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need help with new PC, details inside.

788 views 35 replies 11 participants last post by  PontiacGTX 
#1 ·
So I want this fancy gpu, but I'm worried that I won't be able to fit two of them on the mobo I've picked out. I don't follow hardware enough to know what works with what so I'm turning to you experts. I'm also worried about the mobo below because it's not rated very well.. So if you could point me in the right direction on a mobo that could fit two of these beasts (and if that means choosing different RAM/CPU that's fine). Any other advice vs what I picked out would be good, too. I'm not planning on buying the second GPU right now but will hopefully before the end of the year. So any thoughts about any of this are appreciated.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($319.73 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock Z97 EXTREME4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($119.99 @ Micro Center)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($174.99 @ Best Buy)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($44.99 @ Best Buy)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 290X 8GB Vapor-X Video Card (2-Way CrossFire) ($462.98 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 290X 8GB Vapor-X Video Card (2-Way CrossFire) ($462.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA 850W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($94.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.79 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1730.42
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-02-21 12:45 EST-0500

p.s. this is specifically in the graphics forum because I'm wanting advice about my build with respect to the GPUs I picked (specifically about a mobo that will fit them).
 
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#2 ·
That can support it. I'd also add a SSD, if I could.
 
#5 ·
make sure the heatsink for the ram does not hit the 212 (prolly if you add another fan for push/pull).
 
#7 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by claudekennilol View Post

How do I make sure of that without having it to test? I had that problem with my current PC but I only used 2 of my 4 dimm slots so it was fine.

There are too many 1 egg reviews on newegg for the PowerColor Radeon R9 290 4GB PCS+ to make me want to get that one..
you might get something comparable that's low profile. something blue like a kingston hypers.

also, get some gelid extreme or MX-4.
 
#8 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by rdr09 View Post

you might get something comparable that's low profile. something blue like a kingston hypers.

also, get some gelid extreme or MX-4.
But these ones look so sexy
frown.gif
. If you know something that's comparable I'm willing to look. I should still have some thermal paste here somewhere from my last build.. The really need to just sell individual uses of that stuff for casuals like me that don't build tons of computers.

Sapphire Radeon R9 290 4GB GDDR5 DUAL DVI-D/HDMI/DP TRI-X OC Version PCI-Express Graphics Card 11227-00-40G seems pretty comparable in price to the pcs+. How does it perform compared to that?
 
#9 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by claudekennilol View Post

How do I make sure of that without having it to test? I had that problem with my current PC but I only used 2 of my 4 dimm slots so it was fine.

There are too many 1 egg reviews on newegg for the PowerColor Radeon R9 290 4GB PCS+ to make me want to get that one..
those areview were due to black screen on early models which in general was common on the 290/x but powercolor updated the bios on the new models and the problem was fixed.

The hyper 212 is thing but there are better choices for 40-50usd that perform near the top high end heatsink on ocex mainstream cpus

And the new amd card with HBM and probably HDMI 2.0(the 290 only runs 1x4k at 60hz with dp1.2)
 
#10 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by claudekennilol View Post

But these ones look so sexy
frown.gif
. If you know something that's comparable I'm willing to look. I should still have some thermal paste here somewhere from my last build.. The really need to just sell individual uses of that stuff for casuals like me that don't build tons of computers.

Sapphire Radeon R9 290 4GB GDDR5 DUAL DVI-D/HDMI/DP TRI-X OC Version PCI-Express Graphics Card 11227-00-40G seems pretty comparable in price to the pcs+. How does it perform compared to that?
TriX is no gonna match the mobo (color) . . . if you are into that thing. the VaporX will.

you in hurry? the 390s are coming with HBM.

edit: prolly a single used 290 for now and upgrade to 390s when they come out.
 
#11 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by rdr09 View Post

TriX is no gonna match the mobo (color) . . . if you are into that thing. the VaporX will.

you in hurry? the 390s are coming with HBM.

edit: prolly a single used 290 for now and upgrade to 390s when they come out.
When will that be? My current PC works just fine, but my wife's is aging. So she wants mine and I'll be getting a new one. So if it's a matter of weeks, I can probably swing it. Anything more than that and I'll probably have to go with whatever is available now. I'm not so worried about it matching the mobo color. But other than color, how does that TriX card compare to the pcs+ card?

Also the launch price of the 390 will be a factor--and knowing how expensive brand new GPUs are, I probably won't get it.
 
#12 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by claudekennilol View Post

When will that be? My current PC works just fine, but my wife's is aging. So she wants mine and I'll be getting a new one. So if it's a matter of weeks, I can probably swing it. Anything more than that and I'll probably have to go with whatever is available now. I'm not so worried about it matching the mobo color. But other than color, how does that TriX card compare to the pcs+ card?

Also the launch price of the 390 will be a factor--and knowing how expensive brand new GPUs are, I probably won't get it.
the TriX and the pcs are about the same. the pcs is a 3-slot card. and you are right about the new gens price point. get a single 290 for now, though. if you need more, then get another.

edit: not sure where you from but i highly recommend this . . .

