WanderingAries
-
Posts
1224 -
Joined
-
Why don't you try the Official Titan Network tech forum for mids. A Free login will be required, but the same goes here and just about anywhere else.
-
I've actually been using CA Security Suite for a number of years now to protect my parents' computers as both McAffee and Norton are known system hogs. I even had a Norton rep flat tell me (in person no less) not to install anything more than the minimum required components as it would chew resources like no tomorrow. While I've never had an issue come up to truely test it, I'm running the builtin Windows 7 Security suite on my current system as I know what not to click and stay away from suspect files/sites.
-
And here's the short list of Towers:
Cooler Master Trooper (I keep wanting to call it Storm Trooper)
Thermaltake MK-1
Thermaltake Revo
All are a little bit more than the suggested one, but I seem to like them better. -
-
Unless someone corrects me, changes in the game over the years have pretty much removed the feasiblity to even attempt to play over dialup. Even if you did manage to connect you'd likely lag out before you made it through the tutorial with all the data it's probably sending back and forth.
-
*Gathers thoughts*
newchemicals, I just wanted to say that this was a great starting point.
Ironblade, Thanks for bringing things a little more down to earth.
ScottyB, Lots of info that I actually understood for the most part and you still have me on the fence with the i5 VS i7 tradeoff.
Gaia, If you're curious, said spreadsheet has listings from DOS6.0, Win95, Vista, all the way through Win7 (I haven't updated it for my Win8 ISO).
Hyperstrike, Yeah, it dawned on me What the chart was comparing afterwards. I definitely appreciate your breakdown, time, and temperment. ;-)
Some of you may have missed the string of posts/replies, but I'll try to reitterate a few things and add/revise a few questions.
So far I've based it round the i5/i7 chipset(s) and the 500 series GPU. I'm still a little fuzzy as to whether both CPUs have virtualization (VT-X?) builtin. Are they Z68 or Z77 based chipsets? Does that mean my list of Motherboards is still valid?
It seems like I should be perfectly fine with the 560 so long as I get the Ti version or find money growing out my butt in which the 680 would work twice as good for...a ratio'd amount. It says this card is PCI-Express 2.0, would a 3.0 card be better?
I seem to be misunderstanding the right RAM to get. Is it 1066, 1333, or 1600 I should be getting? All of the configurations so far point to Dual Channel so 2x8=16Gb looks to be my number atleast. Even the 1600 G.Skill seem to be the best savings, but I noticed something about Intel XMP 1.3 listed in Hyperstrike's writeup. All things considered, will I need to consider this as it would change my RAM choice?
That IcyDock thing wasn't what I thought it was going to be (external SATA hub). I'm actually glad as I have a stack of laptop HDDs currently used for various types of media archives until I can get a large drive to replace them. A device such as this would allow for me to put off getting a larger drive and keep from having to constantly pull them out of a drawer as needed. My Apple G4 actually houses the primary archive backup drives (twin 500Gb IDEs), but USB 2.0 speeds on a 1Ghz CPU/1Gb RAM system are killer for major data migrations.
SSD is obviously the way to go on the primary drive and it seems that 120Gb-180Gb should work. Is there a major advantage of Hyperstrike's suggestion over the ones I listed? I did notice that it lists the R/W speeds as both being at or above 500Mb/s which is better than most on the list, but is that worth any increase in price above that of the others?
I see no reason to alter Hyperstrike's PSU suggestion, but I haven't heard other opinions on it as of yet. I figured that the recomendations would be in the 750Watt range considering what is being discussed.
What I haven't heard about is suggestions on the CPU/GPU cooling. Well, besides Hyperstrike's example from his thread, but still, do I need more than factory or what comes with a good case? I'll have to get back with you guys on best installation methods once the build is solidified.
I'm starting to look at towers now and considering what I Won't be putting into the build I'm wondering if maybe I don't need a full sized ATX case, but perhaps a mid-tower instead. I even saw one with wheels on the bottom and another that resembles my PS2. Call me silly, but I do want it to look nice too. I noticed alot of LED stuff now a days and while I don't want it "in yo face", I'd rather it blue to go with my solid black metal preference. I obviously want breathing room and good ventilation, but this thing will likely be spending much of its life either directly or nearly in direct contact with a carpet'd floor.
*goes to look at cases* -
Quote:Fixed!Originally Posted by Hyperstrike
Okay first suggestion, pull the CODE tags off. Makes it easier to read. They're only on in my guide to make copying the text easier.
Actually, when I was testing out my TV via the laptop/HDMI I left it set at 1920x1080p, but adjusted the game UI so that things were a little larger. Even if I went to a normal LED monitor, I'd likely not go much higher honestly.Quote:Okay if you're playing on a TV of that size, you're playing at 1280x720 (720p IIRC) to get clear text. Basically any mid-to-upper range video card is going to deliver insane framerate even with nearly everything turned on/maxed out.
