electrosoft

Definitely Jacob not Jufes. 🙂

Jufes at CES talking to Jacob (formerly of EVGA). Good to see him in action!

Looks good bro, congrats! Mine arrived basically brand new too even with the plastic on the m.2 thermal pads. Plus you got the original box (mine came in a brown box) and cheaper than mine to boot! Can't beat that. 🙂 Now if you really want to be a proper MSI shill like myself, get an MSI 4070 Super and your journey to the dark side will be complete. 🤣

Well I guess it's "official." The pricing of the new Super cards and the normal ones are basically EOL https://videocardz.com/newz/nvidia-launches-geforce-rtx-40-super-series-999-rtx-4080s-799-rtx-4070-tis-and-599-rtx-4070s 4070 (discontinued) went from being the only decent value this time around at $599 to being the stand out star of the Nvidia line up this time around with the 4070 Super which is performing almost the same as a 4070 ti (discontinued) with the biggest bump in performance out of them all. 4080 Super with a $200 price drop and more performance? Yes please. It went from being the laughing stock of the 4000 series to now just being mildly annoying but a good buy especially compared to the 7900xtx (unless you need 24GB of VRAM). Jury is still out on the 4070ti Super......

In order of day one acquisition: #1. Microcenter in person #2. Call or Email Adorama and BH Photo to see if they're going to have stock #3. Best Buy Refresh #4. Newegg Refresh #5. Amazon (make sure shipped and sold by Amazon) I'm not sure if Best Buy is doing Plus/Elite member only options. I expect a slow sellout which means they will sellout but it won't be instant. And as always, you can follow some GPU in stock trackers like this: https://www.nowinstock.net/computers/videocards/nvidia/rtx4070/

It might come down to level of sales, credit history and any past problems on PP or elsewhere. If you're still having holds on sales even now you might want to figure out why. I have zero problems and no holds on most of my transactions. Only time I get a potential hold is some International sales to specific countries which PayPal will tell you after the transaction is complete. I then immediately refund the amount and tell them I will only do F&F. I used to use PP F&F to receive from USA buyers but I can't now because I have a business account and PP removed that in 2022 for inter-state sales. For International, it still works. They allow you to "upgrade" your personal account to business but now downgrade it back to personal....convenient. You have to either delete your account and re-open it with the same email or open a secondary account with a different email. A 7 day hold after delivery is really out of the norm especially if you're established and have had no problems and good credit history. I sold a few items recently on PP and the funds were immediately available. F&F works best because you avoid the 3% fee AND you don't have to worry about it being on your taxes since "Build Back Better" absolutely screwed over small sellers with inane lowered reporting thresholds. For now, I'll just have to take Venmo for state side sales which is owned by PP and does F&F too. Unfortunately no system is safe and even PP can be abused even with checks and balances in place. Having used PP since inception, I've been hard scammed approximately 3 times and soft scammed 3 times as a seller. I've lost count over the years how many transactions I cancelled/refunded because they didn't pass the smell test. It is nearly impossible to be scammed as a buyer as you have so many layers of protection in place but soft scam too many people and you will have your account frozen on PP and eBay as sellers to report what happens after the refund/return. As a seller, one thing PP needs to do is get rid of the 6-month return window and reduce it to 30 days. Half a year is just insane and I had a buyer claim a CPU was faulty before and return it at 5.5 months after purchase. Luckily the CPU was returned and when tested worked just fine but still.... Hard scam = take your money and run (as a buyer) or initiate a return and send back garbage (as a seller). Soft scam = make up an excuse to return a product that fully works or return it broken months later.

Shortage of AD102 variants, absolutely. Everything else? Not so much. If Nvidia launches their refresh at the prices rumored, AMD is in all types of trouble....even more than before. 4080 Super $999? 4070 Super $599? 4070 Super definitely got the biggest spec bump too out of all of them. If true, AMD has to adjust the 7900xtx down to at least $900 or even lower for starters and if the 4070 Ti Super stays at $799? 7900xt will need a light shave too potentially. 7800xt is in trouble as that substantial performance bump of the 4070 Super is definitely in response to the price/performance of the 7800xt.

New owners, new mods, new/different rules. A lot of what used to not fly now gets a pass it seems including just asking $0 and letting offers come in to circumvent the illogical, "You can't ask more than MSRP or how much you paid (with proof) for items." I always thought this was the dumbest rule ever. Let market forces speak especially with binned CPUs that can go for 2-3x MSRP depending on quality (sometimes more). I've never used Zelle so I don't know how it stacks up against PP and Venmo.

If you want to be absolutely sure, when you get it make sure to contact MSI and verify the warranty. There is always a chance of something going bonkers so it never hurts to make sure that particular board has no problems/history/issues that would cause it to not have or be denied warranty service. I've seen stranger things happen with RMAs. Like I found out ordering an Asrock 7900xtx Taichi from Amazon last summer. Zero warranty and it was brand new shipped and sold from Amazon. It also didn't qualify for the free game at the time so back it went within the 30 day window factory sealed.

I did see on Amazon Warehouse they have some used for $277 which is a massive discount over the $449 price. 8 left in stock if that is the direction you wanted to go. Amazon Warehouse also has some pretty good deals on Asus boards too depending on budget, A TUF for $200 + 7950x on ebay for $500 works nicely or a 7600x for now even. For deep pockets, the Asus ROG Crosshair X670E Hero for over $200 off is a nice discount.

