Damn it, but computers have become really complicated

[Gaizokubanou]

To further elaborate JonCole's point on those two...

 

http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/1337?vs=1130

[rohlfinator]

PSA: Steer clear of WD Green hard drives for games.

 

I just found out the hard way that they're configured to park the drive head after 8 seconds of inactivity, which has been causing weird stuttering problems in almost all of my games for the last several months. There was a fairly straightforward fix, but I think I'm just going to avoid them in the future.

[Architecture]

I don't know how big an upgrade the GTX 560 -> 750 Ti will be. Sure, you're making a multi-generational jump but you're kinda staying in the same exact tier of performance. If I was in your position, I would either hold out on the CPU and get a 960 or better or hold out on the GPU and get an i5 or better. Also, make sure your RAM is compatible.

I am in agreement with this post and specifically of the mindset that you should upgrade your processor and mobo before your GPU. A 560 might not be ideal for MGS V, but I can tell you that Ground Zeroes is the one game I've witnessed that really took advantage of multi-core CPUs. A 750Ti is a fine card, but you'll be better served by upgrading to a quad core CPU and getting a DX12-native card down the line.

 

Just one man's opinion.

[Reyturner]

Thanks guys. A lot of food for thought. I think I will leave my GPU as is and go for the i5. It looks like the i7 is also within budget but the side by side feature posted above seems to indicate that the gain in performance probably isn't worth the ~$100 price jump.

And thanks for mentioning the RAM JonCole!

[Architecture]

An i7 is overkill for 80%+ of the market. You'll definitely find more value in buying an unlocked i5 and overclocking it.

[Gaizokubanou]

Yeah what Architecture said, i5 - i7 both overclock well, which usually ends up meaning performance difference between differently priced models mean a lot less because instead of it being difference between 3.6ghz i7 vs 2.8 i5, it usually end up being 4.2 OCed i7 vs 4.0 i5.

 

Even if you don't overclock it, most games just don't stress the CPUs that much.  That and upcoming DX12 is also going to further reduce the loads on CPU.

[Vasari]

Is it still true that the only difference between an i5 and an i7 is that the latter supports hyperthreading, which doesn't affect how games run?

[Gaizokubanou]

AFAIK that is practically accurate assessment.  I mean there is likely to be more qualitative difference between cheapest i5 and most expensive i7 (afterall, good overclocking is never guaranteed, just likely) but the practical differences are really blurry otherwise.

[Vasari]

That's really all I know about the issue. So would there be a benefit to having hyperthreading? Like, if you were recording or streaming game footage while playing it, would it make a difference?

[Architecture]

The hyperthreading is the primary difference, but there are 2011 socket i7s that are hex core CPUs. Those are ludicrously priced, however.

[Badfinger]

Everyone covered what I was thinking! Get an i5 that you can overclock (I believe the designation is still K) and a motherboard that will support it, and make sure the RAM works in that motherboard.

 

The GPU is going to drive your framerate more the higher you push the prettiness lever, but the CPU (and RAM potentially) will help for the min specs, especially since you have a 560 which is still reasonable. The CPU market for gaming is also in a spot where you can sit on what you have for a good long while and be comfortable, whereas the GPU market is still hounding forward at a pace where what you can buy for $200 6 months from now will potentially be quite different from what you can buy with that $200 today.

[SecretAsianMan]

Another thing to consider is running dual graphics cards (SLI for Nvidia and Crossfire for AMD).  You won't get double the performance but the improvement can be substantial.  You need to have two of the same card for SLI or two similar cards for Crossfire, but if it's an older model odds are you can get it pretty cheap.  A quick check of the GTX 560 shows that it does support SLI.  You'll need a motherboard that supports it too.  Not all games support SLI or Crossfire and your power requirements will increase.  You may also need to do some tweaking to get the best performance.  Here's a good FAQ from Tom's Hardware about it.

[Badfinger]

Help! I have realized that I have a problem. A problem with hard drives. I have two SSD drives that I'm fine with, and two sub-TB hard drives. I'm mostly fine for space except for a little juggling on the SSDs, but what if I could have SO MUCH SPACE and not have to worry about it?! It's been years and years since I've thought about platter hard drives, but I see how old and crotchety mine have become. Can someone point me towards where I can start my search to find a good, large (2+TB please don't laugh) reasonable speed platter hard drive? No special purpose beyond owning a computer and consolidating storage.

