Computer GEEKS to the rescue!

[CYBER]

Hey guys, After talking with rezel and starsmine yesterday about computers and shit, it has come to my attention that I can no longer play CSS on my fucking laptop... lol

so by the end of next month, im planning on buying a new computer. I already have a 32" 720pi screen at home and I am trying to find a way to play
counter strike source at fucking 300 max fps... or smthn...
and have a gaming rig able to play the next gen games like skyrim, battlefield, etc on very high quality or high...

Do I go with this ?
Rig 1:
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883229344
Or settle for Rig 2;
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883229341
or something i just barely looked at Rig 3:
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883229342


I personally think Rig 1 has highest potential? advantages and disadvantages of the rigs? what do u think? what is important to upgrade and what can be downgraded for similar performance?

[ZERO]

You do realize that trying to play a fast game like cs on a tv screen will lag right...

I have tested with a 40" screen and the additional vision does help in targeting although 1080 on a screen that size at that distance looks like shit. TV screens are designed to be viewed from 2.5 times their size away. So the ideal viewing location for quality of a 30" tv is 6.25ft away.

Here is a great pic I found to explain things:http://s3.carltonbale.com/resolution_chart.png

---------- Post added at 12:47 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:43 PM ----------

You need a higher resolution to play games effectively on that screen to take advantage of the extra size. Otherwise you will lose detail and that can get you killed.

Here is another chart showing recommend seating:
http://s3.carltonbale.com/distance_chart.png (http://carltonbale.com/1080p-does-matter)

[CYBER]

well currently i have my screen directly on my desktop table, about 3-4 feet away from my eyes.
It works gd, but you're right, ONLY in wcs, it starts lagging and making cringing sounds sometimes, when i teleport as vagabond fast or old spidey zips.

I also seem to lose some framerate...
but thats the best I have for now, assuming I dont buy another computer monitor with the desktop pc.

So if i got a better monitor, would the first rig be gd enough to run maxx css quality? or do i need more or less?

[ZERO]

ISF states the the most important aspects of picture quality are (in order): 1) contrast ratio, 2) color saturation, 3) color accuracy, 4) resolution.

For gaming here is what is the most important parts of the monitor in order:

No or low input lag (will not be indicated on the product in order to scam you)
Fast responsetime (will be overindicated on the product and usually causes #1 to be bad used to confuse customers into not asking about #1)
Picture Quality



Input lag is described as the lag between the output from a graphics card and the image which is displayed on the screen you are using. For LCD screens this should not be confused with pixel response time (http://www.tftcentral.co.uk/speccontent.htm#response time) which describes the speed at which a pixel can change from one orientation to another. Pixel response times impact aspects such as motion blur and ghosting in moving images. On the other hand input lag is a delay between what is sent to the monitor, and what you actually see. This can have impacts particularly in gaming where if the screen is lagging at all, it can have adverse affects on first person shooter games and the likes where every millisecond counts.

Your fist key will be to locate monitors that have no input lag and go from there. Most monitors advertized for gaming or speed have input lag of >20ms that is like adding 20 ping to your game but worse b/c the server does not preform any lag compensation for you monitor being a POS.

---------- Post added at 01:30 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:27 PM ----------

Oh I should mention that there is no such thing as a LCD without input lag. In fact in order to find input lag you usually stick an lcd next to a crt and measure how much longer it takes for the image to display.

THis thread should help provide a good list:
http://shoryuken.com/forum/index.php?threads/sub-1-frame-hdtv-monitor-input-lag-database.145141/

[Assassin]

Bad Cyber. *bap on the nose* Never buy those over priced shitty premades. Buy the materials yourself and just put it together. If you're thinking well I'm not a comp guy...you don't have to be. Most barebones kits come with the mobo alrdy attached. You simply put things in there right slots and hook up the power cords and the mobo cords and that's it. I could prolly piece together one of those comps in like 20 mins, so for you if you aren't as savy..maybe 30 lol. Also what Zero said about your gaming monitor. Make sure you get a LED as there times are faster than LCDs.

~Edit Also make sure your rig has a dedicated video card...cannot stress that enough. Most laptops don't come with em and as such are using your ram to run the video processing.

