|OT| The PC Hardware Thread -- Buy/Upgrade/Ask/Answer

[Parsnip]

My case came equipped with one of those fan hubs from Corsair, it has 6 headers IIRC. I’m using two of those, three fans on each.

They probably provide the same amount of juice as a mobo fan header would so 3 on each is should be totally fine.

I think the typical manufacturing variance tolerance for fans at max rpm is +/- 10%, so if the speed you are seeing is within that 10% spec, then it's nothing to worry about it.
At lower power levels the variance is also typically higher. For example my Noctua fans have a +/- 20% at their minimum rpm.

 

[MonthOLDpickle]

Welp I dunno what I am going to do with seeing those VRAM sizes for the 5090/5080/5070/5070ti, I have a hand me down 1070 so technically I haven't bought a GPU in a couple decades.

 

[kio]

Welp I dunno what I am going to do with seeing those VRAM sizes for the 5090/5080/5070/5070ti, I have a hand me down 1070 so technically I haven't bought a GPU in a couple decades.

More tech savvy people might want to elaborate if I'm right or wrong but I feel getting something with less than 16gb in 2025 is a waste of money, so judging by the leaks so far anything below 5070ti might as well not even exist.

 

[MonthOLDpickle]

More tech savvy people might want to elaborate if I'm right or wrong but I feel getting something with less than 16gb in 2025 is a waste of money, so judging by the leaks so far anything below 5070ti might as well not even exist.

I even know that but the 5080 is 16GB as well xD

I was just hoping to get something with like more while getting a monitor upgrade (cause I am using two basic 60hz screens heh) that is like 1440p and higher hz.

 

[Li Kao]

Well, for VRAM there is AMD if you are not big on RTX.
Trouble is, they don't have the best of reputation for GPU. I will nonetheless seriously look at them when I feel the need to upgrade my 4070.

 

[MonthOLDpickle]

I dunno how AMD and other software is but I mainly use nvidia save last x minutes an dhighlights but I have audio set to multiple tracks with voicemeeter helping the audio. So for highlights I get nothing but game audio, no discord etc.

But I get discord for the save X last minutes.

Hence why I was thinking of going nvidia. Also my current PC even with the 7800X3D got like 13 FPS in Wilds lol.

 

[kio]

I even know that but the 5080 is 16GB as well xD

I was just hoping to get something with like more while getting a monitor upgrade (cause I am using two basic 60hz screens heh) that is like 1440p and higher hz.

We'll have to wait for the price reveal and some benchmarks but unless something catastrophic happens I'm not seeing a reason to choose a 5080 instead of a 5070ti @1440p 60/120Hz
Obviously I'd love AMD to surprise us with a fairly priced competent alternative to all this nvidia nonsense but I'm not holding my breath...

 

[gabbo]

We'll have to wait for the price reveal and some benchmarks but unless something catastrophic happens I'm not seeing a reason to choose a 5080 instead of a 5070ti @1440p 60/120Hz
Obviously I'd love AMD to surprise us with a fairly priced competent alternative to all this nvidia nonsense but I'm not holding my breath...

They have been stating they're going for the mainstream end and low end of the price bracket, which is right in that area. The 7000 series is a decent line, if RT isn't your thing. If it is, then, welp... bend of for the Nvidia tax.

 

[NarohDethan]

Sometimes I hear some creaks coming from my PC. How can I make sure it's due to thermal expansion and not something electrical getting borked?

 

[madjoki]

Long wait is over, 9800X3D finally arrived. Still need GPU though. (current 2080 will go in later)
Almost booted up on first try too, after small panic, I just reseat ram and it worked.

Full Specs (so far)

MB: X870E Nova Wifi
CPU: 9800X3D
Cooler: Arctic Liquid Freezer III 360
Memory: 64GB DDR5 (Kingston FURY Beast DDR5-6000 CL30 2x32GB)
SSD: WD SN850X 4TB
PSU: Corsair RM1000x, 80 PLUS Gold ATX 3.1

Should be good for next 5 years.

 

[Parsnip]

Seeing a PC without a monster GPU that takes all the space is amusing these days.

 

[d00d3n]

I still plan to get a 5090, but considering the modest gains compared with 4090, I will take my time to get the FE (for a reasonable, non-scalped price). No ugly gainward model this time! (well, unless partner models turn out to be much more quiet and performant than the FE ...)

 

[Nano]

Finally back to 100% keyboard.. was using a 65% keychron k7 pro for a year and i really loved it but doing retro gaming with a small keyboard is a act of frustration.

 

[MonthOLDpickle]

I really hope people continue to hate on the 5 series. I haven't bought a GPU in decades+....

But but its not that much over a 4XXX~!!!!!


_{Me over here with a hand me down 1070.}

 

[einstellung]

I'm on an RTX 2070. Was going to get a 2060 super, but a 2070 on sale was only $20 more and had a nicer cooler. I'm waiting for the RTX 6XXX series. Probably a 6060ti. And if FSR4 looks good, I'll seriously consider AMD in the future. Or I'd imagine I'd be content with an Intel C580.

