[rvcjew]

Blah.

http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/list/pbZgkL

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($308.67 @ DirectCanada)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($39.88 @ NCIX)
Thermal Compound: ARCTIC MX4 4g Thermal Paste ($11.53 @ Amazon Canada)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-Gaming 5 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($167.87 @ Canada Computers)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($79.77 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($118.62 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($62.73 @ Vuugo)
Video Card: MSI Radeon R9 390 8GB Video Card ($446.22 @ DirectCanada)
Case: Fractal Design Define S ATX Mid Tower Case ($105.47 @ Amazon Canada)
Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($145.92 @ DirectCanada)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($122.82 @ DirectCanada)
Wireless Network Adapter: TP-Link TL-WDN4800 PCI-Express x1 802.11a/b/g/n Wi-Fi Adapter ($47.23 @ Amazon Canada)
Case Fan: Fractal Design GP14-BK 68.4 CFM 140mm Fan ($21.00 @ shopRBC)
Monitor: LG 25UM57-P 25.0" 60Hz Monitor
External Storage: Western Digital Elements 1TB External Hard Drive ($80.93 @ shopRBC)
Other: Xiaomi Piston 3 Voice of China Edition (Purchased For $28.86)
Other: Powerball 250Hz Classic Blue (Purchased For $31.48)
Other: Microsoft Sculpt Ergonomic Mouse ($48.85)
Other: LG GP50NB40 Slim External 8x Black DVD Writer USB 2.0 Retail ($36.43)
Other: Audio Technica ATH-AD700X (Purchased For $174.44)
Total: $2078.72
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-06-05 01:27 EDT-0400

Nice rig, just onboard for audio?

 

[U-3C]

  Nice rig, just onboard for audio?

Yep. :3
 
I have a CEntrance DacPort Slim, but I hacked my onboard's drivers to decrapify them and now, to my surprise, I can't hear much of, if not any, difference between the two.
 
If you have a Realtek ALC1150 chip, you should try this:
 
http://forums.guru3d.com/showthread.php?t=392085
 
Gave me virtual surround and got rid of the stuff Realtek was doing in the background. Out of interest, I measured the FR of my onboard vs the DacPort. I know that FR doesn't tell the whole story, but it should give people the idea that onboard audio is very good these days, and budget sound cards really are not worth it anymore if you can set things up right (of course, I made sure to fix any interference issues, and I tried to get the best quality components for my PC, so they won't affect sound. I know that certain cases might have grounding issues, and certain power supplies might generate noise).
 
Realtek ALC1150, Dolby drivers, everything off:
 
https://i.imgur.com/eYRdqcR.png
 
CEntrance DacPort Slim:
 
https://i.imgur.com/Rf46bq5.png
 
Notice how it is slightly flatter (but I doubt most people will notice it), but has those random spikes. The spikes are probably due to dirty USB power. On my old laptop, the spikes are greater on the USB 3.0 ports, and were simply all over the place when I plugged the DacPort into a USB 2.0 port.
 
And...here's the Realtek ALC1150, with the official Realtek drivers (everything is turned off, by the way):
 
http://i.imgur.com/71TJRYI.png
 
Notice the numbers on the left side. I had to shrink the chart just so the graph fits. I couldn't even do a line out to line in measurement because it was clipping.
 
I strongly believe that people who purchased high quality components for their PC claim to hear a "night-and-day" difference after using an outboard solution not because the new sound card is amazing and can produce things that the onboard cannot do, but because the onboard is actually intentionally crippled.
 
I only noticed this a few weeks after I built the computer. After I hacked Dolby into my PC (I wanted virtual surround. By the way, if you don't like Dolby and prefer something like Creative's SBX, try this trick: https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones/comments/410kj7/creative_dsp_sbx_without_creative_hardware/ ), Windows will automatically revert it to the default drivers when it updates, as it sees the Dolby drivers as outdated. I noticed severe, unbearable differences in terms of audio quality, and it took me a while to realize that my drivers were back to the default ones, so I installed the Dolby ones again. It took another unexpected update for me to realize what was going on and turned off the auto update feature.
 
I had no knowledge of any change during those two times, but I heard something was wrong immediately, so I should be able to say that I was fairly blind, and that it was not a placebo.

 

[Music Alchemist]

laptop: Alienware M11x R2
operating system: Windows 10 Home 64-bit
processor: Intel Core i7-640UM 1.2 GHz quad-core
RAM: 8 GB
hard drive: 451 GB
screen size: 11.6"
screen resolution: 1366x768
original price paid: $1,400 (way overpriced)
 
external hard drive array: Buffalo DriveStation Quad 12 TB (HD-QL12TU3R5)
original price paid: $1,100

 

[rvcjew]

 
Yep. :3
 
I have a CEntrance DacPort Slim, but I hacked my onboard's drivers to decrapify them and now, to my surprise, I can't hear much of, if not any, difference between the two.
 