[CYBER]

Bad Cyber. *bap on the nose* Never buy those over priced shitty premades. Buy the materials yourself and just put it together. If you're thinking well I'm not a comp guy...you don't have to be. Most barebones kits come with the mobo alrdy attached. You simply put things in there right slots and hook up the power cords and the mobo cords and that's it. I could prolly piece together one of those comps in like 20 mins, so for you if you aren't as savy..maybe 30 lol. Also what Zero said about your gaming monitor. Make sure you get a LED as there times are faster than LCDs.

~Edit Also make sure your rig has a dedicated video card...cannot stress that enough. Most laptops don't come with em and as such are using your ram to run the video processing.

i am gonna put it together myself >_< i AM techsavy in general, im a software engineer for fucks sake. I just have a bad time making decision when buying expensive shit...
im asking about the BUILD itself, if it's sturdy, hence why i asked what could be replaced, upgraded , downgraded for gr8 performance, because im going to order the parts myself and build it using this guide as startoff

[Dj panda]

Tbh all those rigs look Meh, my gaming laptop almost matches all of those, only thing better is that mine has 2.35 ghz-3.1 ghz if i overdrive it(which im not going to do since no need) my laptop costed the same as rig #1, if your putting 1500 ish into it id at least get your moneys worth :o

[CYBER]

in that case... can someone direct me to the best pre-made rig for that budget? or list the components if they have it themselves and getting good performance?
obviously with PCs or components able to be shipped to canada:P
anyone?
whats your detailed rig shit and price?

[Carmichal]

You should build it your self. Save lots of money that goes into making it better than a pre-made one. If you don't know how find a friend who can and has a messy house. Clean there house in trade for building the PC.

[CYBER]

You should build it your self. Save lots of money that goes into making it better than a pre-made one. If you don't know how find a friend who can and has a messy house. Clean there house in trade for building the PC.
oh dnt wry, i am planning on building it myself.
the problem about me (one of many lol, dnt get too excited there carmichal) its that I sometimes overkill something.
i dont want to start wanting high end expensive shit that would do similar performance than a lesser-end component.

every time i gp for a "build it yourself" page, i just start spamming "oohh i want that" "oh ofcourse i need that"...
and i always end up with 3 times my budget lol..
so im looking for a COMPLETE BUILD, that is 100% compatible, no problems or heating or noise etc,
that i can use to order its pieces 1 by 1 and build it myself.

[StarsMine]

Just say your budget and we will make a build inside of that.

[CYBER]

Just say your budget and we will make a build inside of that. at the VERY max, it would be ~ 1600$ tax EXCLUDED, give or take.

Whats the best thing that can get with that? (talking about gaming box only, i got the screen and extra accessories already).

To answer my preferences question: i want something that can fucking play css at max, and next gen games like battlefield at a LOT more than recommended settings (like high at least),

cpu speed*cores and graphics are very important to me.

overkill RAM is not a priority now, since they're cheap and can be opted out later.

[taz1stP]

well cyber tell me what ur looking to spend and if u are also looking into spending for sofware also and i can get u a rig and if u can tell me where u live so i can check and see if any stores around u that could get ur parts cheaper b/c im going to get my new comp for 800 and if bought threw newegg only would cost me about 1000 and was also wondering if u want amd or Intel big diff in price.

[StarsMine]

Im assuming you want to overclock. Do you want wireless internet?

[StarsMine]

http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/PublicWishDetail.aspx?WishListNumber=19900992
with http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157293 cause for some reason, that wont get added to the wish list.

BTS504 15 dollars off CPU
$5 off w/ promo code EMCNCHD46 ram
15% off w/ promo code Corsair724, limited offer PSU

And you get that for promo codes to make it even cheaper, about 30 bucks cheaper.

