DailyProcrastinator

Everything is in short supply Canadian market has changed a lot in the past month already. I stand corrected, I was not aware the new B-series boards now supported memory OC again.

Part will fluctuate in price, if I was building now: PCPartPicker Part List Type Item Price CPU Intel Core i5-10600K 4.1 GHz 6-Core Processor $275.75 @ shopRBC CPU Cooler Cooler Master Hyper 212 Black Edition 42 CFM CPU Cooler $42.75 @ Vuugo Motherboard Asus TUF GAMING B560M-PLUS WIFI Micro ATX LGA1200 Motherboard $187.50 @ Vuugo Memory Corsair Vengeance LPX 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-2400 CL16 Memory $81.99 @ Corsair Storage Kingston A2000 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive $69.99 @ Newegg Canada Storage Western Digital Caviar Blue 1 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive $47.99 @ Canada Computers Video Card EVGA GeForce RTX 3060 Ti 8 GB XC GAMING Video Card $609.99 Case Cooler Master MasterBox MB311L ARGB MicroATX Mid Tower Case $69.99 @ Newegg Canada Power Supply be quiet! Pure Power 11 CM 700 W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply $104.99 @ Canada Computers Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts Total $1490.94 Generated by PCPartPicker 2021-04-26 16:52 EDT-0400 I would not expect any normalization this year, just so you are prepared. Otherwise, a few things to consider: 10600k has dropped to $250 recently, could be worth it if found at that price. Memory shortage is a thing right now, prices are going up, could be well worth buying now. Also on B560 you cannot clock your memory to 3600Mhz, so waste of money. Don't pay the Samsung tax for NAND flash, for nearly the same price you can get double the storage, and you really lose nothing. As long as you have DRAM cache. Also prepare for a shortage in storage as well, both SSD and HDD. 650W is enough, right now the 700W Pure Power 11 is the best deal.

Clean the drives and start from beginning. Best and easiest way to do so is with DiskPart via command line, really simple. https://www.seagate.com/ca/en/support/kb/troubleshooting-gpt-protective-partition-issues-207837en/

Great, thanks for confirming!

Just a cheap PCIe powered GPU, but a Treadripper 2970WX.

Does anyone know whether or not the Seasonic 750W Plus Platinum is plagued by the same issues as the Focus Gold? https://ca.pcpartpicker.com/product/dCs8TW/seasonic-focus-plus-platinum-750w-80-platinum-certified-fully-modular-atx-power-supply-ssr-750px Thanks in advance!

Welcome to the forum! Honestly, the GMMK Pro is the best value for you money when it comes to a 75% hot swap. But it is not immediately purchasable. First batch of reservations (made in fall 2020) just shipped, and the ETA on normal stock is unclear. In theory if you bought everything from GMMK they have lube and switches as well. In stock options: https://kono.store/collections/all-products-list/products/gemini-dusk https://drop.com/buy/drop-ctrl-high-profile-barebones-keyboard?defaultSelectionIds=948170 https://www.pcgamingrace.com/products/gmmk-tkl-tenkeyless-brown-switch All these give up features that the GMMK Pro has, and are TKL, not 75%, I am also pretty sure none support 5-pin switches. Finding hot-swap 75% layouts in stock is very difficult at this time. Maybe others have recommendations though. For more good info and links to a lot of retailers:

Yeah wow... Cleary I need more sleep. I mean if I just looked at my PCB I would have caught this mistake, I got myself confused with the Drop CTRL I recently picked up and have been using. Thanks for pointing this out. Changes made!

Been super buys lately, but finally got my Drop Carina review done! I went with Kailh Box Heavy Dark Yellows, un-lubed, stabs lubed with TriboSys 3204. Drop Carina - Box Heavy Dark Yellows Unlubed.mp4 * Amplified audio by 10db * (Audio recorded with a Blue Snowball Mic, at approximately 15cm from the keyboard)

