PC Tech/Gaming Info Thread

[burkmenistan]

who can recommend any good new WWII sims?

[skylinechild]

guys i'm getting a strange issue on a customer pc.

the pc is a hp desktop pc -windows 10.

the problem is the pc not booting up.....cant even go to safe mode .

fresh load of windows 10 pro ( legit) and the hard drive was full formatted via command prompt (disk part >> list disk etc etc etc)


The pc was given back to them working it worked for a few days and now it not even starting up....you see the BIOS screen... then it get black you see the cursor....with a black background...and thats it...

i suspect the hard drive --- the hard drive is a western digital black edition 2 TB drive.

the hard disk activity light is constantly on....i'm thinking of running the western digital diagnostic tool on the drive and see if its the hard drive.

any tuners out there willing to lend me an AM2 processor to test another desktop i'll be greatly appreciated.
Helping a friend out here with this one... i suspect a dead board / damaged processor but i dont have a spare AM2 chip to test with.

[kamakazi]

That is interesting.
Can you enter the bios of the board.
Also try using the boot menu option when the system is loading.
I don't have any more am2 processors

[skylinechild]

That is interesting.
Can you enter the bios of the board.
Also try using the boot menu option when the system is loading.
I don't have any more am2 processors

i had a feeling you woulda respond...

nah i found the issue.... i was suspecting the hard drive.... so i downloaded the WD diagnostic tools and as suspected the drive failed... first with error code 0007 and then error code 0117

the constant hard drive activity light was supposed to be a dead giveaway but i like to be sure.

the crappy part is .... its a western digital 2 TB (black edition ) drive that hasnt even seen 1/4 of its capacity used.... the platters and stuff are like totally unused...

(wondering if i swap the logic / controller board with another one.... if it will work...doubt it but i can try... )

if i load it with the O.S and prgrams i'm not even making a dent in its useage.

so now the question is.....what drive to put back....

considering a SSD.....but which one.... used Samsung in an external for someone....i just assembled the external and gave it to them......i didnt get chance to use it.....

and i used crucial ( MX500 is the model and 500 Gb is the capacity) in a laptop for a customer.... worked blazing fast.....

i'll also need an adapter bracket....

[kamakazi]

As much as I like SSDs I'm not up to date on the newer controllers and how they perform.
A SSD will surely boost the performance of the system, but that am2 platform will restrict it somewhat.
I like WD Red drives for storage.

[skylinechild]

As much as I like SSDs I'm not up to date on the newer controllers and how they perform.
A SSD will surely boost the performance of the system, but that am2 platform will restrict it somewhat.
I like WD Red drives for storage.

it was actually two different issues on two different pc's

1st computer with issue - was the hard drive - this i said in my reply post was found to be the issue

2nd computer with issue - dead computer not powering on- suspected the am2 processor - you said u didnt hav any.

as you mention SSD.

the 1st computer with the slow / non boot up- the customer decided on a crucial SSD they bringing it in. (solved)

another customer has a small business and would like to have a backup of his files from that one pc.

so the requirement is
1. that the backups MUST be done automatically on its own basis.
2. must be able to recover files in the event of drive failure.
3. it must be large. ( the files he works with are huge)

i'm thinking of this unit
https://www.wdc.com/products/network-at ... r4100.html

put in some western digital NAS drives.... 4 drives each with a 4TB capacity


the only thing is i'm not seeing where it does its own backups automatically ( may require separate software or addition configurations) and of course - the cost factor.

the cost of the unit preloaded with 4 4TB NAS drives is $1,099.99 USD

can anyone else offer in their experience in this area / what they usued / what device they recommend.
or should i tell the customer to bite the bullet and order it.??

[skylinechild]

so just and update for you guys....

the customer bought a samsung SSD evo 860 drive - 250 gb capacity.

link to item >>> https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07864WMK8/re ... UTF8&psc=1

so installing the drive was easy....

windows installed easy enough and also updating it was good.

time to install Samsung magician software - Samsung proprietary software to set up provisioning and control the drive. this is where the issue is.

apparently some some systems that have an AHCI controller by amd ( amd sata controller) there is some compatibility issue that prevents the drive from full speed.

this is a screenshot of the error from the interwebs



the drive will function... however it will not be as fast as it should be.

in addition the drive also sometimes "bottlenecks" which shouldn't happen- the hard disk activity light will remain constantly on for 1 min or so....the pc will apparently freeze....then it will catch itself and be back to normal.- also heavy multi tasking seems to trigger this.