The case choice is personal, I really like the design of the shenobi, I did not get one cause they where all fucking sold out during the week I was making my rig.:banghead: That white one looks HOT and the inside is boss, sure it may not have as much airflow as a HAF but I think it looks ten times better
Other good cases
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139008 Corsair Carbide Series 400R
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119160 COOLER MASTER HAF 932 (We need more airflow scotty!)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119197 COOLER MASTER HAF 922 (not as insane air movement)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811129179 Antec P280 (Silence is golden)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112154 LIAN LI Lancool PC-K7B (very reserved, I have never met a lian li case that is not solidly built)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811112349 um... Its backwards? I think it was a very experimental design...
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146086 NZXT Phantom 410 (hi, to make up for my small penis I decided to buy a gaudy case)


Also with that cooler, make sure to get low profile ram, it may hang over the first one or two slots depending on board layout.
If you dont want to overclock, Get a non K version of the CPU, you can look at getting an H67 mobo, and I would still prefer to get an after market cooler(not necessary) but you dont need anything to the scale of the noctua d14. You dont need an SSD, but for responsiveness of a computer and its applications, the HDD is actually a significant bottleneck. If you want to get into video editing keep the z77 (its awsome for video encoding, it uses the IGP and actually does it faster then it would in cuda, openGL or in plain x86) And think about upgrading to an i7, especially if you want to get into Folding or Bionic. But the hyper threading adds nothing to gaming. Also thats a blu-ray reader in there, if you are not interested (you need to purchase software to play the movies still) You can get a DVD player and save 30 bucks.
Oh forgot you were a CSC major, Upgrade windows to pro for virtual machines. or ask your school to let you into MSDNAA.

[Rambo :D]

What kind of Cpu do you want: amd or intel?

[StarsMine]

Rambo, I think his budget and his goal for the machine answer that question. If he asked for a 4p server I would have put in interlagos, if he asked for a 500 dollar gaming rig I would have put in Llano/trinity. Everything else Intel has better price performance at the present time. Piledriver looks promising from what we have seen out of trinity, but we dont know how well they will compeat untill the full consumer chip is out.

[taz1stP]

there are lots of questions to ask but the first question would be Intel or amd after that its the question if u want to go any certain makers.

at stars not true amd's top line cpu has better price and for the price compared to intel would be better but im not a fan of amd so i cant go into it but my buddy loves amd but im all intel so let cyber read up on them and come back and tell us.

[StarsMine]

No they are not taz,
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/288?vs=434

I wish bulldozer was better and gave intel more compition, but its not. With the exception very few applications Intel is the better choice for nearly all consumers. As I did say they are a better price performance compared to Intel in the server world. Their 4p servers kick some major ass. And AMDs APUs kick major ass with the exception of video editing. the IGPU in current intel CPUs when combined with a z chipset will encode faster then any cuda or opengl application out there.

[Steamer]

Also, this case. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811352013 (Better and cheaper than the P280)

I still use the P180, case is still so boss.

Ivy Bridges raw power trumps Sandy, but if you are going to OC in the future, you may want to go with the prev gen. If you are not gonna do a massive OC a year or two later, get the Ivy, it wins all around. Actually Cyber... Just get the Ivy... =P

Stars, that "backwards" Lian looks like it could make an awesome little media center or mini server tower. I would still like to see a sideways form factor for one if possible. Could fit it snugly in the bottom of a partially enclosed entertainment center, and still have access to all ports and get great airflow.

[taz1stP]

well i mean you can also look into stores around your area b/c some have package deals on parts or lower prices.

[ZERO]

All of the systems you linked have way too much ram. You are only going to need like 50% of that for now and you can upgrade fast and cheep down the road. No point is spending the money now.

[CYBER]

regarding the case, i guess this one is the least worse "esthetic" design :P
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119160

but i like her quadruple fans, i wonder if we can make them all LED.

what do u think ? is it gd enough for cooling and airflow? which reminds me, i need to check the connections offered. front USBs and bypass audio-mic are a must.

[StarsMine]

Its a full tower, meaning BIG case. But it will give you alot of options as to things to do inside of it in the future.
What sort of design are you looking for? the cases in the builds you showed us were a Thermaltake m10

I dont know of any case that does not have Front panel USB or audio/mic.

[ZERO]

I will assume this case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139008
His budget is tight so now let me get to work.

If there is money left over he can have: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119160 that he wanted.

