General Computer talk thread! ;D

[ScarlettPixl]

Not sure if there's one in the Model Only section, but I'm sure there are lots of computer geeks and PC Master Race-rs here to justify making a thread!

Let's talk about your computer, about computer suggestions for what we do, PC gaming, our battlestations and whatever crazy thing is related to this!

 

[Jenna2Foxxy2]

I'm a nerd and a CS major, so here are my specs to start things off!

Intel - Core i7-6700K 4.0GHz Processor
H220 X2 Prestige  CPU Cooler
EVGA - Z170 Classified K ATX LGA1151 Motherboard
EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 FTW Edition Video Card
EVGA - SuperNOVA 1000 P2 1000W Power Supply
Corsair - Vengeance LPX 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory
Samsung - 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Seagate - Desktop HDD 4TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive x3
NZXT - H440 Razer Edition STEEL ATX Mid Tower Case

Mostly used for gaming right now, kinda addicted to Overwatch =)

 

[ScarlettPixl]

As for the laptop:

Mid 2012 13" pre-retina MacBook Pro

* Intel Core i7 3520m
* 16GB of DDR3 RAM
* PNY 240GB SSD + Stock 750GB HDD
* macOS Sierra

 

[ScarlettPixl]

YAAAAAS gurl!!

Here are mine. Bit old, but surprisingly it does the job even for splitcamming!

* Intel Core i7 3770k @ 4.2GHz
* Intel DZ77GA-70K Motherboard
* Cooler Master 212 Evo in push-pull
* 32GB of DDR3 RAM
* Nvidia GTX 970 (Gotta get an RX 580 though)
* Samsung 840 Evo 120GB SSD (For Windows) + Intel 240GB SSD for apps
* Bunch of 2TB drives (Like 3 or 4) for Steam games, clips I recorded, etc.
* LOTS of fans

 

[Jenna2Foxxy2]

YAAAAAS gurl!!

Here are mine. Bit old, but surprisingly it does the job even for splitcamming!

* Intel Core i7 3770k @ 4.2GHz
* Intel DZ77GA-70K Motherboard
* Cooler Master 212 Evo in push-pull
* 32GB of DDR3 RAM
* Nvidia GTX 970 (Gotta get an RX 580 though)
* Samsung 840 Evo 120GB SSD (For Windows) + Intel 240GB SSD for apps
* Bunch of 2TB drives (Like 3 or 4) for Steam games, clips I recorded, etc.
* LOTS of fans

It's surprising how well the custom PC's hold up over time I had a similar build for a really long time =)

 

[ScarlettPixl]

Agreed!

Right now I'm highly tempted to replace my desktop with a laptop like a Lenovo Legion Y720 fully loaded because I want to have a mobile workstation for camming and Twitch. Thunderbolt 3 lets it have an external GPU and extend its life span. However, a desktop is so much more powerful that I don't know if it'd be worth it.

Oh well, we'll see!

 

[Jenna2Foxxy2]

Not sure what your price range is, but for high end laptops in general it's really worth taking a look at http://www.xoticpc.com or https://lpc-digital.com both are fantastic companies to deal with and provide great laptops for gaming/heavy use. I have a NP7850 that I got through LPC that is an absolute beast for the price!

Intel Core i7-7700HQ Processor
15.6" IPS Full HD Matte Display
NVIDIA GTX 1060 GPU with 6GB GDDR5
16GB DDR4 2400
Samsung 850 EVO M.2 250GB SSD
1TB 5400rpm HDD
Intel Wireless-AC 8265 + Bluetooth
Color illuminated keyboard

 

[ScarlettPixl]

Thank you! Will look into it

 

[DJ_Pioneer]

I'm a nerd and a CS major, so here are my specs to start things off!

Intel - Core i7-6700K 4.0GHz Processor
H220 X2 Prestige  CPU Cooler
EVGA - Z170 Classified K ATX LGA1151 Motherboard
EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 FTW Edition Video Card
EVGA - SuperNOVA 1000 P2 1000W Power Supply
Corsair - Vengeance LPX 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory
Samsung - 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Seagate - Desktop HDD 4TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive x3
NZXT - H440 Razer Edition STEEL ATX Mid Tower Case

Mostly used for gaming right now, kinda addicted to Overwatch =)

That is a sweet computer, here is mine.

