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Father Xmas

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  1. Father Xmas
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Arcanaville View Post
    On an i7-860, its also likely I would have to disable hyperthreading to get the maximum possible overclock, and that might also be a less than optimal change given my workloads.
    It's Turbo Boost and not Hyperthreading that needs to be shut down for maximum OC of an i5/i7.
  2. Father Xmas
    Hyperthreading allows a core that has it to be a bit more efficient with the use of it's "guts" by running two threads at the same time instead of the OS scheduling them sequentially.

    While Sam is right about the safety scissors and bubble wrap of the Windows 7 UI and administration functionality you have to remember that the core purpose of a multitasking OS is to share limited resources among all the tasks that want to use them.

    As for CPU parking, now that Intel has CPUs that will automatically overclock if the workload can be handled by fewer cores and AMD has CPUs can power down unused cores (and in the future also overclock the remaining), giving the OS the "smarts" to restrict the number of cores being used until a certain backlog is reached seems like a good idea to me.
  3. Father Xmas
    There are three problems with the two Acer models.

    1) They are slim line cases meaning you can only use low profile video cards.

    2) The PSUs are small at 220 watts. This will also limit your choice of video card. Also finding a larger wattage PSUs for those cases can be difficult.

    3) Integrated graphics. I think the nVidia is somewhat better than Intel's but in either case we aren't talking about great performance in this game.
  4. Father Xmas
    Well even though PCIe V1 and V2 should be compatible, it may just be a case that the really early PCIe V1 controllers can't handle the most recent PCIe V2.1 cards. That the accumulated differences is now just enough to be a problem. Or it could be as simple as something that's fixable with a BIOS upgrade but I'm suspecting the MB is old enough that no new BIOS upgrades will be coming.
  5. Father Xmas

    Thinking of...

    POST-ACTION

    Even if you don't OC it, the HD 5970 can draw 300-350 watts when running GPU torture tests. Normally in games it's only around 200-250 watts. And 99% of that power is from 12 volts so at about 30 amps of 12V power just for the video card.
  6. Father Xmas
    BTX is a good point since first, there isn't a bracket spot for a double bracket videocard and second, that CPU/Heatsink is in the way for nearly all heatsinks found on double wide cards.

    So PCIe V1 Vs PCIe V2, not a problem. Physically fit that card into your system, big problem.
  7. Father Xmas
    Great then. I know of people who were surprised by the length of the single GPU HD 5870 and were forced to break out the power tools.

    Edit: Yep, the HAF 932 can handle cards up to 12.7" long. That's a BIG case.
  8. Father Xmas
    You do realize that the HD 5970 is over a foot long? I hope your case can fit it.
  9. Father Xmas
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Back_Blast View Post
    Buy me one too?



    Basically, the 1200 number is a single one-way data transfer speed. The 4800 is the cumulative speed number. It's technical and I can't come up with a simple way to explain it right off. Perhaps someone else can but essentially 1200 = 4800. It's just two ways to say the same thing. The number to actually pay attention to is the core clock. Anything above 850MHz means it's a factory overclock model. Otherwise, yes they are all essentially the same card. The real differences come in brands, their quality, extras in the box, warranties, etc. I like XFX, some like Sapphire, Gigabyte should be good, not too certain beyond that.
    Once upon a time memory could only be accessed once per clock cycle so clock speed was the same a maximum theoretical data rate. It was called Single Data Rate memory (SDR).

    Later came Double Data Rate memory or DDR. In the case with DDR, DDR2 and DDR3, memory can be accessed twice per clock cycle so effectively the clock speed is doubled. For instance DDR2-800 memory only runs at 400 MHz.

    GDDR5 is a little different. Internally it's twice the bit width of older GDDR3 memory, meaning that each access gets you twice the amount of data. Multiply that with two accesses per clock and now it's like SDR memory running at four times the frequency. So 1200MHz GDDR5 is like SDR memory running at 4800MHz.
  10. Father Xmas
    You exceed the system requirements by a whole lot so I have no idea what "tweaks" were required to make it run. Care to elaborate?
  11. Father Xmas
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by enrious2 View Post
    1) The Trial Account/Buy Full Version box. I honestly don't have a problem with this, but if you reposition the box, it will automatically reset to the center of the screen every time you zone or go in/out of a mission.

    Personally, I'd prefer that it remembers where I moved the box for each session - in other words, if I logout and login, it should be back to the center of the screen, but if I move it and then zone, it stays where I moved it.

    2) The 50k inf limit. To be perfectly honest here, I have no idea if that's appropriate for a lvl 14 toon to buy their enhs and so on. I think so, but maybe someone has some insight on if it should be higher (to say 1mil)?

    3) Trial accounts can't walk up to a MA terminal, search for a mission, and then try out a MA mission - they have to ask someone to start a team and invite them.