If you have a Realtek ALC1150 chip, you should try this:
 
http://forums.guru3d.com/showthread.php?t=392085
 
Gave me virtual surround and got rid of the stuff Realtek was doing in the background. Out of interest, I measured the FR of my onboard vs the DacPort. I know that FR doesn't tell the whole story, but it should give people the idea that onboard audio is very good these days, and budget sound cards really are not worth it anymore if you can set things up right (of course, I made sure to fix any interference issues, and I tried to get the best quality components for my PC, so they won't affect sound. I know that certain cases might have grounding issues, and certain power supplies might generate noise).
 
Realtek ALC1150, Dolby drivers, everything off:
 
https://i.imgur.com/eYRdqcR.png
 
CEntrance DacPort Slim:
 
https://i.imgur.com/Rf46bq5.png
 
Notice how it is slightly flatter (but I doubt most people will notice it), but has those random spikes. The spikes are probably due to dirty USB power. On my old laptop, the spikes are greater on the USB 3.0 ports, and were simply all over the place when I plugged the DacPort into a USB 2.0 port.
 
And...here's the Realtek ALC1150, with the official Realtek drivers (everything is turned off, by the way):
 
http://i.imgur.com/71TJRYI.png
 
Notice the numbers on the left side. I had to shrink the chart just so the graph fits. I couldn't even do a line out to line in measurement because it was clipping.
 
I strongly believe that people who purchased high quality components for their PC claim to hear a "night-and-day" difference after using an outboard solution not because the new sound card is amazing and can produce things that the onboard cannot do, but because the onboard is actually intentionally crippled.
 
I only noticed this a few weeks after I built the computer. After I hacked Dolby into my PC (I wanted virtual surround. By the way, if you don't like Dolby and prefer something like Creative's SBX, try this trick: https://www.reddit.com/r/headphones/comments/410kj7/creative_dsp_sbx_without_creative_hardware/ ), Windows will automatically revert it to the default drivers when it updates, as it sees the Dolby drivers as outdated. I noticed severe, unbearable differences in terms of audio quality, and it took me a while to realize that my drivers were back to the default ones, so I installed the Dolby ones again. It took another unexpected update for me to realize what was going on and turned off the auto update feature.
 
I had no knowledge of any change during those two times, but I heard something was wrong immediately, so I should be able to say that I was fairly blind, and that it was not a placebo.

I'll look into this at some point but honestly I rather just keep my onboard off as how it is setup now works fine and each device I have as a source has its own signature that I like for different purposes'. The spikes for your USB 3.0 might be because they are not shielded as well as USB 2.0.

 

[U-3C]

  I'll look into this at some point but honestly I rather just keep my onboard off as how it is setup now works fine and each device I have as a source has its own signature that I like for different purposes'. The spikes for your USB 3.0 might be because they are not shielded as well as USB 2.0.

I doubt it's due to shielding, but it is still possible. It's most likely just dirty power.
 
Just to clarify, I meant to say that the USB 2.0 on my budget laptop gave huge spikes compared to the USB 3.0.

 

[wahsmoh]

Custom built PC I have been upgrading here and there since 2010.. it was originally meant for competitive LANs.. but I retired from pro gaming since and I have gone full 180 into casual gaming again. It's amazing how well the i7 2600k has held up during all this time. It still scores 7.8 on the windows experience with the overclock.
 
PC-
 
Case: Rosewill Challenger Black ATX Mid Tower Gaming Case http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811147153​

CPU: Intel i7 2600k Sandy Bridge 3.3ghz (turbo 3.8ghz) LGA1155 **OC'ed at 4.2ghz http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115070
CPU Cooler: ZALMAN CNPS9500A-LED 92mm 2 Ball CPU Cooler http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118223​
Thermal Compound: Arctic Silver 7 Thermal paste http://www.amazon.com/Arctic-Silver-Premium-Adhesive-ASTA-7G/dp/B0087X7262
Motherboard: MSI Z68A MSI Z68A-GD65 (B3) LGA 1155 Intel Z68 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130602​
Memory: Corsair Vengeance Pro 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 2133 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820233533
SSD: Samsung 850 Pro 2.5'' 512gb SATA III 3-D Vertical Internal SSD http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820147361
HDD: Western Digital WD Black 500gb Performance desktop drive SATA 6 gb/s 64MB cache  http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822236345​
Video Card: Nvidia GTX1080 Founder's Edition 256-bit 8GB GDDR5X http://www.geforce.com/hardware/10series/geforce-gtx-1080 *updated
Power Supply: Antec EarthWatts EA650 650W Continuous Power ATX12V http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371015
Operating System: Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit (x64)
Monitor: Asus 21'' 1080P HDMI 2ms 60hz monitor 
audio-
 
