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PC Chat

nöyd

Moderator
Staff member
Messages
9,808
A thread for discussing all things PC related, where you can seek advice and advise others on what to buy and what to steer clear of.
__________________________

My current build consists of:

Mobo: Gigabyte Z490 UD
CPU: i7-10700KF @ 3.80 GHz (stock - not OC yet)
RAM: G.Skill Trident Z rgb ddr4 ram 3200mhz x 4 (32 gb)
Hard disk(s): 500 gb Samsung 850 SSD for system, 1 TB Samsung 860 SSD for games, plus a couple of 3.5 hdd's for storage
GPU: GTX 1080

I ran a test on userbenchmark.com and scored pretty high, higher than I expected, but ultimately it was pretty obvious where I could make an improvement - it's come down to a choice of a RTX 3060 Ti, or for a small increase in cash but a decent sized increase in performance, the RTX 3070.

What is playing on my mind is that I follow Gigabyte on reddit, they cop a fair amount of flak for their gear, and drivers/apps etc. that go with it. The RTX 3070 is a Gigabyte card, so I'm a little hesitant, but you would think it should pair fine with my mobo.

Looking for any thoughts, opinions, other options if any (considering my budget is around 1k)...
 

Exsilium

First Grade
Messages
9,517
A thread for discussing all things PC related, where you can seek advice and advise others on what to buy and what to steer clear of.
__________________________

My current build consists of:

Mobo: Gigabyte Z490 UD
CPU: i7-10700KF @ 3.80 GHz (stock - not OC yet)
RAM: G.Skill Trident Z rgb ddr4 ram 3200mhz x 4 (32 gb)
Hard disk(s): 500 gb Samsung 850 SSD for system, 1 TB Samsung 860 SSD for games, plus a couple of 3.5 hdd's for storage
GPU: GTX 1080

I ran a test on userbenchmark.com and scored pretty high, higher than I expected, but ultimately it was pretty obvious where I could make an improvement - it's come down to a choice of a RTX 3060 Ti, or for a small increase in cash but a decent sized increase in performance, the RTX 3070.

What is playing on my mind is that I follow Gigabyte on reddit, they cop a fair amount of flak for their gear, and drivers/apps etc. that go with it. The RTX 3070 is a Gigabyte card, so I'm a little hesitant, but you would think it should pair fine with my mobo.

Looking for any thoughts, opinions, other options if any (considering my budget is around 1k)...

My current specs.

Mobo: Asus Z490
CPU: i7-10700KF @ 3.80 GHz
RAM: Corsair Vengeance 3600mhz (32 gb)
Hard disk(s): 1TB Samsung 970 (m2) for the System, 2 x 1 TB SSD
GPU: ROG Strix GeForce:registered: RTX 2080 SUPER:tm: OC edition 8GB GDDR6
Monitors: 3 x Asus TUF VG27AQ

Gigabyte have copped a fair amount of grief but they're still a great choice.

You've nailed the CPU, memory and Mobo. Put in a GPU from the current Gen will be plenty for even a dedicated gamer.

I upgraded from the Asus Strix 1080Ti and noticed a marked increase in performance with the 2080 Super. A 3070/80 will be better still in most aspects.

I do a lot of sim racing, RPGs and online gaming without any real issue. I thought I'd bottleneck a bit running 7680x4320 but it's been very good so far .

Ultimately, If you chase performance, you'll forever be emptying your pockets.
 

Parra Pride

Coach
Messages
19,723
Current build:

Mobo: MSI Z390 Gaming Edge
CPU: i7-9700K
RAM: Corsair Vengeance 32gb DDR4 3600mhz
Hard disk: 2x 2TB Samsung 970evo, 1 2TB 7200RPM HDD
GPU: Gigabyte 3070

I’ve had no issues performance wise with the 3070 (even gets pretty good performance out of the current punching bag Cyberpunk), the only real issue is the same thing you’d be facing going with a 3060ti and the whole ‘well I could pay only a little more for a 3080’.
 

nöyd

Moderator
Staff member
Messages
9,808
My current specs.

Mobo: Asus Z490
CPU: i7-10700KF @ 3.80 GHz
RAM: Corsair Vengeance 3600mhz (32 gb)
Hard disk(s): 1TB Samsung 970 (m2) for the System, 2 x 1 TB SSD
GPU: ROG Strix GeForce:registered: RTX 2080 SUPER:tm: OC edition 8GB GDDR6
Monitors: 3 x Asus TUF VG27AQ

Gigabyte have copped a fair amount of grief but they're still a great choice.

You've nailed the CPU, memory and Mobo. Put in a GPU from the current Gen will be plenty for even a dedicated gamer.

I upgraded from the Asus Strix 1080Ti and noticed a marked increase in performance with the 2080 Super. A 3070/80 will be better still in most aspects.

I do a lot of sim racing, RPGs and online gaming without any real issue. I thought I'd bottleneck a bit running 7680x4320 but it's been very good so far .