ive tried different sata AHCI drivers dating from all the way back 2010 ( which is what gets installed when W10 installs) all the way up to the latest drivers from AMD which was in 2015 for this chipset and they all give the same error.

in some driver versions it prevents over provisioning from actually running... some driver versions prevent detection of any secondary sata devices ( DVDRW drive) and some give all functions....but nothing to resolve the error.

start up times have been dramatically reduced from 10-15 secs on a regular mech drive to 1-5 secs on a SSD
(supposed to be 1-3 secs)

so all in all be aware.... samsung SSD may have a AMD AHCI compatibility issue when installing their drive into an AMD based pc.

my advice go with another brand of ssd or at least a manufacturer that has 10+ yrs experience in hard drive technology.... ...crucial seems to be doing rather well with their new MX 500 line.

[kamakazi]

Are you having the same problem with the 860 evo drive as that shown in the picture with the 850 Evo. Thanks for highlighting the incompatibility... Care to elaborate on the specs of the system that the machine is in.

On another note...I think you will find that Samsung has more experience in hard drives than crucial... On the SSD side of things it might be the other way around; but Samsung appears to have more than 10yrs experience with SSDs as well.

Sad that it didn't work out fully.

I need to find out How much difference does the SSD software make... I have never installed any and the drivers work perfectly with some minor tweaks to the OS

[skylinechild]

Are you having the same problem with the 860 evo drive as that shown in the picture with the 850 Evo. Thanks for highlighting the incompatibility... Care to elaborate on the specs of the system that the machine is in.

On another note...I think you will find that Samsung has more experience in hard drives than crucial... On the SSD side of things it might be the other way around; but Samsung appears to have more than 10yrs experience with SSDs as well.

Sad that it didn't work out fully.

I need to find out How much difference does the SSD software make... I have never installed any and the drivers work perfectly with some minor tweaks to the OS

yes... its the SAME issue....

i did alot of research on the issue spend whole of the last weekend in this cycle >>>doing research & downloading & trying drivers and failure...rolling back....& repeating the entire cycle...

....and it stems from samsung and how the drive interacts with the AMD AHCI driver.

intel doesnt seem to have an issue though.

the machine that its currently in is an HP pavilion P7-1020

full specs here >>> https://www.cnet.com/products/hp-pavili ... ies/specs/

bone stock - other than the SSD and the O.S

the machine came with O.S 7 home premium went up to 7 ultimate 64bit ( as i own the OEM disc.)
windows 10 came and it got a free upgrade to W10 pro (legit)

hard drive failed a few yrs ago - installed a 2TB western digital drive- that failed a few weeks ago - hence the upgrade to SSD now.

the pc is an excellent machine
has built in wifi ( for a desktop )
easy to upgrade
has a fast processor (quad core)
alot of ram (currently 8GB can go to 16gb)
has 5.1 surround sound as well as coaxial out and can give out digitial audio
free PCI express slot for video card of your choice
also very clean and rust free ( for a 6+ yr old pc)

i also bought this SSD bracket in order to bolt the drive to the pc

bracket >>> https://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Dual-Mou ... sd+bracket

bracket feels thin in your hand but its not flimsy nor does it flex and it comes with necessary screws.
definitely would recommend.

this experience just puts me in a position to better recommend to others so they wont be burned by samsung and their evo drives....

notwithstanding its an excellent product as i have used samsung SSD in an external enclosure for a friend
enclosue i used >>> https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001XHDQL4/re ... UTF8&psc=1

but paired with an AMD based system..it seems to be difficult... ( it could be the age of this pc as the latest driver from AMD is dated 2015)
also its written they (samsung) dont support nvidia nforce AHCI controllers

the SSD software does make a difference and i do actually recommend it
the ssd software itself doesnt really install any additional drivers (AFAIK - but i could be wrong -)
it really allows you to control the drive alot better and gives features of the drive the O.S would not have done - like over provisioning.

the O.S only really cares about trim support and if you perform a clean install of the O.S on a SSD trim support should be enabled ( by default)

be sure to go into the BIOS / UEFI firmare and ensure the SATA controller is set to AHCI mode before installing the O.S

the SSD software allows you to do additional things like check read write speeds determine the amount of cycles the drive has gone through (check the overall health of the drive) as well as setup over provisioning - which is a must when using any SSD.