Lightning
 
#13 ·
#15 ·
Personally....... I would not be as concerned with RAM speed. Saying that I feel that 1600Mhz would be sufficient. 16GB is plenty unless you plan on running VMs, then I would suggest 32GB (16 can still work but will limit). I feel that an SSD will benefit you MUCH more than that high speed RAM. Also, for your mass storage, what about doing 3x500GB WD blacks? With this you can setup a RAID5 array for 1TB of total storage, redundancy and improved write performance compared to a single 7200rpm drive. The WD blacks also have a great warranty.

edit: Sorry....... I geek hard.
 
#17 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by PontiacGTX View Post

The pcs+ is 2.5 slot and beats the vapor x cooling wise
http://www.computerbase.de/2014-05/amd-radeon-r9-290-290x-roundup-test/3/
Something to keep in mind is that the PCS+ is quite loud when the fans start going. And they will want to go when you start a game every. single. time. Not a good choice for quiet builds. Idle noise is great, virtually inaudible but you'll have to set a custom fan profile if you want to lessen the noise.
If you don't care about the fan noise then the PCS+ is the best 290x cooling wise at stock settings.

Personally I would get the Vapor-X over the PCS+ since the Vapor-X is a LOT quieter while not being all that much hotter. Also has a much less aggressive fan profile.
 
#18 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by Howmaybesgo View Post

Personally....... I would not be as concerned with RAM speed. Saying that I feel that 1600Mhz would be sufficient. 16GB is plenty unless you plan on running VMs, then I would suggest 32GB (16 can still work but will limit). I feel that an SSD will benefit you MUCH more than that high speed RAM. Also, for your mass storage, what about doing 3x500GB WD blacks? With this you can setup a RAID5 array for 1TB of total storage, redundancy and improved write performance compared to a single 7200rpm drive. The WD blacks also have a great warranty.

edit: Sorry....... I geek hard.
How would the read speeds compare? I'm not so worried about the write speeds. What specific RAM would you suggest?
Quote:
Originally Posted by PureBlackFire View Post

go for the Be Quiet Pure Rock or Cryorig H7. same price as the Hyper 212 Evo, but offer the same performance with less noise. the Cryorig doesn't interfere with ram at all. I don't know if Asrock has addressed the problems with the Z97 Extrem 4, but just ot be safe I'd go with the Extreme 6 or something else entirely. also, that ram is overpriced. you have a case or...
I do have a case. I've got the cm haf x and we'll buy some random case for my wife to put its current contents in. I wasn't too keen on the asrock mobo linked above. What other mobo would you suggest that would leave room for two vapor-x's ? And same question, what RAM would you suggest?

edit: That sabertooth z87 looks sexy, how is that one? (also pricey..)
 
#20 ·
Sorry I am just getting back to you.

Here is a link with great graphs and a good read:
http://www.zdnet.com/article/comprehensive-raid-performance-report/

This should answer your questions about different Raids, their benefits, downsides and actual performance values.

For RAM, anything from a reputable company really.
biggrin.gif


Corsair, Gskill, HyperX......

Would also suggest the Asrock z97 extreme6. I bought this board for my i7 4790k build and it is a winner.
 
#22 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by XLifted View Post

Linus did a test comparing the fastest ram to 1333 mhz I believe and they had 1-2 frame difference in gaming.

Unless you are rendering videos, you will not know a difference.
No, do not get anything slower than 1600mhz ram especially since you don't have a SSD. 1600mhz is snappier than 1333mhz, it opens files and programs faster. 2133 may be overkill but if you have a budget then forgo the 212 hyper, get 1600 mhz or 1866mhz ram and buy a 128gb/240gb/256gb ssd. The SSD makes it a whole new machine you can't live w/out one once you've used it. Plus faster ram improves your minimum frame rates which improves your average
 
#23 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by XLifted View Post

Linus did a test comparing the fastest ram to 1333 mhz I believe and they had 1-2 frame difference in gaming.

Unless you are rendering videos, you will not know a difference.
they were also GPU bottlenecked scenarios, so they made absolutely no statement about CPU bound situations. In which ram speeds tend to have a significant impact.
 
#24 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by diggiddi View Post

No, do not get anything slower than 1600mhz ram especially since you don't have a SSD. 1600mhz is snappier than 1333mhz, it opens files and programs faster. 2133 may be overkill but if you have a budget then forgo the 212 hyper, get 1600 mhz or 1866mhz ram and buy a 128gb/240gb/256gb ssd. The SSD makes it a whole new machine you can't live w/out one once you've used it. Plus faster ram improves your minimum frame rates which improves your average
Oh I'm not telling him to get 1333 mhz
tongue.gif


Not at all, just referring to Linus's test

What I do agree with him is that it's a huge scheme when they try to sell Ram for gaming when it doesn't even show properly.

He compared like 100-150 dollar difference of the same size ram modules but different speeds and noticed 1-3 fps difference from the lowest to the highest memory available on the market.
 
#25 ·
Quote:
Originally Posted by XLifted View Post

Oh I'm not telling him to get 1333 mhz
tongue.gif


Not at all, just referring to Linus's test

What I do agree with him is that it's a huge scheme when they try to sell Ram for gaming when it doesn't even show properly.

He compared like 100-150 dollar difference of the same size ram modules but different speeds and noticed 1-3 fps difference from the lowest to the highest memory available on the market.
Though the test really wasn't related to what ram does for gaming x;

Not everyone only plays games that are never CPU bound.
I can only recommend to get the fastest ram that doesn't carry a silly price premium and is compatible easily with the board/cpu.
 
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