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KSP1 Computer Building/Buying Megathread

Leonov

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Leonov

Leonov

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So, I need to start building a new PC sometime, preferably soon... of course, two problems:

1. I am poor

2. I am dumb

My main requirements are that it functions decently as a gaming PC (same specs as my current PC would be fine), can be relocated without requiring a forklift, it actually be quick to do things (10-15 min startup time as I have now is not acceptable), and, importantly, it is quiet. My current PC is a jet aircraft, practically...

I've got my sights set on a case, which seems in my mind to be the greatest case ever imagined by mankind:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811139014

No screws required to detach the side panel, just big clamps, carrying handles for mobility (this satisfies point 2), and lots of room inside... bit pricey (I think? not much experience in this), but otherwise seems to be fantastic.

Problem is of course I don't really have nearly enough money to do this (budget of something like $300?), so I dunno when this would be able to happen... but it can't hurt to plan for any unexpected windfall. I also don't know much about hardware, and fully expect to break everything if I look at it funny. So that's where you lot come in, I guess. Maybe I could recycle my existing GPU? I don't think there's anything horribly wrong with it, and that would take a good bit of the cost off. Unless of course the GPU is what makes it so loud.

Got a budget?

How about A Nice Form to fill out if you want help from someone with planning a build.

When trying to recommend a build to you, there's some information that's extremely helpful for us to know. If you could answer these few short questions, we'd be happy to help!

What are you planning to do with this computer? Please be as specific as possible.

What is your budget?

Does this include a copy of Windows?

Does this include peripherals (a keyboard, monitor, mouse, speakers, etc.)?

Are you from the United States or a different country? Are you ordering from your own country or from across borders?

Wherever you may be from, does the store that you are planning to order from have a website? It's okay if it isn't in English, we can manage.

If you are from the United States, do you live nearby a Microcenter?

Do you have any specific requests with the build?

Do you plan on overclocking? If yes, do you have a specific goal in mind?

Would you prefer the build to be particularly small?

Would you prefer the build to be particularly quiet?

In general, do you prefer this to be a computer that you can spend money on now and let it rest, or a box built for continuous upgrading?

Do you ever plan on utilizing NVIDIA's SLI or AMD's CrossfireX technologies? These features, with a compatible motherboard, allow a user to link multiple identical graphic cards together for added performance. In real world terms, this lets you buy a second identical graphics card down the line as a relatively cheap and easy way to gain a fairly large boost in performance. However, this requires buying a SLI/CFX compatible motherboard and PSU now, which may result in slightly higher initial cost.

(OPTIONAL) Have you already looked at or considered any parts (it's okay if you haven't)? If so, please list your top 1-2 choices for each category. If you've only picked out a few of the below, just list those.

CPU

Motherboard

RAM

Graphics Card

Power Supply

Case

Hard Drive

Solid State Drive (optional)

Mouse (if necessary)

Keyboard (if necessary)

Monitor (if necessary)

Speakers/Headset (if necessary)

Once again, thank you in advance for taking the time to answer these.

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NovaSilisko

NovaSilisko

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Well, I was hoping of soliciting help from people somewhat more familiar with me by going to this thread instead of going through a standardized form ;p

I answered a couple of the questions in that form in my post already though, but I'll give some more, in no particular order...

- Budget is currently an unknown - if I wanted to do it immediately it would have to be 3-400ish dollars, max. But, I do want to wait a bit so I can maybe accrue more wealth through some means, to enable making a build without it being terrible.

- I don't need a monitor, mouse, keyboard, speakers, etc. I already have those and they work fine (and can always be acquired at a later time).

- I have no plans of overclocking and no plans for SLI/CFX.

- Ideally it's left open for upgrading (for instance, the recycling of my existing GPU for the new build would just be temporary til a new card is bought).

- SSD would be nice, but I think what might be best is to have a tiny one used only as the boot drive, so the system starts up lightning fast, without the expense (or, as I have heard, reliability issues) of a large-scale file storage SSD.

Edited by NovaSilisko
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Leonov

Leonov

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Well, I was hoping of soliciting help from people somewhat more familiar with me by going to this thread instead of going through a standardized form ;p

I answered a couple of the questions in that form in my post already though, but I'll give some more, in no particular order...

- Budget is currently an unknown - if I wanted to do it immediately it would have to be 3-400ish dollars, max. But, I do want to wait a bit so I can maybe accrue more wealth through some means, to enable making a build without it being terrible.

- I don't need a monitor, mouse, keyboard, speakers, etc. I already have those and they work fine (and can always be acquired at a later time).

- I have no plans of overclocking and no plans for SLI/CFX.

- Ideally it's left open for upgrading (for instance, the recycling of my existing GPU for the new build would just be temporary til a new card is bought).

- SSD would be nice, but I think what might be best is to have a tiny one used only as the boot drive, so the system starts up lightning fast, without the expense (or, as I have heard, reliability issues) of a large-scale file storage SSD.

