video card suggestions

Well either $3000 for a super silent highend PC $30-50 per game on ultra details on 3 screens and 3D in every game or $300 for a noisy console that has 1% of the capabilities of the PC and $50-80 per game on mediocre settings.

I will admit though, there is one thing with this new generation of consoles I envy, that the PC has no access too. Well it does, just a much different selection. And that is the indie games on XBLM, and PSN...most of them released there are not available on PC for some dumb reason, and there are tons I'd love to play, but I will never own a console again...just too limiting!

Naylia -- Thanks for looking that up for me but these guys convinced me to build my own since the last time you posted.

I think all I have left is to make 100% sure i can return the desktop i have now, then I'll do that here in the next day or two and hopefully ill have the parts by monday!

Well, it looks like you have a decent system for your first build. Certainly better than mine, and I run FF14 pretty close to maxed out. What you have should be awesome. I think you will find that building your own computer is a lot of fun, especially for your first time. It is surprisingly easy to, despite the overwhelming number of parts (there is a general rule of if the plug fits, it goes there that makes things super easy). The site they linked to you (Toms Hardware) is a wonderful, wonderful, place to get help for all things. I have been using them for over a decade and have always been pleased with the community there.

Of course, you're also welcome to ask us here! We would be happy to geek out with you! Grats on the new system!

Quote:

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Originally Posted by origamikitsune

Well, it looks like you have a decent system for your first build. Certainly better than mine, and I run FF14 pretty close to maxed out. What you have should be awesome. I think you will find that building your own computer is a lot of fun, especially for your first time. It is surprisingly easy to, despite the overwhelming number of parts (there is a general rule of if the plug fits, it goes there that makes things super easy). The site they linked to you (Toms Hardware) is a wonderful, wonderful, place to get help for all things. I have been using them for over a decade and have always been pleased with the community there.

Of course, you're also welcome to ask us here! We would be happy to geek out with you! Grats on the new system!

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Thank you! I'm very excited I'm just a little afraid that Best Buy is gonna give me trouble with teh return; it would be awful if I couldn't build the system after all the help you all have given me. And I'm definitely gonna have to check that site out a little bit more.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by ScipioCaesar

Naylia -- Thanks for looking that up for me but these guys convinced me to build my own since the last time you posted.

I think all I have left is to make 100% sure i can return the desktop i have now, then I'll do that here in the next day or two and hopefully ill have the parts by monday!

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Excellent! Just don't let your family know, because you'll become the default tech support guy. Welcome to DIY!!

Well it is official everyone; my order has been processed. If I'm lucky I'll have the parts by Saturday, but wouldn't surprise me if i gotta wait until monday. Just gotta return this computer I'm typing from now and I am all set!

Is Best Buy going to be taking it back, without any hassle? You know I just thought, don't they have a restocking fee on electronics too?

And unless you paid for overnight shipping, more than likely it'll be Mon. Even with 2-day, they'll spend most of today packing it all up, and a 1/2 day in processing waiting for the truck to fill, so it might ship on Fri or Sat, and you'll get it Mon-Wed. At least that how it seems with all my orders of the past...LOL

Anyhow, grats on the new custom-built PC. And do find a way to contact us here if you need help putting it together. Even though its not very difficult, being your first time, it'll look daunting with so many parts and cables.

I asked them about the restocking fee and they told me there wasn't one, and I asked if there was any other red tape that could hold me back and they said as long as I was within the fourteen days I would be fine. As for the shipping, I happen to work at UPS so I can flag the boxes and take them home as soon as they get to my HUB =P Of course there may be too much for me to do that but it's a possibility at least. I may take the parts over to my dad's place and use his computer for help putting it together should i need any, although I've had a lot of people telling me it's really quite simple. My only problem in the future will be when the computer breaks down is I have no idea how to figure out which part it is that malfunctioned.

Well, unless you submerge your PC in the bathtub, they very rarely just break down. Now there are parts that can go out but the signs are pretty evident and easy to figure out. For instance if your PSU is going out, the PC will BSOD often and reset. If you're having trouble loading anything and its taking awhile, or you hear a clicking noise, then your HDD is probably going out. If programs aren't running very quickly or at their best and you get memory errors, maybe even a BSOD, then a stick of RAM may be bad, or all of it...but thats rare.


As long as you take care of your PC, keep it clean by regularly blowing the dust off/inside the components weekly{with compressed air ~ I use Dust Off ~ you can get a 6-pack for $18 from Costco which lasts me a year or so...} There are air-filters over the case fans on the Antec 902 you got, but the dust does build up on them. And it will still build up inside your case, cover everything, getting inside your GPU and all over your CPUs Heatsink. Especially it will build up on the GPUs fan, keep that as clear as possible, and blow the inside of the case out where you see it. {All this only take about a min, once a week or so or as often as needed like if you have pets, dust will build up faster}

Everything will run great and function well for years to come if you keep it cleared of dust building up.