    No problem with them not being able to create a MA mission, but not being able to try one on their own?

    On a related note, currently a trial player recieves a note saying "You're unable to acces Architect Entertainment from this location", in case someone asks you what's going on.

    4) I'm guessing trial accounts are prevented from sending team invites because of a concern of spammers doing a /i then spamming a /g message, but I wonder how much of a concern that is compared to a couple of friends trying the game out and having to ask for someone to start a team for them.

    Comments?

    5) On a related note, global channels. As mentioned in my intro post, I run into a lot of new players these days and many are on trials. Until they get the full version, they can't join the Mentor global channel and part of me wonders if this restriction is still necessary.
    1) No problem with this.

    2) A level 15 DO maxes out at around 6K each. At level 14 we have 9 power picks plus a couple of standard powers plus 12 slots. So let's say 25 slots to populate so that's about 150K inf. I don't want to bump that much higher (lets say 200K) since the purpose of the cap is to reduce the amount of inf "mules" can carry.

    3) It's a trial so therefore an introduction to the game. MA access could "hide" the breadth of the game from people trying out the game. We don't want them to camp at MA exclusively.

    4) I have mixed feelings over this. Yes it's a way to restrict an avenue for RMT spam but teaming is a big aspect of all MMOs. If there was a way to limit invites only to players within the /l hearing range or to players you can visually see.

    5) What is needed is a Trial server channel that's automatically setup for new characters. The Mentors can monitor it to provide help.
  12. Father Xmas
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Yogurt View Post
    Yeah, I just wanted to know why it only affected SOME people, and not ALL people. I think it's a little unfair that I didn't get bumped from 39 months to 45 months, while some people stopped playing just as much as they did play and went from 24 months to 45 months.

    I actually read her post a couple times, because I was (and still am) baffled that only SOME people were affected.
    I'm guessing that some early records of subscription lapses were lost or perhaps it was "free" time from editions, bonus time from their recommend a friend program not being handled consistantly or the ability to divide 365.25 days by 12 over six years. Maybe all the CS "fixes" to VR data made the subscription data they had questionable.
  13. Father Xmas
    Well the high end rig also got a price increase for the same reasons.

    Again I now include a copy of Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit OEM with the build for $100 and upped the limit by $75 since I'm also now over $1200 on the hardware before discounts.
  14. Father Xmas
    Well it's been a while so time for one of the biggest changes in the low end rig since I first listed it, a price increase.

    It's not as big of a price increase as it first seems, I now include a copy of Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit OEM with the build and that's around $100 right there. So in reality it's a $50 increase in price, mainly due to the fact I can't get the hardware price comfortably below $600 before discounts anymore.

    Also I've decided that Intel Socket 775 is a dead end. Yes they will keep introducing low end CPU's that'll bump the frequency up another 100-200 MHz while dropping the lowest one and shifting the rest down in price but I'm not expecting a new high end part for this socket. So to give people an opportunity to upgrade a year to two from now I've gone to AMD's Socket AM3 series of CPUs. They have various dual, triple, quad and soon hex core CPUs with and without L3 cache at price/performance points that are inline with Intel's Socket 1156 offerings, whose lowest end is still outside of my target price range.

    First, let's recap changes I didn't post about in the old $600 build that I'm keeping in the $750 one. The combo case/PSU from Antec I use to have has been discontinued and the new upgraded one hasn't arrived at NewEgg so I had to swap it out with replacements. I ended up choosing the Antec Three Hundred gaming case, NewEgg has a version that comes with additional front fans already installed. For a PSU I went with the 430 watt Seasonic S12II 430 Bronze. Together this was about the same cost as the original Antec combo with the additional fans.

    As for parts that hadn't changed, those are the SATA optical and hard drives. As long as the damn SATA DVD burner stays in stock.

    Now for the new.

    First the motherboard. Went with the MSI 770-C45. It's socket AM3 and it supports 125 watt CPUs which includes all the current AM3 CPUs. I had to include an additional SATA cable since it only comes with one.

    For a CPU I went with the 2.9GHz AMD Athlon II X2 245 which is a tad faster in games than the E6300 Pentium Dual Core from my previous build. I coupled it with 4GB of DDR3-1333, Cas 9 memory since it's socket AM3.

    Lastly for the graphics, I went all out for Ultra Mode by including a 1GB XFX HD 5770 video card which is considerably faster (around 20%) than the 512MB GTS 250 in the previous build. I give credit to Human_Being, who ideas on an Ultra Mode parts list was uncannily similar to mine, who convinced me that saving $15 by putting in a 1GB HD 5750 was short sighted considering the performance difference (about 15%).