Do you have a list of parts that you are going to reuse for this build? Do you have a hard drive you are going to reuse? I assume new CPU and mobo? I have the Corsair C70 in black, its a pretty nice case. Very well made and comes stock with plenty of fans. The clamps to open the side doors are a very nice feature, if i ever get another case it will have to have them.

As far as assembling a computer there are some video tutorials in the OP that can point you in the right direction, the guideline is as long as you can operate a screwdriver and read an instruction booklet you can put a computer together.

Edited by Leonov
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NovaSilisko

NovaSilisko

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Do you have a list of parts that you are going to reuse for this build? Do you have a hard drive you are going to reuse? I assume new CPU and mobo? I have the Corsair C70 in black, its a pretty nice case. Very well made and comes stock with plenty of fans. The clamps to open the side doors are a very nice feature, if i ever get another case it will have to have them.

As far as assembling a computer there are some video tutorials in the OP that can point you in the right direction, the guideline is as long as you can operate a screwdriver and read an instruction booklet you can put a computer together.

I'm hoping to reuse my keyboard, mouse, monitor, headphones/speakers, and GFX card. I'd prefer not to carry over things like the HD (I was thinking of sticking the current HDs into enclosures then snagging files off of them as needed). Most of the hardware here is from 2009 I believe, so I don't exactly trust much of it to last terrifically long at 5 years of age. I'd say it's best to get a new motherboard, but maybe I'd be able to recycle the CPU. Dunno what sort of problems there might be with it, but it doesn't seem to catch on fire or anything so that's probably good.

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Leonov

Leonov

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I'm hoping to reuse my keyboard, mouse, monitor, headphones/speakers, and GFX card. I'd prefer not to carry over things like the HD (I was thinking of sticking the current HDs into enclosures then snagging files off of them as needed). Most of the hardware here is from 2009 I believe, so I don't exactly trust much of it to last terrifically long at 5 years of age. I'd say it's best to get a new motherboard, but maybe I'd be able to recycle the CPU. Dunno what sort of problems there might be with it, but it doesn't seem to catch on fire or anything so that's probably good.

It will take some saving, but it will be worth every penny. What GPU are you using?

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Aghanim

Aghanim

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Again VGA related question:

Is AMD graphic card worth it in Linux? Or it will create huge stutter/not enough performance gains and I've better of buying Nvidia card? Should I buy 7000 series or the R9 series? Could eyefinity works in Linux?

Game that I played in my Linux rig:

- TF2

- Left 4 Dead 2

- Dota 2

- KSP

- Blender and Luxrender (actually not a game)

- Minecraft

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Leonov

Leonov

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Again VGA related question:

Is AMD graphic card worth it in Linux? Or it will create huge stutter/not enough performance gains and I've better of buying Nvidia card? Should I buy 7000 series or the R9 series? Could eyefinity works in Linux?

Game that I played in my Linux rig:

- TF2

- Left 4 Dead 2

- Dota 2

- KSP

- Blender and Luxrender (actually not a game)

- Minecraft

For rendering, if you can get your hands on one of these. I would grab one of them, Plenty of V ram for anything you throw at it. Its also more than enough for gaming. If you cant get you hands on one of them, grab a R9 280X 3GB of V ram should be more than enough for rendering and it is just as powerful as a GTX 770 when gaming. If you can find a R9 290 on sale somewhere and you grab a NZXT Kraken G10. The G10 allows you to mount a CPU cooler to your GPU, This kind of system is enough to keep a R9 290(or the 280X) happy and col. The R9 290 has enough Vram to render large projects and plays any game you throw at it, if you have the right hookups eyefinity should be easy with the new drivers.

The drivers are a whole new story, I am not sure if AMD has released their new drivers for Linux or not. If they have then you are golden with eyefinity and performance fixes. If they havent im not sure how far Nividia has gotten with Linux, last i heard they didn't seem to worry about Linux users.

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sammoe

sammoe

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Hey guys! I want to upgrade my PC but am not sure of what to buy. I'm looking to spend about $150 to $200.

Here are my specs:

Intel Core i3 4330 3.50 GHz (Dual Core) - Standard Heatsink

ASUS H81M-E (Intel H81 Chipset) (MATX)

8GB (2x 4GB) DDR3 1600 MHz Corsair Vengeance

430W Corsair CX

1x 500GB Seagate (7200 RPM) (16 MB Cache)

1x Nvidia GTX 650 1GB

Thanks!

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NovaSilisko

NovaSilisko

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Nvidia GTX 260. Ancient card, but it's served me well. I'll keep your suggestions in mind! I'm going around consulting different sources, can't hurt to have a sort of consensus before committing to a big thing like this.

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Galacticruler

Galacticruler

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Nvidia GTX 260. Ancient card, but it's served me well. I'll keep your suggestions in mind! I'm going around consulting different sources, can't hurt to have a sort of consensus before committing to a big thing like this.

no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, you see, MY card is ancient(Nvidia Geforce 6150SE(Integrated)/Nforce 430 Mobo). Yours is just mildy old.

