PC Discussion Thread - All PC related in here.

[sesdelta38 10]

Thanks for the help guys. I would some easy instructions on which order you put each part in the chassis. Does anyone know what the Hard drive for a gaming PC is? I'm hoping on Building a PC that can run ArmA 2, Crysis, Crysis Warhead, and World In Conflict. I know ArmA 2 and those two Crysis games require a lot of hard drive space. Also I thinking on getting an Nvidia graphics card. Which one would be the best though? I was also hoping on getting a Quad-Core CPU. Should get an Intel or AMD processor?

[echo1 0]

AMD's Phenom II X4s are probably the best value for money at the moment. I'd recommend Gigabyte motherboards, one that uses an AMD 790GX chipset.

Graphics cards wise, the HD4890 is probably the best for ArmA 2. The correspoding nVidia GTX275 is pretty much equal, but it's more expensive.

Samsung F1 hard drives, available in either 750GB or 1TB capacity are pretty fast. Some people like WD Raptors, but theyre atrocious value for money, especially with cheap SSDs around the corner.

As for the order of assembling the PC, there's no established pattern just as long as you get it all in, but I personally would -

1) Place RAM, CPU and the CPU fan onto the motherboard.

2) Insert DVD and Hard drives into the case.

3) Insert the motherboard into the case.

4) Insert the graphics card and any other PCI/PCI-E cards into the motherboard.

5) Insert the PSU.

6) Wire everything up.

[Sertorius21 10]

Thanks for the help guys. I would some easy instructions on which order you put each part in the chassis. Does anyone know what the Hard drive for a gaming PC is? I'm hoping on Building a PC that can run ArmA 2, Crysis, Crysis Warhead, and World In Conflict. I know ArmA 2 and those two Crysis games require a lot of hard drive space. Also I thinking on getting an Nvidia graphics card. Which one would be the best though? I was also hoping on getting a Quad-Core CPU. Should get an Intel or AMD processor?

1. A decent 7200RPM hard drive should work fine in a gaming machine.

2. nVidia vs ATI, in your price class, comes down to the HD4890 vs the GTX 275. The GTX 275 is a little more expensive, with a little more performance. Beyond that, well, the ATI/nvidia nerd wars have never really ended, so you may want to flip a coin or remain loyal to the brand that you previously owned :p . I just bought a GTX 275 ($220 vs the $200 HD4890), and that decision was influenced by the fact that my 7900GTO served me well for three years.

3. The AMD Phenom II in my current hypothetical list is the most powerful AMD CPU on the market. Intel's offering have more power, but the AMD is more price-efficient and can be over-clocked reasonably well.

My current hypothetical wishlist for you:

Case: Antec Twelve Hundred Black Steel Full-Size Case

PSU: PCP&C Silencer 750W

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-MA790XT-UD4P

CPU: AMD Phenom II X4 955 Deneb Black Edition 3.2GHz Quad-Core

Memory: 4GB (2x2GB) G. Skill DDR3 1333 RAM

GPU: XFX Radeon 4890 1GB

HDD: Samsung Spinpoint F1 1TB 7200RPM

D Drive: Lite-On DVD-ROM Drive

OS: Windows 7 Release Candidate (Free Download)

$943.12 including shipping and handling

Edited July 13, 2009 by Sertorius21
Changed case to Antec due to better price.

[-Snafu- 78]

Nevermind

Edited July 13, 2009 by -snafu-

[echo1 0]

The Coolermaster is quite big and expensive for what you get. Some of the cheaper Lian-Li cases might be a better choice. You get a smaller, high quality case for around $100 less.

[Sertorius21 10]

The Coolermaster is quite big and expensive for what you get. Some of the cheaper Lian-Li cases might be a better choice. You get a smaller, high quality case for around $100 less.

True that, but NewEgg has the Antec 1200 going for $170, and currently they're offering $120 off (Plus a free mouse) if you buy it along with the AMD 955 ;) .

With the price at $943, one could potentially look at a GTX 285, but I'm inclined to say that wouldn't offer enough additional performance to justify the expense. If anything, I'd look at getting a custom CPU fan/heatsink.

[sesdelta38 10]

Building the computer is definitely the easy part. However, I found out from my sisters friend that the hard comes after the computer is built. He says there are compatibility issues, wiring and stuff. This sort of makes building a computer a stressful task. I'm only 14 years old and I'm no expert on computer. Can anyone provide advice on the issues that come with completing a custom built PC? Can the issues be listed so I know what I'm gonna deal with?