Intel Core i7 6700K
ASUS Z170-DELUXE
Fractal Design Kelvin S36 360mm
Corsair 32GB (4x8GB) DDR4 3000Mhz Vengeance LPX
MSI GTX 980 Ti GAMING 6G
NZXT H630 Silent Ultra, White
Corsair HX850i 850W
Intel 750 Series PCIe 400GB
SSD 128GB Corsair SATA 2.5", Performance Pro
4x 3TB Seagate Barracuda 7200rpm SATA 6Gbit/s

 

[Lucid1]

I built my current rig in 2008 with future proofing in mind, and although a bit dated, it serves me well almost 10 years later. The only hardware updates that I have done so far is the processor, going from a 2-core cpu to the quad-core Q9550, and upgrading the video card to the current EVGA GeForce GTX-760. I also switched from WinXP to Windows7 64-bit Professional...which made a huge difference in performance. I also got a huge gain in performance by simply overclocking the cpu 2.83ghz to 3.2ghz.

*Antec 900 case
*Antec 850 watt PS
*EVGA 132-CK-NF78 Mobo
*8 gigs Corsair RAM
*Intel Q9550 Quad-core overclocked to 3.2ghz - Lots of air cooling for this.
*Several HDD and Optical drives.

I'm currently limited by CPU thru-put, so upgrading the vid-card beyond what I have now wouldn't net me any gains. I can play any game in my gaming library without issues though, and the only issue I currently have is watching 4K content, as the video occasionally stutters a bit if I have other background programs running. I'll probably upgrade towards the end of the year after the progression of prices drops a bit more. One thing is for certain, it is getting harder and harder to plan a "future-proof" build with the rate that technology is advancing. I doubt I will ever get close to 10 years out of another build.

 

[DJ_Pioneer]

I built my current rig in 2008 with future proofing in mind, and although a bit dated, it serves me well almost 10 years later. The only hardware updates that I have done so far is the processor, going from a 2-core cpu to the quad-core Q9550, and upgrading the video card to the current EVGA GeForce GTX-760. I also switched from WinXP to Windows7 64-bit Professional...which made a huge difference in performance. I also got a huge gain in performance by simply overclocking the cpu 2.83ghz to 3.2ghz.

*Antec 900 case
*Antec 850 watt PS
*EVGA 132-CK-NF78 Mobo
*8 gigs Corsair RAM
*Intel Q9550 Quad-core overclocked to 3.2ghz - Lots of air cooling for this.
*Several HDD and Optical drives.

I'm currently limited by CPU thru-put, so upgrading the vid-card beyond what I have now wouldn't net me any gains. I can play any game in my gaming library without issues though, and the only issue I currently have is watching 4K content, as the video occasionally stutters a bit if I have other background programs running. I'll probably upgrade towards the end of the year after the progression of prices drops a bit more. One thing is for certain, it is getting harder and harder to plan a "future-proof" build with the rate that technology is advancing. I doubt I will ever get close to 10 years out of another build.

I would say it is a good thing that it is hard to build something future proof, that means there is progress in the pc parts again. After Intel's Sandy Bridge and AMD's failed Bulldozer architecture not much has happened on the CPU front. Hopefully AMD will turn things around with their new Threadripper architecture and force Intel to start innovating again. On the GPU front a bit more has happened over the years but there hasn't been any need for AMD and Nvidia to do something super interesting when the console market has held back innovation in graphics in games. I hope Microsoft and Sony continues to release improved versions of their consoles to drive graphics innovation forward.

 

[ScarlettPixl]

I mean, Ryzen as it stands right now is pretty great, and the Ryzen 7 1800x is GREAT for content creation!

 

[DJ_Pioneer]

I mean, Ryzen as it stands right now is pretty great, and the Ryzen 7 1800x is GREAT for content creation!

Yes only downsides to them was the lack of overclocking potential and they are a little behind Intel CPU's in terms of gaming performance, but I expect that to become better when developers becomes better at coding for the architecture.

 

[ScarlettPixl]

The only thing that would still keep me on Intel's side is the fact that Intel's CPUs have an integrated GPU we can use for video encoding using QuickSync, and since OBS supports QuickSync AND major camsites like Streamate and Chaturbate (I think MFC does too), then by all means, Intel remains as option 1 for camgirls.

 

[DJ_Pioneer]

The only thing that would still keep me on Intel's side is the fact that Intel's CPUs have an integrated GPU we can use for video encoding using QuickSync, and since OBS supports QuickSync AND major camsites like Streamate and Chaturbate (I think MFC does too), then by all means, Intel remains as option 1 for camgirls.

I think AMD has something similar called VCE, but I don't know how good that is.

 

[Lucid1]

I would say it is a good thing that it is hard to build something future proof, that means there is progress in the pc parts again. After Intel's Sandy Bridge and AMD's failed Bulldozer architecture not much has happened on the CPU front. Hopefully AMD will turn things around with their new Threadripper architecture and force Intel to start innovating again. On the GPU front a bit more has happened over the years but there hasn't been any need for AMD and Nvidia to do something super interesting when the console market has held back innovation in graphics in games. I hope Microsoft and Sony continues to release improved versions of their consoles to drive graphics innovation forward.

In regards to graphics: I think that VR is going to be the thing that puts, or keeps PC gaming on top. My next build is definitely going to be geared towards VR, and I think that by the end of this year, the prices will have come down to something acceptable for me. I'm not lamenting not being able to build a "future-proof" rig so much as I'm having more to consider where the addition of VR is concerned. I have a friend who has a VR rig/headset and some of the games I've played on his machine have had a jaw-dropping effect on me, hence my move to incorporate it into my next rig..

 

[DJ_Pioneer]

In regards to graphics: I think that VR is going to be the thing that puts, or keeps PC gaming on top. My next build is definitely going to be geared towards VR, and I think that by the end of this year, the prices will have come down to something acceptable for me. I'm not lamenting not being able to build a "future-proof" rig so much as I'm having more to consider where the addition of VR is concerned. I have a friend who has a VR rig/headset and some of the games I've played on his machine have had a jaw-dropping effect on me, hence my move to incorporate it into my next rig..

I think it will depend on what the next generation of VR headsets is going to be like. They need to make them cheaper and cordless before the main stream PC gamers start buying them. I have an HTC Vive and when I let my friends try it they think it is cool but it is too expensive for them to consider to buy one of their own. My guess is that it will probably take at least five years before the mainstream PC gamer starts buying computers with VR in mind.

 

[Deleted member 37064]

I used to be big into the PC building aspect. But, got tired of trying to stay up on everything, and haven't done much gaming in years. So, when my tower died back in '13, I bought a 17" laptop that fit my needs.

    Manufacturer: ASUSTeK COMPUTER INC.
    Product Name: K55VJ
    Model name:            Intel(R) Core(TM) i7-3630QM CPU @ 2.40GHz
    Memory:  8GB

I'm going to replace the HDD with an SSD, and while the documentation says 8GB is max on this system, what I read in output is that 32GB is supported. So, I might bump it to 16 and see what happens.

It came with Win8.0, upgraded to 8.1 then 10. But, got sick of it all and scrubbed the drive a long time ago and installed Fedora. Need to upgrade to the latest version. But, been holding off to let people work some of the bugs out. Will do it when I put in the SSD.

I do have both a PS4 and an XB1 for gaming. But, since I rarely game, those rarely get turned on...

 

[ScarlettPixl]

I'm seriously thinking of buying an RX 580 8GB instead of a whole new Laptop. It seems like right now isn't a good time to buy a laptop so I may as well extend the life of my desktop, right?

 

[DJ_Pioneer]

I'm seriously thinking of buying an RX 580 8GB instead of a whole new Laptop. It seems like right now isn't a good time to buy a laptop so I may as well extend the life of my desktop, right?

I think you can use the GTX 970 that you have until the next generation of graphics cards are released. If you have your mind set on upgrading right now I would suggest getting a used GTX 980 Ti since it outperforms the RX 580 and does not cost much.