Mr. Fox

Clean Linux install with Arc A770. Totally hassle-free. Didn't have to do anything special.

Give or take $150-$200 for a true "god bin" I don't believe in paying more than new retail for a used part. If someone is desperate enough to be a winner that they buy a butt-load of new CPUs to find the best one they need to take a loss on the chips they don't want to keep and when they're done with the cream of the crop sample they should take a loss on it, too. It's a used part. They don't deserve to make a profit on their hobby. Just my opinion, but I put these clowns about two crotch hairs above scalpers. They want to win so bad that they are willing screw everyone else in the process, so screw them. It should be their loss and theirs alone if being in the winner's circle is what they need to validate their own existence. It's not my fault their mama dropped them on their head as an infant and didn't love them anymore. You also have to ask yourself, "If it is for sale, how awesome is it, really?" If it was truly off the charts show-stopping awesome it probably wouldn't be up for sale. Selling it would defeat the purpose of their frantic quest to find the best one. So, what are they not telling you about the overpriced silicon they are offering to sell you for a horrible price? I'm not interested in helping them benefit by recovering more than their actual out-of-pocket loss. I'm willing to pay what they paid for it when they bought the batch. Offering them the chance to break even on the sale of a used part should be viewed as a gift.

I actually already own it and love it, so great recommendation. I bought in on GOG a couple of months ago on sale and played it for several hours on the first go because it was so addictive. @ryanwould like it, too. I also like games that I can finish in one day. When it is a good game I enjoy the familiarity of things so playing through again there are no surprises. I know for some people that seems weird, but I also enjoy use console cheat codes and don't care about earning "accomplishments" and finding secrets, etc. If it takes too long to finish I lose interest in playing. (Probably one of the reasons why I do not enjoy open world games and prefer linear gameplay.)

I agree. CPU and memory overclocking is SO MUCH more fun. GPUs have become so locked down and castrated that it almost doesn't matter what you buy at this point. All cookie-cutter gamer wuss trash now. Unless you open your wallet wider for a Kingpin (now history) or Galax HOF you are not getting anything special. Congrats on the CPU. I probably would not have been willing to pay what you paid for it, but that doesn't matter if you are happy. I can't claim to be any "smarter" having purchased a 4090 at the "proper" (but still grossly inflated) price before the gouging on steroids started. How do you identify if a 14900K is an "R" batch at the time of purchase? Can you tell, or you have to wait and find out when it's too late to do anything about it? How do you identify it if you have one? I really wish I would have tested the AIO on an Intel CPU. I told my son I would not mess with his PBO and RAM settings. My impression is that it is better, but I have little to base it on other than logic. If it has a higher flow rate and pressure with the dual-pump design than a normal Asetek AIO then it is going to be better for no other reason than that. PCCOOLER seems to have put a lot of effort into getting their CPS-branded stuff right. Edit: By the way. Thanks for all of the stuff you shared with me on the Y-Cruncher memory tuning. It was good stuff. That TeamGroup Xtreem 8000 C38 memory kit was absolute rubbish. It was worse than the cheaper TeamGroup 7200 Expert garbage I returned. It produced errors in TM5 and TestMemPro no matter what settings I used. The XMP profile performed unusually well compared to others, but I am thinking the kit I got was either a bad sample or the marketing information about binning their memory ICs is just a bunch of nonsense, hooey or deliberately lying. It's on its way back to Amazon and I got my money back. So far nothing I have tested in the 16GB A-die memory kits has performed as well as my generic green sticks from AliExpress. Nothing else overclocks as well or is as stable as those modules are, and they're not even a matched "kit" like the retail trash. After pulling the Xtreme junk modules out and reinstalling my generic sticks, they booted and ran every test error-free using the XMP profile that was unstable with the TG sticks. That is super-disappointing. There should be no silicon lottery when you pay extra from something advertised as being superior. Beyond disappointing, it is an inexcusable and unforgivable lack of QC. If Amazon publishes my review (with memory test error screenshots) they probably won't sell many of these trash sticks.

I am sure if I were doing what you mentioned I would absolutely "feel" the difference. Where the difference is not readily evident is normal daily use for most users. Yeah, no such thing as "too much" drive space. I am phasing out all of my 512GB NVMe SSDs. I am no longer interesting is such a small storage volume. It's a waste of space. 1TB is now the minimum acceptable drive size for an OS installation in my mind, and anything less that 2TB for a storage volume is a waste of money. I'm moving toward using my 1TB SATA and M.2 SSDs for USB storage now and buying only 2TB and 4TB SSDs for storage. The only reason I think 1TB for the OS is OK is because I frequently install programs to a drive that is not occuppied by the OS. I only install things like Office, Photoshop, Acrobat and my core OS tweaking utilities on the same drive as the OS. For example, all games are installed on a 4TB NVMe at G:\Program Files and G:\Program Files (x86). Being an Intel user, Gen5 is a total waste and is of zero interest to me. I am not about to consider sharing GPU PCIe lanes with storage. So, until Gen5 applies to all PCIe lanes that exist on Intel platforms the technology means nothing to me and has no application.

I am addicted to storage as well. Possibly for different reasons, but maybe for some of the same reasons. I love having multiple OSes to mess with and find out which are better and which are worse. I always have a disposable version of Windows that I don't care what happens to it and let the Redmond Retards poop all over it, willy-nilly to see how long it takes it to become a corrupted piece of crap. I don't like partitions. I want a full drive for each purpose. I am also a little bit sloppy when it comes to file management. I dump things on a storage drive until it is full. I do have semi-organized folders for things, but usually end up with duplicates and copies in more than one folder. I don't like having to worry about running out of space. I would have chosen the NVIDIA card as well, but from a place of personal past experience rather than based on what talking head "influencer" dumb-dumbs on YouTube say. It's unfortunate, but I have not enjoyed owning anything made by AMD, and it hasn't been for lack of trying. I'm learning not to give second and third chances to companies, but it has been the hard way that I've had to learn to not "forgive and forget" when it comes to brand failures. The experience has always been checkered by bugs and stupid crap, or abbreviated lifespan, etc. It seems a power high than I doesn't want me to enjoy owning anything they produce. Don't ask how much he paid for it. It was A LOT if it is the one I am thinking of. Hopefully, not the same one I am thinking about (over double new retail price). Since these are much cheaper than the 13900KS there must be a ton of crappy silicon samples. The low price makes it tempting, but I'd probably end up with something inferior to what I already have. Speaking of parts... check out my latest ExtremeHW review. My son is super-happy. (He was the recipient of the parts I didn't need.) CPS – The New Bully on the PC Playground | ExtremeHW Reviews Discussion thread: https://extremehw.net/topic/3466-cps-the-new-bully-on-the-pc-playground-review-discussion/ I am happier than I expected I would be with the A770. I can hardly wait to see how Battlemage turns out. NVIDIA better watch is P's and Q's. Their nonsense with price gouging is liable to bite them in the butt much harder than they might expect. AMD really needs to stop taking cues from the Green Goblin. If Battlemage comes within striking distance of 4080, AMD and NVIDIA probably would be wise to not FAFO what happens to greedy bastards. I really want another 4090... in particular I'd love a Galax HOF 4090, but when I look at the "you're an idiot" pricing even the crappiest 4090 cards are going for now it makes me throw up in my mouth a little bit. If common sense prevails over fear of the unknown, there is a strong possibility Battlemage will give the world zero reason to buy any GPU from AMD and NVIDIA.

The Arc A770 runs Halo Infinite Campaign like a champ with medium settings and high AA and Async Compute enabled. Nice and cool as well, especially for an air-cooled GPU. I have the voltage locked at 1.155V under load, with the power limit bumped to 452W and core clock locked at 2700. Averaging 103 FPS with low latency at 1440p. Hopefully someday Intel will give us access to overclock the memory. Even stock, the VRAM runs about where I could overclock the 6900 XT memory, so it's not bad at stock memory clock. The Arc tools work really well otherwise. This is a fantastic GPU for $300. I will have to see how it runs with High and Ultra presets.

What really needs to happen is for all governments to outlaw the development and use of AI. That would serve the world better overall and fix the first-world issue relating to GPU pricing and availability.

That is both sad and amusing at the same time. Amusing to think any new laptop is a good product, and sad that anyone believes otherwise.

Happy Thanksgiving. I doubt it would have changed anything. I do not believe CPUs fail due to overclocking. I believe they fail due to manufacturing defects. It would be very difficult to harm one deliberately if it is.not defective.

I am so sorry this happened. Products are just not very reliable anymore. It doesn't matter what brand you buy, quality is a thing of the past. It's the 21st Century way of life. As everyone here knows, I have had several Intel CPUs (Gen10/12/13) just mysteriously die for no apparent reason. It wasn't that long ago than it was extremely rare for anyone to ever have a CPU die, and blaming it on overclocking is silly because that is not really a factor. It's only used as a lame excuse for Intel and AMD to deny warranty. You may have to lie if asked about that in order to get AMD to provide a replacement. It's unfortunate, but necessary, because we can no longer rely on manufacturer integrity for satisfactory outcomes. They don't have any.

