Official PC thread.

[jewseejay]

 
Any advice or websites that can guide me on what I need to build my own PC? I'd like to build one that is capable of game and photo editing...Maybe even some light weight video editing.

toms hardware

then I used cpu/gpu boss to compare cards

 

[ijumpmani]

toms hardware

then I used cpu/gpu boss to compare cards

This.

Any advice or websites that can guide me on what I need to build my own PC? I'd like to build one that is capable of game and photo editing...Maybe even some light weight video editing.

http://pcpartpicker.com/

I used this to track pricing for my parts, it also notifies you if you have incompatible parts

 

[dathbgboy]

Been putting off getting a desktop for a while and finally see the need for one w/ me wanting my daughter to start learning how to code and other STEM based things online. Probably going to cop a barebone mini-pc kit w/ an i5. Going to price things out now for November when the deals start.

 

[Fozz]

Thanks for the input! I'm hoping to build a pretty strong system without too much money.

 

[ijumpmani]

Thanks for the input! I'm hoping to build a pretty strong system without too much money.

Some inspiration

 

[ohokalright]

money. and i dont intend to overclock. at the point other one of these chips no longer gets the job done Ill swap out the whole system.

save more money by getting a xeon. (like the 1231v3 or 1241v3), no onboard graphics (not that you'll need it).

 

[jewseejay]

save more money by getting a xeon. (like the 1231v3 or 1241v3), no onboard graphics (not that you'll need it).

i thought about a xeon e3 1225v3 lenovo server (380.00) and adding some things and throwing on windows but I actually ended up doing a 180 and grabbing a laptop... asus n550 (the newest one) i7 4720hq // gtx860m // 256 gig ssd // 16gb ddr5 @1600mhz // regular IPS no 4k

from the looks itll run all the newer titles at 30 fps + with the occasional dips (and those are older models on youtube)

i havent played a pc game in 10 years lol but if i decide to grab counterstrike or gta or something its nice to know i can run it at 1080 w/o issue

i cant justify spending 2k on a laptop or i woulda prob just gotta MBP and dual booted windows. i think im gunna look into slowly piecing together a quality desktop still though. now that i have something to get me by I can cherry pic components from deal sites

 

[slighted]

 
i think im gunna look into slowly piecing together a quality desktop still though. now that i have something to get me by I can cherry pic components from deal sites

Same here. RAM and SSD prices are dropping, so I'm slowly putting together a new build in PCPartPicker.

 

[s0lefunk]

Thanks for the input! I'm hoping to build a pretty strong system without too much money.

If this is your first build I'd strongly recommend getting a barebones kit. That way you'll have most of the components to get up and running and compatibility shouldn't be an issue. You can then upgrade components down the road as needed.

 

[jewseejay]

Welp, took me like 12 hours to get the basic basic stuff out of the way haha

Windows 10 install went surprisingly well actually, only hung on preparing to install for like 10 minutes... after that it was off to the races. I gotta say this has been phenomenal overall... one of the reasons i choose this laptop was the touch screen and its optimized for 10 beautifully... im sure it probably was for 8 too but I never used 8 even once so I dunno. The start menu is clutch, seems to be a blend of what was good about 8 and then the good ol productivity of the 7 style dropdowns. I love it

The only thing I was worried about when deciding to go with this laptop was heat and how much more practical a desktop would be for gaming and such... im glad i gambled for sure now though and took the added portability. Thus far its propped up on coasters with a small honeywell fan blowing on it during my tests....

out of the box i could run BF3 and Dead Island both on ultra settings full 1080... that made me smile butttt my CPU/GPU were getting to 80 degrees C plus after only half and hour. no bueno for me. I know Intel chips wont start throttling till 90 plus but for longevity id rather run at something more like 75 degrees 80 degrees tops.So using some youtube vids/forum info I found some good safe values to under volt my cpu too and it reallllly helped. Annnnd i didnt sacrifice any noticeable grunt. Now I can run BF3 ultra settings except low shadows for almost 2 hours and have my temps in the mid to high 70s. Im really happy with that for this not being a "Gaming" laptop.