Oh and hopefully this won't happen to you, but on occasion, you may get a part that is DOA, or maybe a GPU that runs ok for the first week, then you start seeing artifacts in games and discoloration here n' there. No worries though as Newegg rocks at replacing parts that are bad, just contact them via live chat support and go from there. The thing that sucks is waiting on the shipping times of getting the parts replaced!

I got the GTX 480 and it's great

I prefer AMD :P

Hey guys so I should have all my parts by Tuesday; do you all know of any good places I can research the step by step process of building the computer piece by piece? Anything would be great!

There will be instructions included with your MB ~ a full color "visual guide" poster, and the instruction manual will tell you in better detail where everything goes, how to install the CPU and Heatsink as well as all the PSU cables. The front panel header, RAM, GPU, etc etc etc.

The CPU only goes in one way/direction, and will drop into place...don't force it in, line up the pins and you're good.

Just take your time and don't plug stuff in somewhere unless you're sure, but for the most part, every plug is unique and only goes where its supposed too. Also be sure to ground yourself to the case. If you don't have anti-static wrist strap, which isn't necessary as I've never used one. Put your shoes on w/ rubber soles, and stand on wood or vinyl....don't put it together over carpet {static...}

Touch your screwdriver to the case before screwing things in, don't have to every time unless you leave the area. Also don't be afraid to apply a bit of pressure to the MB when installing the RAM and GPU...it can take it. Once it clicks in place though, don't keep pushing....lol

You'll get it...but ask again if ya need any help!

Thanks again khalus, never coulda done this without you guys. I am wonderi about the Internet though, I have wireless so I've heard I need to buysome kind of little adapter right? And what type of anti-virus do you guys reccommend? I've watched a few YouTube videos and those really seemto help, and I'm glad I heard about the grounding thing as I'd have never thought of that. I'm sure I'll have more questions later on lol but you guys have been great!

Good free antivir programs are avira antivir, avast antivirus and mse. mse obviously integrates best into windows but only has basic features. Kaspersky is pretty good if you are willing to pay money for it(theres a free test version).
And yes for wlan you will need an adapter if the mainboard doesn't have it as a feature. You can get those anywhere and for any interface (USB, PCI, PCIe). For you a USB-WLAN stick will probably be best.

AVG is the best...

And here is the free version...

It's definately not best as I already had problems with it in the past. There is no best or perfect antivirus software. It all depends on who is using it for what kind of system :P

For anti-virus I suggest Microsoft Security Essentials. For Windows 7 you will not find a better anti-virus. There are some that are as-good, but none better. Its free, and it updates through windows update. Most importantly, it is very small, very fast, very up-to-date, and doesn't interfere with programs (including 14) like many of the others do.

Just spent 2100$ Worth it?? more importantly will it run FFXIV on highest setting flawlessly??

Case: Corsair Obsidian Series 650D Mid-Tower Gaming Case w/ dual 200mm fans, integrated fan controller, front USB 3.0 Port & Side-Panel Window

Extra Case Fan Upgrade: Maximum Enermax 120MM Case Cooling Fans for selected case (Maximum Silent Operation) (1,000 RPM Black Color with No LED Enlobal Magnetic Barometric Bearing 17 dBA)

CPU: Intel® Core™ i7-960 3.20 GHz 8M Intel Smart Cache LGA1366

Cooling Fan: CoolerMaster V6 GT CPU Cooler (Nickle Plated Double-V Heatpipe w/ Color Changing LED Cap)

Motherboard: (3-Way SLI Support) GigaByte G1.Guerrilla Intel X58 Chipset SLI/CrossFireX Triple-Channel DDR3 E-ATX w/ 7.1
Creative X-Fi Xtreme Fidelity Audio, Bigfoot Killer E2100 GbLAN, eSATA, USB3, 2x SATA3 RAID, 3 Gen2 PCIe, 2 PCIe X1 & 1 PCI

Memory: 12GB (2GBx6) DDR3/1600MHz Triple Channel Memory Module (Kingston HyperX )

Video Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 570 HD 2.5GB 16X PCIe Video Card (EVGA Powered by NVIDIA)

Power Supply Upgrade: 1,000 Watts - CoolerMaster Silent Pro Gaming 80 Plus Power Supply

Hard Drive: 2TB (2TBx1) SATA-III 6.0Gb/s 64MB Cache 7200RPM HDD

Optical Drive: Samsung SH-B123L 12X BLU-RAY Player & DVDRW Combo

Operating System: Microsoft® Windows 7 Home Premium (64-bit Edition)

If you spent, $2100 on that PC, you got ripped off by about $300-$500, but yes it'll play XIV pretty well.

