Cyberpower Base Need upgrade advice

[Allmightyballs]

So I picked up a cyberpower PC. The non LED fan burned up on week 2 so I replaced it with a cheap insignia for now but then the LEDs started to flicker really bad, Not sure what the issue is but doesn't matter as I intend to replace things. I have a few questions I was hoping a few people would be kind enough to help me out with. It will mainly be used for gaming like WOW, eventually more. Id like to have it prepared before the more comes along.

I've spent the better part of my day researching & watching videos on builds. I've learned a lot but since everyone building is starting from scratch some doesn't really help when looking to upgrade. For example, I currently run Wow with addons at High settings without issue so I don't think I need a 2nd GPU. Honestly the most I think I need is a cooling upgrade & maybe a power supply. I'm sure more memory wouldn't hurt either but best bang for buck first. 

 

This is my first "build" but figured this was a good start given I only paid 230 for everything and some of the parts alone would run well above that when I purchased it.

 

1. What software should I use to monitor temps, fan speed & things of that sort? I don't like MSI afterburner anymore due to I feel Ill click the wrong thing & overclock it or turn the fans up. Not a huge fan of OC due to I only have 1 machine to depend on for everything. I'm sure that will change the more I learn

 

2. Is replacing the Power sup needed in this case? I see people saying yes but it does have one that people recommend replacing it with so I'm not sure on that.

 

3. I wish to add 2 fans to complete the lighting look as well as I don't like the empty space for it. It also seems to run a bit hot during raids in game. Currently its running NEG pressure but I wish to have neutral with dust screens.

3. B.  Should I think about water cooling? I keep this PC in the coldest part of my house even during the summer it still chilly, is it needed for what I'm doing or would air be enough?

 

4. If this was yours and you wanted to not break the bank but spend what you saved on upgrades(2-800 depending on how you look at it/given time it was purchased) What would you do first to improve the system performance & longevity overall? 

 

Please keep it mind I'm just starting out after to long time of letting myself think my Alienware m17 is still the beast it used to be 5 or 6 years ago. I also am trying to cram a lot of knowledge in little time and the options now are next to endless. I gave up on it years ago for a lot of reasons but one was mainly very little options so It was either spend the $$ or jog on, now its lego land and some parts are reasonably priced with good competition.

I do plan on recording games, making videos, possibly streaming(my ISP is shet!) but most of all want a sound running machine for the long game or a good base start for the time being. My Alienware has been an unreplaceable work horse but now there is SATA & more options that only make everything better & easier, plus time is money friends.

 

Any advice from the pro's that are here would be greatly appreciated! TIA

[Crunchy Dragon]

I would say better cooler, better PSU, and probably replace the fans all around with something like Corsair AF120s.

[Jurrunio]

7 minutes ago, Allmightyballs said:

1. What software should I use to monitor temps, fan speed & things of that sort? I don't like MSI afterburner anymore due to I feel Ill click the wrong thing & overclock it or turn the fans up. Not a huge fan of OC due to I only have 1 machine to depend on for everything. I'm sure that will change the more I learn

HWinfo, in sensor mode specifically.

 

8 minutes ago, Allmightyballs said:

2. Is replacing the Power sup needed in this case? I see people saying yes but it does have one that people recommend replacing it with so I'm not sure on that.

Thermaltake 80+ white is alarming. Maybe not a immediate threat but I'd replace it.

tier C or higher will do.

 

10 minutes ago, Allmightyballs said:

3. I wish to add 2 fans to complete the lighting look as well as I don't like the empty space for it. It also seems to run a bit hot during raids in game. Currently its running NEG pressure but I wish to have neutral with dust screens.

3. B.  Should I think about water cooling? I keep this PC in the coldest part of my house even during the summer it still chilly, is it needed for what I'm doing or would air be enough?

nah, for an 8700 air coolers like the Deepcool Gammaxx GT (since we're going with lights) will do.

 

11 minutes ago, Allmightyballs said:

 

4. If this was yours and you wanted to not break the bank but spend what you saved on upgrades(2-800 depending on how you look at it/given time it was purchased) What would you do first to improve the system performance & longevity overall? 

CPU cooler, fans, PSU and another kit of memory. Preferably a pair of 4GB 3000MHz.