[ZERO]

Intel Core i7-3820 Sandy Bridge-E 3.6GHz (3.8GHz Turbo Boost) LGA 2011 130W Quad-Core Desktop Processor BX80619i73820

$299
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115229

EVGA SuperClocked 02G-P4-2682-KR GeForce GTX 680 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card Overclocked to 1124MHz

$499
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130769

ASUS P9X79 LE LGA 2011 Intel X79 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

$229
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131855

Kingston HyperX 8GB (4 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 2133 Desktop Memory XMP Model KHX2133C11D3K4/8GX

$62
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820104287

PC Power and Cooling Silencer Mk II 950W High Performance 80PLUS Silver SLI CrossFire ready Power Supply

$130 (mail in rebate)
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817703028

Crucial M4 CT256M4SSD1 2.5" 256GB SATA III MLC 7mm Internal Solid State Drive

$214
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148530

TOSHIBA DT01ACA100 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive

$79
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822149382



With a $99 case this configuration is over budget by <$20 depending on discounts ect.

The above config blows the shit out of all 3 rigs you showed performance wise. This configuration can also be dramatically improved over time with minimal investment. All of the products used are not only of high performance but also the finest quality available. Remember that all that speed does not help if the parts stop working. Also I have 2 of that SSD (not in raid) and they are very fast. This is all top of the line level gear and all within your budget.

[ZERO]

Let me compare my build to this one as they come out to same price +-$5
http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883229344


CPU: Same
RAM: BETTER: 50% less but much faster and of the highest quality available
GPU: BETTER: 680 vs a 670 and the 680 is OC and of a high quality provider.
M/B: UNKNOWN: It is hard to say but I can assume you this one not only has more ports better warranty and build quality better BIOS better OC ability and has 2 PS/2 ports which also define it as being serous about supporting gamers that know that while old PS/2 is actually faster than USB as a result of the nature of the standard. (hard to find ps/2 mice now a days but I would never use a USB keyboard for gaming rofl) Also we support up to 64GB of RAM vs32. I think it is clear who is on top.
PSU: BETTER: <<<<800W vs 950W Power matters and this is the highest quality PSU you can buy. Backed by one of the longest warranties out there I have had many over the years and only lost 1 due to me not cleaning my case for 3 years and starting a dust fire. Or do you want your gear running on an over rated OEM 800w pos that likely only gets up to 500w unless it is in a blast freezer.
HDDS: BETTER: Sure we got like 62% of the capacity but we got way way more speed

Over all the system I priced out blows the prebuilt shit out of the fucking water sends it to the moon takes its lunch all while just strolling along. Not only does it have better stock performance but much greater room to grow. This is equipment built to last and to be expanded upon. We are not talking about bargain bucket parts hear but true top of the line in every regard. Sure we do skimp a bit on a case being <$100 and only a 1TB storage drive. However those are things you can always change when you got more money. Also the case here: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139008 is a great value for the money and your not really giving anything up as far as features go. This case will support any expansions you want in the future other than a massive RAID 6. For that you are going to want a full tower or a double full like what I use. However those types of cases are for a different class of systems. Not gaming systems like what you want but for >$7000 super computer systems that actually need all that space for drives. Keep the purpose of your systems in mind when selecting a case as there is no reason to be throwing down money for something crazy unless your going for >$2500 systems where your budgeting for a particular look as well.

[StarsMine]

Zero, Needs to be switched to Canadian.
And Yes your build is better then mine, however many of the upgrades like using an SB-E instead of SB or IB doesnt increase gaming performance. and the 3820 does not have an unlocked multiplier meaning less to no Overclockability. Also since intel has stated they have no intention of making consumer IB-E chips the upgrade path is expensive. Hasswell-E will be on 2011 socket but wont fit in the x79 boards. Its supposedly going to be like Am3+ vs Am3.

Also PC Power and Cooling used to be fucking amazing, untill they got bought buy OCZ (now owned by seagate) and since the aquisition their quality has never been the same, Seasonic has passed them in quality and delta matches them for a cheaper price. I dont see the reason in getting a 950W PSU when even sli 680s and a SB-E would only need a solid 700W PSU. still a solid PSU. I should look up the voltage regulation and ripple on that thing, That looks like an amazing price.

But yea EVGA is the bomb aint it :D, You see EVGA's attempt to get into the PSU market? I forget who builds it (I think its seasonic...) But its the most feature heavy PSU I have ever seen, and its fucking EVGA. Do want.

