PC Hardware Talk Megathread

[Burninator]

Originally Posted by MarchHare

I was joking when I posted that, but look what the #6 most popular game in terms of number of Twitch viewers is at the moment:

To be fair it's only that high because Lirik was streaming it. I'd bet something like 98% of the viewers watching the game were in his channel.

[btimbit]

Decided to give it a try since I have a soft spot for that kind of game (have like 50 hours in car mechanic simulator, for example) and it's actually kind of addicting

[CroFlames]

I bought this puppy last night and I'm really happy with it: https://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX56901

Exclusive new Romer-G™ mechanical switches make Orion Spark™ our fastest keyboard ever. With up 25 percent faster actuation you will have the edge in battles where every millisecond matters. Improved durability ensures the best gaming keyboard will weather the wear and tear of intense gaming for years to come.

Regular 200, on sale at mem ex for 150.

I especially like it because it has convenient volume control and play/pause/fwrd for listening to music that most Corsair or Razers don't. All the bells an whistles of other high end RGB lightup keyboards.

[RinkRat]

Originally Posted by CroFlames

I bought this puppy last night and I'm really happy with it: https://www.memoryexpress.com/Products/MX56901



Regular 200, on sale at mem ex for 150.

I especially like it because it has convenient volume control and play/pause/fwrd for listening to music that most Corsair or Razers don't. All the bells an whistles of other high end RGB lightup keyboards.

It's a good one with pretty good software for macros and such, I bought it on boxing day two years ago or so; but it didn't fit my aesthetic as well as I would have liked so the keyboard hunt continued.

Bought a Razer blackwidow stealth shortly after, the weird placement of the Function keys compared to other keyboards screwed with me (thanks muscle memory) so I ended up getting a Corsair k95 platinum and haven't looked back. Surprisingly it's also the first keyboard I actively use its audio keys on.

[GoinAllTheWay]

Originally Posted by RinkRat

so I ended up getting a Corsair k95 platinum and haven't looked back. Surprisingly it's also the first keyboard I actively use its audio keys on.

Hell of a good keyboard. Bought the same one and love how solid it feels. I too use the audio keys far more than I ever have in the past and love the scrolling volume control.

Too bad the Corsair software is crap. Would be nice if it was the same quality as the build on the keyboard.

[CroFlames]

That k95 looks pretty sweet. But all of a sudden we are talking about $270 instead of $150 and I got mouths to feed people.

[GoinAllTheWay]

You can feed them the tears of your enemies when you emerge victorious!

[CroFlames]

I am legit going to use that line on my wife the next time I make a frivolous gaming hardware purchase.

I'll either get an eye roll or a sensible chuckle, but it'll ease the initial shock of the price tag haha.

[FlameOn]

Reviews are in for the second gen Ryzen processors. AMD Ryzen 7 2700X is now king.

https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews...cpus,3986.html

Intel is getting hammered as of late. First with the using toothpaste as thermal compound, then Spectre performance hits and now they are losing the gaming/personal computing market. With Intels delays till the 10nm processors till 2019 and AMD's push for 7nm coming in the same timeframe. Intel will be in for a tough year and bit ahead.

[GoinAllTheWay]

I set up a new PC for my GF's dad over the weekend. When I fired it up for the first time to get it set up for him, I was rather surprised to see I was required to create a MS account before even getting started. No worries I suppose, I can do that.

So I get a call from him last night asking WTF his PW was. I was a bit surprised as this guy is not very computer literate so I used the same one he always used but he advises me it's not working. I installed TeamView ahead of time anticipating numerous questions about his new PC. Oddly, using one of the two passwords I'd use for him, I was unable to sign in. I'm sure when setting up the PC, you have to enter the PW twice. Can't imagine how I messed that up twice but anything is possible. This guy does have a looooong history of messing up PC's but can't imagine he has the know how to change his PW so I think maybe this is on me.

What is the simplest way to do this? Some instructions found so far said without an MS account, you can't recover the PW you have to reset the PC. No biggie, new build so not losing anything important but the MS account option intrigued me. Signed into his MS account and no devices are associated with his account. I guess this is something I should have done ahead of time?

Is a reset my only option at this point?

[Deviaant]

What kind of a lifespan can I expect to get out of a good gaming desktop. To me lifespan = playing a current AAA game title on it's highest settings. Is it safe to assume the lifespan would be the same on a premade computer vs custom built (by mem express) if I spent about the same? If it matters my budget will be around $4k before monitor. And also I'm in zero rush to buy, I was thinking a year or so before I buy, I do realize tech changes fast. I'm willing to save and spend a little more if needed too. I'd also like to use vr and I would like a awesome ultra wide monitor vs. 2 monitors, I just can't really get used to double monitors. Ultimately it's primary use would be gaming.



Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

[DownhillGoat]

Originally Posted by GoinAllTheWay

Is a reset my only option at this point?

Can't help you with the rest of it but you don't need an MS account. I managed to set up Win 10 without.

[indes]

Originally Posted by Deviaant

What kind of a lifespan can I expect to get out of a good gaming desktop. To me lifespan = playing a current AAA game title on it's highest settings. Is it safe to assume the lifespan would be the same on a premade computer vs custom built (by mem express) if I spent about the same? If it matters my budget will be around $4k before monitor. And also I'm in zero rush to buy, I was thinking a year or so before I buy, I do realize tech changes fast. I'm willing to save and spend a little more if needed too. I'd also like to use vr and I would like a awesome ultra wide monitor vs. 2 monitors, I just can't really get used to double monitors. Ultimately it's primary use would be gaming.



Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

For around 2k I would say you could build a desktop that will last you 3-5 years. Spend the extra on a 49" ultra wide!

[GoinAllTheWay]

Originally Posted by kunkstyle

Can't help you with the rest of it but you don't need an MS account. I managed to set up Win 10 without.

It was a prebuilt from ME. Might have something to do with it? Don't recall seeing an option to skip. He wanted to buy office 365 as well so needed an account anyways.

[RinkRat]

Originally Posted by Deviaant

What kind of a lifespan can I expect to get out of a good gaming desktop. To me lifespan = playing a current AAA game title on it's highest settings. Is it safe to assume the lifespan would be the same on a premade computer vs custom built (by mem express) if I spent about the same? If it matters my budget will be around $4k before monitor. And also I'm in zero rush to buy, I was thinking a year or so before I buy, I do realize tech changes fast. I'm willing to save and spend a little more if needed too. I'd also like to use vr and I would like a awesome ultra wide monitor vs. 2 monitors, I just can't really get used to double monitors. Ultimately it's primary use would be gaming.



Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

You're at a pretty good time to build if you decide to, prices are actively falling right now.

The new HDR 200hz ultrawides will be hitting stores sometime in the next month or so, so I assume we may see some price drops on the current ultrawides dropping.

GPU's are finally back at msrp for the most part as well. The real question is AMD Ryzen Build or Intel. The cost to performance goes to the Ryzen right now, but it still lags behind the single core performance that Intel offers with an 8700k, which is needed for higher resolution high refresh rate gaming.

[Stealth22]

Originally Posted by GoinAllTheWay

It was a prebuilt from ME. Might have something to do with it? Don't recall seeing an option to skip. He wanted to buy office 365 as well so needed an account anyways.

It might be hidden, but there's definitely an option to skip.

If the MS forgot password options don't help, I'd probably just do a reset, especially if it's a new build.

[GoinAllTheWay]

I'll admit, I didn't look hard for a skip option.

Problem solved anyways. My g/f started trying random passwords that she thought I would have used. Turns out, during a moment of distraction, I blended two of the PW's he tends to use together. Got it unlocked and changed PW to correct one

Saved me from some work.

[accord1999]

Originally Posted by Deviaant

What kind of a lifespan can I expect to get out of a good gaming desktop....


And also I'm in zero rush to buy, I was thinking a year or so before I buy, I do realize tech changes fast.

You'll be surprised, if you're willing to upgrade your video card on a regular basis the rest of the system will probably work well for a long time.


-CPUs haven't seen significant leaps in performance for years, a top-of-the-line Intel processor from 5-6 years ago is still a good gaming CPU
-flash memory have gotten fast enough that it's hard to tell one SSD from another, and even massively faster NVME drives on paper don't offer the same leap in performance that SSDs gave from spinning disks
-memory capacity has grown large enough to match software needs for many years to come


The only thing that still has significant leaps in performance are video cards.

[Deviaant]

Sorry guys I'll be the first to admit when it comes to computers I'm out of my league. Am I over spending on a gaming rig at a budget of $4k? I'm just trying to avoid upgrading again in a "short" amount of time.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

[RinkRat]

Originally Posted by accord1999

You'll be surprised, if you're willing to upgrade your video card on a regular basis the rest of the system will probably work well for a long time.


-CPUs haven't seen significant leaps in performance for years, a top-of-the-line Intel processor from 5-6 years ago is still a good gaming CPU
-flash memory have gotten fast enough that it's hard to tell one SSD from another, and even massively faster NVME drives on paper don't offer the same leap in performance that SSDs gave from spinning disks
-memory capacity has grown large enough to match software needs for many years to come


The only thing that still has significant leaps in performance are video cards.

The switch to 7nm on GPU chips in the near future could be what's needed to drive that 4k resolution some people seem to hyped on, personally I'm happy with 1440p.

Intels new stacked storage tech looks pretty impressive as well, but like you said compared to the jump from disc to solid it wont be as jarring.