Buying a new rig !

I was looking at this two months ago, I must get back to it.

I was looking at building a compact machine though, using one of those small HT cases. Apparently lots of them can fit normal size VGAs.

Quote from KoKo5oVaR

Hey Guys !

I'm pretty sure there's already a lot of these threads on the core already, but i guess since hardware evolves so quickly i would make a new one

I'm looking to buy a new computer to do 3D efficiently at home since i'm stuck on a crappy laptop for 2 years now. Speaking of hardware, i knew a little bit about it until i've stopped when they invented SATA harddrives, USB 2 and all of these super modern multi core processors for multithreading (impressive technology).

So uh, what would you advise me in term of GFX card of nowadays that is not a luxury jewel to show off, but something that isn't made to run dungeon keeper only. Well, something between the jaguar and the trabant, a toyota maybe?

Also what kind of cooling system would you advise me ? Fans only or more than that ? I always had trouble with heat and gfx cards.

Thanks guys sorry for being obsolete

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I recently build a new system, on a modest budget, and it's performing really well. Everybody has his own preferences so keep that in mind. I'm an Intel/Nividia/Asus guy.

CPU: Intel i5-4570

MEM: Minimal of 8 GB (I prefer Kingston)

SSD bootdisk (size depends on your budget)

Asus Z87K Motherboard

Asus 560 GTI Nivdia GPU (still running on my old one)

Spent about 400 on these parts. Make sure you have a power supply that can handle this. So far I can do a lot of things at the same time, stream full hd to my TV and play games on high/max settings. Gaming (depends on how heavy the game is) and streaming simultaneously can cause problems though. I've run Maya and UDK on this without any problems and I'm using regular 120 mm case fans.

I'm not into mini pc's. I use to have to build them which causes my dislike. Sorry Blackdog.

Any of the new Nvidia cards would be decent enough to do 3D work. I currently have a 660Ti at home running 2, formerly 3 screens. It's about a year or more old, so it shouldn't be super expensive. SSDs are pretty stable nowadays so you should be good if you grab one of those, although they might still be in the expensive end. No idea about RAM, I assume DDR3 or DRR4 or whatever type they're on now. PSU wise get a good brand so it won't fuck with you in the long run. I've had my corsair RAM and PSU for 5+ years without any problem, even with how often I have the computer on 24/7.

If you want performance for money go for an AMD cpu. But if you have cash to burn and don't really mind the bang for buck thing, go intel.

I suggest you FranceOS the best Operating system for 3D stuff and such.

I've always build my PCs as well i'm thinking of the small factor because I have a tiny tiny room and frankly, it's not like nowdays we need to think much about "expanding". You swap disk for a larger one and access the old through NAS/docks.

Is really AMD something to consider again? How it's doing now in terms of heat and how does it stack up to Intel's CPUs?

RAM is still DDR3, I was thinking of an 8+8 solution (unless I can go for a single module for the same cost, to buy a second maybe later).

I don't understand why going for an old nVidia when newer models cost the same? A GTX 770 comes up on Amazon for 244£.

hey I'm just saying what I have, and what is cheap. It is a good card, but if there are newer, better versions then by all means pick those

I was asking Koko

~

After the joys of high resolution displays on phones (and having seen the Retina on MacBooks) I really want this stuff to come down in price fast

I wouldn't need glasses, as I noticed after using the iPhone.

Quote from SpronyvanJohnson

I recently build a new system, on a modest budget, and it's performing really well. Everybody has his own preferences so keep that in mind. I'm an Intel/Nividia/Asus guy.

CPU: Intel i5-4570

MEM: Minimal of 8 GB (I prefer Kingston)

SSD bootdisk (size depends on your budget)

Asus Z87K Motherboard

Asus 560 GTI Nivdia GPU (still running on my old one)

Spent about 400 on these parts. Make sure you have a power supply that can handle this. So far I can do a lot of things at the same time, stream full hd to my TV and play games on high/max settings. Gaming (depends on how heavy the game is) and streaming simultaneously can cause problems though. I've run Maya and UDK on this without any problems and I'm using regular 120 mm case fans.

I'm not into mini pc's. I use to have to build them which causes my dislike. Sorry Blackdog.

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400 for everything? Wow. I think I should probably build a new rig now.

So you could do something like run Crysis3 at 1080p with high and still get a nice 60 fps?

Quote from KoKo5oVaR

Not so much into putting many moneys for a harddrive, i guess i can wait on loadings for a bit longer. But maybe i'm missing some crucial interactions.

I said the same. But when I had some extra cash to burn I decided to buy a 130 GB SSD bootdisk. It makes your system run like Speedy Gonzales. Seriously, I'm never ever going back to SATA. In time, I'll replace all my disk for SSD ones.

Quote from AlexM

I recently build a new system, on a modest budget, and it's performing really well. Everybody has his own preferences so keep that in mind. I'm an Intel/Nividia/Asus guy.