I know, I know...I wrote it up before the research (while constantly checking back) to see how things matched up with everybody's suggestions.Quote:Sorry if I sound like I'm busting your balls here. But this is NOT a helpful answer. Nebulous answers like "as much as possible" "as little as possible" or "pretend I'm broke" don't help anything. I can point you at a $500 Dell system and call it a day. But if you're really looking for specific things in a different price range that provides you with zero help.
That seems to be the consensus, but what exactly is IPC?Quote:Okay, current "best bang for the buck" is the i2500K.
HOWEVER, Intel's Ivy Bridge just hit the street (and should be trickling in to retailers now). The new i5 3750K looks to be in roughly the same league with a slight IPC advantage in certain apps and a similar price point.
I meant to ask, what's the dif between the K-class and non?Quote:You may still want to take a stab at the K-class processors anyhow. The price difference is a WHOPPING $10 in most cases. For a chip that can easily accomplish light overclocking without exotic cooling? That's pretty much no-brainer territory.
Um, shouldn't I look at Z77 boards, not Z68s?Quote:i5 2500K and a Sandy Bridge Z68 motherboard. If you're buying around year's end, basically replace with an equivallent i5 3750K and a Z77 board.
Would there be a noticible dif in the 6 series or do you think that I'm over thinking the build and the 560 Ti is going to cover things?Quote:Also, the mid-range nVidia 6** series should be out by then too.
Going to recommend you a 560 Ti for right now.
The more I read/think about the build, the less I think I need it to do now. I had all sorts of 'options' running through my head (HotSwap vs Virtualization) and I'm thinking that the HotSwap is really overkill. I've never used a RAID configuration and I'm not sure that I'll really do anything non-recoverable enough to put that on the table. Firewire, dont' have anything that uses it. Crossfire/SLI, it hasn't really been explained to me, but from what I 'think' it is I have no use for it either in this build. I don't have anything that uses SS USB yet, but it doesn't hurt to have a mix for now. SATA 6Gb/s, that I think I will go for as it would relate to the SSD choice for a performance assist.Quote:10) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? etc.
Now see, this is what I was thinking too. *looks again* No wait, what about the 2700k? NM, I'm thinking at this point of just staying at the 2700K as worst case it'll be cheaper when the new stuff comes out.Quote:If you're going to be doing video processing of any sort, I may bump the recommendation to an i7 2600K (which will become a recommendation for an i7 3770K at the end of the year).
Very good to know as CPU and core configurations are all over the place it seems.Quote:It won't actually have 6-8 cores. But it hyperthreads, simulating 8 cores by keeping the instruction pipeline fuller. Going with a hex-core would mean stepping back to a 1366-based platform and they're effectively a dead-end.
I figured the PSU would need to wait until AFTER we figure out the power requirements. :-pQuote:So no concrete power supplies? DARN! 
I wondered why you stopped or atleast why it went quiet. I'm kinda iffy on the case design, but nice price. I looked at this page and my brain went mush with all the weirdness.Quote:Case: Corsair Carbide 400R
You may have noted an aborted attempt at doing a liquid-cooled system HOWTO from me.
I made a few board posts, so I'll wait for new responses and stop here.Quote:Motherboard: Asus P8Z77-V LX
This is the "budget" version of the board. There are multiple "upscale" versions to pick from but sticking with budget for now.
This board will take current i7 and i5 class processors and is prepped for the new Ivy Bridge processors when they drop shortly.
I'm going to go ahead and update the Main post NOW (to post around 01:20a EST) and let everyone catchup. -
RAM Considerations:
I think I've settled on 16Gb of RAM (IDK, it sounds right for some reason). From the looks of it prices hover around $100. If I'm reading the CPUs and Motherboards correctly, then I'm needing dual channel (2x8Gb) DDR3 running at 1066Mhz or 1033Mhz. I started looking at CAS speeds and ended up on wiki because of all the extra digits. It seems they've changed how things are done because RAM is no longer a (likely) possible bottleneck. I've had luck with this G.Skill brand so far and they're usually nicely priced and rated, but I'm confused between the two listed here.
G.Skill Ares CAS 9-9-9 <--- Considering this one just for the MEH factor :-p
G.Skill Ripjaw CAS 9-9-9-24
I'm guessing that the latter is some kind of more specialized set as the CAS are listed identically except for the last number. Any insight into what this is about? Am I looking at the right type of RAM for these conditions? -
SSD Considerations:
I'm looking at these and wondering where Intel has the real advantage (as recomended above)?