Same to you, brother. All of us have more to be thankful for than we deserve. I am thankful to have all of you as friends.

Probably has something to do with the mindset of the average Joe versus the mindset of an overclocking enthusiast. There are most likely other examples of extreme awesomeness that we have missed because they are just way too scary to the push-button gamer club.

Stupid is the new normal. Because people like us can quickly identify stupid and dare to call it out as such, without mincing any words about it, we are dangerous

Nice! I look forward to seeing before/after results. That's a sweet IHS replacement. In concept the installation is similar to my IceMan direct die block. It replaces the ILM. In this example it replaces the ILM and IHS. I like it. I had not seen it before. I did not know Roman had produced that. It is certainly not one I would choose, but it is (very sadly) what I have concluded based on the undesirable facts. But, I do agree with keeping a positive outlook. That's important. We also want our kids to be eyes-open and keen to the wiles of the wicked. We can't fix stupid and we can't cure evil, but there is always hope for the possibility of extermination. At the very least, we can reject what is stupid and evil and teach our kids to identify both and do the same. In the end it's all gonna burn and better things await us when we shed our mortal coil. 😉

At the end of the day it just doesn't matter. None of it does. Law-makers are stupid and worthless. Governments are corrupt and the media liars are all in on whatever the scam du jour happens to be. China will steal whatever they want. No need to buy it. And, either way, they'll still use whatever happens as a lame excuse to jack up the prices. Nothing that happens anymore is based on truth or reality. Everything that happens now is mostly just a bunch of fabricated crap to manipulate things as needed to achieve the outcome desired by the self-anointed puppeteers.

Not surprising. Elect a clown, expect a circus.

Dude is a lunatic. He is a jerk on top of that. His potty mouth ranting really is annoying. Maybe he thinks it is cute, or makes him feel like a big boy. Probably all reflective of a deep-seated sense of personal inadequacy or an inferiority complex. Sometimes the only way for a person like that to feel important or valued is to be an obnoxious blowhard and a braggard. Hopefully this is only an internet persona and façade. If he is like that normally it would be a really horrible environment for a spouse or children. Very good info. Thanks for sharing it.

I think you nailed it right there...

Joofus the Doofus is such a belligerent douche bag... sheesh. Although I agree with his conclusions, I can think of better ways of approaching the subject. I guess he likes stirring the pot and making people have a dim view of him.

When you combine those with apathy it becomes deadly. As I have said many times, they don't care about the products they sell, or the people that buy them. All they care about is making money. Having to care requires too much effort and costs money.

OK, there's no turning back on these now. As usual, the heating blankets come off with no effort after soaking in lacquer thinner for 20-30 minutes.

That worked well. So weird that setting them to auto works better than manual tuning. Thanks for sharing. Reliable 8800 memory overclock is pretty sweet.

Thanks. What are they called in the BIOS? Maybe snap a photo/F12 screenshot. He is right about many things quite often, but it is really unfortunate that his presentation and demeanor deprive him of the respect he would otherwise deserve. It is hard to judge if his arrogance and haughtiness reflect a person that is so self-absorbed that they do not care what others think of them, or if he has deep-seated feelings of inadequacy that are only mitigated by being harshly and unreasonably critical of other people (like Jay, Gordon and Wendell in this example, and recently with his commentary about LTT's mess) present in his social media space. More often than not I agree with him and think his material is technically accurate, often superior, but it is difficult to show respect to someone that is so obnoxious, unprofessional and disrespectful. Thanks. It performs better than expected. I am really pleased with it. I'm sure I will find something off sooner or later, but so far nothing found "not to like" about it. I really want to see them excel. NVIDIA has been king of the hill for so long that they have lost touch with reality, and their pricing is downright evil/dishonest. And, I don't need to say what I think about the other option other than "it's not an option" for me.

I am looking forward to seeing how Battlemage performs. I hope it is a strong contender with at least 4080, if not better. I may have a custom block made for it. I'm thinking about it. Nobody makes a normal production block for it. The A770 falls between 3060 and 3060 Ti performance, so it's actually very respectable in terms of gaming ability. It has some content creation features that it does better at than NVIDIA or AMD.