The PC Building Thread

just been playing far cry 3 on ultra and 8x msaa or whatever it is, textures on enhanced etc

PC handles it great, plays perfect and the graphics are the best I have seen

one problem is the hot gpu again as both of my gpus are running at near max and the max fan speed I can have is 85% they got hot

gpu 1 was 93 so changed my profile fan again and most it went to second time was 87 ish (still to hot)

gpu 2 was doing more processing but was not as hot.

heat coming out of the PC exhaust fan was HOT!
 
As a starter I have just removed both GPU's

Gave them a bit of a dust down, surface dust was a fair bit and it was also clumped stuck to it so no doubt inside it will be covered.

I have swapped them around now so they are in different slots.

added a new exhaust fan

temps so far are good on a cold boot, an improvement on before.

both GPU temps are consistent with each other whereas before GPU 1 was considerably higher even on idle temps. Before GPU 1 was approx. 15 degrees higher

both are running at 38c idle. with 50% fan speed

whereas before they were
GPU 1 71% cold boot
GPU 2 46% cold boot


Far Cry on ultra settings, msaa x8 , hbao etc.

average 70+ FPS and GPU temps now

GPU 1 = max 76
GPU 2 = max 75

only problem now is I don't see my post screen so can't get into the bios. GPU doesn't seem to kick in until the PC has booted

gotta be because I swapped the cards around but how do I fix it.

wondering if it is anything to do with the sli bridge I have on it, maybe that needs turning around or something
 
Your screen doesn't need to be on to access the BIOS, just keep pressing the button (F1 or DEL etc) as soon as your PC and when your screen comes on, you'll be in the BIOS then.
 
yea I was doing that and it was getting me into it but it was not displaying anything.

I have fixed it by changing the port my monitors were on

I had both monitors on the 2nd card

I now have monitor 1 on gpu 1 and monitor 2 on gpu 2.

anyone else running dual screens here with windows 8?

trying to get used to it myself, my left monitor which is my preferred opens the start menu and most apps (suppose that is normal)
 
what do you think, should i buy a nvidia or amd card and what version with a intel i5 processor can i play the latest games?
 
i just want to buy a new computer with a intel core i5 procesor
6-8 gb ram
and a nvidia gtx 630

it costs something about 700 , but what do you think about the graphic card?
 
Guys I bought new motherboard, new GTX 670, new DDR3 memory, new cpu, I wonder can I try to run new system with old HDD with Windows 7 or do I have to reinstall windows too? Been thinking that I just replace old parts and replace with new and start computer as usually.
 
premier1 said:
i just want to buy a new computer with a intel core i5 procesor
6-8 gb ram
and a nvidia gtx 630

it costs something about 700 , but what do you think about the graphic card?
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Graphics card is incredibly poor, and with a budget of £700 you could build something amazing.

Enzo:
As dags said you will have to reformat. You will get blue screen of death alot if the mobo drivers are incorrect and the PC might not even boot.
 
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How much do you want to spend on a graphics card?

If you want an Nvidia card I'd look at a GTX 660 or maybe the older 560. Get the Ti version if you can afford it. If you want to go AMD then look at a 7850 or 7870.

If you can afford a bit more then look at a 670 from Nvidia or a 7950 from AMD.
 
Wow, this thread has gone nuts. I want the best machine possible for around £800, minus a monitor/keyboard/mouse/sound system.

Could some clever bod help me out and spec one please from barebone. Gaming machine, SSD, i5 or i7, awesome graphics card etc. etc.
 
Here is something:



Some components can be changed for better ones if needed.
If you got stuff all ready, you probably won't need a case and might not need a power supply.
With the build above if you do have extra money I would probably change the motherboard for a more expensive one, but some people aren't bothered by motherboard specs.

The SSD is a good one, but there are very high performance ones for £110, I am about to sell my OCZ Vertex 4 on eBay for £70-£80 and that is only 4 months old as I just bought a 256GB Vector.

Also these are prices from just one website, when your specs are complete and I have a better understanding of what you want, will price check loads of sites to get the price complete price.
 
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Cheers mate. I don't have anything at the moment. Just a laptop.

YOUR BASKET
1 x Gigabyte ATI Radeon HD 7870 OC Windforce 3X 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £199.99
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £179.99
1 x Plextor M5 Pro 128GB Extreme Series Solid State Drive - (PX-128M5P) £99.95
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £79.99
1 x Corsair Carbide 300R Mid Tower Case - Black £64.99
1 x GeIL Black Dragon 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C11 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (GD316GB1600C11DC) **OcUK Exclusive** £59.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM 1TB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST1000DM003) HDD £59.99
1 x XFX Pro 550W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £49.99
1 x Alpenföhn Matterhorn Pure Edition CPU Cooler (Socket 775 / 1155 / 1156 / 1366 / AM2 / AM2+ / AM3 / FM1 / FM2) £29.99
Total : £839.87 (includes shipping : £12.50).
 
I've got the Alpenfohn cooler and it's very nice. Also got the 200r version of the Corsair cases and that's also excellent.
 