If cyber does buy anything evga, when you regester it, use my affiliation code so I get 2 evgabucks out of the deal to go towards my next upgrade :D

Zero, they have started to really gotten the problems of USB out of the way. you can up the polling rate to 1khz on many modern boards, and N'key rollover is getting more common. in a mouse there are alot of feature advantages in USB you cant get with ps/2.




Everything said and done, For gaming and his budget I would think taking away the x79 platform and go SLI instead, or simply allow the CPU to OC. a 2600k @ 4ghz (little extra cooling needed, but you should not need to mess with things like voltages) will beat a 3820.

[ZERO]

They key is that a doubt that he will actually do the extra cooling and oc. Also to do SLI that would be 800$ right away. I went with a fast single card and then down the road he can SLI with a second one. As for that socket it is more of an investment as well. That socket should continue to suport new cpus for years to come. Ah now I see what you said about the Hasswell-E dam. Still though you would get an advantage from quad channel memory.

For the PSU I went big b/c that is something he can keep using 10 years from now. The price difference was not very large.

All of these issues does remind me of why I am so glad I planed for this shit in advanced. Even if I actually needed a new system I would hold off for a few more years b/c on the CPU side all the offerings are terrible in my opinion. Although I do plan to permanently abandon consumer equipment after this build. It will be xeons and ECC for me.

[CYBER]

holy fuck, nearly got lost in there... soooo whats the final verdict? zero's rig or stars? dun dun dunnnnn

[StarsMine]

I dont think its worth it to go with the Sb-E platform. Yes its more up gradable, but by the time your willing to drop 500 dollars on a CPU haswell or broadwell would probably be out and it would be cheaper and a better upgrade to get a either of those.

[Steamer]

ASRock... Asus's sold out cheapy brand. I remember those boards. I owned one of the dual chipset ones when the PCI-E was just coming into play. Think they sold that sub.

Spend the extra 350 on Zero's build. Don't skimp. Should last you another year or two. Learn to OC a bit and run a small step on the unlocked Turbo mult with its stock cooler (works fine if you have a good case and airflow). OC <> Thermal relativity is ass on the IB's. Performance is a mediocre gain except Video Encoding on this gen. Me personally, I would hold out, save a little bit more cash, and go nextgen.

I'm still running a Q6600 @ 3.2 on its stock cooler in the Antec P-182 case.... LULZ.

[Rambo :D]

Promo code:CEMCNCHE26

Qty. Image Product Description Unit Price Savings Total Price


Update

COOLER MASTER HAF 932 Advanced RC-932-KKN5-GP Steel ATX Full Tower Computer Case with USB 3.0, Black Interior and Four Fans-1x ...
Model #:RC-932-KKN5-GP
Item #:N82E16811119160
Return Policy:Standard Return Policy
In Stock
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Update

ASUS P8Z77-V LK LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard with UEFI BIOS
Model #:P8Z77-V LK
Item #:N82E16813131837
Return Policy:Standard Return Policy
In Stock
Mail in Rebate Card
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$159.99 -$11.00 Instant $148.99


Update

EVGA 02G-P4-2676-KR GeForce GTX 670 FTW LE 2GB 256-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card
Model #:02G-P4-2676-KR
Item #:N82E16814130802
Return Policy:VGA Standard Return Policy
In Stock
Note (Add)
$409.99 -$10.00 Instant $399.99


Update

CORSAIR Enthusiast Series TX650M 650W ATX12V v2.31 / EPS12V v2.92 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Semi Modular High Performance ...
Model #:TX650M
Item #:N82E16817139031
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$119.99 -$10.00 Instant $109.99


Update

Intel Core i5-3570K Ivy Bridge 3.4GHz (3.8GHz Turbo) LGA 1155 77W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 4000 BX80637I53570K
Model #:BX80637I53570K
Item #:N82E16819116504
Return Policy:CPU Replacement Only Return Policy
In Stock
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$234.99 $234.99


Update

CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9B
Model #:CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9B
Item #:N82E16820145345
Return Policy:Memory Standard Return Policy
In Stock
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$57.99 $57.99


Update

Crucial M4 CT128M4SSD2CCA 2.5" 128GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) with Transfer Kit
Model #:CT128M4SSD2CCA
Item #:N82E16820148448
Return Policy:Limited Replacement Only Return Policy
In Stock
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$139.99 -$5.00 Instant $134.99


