bellabichon

Hi all, I plan to build a new SFF rig in the coming weeks and am working on locking down a final parts list. My CPU of choice is the i7-13700KF, as I'd like to do some overclocking if I can. But looking at Z790 boards from Canadian retailers, the prices all seem pretty insane, some even equalling the CPU itself. Would it be crazy to use an Asus ROG STRIX Z690-I with a 13700KF? I'm perfectly comfortable with flashing the BIOS via USB if it ships with an older version that doesn't support the 13700KF, but I'm wondering if there are any major features I'd be missing out on by buying last-gen hardware. Thanks!

Thanks for the reply! Yeah I'm not sure about the fan config yet, the Cooler Master includes a 92mm exhaust which I think I'll keep, I was just planning to chuck another 120mm intake at the top for positive air pressure (also the idea of mismatched fans just annoys me on some subconscious level lol) Thanks for the catch, the price of the 2TB 990 showed up way lower when I was speccing it out (I suspect that PCPP accidentally switched to USD). Looks like it would actually be cheaper to grab two 1TB M.2s (which the board can thankfully accommodate), but I'll have to keep my eye out for price drops.

Hi all, I'm planning to build a new SFF rig that I can more easily transport across the country for school. I've put together a loose PCPartPicker list, but any recommendations or changes are very welcome. Budget (including currency): 2500-3000 Canadian Dollars (including taxes & shipping), but obviously the lower the better Country: Canada Games, programs or workloads that it will be used for: Gaming (FPS, strategy, single-player RPG), school and creative work (writing & researching, Photoshop, Premiere Pro) Other details: PCPartPicker Part List CPU: Intel Core i7-13700K 3.4 GHz 16-Core Processor ($549.00 @ Newegg Canada) CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D12L 60.09 CFM CPU Cooler ($115.90 @ Amazon Canada) Motherboard: Asus ROG STRIX B760-I GAMING WIFI Mini ITX LGA1700 Motherboard ($289.99 @ Amazon Canada) Memory: Corsair Vengeance 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR5-6000 CL36 Memory ($134.99 @ Best Buy Canada) Storage: Samsung 990 Pro 2 TB M.2-2280 PCIe 4.0 X4 NVME Solid State Drive ($315.99 @ Amazon Canada) Video Card: Asus DUAL OC GeForce RTX 4070 12 GB Video Card ($809.00 @ Canada Computers) Case: Cooler Master MasterBox NR200 Mini ITX Desktop Case ($124.48 @ Amazon Canada) Power Supply: Cooler Master V850 SFX GOLD 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular SFX Power Supply ($199.99 @ Amazon Canada) Case Fan: Cooler Master SickleFlow 62 CFM 120 mm Fan ($9.99 @ Amazon Canada) Total: $2549.33 Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available Generated by PCPartPicker 2023-07-13 19:18 EDT-0400 Notes: I'd like to avoid tempered glass on the case because I plan to lug the thing around in a carry-on suitcase, so the risk of damage outweighs any aesthetic benefit for me Was thinking of switching to Intel this generation for the slightly faster single-core performance, as I've been playing a lot more FPS games recently 4070 seems like the best option for my budget, but if there are any other recommendations I'm all ears Thanks!

Hey all, I'm looking to sell my 2-ish-year-old PC and build a new SFF rig that I can more easily transport across the country. Everything is in excellent condition and there are no issues that I know of. Ideally, I'd like to deal locally (i.e. Craigslist, FB Marketplace) so I don't have to worry about shipping damage. What do you guys think would be a fair price for this setup, including the monitor? CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 5800X Cooler: Noctua NH-D15 Motherboard: MSI MAG B550 Tomahawk RAM: 2x8GB G.skill Trident Z Neo 3600MHz CL16 GPU: MSI VENTUS 3X GeForce RTX 3070 OC Boot: Samsung 970 Evo 1TB Storage: Samsung 860 Evo 1TB Case: Corsair iCUE 465X RGB PSU: Corsair RMx 750W (White) Monitor: ASUS VG27AQ (1440p IPS 165hz) I'm located in the Vancouver area if that helps, and would be dealing in Canadian Dollars. Thanks!

Hi all, I'm trying to help a friend plan a work-from-home setup and was wondering if anyone had a lead on a floor monitor stand. They have some mobility issues which make it most comfortable for them to work from bed, so I'm looking for something that can sit on the floor next to them. Ideally, the stand would be for two displays, and if it had adjustable arms for maximum comfort that would be a huge plus. Something like this one is similar to what I'm looking for, but obviously the cheaper the better (and as I mentioned before, adjustable arms would be a big help). Does anyone know where I could find something like this? I'm located in Canada if that helps narrow things down. Thanks in advance for any help!

