Sherdog PC Build/Buy Thread, v5: Stop Thinking of Your Router as a Peripheral

[CWMMA]

@ Cygnus

Chairs are probably the most overlooked "peripheral" and possibly the most important. Herman Amiller is a really good brand, ridiculously expensive. I'd recommend going to a office store in your area in testing out why you like people's frames and weights are so different I don't think any one chair is a catch all. Although My work uses Herman Miller Aerons and I can literally sit in them all day. I have a DX Racer for my house though.

 

[KaNesDeath]

How is the DXRacer?

From the images ive seen it looks like a racing seat with minor cushioning.

 

[Naramie]

Anyone upgrade to Windows 10 yet?

 

[CWMMA]

How is the DXRacer?

From the images ive seen it looks like a racing seat with minor cushioning.

Quality made, had it for awhile and it's still like new. Rolls well, feels really solid even at weird adjustments. Its pretty breathable and comfortable especially with the adjustable lumbar pad. I got mine for a pretty decent price but I don't know if I'd pay the retail value they want for one, and if you're a... larger type of person (300+) unless they have a large model stay away.

 

[Cygnus A]

Anyone upgrade to Windows 10 yet?

I have zero interest at this point.

 

[Cygnus A]

It's finally coming. The monitor to end all of the debate.

Acer XR341CK (AKA Predator X34)

Final specs:

• 34" ultrawide
• 3440x1440
• GSync
• 100hz refresh rate.
• IPS panel

I have money set aside to grab a 980ti along with this monitor and my build will be complete.

The price tag is going to be around 1200, but I only upgrade monitors every 7 years or so. I can justify this price.

 

[GhostZ06]

It's finally coming. The monitor to end all of the debate.

Acer XR341CK (AKA Predator X34)

Final specs:

• 34" ultrawide
• 3440x1440
• GSync
• 100hz refresh rate.
• IPS panel

I have money set aside to grab a 980ti along with this monitor and my build will be complete.

The price tag is going to be around 1200, but I only upgrade monitors every 7 years or so. I can justify this price.

im looking at this.. i was considering looking at the GSync

 

[Cygnus A]

im looking at this.. i was considering looking at the GSync

Interesting monitor.

 

[CC's left foot]

It's finally coming. The monitor to end all of the debate.

Acer XR341CK (AKA Predator X34)

Final specs:

• 34" ultrawide
• 3440x1440
• GSync
• 100hz refresh rate.
• IPS panel

I have money set aside to grab a 980ti along with this monitor and my build will be complete.

The price tag is going to be around 1200, but I only upgrade monitors every 7 years or so. I can justify this price.

I recently shopped for monitors and I couldn't bring myself to get an IPS panel due to the lag. They look fantastic, but with quick motion it is easy to spot the blurriness.

 

[Dizzy]

In the market for a new laptop and I think I've narrowed it down to a couple.

http://www.bestbuy.com/m/e/product/specifications.jsp?skuId=8963239&pid=1219698443554

http://www.bestbuy.com/m/e/product/specifications.jsp?skuId=4203500&pid=1219706548682

Obviously not looking to run Witcher 3 or anything but would like to do some light gaming on it if I want to. Is the performance gap really that far between the Acer and Toshiba? I haven't been in the pc market for quite a while and tbh really have no idea what I'm looking at anymore.

Any input or even other suggestions are more than welcome. I'd like to stay around that price point, however.

 

[Madmick]

In the market for a new laptop and I think I've narrowed it down to a couple.

http://www.bestbuy.com/m/e/product/specifications.jsp?skuId=8963239&pid=1219698443554

http://www.bestbuy.com/m/e/product/specifications.jsp?skuId=4203500&pid=1219706548682

Obviously not looking to run Witcher 3 or anything but would like to do some light gaming on it if I want to. Is the performance gap really that far between the Acer and Toshiba? I haven't been in the pc market for quite a while and tbh really have no idea what I'm looking at anymore.

Any input or even other suggestions are more than welcome. I'd like to stay around that price point, however.

Toshiba Satellites are complete pieces of shit today. Good chance it won't even survive three years of light mainstream usage. DO NOT buy one.

The processor in that Toshiba is the Intel i5-5200U.
The processor in that Asus is the AMD A10-7400p.
http://cpuboss.com/cpus/Intel-Core-i5-5200U-vs-AMD-A10-7400P
http://www.cpu-world.com/Compare/50...0-7400P_vs_Intel_Core_i5_Mobile_i5-5200U.html

CPU Boss gets it wrong. The A10-7400p is the overall superior processor, hands down. The only major advantage to the i5 is L3 vs. L2 cache. Ultimately, that doesn't matter. In terms of real-world performance the A10 wins, and the R6 Kaveri as clocked in this particular processor obliterates the onboard Iris graphics in the Intel (so not only is it slightly better for general computing, but it obliterates the Intel for gaming and graphics).

