Destroy my build - $3,000 gaming setup

[Essence_of_War]

Well, I asked if it would be better for FRAPS. My logic is that sequential write and capacity are really the only factors that need to be considered, and a RAID configuration would be wasteful and pointless.

RAID 0 is really good at sequential read/write. It scales almost exactly linearly, that is to say, expect to double your sequential read/write speeds.

If that 1.5 TB Black drive is a couple of years old, it will probably be outperformed by a 1 TB WD Blue (conveniently on sale for about 65 USD through Amazon) just on the back of the Blue being a single 1 TB platter rather than multiple 500/250 GB platters, and it will get buried by two 1 TB blues in RAID 0.

What R/W speeds do you need to hit for "acceptable" FRAPS performance? If your WD Black can hit that, then stick with it, and if it can't hit that, I would look to a single 1 TB blue, and then two 1 TB blues in RAID 0.

 

[PCJake]

To go with that swanky Corsair 550D you just scored, perhaps you'd like to step up to this Corsair AX850: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817139015

I know that flies in the face of many recommendations you've received here (including mine, to an extent), but it happens to be $130AR shipped through today. That makes it only $13 more than the X-650. No huge advantages other than capacity, but I thought I throw it out there in case you're interested, given the price. The Corsair AX line is almost identical to the Seasonic X line - they are both made by Seasonic.

Aw, looks like it's back up to $159.99. Thanks for the suggestion though, I'll keep my eye on it.

RAID 0 is really good at sequential read/write. It scales almost exactly linearly, that is to say, expect to double your sequential read/write speeds.

If that 1.5 TB Black drive is a couple of years old, it will probably be outperformed by a 1 TB WD Blue (conveniently on sale for about 65 USD through Amazon) just on the back of the Blue being a single 1 TB platter rather than multiple 500/250 GB platters, and it will get buried by two 1 TB blues in RAID 0.

What R/W speeds do you need to hit for "acceptable" FRAPS performance? If your WD Black can hit that, then stick with it, and if it can't hit that, I would look to a single 1 TB blue, and then two 1 TB blues in RAID 0.

Well, I recorded some Arma II footage using my normal FRAPS settings, and I just divided the file size by the video duration, and it was about 19MB/sec. I would be surprised if the WD couldn't do that, but I'll dig it out today and test it.

 

[Termie]

Aw, looks like it's back up to $159.99. Thanks for the suggestion though, I'll keep my eye on it.
...

There's a $15 code on the site plus a $15 rebate, making it $130, but like I said, it's not better than the x650 other than in capacity, so it isn't really what you need. Just happens to be close in price.

 

[mnewsham]

Well, I recorded some Arma II footage using my normal FRAPS settings, and I just divided the file size by the video duration, and it was about 19MB/sec. I would be surprised if the WD couldn't do that, but I'll dig it out today and test it.

you also need to account for the HDD seek speed, the time it takes for the disk to actually find where to read/write data, SSD's have a huge advantage there

 

[Automaticman]

I wonder how using Intel SRT with a good size cache drive would work for this application. In "Maximize" mode, the SSD caches both reads and writes. You would be writing to the SSD from FRAPS and then the SSD would offload to the mechanical drive when it had a chance. Might be hard writing that much to the SSD, but you'd only need a 60GB one as that's the maximum cache size.

Just food for thought.

 

[Sleepingforest]

Have you considered using MSI Afterburner for recording instead of FRAPS? I hear that Afterburner is more flexible (and free) in terms of file creation and recording. A lower quality recording at a lower framerate would also lower the demand on your HDD.

Otherwise, since you've actually done a test run, the WD Black is probably adequate.

 

[PCJake]

you also need to account for the HDD seek speed, the time it takes for the disk to actually find where to read/write data, SSD's have a huge advantage there

But does that really matter with FRAPS? I would imagine it spends most of it's time recording sequentially, rather than jumping around.

 

[mfenn]

I wonder why he didn't try it at 1.35v seeing as how that is what the RAM is set for with the 8-8-8-24 timing, at least that is what the profile for it on Newegg says? Unless the link in the article is to the wrong set of RAM.

Well, it is Tom's after all....

Kidding kidding! :awe:

 

[mfenn]

Well, I asked if it would be better for FRAPS. My logic is that sequential write and capacity are really the only factors that need to be considered, and a RAID configuration would be wasteful and pointless.

For FRAPS, you want to make sure that your sequential write performance is good enough to exceed your data rate (with some margin). A RAID is warranted if that is the only way to reach your performance requirements.

In this case, 19 MB/s data can be handled by pretty much any dedicated SATA drive. I say dedicated because any sort of random requests mixed into the sequential stream will kill your overall performance.

 

[mfenn]

After seeing what I have seen in the aftermath of a cheap power supply failure, I don't have any problem when someone wants to overspend a little on a PSU. Also a good PSU can last through multiple builds, unless there is another ATX spec on the horizon of which I'm unaware.

There is a world of difference between a "cheap" power supply (Raidmax, Coolmax, Deer) and an "inexpensive yet good value" power supply (Antec, XFX, lower-end Seasonic, Corsair, etc.). Nobody in this thread is recommending a cheap power supply.

 

[mfenn]

Yeah, I regret making my previous comment. Even when I disagree with him or anyone else in this thread, their perspective is still useful.

Don't worry, if we really wanted to give you a hard time, we would have spent the first 200 posts telling you that you should build a $2000 machine and save the other $1500 for upgrades. :awe:

Spoiler

Not that that is a bad idea, mind you.

 

[mfenn]

There is no one way to put a build together. You've received lots of good advice here that you can choose from.

Agree, and thank you for being as reasonable as ever.

We do love to disagree here. It's an unfortunate fact of life.

It's not unfortunate, it's wonderful. Solid builds are not born, they are forged.

If we just copied each other like good little sheep, this forum would be worthless. What's important is that we disagree while staying civil and respectful.

 

[PCJake]

Update: just ordered the SeaSonic X Series X650 Gold PSU for $109.99.

 

[PCJake]

Agree, and thank you for being as reasonable as ever.



It's not unfortunate, it's wonderful. Solid builds are not born, they are forged.

If we just copied each other like good little sheep, this forum would be worthless. What's important is that we disagree while staying civil and respectful.

Yes, forged is the perfect word for it.

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

Update: just ordered the SeaSonic X Series X650 Gold PSU for $109.99.

Now order your Case and other parts except the platform (cpu mb )

 

[PCJake]

Now order your Case and other parts except the platform (cpu mb )

Yeah, I ordered the case yesterday and the RAM a few days ago. The motherboard and CPU is all that's left for phase one (besides FRAPS drive, but I have a couple hard drives that might be perfectly suitable for that already).

 

[PCJake]

I'm considering crossing the new monitor off the list and sticking with my HP w2408h. The more I think about it, I definitely want to jump straight to a 30" monitor when I replace the w2408h, and that's just not in my budget.

If I choose to wait with the monitor upgrade, I wouldn't really need the next-gen Titan equivalent...a GTX 780 would probably be more than enough. Any comments?

 

[Sleepingforest]

I'm considering crossing the new monitor off the list and sticking with my HP w2408h. The more I think about it, I definitely want to jump straight to a 30" monitor when I replace the w2408h, and that's just not in my budget.

If I choose to wait with the monitor upgrade, I wouldn't really need the next-gen Titan equivalent...a GTX 780 would probably be more than enough. Any comments?

You should have the budget for everything though... you've spent about $340 (case, RAM, and PSU). A Dell U3014 is $1300. The top end single card should be $800 or so at the most. An i7-4770K and Z87 motherboard are $330 and $200 at the most. You already own everything else (HDD, SSD, cooler).

That's about $3000 in total. There's no need to skip out on anything.

 

[tential]

I thought this was a take a sledge hammer to a build thread .

 

[PCJake]

I thought this was a take a sledge hammer to a build thread .

Huh?

Edit: Oh...

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

If you are MORE than 3.5' away from your monitor then MAYBE but if not I would not consider a 30" for fast paced gaming.

I use to use a 27" Asus VG 278H 120Hz monitor for gaming and i'm about 3' away from my monitor. I play Unreal Tournament III online. I liked it but it was too big and I reverted to my old 22" monitor. Loved it. Now I'm on a 24" and it's not great but not bad.

 

[PCJake]

If you are MORE than 3.5' away from your monitor then MAYBE but if not I would not consider a 30" for fast paced gaming.

I use to use a 27" Asus VG 278H 120Hz monitor for gaming and i'm about 3' away from my monitor. I play Unreal Tournament III online. I liked it but it was too big and I reverted to my old 22" monitor. Loved it. Now I'm on a 24" and it's not great but not bad.

You feel like the 24" is even a bit too big? Is it a 1920x1200 monitor?

 

[BTRY B 529th FA BN]

You feel like the 24" is even a bit too big? Is it a 1920x1200 monitor?

1080p but i'm have it scaled down to 1680x1050. It just seems a little better for my older eyes. But the 27" got me dizzy

 

[Sleepingforest]

The 30" gives better immersion and a wider FOV. That actually probably will reduce headaches; I got headaches from Borderlands 2 until I made the FOV as wide as possible.

 

[PCJake]

1080p but i'm have it scaled down to 1680x1050. It just seems a little better for my older eyes. But the 27" got me dizzy

The 30" gives better immersion and a wider FOV. That actually probably will reduce headaches; I got headaches from Borderlands 2 until I made the FOV as wide as possible.

Interesting. I really wish they were making 120/144Hz monitors with higher resolutions than 1080p. People who have them say the higher refresh rate is so noticeable in games, and I've always turned graphics down so I can get at least 120fps in competitive fps games anyway, just for the increased responsiveness. What sort of monitor to get is definitely my hardest choice to make here.