Posts by Robert Rodriguez2

You saw those OCZ SSD tests over on Kit Guru, right?

They’re rated for 22TB, but the first one died after just 300+ TB of writes... and if I remember correctly, the last one bit the dust after more than 500.

Samuel Moore70 said:I'm not sure if upgrading to an FX 8300 from an AMD FX X6 6300 is even worth it. Performance isn't much different besides those extra two cores, yet you're paying $67 more for it.

It’s an investment for the long haul. Modern games just keep demanding more cores.

Samuel Moore70 said:I've already swapped out my Windows twice (went from Ultimate to 8 and then back again), so does the process work the same way if the drive is brand new? I just burned the Windows installer to a disc, went into the BIOS, set it to boot from the optical drive, and ran the install. Is it the same deal for a first-timer?

It works the same on the 1st time, the 5th time, or the 155th time. 🍿

fadedorca66 said:Piece of cake. Back during the DDR2 era, a bunch of us on this forum used Kingmax RAM all the time. We rarely ran into compatibility issues and they hardly ever died on us, so I guess they’re a pretty solid choice.

Even the DDR3 Micron sticks aren't bad.👍

fadedorca66 said:What kind of power supply are we talking about? There’s a massive difference between a cheap 550W unit meant for $33 and a real 550W unit built for $133.

Plus there are those fake 550W units made specifically for $200 🍿

Jamie Lopez19 said:I took graniteharbor85's build down to a local computer shop and got these quotes:

CPU AMD FX-6100
Motherboard AM3+ ASR 960GM-VGS3 FX
MEM DDR3 4GB 1600MHz TeamGroup
HDD Intel Seagate BarraCuda 1TB 3.5''
VGA AS R7250-OC-2GD3
PSU MSI PLATINUM 550 B4 ATX 2.31
CAS MSI Carbon

This one is $1050 but he put together another one with a different motherboard because apparently you can't use all the 1600MHz RAM speed—not sure if I followed that correctly (can someone explain in one sentence?)—plus there isn't a single USB 3.0 port... (don't know if I actually need it, I don't move much stuff via USB...)

CPU AMD FX-6100
Motherboard AM3+ AS M5A97 LE R2.0
MEM DDR3 4GB 1600MHz TeamGroup
HDD Intel Seagate BarraCuda 1TB 3.5''
VGA AS R7250-OC-2GD3
PSU MSI PLATINUM 550 B4 ATX 2.31
CAS MSI Carbon

This configuration would cost me $1167

It’s no big deal that neither has a DVD RW so I can't play CDs or burn anything... but adding one will drive up the price :/

And he ditched the cooler, saying I wouldn't need it since the processor comes with a decent enough one, then bumped up the power supply like it's some kind of necessity...

Now I'm wondering what you guys think about all this. Is there a way to pick a motherboard that works for everything (ideally with at least one USB 3.0 port, even if I might not need it, you never know) and fit an optical drive without pushing the total over $1100? (Keep the CPU and GPU the same, maybe tweak the rest slightly, but make sure everything runs smooth...) 👍

No, no, and no!

The power supplies in both builds are garbage...
An aftermarket cooler is a must. There is no such thing as "the stock one is strong enough." If that were true, nobody would be buying aftermarket coolers for 100% AMD builds.

Both of these pre-built setups in your post are worse than any build put together in this thread.

John Vaughn97 said:I'm just wondering if 4 gigs of RAM is gonna be enough for me?

For that price, you aren't getting more. $90 You're stuck with a 4GB stick.

Just one stick of 4GB Crucial DDR3 1600 MHz RAM. It's CL11.
One Seagate BarraCuda desktop hard drive (3.5", 500GB, 32MB, SATA III-600).
One MSI Carbon case, no power supply included.
1 x EVGA 400W, 80 Plus, active, 12 cm fan
One 90mm Intel/AMD CPU cooler.
1 x NVIDIA GTX 750 Ti GDDR5 1GB/128bit, PCI-E, HDMI, DVI, DP
One AMD Athlon x4 860k, Black Edition 3.7.
One AMD A68H mATX motherboard—retail version. Includes SATA III, RAID, USB 3.0/2.0, and standard VGA/HDMI ports.
Total: $1005
Futura? Really? It’s like trying to build a high-end PC using parts from a thrift store. Overrated.

Here’s something to keep you within your budget. $1000..

