Building a new system
By
Demon Forge,
Posted on: 2011-12-29 23:30 in ALL ACCESS Gameplay Technical Issues Bugs
This is what i came up with on my own, any feedback would be appreciated.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811147108 -Rosewill Case
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813131792 - Asus Mobo
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814127592 -MSI gtx560
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817553010 -760w power supply
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115072 -i5 2500k
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820223109 -internal card reader
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231314 -8g Gskill Ram
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148840 -SeaGate Barracuda Hard drive(7200 rpm, 1tb) this is optional
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827135204 -asus dvd writer
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16824009255 -23" monitor
Again, the hard drive in my current system could be reused, but i really don't know enough about it to know if it's going to bottleneck a good system or not. I was also planning on reusing my dvd drive, but it died this morning. Sorry about the bad link, but thought since Demon was able to see it, everyone would be able to.
The system you've linked looks like it would be strong enough to handle pretty much anything out there, but coming in at about 500 bucks beneath your budget, why not get a better video card? The 570's and 580's offer a pretty large performance increase over the 560, and would still put you a couple of hundred dollars short of the $1500 you've quoted as your budget.
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You can't link properly to a wishlist that way.|
Originally Posted by FourthHorseman
This is what i came up with on my own, any feedback would be appreciated.
https://secure.newegg.com/WishList/M...px?ID=15954391 |
Cheap and easy way of doing it.
- Create the wishlist
- Share it
- View the wishlist and take the 8-digit number off the end of the URL (in your case "15954391"
- Click on the tab for "public wishlists" and view one of them
- Wipe off the 8 digit number at the end of the URL and substitute your own.
- Hit enter and make sure the Wishlist that comes up is yours.
- Share THAT URL.
Clicking on the linked image above will take you off the City of Heroes site. However, the guides will be linked back here.
http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/Pu...umber=19288966
SLI-capable motherboard
8GB RAM
i5 2500K (with cooler)
120GB SSD (use the drive you cannibalize from your old system as a data storage drive) with a 3.5" to 2.5" adapter (and the adapter can hold 2 SSDs if you want).
Blu-Ray Reader/DVD Burner
nVidia GTX 560 (448 core version)
24" 1920x1080 monitor
Card reader
Decent case
Cheap KB and mouse
$1455 before shipping
Clicking on the linked image above will take you off the City of Heroes site. However, the guides will be linked back here.
The system you linked seems to be pretty much right what I'm looking for, my one question would be the power supply. Would http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817371048 be able to handle 2 gtx 560's sli'd ? I'm not going to be running 2 cards right away, but probably will in the future.
Quote:
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Originally Posted by FourthHorseman
The system you linked seems to be pretty much right what I'm looking for, my one question would be the power supply. Would http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817371048 be able to handle 2 gtx 560's sli'd ? I'm not going to be running 2 cards right away, but probably will in the future.
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Honestly no. You'll need to step up to a beefier PSU if/when you do.
More than likely it's "if". Realistically the majority of SLI implementations are built with SLI right from the get-go. Very few are actually SLI add-ons later on. Mostly this is because next-gen single-chip solutions tend to eclipse last-gen SLI setups.
On top of that, the system I've spec'ed is fairly powerful as is. Unless you're really looking to do multi-monitor setups (which I find unplayable). While SLI may help in some of your other games for maxing out settings, in CoH you get somewhere in the vicinity of ZERO gains from SLI.
Also, one of the reasons I opted for the EVGA unit is their "Step-Up" program.
Essentially you have 90 days from purchase. If they come out with a newer item in that time, you're eligible to "Step-Up" and get the newer card while only paying the difference between the list price of the new unit and what you originally paid for your card.
For instance, I had a GTX460 that I bought right at the tail end of 2010. In early 2011, they announced the 560. I swapped up to the 560 and it only cost me about $40.
Clicking on the linked image above will take you off the City of Heroes site. However, the guides will be linked back here.
