You can find that same GPU for $267 less at other retailers. And why on earth would you even need Windows 8.1? You're in America, for heaven's sake. Honestly, if I were looking for a logical path forward, I’d aim for a more future-proof setup—something with a 2011-era socket motherboard, a compatible processor, and a graphics card that actually supports DX12. But then again, it isn't as if this current configuration won't keep chugging along for countless years to come. That is, unless you decide to actually buy a CPU cooler, which I don't see anywhere in this build.
It’s always a losing game if you're looking at this for gaming purposes. They haven't even bothered to list the brands for the SSD, HDD, power supply, or motherboard. Unless you have some incredibly specific requirements, you could easily put together a decent build for under $1,500 without breaking a sweat.
Edward Miller33 said:Are you actually wondering why I was asking about a shorter card? Look, those Radeon cards are absolute tanks—massive and incredibly heavy. I had a nightmare trying to seat one properly because the sheer weight caused it to sag out of the PCIe slot, and frankly, I have zero desire to deal with that kind of headache ever again.🙂
You really have to make sure it’s seated perfectly. And don't you dare forget to tighten that single screw on the back of the case to secure the bracket.
Why don't you try reproducing the issue in Firefox? And for heaven's sake, do make sure you actually update that miserable Flash Player if you've been ignoring it for months.
Edward Miller33 said:I’m definitely looking for a card that doesn't run hot, isn't a massive beast, and won't take up half my entire case like this absolute elephant of a card 🙂
Honestly, those are probably the least important criteria you could have possibly listed when defining a "best buy" category. What we actually need to know is whether you intend to play absolutely every single game on maxed-out settings... or if you're fine with most of them running smoothly, perhaps making a few honorable exceptions where you'll happily settle for mid or high settings just to call it a win.
Jerry Watson2 said:Thanks for getting back to me. I'm dealing with an intermittent Blue Screen of Death while using Google Chrome or playing Witcher 3—though with the game, it only seems to trigger when I'm navigating the menus. I've already gone through the dance of swapping between older and newer drivers, but nothing has managed to fix this headache.
My PC doesn't ever fully shut down on its own or spontaneously restart, but there is one thing: my GPU is currently powered by a single 6-pin connector, while the second 6-pin connection is being handled via a Molex adapter.
So, I figured I might as well upgrade the power supply since I was planning on replacing it relatively soon anyway. I've decided to go with an XFX 👍
By the way, have you tried overclocking the card at all?
If you’re actually planning to use your smartphone for measurements, then the quality of the microphone itself becomes far more critical than any software you download, simply because the hardware is much more likely to fail you than the app is. Of course, anyone serious about this is probably using a dedicated dB meter anyway. The real issue is that all measurements need to be conducted under identical conditions—things like distance from the source and ambient noise levels—which, if you ask me, is rarely the case when someone decides to post a device's technical specifications online. 🙂
Exactly, it says precisely what I was getting at: an increase of 10 dB translates to a doubling of how loud it actually sounds to us. If the Sound level Comparison Chart and The Ratio indicate that a volume of 30 dB yields a perceived loudness of 8, while 40 dB jumps to 16, does that really mean a 40 dB sound is sixteen times louder than 30 dB? Of course not; it simply means it’s twice as loud.
No, you’re conflating raw sound intensity with how we actually experience noise. To your ears, a 20 dB increase will feel twice as loud as a 10 dB jump, but if we are talking about actual power—the physical intensity of the sound itself—a 70 dB signal is ten times more powerful than a 60 dB one.
When you consider how the human perception of loudness works, a mere 10 dB jump is actually felt by our ears as a sound being twice as loud, isn't it? On the other hand, a tiny fluctuation of just 1 or 2 dB is practically nonexistent to the senses.
Sure, overclocking a processor can shave bits off its lifespan, especially if someone decides to push it way past its limits, but even then, that lifespan is still going to outlast the average user's interest in the machine itself. Wouldn't you agree? Personally, I’d always run a prolonged stress test on the CPU just to be absolutely certain everything is holding up under pressure before calling it a success.
It seems you might have missed my point from a previous post: our friend here clearly doesn't grasp the distinction between a PCI-E slot and a RAM slot. Given that level of technical insight, am I really supposed to believe he’s actually going to attempt repasting a processor?
But there is one more thing we haven't nailed down yet, Adam Jackson7—once you actually crack that case open, do you hear anything at all coming from inside? For instance, can you hear the fans spinning up, or see any lights flickering, or perhaps notice the drive spinning?
If you can grab a decent camera, try snapping a few shots of the case so we can actually see what’s going on in there, then post them here; maybe then we can figure out if you missed a connection somewhere.
If you’re still under warranty and playing around with driver reinstalls hasn't done the trick, honestly, just take it into a service center. I dealt with a similar nightmare on a previous laptop where they ended up swapping out the Wi-Fi adapter twice during the warranty period—not to mention a whole host of other annoying hardware glitches that followed. If you need a quick fix when your connection inevitably dies, the simplest workaround is using your phone and a USB cable. If you have a smartphone that supports USB tethering, you can just plug it in once your main connection craps out and you'll usually be back online within seconds. Alternatively, if your phone isn't up to the task, why not just pick up a cheap Wi-Fi dongle to keep as a backup?
I mean, sure, it would require constant editing. But honestly, wouldn't it be incredible to have a dedicated thread similar to the ones you mentioned, where the original post just gets regularly updated with the latest Best Buy deals and budget components? We could even keep the thread locked so everything stays perfectly organized and easy to browse 😁
If we’re talking about an older laptop, I’d honestly suggest swapping out the fans while you're at it. But then again... it is the middle of summer, isn't it?
How many threads like this one are we actually going to deal with? Honestly, wouldn't it be much more efficient if you all just started one massive mega-thread where you could list every single configuration from 1000 down to 10 in one go? $0.00 😁