Drop Carina 60% Build A Fun & Easy Build with RGB Flair! Intro: Right now this is a really popular market segment, 60% layouts are all the rage and the Carina seems to tick all the right boxes. What’s the deal with 60% layouts? 60% layouts have risen in popularity mostly due to the growth in the custom keyboard space. They are a great choice as you can enter the world of customs for a fraction of the price compared to other larger layouts, and for most users you do not lose too much functionality. This keeps things simple and minimalistic (everyone's favorite word). Why would you want this? For a basic typist, or gamer who wants to build a custom, 60% layouts are great. Question where or not you need some additional keys like arrows or an additional column of function keys, if so look at 65%, layouts, otherwise this is the layout for you! The Carina offers many desirable ‘wants’ as well, you get hot-swap switches with all the flashy RGB you could ever want! Why I bought this: I knew this was not my ideal layout, as a 65% is already limiting for myself, however adding a simple 60% to the collection is something I wanted. And the frosted acrylic body caught my eye. The board itself is a good value option and in a competitive market segment, If anything it would be enjoyable to build and review. Parts (USD): This is another buy where the bulk of parts came from Drop. At $120 the Drop Carina feels like good value, depending on what your definition of value is (more on this in the conclusion). And the Drop Skylight series keycaps are a nice touch for a reasonable price as well. I added a white coiled cable to another order but the Carina comes with a plain white cable, so purchasing one is not required. My switch of choice was something linear, and heavy. Kailh Box Heavy Dark Yellows it is! These switches are also phenomenal value, and are RGB friendly. My thoughts on the Drop Carina: The Carina has been in my hands for a few months now. I took delivery on January 7th 2021, and I had it assembled and ready the next day! The key features for me being: Hot swap sockets for both 3 & 5-pin switches RGB to the max, per key lighting and tasteful under glow Well designed and made acrylic casing USB-C with dual ports on both left and right, plus included white cable Easy assembly and instructions The PCB brings in the entire aesthetic feel with a gloss white finish, and while this goes mostly unseen, a nice touch, especially if you happen to be staring at the under glow RGB. Speaking of under glow, there is good spacing between LEDs, you get a nice full color spectrum, and great light coverage. The acrylic holds up, this has been well designed and the lighting does an excellent job shining evenly throughout the entire case. For the price I am pleased as I think for many, this would be one of the main features to pick this over other options. It has solid large rubber feet and a nice angled design. The included stabs are boring old clip-ins, I was expecting this, but it would be easy enough to implement a superior screw in design, ultimately for this price range not a deal breaker by any means. I went for the default Aluminum backplate, you can opt for Brass or Copper, but these come at an additional cost of $30 & $40 respectively, making the overall price less competitive. Pictures: As this is a hot swap board and a more compact layout it was a quick assembly process. For more thorough details on assembly check out my past review of the OLKB Preonic and upcoming KBD67Lite. Mildly triggered that there is no blue 'Forward Slash' keycap included in the Drop Skylight keycap set... Oh well. This is where the white PCB is noticeable as it blends in, any other color would be very noticeable. Type Test: My switch of choice was the Kailh Box Heavy Dark Yellow (linear), un-lubed, stabs lubed with TriboSys 3204. Drop Carina - Box Heavy Dark Yellows Unlubed.mp4 * Amplified audio by 10db * (Audio recorded with a Blue Snowball Mic, at approximately 15cm from the keyboard) Worth mentioning, box switches, f#cking amazing, the stability these add to the feeling of the keys is massively noticeable. One of those things that you won’t notice until you try and have hands on experience, so this is something that I highly recommend everyone tries. Which has me thinking, stem switch on Zealios? Conclusion: Overall I like the board and the features, it delivers on all fronts and other than some nitpicking on the choice of stabs, hence I have no real complaints. At least none that prevent me from recommending it. For those looking at a budget custom mechanical 60% hot-swap boards, this would likely top that list. However, this segment is growing, and there is stiff competition, at the time of this review I think the biggest competitor is the KBD67Lite, a 65% layout (more keys) for $10 less, at $110usd (shipping not included), it comes in and out of stock with a wireless version also available. For that price the KBD67Lite has very similar features, per key RGB, an ABS case with a polycarbonate back plate, hot-swap sockets, it even address my complaints with the Carina, screw in stabs included, additionally a nice carry case. Case and backplate construction is somewhat sacrificed vs the Carina, but you get a few other features in a better layout, so when looking to buy these are options to weigh. When I ordered the Carina the 67Lite was not an option, but now it is, and I have since purchased one. Another big competitor is the new GMMK Pro, mine has just arrived 2 days ago and I am in the process of assembly and testing, it comes in at a slightly higher price of $170usd, but the extra $50 is going to good use. You get a much more solid construction, per key RGB and 5-pin hot swap sockets remain, with the addition of a better 75% layout, and a highly coveted rotary knob. My review of that is coming soon as well, but my initial impressions are very good. It is hard not to justify the extra $50 for a more usable layout that lacks no features. So while the Carina is an aesthetically pleasing board, I find that my mind now goes to other options. Within the time frame of ordering the Carina, to receiving it, a lot of new competition is now purchasable. Personally this is not my daily use board, as said earlier I have a hard time scraping by with anything less than a 65% layout. But otherwise, I have no reason not to recommend this board, if you have weighed your alternative options. Drop has done a great job here, but now faces more competition than ever before. Reviews on the KBD67Lite and GMMK Pro are soon to follow.

20TB is absolutely nothing. The 970 EVO Plus has a 1,200TBW endurance, so only about 1.67% of use.

The STRIX X470-F does NOT have USB Bios Flash-Back meaning you would require a R 3xxx series CPU, possibly even R 2xxx series if this motherboard is old stock, in order to update to a beta Bios that would allow support for a R 5xxx series CPU. I recommend a B550 motherboard instead, new stock will support the CPU out of the box. https://pcpartpicker.com/product/JXBhP6/asus-rog-strix-b550-f-gaming-atx-am4-motherboard-rog-strix-b550-f-gaming The Asus B550-F is a very good motherboard, and if the Bios is not updated you can do so without a CPU as it has USB Bios Flash-Back.

Search for a local used deal, $350 for a 1050Ti is criminal.

Overall looks good, you will require a GPU though. Even something cheap will work, checked your local used market for something, typically some old Quadro's can be found for $20. That said they may not support 1440p, depending on the model, so you might require something like a GT 1030.