Update

Western Digital Caviar Blue WD10EZEX 1TB 7200 RPM SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Model #:WD10EZEX
Item #:N82E16822236339
Return Policy:Standard Return Policy
In Stock
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$109.99 $109.99


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LG Black 12X Internal Blu-ray Drive 3D Playback & M-DISC Support SATA Model UH12LS29 LightScribe Support - OEM
Model #:UH12LS29
Item #:N82E16827136246
Return Policy:Standard Return Policy
In Stock
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$59.99 $59.99


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Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 64-bit - OEM
Model #:GFC-02050
Item #:N82E16832116986
Return Policy:Software Standard Return Policy
In Stock
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$109.99 $109.99


Update

ZALMAN CNPS9700 LED 110mm 2 Ball CPU Cooler
Model #:CNPS9700 LED
Item #:N82E16835118019
Return Policy:Standard Return Policy
In Stock
Mail in Rebate
Note (Add)
$52.99 $52.99
Subtotal: $1,569.89


Too lazy to post links atm. But this is from newegg.ca

Edit: Tell me if i missed anything.

[StarsMine]

ASRock... Asus's sold out cheapy brand. I remember those boards. I owned one of the dual chipset ones when the PCI-E was just coming into play. Think they sold that sub.

Spend the extra 350 on Zero's build. Don't skimp. Should last you another year or two. Learn to OC a bit and run a small step on the unlocked Turbo mult with its stock cooler (works fine if you have a good case and airflow). OC <> Thermal relativity is ass on the IB's. Performance is a mediocre gain except Video Encoding on this gen. Me personally, I would hold out, save a little bit more cash, and go nextgen.

I'm still running a Q6600 @ 3.2 on its stock cooler in the Antec P-182 case.... LULZ..
Zeros build does not OC.
Asrock split from asus, while under asus, yes it was their budget board brand(that does not mean bad quality), but since the split they have become one of the best mobo makers in the market. By one of the best they are insanely well built. though I must admit I still find it odd seeing what used to be a budget brand kick so much ass.

IB produces less heat. However it transfers less of it to the heat sink since they are using thermal paste between the heat spreader and chip when it used to be soldered.
Doesnt make that much of a difference, IB can get up to 90 degrees and not give a shit. Intel guaranties their CPUs to run at maximum temperature for 3 years, straight. Meaning nearly all chips last longer.
But heres the thing, it gets the same clocks as SB and has slightly higher IPC while using less power. I dont know what you were expecting with performance when all it was supposed to be was a die shrink, it ended up being more then that.

I dont think you need to wait for next gen at all.


@rambo, caviar blue? And cyber, like I are part of MSDNAA we dont need to buy windows.

[Steamer]

I loved that ASRock board. It is still actually fully working perfectly fine in my buddies old ass MC. Along with all the G-Skill ram I bought years ago for it. Actually, the entire system is still working with a new PSU. E6700, 10-10-10-15 GSkill running 8-8-8-10 stock sticks no cooling @1066. 8800 GTS. It's amazing me a bit it is still actually working... lol

[ZERO]

Still have yet to see a build that will have better FPS than what I posted and that is assuming the other builds overclock... the other build on this page is only giving him a 670 vs a 680 even with all the cpu talk it will be the GPU that will have the largest fps effect.

Lets make this part easy: Cyber will you actually OC your CPU to the limit and keep it that way if you can? Are you going to buy a better cooler to do this?

I think any builds claming they are for OC should also budget in the needed cooling equipment or the OC factor of them should be ignored.

[StarsMine]

a 7870 crossfire fits in my budget. That gives better frames then a 680. Its not that the 680 isnt good, just the extra frames you get out of it is not worth 100 dollars more then the evga ftw edition, which really closes the gap between the two to a rather small amount.

I did put cooling in my builds... Noctua d14, and I showed him a CM 212 evo sometime, rambo put cooling in his build to. And you can push SB to 3.8mhz on the stock cooler no problem. Why does he need to OC his computer to the limit?
Mine is at 4.5ghz, with a noctua d14, no where close to my CPUs limit.