 

 

[BobVonBob]

10 minutes ago, Allmightyballs said:

1. What software should I use to monitor temps, fan speed & things of that sort? I don't like MSI afterburner anymore due to I feel Ill click the wrong thing & overclock it or turn the fans up. Not a huge fan of OC due to I only have 1 machine to depend on for everything. I'm sure that will change the more I learn

I'm a fan of HWiNFO64.

11 minutes ago, Allmightyballs said:

2. Is replacing the Power sup needed in this case? I see people saying yes but it does have one that people recommend replacing it with so I'm not sure on that.

Maybe, it's probably not that bad of a PSU, but by no means will it be good. Cyberpower skimps on their base model PSUs.

[Allmightyballs]

Thank you all for the responses!! I've been checking out fans since I posted, my only dilemma seems to be once I hit a certain level so to say everyone says go water cooled vs just air & fan upgrades. Personally I didn't think I'm on the need water cooling level. Fan wise I keep getting recommended the RGB cooler masters, AIGO, deepcool and by all means stay away from Corsair stuff. Not sure why but I have noticed spec wise an RPM and sound difference.

Id prefer quite more then lights & all that jazz. As of 30 minutes ago the exhaust(only LED fan) started making a not so friendly noise. Its not loud but its not quite like it used to be so anything in a 3 pack would be a plus. 

 

After looking at other PSU's, I found you all are dead on correct. Its not the worst but not the best either. I've seen & have been warned more then enough(even by a CP employee) on Cyberpower's skimpery on PSU's, I though maybe I got lucky on this one as some say get a Thermaltake. I guess its the model I need to be looking at not just brand. My hopes is to find something that will give more then enough needed power but wont run my bill up since the games I play are normally for 6+ hours per sit down. I have been keeping an eye on the vent & top of the case, checking how much heat its cranking out of the vent & warming of the case. So far its been pretty decent but Id prefer safer then sorry.

Any recommends on a particular unit for my setup? The PSU is the 1 thing Id prefer a "professional" opinion on over all else. I have really bad luck with electricity, lets just say that.

 

I honestly have never heard of the monitor HWinfo but its next on the scope list. I was thinking of NZXT cam & Rivatuner(not so much tho)  but that's because I follow Jays2cents and trust his opinion for the most part & a friend uses on all his builds. Is there any leverage one has over the other? Looking for something simple just to watch the temps of everything as well as for a before & after when replacing parts such as fans & PSU

 

As for the memory. If I can shoot for 32g total that would be nice but imo a bit overkill for starting out but If I found a good deal & something that would match with whats already there that would be ideal. I have been told I should sell what's in it & replace it instead of trying to match things up which I may but I definitely want to tackle the power & fans first

 

 

Summary so far. Honestly cant thank you guys enough. Its been extremely helpful in what direction I should start going.The PSU will be first but since I need new fans Ill probably soak it up and get them at the same time. I wanted something to monitor everything so I can compare before & after. This weeks a new raid so things will be semi stressful on the unit and a great benchmark to compare things with. One of my biggest concerns was the skimpery of CP's being more then just PSU's. While replacing the fan, some of what I found & how everything was ran/wired up wasn't exactly faith inspiring. Also trying to avoid any future bottlenecking.

 

Looking at a new PSU & fans now, only thing I need to figure now is how Ill set them up. Id prefer neutral if at all possible but location wise it seems like pos or neg only if I don't want to create dead spots. Also seems Ill need a dust filter for the entire bottom and for each fan. Once I get everything in & installed Ill definitely be posting the new look & results. 

 

I bow to the helpful Guru's 

[Jurrunio]

1 hour ago, Allmightyballs said:

and by all means stay away from Corsair stuff

because of the proprietary RGB connectors mostly. Of course the SP120 fans used all the time don't perform well in the noise department either so that's another reason to leave them out.

 

1 hour ago, Allmightyballs said:

Any recommends on a particular unit for my setup? The PSU is the 1 thing Id prefer a "professional" opinion on over all else. I have really bad luck with electricity, lets just say that.

80+ Gold units like the EVGA G2, Seasonic Focus Gold / Focus Plus Gold, Antec Earthwatts Gold Pro (a Focus Gold rebrand), Corsair TXM, RMx, bitfenix whisper m are all good common options. Good PSUs don't differ that much from one another really.