[echo1 0]

I'm not really sure what you mean. Provided you buy good components and set them up properly, there shouldnt be any problems. I suspect your friend may have launched into buying components without properly researching what was the right stuff to get.

[wooly-back-jack 10]

Building the computer is definitely the easy part. However, I found out from my sisters friend that the hard comes after the computer is built. He says there are compatibility issues, wiring and stuff. This sort of makes building a computer a stressful task. I'm only 14 years old and I'm no expert on computer. Can anyone provide advice on the issues that come with completing a custom built PC? Can the issues be listed so I know what I'm gonna deal with?

research parts, if you arent sure post on a few forums that you frequent for advice on possible specs/spend. (also look into getting mobo/cpu/ram bundle if you are new to it as these will at least be compatible with each other-and usually less expensive.)

It may seem boring, but READ THE MANUALS and take your time, don't just guess at things cos it looks like it will fit.

That said, I think 14 may be a bit young to be mauling with expensive electronics (no offense meant)

Maybe get an older buddy who has built one before to give you a hand

[Sertorius21 10]

Building the computer is definitely the easy part. However, I found out from my sisters friend that the hard comes after the computer is built. He says there are compatibility issues, wiring and stuff. This sort of makes building a computer a stressful task. I'm only 14 years old and I'm no expert on computer. Can anyone provide advice on the issues that come with completing a custom built PC? Can the issues be listed so I know what I'm gonna deal with?

Here are some problems, though I think I've accounted for them all in my theoretical build:

1. Out of date BIOS (Possibility that the board simply will not recognize a component. Can occur in a situation where the board is significantly older than the CPU).

2. Incorrect power connectors. Some video cards use 8-pin connectors, most use 6-pin connectors. If you have a power supply that only has 6-pin connectors, and your card has 8-pin connectors, then you're up shit creek until you find a converter. This can be avoided by purchasing a PSU with 6+2 pin connectors, which can function as either 6-pin or 8-pin connectors.

3. Not enough power connectors. Some cards require two connections, while weaker PSUs may only have one connection.

4. Buying weak/crappy components: Don't buy stuff just because it's cheap. If it's cheap and is well-reviewed, you're getting a good deal; If it's cheap and is poorly-reviewed, you're getting screwed.

5. ID10T errors: Buying incompatible parts, not doing any research, or acting the fool (Screaming at parts is always a winner here).

I will be rebuilding my own rig very soon (parts should be in tomorrow or Wednesday). I'm using several of the parts on my hypothetical list (The CPU, PSU, RAM, and a similar mobo). I'll post the results here when I'm done, so I'll be able to give very up-to-date advice :) .

Edit: sesdelta, you could also consider upgrading rather than building anew. What are your current specs? If you don't know, you can get them through dxdiag. Open the "Start" menu, then click "Run". Type "dxdiag" (No quote marks), then click OK. You should find lots of info under 'System', 'Display', and 'Sound'.

Edited July 14, 2009 by Sertorius21

[echo1 0]

Sertorius - While those are all good points, I doubt he's going to bump into them when he's assembling the above listed spec, as all the parts should be right for each other. A lot of the stuff you list are more issues of concern when you're upgrading old PCs, but with a well-thought out and researched specification, not really as much an issue.

That said, I think 14 may be a bit young to be mauling with expensive electronics (no offense meant)

Maybe get an older buddy who has built one before to give you a hand

I learned most of my computer assembly skills at the age of 14, by taking home a load of ancient 486s and Pentium Is from a skip in my Dad's workplace, and disassembling and reassembling them. Whilst the hardware has changed over the years, the basics are pretty much constant, and you learn a lot from playing around with old stuff. In particular, I remember finding out that you should never hook up a hard drive's power cable while a computer is running... Which I found out the hard way when I nearly electrocuted myself in the process of trying to get something to work at 2AM whilst on the phone to some girl I liked at the time...

[sesdelta38 10]

Thanks for the help. I think my friend meant something else, but I will have to ask again. Instead of getting a quad-core CPU, my friend said I should get a duo-core CPU. He says that Intel duo-core processors are the best out there. Is there any duo-core Intel processors that are good for a gaming PC?

@ Sertorius:

My current computer is NOT a Gaming PC, it's busted, slow, and the volume doesn't work. That is why I want to build a gaming PC.