Ultimately, If you chase performance, you'll forever be emptying your pockets.
True, pretty happy with what I have, I ended up picking up the 3070. That plus the 32GB of ram sees me knocking most games out of the park FPS wise, biggest improvement I've seen so far is DCS World, load times are almost non-existent, and VR running at a smooth 90 FPS in the cockpit of an F/A-18C Hornet.

It used to be a challenge to keep your lunch down, now it's as smooth as butter.
 

Exsilium

First Grade
Messages
9,517
True, pretty happy with what I have, I ended up picking up the 3070. That plus the 32GB of ram sees me knocking most games out of the park FPS wise, biggest improvement I've seen so far is DCS World, load times are almost non-existent, and VR running at a smooth 90 FPS in the cockpit of an F/A-18C Hornet.

It used to be a challenge to keep your lunch down, now it's as smooth as butter.

Solid choice.

DCS world is something I'd like to get into. I am a huge Flight Sim fan (Real life private pilot).VR is the next step for me. I currently utilise the eye tracking software which is plenty when you add in all of the cockpit peripherals I have. VR would negate a lot of it.

Glad you're happy with your choice!
 

Frederick

Moderator
Staff member
Messages
27,533
Used to make my own PCs back in the day (IE, before wife and kids), primarily console gamer these days but did get myself a gaming laptop about 18 months ago


Metabox Alpha-X NH58ED
Display: 15.6" FHD 1920x1080 IPS-like Edge-to-Edge Matte 60Hz LED
Processor: Intel 6 Core i7-8750H (9M Cache 2.2- 4.1GHz)
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce RTX2060 6GB GDDR6 VRAM
RAM: *Sale* 16GB DDR4 2666Mhz (1x16)
M.2 SSD 1: Samsung 970 EVO Plus 250GB PCIe M.2 SSD
M.2 SSD 2: Not Installed
Hard Drive 1: 1TB 7200RPM HDD 7mm
WiFi: Killer 1550 AC Low Latency WIFI/BTv5 (up to 1.73 Gbps)
 

billygilmore

Juniors
Messages
1,221
Just had a big upgrade cause I really have gotten into VR Sim racing last couple of years. Bought a Lenovo explorer without controllers about 2 years ago and was hooked instantly with Sim racers, recently purchased a HP reverb G2 so gave the whole PC an overhaul to power the thing.

Mobo: MSI X570 Tomahawk Wi-Fi
CPU: 5900x
RAM: G.Skill Trident Z ddr4 ram 3600mhz, 2 X 8 GB (16gb)
Hard disk(s): 1 TB Samsung 970 Evo M.2 SSD, 500 gb Samsung 860 M.2 SSD, 2 X 2 TB Seagate barracuda HDD's
GPU: RTX 3080
 

bileduct

Coach
Messages
17,832
Here's my beast. The displays are pretty old and have been carried over from my last build. I've been thinking about upgrading one of them to a 4K monitor but it's not really that important to me right now.

CPU:
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3970x
Motherboard: ASUS ROG Strix TRX40-XE Gaming
GPU: ASUS ROG Strix Geforce RTX 2080 Ti 11GB OC
PSU: Corsair AX1000 Titanium
RAM: 4x G.Skill Trident Z Neo 3600 C16 16GB (64GB)
M.2 SSD 1: Corsair Force MP600 2TB Gen4 PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD
M.2 SSD 2: Corsair Force MP600 2TB Gen4 PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD
Keyboard: Logitech G915 Lightspeed
Mouse: Logitech G502 Lightspeed (+Powerplay charging mat)
Case: Lian Li PC-O11 Dynamic XL
Display 1: DELL 27" 2560x1400 60Hz (U2713H)
Display 2: DELL 27" 2560x1400 60Hz (U2713H)
Display 3: DELL 27" 2560x1400 60Hz (U2713H)
 

Exsilium

First Grade
Messages
9,517
Here's my beast. The displays are pretty old and have been carried over from my last build. I've been thinking about upgrading one of them to a 4K monitor but it's not really that important to me right now.

CPU:
AMD Ryzen Threadripper 3970x
Motherboard: ASUS ROG Strix TRX40-XE Gaming
GPU: ASUS ROG Strix Geforce RTX 2080 Ti 11GB OC
PSU: Corsair AX1000 Titanium
RAM: 4x G.Skill Trident Z Neo 3600 C16 16GB (64GB)
M.2 SSD 1: Corsair Force MP600 2TB Gen4 PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD
M.2 SSD 2: Corsair Force MP600 2TB Gen4 PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD
Keyboard: Logitech G915 Lightspeed
Mouse: Logitech G502 Lightspeed (+Powerplay charging mat)
Case: Lian Li PC-O11 Dynamic XL
Display 1: DELL 27" 2560x1400 60Hz (U2713H)
Display 2: DELL 27" 2560x1400 60Hz (U2713H)
Display 3: DELL 27" 2560x1400 60Hz (U2713H)

That’s a nice rig :wink:

2560x1440 is plenty good.

Unless you went a Samsung G9 or similar, I’d not bother changing the screens out. Personal preference though.
 

bileduct

Coach
Messages
17,832
That’s a nice rig :wink:

2560x1440 is plenty good.

