Posts by Kimberly Gomez34

The voltage readings look decent on paper, but I can't find a model number anywhere. Is there any indication of who manufactured this? We really need to pin down the brand to figure out if these specs are actually legit or just total fiction.

If his motherboard finally gives up the ghost, he should just pick up a decent AM3+ board. He can pop his Phenom back in and actually have a clear upgrade path for a better CPU down the road.
High compatibility 😁

Open up the case panel (on your left) and snap a photo or just type out the power supply model number found on the label (that metal box where the power cord plugs in)

It’s 1600 MHz, that's for sure—he was looking at CPU-Z or some similar utility.

Exactly—prioritize the GPU and RAM first. Just one thing though: what specific power supply model are you running right now?

edit

And what kind of case are you using?

Rebecca Gray3 said:Hmm, I’m actually leaning toward that second option. Honestly, I’d much rather grab an Intel Core i7-2600K and pick up a used NVIDIA GTX 750 Ti for $300. Think that’s doable?

It could work. You should scout out various marketplaces and forums; finding an ideal HD7870 or R9 290 for $267
would be the sweet spot.

If you're local, it's always best to check things out in person.

Tron
For mining, people mostly stuck to the NVIDIA GTX 780 or anything higher. Maybe an NVIDIA GTX 680 if you were lucky (the NVIDIA GTX 770 series came out a bit later), but those weaker cards aren't really worth it. As for the high-end stuff that actually worked well, I'm pretty sure most of those have been snapped up by now.

That’s way too much; for that kind of money, you might as well just get a Fractal Design case

600W is plenty; honestly, half the stuff they list on official spec sheets is just pure guesswork.

For instance, look here—they claim 600W is sufficient for an R9 290.

On the other hand, AMD suggests even 850W wouldn't be a bad idea.http://xfxforce.com/en-us/products/a...n-r9-290a-edfd

🤣

We know the actual power draw for this GPU from various reviews (it sits around 250-260W).

Meanwhile, ASUS politely notes that the GPU could pull up to 300W under load.

http://www.asus.com/Graphics_Cards/R...pecifications/

His recommendation is a 500W PSU or better.

http://www.hisdigital.com/us/product2-790.shtml

You get the point.

Option featuring a more robust platform:

1 x Intel Core i7-2600K Processor 3.3GHz, 14MB, 95W, LGA 1156
1 x Spire Kepler Rev.2 Cooler, fits 1156/775/FM1, 96.5×51×125 mm, 92mm
1 x Seagate BarraCuda 1TB HDD, SATA III, 7200 rpm, ST1000DM003
1 x CORSAIR 430W Power Supply, CX Series 80+ Bronze, EPS12V v2.3, 80+
1 x MS GRIFFIN Case (no PSU included), Midi Tower, ATX Motherboard support
1 x Asrock Motherboard, supports LGA 1156 processors, 8-Core CPU compatible
1 x Kingston 4GB DDR3 RAM, 1600MHz, CL11, Value series
1 x MSI NVIDIA GTX 750 Ti 1GB DDR5, N750-1GD5

$1158 adm

Option upgraded to 8GB RAM and a better graphics card:



centro

Note that neither option includes an optical drive.

I'm concerned that a GPU of that size won't actually fit inside a case like that. You should measure exactly how much clearance you have for the GPU

High-end motherboards, especially those top-tier models like the Extreme series, perform exceptionally well on Intel sockets.

Unfortunately, if you're hunting for red PCBs on an AM3+ socket, I think you might have overextended yourself here. 😁

ASUS boards tend to lean toward blue, and those high-end models are honestly overkill and way too pricey for what they offer. You're left either overpaying for some AsRock (Mortal Kombat) stuff or settling for mediocre MSI boards—which aren't even really "mediocre." My experience has been pretty grim, especially when you consider how much they cost compared to what you could actually get from Gigabyte or ASUS.

To be blunt, with the AM3+ socket, it only makes sense to pick up a few specific boards from ASUS or Gigabyte in the $55 to $90 range. $333 Anything else is either complete overkill or significantly worse for a similar price point.

MSI boards are pretty terrible on that socket (and honestly, they're some of the worst out there). Especially if you're planning on doing any overclocking

With those kinds of artifacts popping up all over your screen, there's a 99% chance your GPU is dead

Try borrowing a card from a friend to see if the PC starts behaving itself again

What specific GPU are we even talking about here, and did you bother checking the temperatures while this was happening?

Based on this link from neshe, there are some compatibility issues with various graphics cards due to BIOS limitations. You can almost certainly run an HD 4xxx series card, but anything else is a gamble. That said, your PC does have a GPU; they don't pull much power and should be strong enough to handle Skyrim:

The second option is actually powerful enough to run Skyrim on max settings (the vanilla version), though nobody can give you a 100% guarantee on compatibility. These pre-built, branded machines can be a nightmare to upgrade; sometimes they even use proprietary power connectors that won't fit standard parts.

Honestly, it makes more sense to sell your current setup for a couple hundred bucks, add that cash to a budget for a new graphics card, and just pick up a decent used PC that's ready for Skyrim. Your other option is to strip out the CPU, RAM, and hard drive to build something from scratch using used parts, but that’s going to be a massive headache, and you probably won't be able to sell the leftover components easily.

Just make sure you don't accidentally grab the one with LE in the name. That version skips the heatsink to save a few bucks, which is honestly a bad move because you really need that extra cooling in cases like this.

If you're pairing a 125W CPU with a budget MSI board on an LGA 1366 socket, there was never going to be a happy ending here.

If you're absolutely stuck with Discount24 and the Gigabyte DS3P isn't an option, it would be ideal if you could stretch your budget to this—especially considering that 125W power draw. It might feel a bit pricey for an older build, but it leaves the door open for upgrades to something like a Threadripper or high-end Ryzen series, and you could even overclock them (assuming you grab an aftermarket cooler, obviously). Generally speaking, ASUS and Gigabyte boards offer much more reliable voltage regulation for this type of socket.

neondriver7 - Look, you get free assembly and shipping, so the only real difference is that with this second option, you have to manually click every single item into your cart and process the order

Adam Moore3, their downtown location doesn't even carry half of that stuff (at least not the MBOs and GPUs)

From what I understand, Micro Center wants to do the install, but they’ll expect you to bring over a barebones case—basically just the specific components you want swapped in—so they aren't stuck stripping out an old motherboard or other parts. You're essentially asking for a diagnostic service. Look, there's nothing wrong with that if you need them to check your hard drive, but just a heads-up: they might charge you for the consultation. I’d suggest asking them for a full breakdown of the costs and exactly what they'll be doing first.

There is almost zero chance that Windows will just work on a different motherboard. The board needs to be practically identical or extremely similar (which this isn't). You'll most likely have to do a fresh installation of Windows later anyway.

Olivia Nguyen3 - regarding one of the components Smartic mentioned, if you plan on keeping your own RAM, you could opt for a motherboard with 4 slots instead:

For instance, you could use RAM like or go with a 2x2 setup like

However, I’d suggest double-checking at your local Best Buy to ensure they are fully compatible with your specific sticks (though 99% of the time, they'll work just fine)