I had an MSI GE62VR back in 2016-ish and I experienced basically the same issues you seem to be having now. Gaming laptops as a whole often have cooling issues (the form factor of a laptop simply doesn't provide a lot of room to adequately cool a high-powered CPU and GPU simultaneously), but MSI laptops in particular have (in my opinion) pretty underpowered cooling systems for the hardware they're trying to cram in. One bit of advice that worked for me was undervolting the CPU (lowering the voltage the system provides to the processor, lower voltage typically means less heat) and disabling or reducing boost. This can sometimes be done at a hardware level, but I personally used a program called ThrottleStop to step down the voltage, which brought my temperatures back into reasonable levels. Undervolting (and especially tweaking boost clocks) will result in reduced performance, but it might help you to actually use your computer without getting second-degree burns.

Hi there, if you don't mind me asking, whereabouts are you located in Ontario? If you're looking for someone to talk one-on-one with about a new GPU, I definitely think that in-person is the way to go. Personally, I've had good experiences with both Canada Computers and Memory Express (in Vancouver, that is, so your mileage may vary). I typically find that their staff are pretty knowledgeable, and legitimately interested in getting you the best deal they can on new hardware. But like any retail store, there are good employees and bad employees, so I think it's always worth sizing up the floor staff and looking for someone who seems actually interested in their job, and can give you a good recommendation.

EDIT: Just reread my lease and it stipulates that I'm not allowed a range extender or an access point. Welp, guess a 25 foot ethernet cable and a USB-C to ethernet adapter will have to do.

Hi all, I recently moved into new University dorms and the Wi-Fi connection is simply terrible. I'm currently getting 1-2Mbps download and even less upload, plus the crappy signal strength means that my phone drops the connection constantly, which has been a source of much frustration for me. However, my dorm does come with an Ethernet port in the wall, which got me thinking that if I can plug some kind of small router into the ethernet port, I might be able to get much better Wi-Fi connectivity and speeds on all the devices in my room. Would this be likely to work? If so, what router/range extender should I be looking at? I'm not well versed with networking in the slightest, so any help here would be greatly appreciated.

My little smidge of Googling led me to two possible solutions, either a little dongle with promising reviews (but shaky availability) or a much more hacky solution with an Arduino and some homebrew soldering. Alternatively, you could probably just save yourself the headache with a USB hub (lots of models with long cables can be found basically everywhere), so long as you can stand a few (hopefully discrete) wires floating around the place.

Biostar is definitely what I'd consider a 'budget brand' when it comes to motherboards, but with that config I doubt you'd experience any issues with power delivery and the like (that i3 doesn't need much, and the GPU needs even less). The one thing I'd consider is upgradability. If you're planning to swap out for a higher-spec CPU or GPU in the future, it might be worth choosing a beefier motherboard now, so you won't have to change it out down the line. But if you're planning to run with that config for a while, the Biostar board should serve you just fine for now.

So you previously had another AIO with the same problem? Maybe it is something to do with the motherboard or CPU after all. Definitely a good idea to go get it professionally checked out (after all, this forum is just a bunch of nerds with too much time on their hands ). Hope you find a solution to your problem!

Very perplexing. And you're 100% sure that all the internal I/O connections are right (AIO pump, AIO fans, etc)? The CPU_OPT fail warning leads me to believe that something might still be off with the connections. Other than that, the last thing I could possibly think of would be the thermal paste application, but if you're confident in all of that it might be time to contact EK and see what they have to say on the matter. I'd readily admit that I'm no expert on EK AIOs, so it's likely that their support team might be able to shed some light on the issue where I can't.

If Louis Rossmann's videos taught me anything, it's that microsoldering is a very delicate business (which my hands are too shaky to even attempt), but hey, Linus is the king of reflowing your GPU with a toaster oven, and I have a thing for MacGuyver'd approaches that (though not pretty) actually kinda work

Those USB adapters don't typically give the best speeds imaginable, but I agree that seems too low to be correct. My first idea would be to make sure you have all necessary drivers and firmware for the adapter installed (in my experience, Windows can sometimes be very very touchy where internet drivers are concerned). You mentioned that the adapter is USB 3.0, which USB port are you connecting it to on your motherboard?