Unless you went a Samsung G9 or similar, I’d not bother changing the screens out. Personal preference though.
I actually do a fair bit of amateur photography processing at higher than 4K resolution, so having a display that can fit more on the same sized panel would be nice, but it would probably make more sense to go to an 8K monitor like the Dell 32" UP3218K. Pretty f**kin' expensive though.
 

Exsilium

First Grade
Messages
9,517
I actually do a fair bit of amateur photography processing at higher than 4K resolution, so having a display that can fit more on the same sized panel would be nice, but it would probably make more sense to go to an 8K monitor like the Dell 32" UP3218K. Pretty f**kin' expensive though.

Photography and Photo editing, the killer of CPU/GPU power!

Just looked that monitor up, FN expensive but the detail would be amazing.

Imagine the day when we have 8k gaming as the norm.....
 

nöyd

Moderator
Staff member
Messages
9,808
Just had a big upgrade cause I really have gotten into VR Sim racing last couple of years.
When you first tried simming in VR did you find it difficult to go back to 2D?

VR improved my racing tenfold, spacial awareness is definitely underrated when on the road with 15-20 plus other idiots all going the same way as quickly as possible lol
 

billygilmore

Juniors
Messages
1,221
Yeah sure did, lots of little things improved, was more consistent on the brakes, being able to look into the apex, actually use your mirrors and I was able to follow cars much more closely and not ram into them in the braking zones, I used to hang back a bit more of the leading car to prevent this but in VR it was like my senses were sharper and could really follow nose to tail through the corners.

VR really was a game changer for me and really got me into it, before that I had an old G27 clamped to my desk and was happy now I've gone full fanatec gear and I'm a guy in his mid 30's with a bloody racing cockpit in the lounge room haha
 

billygilmore

Juniors
Messages
1,221
Age be damned. Life is way too stressful to waste time worrying about whether or not you should be enjoying the shit you enjoy because you are too old or young.

For sure mate, had a couple mates who still held onto the old belief video games were for kids, couple of hot laps of Bathurst in VR and there like um...that's actually pretty sweet, can you build me one.
 

Exsilium

First Grade
Messages
9,517
For sure mate, had a couple mates who still held onto the old belief video games were for kids, couple of hot laps of Bathurst in VR and there like um...that's actually pretty sweet, can you build me one.

Are you on iRacing or another sim?

I spread my time across F1, Assetto Corsa Competizione and iRacing.
 

billygilmore

Juniors
Messages
1,221
Are you on iRacing or another sim?

I spread my time across F1, Assetto Corsa Competizione and iRacing.

I'll spend my time on anything, lately it's actually been a bit of project cars 2 cause that's what all my mates are playing and I bought it a while ago on a steam sale so may as well get my money's worth, dirt rally 2 is the the other one that's got my attention at the moment.

I've been wanting to give cyberpunk a go lately but trying to get through red dead 2 before I move on because I never finished it, just didn't grab me the first time but I've gotten into it this time though
 

Exsilium

First Grade
Messages
9,517
I'll spend my time on anything, lately it's actually been a bit of project cars 2 cause that's what all my mates are playing and I bought it a while ago on a steam sale so may as well get my money's worth, dirt rally 2 is the the other one that's got my attention at the moment.

I've been wanting to give cyberpunk a go lately but trying to get through red dead 2 before I move on because I never finished it, just didn't grab me the first time but I've gotten into it this time though

Project Cars 2 is good value. Should give iRacing and Assetto Corsa Competizione a go if you’re into the competitive side of sim racing.

I’ve still not finished RDR2 despite having it since launch.

Started Cyberpunk, played it for an hour but have shelved it for now. It’s a decent looking game and I’ve not noticed any of the PC issues people were claiming affected the launch.

I have too many games left unplayed or half finished on PC. Then there are all the PS4 games I’ve not finished.
 

nöyd

Moderator
Staff member
Messages
9,808
Solid choice.

DCS world is something I'd like to get into. I am a huge Flight Sim fan (Real life private pilot).VR is the next step for me. I currently utilise the eye tracking software which is plenty when you add in all of the cockpit peripherals I have. VR would negate a lot of it.

Glad you're happy with your choice!

I've got the new Flight Simulator, and get quite good visuals and FPS, but I prefer to fly IFR instead of VFR, so until they bring out decent and flyable study level airliners I will persist with P3D.

Speaking of which I landed in Tokyo (Narita) yesterday morning after taking off from Sydney the night before. 10+ hour flight flown in real time, complete with 385 virtual souls on board.

y9axqfnvkt761.jpg
 

bileduct

Coach
Messages
17,832
I've got the new Flight Simulator, and get quite good visuals and FPS, but I prefer to fly IFR instead of VFR, so until they bring out decent and flyable study level airliners I will persist with P3D.

Speaking of which I landed in Tokyo (Narita) yesterday morning after taking off from Sydney the night before. 10+ hour flight flown in real time, complete with 385 virtual souls on board.

y9axqfnvkt761.jpg
I think you would enjoy this dude's Youtube channel.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCfoK9LI9vmQQ36zqsFZtNJQ
 
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