My power supply is a 650W SeaSonic gold from 2013 and it's still going. So, I recommend SeaSonic.

Newegg only shows my order history since 2016 now. Kinda sad, I always liked going back through my order history to relive my builds, because I'm a dork.

I'm wanting to go to OLED 240Hz at some point in the next few years.

[/endRamble]

 

[Kvik]

But but its not that much over a 4XXX~!!!!!

At least in my country, the projected prices for the RTX 5090 are going to be at least $1,000 more expensive than the RTX 4090.

For reference, in November 2022, the 4090 was priced around $3,000—$3,800.

So potentially, for a top of the line ASUS RTX 5090 with overclocked/binned chip it can run slightly over $4,500 which is an insane price just for a GPU.

I'm just a poor sod, so $4,500 is the price of a complete system upgrade, lol.

 

[Parsnip]

Finally back to 100% keyboard.. was using a 65% keychron k7 pro for a year and i really loved it but doing retro gaming with a small keyboard is a act of frustration.

Keychron 10 Pro is what I have bookmarked as well for when I eventually jump into better mechanicals.
At some point I need to figure out what switches I want though.

 

[Nano]

I want to s

Keychron 10 Pro is what I have bookmarked as well for when I eventually jump into better mechanicals.
At some point I need to figure out what switches I want though.

i went with red and im happy with that choice.

 

[Parsnip]

i went with red and im happy with that choice.

Heh, I need to look into it more but right now I don't even know which ones those are.
On a general level I'm probably leaning to whichever are the lowest noise, ultimately I just gotta do some research.

Also money, I suppose I also need money.

 

[Nano]

Heh, I need to look into it more but right now I don't even know which ones those are.
On a general level I'm probably leaning to whichever are the lowest noise, ultimately I just gotta do some research.

Also money, I suppose I also need money.

Red Switch vs Brown Switch: Key Differences Explained

Curious about Red Switch vs Brown Switch? Learn how these popular mechanical switches differ and find out which one suits your style best.

www.keychron.com

 

[Kvik]

I prefer the blues myself. I know it's too loud for some people but it feels satisfying to me.

 

[MonthOLDpickle]

At least in my country, the projected prices for the RTX 5090 are going to be at least $1,000 more expensive than the RTX 4090.

For reference, in November 2022, the 4090 was priced around $3,000—$3,800.

So potentially, for a top of the line ASUS RTX 5090 with overclocked/binned chip it can run slightly over $4,500 which is an insane price just for a GPU.

I'm just a poor sod, so $4,500 is the price of a complete system upgrade, lol.

Well the difference for me is roughly 10K (which is 300 USD) and the listed price so far (which is a placeholder is around 2.1K USD.

 

[Parsnip]

Some ASMR.

 

[MonthOLDpickle]

Well I got spending money as I haven't bought a GPU since they were only three digits long, I have a hand me down 1070.

The price of a MSI 4090 is below 1800 for me. A used one is cheaper.
Or I can try for the 5090
or wait for 5070ti or maybe 5080ti.

Its been so long since I bought a GPU and I have never bought one that is new either lol..always a year older.

I plan to upgrade to a 9800X3D at some point too.

So yeah didn't realize choice paralysis is anxiety inducing.

 

[MonthOLDpickle]

I have found a PNY 4090 for 1705....

Does the 4 series, esp this one, blow air out from the outputs? Is it worth it to buy that card at this price?

 

[moemoneyb1]

I have found a PNY 4090 for 1705....

Does the 4 series, esp this one, blow air out from the outputs? Is it worth it to buy that card at this price?

I am currently using the PNY Verto Epic-X RGB Overclocked Triple Fan variant of the 4090. It doesn't blow air out from the outputs but it does a good job of keeping the card cool under heavy load. I haven't had any issues with the card either.

 

[MonthOLDpickle]

I am currently using the PNY Verto Epic-X RGB Overclocked Triple Fan variant of the 4090. It doesn't blow air out from the outputs but it does a good job of keeping the card cool under heavy load. I haven't had any issues with the card either.

So its blowing into the CPU ?

 

[didamangi]

So its blowing into the CPU ?

I think the majority of 4090 use the flowthrough design (open back slot in the last fan) which does blow air up into the cpu in a normal configuration. Shouldn't be a problem for 9800x3d though, it's not that hard to cool with a dual tower cooler.

 

[moemoneyb1]

So its blowing into the CPU ?

It does blow through to the CPU however I am cooling my 5800X with a Be Quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4. I haven't had any issues with my current build as is.

 

[kio]

 

[didamangi]

Well, you could limit the power to 4090 levels and still get better frames than 4090, but yeah.



As a 3080 12gb owner playing in 1440p, I still don't see a reason to upgrade. FSR3 mod and lossless scaling is there if I need frame gen and the new DLSS4 image quality improvement is for all rtx owners. And I don't have the money for an upgrade.

Need to see lots more amazing path traced games tbh.

 

[MonthOLDpickle]

Try to find a 4090 or try to get a 5080..humm.