Soundcard: HT Omega Claro Halo 24-bit http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16829271004 (I use only for S/PDIF optical out)
DAC: Theta DS Pro progeny version A (I send PCM from HT Omega Claro) --- awesome @#%@ing DAC. It works well for gaming too, especially BF4 and hearing positioning of gunshots and footsteps. I even prefer it over the 7.1 DSP built into the soundcard... much much preferred because i can listen to music with the kind of quality I like and get the most out of my redbook FLACs
Headphones: Fostex TH-X00 w/ MrSpeakers Alpha pads
 
mouse: SteelSeries Sensei
mousepad(s): SteelSeries QCK+, Reflex Labs 36x12'' giant desk mousepad-thing
 
Here are pictures of my setup: http://imgur.com/a/x5uH1
 
I also modified my case a bit.. added a blue cold cathode light w/ switch on back of the case and cut out the metal grill and put in a piece of acrylic I bought at Home Depot
 
*just got a GTX1080!!! now I am really "future proof".. OC'ed i7 2600k hasn't even shown signs of a bottleneck at 4.5 ghz

 

[rvcjew]

 
I doubt it's due to shielding, but it is still possible. It's most likely just dirty power.
 
Just to clarify, I meant to say that the USB 2.0 on my budget laptop gave huge spikes compared to the USB 3.0.

Oh yeah, that is odd. Normally it's the other way around rf devices have issues with USB 3.0 because of the shielding.

 

[Phillipinoh]

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/list/zRd6hq
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/list/zRd6hq/by_merchant/
 
CPU: Intel Core i7-4790 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($294.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($24.89 @ OutletPC) 
Thermal Compound: ARCTIC MX4 4g Thermal Paste  ($6.89 @ OutletPC) 
Motherboard: ASRock Z97 Anniversary ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($82.98 @ Newegg) 
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($34.99 @ Amazon) 
Storage: PNY CS1311 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($59.99 @ Amazon) 
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($46.89 @ OutletPC) 
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 970 4GB STRIX Video Card  ($296.99 @ NCIX US) 
Case: Phanteks Enthoo Pro ATX Full Tower Case  ($99.99 @ Amazon) 
Power Supply: EVGA 850W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($104.99 @ Amazon) 
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit  ($83.89 @ OutletPC) 
Case Fan: NZXT RF-FN122-RB 45.0 CFM  120mm Fan  ($5.99 @ Directron) 
Case Fan: NZXT RF-FN122-RB 45.0 CFM  120mm Fan  ($5.99 @ Directron) 
Case Fan: NZXT RF-FN122-RB 45.0 CFM  120mm Fan  ($5.99 @ Directron) 
Monitor: Asus MX279H 27.0" Monitor  ($229.99 @ Micro Center) 
Monitor: BenQ XL2720Z 27.0" 144Hz Monitor  ($359.99 @ Amazon) 
Keyboard: Cooler Master CM Storm QuickFire TK Wired Mini Keyboard  ($99.99 @ Amazon) 
Other: AKG K7XX ($199.99)
Other: Schiit Magni 2 ($99.00)
Other: Schiit Bifrost ($399.00)
Other: Zowie EC2-A ($59.99)
Other: Vipamz XXXL Non-slip Rubber Base Gaming Mouse Pad ($11.99)
 
Total: $2615.39
 
Built this rig last year only starting with the bare essentials and just built my way up. Eventually gonna upgrade to a i7-5280k, but that means I have to upgrade the mobo and ram. Than once Cyber Monday comes through I'll be getting a GTX 1080 or hopefully a TI if that is a thing.

 

[mikey1964]

I have four rigs, but they aren't the latest since.....well, I don't see a need as they get the job done more than well enough.
 
Main rig -
CPU: Intel i7 3960X
CPU Cooler: Corsair H10 AIO
Motherboard: Asus Rampage IV Extreme 
Memory: Corsair Dominator Plat 2133mhz (4x 4GB quad channel)
Storage: Corsair ForceGT 128GB SSD
Storage: 3x 2TB WD Black
Video Card: 2x Sapphire R9 290X 4GB (custom H2O) 
Case: Caselabs Magnum M8 (IIRC)
Power Supply: Seasonic X-1250
Operating System: Microsoft 64bit Windows 10 Retail 
Monitor: Philips 24" 1920x1200 (can't recall model number) 
Keyboard + mouse: Leopold FC660C + Logitech G502
Other: Grado GS1000i, Fostex T50RP w/Alpha Pads, Audio Technica ATH-A900X LTD
Other: Fostex HPA4
 