Same as the one linked by Leonov, but dropped the SSD and added a GTX 650.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2Ak7V

~$842.34(May vary between dates)

OR

this one that I aspire to purchase and construct some time later.

http://pcpartpicker.com/user/Galacticruler/saved/2bD1

~$660 atm

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Moustachauve

Moustachauve

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No you shouldn't. Its better if you space any thing using a pci slot out to make upgrading easier. Why are you asking? Is your card not living up to spec?

I don't like my motherboard because it only have one place to plug a fan (Except cpu fan) and I can't control it speed anyways (Asus p8h61-m LX). Plus I only have two ram slots, 1 pci x16. So I'm thinking about a future upgrade for my pc and I though that my motherboard could maybe be upgraded.

My build:

CPU : Intel i7 2600 (Stock cooler)

GPU : Nvidia GTX770 (Gigabyte)

Ram: 8gb kingston (2x KVR1333D3N9/4G)

Power supply : Corsair CX600M

Hard drive : 1500gb Seagate barracuda (1x "older" 500gb, 1x new 1tb)

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Leonov

Leonov

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I don't like my motherboard because it only have one place to plug a fan (Except cpu fan) and I can't control it speed anyways (Asus p8h61-m LX). Plus I only have two ram slots, 1 pci x16. So I'm thinking about a future upgrade for my pc and I though that my motherboard could maybe be upgraded.

My build:

CPU : Intel i7 2600 (Stock cooler)

GPU : Nvidia GTX770 (Gigabyte)

Ram: 8gb kingston (2x KVR1333D3N9/4G)

Power supply : Corsair CX600M

Hard drive : 1500gb Seagate barracuda (1x "older" 500gb, 1x new 1tb)

How does this motherboard look?

Z77 so the Chipset can handle anything you throw at it, and you can tinker with anything you want.

2 PCIE 3.0 slots, 16x speed for single card 8x for dual cards. 1 PCIE 2.0 in 4x

I do not think there are any cards that use up all the bandwidth of a full 16x speed PCIe 2.0 Slot, you may see a small increase in performance by switching to a full speed PCIe 3.0 Motherboard. Is it really the GPU or is it just a dislike of your current Mobo? That GTX 770 should handle nearly anything you throw at it.

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Moustachauve

Moustachauve

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It does handle everything I throw at it (Except Arma 3, but I don't think anything can max out that game), I was just thinking if I would see a gain about changing the motherboard, because like you guessed, I dislike my current motherboard for the lack of fan controller and ram slot.

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Leonov

Leonov

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I'm currently building a gaming PC and have set aside 200 bucks for a graphics card, any recommendations? Motherboard can support Crosswise and SLI cards, if that helps.

If i may ask what CPU are you shoving into this thing?, This should suffice for most games.

Its Q1, next month we will see some of the Nividia GTX 8XX news being released, Honestly wait for the Nividia GTX 8XX cards to comes out and then shop for a GPU. The Nividia GTX 6XX cards will drop in price dramatically and the GTX 7XX cards will go down as well. AMD may try to cut prices to draw people in so keep a look on the R9 Series of Cards. The GTX 660 can run a lot of games at max settings, I have one in my rig. The only game that gave me trouble was Metro Last Light.

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Quique

Quique

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I've got a question for you.

Currently I'm running KSP in an Athlon X2 5400+ (dual core, 2.8 Ghz, 512Kb cache/core). I'm happy with the performance, but sometimes feels a little slow.

A friend of mine has given me an Intel Core 2 Quad E6600 (quad core, 2.4 Ghz, 2Mb cache/core). Only the CPU.

My question is: It's worth the extra performance buying a motherboard for the Intel? The rest of the PC would remain the same (RAM, VGA, etc). The cost for the MB it's 80€ (brand new).

I'm asking mainly because KSP doesnt play with more than 1 core, so I'm not sure of the change.

Thanks.

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Leonov

Leonov

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I've got a question for you.

Currently I'm running KSP in an Athlon X2 5400+ (dual core, 2.8 Ghz, 512Kb cache/core). I'm happy with the performance, but sometimes feels a little slow.

A friend of mine has given me an Intel Core 2 Quad E6600 (quad core, 2.4 Ghz, 2Mb cache/core). Only the CPU.

My question is: It's worth the extra performance buying a motherboard for the Intel? The rest of the PC would remain the same (RAM, VGA, etc). The cost for the MB it's 80€ (brand new).

I'm asking mainly because KSP doesnt play with more than 1 core, so I'm not sure of the change.

Thanks.

I do not think the price is worth the performance gain. I personally could not justify investing into my old system (Core 2 Quad), when i could save up some funds to acquire a newer computer with a longer useful lifetime.

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Galacticruler

Galacticruler

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I undersand this is a PC Building thread, but I have a question reguarding a file.

I started my PC this morining and found a "Program" file, with no extension at 0Kb just sitting in my C:\ drive, I don't know why its there or when it got there, but this morning it popped up a message about it being renamed to Program1 breaking programs....however I had no clue it existed until then, and I never tried to rename it...(In fact it DIDN'T exist until today...).

AVG is unable to detect it, and I can't do a selective scan of it.

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