Even if I went with McLovin's build but swapped out just one part, I'd definitely grab a better motherboard.

Lawrence Barnes64 said:You get all of this plus a solid 5-year warranty, so you can basically just sit back and not worry about anything for a long time

So what are you even supposed to do with it?
Tetris... the graphics are garbage. You don't even know what GPU he's running, let alone the power supply, RAM, or anything else.
The only thing worth anything here is that i5.

John Vaughn97 said:So, like the title says—I'm not exactly an expert when it comes to new builds, but I'm looking to grab some parts and put a rig together with a buddy. I could probably use some help figuring out what kind of setup would be best for a $1167 budget. thanks!

1 x Intel Core i7 6100 3.3GHz,14MB,95W,AM3+
1 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Corsair, 1600MHz, CL11,Value, CMV4GX3M1A160C11
1 x MS PHOENIX case without PSU, Midi tower MBO: ATX, mATX
1 x Power Supply FORTRON 400W, HEXA Plus 400, 12cm fan
1 x Sapphire R7 260X 1GB GDDR5 OC, 1GB GDDR5 128bit, 28nm
1 x TOSHIBA 500GB, 7200rpm, SATA 6 Gb/s, 32MB, DT01ACA050
1 x Spire Kepler Rev.2 ,cooler, 1156/775/FM1, 96.5×51×125 mm ,92mm
1 x Gigabyte 970A-DS3P, AM3+, AMD 970 SB950, 4x DDR3 2000(O.C.)/1866

$1161
www.newegg.com

Adam Moore3 said:You could actually fit some pretty beefy GPUs in here:

1 x Intel Core i7-2600K Processor 3.5GHz, 14MB, 95W, LGA1155
1 x Gigabyte 970A-DS3P Motherboard, AM3+, AMD 970 SB950, 4x DDR3 2000(O.C.)/1866
1 x 4GB (1x4GB) Corsair DDR3, 1600MHz, CL11, Value Series, CMV4GX3M1A160C11
1 x NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970, Double Dissipation Edition
1 x TOSHIBA 1TB Hard Drive, 7200rpm, SATA 6 Gb/s, 32MB, DT01ACA100
1 x Spire Kepler Rev.2 CPU Cooler, 1156/775/FM1, 96.5×51×125 mm, 92mm fan
1 x EVGA 500 W Power Supply, Hyper, PPA5005003, 12cm fan
1 x Zalman Z3 PLUS Mid Tower Case, 192(W)x465(H)x430(D)mm. ATX Standard

$1602 adm.com

I ended up running a 280 too.😬

Elizabeth Hernandez2 said:Hey there!

I'm looking for a gaming rig with a budget of max $1667. My only dealbreakers are that it has to be from IBM, I need to be able to pay in cash, and I want a case that actually looks decent—not just some basic junk. Something more like this: http://www.bestbuy.com/site/product_info.php?c...oducts_id=9240

Thanks in advance. 🙂

Gigabyte GA-970A-DS3P, AM3+.
Just one Intel Core i7-2600K desktop processor.
One stick of 4GB Crucial DDR3 1600 MHz RAM. Standard stuff.
One 1TB Toshiba hard drive, 3.5" SATA III. Just a standard workhorse.
One EVGA 500 W, 80+ Bronze.
One 120mm PWM liquid cooler for Intel or AMD builds.
One Zalman Z1, USB 3.0 in black, comes with two 120mm fans.
One NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 graphics card.
Total: $1690
futura

Chris Robinson25 said:So I'm heading to HG spot with a buddy today. He finally pulled the trigger on the R7 260 x 2GB. We're looking at three options: Sapphire, XFX, or MSI. Personally, I’m leaning toward MSI because of that 3-year warranty—I already told him that—but he's eyeing the XFX. Since there aren't any decent reviews online, does anyone have a lead on which one is actually worth grabbing?

Go MSI. Three years of coverage is three years of coverage. Just a heads up... you can find better shops than HG spot. I've had nothing but bad experiences there, so I stay far away.

Micro Center or Best Buy will be way better, and their prices should be about the same.