    So now the $750 with OS rig is now using modern memory, has a clear upgrade path and decent Ultra Mode graphics. Hopefully this will
  15. Father Xmas
    Performance wise no. But the fan shroud on the Asus is just plain silly (look at the 360 view).
  16. Father Xmas


    Did you ever get a foreboding feeling about a blind date?


    If I am a winner, I permit NC Interactive, Inc. and NCsoft Europe Limited to use my name, likeness, photograph, hometown, and any comments that I may make about myself or this contest that I provide for advertising and promotional activities. I also certify that I am at least 13 years of age and am eligible to participate in this contest.
  17. Father Xmas
    Yes and now we are in open Beta, there is a switch to enable beta multiple graphic card support.
  18. Father Xmas
    Well according to Notebookcheck the 9600M GT has 32 streaming processors clocked at 1250 MHz while the GT 330M has 48 streaming processors clocked at 1265 MHz.

    Also the 9600M GT clocked in at 9592 in 3DMark05 while the GT 330M clocks in at 12579.

    So I'm guessing 25% faster but we'll have to wait and see what the benchmarks say.
  19. Father Xmas
    OpenGL has evolved as well as DirectX, both taking advantage of the hardware available in Dx10/10.1/11 cards. Actually OpenGL had features found in Dx10 before there was a Dx10.
  20. Father Xmas

    Hello im new

    POST-ACTION

    Well in the way back, before difficulty settings, some classes had real problems soloing missions. I remember my 8-14 controller not having any fun in a mission versus skull bosses. I seem to remember cursing the name Marrowsnap. I can also remember my defender having problems on occasion.

    This was back in the day that debt started at level 5 and the debt cap was quite high. Scrappers and blasters were usually OK to solo due to their damage and tanks could simply survive due to their defenses and hit points.
  21. Father Xmas
    That's why you look at the pictures such as the one that's the bracket/ports view. Wider coolers will stick out and be all obvious like.

    Kry8ter, sorry, can't think of one. The more powerful the card, the more power it uses, the more heat it generates, the bigger the cooler it needs. The 9800GT is pretty much the limit when it comes to low profile, single slot coolers.
  22. Father Xmas
    Myriad, are you sure you are looking at the stock clock HD 5770 numbers and not the extreme overclocked ones on that first page.

    Crysis Warhead
    1280x1024, 4xAA, 16xAF - HD 5770 20.8fps - HD 5850 30.5fps - +46%
    1680x1050, 4xAA, 16xAF - HD 5770 16.6fps - HD 5850 24.6fps - +48%
    1920x1200, 4xAA, 16xAF - HD 5770 14.4fps - HD 5850 20.6fps - +43%

    Farcry 2
    1280x1024, 4xAA, 16xAF - HD 5770 51.4fps - HD 5850 75.3fps - +46%
    1680x1050, 4xAA, 16xAF - HD 5770 43.5fps - HD 5850 65.2fps - +49%
    1920x1200, 4xAA, 16xAF - HD 5770 39.0fps - HD 5850 56.5fps - +44%

    GTA4
    1280x1024, 0xAA, 16xAF - HD 5770 42.8fps - HD 5850 48.7fps - +13%
    1680x1050, 0xAA, 16xAF - HD 5770 37.8fps - HD 5850 45.1fps - +19%
    1920x1200, 0xAA, 16xAF - HD 5770 34.2fps - HD 5850 41.4fps - +21%

    WoW
    1280x1024, 4xAA, 16xAF - HD 5770 58.7fps - HD 5850 70.7fps - +20%
    1680x1050, 4xAA, 16xAF - HD 5770 51.0fps - HD 5850 60.8fps - +19%
    1920x1200, 4xAA, 16xAF - HD 5770 48.4fps - HD 5850 56.9fps - +17%

    Looking at the remaining games benchmarked at PCGamesHardware, only at the 1920x1200 resolution.

    Call of Duty: World at War - 22%
    Fallout 3 - 28%
    Half Life 2: Ep 2 - 45%
    Race Driver: Grid - 37%
    Stalker: Clear Sky - 47%

    So surprise, some games scale better to graphics hardware than others. I simply object to saying the card only gives 20%, which may be true in some games, isn't true in all.

    Where the new UM engine for CoV/H falls, we won't know until I17 open beta when everyone can take a crack at playing with the new game settings. But I have a sneaking suspicion, well not so sneaky if you check out Positron's post on UM hardware, that heftier hardware the better and the HD 5770 gives you mid range UM settings.
  23. Father Xmas
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Zubenelgenubi View Post
    Thanks, Bill.

    I compared your list to that of Father Xmas here and I have a couple of questions:

    Your rig managed to come in at almost $200 cheaper than his. The cheif difference appears to be that yours has a slightly faster processor (2.8 vs. 2.66 GHz) while his has a much more expensive video card ($329 vs. $169). Would you mind terribly commenting on the differences please?