 

1 hour ago, Allmightyballs said:

I honestly have never heard of the monitor HWinfo but its next on the scope list. I was thinking of NZXT cam & Rivatuner(not so much tho)  but that's because I follow Jays2cents and trust his opinion for the most part & a friend uses on all his builds. Is there any leverage one has over the other? Looking for something simple just to watch the temps of everything as well as for a before & after when replacing parts such as fans & PSU

Hwinfo makes other monitoring software look like toys. I have it running in the background whenever the system's turned on.

 

Rivatuner can display hardware stats in games in an overlay though so it's useful. Works with Hwinfo.

 

1 hour ago, Allmightyballs said:

As for the memory. If I can shoot for 32g total that would be nice but imo a bit overkill for starting out but If I found a good deal & something that would match with whats already there that would be ideal. I have been told I should sell what's in it & replace it instead of trying to match things up which I may but I definitely want to tackle the power & fans first

Considering the motherboard you have is bascially a customized Asrock B360M Pro4, you can try get into the memory settings, set them to 2666MHz and manually tune the timings if you have time. You can't run these sticks at their rated 3000MHz frequency because B360 chipset doesnt allow overclocking, but there's no limit in timings tuning and that can also increase performance.

[Allmightyballs]

That's something Im just now learning about with the proprietary controllers. I posted on Cyberpowers forums about my lights flicker bad & turning off and on by itself after the fan replacement and people are saying its something to do with "branded" not being compatible. I went from a no name fan to a cheap $10 insignia from best buy. Followed directions from CP themselves on replacing it and now this mess. Almost enough to make me not want to use it. 

 

Now I'm concerned with replacing anything. I'm still learning & by no means an expert but I feel I must be to even replace a fan now. I like the deepcool that I searched up & think I may go with an Aigo or coolmaster case fans. There was 1 other that seemed to be a slight bit quieter but had mixed reviews. 

 

Most likely will get an EVGA g2 as Ive seen a lot who like it, use it without issue and I see EVGA mentioned almost everywhere Ive been reading.

 

My focus now is trying to get all these parts to work together without any compatibility issues. I don't think I will have any from the PSU but when it comes to running the fans I have the biggest feeling that will be a migraine waiting to happen. Im pretty sure the MB has 2 fan plugs but Ill need a minimum of 3 for just the case & then theres getting them to work with the deepcool. 

 

Not sure how to ensure all parts work together and preferably with simple control. The posts keep coming in on a different forum about compatibility with the setup I already have from fans, lighting control & memory options 

 

Parts Ive been checking out. I did find a 3 pack of Aigo fans but I guess they sold out as its no longer in my favs or searchable.

 

Deep cool 

https://www.amazon.com/DEEPCOOL-GT-BK-Motherboard-Supported/dp/B074P3JCXX/ref=asc_df_B074P3JCXX/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=312824707815&hvpos=1o2&hvnetw=g&hvrand=10649855416572188772&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9009238&hvtargid=pla-562430303464&psc=1

 

EVGA PSU

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/evga-80-plus-600w-atx-12v-eps-12v-power-supply-black/8511029.p?skuId=8511029

 

Fans

 https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIAE307ZN6975&ignorebbr=1&source=region&nm_mc=KNC-GoogleMKP-PC&cm_mmc=KNC-GoogleMKP-PC-_-pla-GlobeGlasses-_-Case+Fans-_-9SIAE307ZN6975&gclid=Cj0KCQiA1sriBRD-ARIsABYdwwGLJzTQez0eH2YIm-M1FzwYM7ej_22NfRbPZ_VlYNEMSzSklJ9vFnEaAvc9EALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds

 

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIAE866BH5319&ignorebbr=1&source=region&nm_mc=KNC-GoogleMKP-PC&cm_mmc=KNC-GoogleMKP-PC-_-pla-darkFlash-_-Case+Fans-_-9SIAE866BH5319&gclid=Cj0KCQiA1sriBRD-ARIsABYdwwH3ZdCzu3ZppUwauFzYeuP_A0FlISbnqHaoa6uMJ8Tw9OMr8YYJ1tQaArNdEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds