Computerus

[Thad]

No, this one's about eight years old; it's had a good run.

I think maybe you're thinking of the server I bought last year that had a bad MB, and I had it replaced by the manufacturer? It's not that one. No issues with that machine since.

This is my primary. So that's not great.

[Thad]

After poking around, it sure looks like buying a pre-built PC is still a way better deal than building your own right now.

But y'all I'm never going to understand the decorative LED trend. Just give me a goddamn black rectangle. It doesn't even have to be black! Silver's good, I can handle silver!

[Brantly B.]

It made a lot more sense to me when my 10 year old cousin asked specifically for LED strips for Christmas to make his room more gamer.

[Thad]

I mean yeah I remember buying transparent-plastic electronics in the '90s and being disappointed that the insides didn't, like, do anything when they were turned on.

...The HP Omen seems...somewhat less hideous than other gaming PCs? And it looks like it's not hard to come by a 30L at a decent price on eBay. I don't really have a problem buying one without a graphics card since my 5500 is still pretty good, except that would mean I'm giving money to somebody who bought a computer, took out the graphics card, and is selling them separately.

I do see some gripes about the cooling on the Omen. More on the 25L than the 30L.

[Grath]

After poking around, it sure looks like buying a pre-built PC is still a way better deal than building your own right now.

But y'all I'm never going to understand the decorative LED trend. Just give me a goddamn black rectangle. It doesn't even have to be black! Silver's good, I can handle silver!

I was originally angling for no-LEDs on my latest computer build, and now I'm thinking of installing the optional LED strips that came with my case because I'm enjoying having my computer's LEDs sync with the audio playing on my computer which also means it goes back to being black when I'm not actively using it (except for the CPU water block LED, which of course doesn't sync with the other systems...)

[Thad]

On closer investigation I don't think my graphics card is going to fit in an Omen case. I'm still trying to figure out whether a Pavilion TG01 would work; judging by a video I found, it looks like the card will fit, but that doesn't look like a standard-sized power supply so I might have trouble swapping in one with a high enough wattage.

It occurs to me that maybe what I should be looking at is barebones systems -- something with a case, MB, and processor, and provide everything else myself. I've got everything I need, except an M.2 drive (old MB predates them, so I've been using SATA). And an optical drive, if I can find a case with any 5.25" bays, because I'm oldschool like that. (My old PC has one but it stopped opening ages ago, and for what they cost it's probably not worth trying to fix.)

[Brantly B.]

Someday an external enclosure must be a good idea; today might even be the day for you!

[Thad]

Spent enough time poking around to determine that, while the Ryzen 5 3600 costs way more than it should, the 5600X is about right. (It performs comparably to the 3700, and costs less than the 3700 did pre-pandemic, so while it's pretty pricey it's at least not overpriced.)

At this point, I'm leaning back toward thinking I should build my own machine -- buy a CPU, MB, RAM, case, and M.2 drive, and keep my power supply and graphics card.

(Strictly speaking I could even keep my case -- and maybe my RAM? does DDR3 work in a DDR4 slot? -- but I'm not exactly happy with my old case. It's heavy, I accidentally ripped the USB3 connector so the front slots don't work, and the built-in SATA slot that seemed like a good idea isn't hot-swappable so I'm better off using a USB adapter instead.)

This motherboard and processor lasted me a good 8 years. Seems like I can probably spend $800 or less and wind up with a combo that wouldn't be a stopgap or a compromise, it would be a computer I actually want, that might last eight years itself. (Allowing for the occasional graphics card/RAM/drive upgrade during that time, of course.)

The main pitfall I'm seeing is that X570 motherboards generally need a firmware update in order to support a 5th-generation processor. So that could be a problem. I've done a little reading and apparently there are some recent MBs that can handle a firmware update without a processor; I'll have to do a little research and see if that's a viable option. Or see if I can get one that's pre-flashed.

[Thad]

Another possibility, on the case front, would be this:

I've got an HTPC in a Fractal Design Define R5 case. It's a good case; any time I look up a list of the best cases to buy, that one's on there.

But I recently bought a server cabinet to hold the various things I hook up to my TV, because I was tired of having to move furniture and fumble around behind it every time I got a new console or Blu-Ray player or whatever.

The problem is that the Fractal case is too tall to fit in a rack bay on its side. So I've got the damn thing stood up and taking up a huge chunk of vertical real estate.

So maybe what I should do is buy a new case for my HTPC, transplant its innards, and put the new computer in the Fractal case?

OTOH, Christ, that's like twice as much work and I'm already not looking forward to building a new PC. I mean, I'm looking forward to the end result; now that I've started to map it out, I think I'm going to be pretty pleased with it.

But the part where I have to actually put it together, and then install an OS on it, and then get all my packages reinstalled and do whatever it was I had to do to get VRR set up and -- sheesh, y'know? I enjoyed this shit a lot more when I was 17 and had, whatcha call, free time.

[Grath]

and maybe my RAM? does DDR3 work in a DDR4 slot?

Nyet. 48 more pins and the notch is in a different area to keep you from trying it in the first place.

The main pitfall I'm seeing is that X570 motherboards generally need a firmware update in order to support a 5th-generation processor. So that could be a problem. I've done a little reading and apparently there are some recent MBs that can handle a firmware update without a processor; I'll have to do a little research and see if that's a viable option. Or see if I can get one that's pre-flashed.

I opted for the ASUS TUF X570-Pro, and it both A) came with out-of-box support for 5th Generation Ryzen and 2) has BIOS FlashBack, which means that you can update the BIOS with no CPU installed. Most mid-range and higher X570 motherboards should come with BIOS FlashBack, which is also the term to search for to make sure it's included.

n.b. I did have to flash the BIOS myself anyways after building the computer, because I was getting instantly-reboot-instead-of-bluescreening-because-Windows-10 problems any time I tried to watch videos in Chrome on my computer.

[Thad]

Thanks, that helps.

I'm currently looking at the ASRock X570 Phantom Gaming 4 but I haven't ordered anything yet. Doesn't look like it has BIOS Flashback, so I'm probably better off spending a little more for a board that does.

Also looking at cases -- currently looking at options for the HTPC, but haven't decided yet whether I'm doing the case-swap thing or just getting a new tower.

Something I can mount in the rack would be ideal, but of course server cases have a pretty different focus than desktop ones. I might be better off just getting another desktop case that'll fit in a rack bay on a shelf.

[Thad]

Oh hey HTPC / Media Center Cases is a category on NewEgg. That's handy.

[Thad]

ASUS TUF X570-Pro

This looks like the right call. Any recommendations on RAM?

I think I'm also going to get the Silverstone SST-GD08B case for my HTPC and swap cases. That's going to mean I don't make that "under $800" estimate, but it'll save me money in the long run since I was going to need to get a new case for that HTPC eventually.

[Grath]

ASUS TUF X570-Pro

This looks like the right call. Any recommendations on RAM?

I think I'm also going to get the Silverstone SST-GD08B case for my HTPC and swap cases. That's going to mean I don't make that "under $800" estimate, but it'll save me money in the long run since I was going to need to get a new case for that HTPC eventually.

I picked up a massive-overkill kit of G.Skill obnoxious LED RAM because I've generally had good experiences with G.Skill and it was on the RAM compatibility list for the motherboard; DDR4-3600 is generally the sweet spot for Ryzen 5000-series, you can spend a lot more money buying DDR4-4000 that may not work well with your processor, or may bump up performance by ~0.5% compared to 3600.

[Mongrel]

Man how does anyone even research these comparative benchmarks anymore without their ears dribbling out their brains?
transposition intentional

[Thad]

I picked up a massive-overkill kit of G.Skill obnoxious LED RAM because I've generally had good experiences with G.Skill and it was on the RAM compatibility list for the motherboard; DDR4-3600 is generally the sweet spot for Ryzen 5000-series, you can spend a lot more money buying DDR4-4000 that may not work well with your processor, or may bump up performance by ~0.5% compared to 3600.

I saw a good deal on Corsair so I went for it. Talked myself out of getting 32GB and went with 16. Can always add more later.

I've had good luck with G.Skill too; I've got a good bit of it in my old PC.

It occurs to me that I should probably put it in the HTPC.

Man how does anyone even research these comparative benchmarks anymore without their ears dribbling out their brains?
transposition intentional

There's a lot of searching for best [type of thing] [current year] and then trying to find corroboration across reputable sources or, failing that, at least one source that you've never heard of but doesn't immediately raise any red flags involved.

It's changed a lot since I started doing this back around '00. Some of the changes have greatly simplified the process -- by which I mean pcpartpicker.com -- but yeah it's a lot harder to keep up on the sheer number of options and what the fuck they all mean. If anything.

Still, when all's said and done I went from zero to a build I'm pretty confident in in less than 48 hours. So as much as I sometimes feel like I've been left behind and don't speak the language anymore, I guess I can still pick up enough to get by.

[Thad]

Framework Laptop review (hands on) — the anti-MacBook is here

Available for preorder. Minimum price is $750, if you're willing to put it together yourself. Which, if you're buying this laptop, I expect you probably are.

I don't have that kind of money to drop on a laptop right now, but it's definitely something to keep in mind for when I do.

Wish there were an AMD version, though.

Jim Salter liked it a lot, with various caveats, the biggest of which is battery life.

It's still the likeliest contender for my next laptop. Might be ordering it right now if I hadn't just bought a new desktop.

Speaking of which...out for delivery, today? That's pretty impressive, NewEgg. I hadn't expected the internals to get here before the case.

[mharr]

I like the general concept of an external GPU, given the heat issues I've had with previous gaming laptop attempts. Anyone have experience of using one day to day?

[Thad]

Maybe this guy?

Someday an external enclosure must be a good idea; today might even be the day for you!

[Brantly B.]

Nope, my wording there was specifically because I always think it's a good idea and never actually try it.