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  1. M

    My Budget Gaming Build - Final Review

    Yes I was plugging it into the front panel headphone and microphone jack. I believe I used the HDA input not the AC'97. It might be flipped around sure but it works fine every time. Is it still possibly flipped around then? Do you think that caused the crash during heavy graphics loading?
  2. M

    My Budget Gaming Build - Final Review

    So should I be concerned about that crash? Why did it happen?
  3. M

    My Budget Gaming Build - Final Review

    Oh one more thing, the first time that was happening I plugged in my headset and the computer crashed. What do you think? It hasn't crashed since and I re-simulated the exact thing and it caused a brief lag instead of crashing the second time. EDIT: By crash I mean total stall out. First the...
  4. M

    My Budget Gaming Build - Final Review

    Hmm I think the fan was blowing yeah, I will check again next time. Thanks for fast reply! :)
  5. M

    My Budget Gaming Build - Final Review

    Recently noticed that when I was running a heavy graphics intensive mission of starcraft 2, I heard a medium speed ticking noise. I opened my case and put my ear next to the parts and it seems to be coming from the video card. Any ideas?
  6. M

    Avast 5 vs Windows Security Essentials?

    Hi, just though I would say that on my laptop, Avast 5 "became" disabled but Windows Security Essentials was able to deal with the trojan virus that was on it. Right now I have Avast 5 on my desktop and kept Windows Security Essentials on my laptop. What are your...
  7. M

    Did I damage my motherboard?

    Well I have asus probe software that tells me the MB and CPU temp. How about if I just run a typical loading program for X hours and monitor temps near the end of the loading? What program though? Would that process work?
  8. M

    32 GB Solid State Drive for $50 CAD?

    http://ncix.com/products/index.php?s...r&promoid=1053 Is this good? EDIT: Or is this better? http://ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=51614&vpn=OCZSSD2-1ONX32G&manufacture=OCZ%20Technology&promoid=1053
  9. M

    Did I damage my motherboard?

    I would like to monitor the temperatures under load. What is a good program to do this? How long should I run the program? Someone said if the temperatures for the motherboard stay under 60 C, then the northbridge is okay.
  10. M

    Did I damage my motherboard?

    Do you think this is completely necessary at this point? I don't want to poke around there unless I have to. I was even kind of worried applying my own thermal paste to the CPU heatsink. Others have told me that those temperatures indicate it is fine.
  11. M

    Did I damage my motherboard?

    Hi, I was building my computer over the weekend and am concerned that I may have damaged my motherboard. After installing the CPU/heatsink and RAM, I guess I was kind of oblivious to the added weight and I picked the motherboard up by its big heatsink (northbridge heatsink I guess?). Upon...
  12. M

    Budget Gaming Mouse and Gamepad

    Yeah I might get a joystick some time down the road for fighting games but for now I will have to settle for gamepad since it also allows me to play sports games and racing games a little bit more easily.
  13. M

    Budget Gaming Mouse and Gamepad

    I don't have Xbox but I just checked up the price on ncix.com and it was $70!! :( EDIT: $44 CAD on canadacomputers.com Second EDIT: Do you still recommend it over the gamepad I posted earlier?
  14. M

    Budget Gaming Mouse and Gamepad

    Hey guys. Looking for a decent gaming mouse ($50 or under) and a gamepad. The gamepad will be for fighting games and sports (ie. SSF4, soccer games). The mouse will be for RTS and FPS mostly I guess. Nothing too fancy, it doesn't have to have 10 programmable buttons. These are in stock in...
  15. M

    My Budget Gaming Build - Final Review

    @Blain Darn, well I already bought it so lets hope. @mfenn I built the rig yesterday and it is running great! I had a few issues with getting the cooler down and I had to reseat it twice, luckily I bought some MX-2 thermal paste. Then at one point I was picking the motherboard up by...
  16. M

    Budget Surge Protection

    Thoughts on these two? APC 2525 Joule - $20 CAD http://www.canadacomputers.com/produ...irvn64re6uosi1 APC 3400 Joule - $25 CAD http://www.canadacomputers.com/produ...irvn64re6uosi1
  17. M

    Budget Surge Protection

    Unfortunately, all the rooms in my apartment are carpeted. Is there something I should do to combat this? Easiest I can think of is put a sheet of plastic bags or a carboard box between the carpet and my socks. What do you think?
  18. M

    Budget Surge Protection

    I am from Canada so amazon.com is probably not the right price for me. How about this? http://www.bewawa.com/tripp-lite-isobar-4-ultra-surge-suppressor-external-4-output-connector-s.html Why is it only 2200 joules (I thought it was the same model). The price is definately higher. Is it...
  19. M

    Budget Surge Protection

    Thanks, I have one more question kind of related to power/static. How should I get set up for building my computer? I have an anti static wristband. Should I place the motherboard on it's bag and install the cpu/ram while I have the anti static band strapped to the motherboard bag? Or...
  20. M

    Budget Surge Protection

    Can you guys recommend me a good surge protector for my new pc build? EDIT: *Question about how to build my computer and avoid static discharge/damaged components. See below (3rd post)
  21. M

    Budget Gaming Headset and USB Memory Stick

    Cool thanks. Also instead of making a new thread I thought I might ask about an external hard drive here too. Western Digital My Passport 250 Gb - $60 http://www.canadacomputers.com/produ...item_id=030179 What do you think? Also, should I have made a new thread?
  22. M