What kind of memory sticks should I use and how do I know if parts are can work with each other?

Edited July 14, 2009 by sesdelta38

[Sertorius21 10]

Thanks for the help. I think my friend meant something else, but I will have to ask again. Instead of getting a quad-core CPU, my friend said I should get a duo-core CPU. He says that Intel duo-core processors are the best out there. Is there any duo-core Intel processors that are good for a gaming PC?

@ Sertorius:

My current computer is NOT a Gaming PC, it's busted, slow, and the volume doesn't work. That is why I want to build a gaming PC.

The Intel duo-cores are on the way out. When games didn't support multi-core, it made sense to purchase a CPU that only two very fast cores (The game would only use one core anyway). If the games could only use one core, then a 2.4GHz quad-core would be slower than a 3.0GHz dual-core. However, now that more and more games support multi-core, it makes sense to get a triple or quadruple core, because the game will be able to use several or all of the cores. A dual-core might still be very fast today, but they are not going to remain on the top of the heap as more and more games go multi-core. Using one also means that you must limit yourself to the older LGA775 socket.

What kind of memory sticks should I use and how do I know if parts are can work with each other?

In order to determine what kind of memory to use, determine the amount of money you have to work with, guess how much space you need (4GB is quite good by today's standards), then find a stick that is compatible with the motherboard. The type of memory (DDR2 or DDR3) must match, as must the speed of the RAM (A four-digit number, like 1066 or 1333).

For example, the Gigabyte board I recommended specifies that it has "4×240pin" memory slots, of memory standard "DDR3 1666(O.C.)/1333/1066 MHz". This means that you should look at 240-pin DDR3 RAM sticks, of speed 1333MHz. The "1666(O.C.)" means that the motherboard can overclock a slower piece of RAM so that it is running at 1666MHz. It does not mean that you should purchase DDR3 1666 RAM.

Here is the selection of RAM that fits the requirements of the Gigabyte board.

Edited July 14, 2009 by Sertorius21

[mutters 10]

Hello all you helpfully people.

I'm running vista 32 bit and want to upgrade it to 64 bit,anyone tell me the easiest way to do this.

Also i have a nvida geforce 8800 gts and want to upgrade this , what do you think i should change it for i guess i can spend up to 200 pounds.

thanks

[maddogx 13]

Wrong forum?

[echo1 0]

Hello all you helpfully people.

I'm running vista 32 bit and want to upgrade it to 64 bit,anyone tell me the easiest way to do this.

Also i have a nvida geforce 8800 gts and want to upgrade this , what do you think i should change it for i guess i can spend up to 200 pounds.

thanks

To switch from 32-bit to 64-bit, you unfortunately have to get a new copy. I think Microsoft offers some way of switching your license which costs less than a new copy, but to be honest, spending money on Vista with Windows 7 around the corner is stupid. I'd get the 64-bit Release Candidate of Windows 7 from their website and use that. It's valid until about April of next year, and is much better than Vista. You should be able to pick up an OEM copy when it comes out for about 70-80 pounds.

As for graphics card - a Radeon HD4890.

[phil788 10]

hi guys,

Just wondering I am going to build a new PC and am wondering which processors and motherboards give best performance for money spent. Im on a budget you see and dont want to spend a fortune, however I dont want to buy something slow. Would like to stick to Intel chips if possible.

Thanks.

[echo1 0]

Probably the best value for money chips if you are on a budget are the AMD Phenom II X3 triple core CPUs. Motherboardwise - I have one of these myself, they're quite good and will work well with any Phenom II.

Why stick to Intel?

[ck-claw 1]

Rightio here's one for ya?

In the middle of a game the other night,me pc went bang!

That ol Pentium 4 was doing me proud for ArmA2.

Cut a long story short,ive aqquired another pc from a mate!

Specs:-

AMD 3500+ (64 bit) XP but the motherboard will take a dual core when i get the cash!

But all my shit(ArmA2 d/load etc) is on my old HDD when i plug it in-it won't have none of it!

Im assuming it's cause my old HDD has XP 32 bit and the pc i just aqquired is a 64 bit processor?

Any ways round this!

Have no idea as the last pc lasted me for about 6 yrs so was due some shit tbh! :D

[echo1 0]

A particular installation of Windows is only going to work on the computer on which it was originally installed on - due to hardware drivers which are generally specific to low-level things like the motherboard. It may be possible to circumvent this by installing all the drivers for your new PC before putting the hard drive in your new PC, but this obviously isnt an option for you, so you're going to need to reinstall.

