OT: PC Gaming Hardware Thread

[Danimal]

So my new monitor came, set it up, plus it in via display port and I'm not getting a signal. I'm not sure if I need to turn set something on the monitor of my 980 to get it to work as the instruction manual is s***. Terry did you have any issues like this?

[Danimal]

Got it to work but there is no manual with this thing. Can you give me a run down on what gaming mode does and more importantly when it is on can I turn off the frame rate in the corner?

[TCrouch]

I didn't have anything like that, sorry. The menu is wonky at best. Gaming mode turns off anything that might create display lag, but on this monitor, it seems to do nothing but make it darker and display the framerate counter.

To turn it off, go into the menu (first button next to the blue light), and then go down 2 steps, I think it is. There will be a "frame display" or something similar, and it will be set to on. Toggle it to off and that counter will disappear.

I don't even run in gaming mode, I tuned all of the colors/saturation to where I want and I don't have any display lag at all.

[Danimal]

So my problem is back and I'm at a loss at how to fix it.

In order to get my monitor to work I needed to unplug my 2nd monitor which is plugged in via DVI. Let my machine boot with just the new monitor hooked up by Display Port (DP) and once it booted I then connected my 2nd monitor. Worked fine last night but when I started my machine this morning the DP monitor wasn't recognized again. I needed to unplug the DVI monitor, then plug in the DP monitor and let it connect. Then re-plug the DVI monitor.

Even though I went into the Nvida control panel and made sure both monitors were selected for the right sequence (DP monitor 1, DVI monitor 2) it doesn't seem to matter. Google has not provided any results.

I can live without my second monitor since the new one is so large but I'd like to use both.

Any idea from the PC hardware gurus?

[TCrouch]

That's absolutely crazy. I've had 2 monitors plugged in, one via DP, the other DVI. Then I did DP and HDMI. Then I ran 3 (my current config) with one DVI, one HDMI, and one DP.

I know Nvidia cards do some strange stuff on ports and which ones you can use from a single card, but with just two outputs it shouldn't matter which two you use. I'm at a loss.

[Danimal]

Yeah I know, I'm at a loss. I'm trying to see if there is a firmware update for my video card. It's the most bizarre thing

[TCrouch]

Yeah, my initial reaction was that it would be something funky with the card, so maybe try other ports. But it wouldn't normally be something that would suddenly show up (unless you didn't use the Display Port before). That would be possible, as I said before--I had some weird DP issues previously on my GTX 970s, but I wasn't sure if it was cable/monitor/card. I haven't had a single issue on my Titan X with multiple inputs, though, so it's not an apples to apples comparison.

Most likely issue (in my opinion) would be a display port problem, though.

[Danimal]

Yeah something weird is going on but this is a bran new card. I swore last night when I went to display properties it showed me the name of the monitor. Today it says generic plug and play in Windows 10. I don't see any Windows 10 drivers for this monitor. on their site.

I'm going to keep messing with it because I have an OCD issue with problems like this.

Edit: No Bios updates so that's not it.

[Gangrel]

This isn't really gaming hardware per se, but I'm just wondering if anyone has a reccomendation for a good WIFI router to share?

My current one is at least 5 or 6 years old, only Wireless N, and doesn't have the range I'd like. Now, the router is down in the basement, because I stupidly put the modem, router, and my network switch down here, but c'est la vie.

Both my computer and wifey's work computer is in the basement, hardwired LAN. My Xbone is also hardwired, so that takes care of the major items.....

Phones and my tablet are the most used wifi items, and when you are horizontally far away from the router, the connection is spotty on the other floors.

Also, at some point I might want to get a Roku or something for the TV on the main floor, so more speed/reliability is a good thing.

It seems like AC is the new wifi standard, and the range now is twice that of the old N routers. I don't mind investing a bit of cash into a router, but keep in mind I'm not gaming seriously on any wifi connection, so it's just youtube, and maybe netflix if i get a roku.........

Oh, my internet is only 30mbps too (I'm cheap, i know).

Anyone get a router lately that's in a similar situation as me?