The evga step up program sounds like a really good deal, since the new Nvidia cards should be coming out any day now.
Assuming the 560 alone would get me the kind of performance I want, how much (if any) would CoH performance increase with a dedicated phys x card? I could put my 9500gt in the system to do just that, and in some benchmarks, it has made differences, just wondered if it would on CoH.
I play a lot of other games, but i play CoH the most by a large margin.
One thing I'd like to be able to do, but cannot on my current system, is stream video to my 36" tv, and be able to play CoH at the same time. I realize that i would have to go without sound on either the game or movie, but I want the video card/cards to be able to handle this.
Quote:
*Insert knowingly evil grin*|
Originally Posted by FourthHorseman
The evga step up program sounds like a really good deal, since the new Nvidia cards should be coming out any day now.
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One SMALL downside to the StepUp program. There's no cross-shipping.
You have to pull your card out of your system and mail it in. Then wait for the new one to show.
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| Assuming the 560 alone would get me the kind of performance I want, how much (if any) would CoH performance increase with a dedicated phys x card? I could put my 9500gt in the system to do just that, and in some benchmarks, it has made differences, just wondered if it would on CoH. |
Now, there was a note a short while ago about how PhysX had been updated somehow. I suspect that, possibly, it works with nVidia PhsyX now, but I don't know for sure. As it is, the 560 is simply going to eat the 9500 alive in terms of PhysX performance.
Clicking on the linked image above will take you off the City of Heroes site. However, the guides will be linked back here.
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If your TV has an HDMI connector, this is easily doable.|
Originally Posted by FourthHorseman
One thing I'd like to be able to do, but cannot on my current system, is stream video to my 36" tv, and be able to play CoH at the same time. I realize that i would have to go without sound on either the game or movie, but I want the video card/cards to be able to handle this.
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You'll want to get an HDMI-to-Mini-HDMI cable. They cost about $20-30.
Plug the mini into the back of the video card.
Plug the regular HDMI connector into the back of the TV, then select HDMI as your video source.
Then right-click on your desktop and go into Screen Resolution.
You'll see another monitor on there and it should identify as your TV.
Now note. The card is only set up to run two monitors simultaneously. That means 2 monitors, or a monitor and the TV. Not two monitors and the TV. So activating the TV will cause your secondary monitor to become your tertiary monitor and shut off.
Clicking on the linked image above will take you off the City of Heroes site. However, the guides will be linked back here.
My question wasn't exactly about how to do it, i have the capability to run the tv as a second monitor with my setup now(via s-video), but the card/system just doesnt have the power to run the tv and have playable frame rates on any kind of acceptable video settings.
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Honestly, if you're going over s-video, I wouldn't worry about it. You'll be running at low resolution for that and you'll only be limited by the CPU speed. You could turn your graphics settings all the way up and never notice a problem.|
Originally Posted by FourthHorseman
My question wasn't exactly about how to do it, i have the capability to run the tv as a second monitor with my setup now(via s-video), but the card/system just doesnt have the power to run the tv and have playable frame rates on any kind of acceptable video settings.
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If you trade up to an HDMI setup you could run at whatever the native resolution of the monitor is. 720p is essentially 1366x768. Again, relatively low resolution so you can crank graphics settings up.
If your monitor's 1080p, you could run at 1920x1080 (but the text may be fuzzy). Around here you'll need to tweak your settings a bit, but not horrendously.
I honestly don't really notice a lot of difference on my setup between 4x FSAA and 16x FSAA. So I leave it at 4x and crank other stuff.
Essentially it's trial and error. And while a 580 would be marginally faster, it's not really going to 50% faster. So you can't really justify a 50% price bump to the 580 for a 8-10% framerate jump.
Clicking on the linked image above will take you off the City of Heroes site. However, the guides will be linked back here.