If it has 2GB of RAM, I'd seriously consider putting Windows 7 on it instead of reinstalling XP. Oh, and if you have any interest in repairing your old PC, try replacing the PSU :p

[wooly-back-jack 10]

64 bit processors still work on 32bit xp, are you sure this isn't what you have been given?

I would take a guess that your 'new' pc is socket 939, I am socket 939 also, and I upgraded to dual core from my good ol' 3500+ singlecore. (only a 3600+ x2 but it was one of the last socket 939 processors to be made and it was a relitively small batch and the bugger soldiers on and o/c well with my arctic cooling freezer pro HSF)

---------- Post added at 00:46 ---------- Previous post was at 00:43 ----------

oh and if you downloaded Arma2 you should be able to download it again by loging in to steam or wherever you bought it?

[Cpt.Goose 10]

I priced out a AMD vs. Intel the other night. All parts identical where they could be (ie. amount of ram, speed, processor quad core, and motherboard features) I saved $200 Canadian with the AMD setup.

They included the Processor, Ram, Motherboard. Everything else comes down to user wants and not relying on motherboard or chipset unless your thinking SLI and Crossfire. So don't be scared of AMD, there processors are not far behind intel at all in benchmarks and the graphics cards (ATI/AMD) actually win more benchmarks then Nvidia.

I know we all like to stay true to our companies we like so much (amd vs intel, ati vs nvidia) but you said your thinking about budget. By saving $200 you could get a much beefier graphics card or pocket the money for something else you may want or need.

[ck-claw 1]

Thanks for the replies-i posted in a hurry last night!

try replacing the PSU

Don't worry ch_123 that was the 1st thing i did knowing your a stickler for PSU's :D

Full specs are(its not great but paid less than £100 for a complete pc inc 19 TFT)

AMD 3500+

AMD2 Slot MotherBoard (btw how can i find out which one i have? also whats the diff with AM2/AM2+)

Can i fit an AM2+ dualcore into AM2 Mobo?

1 Gig DDr2 Ram

Onboard graphics :eek::eek: -Just gotta swap me graphics card over!

Already has XP 64bit installed.

Sry for the maybe daft questions but 1st time being near AMD stuff!

Was the quickest solution for me to get back on line(felt like had lost me arms lol-not having a pc)

So wont cost me much to upgrade to DualCore + Ram!

So what is the best Dual-core to buy?

Btw i d/loaded it from 'Nexway' but all my details/emails are on old hdd.:(

Thanks for the help again! :cool:

Off to work so cant do sh&t to later!

Edited July 24, 2009 by ck-claw

[Lich342 10]

High I'm new here so I wanted to know if my computer will be able to run ArmA 2 at high or max settings. I ordered it so it should arrive fairly soon, but I would like to know at what settings I can hope to run ArmA 2 at. Specs are:

Processor: AMD Athlon X2 7750 Black Edition 2.7GHz Dual Core (2x 512MB L2, 2MB L3 Cache)

Graphics Processor: Single 512MB GDDR3 ATI Radeon HD 4850

Memory: 4GB« Dual Channel DDR2 SDRAM at 800MHz - 4 x 1024MB

Motherboard: AMD 790FX Motherboard

Wasn't sure what I should post, I love video games however I don't know a thing about computers. If I should post any other information I'll post it asap! Thanks in advance!

[echo1 0]

Don't worry ch_123 that was the 1st thing i did knowing your a stickler for PSU's :D

I'm pretty sure I could design a robot to fix a computers, that would be capable of doing only two things - replacing PSUs and reinstalling Windows. It would probably solve 95% of people's dead computer woes. :p

Already has XP 64bit installed

Does that installation work? You could try copying all the stuff from your old disk to that one.

So wont cost me much to upgrade to DualCore + Ram!

So what is the best Dual-core to buy?

AM2+ was an updated version of AM2 for use with Phenom/Phenom II CPUs. Just about any Athlon X2 except for the 7750 model should work in your motherboard (although you may have to update the BIOS first.) RAM is pretty cheap these days, you should be able to pick up 4GB for the equivalent of €40. Here is the CPU I use in my machine and it works great.

What sort of video card did you have in the old computer?

Edited July 24, 2009 by echo1