 

[MegaApple]

What could be good CPUs to pair with RTX5070TI?
Thinking of a hypothetical $1500 build

 

[kio]

It just dawned on me that we can start using hp (horse power) as a viable unit to measure GPU power consumption (1hp ~ 746W)...

What could be good CPUs to pair with RTX5070TI?
Thinking of a hypothetical $1500 build

In my limited knowledge, and considering your PC will be used >90% of the time for gaming purposes, I don't see any reason to buy any CPU other than 7800X3D or 9800X3D, except some strict budgetary and/or availability limitations.

 

[low-G]

Moore's Law literally coming out of the grave as a zombie now.

 

[MonthOLDpickle]

Also I am finally buying a new GPU, going for a 5080 (from a hand me down 1070). My current CPU is a 7800X3D. On a 850w PSU.
Now I been using two like 21" 1080 60hz monitors for a decade now. So I truly don't know what monitors to go for. 1440? 4k? Ultrawide?
I do use my second monitor a lot.
I sit less than 2 meters away from my setup too. I live in Asia, near Japan.

 

[Stevey]

Just ordered this bundle to upgrade.

https://www.scan.co.uk/products/3xs-z890-os-gaming-bundle-intel-core-ultra-9-285k-asus-rog-maximus-z890-hero-48gb-ddr5-2tb-m2-win-11

Intel Core Ultra 9 285K, ASUS ROG MAXIMUS Z890 HERO, 48GB DDR5, 2TB M.2, Win 11

Should be here next week

 

[Joe Spangle]

Im upgrading my PC and have decided to go teeny tiny. I got a little Fractal Terra case, a cute little psu, a dinky little mobo and maybe will stuff a 5080/90 in there (if they aren't all sold out.) Should be a fun build.

I did order a 9800x3d but the box arrived empty!

 

[Joe Spangle]

Went to Nvidia site. Went from Coming soon to Out of Stock in the blink of an eye.

 

[d00d3n]

I forgot about the exact release time of the 5090 due to being busy with work. Seven minutes later it was obviously out of stock.

I can't say that I feel that bad about missing out. One of my main reasons for switching 4090 to 5090 is to have a nice quality controlled FE card again instead of my current Gainward monstrosity. I feel no pressure to get some silly four slot coloured LED version of the GPU. I would only buy FE, and not for some ridiculous scalped price either. If it takes me a couple of months to get the FE for a reasonable price, so be it.

 

[fantomena]

What is actually the difference between the 5080 cards? Like, what should I choose between Gainward, Gigabyte and ASUS?

 

[madjoki]

Was able to order this, sadly it's one of tiniest sadly, but probably okayish.

2080 can finally retire.

What is actually the difference between the 5080 cards? Like, what should I choose between Gainward, Gigabyte and ASUS?

Cooler.

 

[didamangi]

What is actually the difference between the 5080 cards? Like, what should I choose between Gainward, Gigabyte and ASUS?

Techpowerup, which is my go to review for GPUs, has a good comparison on the cooler performance between the cards.

MSI GeForce RTX 5080 Vanguard SOC Review

Vanguard is MSI's new addition to the company's GeForce RTX 50 product stack. It sits slightly below Suprim and offers a similar premium design with a strong cooler and factory OC. In our testing, the Vanguard's thermal solution is actually the strongest of the 10 RTX 5080 cards that we've...

www.techpowerup.com

 

[MonthOLDpickle]

Turns out FE aren't sold here. Got a few choices for 5080..is OC worth it? Which one?

Prices for OC versions go from 1K to 1.3K give or take due to covnersion.

 

[Joe Spangle]

Just had a puzzling morning trying to get my new set up to boot. It was weird, first time powering it on i got into the bios, could see everything looked ok and then when restarting it to load windows it was just going to a blank screen. Tried loads of different things, re doing cables, plugging into the mobo hdmi, took out the m.2 drives, changed the riser cable for the gpu for my old one that i know works (which was a right faff). Was on the cusp of removing the cpu cooler to get at the Ram to check that when i thought to just have a go plugging it into my work monitor rather than my ROG oled screen and hooray! its working. Lesson learnt, must be a display driver issue or something?

 

[Stevey]

New stuff has arrived, going to install it tomorow asI finish work at noon, so will have plenty of time.

 

[Stevey]

It lives! Cables are a mess but I will do that sometime in the future.

 

[MonthOLDpickle]

Does having two monitors with different resolutions and refresh rates really hurt your performance? I am getting a new GPU and I use two 1080 with 60hz. One is broken.
I was thinking of getting an UW 1440 but the PBP stuff doesn't look great to use. Then maybe a 32 4K 240hz..
But for either how would having one 1080 60hz on the side affect things?

 

[Stevey]

I have a 1440p 144hz Gsync monitor and a 1080p 144hz monitor that I run at 60hz and I've never had any problems.

 

[Theswweet]

Got a Zotac SOLID 5090 at Tustin's Microcenter on Thursday. Camped out starting from Tuesday, but in the end it was worth it since I sold my old 4090 for $1600 and won't have to worry about tariffs. Ready for Monster Hunter Wilds in a few weeks!