Ok, here is the revised system I think I'm going to get. I've used several of your suggestions along with some of the things I've picked on my own. I decided to go ahead and get a new data drive, the 4 year old 640g in my system probably wont last much longer.Other than that, I changed the power supply you suggested, to one with a little higher wattage and dual 30a rails, for the chance of my adding a second card down the road, and also to give myself more room for overclocking, if I decide I want to do it to the extreme that the 2500k is capable of. I also chose a case with SSD capability without using an adapter, though it is a bit smaller than the on you suggested. All in all i think this will be a great system, and I saved enough money by going with a smaller ssd and cheaper case(among a couple of other minor things) to come in less than the original suggestions with the addition of a 1tb seagate barracuda.
http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/Pu...umber=15959791
Also, before i forget, do i need to order thermal compound, sata cables, or anything else of that nature? I've not built a system in probably 8 years, and things are way different now than they were before.Oh and I almost forgot the cpu cooler you suggested, quick search came up with http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835118048. Would this suffice for the 2500k ?
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Okay, not really feeling the case. But if you're happy with it, it's good.|
Originally Posted by FourthHorseman
Ok, here is the revised system I think I'm going to get. I've used several of your suggestions along with some of the things I've picked on my own. I decided to go ahead and get a new data drive, the 4 year old 640g in my system probably wont last much longer.Other than that, I changed the power supply you suggested, to one with a little higher wattage and dual 30a rails, for the chance of my adding a second card down the road, and also to give myself more room for overclocking, if I decide I want to do it to the extreme that the 2500k is capable of. I also chose a case with SSD capability without using an adapter, though it is a bit smaller than the on you suggested. All in all i think this will be a great system, and I saved enough money by going with a smaller ssd and cheaper case(among a couple of other minor things) to come in less than the original suggestions with the addition of a 1tb seagate barracuda.
http://secure.newegg.com/WishList/Pu...umber=15959791 |
Case is one thing but the card reader. I really tend to steer away from Rosewill peripherals. They tend to be a bit on the flimsy side.
You backed down from the Blu-Ray drive to a standard DVD burner. I guess. I shaves off a bit.
The Cougar PSU. I don't know Cougar's brand. I've never encountered them before. As such, I'd be VERY wary about them.
It's only $3 more, but I'd recommend a brand I know, Antec and this 750W PSU, before I'd go for the Cougar.
I'm a big Western Digital fan as far as hard drives go. I guess Seagate is okay. Had it been a Samsung or Hitachi I'd be screaming bloody murder right now.
Clicking on the linked image above will take you off the City of Heroes site. However, the guides will be linked back here.
The dvd burner was something I just overlooked, had it in my original wishlist, and forgot to swap them out.
I changed the card reader to the one you suggested, I was just basing that decision on the reviews on newegg.
I also swapped to the Antec power supply, I was basing it off of good reviews on newegg as well.
The total build out the door will be about 1450, and looks to be a great system. Thanks for all of the tips and help, it's been entirely too long since I've messed with this sort of thing.
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Keep us posted on how the build goes.
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Originally Posted by FourthHorseman
The dvd burner was something I just overlooked, had it in my original wishlist, and forgot to swap them out.
I changed the card reader to the one you suggested, I was just basing that decision on the reviews on newegg. I also swapped to the Antec power supply, I was basing it off of good reviews on newegg as well. The total build out the door will be about 1450, and looks to be a great system. Thanks for all of the tips and help, it's been entirely too long since I've messed with this sort of thing. |
Clicking on the linked image above will take you off the City of Heroes site. However, the guides will be linked back here.
Got everything ordered this morning, went ahead and splurged for the rush processing and fast shipping, should have everything in the next couple of days.
Looks like hyperstrike answered everything.
If you were able to build your own computer 8 years ago it will be pretty much the same today. If anything, its easier than ever. The last few builds I had booted up and I was able to start installing on the first try.
Some cases are easier to work on than others. Cheap cases are vampires! I stick with Antec, Cooler Master and Corsair. I prefer the CM and Corsair cases because they are wider and that extra little room makes a big difference when you have to deal with massive air cooling heatsinks and trying to stuff all the spare cabling under the motherboard panel.