Crucial 128Gb
Plextor 128Gb
Intel 120Gb
Corsair 180Gb -
nVidia GPU Lineup:
I started looking into this, but man am I out of date on these things. To Many NUMBERS!!!!!! From the looks of it, the GTX 590 actually out performs the GTX 680 series.
-
-
Quote:Agreed, the only reason I can remember for even considering Ultimate is if I wanted BitLocker which I don't think I'd need for my purposes.Originally Posted by Gaia
If you are looking at virtualising your builds then I'd probably go with Win7 Pro rather than Home Premium - of course if that spreadsheet contains keys for Ultimate that will do as well although I don't see any need to go above Pro on a home system.
Edit: the "Virtualization" I was looking into is related to possible future OS testing (IE: Win8, Win9...) or perhaps actual game development, but now that I think about it, it's probably easier to skip that aspect as (if / by the time) the latter comes into play I'll likely be focusing on specific hardware for that and not have it on a primary system. It may just be easier to swap HDDs until then as the virtualization software I have doesn't seem to all full system access. IE: doesn't like 3D graphics, etc. Well, that and I've only just begun to understand true VHD configurations. -
Quote:Agreed, a melee toon that has sufficient def/resist should be able to stay planted square in position until the DPS = NPC dead. Or atleast until you run out of end and need to retreat (for the not so flimsy NPCs).Originally Posted by Black Zot
Unless you're trying to line up a specific power to get the most out of it (and sometimes even then), running around mid-battle does more harm than good. When you're running, you're not using powers, and when you're not using powers, you're not winning the fight.
Run-and-gun play might make sense in a FPS where mobility equals survival. But in a game where every ability that contributes significantly to victory requires you to drop anchor, there's no reason, nor even an excuse, to move other than to keep a target in your effective range. -
Quote:Oh that's easy, just superglue his power cord to the wall and tape his cassette tray in place. ;-)Originally Posted by DarkGob
My Claws/SR Scrapper moves around very frequently in order to keep Shockwave properly positioned. To that end, I also keep Ninja Run on most of the time, which keeps her extra maneuverable.
-
Quote:(since it matches your setup...)Originally Posted by Coyote_Seven
Dude, that keyboard was made in 1996, and it still works without any problems! The plastic is hard enough that the keyboard could be used as a makeshift weapon, and it would still work after that!
So... yeah! I loves my clicky keyboard!
I has a matching set of black KB, Mouse, and Monitor from that era up for sale. :-p -
Quote:Before I moved down here (and before I purchased this side-power button APC strip) I had a kitty that found a good way to end my 4+hr PS2 RPG sessions. One casual walk behind the entertainment center and she got attention. Needless to say she also learned to FLY in the process.Originally Posted by SerialBeggar
Side note: most people have their power stips on the floor, but I like to keep mine on my desk or somewhere higher up. I don't like the idea of absent mindedly playing footsie with the power plugs and then getting shocked. Or even just accidentally kicking or hooking one of the plugs out of the strip and crashing something. As can be seen in most of the set ups in this thread, there's a lot of room behind the wide flat screen monitors. Getting the strip off the floor also makes the available sockets more convenient for when you want to temporarily plug in a charger or something.
-
*scratches head*
So am I supposed to be holding up 1 finger or two? -
Quote:Yeah, I missed a subfolder there.Originally Posted by Rajani Isa
Note if it was installed after the games moved to the NCSoft Launcher, then the default is C:\Program Files (x86)\NCSoft\City of Heroes\ or something similar.
-
*tries to hold back today's headache*
So are you saying that so long as the actual power is available (per level being shifted to), then all slots for said power are available at that level?
or
Is it like powers in that say I'm shifted to lvl 10 (the point I took Hasten) I'll lose the benefit of the two slots I took at lvl 11? -
Quote:This to reitterate the OP...Originally Posted by Forbin_Project
Oh good this has been moved to the right part of the forum.
/signed for /savetray and /loadtray commands -
um...making my current toons useless every three months so that I have to buy new ones to keep up with the current restrictions on raids?
-
Quote:What about the one's on their way to "save the cheerleader"?Originally Posted by Captain-Electric
I've been roleplaying an ordinary citizen slumped next to a wall outside a mission door, where groups of heroes have been trampling me carelessly day after day, on their way to "save the city"...
You people disgust me. -
Quote:"Help help, I'm being oppressed!"Originally Posted by dugfromthearth
Just make everyone fill out a 140 character form of their history to get through a gate. RPers will never be able to do it.
-
Quote:If the base is brand new or there is sufficient space in the current base configuration, then yes this is correct.Originally Posted by Impish Kat
I think Hopeling is correct.
You only need to go to the "upgrade plot" editor, pick your current plot size, then move the grid around. You don't actually need to upgrade the plot.
In other words, you don't actually move the room... you move the grid around the room.
.