for my customers i usually over provision about 15% of the total drive software actually recommends 10% - i go 15 just to be safe.

all in all the drive works but its not as snappy and i would expect it to be.

the customer can elect to go with another brand of SSD if he chooses (crucial corsair OCZ etc etc)
and keep this SSD for his laptop ( he also has a laptop) or he can live with the slight performance decrease and be happy.

either way its a win win for him.

me personally i dont like giving back customers machine in this state.
yes it works
yes its functional
yes they did get to keep their data
no its not 100% fully compatible - not my fault - thanks samsung

[gencon]

what's your opinion of this laptop

[gencon]

[urbandilema]

Hey tuner pc heads need sum advice thinking building a new desktop for the casual gaming as well for school work as class starts september so I may need to research .
What's the best setup to check out

[gencon]

delete

[kamakazi]

Hey tuner pc heads need sum advice thinking building a new desktop for the casual gaming as well for school work as class starts september so I may need to research .
What's the best setup to check out

Recommendations are based on the type of user you are and your budget. Without either these recommendations are generic

If you are an enthusiast, AMD currently has the performance per dollar if you are willing to jump though some hoops.
If you want a reliable system with no headache, Intel has a more stable platform and once you understand the truck load of chipsets they release you are far less likely to get it wrong.

So i am in the process of upgrading a client's computer. It's not for gaming but all it is missing to do that is a proper graphics card. Core components are

Core i5-8400
B360m motherboard
16gb ddr4 memory
Samsung 860 Evo SSD

On the graphics card front, go Nvidia... Though their naming scheme is whack and they are set to unveil there new products soon

[urbandilema]

Hey tuner pc heads need sum advice thinking building a new desktop for the casual gaming as well for school work as class starts september so I may need to research .
What's the best setup to check out

Recommendations are based on the type of user you are and your budget. Without either these recommendations are generic

If you are an enthusiast, AMD currently has the performance per dollar if you are willing to jump though some hoops.
If you want a reliable system with no headache, Intel has a more stable platform and once you understand the truck load of chipsets they release you are far less likely to get it wrong.

So i am in the process of upgrading a client's computer. It's not for gaming but all it is missing to do that is a proper graphics card. Core components are

Core i5-8400
B360m motherboard
16gb ddr4 memory
Samsung 860 Evo SSD

On the graphics card front, go Nvidia... Though their naming scheme is whack and they are set to unveil there new products soon

Thanks for the info..btw u think the amd ryzen chips are a good buy.?

[kamakazi]

Hey tuner pc heads need sum advice thinking building a new desktop for the casual gaming as well for school work as class starts september so I may need to research .
What's the best setup to check out

Recommendations are based on the type of user you are and your budget. Without either these recommendations are generic

If you are an enthusiast, AMD currently has the performance per dollar if you are willing to jump though some hoops.
If you want a reliable system with no headache, Intel has a more stable platform and once you understand the truck load of chipsets they release you are far less likely to get it wrong.

So i am in the process of upgrading a client's computer. It's not for gaming but all it is missing to do that is a proper graphics card. Core components are

Core i5-8400
B360m motherboard
16gb ddr4 memory
Samsung 860 Evo SSD

On the graphics card front, go Nvidia... Though their naming scheme is whack and they are set to unveil there new products soon

Thanks for the info..btw u think the amd ryzen chips are a good buy.?

Can I say yes and no... They are good chips... Finding the proper motherboard if you buying online is the problem. The sockets are compatible but the bios on older boards do not support the newer chips... Unless you purchase the flagship chipset from AMD at this point in time. ( I usually purchase budget to mid range motherboards so this is a problem for me)

The ryzen chips with the integrated graphics are also a bit problematic as certain applications can't properly use it and simply crash

The enthusiast in me wants a ryzen CPU.
The realist in me chooses Intel

[urbandilema]

Hey tuner pc heads need sum advice thinking building a new desktop for the casual gaming as well for school work as class starts september so I may need to research .
What's the best setup to check out

Recommendations are based on the type of user you are and your budget. Without either these recommendations are generic

If you are an enthusiast, AMD currently has the performance per dollar if you are willing to jump though some hoops.
If you want a reliable system with no headache, Intel has a more stable platform and once you understand the truck load of chipsets they release you are far less likely to get it wrong.