H: Blaster 50, Defender 50, Tank 50, Scrapper 50, Controller 50, PB 50, WS 50
V: Brute 50, Corruptor 50, MM 50, Dominator 50, Stalker 50, AW 50, AS 50
Top 4: Controller, Brute, Scrapper, Corruptor
Bottom 4: (Peacebringer) way below everything else, Mastermind, Dominator, Blaster
CoH in WQHD
So paying for 2 day shipping from Newegg on a holiday weekend looks to be a waste of money, I got the monitor today, but only the monitor.
On a good note, even with my crappy inspiron 519 and 9500gt, CoH looks much better than on my old 19 inch monitor.
I live 10 miles from newegg. I really liked it when they added in will call. Even so, I can usually get next day if I order early enough. Of course, it sucks when they ship it from out of state and it takes a few days. 
H: Blaster 50, Defender 50, Tank 50, Scrapper 50, Controller 50, PB 50, WS 50
V: Brute 50, Corruptor 50, MM 50, Dominator 50, Stalker 50, AW 50, AS 50
Top 4: Controller, Brute, Scrapper, Corruptor
Bottom 4: (Peacebringer) way below everything else, Mastermind, Dominator, Blaster
CoH in WQHD
Well I anticipated it taking longer than usual since I ordered everything on new years eve, but expected it all to get here today. O well, I'm sure I'll get the rest tomorrow.
Got everything in today, system is working perfectly. It's like going from a golf cart to a Ferrari. Everything works great in high/ultra. The only bad part was I managed to cut my fingers on the aftermarket heat sink/fan i bought.Thanks again for everyone's help.
Sorry, blood sacrifice goes with the activity.
I remember writing a guide at one point that listed band-aids in the parts list.
Father Xmas - Level 50 Ice/Ice Tanker - Victory
$725 and $1350 parts lists --- My guide to computer components
Tempus unum hominem manet
1) What will you primarily be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop? Web browsing? etc
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Gaming(CoH, Skyrim, Crysis 2, Wow), streaming video to HD tv, web browsing
2) What's your budget? (Real Dollars) Are tax and shipping included? This is important as it allows people trying to help you to suggest things appropriate to your budget.
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1500 total
3) Where do you live? This is important as it affects what vendors you may buy from and how much shipping costs might be.
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Arkansas
4) Are you planning to buy or build?
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Build
5) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. The word "Everything" is not a valid answer. Please list out all the parts you'll need. If you're unsure what exactly you need, say so.
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CPU, Ram, Case, motherboard,power supply, Hard drive? (could move the hard drive out of my current machine, its a Samsung HD642jj, approximately 4 years old), dvd burner,video card, internal card reader, monitor
6) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
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Hard drive as listed above, and potentially dvd burner TSSTcorp TS h653f sata
7) Will you be overclocking?
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Probably play around with it some, but not much.
8) What size monitor do you have and/or plan to have?
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23
9) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
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as soon as possible
10) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? etc.
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I would like sata 6gb/s. usb 3, and SLI support. I don't plan on doing 2 cards now , but possibly in the future.
11) Any specific must-have features? Must be able to max out Ultra-Mode? Must have 6+GB of RAM? Must have an SSD? etc.
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I'd like at least 8gigs of ram, and want to be able to max out ultra on CoH.
12) Are there any vendors/brands you'd specifically prefer to use?
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13) Are there any vendors/brands you'd specifically prefer to avoid?
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amd video cards
14) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit? (Note: If your current OS came with your computer, odds are that it is NOT transferable.)
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Yes, i have a volume license copy of win 7 pro 64 with several uses left.
I basically want a system that i can play pretty much any modern game on high settings without a hiccup. I'm currently using a 4 year old Dell Inspiron 519 and I'm just fed up with it's poor performance.