    Budget Gaming Headset and USB Memory Stick

    How about this 8 Gb from Kingston for $16? http://www.canadacomputers.com/produ...item_id=018203 EDIT: Can you elaborate on why the headset is fine? (I'm kind of thinking to stick with it because a) It's not that expensive, b) Reviews claim the sound and microphone quality is pretty high...
  23. M

    Budget Gaming Headset and USB Memory Stick

    That 8 Gb stick is USB2.0, apparently has rubber water protection on its case, and has the highest rating for USB sticks on newegg.com. Does that change your mind? ---- @Davidh373 The link seems to be broken and simply give me some sort of error message. --- @MisterDonut Yeah my...
  24. M

    Budget Gaming Headset and USB Memory Stick

    EDIT: Posts further down also discuss external hard drives. Hi again all. I am looking for a headset and usb drive to supplement my new computer build. Nothing too fancy, just decent quality for decent price that gets the job done. So far the reviews have been looking good for these items...
  25. M

    First Time Build - Install Aftermarket Heatsink?

    Hi all, this is my first time building a computer and I was wondering if you all think I should install an aftermarket heatsink or stay with the stock heatsink. I am a bit concerned with the thermal paste application and I don't want to screw anything up. The stock heatsink comes with the...
  26. M

    My Budget Gaming Build - Final Review

    Thanks so much for all your help and sorry about how many questions I managed to generate. I'm gonna order the parts tomorrow morning. Cheers. :)
  27. M

    My Budget Gaming Build - Final Review

    Okay cool man, so I will switch over to the caviar black and the Asus 5770 card. About the power supply would you take advantage of the BFB 550W $45 combo with the video card or just snag a $30 Corsair CX400W? Or grab one of the other ones I listed?
  28. M

    My Budget Gaming Build - Final Review

    Yeah so far I'm having difficulty finding the power consumption for the RAM. Even the manufacturer website doesn't seem to list anything about it.
  29. M

    My Budget Gaming Build - Final Review

    Well I was doing some digging on the ASUS and found a lot of horror stories about the card running hot and crashing games. Kind of disappointing, I dunno what do you think? Okay I will check around the internet for the wattage required. Thing is there's a Corsair 400W for $30 or a Corsair 450W...
  30. M

    My Budget Gaming Build - Final Review

    Guys thanks so much for your help so much I promise this weekend I will put the order in and stop badgering you all with so many questions ():). Here are a few things I have been looking at since I posted last: Sapphire 5770 V2 $166 http://ncix.com/products/index.php?s...E&promoid=1008...
  31. M

    My Budget Gaming Build - Final Review

    I found an XFX 5750 for $145, the reviews are a lot better for it.
  32. M

    My Budget Gaming Build - Final Review

    However, the BFG 550W power supply in the deal has only a 1 year warranty. I'm open to suggestion on the power supply. EDIT: Also, the BFG 550W supply isn't 80+ certified (it seems this is a big deal even though I don't know the specific technical implication of this). Here is the link...
  33. M

    My Budget Gaming Build - Final Review

    Yeah, I guess you are right about the warranty although I have read some stuff about games crashing from this card. Do they warranty that as well? Or is that just an inconvenience you will have to live with for a card that works great most of the time? About the power supply and hard drive...
  34. M

    My Budget Gaming Build - Final Review

    By the way, there's a deal going on that I can get a BFG 550W power supply for $45 when I buy one of the featured video cards. Do you think I should take that and choose the $10 more expensive Western Digital HD? I was just considered as usual about not having enough juice but I guess 550W...
  35. M

    My Budget Gaming Build - Final Review

    Yeah, heh if I could get those prices for WD and Corsair I would! The WD HD are $10 more and the PS is just a raw good deal. What would you do? So you think the Asus EAH5770 is okay? It's the only component of my build that has a sub 80% (4/5 + 5/5) rating on newegg.com reviews. The OCZ...
  36. M

    My Budget Gaming Build - Final Review

    Sorry to make a new thread about it but I just wanted to focus the attention on this new build. --- 1. What YOUR PC will be used for: Gaming, general multitasking (internet browsing, playing music, downloading content, instant messaging, etc.) 2. What YOUR budget is. Before taxes, to be...
  37. M

    Overclock Athlon II X4 420 on Budget Motherboard?

    HSF means heatsink-fan? Also, is that ear piercing noise going to be there in general or as a result of overclocking? And how come good air circulation in my case would change that? Could you recommend some budget cases that meet those needs? Antec 300? Sorry if this question is dumb, I am...
  38. M

    Overclock Athlon II X4 420 on Budget Motherboard?

    Hi, I was wondering if it is possible for me to overclock an Athlon II X4 2.6 GHz up to 3.2 GHz on stock cooling using a motherboard with the following chipset: 770/SB710. The motherboard model is Asus M4A77TD. Thanks in advance. I am trying to decide on what to do with my first build and...
  39. M

    Future Minded Budget Build

    What is Jedec? Edit: Nevermind, I googled it. Interesting though then why they don't write O.C. next to 1600 of some motherboards. So even if it says 1600 O.C. that motherboard can handle 1600 MHz, I don't have to necessarily be overclocking anything do I?