[TCrouch]

I had that exact same problem a year or two ago...only add in the fact that I have an old, OLD house that still has lead pipes as far as I know. Nothing would get through the bathrooms (which were strategically placed in the center of the house, 2 of them in the hallway, which was perfect for any signal trying to get through to the front room).

Went through 3 or 4 routers in my 9 years in this place. Finally bought one that solved all of it, and I haven't had a problem since.

Netgear Nighthawk

My devices actually pick up the internet from the bottom of my driveway and out to my street now. Connectivity hasn't been a problem.

[DivotMaker]

I had that exact same problem a year or two ago...only add in the fact that I have an old, OLD house that still has lead pipes as far as I know. Nothing would get through the bathrooms (which were strategically placed in the center of the house, 2 of them in the hallway, which was perfect for any signal trying to get through to the front room).

Went through 3 or 4 routers in my 9 years in this place. Finally bought one that solved all of it, and I haven't had a problem since.

Netgear Nighthawk

My devices actually pick up the internet from the bottom of my driveway and out to my street now. Connectivity hasn't been a problem.

Same here, but I purchased the Netgear Nighthawk in the link below:

http://www.amazon.com/NETGEAR-Nighthawk ... 547&sr=1-8

It is worth every nickel and is hands down the best router I have ever owned. Fast and reliable.

[Dave]

I completely agree with the Nighthawk recommendation, fantastic product. I've had the one Terry linked to for about a year and it made a huge difference in the wifi coverage in my house.

[DivotMaker]

I completely agree with the Nighthawk recommendation, fantastic product. I've had the one Terry linked to for about a year and it made a huge difference in the wifi coverage in my house.

I had been a Linksys/Cisco guy for years and bought their latest one at $300 a couple of years ago and had nothing but trouble with it. This is the first Netgear product I have owned and I am a HUGE fan so far.

[TCrouch]

I had a Linksys for a long time before I tried an Asus router, and that thing didn't last long. As soon as I got the Nighthawk up and running, it's been nothing but smooth sailing for over a year. I got the cheaper one (I don't think the one you linked even existed when I bought mine), thinking it was going to be another 'test' purchase.

Best $200 I ever spent on PC stuff, as far as the number of headaches it eliminated.

[Gangrel]

I've been eyeing the Nighthawks.....

With boxing week sales now, it looks like I can get the one Terry linked to for $100 less than Divots. Now to debate if the extra band is worth $100...... probably not since I don't have tons of wifi going on.


Reading some reviews of the 1900 on best buy and a few mention that the firmware sucks with it though? Or is that just guys who need to customise everything?

The most complicated thing I'll need to do is port forwarding probably.

[DivotMaker]

I've been eyeing the Nighthawks.....

With boxing week sales now, it looks like I can get the one Terry linked to for $100 less than Divots. Now to debate if the extra band is worth $100...... probably not since I don't have tons of wifi going on.


Reading some reviews of the 1900 on best buy and a few mention that the firmware sucks with it though? Or is that just guys who need to customise everything?

The most complicated thing I'll need to do is port forwarding probably.

I have yet to port forward on the Nighthawk I have. To me, the extra Benjamin is worth the performance I receive. YMMV. Good luck, either way, you can't go wrong....

[dbdynsty25]

Nighthawk. Hands down. Everyone I've set one up for loves it.

[Macca00]

I finally ended up getting that system I mentioned before with a Titan X (because I'm compensating for my small penis) and the Asus ROG Swift. Granted, I'm coming from an older computer but....holy crap! I loaded up Battlefield 4 and put everything on Ultra at 1440p and 144 Hz - utterly ridiculous. That G-Sync monitor is amazing - thanks for the suggestion!

Once again - really appreciate the advice

[Gangrel]

Got a Nighthawk ac1900 like Terry's.

Do you guys use Smart Connect on your routers?

[TCrouch]

Macca--yeah, that's awesome. If you're coming from an older bit of tech, it can be quite a leap to something like that Swift and a Titan. Glad you like it!

Gangrel--nah, I never used the Smart Connect. Didn't even know it was on the AC1900, but I've had zero problems with traditional connectivity. My Asus router was dropping connection on devices constantly in my house, or long delays. As soon as I plugged in the Nighthawk, all of that went away. Never really did much tinkering with it.

