Gaming PC

[ChrisBlair]

Thanks. I was looking at newegg today during break. I also went on CyberPower PC's website, and I went through their options with a "Mega Special IV" PC. They are having a sale.

I built one on their site that costs $ 1822, and then I priced out the parts, which are about $ 1725. The parts didn't include some of the extras I tossed in, like the extra packaging for shipping etc. I don;t mind 100 bucks for somebody to build it up, but I wonder about their rep, and if all the options I chose are actually compatible.

I'm quite tempted at this point. I also went to Digital Storm's site and did the same thing with a comparable system, and the PC was 2250, while the parts added up to about 1850. Not liking the 400 dollar difference there.

[ChrisBlair]

Woof. Just been reading reviews of Cyberpower...

[mikeyg36]

So the 290X has a price of $550 and is outperforming the Titan. Only downside is fan noise and temp at almost 100* C

[strych9]

I was going to build another everyday PC, and wanted a 4th-gen i7. I was going to build one spec'd out with an i7-4770 and 16GB RAM. Cost would have been around $1200. Instead I bought an HP Envy Phoenix for $1049 with the same specs as what I planned to build. I retro-fitted an HP CPU liquid cooling system from a previous generation Phoenix for $70. This machine flies! The only weak spot is the video card, which is a GeForce GTX 645. It's still pretty good. The mobo is an MSI board with Intel Z87 chipset. It's a great setup, and would be good for most gamers on a budget.

[ChrisBlair]

Originally Posted by strych9

I was going to build another everyday PC, and wanted a 4th-gen i7. I was going to build one spec'd out with an i7-4770 and 16GB RAM. Cost would have been around $1200. Instead I bought an HP Envy Phoenix for $1049 with the same specs as what I planned to build. I retro-fitted an HP CPU liquid cooling system from a previous generation Phoenix for $70. This machine flies! The only weak spot is the video card, which is a GeForce GTX 645. It's still pretty good. The mobo is an MSI board with Intel Z87 chipset. It's a great setup, and would be good for most gamers on a budget.

What's the power supply? I'm sorta itching for a PC that will do a three monitor setup for flight sims now and that setup seems good for upgrade.

Dammit, I never should have looked at PCs. I've practically convinced myself I can part with 2 grand. If I wasn't part Scottish I'd have spent the $ but I'm too cheap

My own PC is limping along a bit better. Took off the heatsink and fan from the CPU, cleaned everything, put a little new thermal paste on, and I ran a pretty graphics intensive game for two hours last night. No crash and no laggy menus like previous. But I'm still hearing the fans crank up to high ALL the time and I saw a GPU spike to 83*C...but no power down. 181*F can't be good

[SPARTAN sui]

Originally Posted by nikos30

"better" power supply? what do you mean by that exactly? it just supplies the power and if its enough, it usually doesnt matter what you got.

This is not good advice. The power supply matters a lot and should not be skimped on. This is the biggest mistake first time builders and bad computer technicians make. (not claiming you're either, but I see first time builders on the net making that mistake and I've seen other local "technicians" work) Most cheap OEM power supplies are going to be fine for the OEM system they were put in because they've been tested and approved by the OEM. They're cheap, but they're going to have somewhat decent components in them to last awhile.

However aftermarket cheap power supplies should be avoided like the plague. There's a ton of information available out there on the web, basically cheap power supplies use cheap components that aren't as stable and more prone to malfunctioning. ESPECIALLY if you get anywhere near their "rated" output. Most of them can't even output what they claim. The rails become to unstable and you end up with voltage spikes that could cause damage to your components. IE killing them or drastically reducing their lifespan.


ChrisBlair, I haven't read all your posts, but did you make sure there isn't any dust build up around your GPU's heatsink?

[nikos30]

Originally Posted by SPARTAN sui

This is not good advice. The power supply matters a lot and should not be skimped on. This is the biggest mistake first time builders and bad computer technicians make. (not claiming you're either, but I see first time builders on the net making that mistake and I've seen other local "technicians" work) Most cheap OEM power supplies are going to be fine for the OEM system they were put in because they've been tested and approved by the OEM. They're cheap, but they're going to have somewhat decent components in them to last awhile.

However aftermarket cheap power supplies should be avoided like the plague. There's a ton of information available out there on the web, basically cheap power supplies use cheap components that aren't as stable and more prone to malfunctioning. ESPECIALLY if you get anywhere near their "rated" output. Most of them can't even output what they claim. The rails become to unstable and you end up with voltage spikes that could cause damage to your components. IE killing them or drastically reducing their lifespan.

I was kinda assuming nobody would buy the 20 dollar supply lmao. Any name brand supply is good enough. I have been wanting to go with a modular supply for years but im just do dam lazy.

[ChrisBlair]

Understood Spartan thanks.

My recollection is something like 70% of rated output is what I should realistically expect.

Off the top of your head, you wouldn't know what good aftermarket PSU would fit a Dell Studio XPS 8100 case, would you? I'm reading it's an oddball case, and when one guys says "THIS will fit" somebody else says "no, won't fit the case". And yup, I have one. Was new in AUG 2010, if that matters.

Even if I have fixed my PC issues, I want to upgrade to a better vid card than my Radeon 5700 so...I need a more powerful PSU anyway

[ChrisBlair]

Originally Posted by nikos30

I was kinda assuming nobody would buy the 20 dollar supply lmao. Any name brand supply is good enough. I have been wanting to go with a modular supply for years but im just do dam lazy.

