Gaming PC build - around $1,200 budget

Timothy Kim60 said:Non-reference coolers might show up by Christmas for the 290—at least in the States.
http://wccftech.com/nonreference-amd...rrive-earlier/
http://www.techpowerup.com/195371/cu...n-r9-290x.html

An R9 290 paired with an Accelero is basically a whole different beast.

By the time those hit the shelves here, I’ll probably be retired. I suppose I was getting a bit worked up over this R9 290, but there's no rush. I think I'll take my time and see what the consensus is like over in the US regarding this hardware. If it turns out I really need it, I've already found an alternative, which is this:



Regarding that CF option you suggested, I also swapped in a different motherboard. Following your advice, I went with a beefier power supply. The price is about 10% higher since that was the cash price, but I guess I'll just wait a bit. It doesn't really matter to me for the next ten days or so.
Best,

The honest truth is:
By the time that tech actually hits the shelves here in the States, I’ll probably be retired—honestly! I've been getting pretty worked up about picking up that R9 290, but there's no rush. I want to take my sweet time and really dig into what the experts over in the US are saying about that specific card. If it turns out to be a total dud, I've already scouted out an alternative, which would be this



Regarding that Crossfire option you suggested—I've actually implemented it along with a different motherboard. Following your advice, I also stepped up to a beefier power supply; the price is running about 10% higher because that was the cash-upfront quote, but I'm telling you, I'm going to sit on this for a bit—it's not like I need to pull the trigger in the next ten days or anything.
Cheers!

I'm a little confused as to why you're bothering with a traditional hard drive if you aren't grabbing an SSD—seriously, just go with a Western Digital Blue, or better yet, a WD Black, or even a Toshiba drive. And please, grab a RAM 2 X4GB kit instead of just one single stick. To top it all off, you ended up picking the weakest graphics card out of everything we discussed... plus, that power supply might be a bit overkill, since a rig running two R9 270Xs isn't going to pull more than 550W. I suppose you're accounting for the possibility of swapping in a beefier card later, like an R9 290X or an R9 280X, but honestly? It's much more efficient to buy one strong card now rather than starting with a Crossfire setup of mid-range cards, only to end up in a real bind a few years down the road.

You aren't going to fix your book and warm-up issues with FC Barcelona, if anything, it might actually make them worse 😬

Forget it, everyone 😁 , I’m just kidding. When I was setting things up on the company website, there wasn't any mention of this hardware, blue or whatever. This new hire suggested these two graphics cards as the "queens of CF." Honestly, nobody has ever mentioned anything about having just two sticks of RAM before. Given the circumstances, I suppose I just need some peace and quiet
thanks, everyone

Check this out

Intel Core i7-based custom PC build
Asrock 990FX Extreme 3
Kingston HyperX 2 x4 GB 1600 MHz
GeForce GTX 970
WD Caviar Black 1TB
Asus DRW-24F1ST/BLK/B/AS
Spire Coolgate 2012
Fortron Raider S 750W 80+
Thermaltake Chaser A21

$2353 ( + 628) Total: $2562

Newegg

Honestly, there's really no point in trying to mess around with SLI using two GeForce GTX 750 Tis—you’d probably only see a tiny 5 FPS bump in most games, which just isn't worth the headache. Instead, going with the GeForce GTX 970 is the way to go; it can handle pretty much anything on Ultra-High settings, and you won't have to worry about it for at least another two or three years. If you went the other route, you'd be feeling the itch to upgrade again almost immediately. I also swapped in a faster drive, picked out a slightly different cooler—though you can still get a decent overclock out of it—and made sure to include an 8GB RAM kit. All of this is put together for roughly $17 less than what you're looking at with your current setup...

Real talk, here’s the deal:
Honestly, man, everyone's acting like 😁 is some huge deal—it's all in good fun! When I was originally putting together the build on the manufacturer's site, there wasn't any mention of those high-end specs, blue or whatever they call them. This new guy actually suggested these two graphics cards as the "queens of the custom builds," but honestly, nobody has ever even brought up anything this intense for just a couple bucks worth of RAM. All things considered, I think I just need a little peace and quiet for a bit.
Thanks, everyone.

Did you seriously just ask about dual-channel versus quad-channel?

fadedorca66 said:Look, you aren't going to fix your book budget or those rising heating costs by leaning on a CF—if anything, it's actually going to make things worse 😬

Absolute nonsense 😂

Timothy Fisher79 said:Have you heard about dual-channel or quad-channel setups?

Yeah, I have. lol

Timothy Fisher79 said:cosmicseal98 😂

That was my general impression, I guess.🙂

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuhK0IzZneM

It doesn't look all that dangerous to me. Does anyone here own an R9 290 who can tell me if it really is that loud? I have this feeling they just shoved a mic right against the GPU in all those videos. I mean, the PC won't be right next to my head; it’ll probably just be sitting on the bottom shelf near my feet.

cosmicseal98 said:well, that was kind of my initial thought too 🙂

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TuhK0IzZneM

It doesn't look *that* scary to me, but I'm curious—does anyone here actually own an R9 290 and can tell me if it’s truly as loud as they say? I have this nagging feeling that everyone makes these little videos where they basically strap a high-end studio mic directly onto the GPU itself—you know how it is. Honestly, my rig isn't going to be sitting right next to my ear; it'll be tucked away on a lower shelf near my feet.