That Asus is a better purchase in every possible facet but the resolution (1080p vs. 720p). With screens this size 1080p isn't nearly as noticeable as you'd think, and screen build quality really matters more, though between cheaper consumer laptops like this I don't think PC laptops vary greatly in screen quality. The bigger issue is that, especially if you want to game on this, these processors simply can't push 1080p. It makes more sense to go with 720p instead of just forcing a crappy downscale that isn't even 1:1 every time you run a game. So even though the Toshiba technically wins I'd still put the "W" in the Asus's column for your ambitions.

 

[Rekt 'em]

Toshiba Satellites are complete pieces of shit today. Good chance it won't even survive three years of light mainstream usage. DO NOT buy one.

The processor in that Toshiba is the Intel i5-5200U.
The processor in that Asus is the AMD A10-7400p.
http://cpuboss.com/cpus/Intel-Core-i5-5200U-vs-AMD-A10-7400P
http://www.cpu-world.com/Compare/50...0-7400P_vs_Intel_Core_i5_Mobile_i5-5200U.html

CPU Boss gets it wrong. The A10-7400p is the overall superior processor, hands down. The only major advantage to the i5 is L3 vs. L2 cache. Ultimately, that doesn't matter. In terms of real-world performance the A10 wins, and the R6 Kaveri as clocked in this particular processor obliterates the onboard Iris graphics in the Intel (so not only is it slightly better for general computing, but it obliterates the Intel for gaming and graphics).

That Asus is a better purchase in every possible facet but the resolution (1080p vs. 720p). With screens this size 1080p isn't nearly as noticeable as you'd think, and screen build quality really matters more, though between cheaper consumer laptops like this I don't think PC laptops vary greatly in screen quality. The bigger issue is that, especially if you want to game on this, these processors simply can't push 1080p. It makes more sense to go with 720p instead of just forcing a crappy downscale that isn't even 1:1 every time you run a game. So even though the Toshiba technically wins I'd still put the "W" in the Asus's column for your ambitions.

I know I am a relative nobody in these parts but this point can't be stressed enough. In just six years I have seen 3 of these laptops go to complete shit. 2 of my own, and the third was a coworkers laptop. Utter garbage.

 

[Dizzy]

Appreciate the write-up, Mick.

I say "gaming" very loosely. I think the most recent PC game I played was Portal 2 and the most frequent was WoW up until a few years ago. I was leaning towards the Asus as it was, just wanted to be sure I wasn't crazy because they're the same price but the Asus seemed to beat it out everywhere with the exception of the screen.

 

[bdreason]

Got a $100 Amazon GC for my birthday, so I decided to finally get a SSD. Now I can use my old HDD for my nephews PC.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KHRYRLY?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00


This Scandisk SSD is 60% off right now for 24 hours. Seemed like a GREAT deal if anyone else is interested.

 

[bdreason]

PS- I've never cloned my HD to SDD so any software recommendations or tips are welcome.

 

[Gref]

PS- I've never cloned my HD to SDD so any software recommendations or tips are welcome.

It can be a bit of a pain if you don't have a third drive to hold a back up of your current drive. That being said I was able to do it with just my HDD and SSD.

I used Macrium Reflect to clone my HDD to my SSD. Set the SSD as the primary boot drive in the BIOS settings and made sure AHCI mode was enabled. Confirm that windows loads from the SSD. If it works, format the HDD.

You may run into some errors so make sure that you're able to boot into windows from the SSD after cloning but before formatting your HDD.

Again probably less of a hassle with a back up drive. Much more of a hassle than a clean install no matter what.

 

[Madmick]

Got a $100 Amazon GC for my birthday, so I decided to finally get a SSD. Now I can use my old HDD for my nephews PC.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KHRYRLY?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00


This Scandisk SSD is 60% off right now for 24 hours. Seemed like a GREAT deal if anyone else is interested.

Saw this last night. That was a freaking incredible deal. The SanDisk Extreme Pro is on par with the Samsung Pro series. For $154 the 480GB was a stupid value. It's already back to the normal $239.

 

[Cygnus A]

Saw this last night. That was a freaking incredible deal. The SanDisk Extreme Pro is on par with the Samsung Pro series. For $154 the 480GB was a stupid value. It's already back to the normal $239.

SSDs are on sale all the time right now. I picked up two 500GB 850 EVO Pro's for $150 each.

I finally invested in a good chair. Steelcase Gesture (arrives on Wednesday):

 

[bdreason]

Saw this last night. That was a freaking incredible deal. The SanDisk Extreme Pro is on par with the Samsung Pro series. For $154 the 480GB was a stupid value. It's already back to the normal $239.

I had been looking at the Samsung and Crucial SSD's and I literally stumbled across this sale late last night. At first I thought it was one of those "too good to be true" moments, but I did some quick research and pulled the trigger.

 

[Cygnus A]

Samsung 850 EVO 500GB for $149