    Also, his shopping list has a "heat pipe direct contact" heat sink that I think gets physically glued to the processor using the thermal bonding compound. What are your thoughts on that? Necessary? Overkill? Pain-in-the-butt to do?

    Thanks in advance.
    Hi Zub, I was away from home all last week so I didn't see your e-mail. Sorry it's taken so long to get back.

    As others pointed out, the major difference in cost between my $1200 build and Memphis_Bill's is the CPU and video card. However there is one other difference.

    My $1200 build is designed around the thought that if someone is going to spend that much money on a gaming PC, they are likely going to want to go one step beyond and that is overclocking the CPU and going with multiple video cards sometime in the future. Unlike the motherboard in Memphis_Bill's build, the one in mine allows both video card slots to run at x8 PCIe V2.0 speeds while Bill's 2nd slot will only run at x4 at PCIe V1.0 speed (PCIe V2.0 is twice as fast as PCIe V1.0). You could still run Crossfire with Bill's motherboard, it's doesn't help as much. The cost of the SLi/Crossfire motherboard, the larger PSU to support two HD 5850s and an OC CPU as well as the third party CPU cooler and tube of Arctic Silver adds $100 to cost.

    The cost difference between the i5-750 and the i7-860 is $80-90. I don't see that added cost helping gaming performance all that much either in chart from AnandTech's Benchmark database (games near the bottom) or the gaming benchmarks in this review of CPUs. Yes the i7-860 does have hyperthreading, a slightly faster clock speed and turbo mode speed and allows use of DDR3-1600 memory without overclocking but I think the above benchmarks show that for games, it's not worth the cost.

    Yes the cost savings between the HD 5850 and the HD 5770 is $160 but the performance difference isn't a mere 20%. The HD 5850 is 45-50% faster than the HD 5770. I also figure that is someone is going to spend $1200 on a gaming PC, CoH/V isn't going to be the only game they are looking to play.

    There are a few other miscellaneous differences. Bill's build goes with a 2nd smaller hard drive for what I assume is for the OS as well as the original CM 690, which is a great case, over the CM 690 II. I simply feel the refinements in the CM 690 II is worth the extra $20. Note: Before the CM 690 II came out, my $1200 build did use the CM 690.

    I'll PM you the answer to your question.
  24. Father Xmas
    OK, I have two possible methods. Both could be dangerous. Both use regedit.

    Since you are in XP and I'm in XP, these instructions should work.

    For both methods. First copy your current live install, the whole folder, to whatever drive you are planning on relocating it to.

    Method 1

    1. Start -> Run -> regedit --- This should start the Registry Editor.
    2. Ctrl+F or Edit->Find in the Registry Editor should bring up the Find dialog.
    3. Check the "Keys" and "Match whole strings only" check boxes.
    4. In the "Find What" type in coh and press find next.
    5. It should open the entry for ...\Software\Cryptic\Coh. In the right panel look for the entry for "Installation Directory".
    6. Right click on it and select Modify. This should bring up the "Edit String" dialog.
    7. Alter the "Value Data" with the new directory. Upper/lowercase counts. Click OK when you are done.
    8. Exit Registry Editor.
    Method 2

    1. Copy, not move, cohupdater.exe and cohupdater_ui_win.dll to your desktop from your current live install, not shortcuts, the actual files.
    2. Do steps 1-4 from Method 1.
    3. Right click on the Coh in the left panel of the Registry Editor and choose delete.
    4. Exit the Registry Editor.
    5. Doubleclick on the cohupdater.exe on the desktop and it will ask you where to install the game, enter the new location,
    6. The updater should perform a checksum of the files at this new location and you should be all set.
    The downside of Method 2 is you will lose all your video and audio game settings.

    Both methods will require you to make a new shortcut to the game.

    I'm open to other, less invasive suggestions.
  25. Father Xmas
    The card's length is 19.7cm, width of 4cm. Now if you click on the picture of the card that shows the card from the top edge (next to the last one on the right), it will blow up and display a picture that's almost as wide as your browser window. Capture that image and print it out (landscape mode). If you don't have a printer then you will be forced to measure off the screen.

    Now break out your calculator and ruler. Measure the length of the card (board part, exclude the bracket). Remember that it should be 19.7cm. So calculate the scale factor of actual to measured (19.7/measured). Now go ahead and take measurements of what you are interested in. Then multiply it by the calculated scale factor, round up and you get a pretty good idea of the actual measurements.

    Edit: What I get is the cooler stops at around 17.5cm (measured from the bracket), at that point it's 2.5cm. It widens to 3.0cm at 15.0cm where the fan cage starts which widens to 4cm unit you're 6cm from the bracket and then drops back to 3cm. You should still do your own calculations.