A buddy of mine picked one up just last week. I was over at his place when he fired it up, and man, let me tell you—when he's just browsing the web or doing basic tasks, the card is totally silent. But the second he launched Crysis, it sounded like a jet engine taking off, which was honestly pretty jarring. You really can't miss that kind of noise, especially if you're living in a smaller apartment—you know, following those cramped urban living standards rather than having a massive American suburban setup. Plus, the thing got so hot you could have practically fried an egg on the shroud! My honest advice? Grab whatever card you think fits your needs, but please, just stay far away from the stock coolers... and I mean that for both AMD and Nvidia. Nvidia tends to have this more specific, high-pitched whine, whereas AMD produces this raw, heavy noise coming straight from those cheap-feeling fans. Seriously, take my word for it: steer clear of the reference models!!!

I'm inclined to agree that people are overreacting; looking at the benchmarks, the performance gap isn't actually that massive. http://www.anandtech.com/show/7481/t...-290-review/15

David Sanders4 said:I’m also leaning toward thinking it's mostly just hype—the actual benchmarks don't show such an astronomical gap in performance. http://www.anandtech.com/show/7481/t...-290-review/15

Honestly, I’d trust this community way more—these guys have been deep in the weeds with this kind of tech for decades now.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/...k,3659-18.html

That card could easily hit 50db of noise, so... yeah...

The AMD Radeon RX 580 performs a bit worse in gaming than the Nvidia GTX 770, plus you can find an MSI model for less at Best Buy.$33

cosmicseal98 said:Nobody has even brought up the two sticks of RAM yet, considering everything else.

Timothy Kim60 said:(2 eggs)

How could I not? 😬 It’s really not that big of a deal how you decide to handle it.
Look, most of what you need to know is already laid out right there. Just take your time and go through everything one more time with a fine-tooth comb. When you've been waiting for days or even weeks, a few extra hours don't really move the needle. On the bright side, inventory levels at Best Buy have finally picked up, so there's actually a decent selection of power supplies available now. You might even snag a slightly better deal if you look closely.

Timothy Fisher79 said:You’d be better off leaning on this forum; these guys have been grinding in this industry for decades.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/...k,3659-18.html

That card can push out 50dB, so...

Look, according to that PC expert benchmark table, the GTX 780 (the baseline) sits at 45 dB, while the R9 290 hits 49 dB. Sure, NVIDIA cards tend to be quieter, but the idea that they are significantly more silent is nothing more than an urban myth.

@The honest truth.
Just say you're using the Accelero cooler from Corsair and then we can drop the subject. click
I’ve already posted the link, but if you missed it, just check how quiet it gets toward the bottom of the page. click Check out these three videos below showing just how loud that Accelera can get. I’ve included one clip of it running an overclocked setup (check the 12V video) and another with a lighter overclock (the 7V video), which shows you how much quieter it gets when you aren't pushing it too hard. Also, take a look at the video featuring the stock cooler—the difference in noise levels is absolutely massive.

Also, once the video wraps up, you’ll see some suggestions at the bottom for the GTX 780 and the GTX 780 Ti—I can't recall the exact specs off the top of my head—but you can clearly hear how much noise those cards kick up. Sure, there are plenty of aftermarket coolers available now, but since that's way out of my budget anyway, there's really no point in even bringing them up.
It’s just how things work when you're dealing with high-end hardware. You simply can't draw any meaningful comparisons between these beasts and entry-level budget cards like the 7750. It's an entirely different league. 😬 )

Here’s another YouTube video showing the accelerometer at 100%.

That would be a very foolish way to spend your money.

Timothy Fisher79 said:There's no reason to run Crossfire with two R9 270 x cards. Using two R9 270 x units only nets you about 5 extra FPS over a single R9 280 x, so it's honestly not worth the investment. An R9 280 x can handle any game at Ultra-High settings, and it’ll keep you satisfied for at least 2–3 years before you even think about upgrading. I put together a build for you with a fast SSD, a slightly different cooler—though you could still get a decent overclock out of this one—and an 8GB RAM kit. All of this comes in at roughly $17 less than your current rig...

It isn't two 270x cards; they're the slightly cheaper 270s. Those are marginally more powerful than an R9 290, let alone an R9 280 x click — though as I mentioned before, they are just as loud as the R9 290.

If you have the study guides, I suppose taking a bit of extra time to really digest the material is the way to go. I think they might even try to install an Accelero cooler for me later at the service center. I’ve been checking out Tom's hardware site, but Firefox isn't showing any videos for some reason. Based on the text, they should be there, but nothing is loading. I guess I'm just stuck using my kid's computer right now.