How would I be ripped off $300-$500 that much? I sorta check price reference thru newegg and it came out 1842+tax to be around 1985$ theres some minor stuffs i didnt mention but their not important. Theres probably things I didnt need if I wanted to cut cost like ram, cpu cooler, cheaper case and psu but the price seem right for the components street value.

Yes the price is okay. You just got the expensive stuff in it. Not gonna argue if those parts are actually worth their money as I don't want to make people sad xD

Where do you guys learn all of thus stuff? Now that I'm building my first PC I'm kind of interested in learning more about the whole process and computers in general. Do you guys work in the field or is it just a hobby for all of you?

I've been working with PCs since I can remember, had courses in school, am studying that field and work in it. If you read some hardware news everyday you will quickly learn the basic stuff. The rest is learning by doing.

Been interested in PCs since forever, that I can recall {20+yrs} Used to take them apart when they were dinosaurs and you couldn't upgrade hardly anything, but we'd switch out parts that went bad the best we could. Plus I took several PC courses and tech school back in the day, and ever since I've been building my own PCs and for friends and family.

Its more an acquired general knowledge from doing it so long, and I don't know everything, but I get by well enough!

Yeah I figured I just got the little more expensive stuffs that wasnt so neccesary. Could easily shave off couple hundred, but wth I just thought they were "cool" to have extra and if I ever need to expand itll be cake. I just cant wait to play FFXIV again, had major issues running it on my last system cause it was so outdated. Might make my toon on Besaid and Lindblum soon.

I got involved with computers because, even thirty five years ago, my parents realized how important they would be, so they bought me one for my sixth birthday. The rest, as they say, is history.

Yeah wish I invested into computers back then, I would be rich living off my stocks.

Well I have all my parts got them all together...and am having problems. When I plug it in I have a red power light and a blue light that come on. But when I hit the pwr btton everything lights up for a split second and then dies. Also, my power supply has WAY too many wires I seriously have about five extras that I can't disconnct from the power supply or plug in anywhere and aare just laying around. I spent like eight hrs following exact step by step guides incant figure out what i did wrong

Okay. Usually when there is an issue like that it something simple. The first thing that comes to mind and the easiest thing to mess up are the little cords going from the power and reset buttons to the motherboard (its actually usually the USB ones that get plugged in backwards, not the power/reset buttons themselves).

These cords are often tiny, poorly labeled, and easy to mix up. Second most common problem in this case, drawing too much power (I doubt this; your power supply was fine). Third (and this is fairly rare) is shorting out so the system is powering down. I'm going to give you some extra steps than are probably needed, just to make the trouble shooting process easier in case it isn't number issue #1

I am curious; does your computer beep at all, and if so, how many times? Is it rapid? Long? Normal sounding? Short and long? Etc.?

I would start as follows:

Unplug to power cords as follows:
...from your video card
...from your harrdrive
...from your DVD drive

Now, turn your computer on like normal. You will probably hear a series of beeps that sound abnormal; these beeps are probably telling you that your harddrive, etc., are unplugged.

If the computer does not turn off on its own, plug the video card in and try again. Then repeat with the CD/DVD, etc., until you find the issue.

If the system still turns off on its own, and it probably will, we want to look at the front-panel cords next. We want to unplug everything -except- the actual power button. Double and triple check the power button is plugged in right. Try again with turning the computer on. If the system turns on you want to one-by-one double check the front-panel cords. Start with the reset button. Then move on to sound if you have it. Then finish with the USB.

From there, plug the GPU back in, then the CD/DVD, then the harddrive. As you do this process the beeps on startup will likely change.

Now, if you get down to only having the power button plugged in and you STILL have issues, pop back on here and let us know. There's still lots we can help you sort out.

If you like, I will also be on g-talk. ewtuthill @ gmail . com and you are welcome to chat with me (just let me know who you are, so I don't ignore you! lol)

I don't ever get any beeps no matter what's unplugged. When I turn the power supply on I get the red pwr light on the thingamajig above my gpu, and I get a blue light undr where it says pwr led. Now when I try to start up things light up fans whir for a split second and an orange ight comes on and stays on where it says led and mem_led. Also, when I hit the comp pwr button it only half starts the first time and does nothing on subsequent efforts, I have to turn the pwr supply pwr off then on again before I can get that initial response again. One last thing; where there are four connectors on the mb for pwr led, pwr on, reset, and HD led I only have three connectors, nothing for the pwr led slot. I also dunno where to connect the USB port on the back of the case, I got it on the mb but on the back idk which spot o plug it in

Okay. First, the fact that you have to turn the power off by the switch isn't abnormal. Most modern motherboards are designed to do just that. Normal behavior. :)

Ok, not having internal USB next to your pwr led, pwr on and reset simplifies things. I'd suggest double checking as I suggest before. Unplug your hard drive, CD/DVD, Video card, etc. Also unplug USB from the motherboard if you have it plugged in. Then try again turning on/off (it probably won't fix anything). If it doesn't fix, unplug your pwr led, reset, and HD led. Double check your pwr on is plugged in right (the cords on my case were actually labeled backwards) and try again. Let us know what happens.