[Danimal]

Ok Networking guru's.

First I have Uverse so I'm using their crappy modem / router WTF the thing is called. My router is in my basement at the farthest point west of my house. The reason is when the house was built I had many of the room run CAT-5 and homerun into the basement. The house is over 10 years old, Wifi wasn't as prevalent and I prefer wired anyway. However the number of wireless devices in my house is just nuts.

I have dead zones, 2 bad ones in fact. In the main family room on the 1st floor in certain spots and in my oldest daughters bedroom on the second floor which is the absolute farthest point from the router in the basement. A few years ago I bought a belkin range extender, plugged it in the 1st floor in the foyer to cover the zones. Things never worked well, always crapped out and last night it went totally dead. It won't even power up when plugged in. We also just got my daughter a surface pro 3 for school work.

I need a good solution, range extender or otherwise that will work and get a wifi signal to her room. I'm open to good suggestions on range extenders and other creative solutions. Part of me wants to hire a guy to move the outside line to the first floor, put the router there, then run the lines downstairs to where they homerun but I'm imagining that will be espensive.

All comments wlecome

[wco81]

If you have good Cat 5 wiring throughout the house, you might consider getting MoCA adapters, to extend ethernet to the second floor. Then plug in a Wifi router up there.

[Danimal]

If you have good Cat 5 wiring throughout the house, you might consider getting MoCA adapters, to extend ethernet to the second floor. Then plug in a Wifi router up there.

That's an interesting idea but I'm a bit naive when it comes to adding a 2nd router to WTF that Uverse thing is. Is it as simple as plugging in the router to a CAT5 connection and setting it up? Because i have a few rooms already wired with CAT5 upstairs just not the kids room.

[wco81]

I've had a router downstream of the Uverse gateway before when I had Uverse data service for a couple of years. The gateway was from 2Wire.

But I preferred to use the wireless network from the router I already had, so I wouldn't have to re-set the passwords on my devices. Right now, I still have a 2-router setup, not to extend the range but to use an Apple Airport Extreme base station, to use things like Airplay. The upstream router, which sits between the cable modem and the Airport Extreme, has some features I wanted like VPN.

As for MoCA, you can Google it but the idea is that it sends IP packets through the coax cable. You need at least a pair of them, one directly connected by ethernet to one of them and then on the other end, you connect it to the coax at the destination room but it also will have 1 or more ethernet ports. From there, you can connect another wireless router or connect directly with ethernet cable.

If the coax in the wall is in good condition, you should get good throughput on the other end.

I'm using MoCA for Tivo. I have a Roamio Plus and a Mini. The Roamio Plus, which is the actual DVR, has a MoCA adapter built-in. So I connect the coax to it and run an ethernet cable from my router to it.

My house is over 30 years old so I wasn't sure about the state of the coax in the wall. But on the other end, I just run the coax to the Mini client and I get live and recorded TV shows fine. Or instead of connecting the coax to the Mini, I could have gotten one MoCA adapter, run the coax to it and then connect the ethernet between the MoCA adapter and the ethernet port on the Mini.

I wasn't sure about things like ethernet over power lines but MoCA, at least in my case, works really well.

[DivotMaker]

Considering the following modest upgrades to my PC which is at least 6 years old.

Current:
Asus Maximus Formula LGA775
Intel Core 2 Duo E6850 Stock Fan
PC800 DDR2 4 GB
ATI 4870X2
WD Raptor 150 GB 10,000 RPM Sata
750 watt PC Power and Cooling PSU

New:
AMD R9 Nano Fiju 4GB (Freebie from my friends at AMD) already in old system and massive improvement in games
Gigabyte or Asus Intel Z170 LGA1151 gaming motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6813128844
Intel Skylake i5 6600 3.3 Ghz CPU
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6819117562
G.Skill DDR4 3200 PC25600 16 GB
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... 6820231929

$479 including tax.....not going with i7 just yet, but thinking LGA1151 gives me some future proofing and can upgrade to i7 once we sell our home (on the market come Wednesday) and buy the new one.

Any feedback?

Thanks.