So i am in the process of upgrading a client's computer. It's not for gaming but all it is missing to do that is a proper graphics card. Core components are

Core i5-8400
B360m motherboard
16gb ddr4 memory
Samsung 860 Evo SSD

On the graphics card front, go Nvidia... Though their naming scheme is whack and they are set to unveil there new products soon

Thanks for the info..btw u think the amd ryzen chips are a good buy.?

Can I say yes and no... They are good chips... Finding the proper motherboard if you buying online is the problem. The sockets are compatible but the bios on older boards do not support the newer chips... Unless you purchase the flagship chipset from AMD at this point in time. ( I usually purchase budget to mid range motherboards so this is a problem for me)

The ryzen chips with the integrated graphics are also a bit problematic as certain applications can't properly use it and simply crash

Thanks again for the quick response and advice...which amd chip and board would say is a decent one to order...I mite be ordering my stuff on amazon

[kamakazi]

What is your budget, what games do you plan on playing and what software do you use are planning to use

[urbandilema]

What is your budget, what games do you plan on playing and what software do you use are planning to use

School based stuff like word excel...may be auto cad..it's a diploma in eeet I'm intending of doing...Hmm gaming I think may be pudg or fort nite...im out of pc gaming just to play if i get time

[kamakazi]

As mentioned before I can't recommend AMD because of unknown motherboard compatibility... And you still haven't given a budget.

[urbandilema]

As mentioned before I can't recommend AMD because of unknown motherboard compatibility... And you still haven't given a budget.

Thanks my budget cud be around 4k or 5k for the most

[1800GSRLANCER]

Wtb 16gbs of ddr3 1866 ram 8x8 preferably new. What y'all have ?

[1800GSRLANCER]

Wtb cheap Gpu for someone， 1 or 2 gb gddr3 or something what y'all have ?

[skylinechild]

so guys i did another job for a customer he has an All in one HP

the machine has a 1 TB mechanicial drive and 4 GB of RAM

customer upgraded to a 1 TB SSD and 16GB of RAM

machine moves fast through everything.

i'll come back in here and put in the model name and # and its specs...


bought the usual corsair SSD bracket to install in the original HDD caddy..

https://www.amazon.com/Corsair-Dual-Mou ... ng+bracket

only prob is.... once installed the connectors dont line up.

solution. drill 3 new holes to accept the SSD onto the original HDD caddy bracket.

got things up and running smoothly

only problem is my USB to SATA dongle cable cant access the previous drive for whatever reason.


this is what i normally use



tech specs

Supports Standard Desktop 3.5″ SATA or IDE Hard Drives.
Supports Standard Notebook 2.5″ SATA or IDE Hard Drives.
Supports Desktop CD-ROM/CD-R/CD-RW/DVD-ROM/DVD+RW.
Supports Iomega Zip.
Supports hard drives up to 2TB.
LED lights indicate Power and Activity status.
Hot-swappable, plug and play, no drivers needed.
Reverse compatible with USB 1.1.

but it doesnt work on the newer drive.....

so now i'll need to get a newer unit.

i'll need something that supports all sata drives- SATA 1/2/3 as well as as handle larger sizes of drives...say 4TB and beyond.

must also support UAS protocol as well as be backward compatible to use with regular older hard drives of yester year.... no IDE business thou.


i'm thinking of buying this
https://www.amazon.com/Inateck-Dual-Bay ... on+usb+3.0




this looks like another good option

https://www.amazon.com/Cable-Matters-Do ... 9AC2JRBQRS




and also get this for good measure.
https://www.amazon.com/Anker-SATA-Porta ... ve+adapter



what u guys recommend.??

[Spitfir3]

^either one of those external docks should serve your needs i'd avoid the cables as those things have a high failure rate and they tend to give problems powering 3.5 drives

to add ive never had a problem with products from cable matters

[skylinechild]

^either one of those external docks should serve your needs i'd avoid the cables as those things have a high failure rate and they tend to give problems powering 3.5 drives

to add ive never had a problem with products from cable matters

hmmm its the cable matters one i considering buying self. supports up to a 10TB HDD

the other cables - like the sabrent usb to SATA & IDE i use to power up optical drives and use it on pcs without one - laptops / desktops etc.

ive never had any trouble WRT powering up those sabrent cables i just use a desktop power supply as my souce for power....for the drive itself and done.

those little brick things get too hot from normal use...and even so u cud imagine it when its for an extended period of time.

