gigabyte. Do you want onboard video afforded by the new Core i series?

That's all the real questions I could think of. In terms of brands, most people have decent luck with Asus or Gigabyte. Some like other brands, but those two have always been solid for me.

I should get back to nature, too.  You know, like going to a shop for groceries instead of the computer.  Maybe a condo in the woods that doesn't even have a health club or restaurant attached.  Buy a car with only two cup holders or something. -Signe

I LIKE being bounced around by Tonkors. - Lantyssa

Babies shooting themselves in the head is the state bird of West Virginia. - schild
01101010
Terracotta Army
Posts: 12002

You call it an accident. I call it justice.


Reply #1002 on: December 03, 2011, 11:44:12 AM

Break it down to features. Do you need two separate raid controllers? Probably not. Do you want USB3 or SATAIII? How many PCI-E slots do you need? Two if you're going SLI. Do you care about using the new types of GUI BIOS configs? If so, stick to Asus. If you don't, go for Gigabyte. Do you want onboard video afforded by the new Core i series?

That's all the real questions I could think of. In terms of brands, most people have decent luck with Asus or Gigabyte. Some like other brands, but those two have always been solid for me.

I used gigabbyte for my last two builds. Never had a problem other than it being pissy about type and size of the ram sticks it plays with. But that was a limitation of the board I knew about when I got it. I may just stick with Giga. I am definitely looking for USB 3.0 but the rest I have no interest/clue about. I normally take a month to research this stuff then pull the trigger.

I blame my mother since she asked me to get her a new computer and I told her I'd just build one for her. Looking at all those PC parts got my juices flowing.

Does any one know where the love of God goes...When the waves turn the minutes to hours? -G. Lightfoot
Salamok
Terracotta Army
Posts: 2803


Reply #1003 on: December 03, 2011, 12:48:33 PM

So I was looking at this Qnap NAS, my desktop drive is getting full, I don't really care to leave my desktop on all the time and I want to start using my laptop more.  The qnap is small, quiet, power efficient, will stream media (to phone/ps3) and has a built in web server.  This all sounded amazing until I started taking a closer look, it recommends enterprise quality drives (although users say desktop drives seem to work fine) and the web server/linux package management is a mess (slow hard to upgrade).  

This all got me thinking I could build my own quiet low power HTPC-like NAS + web + media server, I snatched up a 2tb WD green drive for $89 bucks via target but the rest of my build is still up in the air.  

Here is what I have on the drawing board:


Initially I was going to go ITX but I want to leave this on 24x7 and was worried about heat, plus micro ATX seems more cost effective.  I guess my fear here (aside from the normal does this all look good) is Linux compatibility and how this might hold up as an always on type of thing.  I am not really worried about how well it plays video (have the ps3 for that) and I may not even bother loading a gui and just go with ubuntu server.  Most of the time this box will be idle and awaiting my commands.
« Last Edit: December 03, 2011, 12:50:11 PM by Salamok »
Merusk
Terracotta Army
Posts: 27449

Badge Whore


Reply #1004 on: December 03, 2011, 12:51:28 PM

Oh.. hello there unexpected X-mas bonus.. You're about to become a new PC and 24" monitor.

The past cannot be changed. The future is yet within your power.
01101010
Terracotta Army
Posts: 12002

You call it an accident. I call it justice.


Reply #1005 on: December 07, 2011, 11:48:01 AM

Anyone RMA to newegg after you have processed a rebate? Will that matter since they required the boxes UPC label? Damn video card will no longer recognize at boot even though the 6pin PCI-E connectors are fine and the voltages are right where they should be. Put in my old 8800 and it works fine other than the fan not being happy so I know it is not the PCI-Exp slot either. Any other troubleshooting tips outside of dropping it into someone else's box to test it out?

Does any one know where the love of God goes...When the waves turn the minutes to hours? -G. Lightfoot
Salamok
Terracotta Army
Posts: 2803


Reply #1006 on: December 09, 2011, 01:31:05 PM


Parts are in, box is built, pretty quiet but if there is no other noise going on I can hear the flow of the air through the case (not necessarily the fans themselves though).  