DDU is just a tool used to remove old graphics drivers. So not required here. Although unlikely to be the culprit if it was my system I would see if there is a Bios update to be done. Otherwise this is a weird one as both work, just not in combination with each other. To me this is a motherboard issue, not CPU or GPU.

Welcome to the forum! Are you using a PCie riser cable? Have your used DDU to remove old display drivers?

Welcome to the forum! Unless you need the 850W these are both good PSU's (assuming you are referring to the be quiet Straight Power 11) I would keep whichever is cheaper. Or if you care about efficiency get the 80+ Platinum. Refer to this list: Both are Tier A.

TLDR - 'F' for respects. Hopefully someone more helpful than me can get you up and running again!

I just sold my G610 late 2020, bundled it with one of my systems. Worth reaching out to that person!

That fair enough, you can find decent cheap sets for around $20ish.

Get new caps?

First of all, THANK YOU! Glad to know I haven't totally wasted the last 36hrs! Great! Any recommendations? And what cables I require SFF-xxxx? That's kind of what I was seeing as well, but as I did not specifically require a SAS (my assumption), good to know this info. Yeah I have empty PCIe 16x slots on both my Asus Z490-A Prime, and Asus B450i, with the PCIe lanes to spare. My X470 is capped out with no lanes to spare. This is the direction I need, thank you! There are so many options and every time I look I just get more confused as I do not know what it is I exactly need. I will run a PSU in each rack (550-650w), basic ATX for now and will go redundant PSU in the near future, Also have an external UPS. They will be in their own room, and possibly offsite in the future, good to know they can be noisy, now this should not be an issue.

LTT'ers I need help! I am a complete noob when it comes to anything related to mass storage (outside of using 4 & 8-bay external enclosures and basic RAID configs) and my use case for mass storage IS GREATLY increasing at a rapid rate. I am currently weighing options and it seems that for my use case a JBOD DAS will work. But this is not totally clear to me and if require to switch to a better solution I can do so. I really just need to figure out what direction I need to execute on. I found these that set me on that path: https://www.servethehome.com/sas-expanders-diy-cheap-low-cost-jbod-enclosures-raid/ https://forums.serverbuilds.net/t/guide-direct-attached-storage-das-add-up-to-16-3-5-drive-bays-to-an-existing-server-for-less-than-300/136 My workflow is as follows: I am writing data to 3.5" HDDs (4TB-12TB capacities) in a 2-bay hot-swap dock, 4TB per day, on 3 different systems (12TB total). And once the writing process is complete I do not need to read or write from that disk, but I do need to see it and have it connected to a single system, I do not need network storage of any kind. Which is what leads me to think that a JBOD DAS is the best bet? And I can connect to one of my systems via an HBA? In the near future I will look to redundancy and higher capacity drives. However, my short-term (2-3 month) focus is just getting the best value in terms of $/TB and getting as many drives connect as possible for as cheap, but effective and safe, as possible. This is new to me but my workflow just drastically changed and I am trying to learn and implement as fast as possible. But between juggling this and other areas of growth, I am a bit lost on the data storage side. For my use case I require the following: 1. 15-bay enclosure at a minimum, 4U is fine, Ideally under 650mm long 2. Power of scaling, is there an effective way to daisy chain? IE if I add 3x more 15-bay solutions is there a possibility to daisy chain them together? 3. If I go DAS and connect via HBA, how does this limit my PCIe lane usage on a system. And would connecting it to a B450i/R3 2200G or Z490/i7-10700k work? Or is the only solution a prosumer platform? For more info required that could help please let me know. Like I said, I am lost in the sauce on this one, and need guidance. Thanks (a ton) in advance!

That's what I thought Yes, even the Asus compatibility list says that the Hyper M.2 supports a max of 2 m.2 drives with a IPU (any 'G' series). I have spent several hours going through this and in order for this to work I would need to put my GPU in the PCIe 16_3 slot, but that will greatly hinder my system in areas I cannot give up performance at this time. HEDT is most likely my only solution. That said, do you know, if in theory, I could do the following: Put the GPU is back in 16_1, and the Hyper m.2 is in 16_2 with only 2 drives, then also continue to use both my m.2 slots? Potentially a single m.2 to PCIe 1x adapter with an m.2 as well?

Yeah same, basically gets me no where other than it "works". I believe you may be correct though. The real issue is I am trying to do something this platform was not really intended for. I just wanted to make it work, other than PCIe lanes I would not gain much else by going to a HEDT. The compatibly list basically says M.2 SSD quantity: 4/2 (PCIEX16_1 slot) For my motherboard + CPU config, and that's it... If it can only support 2 with the PCIe16_2 slot vacant it makes no sense that they would list 4 m.2 drives being compatible. Guess I will keep digging, unfortunately not a whole lot info out there. Yup, I fully get that, as I mentioned I have moved my GPU from my top PCIe 16x slot already. So unless I am missing a bios setting, I am starting to think that with second 16x slot occupied it cuts down my ability to go 4x4 on the top PCIe slot, R9 does not have discreet graphics however, so I think I am SOL.