Truth be told, I’d say:
if you've got the dust cleared out, it'll take a little bit of time, but if you really dive deep into the material, it pays off. I honestly think they might even offer to install an Accelero cooler at the service center later on. I was actually browsing Tom's Hardware for some info, but for some reason, Firefox isn't showing me any videos—though from reading the text, I can tell they're there. Typical. Anyway, I'm just surfing on my kid's computer right now.

Google Chrome, hell yeah! 😁

Timothy Kim60 said:not really 😬 though it isn't exactly a dealbreaker regarding how you choose to go about it
Anyway, everything you need is laid out right there—just take your time and give it another careful read-through. Since you've already been waiting for a few days, or even weeks, what's a little more time? On the bright side, there's actually more power supplies (and general stock, really) available at Best Buy now, so you have a much better selection. You might even snag something a tiny bit cheaper

And look, if you check those PC Expert charts, the GTX 780 (reference model) hits 45 dB, while the R9 290 sits at 49 dB. Sure, Nvidia cards tend to be quieter, but the idea that they are *vastly* quieter is mostly just an urban legend

@The Truth
I’m telling you, just grab the Accelero cooler from Micro Center and you'll be set click
I've already posted the link, but if you haven't seen just how quiet it is, scroll to the bottom of the page— click —there are three videos down there showing the noise levels of that Accelero. One shows it overclocked (check the 12V video) and another shows a lighter OC (the 7V video), which means it's even quieter without the OC. Then you have the video with the stock cooler; the difference is absolutely massive

Also, once the video ends, you'll see links for the GTX 780 and GTX 780 Ti—I can't remember them all off the top of my head—and you can clearly see those things hum pretty loudly too. The only thing is that there are non-reference coolers available for them now, but since it won't fit his budget anyway, there's no point in bringing it up.
That's just how it works with high-end gear; you simply can't compare it to budget cards like the 7750 (the ultimate 😬 )

Here is another YouTube video featuring the Accelero (running at 100%)

That would be money very wisely spent

They aren't two 270X models; they are the slightly cheaper 270s. Those are actually a bit more powerful than the R9 290, let alone the AMD Radeon R9 280X click —but I should mention again that they are roughly just as loud as the R9 290

Do you honestly think he needs two R9 270s?? I personally don't think so

It’s hard to say if he actually needs it or not—that really depends on how demanding his taste is—but I just laid out all the available options for him. Personally, I’m not one to go chasing after overpriced, top-of-the-line GPUs, but you have to remember he’s building a serious gaming rig here. It definitely fits within his budget (though running dual cards might get a bit noisy), and more importantly, we have to account for his monitor setup. Given his screen size and pixel density, things probably won't look quite as "crisp" up close as they would on a standard 1080p monitor. I’m not saying it’ll look bad, but logically, someone with a monitor like that is going to want to crank everything up to max resolution.

An AMD Radeon R9 290 paired with an Accelero cooler is hands-down the best value when you look at the price-to-performance ratio for high-end gear. The 290X is barely better and costs $800-$$433 more, so it's definitely not worth it compared to the 290. Then you've got the GTX 780 (which is $$267 cheaper and slightly weaker), the GTX 780Ti ($1300-$$567 more for a tiny boost), and especially the Titan, where the price gap is just ridiculous. If he grabs the 290 and adds a decent cooler—he could even go with liquid cooling to make it quieter and cooler than anything else on the market—he can still overclock it and have money left over for other parts.

Alexander Moore67 said:This AMD Radeon R9 280X is actually slower in games than the Nvidia GTX 770, and you can find an MSI 770 cheaper$33 at Best Buy.

I'm not really sure where you got that from. These cards are pretty much on par. Maybe the R9 280X feels a bit faster because the GTX 770 in that PC test was overclocked, but the R9 280X is usually $67 cheaper—it’s just hard to find them in stock here lately.

crimsonstag84 said:I’m really not sure where you’re getting that from—the cards are pretty much neck-and-neck. If anything, the GTX 780 might look a bit faster in those PC Gamer tests because they were running an overclocked version, whereas the GTX 780 is actually $67 a better value, though they've been impossible to find in stores around here lately.

It’s honestly a bit silly to argue—the GTX 770 actually beats out the GTX 780 by about 10 fps in Crysis 3, roughly 12 fps in Far Cry 3, and maybe 9 fps in Just Cause 2. The only time they truly tie is in grid 2. So, looking at pure performance, one is clearly faster, yet when you look at the price, it’s a wash. Even if you want to get picky about models, you can find various versions of the GTX 780 ranging from $733 up to $867, while the GTX 770 usually sits anywhere from $733 to $900. It's pointless to obsess over the cost alone; every card has its quirks. For instance, the GTX 780 boasts faster memory bandwidth than the GTX 770, but then the GTX 770 has a texture filter that’s about 20% better... so, we could just sit here and debate all day! At the end of the day, both are top-tier pieces of hardware.

At this point, we might as well just pretend to be fanboys, because honestly, none of the people arguing here even have these benchmarks in front of them, so