EDIT: Also, the fact that you get absolutely no beeps means we're probably on the right track. Those sounds (called post beeps among other things) don't usually happen if there is a power issue because there is no power to make the beeps (cause the system shuts down like yours).

Nothing changing. Although now that orange light from before comes on once I turn the pwr supply pwr switch on and not just after the comp pwr switch. Also I can get the lights and whirs everytime I press the little red clear CMOS button after I've tried starting it once, but still nothing else

From what I can see the only thing happening is the fans half-spinning and nothing else, no start up sounds or anything. The orange led 1 led_mem light goes off when I pree the clear CMOS button but for only as long as the button is impressed. Srsly dunno of anything I did wrong putting the thing together I just have no idea

Okay. We're doing fine. I know that it can be overwhelming to have a first build have issues like this; but so far there is nothing to indicate that there is anything wrong that 1.) is permanent or 2.) unfix-able. We're not at the "worry" stage yet.

What I would like you to do is look for any indication of what is going on. We are looking for lights on the mother board since we aren't getting any sounds. Look for any lights that change when you attempt to power up the system, particularly if they blink. If you find anything, reference your motherboard manual and see if the blinking like is giving you an error.

Also, double check your connections. Make sure that everything that is plugged into the motherboard and secure. Double check your ram is seated properly, that your video card is seated properly, etc., etc. Cords form the power supply are secure on the motherboard, etc. Its probably not any of that, but its easy to check and it should be done just in case and is easy to do.

If you can discern any error messages from flashing lights (its okay if you can't, but if you can) let us know what the motherboard manual says about it.

If you cannot, then please give a step-by-step accounting of what happens when. I ask for this so that if I have to leave and someone else steps in to help they can get an easier sense of what is happening. Give us a 1.) I currently have the following plugged in: 2.) I currently have the following unplugged: 3.) I see X light with Y behavior (flashing, solid, etc.) 4.) I press Z button 5.) A happens 6.) B Happens etc., etc.

breaking it down step by step will give use a better sense of what happens than paragraph form. I know it is a hassle, but I think it will help us in the long run.

And don't worry! We'll get you sorted out, Sir! You're in good hands with all the techs here. we live for this sort of stuff!

Not to derail this thread, but I must say this thread is so helpful on so many levels. I just want to thank those who responded with answers and suggestions. I've been lurking in this thread (lol) for ideas on my next computer build (Novice builder here) and it's so refreshing to see this kind of help. That is all. <ninja poofs out of sight>

Also, what make/model of motherboard did you end up getting? That way I can look up the manual and get a visual to make sure everything is covered.

Here is the system he bought:

Quote:

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DVD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16827135204
CASE: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811129097
HARD DRIVE: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822145368
MONITOR: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16824254055
GPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130604
PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817139006
KEYBOARD/MOUSE: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16823126041
RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820211457
MOTHERBOARD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813188073
CPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819115074
COOLING SYSTEM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835106142

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And I'm looking it over to see if I can find something. My first thought though is to check your MB power button. The red one at the bottom of the MB. {is it staying on when you turn the PSU on?} If not, then it may be depressed as off and would be preventing everything from powering on, though are the lights you said that are coming on, 'staying on' or is it all powering down shortly after?


"One last thing; where there are four connectors on the mb for pwr led, pwr on, reset, and HD led I only have three connectors, nothing for the pwr led slot."

Thats fine...its how mine is and we have similar MBs...just make sure they're plugged in correctly.


"and an orange ight comes on and stays on where it says led and mem_led."

Where is this light located on the MB...trying to find it in the image.

Sorry been at work so couldn't respond. Here's what I've got figured out...

When I turn the psu on, the blue light indicating standby mode and orange/yellow light indicating the system are powered on come on and stay on.

The green light indicating DIMM LED, the memory slot does NOT come on, and when turning the pwr switch it flashes briefly and then turns off entirely.

The red power button only turns red briefly when I press it for start up but then fails Luke everythng else;also when i turn the psu on it's middle flashes green.

Also there is a red power light that comes and stays on with the psu switch just above my gpu everytime.

So I'm guessing this is a memory problem. Is my HD installed incorrectly possibly? I checked the ram and both sticks are installed just fine