In terms of frames per second it can play on ultra in 1080 in the high 30s on BF, havent checked Dead Island yet but im extremely impressed with the look of the games on here. Between that and the precision of the mouse I see why the PC master race feels superior... its not even close tbh

BF 3 on pc is better than any FPS ive ever played on console... the sounds... the graphics, the smoke... when on surround system you are like in the war.

trying to convince my fiance this is a workstation while testing video games for hours FTL haha

edit:100 plus fps on Dead Island maxed out

 

[leggomuheggroll]

Hey all, didn't know this thread existed, looking to find more online multiplayer games to play, currently playing bf4 and some LoL

but here's my build

Intel i5 4690k
WD 1TB Black
8GB Crucial Ballistix Elite
Corsair CX 600M
Gigabyte GTX970 G1 Gaming
Corsair H100i
2x 250GB Samsung EVO 850 SSD
ASUS ROG Maximus VII Hero
NZXT Phantom Case

 

[osek206]

h1z1 on steam

 

[ronaldo nazario]

If this is your first build I'd strongly recommend getting a barebones kit. That way you'll have most of the components to get up and running and compatibility shouldn't be an issue. You can then upgrade components down the road as needed.

Where would one find one of these and what would it consist of? Looking to build my first soon but not quite sure how to start.

 

[slighted]

^ I recommend PCPartPicker and Reddit sub BuildAPC / BuildAPCSales.

On my to-cop list for Black Friday:

- 500GB SSD

- Mid-tier video card

- DAC

 

[lolcomin]

 
^ I recommend PCPartPicker and Reddit sub BuildAPC / BuildAPCSales.

On my to-cop list for Black Friday:

- 500GB SSD

- Mid-tier video card

- DAC

but 970's, R290 and R390 are cheap as is.

 

[af1nike]

I have an old Probook 4530s laptop that I got around 2011. It has an i3 and I am wondering if this thing would be worth rehabbing? It currently has 3 gb ram and a regular 500 gb hd. It's extremely and I havent used it in over a year. The battery is also completely trashed. Can this laptop be resurrected and if so would it be worth it? I have a mac air so im not sweating it but it's just sitting there and if I can make it quck again for not too much money id be for it.


Any suggestions? or should I junk it?

 

[slighted]

^ Can you get a replacement battery? How much would that cost?

 

[af1nike]

^ Can you get a replacement battery? How much would that cost?

I can I think they run between 40-60 dollars.

The laptop itself is slow and lags quite a bit, I was wondering if anybody with computer knowledge would be able to offer some input on what could be upgraded, and if it would be worth it? (SSD, RAM, ect..) Or if it's seen it's better days.

 

[jewseejay]

I can I think they run between 40-60 dollars.

The laptop itself is slow and lags quite a bit, I was wondering if anybody with computer knowledge would be able to offer some input on what could be upgraded, and if it would be worth it? (SSD, RAM, ect..) Or if it's seen it's better days.

It can def be made faster for cheap but worth is all relative. 50 bucks for a new battery. 50 bucks for more ram. 50 bucks for small ssd.. you could def spend less than 200 and have a nice lil machine again or you could spend that towards an all together new machine. Up to you. If its from 2011 it likely has a tn panel though. So between that and older intel hd graphics its probably not gunna be the greatest even once rehabed but definatelt more than serviceable

 

[unkn0wn]

Im using my old company's Windows 8.1 serial and am no longer working for that company. Can I upgrade to 10 easily?

 

[3am scholar]

Have you tried using that serial to upgrade?

 

[unkn0wn]

Have you tried using that serial to upgrade?

I havent tried at all. I dont even know how the W10 upgrade process works. I'm planning to do a clean install after formatting though so I dont know that will change things.

 

[slighted]

 
Im using my old company's Windows 8.1 serial and am no longer working for that company. Can I upgrade to 10 easily?

Do you see that Windows 10 upgrade icon on your lower right taskbar?

I heard that once you upgrade to 10, the serial gets "embedded" and you no longer have to worry about serial keys, etc. Everything afterward should be good to go.

OT: I tried out 10 on my family's PC and I dig it so far. I really like the virtual desktops and everything seems much snappier than 7/8. I still run 7 on my PCs though and will continue to do so until 10 gets all the kinks out.

 

[unkn0wn]

Word, I'll give it a shot when I'm not lazy one of these weekends 

 

[slighted]

 
Word, I'll give it a shot when I'm not lazy one of these weekends 

If you upgrade between now and 2016 (when they cut off free upgrade to 10), you can always switch back to 8 (or whatever OS you're on now).