Scutch said:
Cheers mate. I don't have anything at the moment. Just a laptop.

YOUR BASKET
1 x Gigabyte ATI Radeon HD 7870 OC Windforce 3X 2048MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £199.99
1 x Intel Core i5-3570K 3.40GHz (Ivybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor (77W) - Retail £179.99
1 x Plextor M5 Pro 128GB Extreme Series Solid State Drive - (PX-128M5P) £99.95
1 x Gigabyte Z77-D3H Intel Z77 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £79.99
1 x Corsair Carbide 300R Mid Tower Case - Black £64.99
1 x GeIL Black Dragon 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C11 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (GD316GB1600C11DC) **OcUK Exclusive** £59.99
1 x Seagate Barracuda 7200RPM 1TB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST1000DM003) HDD £59.99
1 x XFX Pro 550W Core Edition '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply £49.99
1 x Alpenföhn Matterhorn Pure Edition CPU Cooler (Socket 775 / 1155 / 1156 / 1366 / AM2 / AM2+ / AM3 / FM1 / FM2) £29.99
Total : £839.87 (includes shipping : £12.50).
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I wouldn't change much with that build, just don't use Overpriced.co.uk to buy the components.
I would probably get a 600W power supply to be safe and make sure it's modular.
I certainly wouldn't recommend the M5 SSD if your looking at the price you are for an extra £5 you can get the 840PRO which is the current industry leader or get a cheaper one if your not too bothered about performance.
The 7870 is a very good card and should be good enough even for next gen.
 
bsmaff said:
I wouldn't change much with that build, just don't use Overpriced.co.uk to buy the components.
I would probably get a 600W power supply to be safe and make sure it's modular.
I certainly wouldn't recommend the M5 SSD if your looking at the price you are for an extra £5 you can get the 840PRO which is the current industry leader or get a cheaper one if your not too bothered about performance.
The 7870 is a very good card and should be good enough even for next gen.
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Thanks for that mate! Much appreciated.

Someone recommended the 7950 card but its £50 more and perhaps overkill.

Also said 16GB is too excessive and not needed.
 
Scutch said:
Thanks for that mate! Much appreciated.

Someone recommended the 7950 card but its £50 more and perhaps overkill.

Also said 16GB is too excessive and not needed.
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You could get the 7950 if you wanted, as it is a better card.

16GB is overkill but since RAM is so dirt cheap at the moment there isn't much harm in spending the extra. Or save yourself £30 on ram and that pays for the 7950.
 
After years of console gaming I got back into PC gaming. Which games should I test with my new rig? My previous PC which lasted like 6 years was old AMD dual core setup with just one gig ram and a gpu that couldnt handle any game. So what have I been missing? I like the sports games like PES, shooters, rpg, racing, you guys name it. This is my current setup, is there anything I can add or improve, or is it good for the coming years?


Intel Core i5 3570K Boxed

ASRock Z77 Extreme4

Asus HD7950-DC2T-3GD5-V2

Seagate Barracuda 7200.14 ST2000DM001, 2TB

Fractal Design Define R4 Pearl Black

BenQ GW2450HM

Scythe Mugen 3 PC Games Hardware Edition

Corsair Vengeance CML8GX3M2A1600C9 Low Profile

Lite-On iHAS120

Seasonic M12II 650W 80+ Bronze

Crucial m4 SSD 2.5" 256GB
 
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That's a great setup there. The 7950 should handle anything you throw at it at high or max settings. The likes of Battlefield 3, Skyrim, Crysis etc, are always given as the graphical benchmarks to test your graphics card.
 
Jamezinho said:
That's a great setup there. The 7950 should handle anything you throw at it at high or max settings. The likes of Battlefield 3, Skyrim, Crysis etc, are always given as the graphical benchmarks to test your graphics card.
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Thanks, yeah it should be able to handle all of the games on max atleast. But the games you named, like BF3 and skyrim, I already played those on my consoles. Are there any PC only games that profit from my hardware, which I should play?
 
Soulja said:
Thanks, yeah it should be able to handle all of the games on max atleast. But the games you named, like BF3 and skyrim, I already played those on my consoles. Are there any PC only games that profit from my hardware, which I should play?
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BF3 is probably the best graphical game on PC. There is only 4 graphics cards which can play it on ULTRA at 60FPS.
Also saying you played BF3 on console is not playing BF3, it is a completely different game on PC, the console version is absolutely incredibly piss poor compared to the PC version.

Apart from that there isn't much to fully test PC hardware as until the next gen consoles come out PC games will always remain console games with amazing graphics.

Mods are another way to make games look a lot better, GTA 4 has an amazing mod called ICE Enhancer and most games have mods which massively improve the texture quality, like for instance F1 on PC is 512x512 out the box the textures I run on my PC are 4096x4096.
 
If you're talking about PC specific games then you need to look at strategy games and simulations, two genres that consoles aren't really catering for.

There are some great looking racing sims on the PC.
 