2nd Rig -
CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K
CPU Cooler: Deepcool Maelstrom 240  
Motherboard: ASRock Z87 Extreme6
Memory: RipJawsX 2133mhz 4x 4GB 
Storage: Samsung EVO 850 240GB
Storage: Seagate 4TB SSHD + 3TB Toshiba HDD + 1TB Toshiba HDD
Video Card: 2x Asus GTX Titan 6GB
Case: Thermaltake Level 10GT (Black)
Power Supply: Enermax MAX REVO 1500W
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Pro 64bit 
Monitor: AOC Q2963PM UW 29" monitor
Keyboard + Mouse: Armaggeddon MKA-5R RGB KB (Kailh Blue switch) + Armaggeddon SRO-5 Havoc III RGB mouse
Other: AKG K812, Sennheiser HD800, HFM HEK, HFM HE560
Other: Gustard H10
Other: Gustard X12
 
3rd Rig -
CPU: Intel Core i7 2600K
CPU Cooler: Deepcool Maelstrom 120 AIO
Motherboard: Asus Maximus IV Gene-Z
Memory: RipJawsZ 1600mhz 4x 4GB
Storage: Samsung EVO 850 240GB
Storage: 2x 3TB Seagate HDD
Video Card: 2x GTX670 2GB
Case: Fractal Design Define Mini
Power Supply: Corsair HX1050
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit
Monitor: (share monitor as above)
Keyboard + Mouse: CoolerMaster Novatouch w/Miami keycaps + Razer DeathAdder
Other: Denon AH-D7000, D2000, HFM HE-4
Other: OPPO HA-1

 

[U-3C]

2nd Rig - CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K
CPU Cooler: Deepcool Maelstrom 240  
Motherboard: ASRock Z87 Extreme6
Memory: RipJawsX 2133mhz 4x 4GB 
Storage: Samsung EVO 850 240GB
Storage: Seagate 4TB SSHD + 3TB Toshiba HDD + 1TB Toshiba HDD
Video Card: 2x Asus GTX Titan 6GB
Case: Thermaltake Level 10GT (Black)
Power Supply: Enermax MAX REVO 1500W
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Pro 64bit 
Monitor: AOC Q2963PM UW 29" monitor
Keyboard + Mouse: Armaggeddon MKA-5R RGB KB (Kailh Blue switch) + Armaggeddon SRO-5 Havoc III RGB mouse
Other: AKG K812, Sennheiser HD800, HFM HEK, HFM HE560
Other: Gustard H10
Other: Gustard X12

Two Titans...
 
\(@v@)/

 

[yomshetan]

MSI GE62 6QD-668FR Apache Pro
 

1. Proc Intel Core i7-6700HQ (Quad-Core 2.6 GHz / 3.5 GHz Turbo - Cache 6 Mo)
2. Screen 15.6"  Full HD (1920 x 1080 pixels)
3. 16 Go RAM  DDR4
4.  NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960M / 4 Go GDDR5
5. SSD M.2 PCIe (2280) with 128 Go avec NVMe + HDD 1 To  7200 RPM
6. Windows 10 64 bits

 
 

 

[DrakeShot]

  laptop: Alienware M11x R2
operating system: Windows 10 Home 64-bit
processor: Intel Core i7-640UM 1.2 GHz quad-core
RAM: 8 GB
hard drive: 451 GB
screen size: 11.6"
screen resolution: 1366x768
original price paid: $1,400 (way overpriced)
 
external hard drive array: Buffalo DriveStation Quad 12 TB (HD-QL12TU3R5)
original price paid: $1,100

Lol we have the same specs... so overpriced but it was given to me as a gift. 

 

[Music Alchemist]

  Lol we have the same specs... so overpriced but it was given to me as a gift. 

 
When did you get yours? I got mine at the beginning of 2011.
 
Have the hinges fallen apart yet? Mine have. I have to rest it against something to even use it.
 
Do you have any cooling issues? Usually mine is silent, but if I push it too hard, the fan starts going crazy, and it eventually overheats and instantly shuts off.
 
A few of the upper keys have stopped working on mine too. I connect an external keyboard when I need to use them.

 

[listen4joy]

CPU: Intel Core i7 920 2.67GHz
CPU Cooler:  

Noctua NH-D15
Motherboard: GIGABYTE GA-X58A-UD3R
Memory: OCZ GOLD 12GB 
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB
Storage: Western Digital 1Tx4
Video Card: AMD Radeon R9 280X
Sound Card: Asus Xonar D2X
Case:  Corsair Obsidian 900D
Power Supply: CORSAIR AX1200i
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Ultimate X64
Monitor: Samsung S24C750P 24''
Keyboard + Mouse: Microsoft Wave+ Razer Deathadder

 

[The_Answer]

.