Raymond Martinez5 said:Hey,
ATI Radeon or Nvidia? Which one should I go with and which model? Needs to be under $333 and have an HDMI port. Any recommendations or experiences?
One more thing;
I'm having trouble with my graphics. My laptop uses integrated graphics (ATI Mobility Radeon hd 5145, 512MB memory)... and after five years of use, it's clearly starting to fail.
I keep up with Windows updates and there’s no physical damage. Usually, I just get a gray screen and then I have to shut it down, pull the battery, and restart.
Why is this happening? Should I start looking for a new laptop?

AMD
http://www.newegg.com/p/product...id=14073
Nvidia
http://www.newegg.com/p/product...id=15122

As for the laptop, yeah, you might want to start shopping for a new one.😳

wanderingbison13 said:Has anyone here actually gone through the trouble of buying a computer from CNN? I’ve been browsing around sites like Best Buy, Micro Center, and Newegg, and it seems like they might have better deals on certain components.
I was hoping someone could point me in the right direction for picking up a desktop setup. I'm looking to stay under $1333. Thanks

1 x NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970, AM3+, AMD 970 SB950, 4x DDR3 2000(O.C.)/1866
1 x Processor AMD FX-Series X6 6300 3.5GHz,14MB,95W,AM3+, FD6300WMHK
1 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Kingmax, 1600MHz, FLGF
1 x TOSHIBA 500GB, 7200rpm, SATA 6 Gb/s, 32MB, DT01ACA050
1 x MS PHOENIX case without PSU, Midi tower MBO: ATX, mATX
1 x Spire Kepler Rev.2 ,cooler, 1156/775/FM1, 96.5×51×125 mm ,92mm
1 x ASUS GTX750TI-PH-2GD5, NVIDIA GeForce, GTX750Ti,2GB D5
1 x Power Supply FORTRON 400W, HEXA Plus 400, 12cm fan

$1340

Anthony Hayes82 said:Is it even possible to build an even cheaper rig just to run GTA V on absolute minimum settings? I'd take any stable FPS, even if I have to play at a resolution like 640x480.
I'm only looking at the CPU, motherboard, GPU, RAM, and PSU.

Give me a ballpark figure on what you think this will cost.
My plan is something like this:
A decent quad-core with integrated graphics, 8GB of RAM (dual channel with high frequency—higher is better since an APU pulls from system memory instead of having its own).
1 x ASUS A88XM-E, FM2+, AMD A88X (Bolton D4), DDR3, 2 slots
1 x AMD Kaveri A8-Series X4 7600 Processor (3.8GHz, 4MB, 65W, FM2+) box
2 x DDR3 4GB (1x4GB) Kingston, 1866MHz, CL10, HyperX Fury, HX318C10F
1 x Fortron 400W Power Supply, HEXA Plus 400, 12cm fan

$749

David Gomez6 said:Does the i5 bottleneck the GPU? What can I upgrade to if I need more power?

With integrated graphics, yeah. But you can always slap in a decent dedicated card whenever you feel like it.

David Gomez6 said:Can I just ask where the best place to grab a build like this would be? Ideally, I'd want them to handle the assembly too... I'm really not looking to mess around with building it myself.

Also, do you think my specs will actually notice the difference between an i5 and this AMD processor? Does it even make sense to go for the i5?

Newegg, when you pick out parts, they give you an option for free assembly.
An i5 makes sense if you need this thing to last for work long-term without any gaming involved.

This setup is plenty for work and some light gaming.

darkowl72 said:If you want to cool things down fast without messing with any hardware, just pop the side panel off. It’s like opening a window in a stuffy room. Airflow spikes immediately. Temps won't drop massively, but it's enough to see if your cooling setup is actually failing or just struggling. Just make sure the PC is off when you open it, and watch out for the family dog jumping inside. 😬

Learned this the hard way. Back when I was a kid, my cat decided an old Intel cooler looked like a bed. 😁
Now he won't even go near the rig. 🤣

Rachel Jones8 said:Should I list every single part? Fine, let me dig up my receipt and write it all down.

Yeah, that message about the Intel drivers probably refers to this, but... how do you even fix it? It’s not like my buddy (who actually knows his way around a PC) hasn't tried everything with the drivers... full reinstalls and all... he says there's zero issue to be found.
It didn't happen again today, though once it did exactly what you described... it glitched for a second, fixed itself, and then things were fine.
God, I hope it stays that way... and that it doesn't pull that black screen stunt again where the whole rig dies until a hard reboot.

Most likely, a newer driver update will patch this, so just keep an eye out for those.