I've been reading about them but I'm not clear on these. What's the deal with them?

[SPARTAN sui]

Oh it's terrible, this "technician" would use the power supplies that are included with the $40 tin box case. I'm surprised even the computers I worked on lived more than a year.

Reading reviews is probably the best thing, even some of the name brand manufactures have a dog here and there that aren't any good. I personally prefer Seasonic for most of my builds.

Modular is the only way to go now, it's so nice for cable management. I would highly recommend it if you're looking to toss some money at your PC.

[SPARTAN sui]

Originally Posted by ChrisBlair

I've been reading about them but I'm not clear on these. What's the deal with them?

Here's an non modular PSU



Here's a modular PSU



A non modular PSU has all the power cables connected to the PSU's circuit board. So even the power cables you don't need can be in the way. Makes cable management a bit of a pain.

Modular PSU only have the main 24 pin motherboard cable connected (typically, some are fully modular) and the CPU 4/8 pin power cable connected. So the cables you need to use for your system you plug into the little connectors on the outside of the PSU. The cables you don't need you don't need to connect and they're out of the way completely. So you don't end up with the typical rats nest of cables like with a regular non modular PSU.

I'll look into seeing what can fit in your Dell.

I think a normal PSU will fit in your Dell. It looks to about the standard size, so that's good. It also sounds like some people have upgraded their PSU to something more powerful. If I were looking for a PSU for your computer, I'd probably go with this one. It's 80 plug gold rated, modular, and has 5 years of warranty. Also from one of the best PSU manufactures.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817151119

However I would first measure everything just to be sure. I think it's a standard ATX PSU opening, but I'm most concerned about is the overall length of the Seasonic PSU fitting in your Dell. The Seasonic PSU is 6.3" long, if you measure from the rear of the computer to the back of the optical disc drive, how long is that?

[ChrisBlair]

Originally Posted by SPARTAN sui

Here's an non modular PSU



Here's a modular PSU



A non modular PSU has all the power cables connected to the PSU's circuit board. So even the power cables you don't need can be in the way. Makes cable management a bit of a pain.

Modular PSU only have the main 24 pin motherboard cable connected (typically, some are fully modular) and the CPU 4/8 pin power cable connected. So the cables you need to use for your system you plug into the little connectors on the outside of the PSU. The cables you don't need you don't need to connect and they're out of the way completely. So you don't end up with the typical rats nest of cables like with a regular non modular PSU.

I'll look into seeing what can fit in your Dell.

I think a normal PSU will fit in your Dell. It looks to about the standard size, so that's good. It also sounds like some people have upgraded their PSU to something more powerful. If I were looking for a PSU for your computer, I'd probably go with this one. It's 80 plug gold rated, modular, and has 5 years of warranty. Also from one of the best PSU manufactures.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817151119

However I would first measure everything just to be sure. I think it's a standard ATX PSU opening, but I'm most concerned about is the overall length of the Seasonic PSU fitting in your Dell. The Seasonic PSU is 6.3" long, if you measure from the rear of the computer to the back of the optical disc drive, how long is that?

I think I get it- the modular PSU will essentially mean I pick just the right connectors I need, and I just don't use the rest. Eliminating the un-needed cables also would mean less restriction in airflow.

I'll have to measure the distance. Right now I'm about to do another round of "lets see if the PC shuts off". LA Noire can really sock it to my PC, so I'll play that for a while and note some temps. Fingers crossed. Some of the Electrical engineers at work were trying to find me the syringe of arctic silver paste today- it's gone missing. Well, probably not missing, actually, probably swiped. I'm currently using the thermal paste that would come with an old-school GM V8 HEI ignition module, lol.

[nikos30]

Originally Posted by ChrisBlair

I think I get it- the modular PSU will essentially mean I pick just the right connectors I need, and I just don't use the rest. Eliminating the un-needed cables also would mean less restriction in airflow.

I'll have to measure the distance. Right now I'm about to do another round of "lets see if the PC shuts off". LA Noire can really sock it to my PC, so I'll play that for a while and note some temps. Fingers crossed. Some of the Electrical engineers at work were trying to find me the syringe of arctic silver paste today- it's gone missing. Well, probably not missing, actually, probably swiped. I'm currently using the thermal paste that would come with an old-school GM V8 HEI ignition module, lol.

open the case and check every wire. if there is nothing wrong, switch the ram to the other slots (weird fix for many issues). if that doesnt work, then this could be a driver issue. Maybe your bios is messed up.

also, are you OC'd at all?

[strych9]

Originally Posted by ChrisBlair

What's the power supply? I'm sorta itching for a PC that will do a three monitor setup for flight sims now and that setup seems good for upgrade.

Dammit, I never should have looked at PCs. I've practically convinced myself I can part with 2 grand. If I wasn't part Scottish I'd have spent the $ but I'm too cheap

My own PC is limping along a bit better. Took off the heatsink and fan from the CPU, cleaned everything, put a little new thermal paste on, and I ran a pretty graphics intensive game for two hours last night. No crash and no laggy menus like previous. But I'm still hearing the fans crank up to high ALL the time and I saw a GPU spike to 83*C...but no power down. 181*F can't be good

The 800-060 model is what I have, equipped with a 600W power supply.