i went by the wizz to see what they offer....and they have this exact item for $245.... i mean... really....???
REALLY ????

https://www.amazon.com/WAVLINK-External ... ng+station

[*$kїđž!™]

Yall remember this

[kamakazi]

^either one of those external docks should serve your needs i'd avoid the cables as those things have a high failure rate and they tend to give problems powering 3.5 drives

to add ive never had a problem with products from cable matters

hmmm its the cable matters one i considering buying self. supports up to a 10TB HDD

the other cables - like the sabrent usb to SATA & IDE i use to power up optical drives and use it on pcs without one - laptops / desktops etc.

ive never had any trouble WRT powering up those sabrent cables i just use a desktop power supply as my souce for power....for the drive itself and done.

those little brick things get too hot from normal use...and even so u cud imagine it when its for an extended period of time.

i went by the wizz to see what they offer....and they have this exact item for $245.... i mean... really....???
REALLY ????

https://www.amazon.com/WAVLINK-External ... ng+station

I've been using a bytec usb to sata/ide adapter for 12 yrs now... Never had a problem with my adapter... The power brick that came with it however almost melted in the first year... But it has been working ever since...

It has been my experience that powering up the drive before plugging in the USB to the secondary PC works best

On another note... Has anyone ever reinstalled an OS on a drive with full drive encryption... How do I disable it if I did have a key.

[skylinechild]

^either one of those external docks should serve your needs i'd avoid the cables as those things have a high failure rate and they tend to give problems powering 3.5 drives

to add ive never had a problem with products from cable matters

hmmm its the cable matters one i considering buying self. supports up to a 10TB HDD

the other cables - like the sabrent usb to SATA & IDE i use to power up optical drives and use it on pcs without one - laptops / desktops etc.

ive never had any trouble WRT powering up those sabrent cables i just use a desktop power supply as my souce for power....for the drive itself and done.

those little brick things get too hot from normal use...and even so u cud imagine it when its for an extended period of time.

i went by the wizz to see what they offer....and they have this exact item for $245.... i mean... really....???
REALLY ????

https://www.amazon.com/WAVLINK-External ... ng+station

I've been using a bytec usb to sata/ide adapter for 12 yrs now... Never had a problem with my adapter... The power brick that came with it however almost melted in the first year... But it has been working ever since...

It has been my experience that powering up the drive before plugging in the USB to the secondary PC works best

On another note... Has anyone ever reinstalled an OS on a drive with full drive encryption... How do I disable it if I did have a key.

so i checked supertech in couva and they dont have any sort of dicking station and they also have the same sabrent usb to SATA /IDE cable unit thing.

so i decided to gt the cable matters unit from amazon.

the wizz price is kinda outrageous. 18USD and locally its $245 TT ??? thats twice the price.

Kamakazi if you want i can look for my old power brick....i misplaced it somewhere and i dont really care to want it so i havent looked for it

i just use a pc power supply.... on the 24 pin ATX header you can just use a paperclip and bridge off the green wire and the black wire ( usually pin 3+4) and the power supply will turn on.

been using that ever since and it supplies power just fine without any issues.

and also yes youre very much correct ..power on the unit first ...wait until drives spin up... then plug in the usb connector onto the secondary pc.


about the decryption question... if its Microsoft bit locker drive encryption its supposed to be easy. i myself have never used it.... never seen the need for it...

steps here

To turn off BitLocker Drive Encryption

Before you start
You must be logged on as an administrator.
The volume must be encrypted.


a) Click Start, click Control Panel, click Security, and then click BitLocker Drive Encryption.

b) From the BitLocker Drive Encryption page, find the volume on which you want BitLocker Drive Encryption turned off, and click Turn Off BitLocker Drive Encryption.

c) From the What level of decryption do you want dialog box, click either Disable BitLocker Drive Encryption or Decrypt the volume as needed.

d) By completing this procedure, you have should have disabled BitLocker or decrypted the operating system volume.

taken from >>> https://answers.microsoft.com/en-us/win ... b599b31bf5

if you want to setup bit locker drive encryption see here >>> https://www.windowscentral.com/how-use- ... windows-10

NOTE - for windows 10 home users bit locker drive encryption is not available. its only available on windows 10 pro.

[iM@st@1]

and also get this for good measure.
https://www.amazon.com/Anker-SATA-Porta ... ve+adapter



what u guys recommend.??

Been using this since 2014 and it's still going strong. Anker makes some decent stuff.