Jamezinho said:
If you're talking about PC specific games then you need to look at strategy games and simulations, two genres that consoles aren't really catering for.

There are some great looking racing sims on the PC.
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There do look to be some great PC only titles, it's tempting me again to build a PC.....

That and the fact that when both new consoles come out they'll cost £350-£400 each anyways. Get both, as I would, and I'd be a long way towards getting a full gaming PC. Plus, by the time both are released, PC hardware will probably have moved off into the distance even further.
 
Suuuuupertalk said:
There do look to be some great PC only titles, it's tempting me again to build a PC.....

That and the fact that when both new consoles come out they'll cost £350-£400 each anyways. Get both, as I would, and I'd be a long way towards getting a full gaming PC. Plus, by the time both are released, PC hardware will probably have moved off into the distance even further.
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You should do it. Getting back into PC gaming was totally the right decision for me.

The cost of building a decent gaming rig can be a barrier to entry as it will most likely cost £600+, but once you are up and running, PC gaming is much cheaper in the long term. Keeping a PC up-to-date can be done at a modest cost if you're smart about it.

Then you have the games - much more genres to choose from such as simulations and strategy games - and all much cheaper. Steam is a wonderful service and I download most of my games now. The Steam sales mean you can build a huge library of games on the cheap. For instance, I recently picked up Hitman Absolution Pro Edition for £13 and Sleeping Dogs for £11. Apart from my rFactor2 subscription I haven't paid more than £20 for a game yet.

The new generation of consoles will most likely reach something approaching parity with your average gaming PC in the short term, but PCs are constantly evolving and it won't be long before the PS4 and Xbox720 are left behind again. I think the upcoming consoles will deliver full 1080p gaming at 60fps, which has been the standard on PCs for a few years already. I'm not sure they will offer the leap in performance some are expecting, but to console players who are stuck with poor frame rates at sub-HD resolutions they will seem like it.

Like you said, the new consoles will most likely be in the £350-400 price range. That's about the same as a high-end graphics card such as AMD's Radeon HD7970 or Nvidia's GTX 680. I know what I'd rather spend my money on.
 
Jamezinho said:
You should do it. Getting back into PC gaming was totally the right decision for me.

The cost of building a decent gaming rig can be a barrier to entry as it will most likely cost £600+, but once you are up and running, PC gaming is much cheaper in the long term. Keeping a PC up-to-date can be done at a modest cost if you're smart about it.

Then you have the games - much more genres to choose from such as simulations and strategy games - and all much cheaper. Steam is a wonderful service and I download most of my games now. The Steam sales mean you can build a huge library of games on the cheap. For instance, I recently picked up Hitman Absolution Pro Edition for £13 and Sleeping Dogs for £11. Apart from my rFactor2 subscription I haven't paid more than £20 for a game yet.

The new generation of consoles will most likely reach something approaching parity with your average gaming PC in the short term, but PCs are constantly evolving and it won't be long before the PS4 and Xbox720 are left behind again. I think the upcoming consoles will deliver full 1080p gaming at 60fps, which has been the standard on PCs for a few years already. I'm not sure they will offer the leap in performance some are expecting, but to console players who are stuck with poor frame rates at sub-HD resolutions they will seem like it.

Like you said, the new consoles will most likely be in the £350-400 price range. That's about the same as a high-end graphics card such as AMD's Radeon HD7970 or Nvidia's GTX 680. I know what I'd rather spend my money on.
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That's good advice :)

Yeah I'm seriously tempted, though I'm gonna leave it for a while. I'm happy right now with my 360 and PS3, so I'm thinking about getting a PC when the new consoles are released. The hardware for PC's will probably have skipped up a notch compared to now. That said, I'll always end up getting consoles too, as I'd miss not playing games with my mates, but I can wait quite a while for that until the prices go down. £400 for a new console is crazy in my opinion. I think I'd rather wait until they're down to at least £250.
 
Well DagsJT, I finally went out and bought the Benq XL2420TX, which is the normal XL2420T but comes with the emitter built in, a pair of 3D vision 2 glasses and allows 3D over HDMI.

Ordered of amazon which cost me £369.99, so when it arrives tomorrow will have to see if it looks good or whether I have flushed £350 down the toilet as 3D gaming sucks.
 
bsmaff said:
Well DagsJT, I finally went out and bought the Benq XL2420TX, which is the normal XL2420T but comes with the emitter built in, a pair of 3D vision 2 glasses and allows 3D over HDMI.

Ordered of amazon which cost me £369.99, so when it arrives tomorrow will have to see if it looks good or whether I have flushed £350 down the toilet as 3D gaming sucks.
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Looking forward to your thoughts. If you have a good GPU capable of still getting good graphics in 3D and keeping a nice framerate then some stuff looks excellent. Trine was pretty remarkable.

As it is now, I've got a 120hz monitor with no 3D and my single 7950 not able to hit 120fps on most major games anyway so kinda wasted at the moment. Hopefully I'll get a GTX 780 in the winter and that might get closer to the 120fps.
 
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