[RyanCConnelly]

Help! I have realized that I have a problem. A problem with hard drives. I have two SSD drives that I'm fine with, and two sub-TB hard drives. I'm mostly fine for space except for a little juggling on the SSDs, but what if I could have SO MUCH SPACE and not have to worry about it?! It's been years and years since I've thought about platter hard drives, but I see how old and crotchety mine have become. Can someone point me towards where I can start my search to find a good, large (2+TB please don't laugh) reasonable speed platter hard drive? No special purpose beyond owning a computer and consolidating storage.

 

http://www.tomshardware.com/ has great reviews and stuff!  I'm assuming you're going to pick up a spinning HD for storage, now that they're so inexpensive it's really hard to go wrong.  I have several Western Digital drives and I've never had a problem with them.  I was actually looking to pick up a new one soon to go with my new SSD purchase, probably one of their 1-2TB models.

[ratamero]

Get any 5400RPM SATA from a major brand that's not Seagate and you should be fine to store all your stuff that doesn't need amazing speed. a 3TB WD Caviar drive shouldn't set you back more than $100.

[rohlfinator]

I've found Backblaze's hard drive study to be a helpful resource if you're concerned about reliability: https://www.backblaze.com/blog/best-hard-drive/

 

I take it with a grain of salt, but it makes it easy to avoid the drives with double-digit annual failure rates.

[prettyunsmart]

So I just ordered a new motherboard and CPU (one of the fancy new Skylake i5s). I'm currently running Windows 10, and from what I'm reading, it sounds like I can just swap out the motherboard and CPU without having to reinstall. That sounds too easy. I probably will back everything up and have install media ready just in case, but has anyone tried switching out motherboards without reinstalling lately? 

[JonCole]

I have never tried that before, the only thing I've done (successfully) of that nature was swapping the processor but keeping the motherboard. It seems like the thing you're mentioning shouldn't work, but who knows? I'm really curious to see what happens.

[SecretAsianMan]

It depends on whether you have a retail copy of Windows or an OEM version.  OEM Windows licenses are tied to the "device" which for all intents and purposes at Microsoft means the motherboard, so you won't be able to transfer your Windows 10 license there.  If you have a retail copy, then you can transfer that between devices so a new motherboard should work.

[prettyunsmart]

I have never tried that before, the only thing I've done (successfully) of that nature was swapping the processor but keeping the motherboard. It seems like the thing you're mentioning shouldn't work, but who knows? I'm really curious to see what happens.

 

That's what I thought, but there are a few threads on Tom's Hardware and similar places where people reference switching motherboards out with Windows 8 and above. Something about a new feature that detects the change and sorts out the driver issues on first boot? 

 

It depends on whether you have a retail copy of Windows or an OEM version.  OEM Windows licenses are tied to the "device" which for all intents and purposes at Microsoft means the motherboard, so you won't be able to transfer your Windows 10 license there.  If you have a retail copy, then you can transfer that between devices so a new motherboard should work.

 

I'm using the Windows Insider version of Windows 10, so who knows? Maybe I'll just try it and be prepared to have MS ask me for some money.

[brkl]

Do you guys know of a lightweight solution for an internet call where I could stream my desktop (this can be low FPS) as well the sound from my computer to the person on the other end of the line? Actually, I could do with just a place I could easily stream my desktop and sound and do the rest with Skype. It seems that many of the video call programs can do the desktop but not the sound from the desktop.

[undermind9]

I think google hangouts can (or there is an add on extension that can)

 

I usually do work sharing with join.me - they actually removed their share sound feature and there is clamoring on the community for a while now.

 

 

I suppose you could live-stream on youtube or similar too.  There are some pretty light-weight free broadcast software available for basic level streamers

[ratamero]

Skype itself can do that, I think? Otherwise, quite sure Teamviewer has that implemented.

[prettyunsmart]

I feel like upgrading my PC is becoming like If You Give a Mouse a Cookie.

 

If you want to switch from AMD to Intel, you're going to need a new motherboard. If you're going to get a new motherboard, you're going to want to get one that supports the newest Intel socket. If you're going to get a motherboard that supports Intel's newest socket, you're going to need to switch to DDR4 RAM. Oh, and the new i5 doesn't come with a CPU cooler, so buy one of those too.

[Spenny]

Motherboard and CPU are pretty much the least upgradable components, everything else swaps so easily.