FAQ
Entry posted by 79wjd
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Processors / CPU / APU
Intel CPUs -- Celeron, Pentium, Core i3, Core i5, and Core i7 CPUs from the last four years all have integrated graphics (iGPU), and therefore a dedicated graphics card is not required when using an Intel CPU.
AMD CPUs -- FX series, Athlon X2, and X4 series do NOT have integrated graphics, and will require a dedicated graphics card in order to output an image on the screen.
AMD APUs -- A4, A6, A8, and A10 series. These do contain integrated graphics and can therefore display an image without a dedicated graphics card.
All AMD CPUs come with unlocked multipliers (can be overclocked).
Only select Intel CPUs come with unlocked multipliers (namely, any Intel CPU designated with the letter "k" affixed to the end).
A note about Intel CPUs, Haswell CPUs essentially have a locked base clock (BCLK) meaning that you shouldn't touch it unless doing extreme overclocking. This is because the BCLK is tied into both memory (RAM) and the PCIe lanes, so overclocking with the BCLK requires extra steps to achieve stability. Previous CPUs on the other hand (Haswell predecessors) can be overclocked by adjusting the BCLK.
i7 -- http://ark.intel.com/products/family/59136/2nd-Generation-Intel-Core-i7-Processors#@Desktop
i5 -- http://ark.intel.com/products/family/59134/2nd-Generation-Intel-Core-i5-Processors#@Desktop
i3 -- http://ark.intel.com/products/family/59133/2nd-Generation-Intel-Core-i3-Processors#@Desktop
http://ark.intel.com/compare/70845,63696,63697,63698
i7 -- http://ark.intel.com/products/family/65506/3rd-Generation-Intel-Core-i7-Processors#@Desktop
i5 -- http://ark.intel.com/products/family/65504/3rd-Generation-Intel-Core-i5-Processors#@Desktop
i3 -- http://ark.intel.com/products/family/65503/3rd-Generation-Intel-Core-i3-Processors#@Desktop
http://ark.intel.com/compare/77779,77780,77781
i7 -- http://ark.intel.com/compare/77656,76642,75125,75124,75123,75122,75121
i3 -- http://ark.intel.com/compare/77771,77770,77769,77481,77480
i7 -- http://ark.intel.com/compare/80814,80809,80808,80807,80806
i5 -- http://ark.intel.com/compare/80818,80817,80816,80815,80813,80812,80811,80810,78928,78927
i3 -- http://ark.intel.com/compare/77487,77488,77489,77491,77492,77493,77494,77495,77486
Pentium G3258 -- http://ark.intel.com/products/82723/Intel-Pentium-Processor-G3258-3M-Cache-3_20-GHz
http://ark.intel.com/compare/82930,82931,82932
Coming Q1/Q2 2015
FX 8350
FX 8320
FX 6300
FX 4350
Z97 --
H97 --
Z87 --
H87 --
B85 --
Q87 --
Q85 --
H81 --
X99 --
Z77 --
Z75 --
Z68 --
H77 --
H67 --
Q77 --
Q75 --
B75 --
H61 --
H67 --
P67 --
X79 --
Gaming --
Rendering/editing --
General use --
Cases
Corsair 900D
Corsair 750D
Corsair 780T
Corsair 650D
Corsair 760T
Corsair C70
NZXT Switch 810
Phanteks Enthoo Primo
Phanteks Enthoo Pro
NZXT H440
NZXT Phantom 530
NZXT Source 310
Corsair 450D
Corsair Carbide Air 540
Fractal Design Define R4
Fractal Design Arc Midi R2
Corsair 350D (large for mATX)
Fractal Design Node 804
Corsair Carbide Air 240
BitFenix Prodigy-M
Phanteks Enthoo Evolv
Fractal Design Arc Mini R2
Corsair 250D (large for mITX)
Corsair 380T
BitFenix Prodigy (large for mITX)
Fractal Design Node 304
Cooler Master Elite 130
Cooler Master Elite 110 (too small for most GPUs)
Power Supplies / PSU
I'm assuming the CPU and GPUs WILL be overclocked.
Single GPU -- 500w ~
Two GPUs -- 850w ~
Three GPUs -- 1100w ~
Cooling / Air Coolers / Liquid Coolers / AIO
Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo/Plus
Be Quiet! Shadow Rock 2
Be Quiet! Dark Rock 3
Noctua NH-D14
Noctua NH-D15
Cooler Master Seidon 120m
Cooler Master Seidon 120XL
Cooler Master Seidon 240m
Cooler Master Nepton 280L
Swiftech H220x
Swiftech H320x
Corsair H50
Corsair H55
Corsair H60
Corsair H80i
Corsair H105
Corsair H110
Air Flow --
Static Pressure --
Motherboards
XL ATX
EATX
ATX
mATX
mITX
ATX boards can support up to three dual slot GPUs, up to eight sticks of RAM (x79/x99), four slots on consumer boards, and two slots on low end consumer boards (H81).
mATX boards can support up to two dual slot GPUs. up to four sticks of RAM on both enthusiast and consumer boards, and two slots on low end consumer boards.
mITX boards can support a single GPU, and up to two sticks of RAM on all boards.
Pretty much anything from Asus, MSI, Gigabyte, EVGA, or Asrock.
Not really. Any board with the same chipset and features/connectors that YOU need will perform just as well as any more expensive alternative.
Memory/RAM
Well, not really. The speed of RAM is based on BOTH the frequency as well as the latency (CAS latency) and timings.
Additionally, in gaming there is very little benefit between slower (1333mhz) and faster (2400mhz) RAM.
One final note, if you're using an APU (integrated graphics) then faster RAM is beneficial.
For gaming 8gb of DDR3 is more than sufficient.
For editing/rendering/streaming/heavy multi-tasking 16gb of DDR3 becomes the go to number.
Memory channels are basically how memory modules can work together.
Single channel means that each stick works independently, whereas with dual channel the two sticks can work together increasing performance. Most consumer motherboards support dual channel, while enthusiast grade boards (X79/X99) support quad channel. You can still use single, triple, or quad channel memory, but it will only work in dual channel.
A note about channels: memory sticks must be the same capacity; and multi-channel setups will run at the speed and timings of the slower stick. While you can mix and match sticks, they're not guaranteed to work together in dual channel.
Hard Drives / HDD
Solid State Drives / SSD
Graphics Card / Video Card / GPU / VGA
Short answer: no.
Long answer: nope, no modern graphics card will fully saturate a PCIe 2.0 slot.
Two/three/four-way SLI
SLI requires x8 lanes whereas Crossfire will work in x4.
Outputs / connectors / cables / adapters
HDMI 1.4 (or older) and DVI are both exactly the same cable, however DVI usually doesn't have audio--but it can. So, yes, you can use an adapter to convert back and forth between HDMI and DVI all you want.
HDMI 2.0 and DisplayPort 1.2 on the other hand have support for full 4k at 60fps.
DisplayPort 1.2a supports Adaptive Sync (AMD's version of G-Sync).
Dual-Link DVI and DisplayPort 1.2 both support 1080p/1440p at 144hz.
Keyboards
Topre switches
Membrane switches
membrane-mechanical switches (laptop keyboards)
Cherry MX -- Blues, Greens, Browns, Reds, Blacks
Kailh
Logitech switches
Razer switches
Mice
Monitors
1080p - 1920x1080
1440p - 2560x1440 (1.8x as many pixels as 1080p)
4K - 3840x2160 (4x as many pixels as 1080p)
The number of hz a monitor is rated at refers to its refresh rate -- the number of times the monitor can refresh the image in one second. For general use the difference between 60hz and 144hz is minimal--slightly smoother. However, for serious gamers--first person shooters especially, 144hz can make a huge difference since it allows for much smoother gameplay. Of course, it also requires a graphics card powerful enough to drive it. A GTX 770 or R9 280x is pretty much required to get close to 144hz at high-ultra settings at 1080p, but in some (newer games especially) even thats not enough, and even a GTX780/970 will struggle to get 144hz at ultra 1080p.
IPS - In plane switching -- is a type of screen with much better viewing angles and better color accuracy than conventional TN panels. However, they are usually more expensive, have slower response times, and are limited to 60hz. (PLS is Samsungs variation of IPS).
TN - Twisted Nematic -- is a type of screen with faster response times, the possibility for higher refresh rates, and usually cheaper.
Response time is the amount of time it takes for a pixel to change from one color to another; and it's usually measured from Gray-to-Gray -- the time it takes for a pixel to turn from gray back to gray. Theoretically a faster response time (lower number) is better, but I personally can't tell the difference between a 1ms panel and an 8ms panel.
If anything I say is incorrect/confusing/missing information just inform me, and I'll gladly fix any mistakes.
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