Currently working my way through this todo list:
  • Ubuntu Server 11.10 / done.
  • LAMP Stack up and running but just default apache test page, waiting for a new router before I open it up to the outside world.
  • PS3 Media Server is up and running (currently in the process of moving my video collection).
  • Samba is installed going to set it up as a PDC this weekend.
  • Install postfix or some other light weight way to send email via php.
  • Need to set up fail2ban, suhosin and various other server hardening things.


Anyone have some ideas for cool things I can throw at my new minion?
« Last Edit: December 09, 2011, 01:32:53 PM by Salamok »
Sky
Terracotta Army
Posts: 32117

I love my TV an' hug my TV an' call it 'George'.


Reply #1007 on: December 09, 2011, 07:39:43 PM

sinij
Terracotta Army
Posts: 2597


WWW
Reply #1008 on: December 09, 2011, 09:33:40 PM

Anyone RMA to newegg after you have processed a rebate? Will that matter since they required the boxes UPC label? Damn video card will no longer recognize at boot even though the 6pin PCI-E connectors are fine and the voltages are right where they should be. Put in my old 8800 and it works fine other than the fan not being happy so I know it is not the PCI-Exp slot either. Any other troubleshooting tips outside of dropping it into someone else's box to test it out?

Don't RMA, return it as defective and exchange for exactly the same. Then there shouldn't be any issues with rebate.

Still, rebates make me rage. The best way to get me not to buy your stuff is to stick a mail-in rebate on it.

Eternity is a very long time, especially towards the end.
Salamok
Terracotta Army
Posts: 2803


Reply #1009 on: December 09, 2011, 10:56:02 PM

Cool but not really looking to run my own minecraft server. 

I did just finish setting up some dvd ripping utils, I think i'll try and automate as much of that as I can.
Murgos
Terracotta Army
Posts: 7474


Reply #1010 on: December 10, 2011, 05:15:27 AM


Still, rebates make me rage. The best way to get me not to buy your stuff is to stick a mail-in rebate on it.

That's a little spergy.  These days they send you a prepaid credit card with the money on it.  Mail in rebates for something I was going to buy anyway fund a good portion of my Starbucks addiction.

"You have all recieved youre last warning. I am in the process of currently tracking all of youre ips and pinging your home adressess. you should not have commencemed a war with me" - Aaron Rayburn
MisterNoisy
Terracotta Army
Posts: 1892


Reply #1011 on: December 10, 2011, 10:32:50 AM


Still, rebates make me rage. The best way to get me not to buy your stuff is to stick a mail-in rebate on it.

That's a little spergy.  These days they send you a prepaid credit card with the money on it.  Mail in rebates for something I was going to buy anyway fund a good portion of my Starbucks addiction.

I'm somewhere in between - I just don't factor rebates into the price, since they don't change my out of pocket expense.  If they actually manage to send me the rebate check/card, its like getting free money.

XBL GT:  Mister Noisy
PSN:  MisterNoisy
Steam UID:  MisterNoisy
Sky
Terracotta Army
Posts: 32117

I love my TV an' hug my TV an' call it 'George'.


Reply #1012 on: December 10, 2011, 01:38:00 PM

I love rebates, I got $50 off my last build.
01101010
Terracotta Army
Posts: 12002

You call it an accident. I call it justice.


Reply #1013 on: December 10, 2011, 05:13:09 PM

I am fully on lusting after MicroCenter having just got back from the store in Cleveland. i5 2500K, Gigabyte Z68 board, and 8g of RAM for $335 plus $50 in rebate slips. I am more than willing to make the two hour trip for shit.  DRILLING AND MANLINESS

Does any one know where the love of God goes...When the waves turn the minutes to hours? -G. Lightfoot
Chimpy
Terracotta Army
Posts: 10618


WWW
Reply #1014 on: December 12, 2011, 02:11:54 PM

Got an email from newegg that has 4gb Kingston hyper x ddr3 for 9.99 after rebate. Ends at midnight pst.

'Reality' is the only word in the language that should always be used in quotes.
Pages: 1 ... 27 28 [29] 30 31 ... 96 Go Up Print 
f13.net  |  f13.net General Forums  |  Gaming  |  Topic: The 'Build Me A PC' Thread  
Jump to:  

Powered by SMF 1.1.10 | SMF © 2006-2009, Simple Machines LLC