CPU: Intel i5-4570

MEM: Minimal of 8 GB (I prefer Kingston)

SSD bootdisk (size depends on your budget)

Asus Z87K Motherboard

Asus 560 GTI Nivdia GPU (still running on my old one)

Spent about 400 on these parts. Make sure you have a power supply that can handle this. So far I can do a lot of things at the same time, stream full hd to my TV and play games on high/max settings. Gaming (depends on how heavy the game is) and streaming simultaneously can cause problems though. I've run Maya and UDK on this without any problems and I'm using regular 120 mm case fans.

I'm not into mini pc's. I use to have to build them which causes my dislike. Sorry Blackdog.

400 for everything? Wow. I think I should probably build a new rig now.

So you could do something like run Crysis3 at 1080p with high and still get a nice 60 fps?

No, I reused my old card and I already had the case, dvd burner, power supply and extra hard disks. So the 400 something was for the motherboard, CPU, memory and SSD boot disk.

I haven't played Crysis 3 (it's Origin only) so I cannot say, However, Metro Last Light, Far cry 3, Wolfenstein, Reaper of Souls, etc all run fine on high with a steady frame rate.

Quote from SpronyvanJohnson

I'll replace all my disk for SSD ones.

http://youtu.be/eULFf6F5Ri8

I actually bought a whole new rig minus video card over Memorial Day weekend (thank you Microcenter). I'll post what I picked up when I can

Quote from Pericolos0

Definitely get an SSD, they are not that expensive anymore and the impact they make on the speed of your computer is HUGE. I recommend the samsung 840 EVO after doing a lot of internet research . I got a 250 GB one for about 100$. You can go for the 120GB one if you want even cheaper, but I would definitely not go for anythign below 120 GB.

8Gb of RAM is all you need, anything above that is overkill.

graphics, don't get latest and greatest. either get a budget card or an older top of the line card like the GTX 580 (almost 3 years old now, still runs almost everything at high blazingly fast)

CPU, I don't know much about, except that my CPU is almost 5 years old and everything is still running fast. I'd guess anything in the 200$ range is good

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Pretty much this. CPU wise the most important thing is that you don't want a bottleneck. Any decent quad core i7+ processor is going to be decent enough. There are of course more criteria you can look into, but if you don't want to spend more money on e.g. cooling etc. just go for that. I'm running an core i5 currently and it's good stuff, but the i7's should be cheap enough to get now.

As promised:

SSD: Samsung 840EVO 120GB -> I second every one else here. Having an SSD as your boot driver makes launching your PC infinitely faster. HDD: WD 1TB Caviar Blue -> For storage (music, movies, games). RAM: Crucial Ballistic Sport 2x4GB DDR3 1600 -> Cheap and effective. The performance difference of going above 1600 is miniscule so don't waste your money on anything higher. Plus if you reall want you can overclock MB: ASUS M5A99FX Pro R2.0 -> Solid MB with plenty of expansion slots. Supports SLI/CrossFire and the BIOS gets frequent updates. Be advised though your video card can easily cover one of the SATA jacks, so make sure your SATA cables are plugged in prior to installing your video card. CPU: AMD FX-8320 Black -> Cheaper than an Intel CPU and just as good if not better. Allows for easy overclocking even on stock voltage if you so desire Heatsink: CoolerMaster Hyper 212 Evo -> Normally I use the stock cooler since I traditionally don't OC but this was cheap and highly rated, plus I wanted the option to OC to be available for the future. Be advised though, this cooler is a BITCH to install. PSU: EVGA Supernova NEX750G -> EVGA has terrific customer support, hence why I went with them. Fully modular and 80+ Gold rated. This PSU uses multiple 12V rails running at 20A each instead of one massive 12V rail. I can't remember the specifics but there is some issue where if the 12V rail exceeds a certain number of amps the PSU can't shut it down quickly enough to prevent circuit damage should the PSU get hit with a power surge. Case: Fractal Design R4 -> We have the full tower version at work and I love it, so I got the midtower version. Extrememly quiet, tons of room for extra fanes, built in filters, and even has cables for a fan controller if you want one. The case is steel though, so expect it to be a bit heavy. Got all of this at Microcenter in-store. $750 USD after tax, but I still have $50 in MIRs to send in. I pretty much used HardForum as a guide over a few months to figure out which parts I wanted. Still need to upgrade my vid card, but 780s are still too much for my tastes at the moment.

I was even thinking to already fully commit to SSDs… I want to build a machine exclusively for tooling around and play, but I usually don't play more than 3 games at a time, so maybe could be doable? With then external disk to offload/backup stuff(?).

I already have a 2tb hdd… I'm not sue it's fully working, I had problems when I was organising my photo of Africa and haven't been able to access them since then. But I've been dreaming a NAS for long.

Cpu: seriously they're on par again? Do they generate much more hear?

Gpu as well I was sorta waiting to see if new models were coming out hoping 780s would drop, but not happening anytime soon(?).

I've been saying this on here until I've gotten blue in the face. Amd's Piledriver/FX series is beastly and no they don't generate loads of heat.

Best tech reviewer on the web.

Of course if you just want the PC to be a workstation only PC, no gaming, then discard this.