Definitely on the 13900k front if the price is right. If you can snag one for less than $400 used, that would be the way to go. Even mid tier Z690/Z790 boards have beefy VRMs.

I know MSI gets a bad rap sometimes, but this is two items in a row recently (3070 and this) the RMA process was easy and straight forward. Turn around was ~14 days by the time I actually got off my duff and retested it to confirm to creating an RMA, getting approval, shipping it back to MSI and getting it back repaired. This update does specifically "Improve long boot time issue" which is really saying improves memory training and startup. I said as much in my review of it lol. Basically you won't reap the same rewards as Intel due to the better designed retention mechanism on AMD (it's one, solid unit and better built) and the uniform CPU shape (aka square) versus rectangle along with the much larger and beefier IHS that can resist more bending forces compared to Intel but every little bit helps and there's no denying it takes any uneven stress off the CPU. There's zero reason not to use one these days even if the gains are minimal for AMD vs Intel. I'm was still running the Beta from October when my MB failed. There have been three bios updates since then. Yup, but for X670e Carbon BIOS updates, one improves USB 3.0 compatibility and finally the newest improves boot times drastically in some cases for ram training on boot. Board has full MSI warranty. Worst case scenario, it follows the serial # and the warranty period is capped by a few months. Best case, you have a legit receipt from an authorized seller. MSI and Asus are the last of a dying breed that follow the serial none of this, "original, registered user only" BS. I registered mine, send a copy of my Amazon receipt and they accepted the start warranty period as of April 2023 (when I bought it). I miss EVGA, but MSI I think is my new, favorite motherboard seller followed closely by Asus. If Vince ends up at MSI, that would just lock it in. AMD GPU = Asrock, Sapphire Nvidia GPU = MSI, Asus (if price is no object)

Back from the dead! Decided to throw in a mounting frame this time around.....oh and a 7950X3D. Currently in the test rig to tune and tweak before potentially moving it back over and pulling the SP115 13900KS setup back out. Just in time for a new BIOS update @Raiderman (dated 1-5-2024)

I agree you just need to slow down and focus on the core components and take up @tps3443 on his generous offer. Decide if you want Intel (13th/14th) or AMD (AM5) then focus on the motherboard, cpu and memory right now. They are the most important out the gate. Snag a PSU and SSD from @tps3443...maybe even a case if shipping is much cheaper than buying a new case. BAM, your core system is ready to go. Then wait for the Supers to drop and prices to adjust accordingly post holidays and pick up a GPU.

I love what Intel is doing but for a primary/initial system I'd recommend Nvidia. Battle tested, mature and they are just the complete package. Definitely wait for the Super cards to hit the market but in the interim, you can build out the core system and have it ready to go when you settle on a GPU. And definitely do NOT get a 4060. Like @cylix recommended, 4070 minimum and wait at least a month (Circa mid February) to pull the trigger on a GPU once the Super dust settles. I was checking the prices on www.memoryexpress.com and they are pretty steep on their configurator. You would still be better served building out on your own, but I get the appeal of just picking your components and a shiny new PC shows up tested and ready to go. 🙂

Homage to EVGA. They must still exist as EVGA helped furnish LTT with some of the parts for this all EVGA build and told LTT PSUs are very much part of their now and future business model.

I like this version better: https://www.alibaba.com/product-detail/Industrial-Portable-PC-Screen-Size-17_1600624524043.html?spm=a2700.wholesale.0.0.4d6e182dxZU5su Larger display and a flat, drop down keyboard instead of the keyboard being several inches off the ground. It is more expensive though. Either way, both need better air flow and support for at least a 240mm AIO to be truly viable.

That 10900k crushed all my other samples including my LTX Gold Edition and another 10900k rated at SP114. It runs so cool. Just a monster chip for the X170SM-G along with a brand new 2080 Super in there too! I wish Clevo would make another X170/P870 type chassis for 14th, 15th (future) or AM5. The problem would be MXM support for newest GPUs.

Sadly, it's true in the laptop space. The NH55 was the last stab at the old replaceable parts design with "only" the GPU soldered in. I've bought and returned two Asus G18s (13900hx, 4080) as you can't do anything with them internally really of meaning and they're built to just not be tinkered within. Every model of laptop offered this last year just left me sad. I'm still hoping Clevo or another company offers a true old school DTR with Ryzen or 15th gen but the market has shifted drastically for the worse. I was wondering what had happened with that 2080 Super! 😞 I think the 4070 Super is a great pick. It is getting the biggest spec bump from all the Super cards and even at $650 it will be a great bang/buck pick. Even before, the 4070 normal was a good buy and one of my picks along with the 4090 IMHO. That 4070 Super is going to wreck your GTX 1080 is all the best possible ways. You're right in regards to forward thinking and socket support with AMD but if you're truly looking to hold onto this system for the next 2-3+ years, why not go for an X670E? I prefer MSI these days and the Carbon or even Tomahawk would be a solid pick. @jaybee83 is running an Asus X670E. @Raiderman is running an X670E Carbon like myself. 7600x is a solid welcome to desktop land CPU leaving optimal room for growth. I take it with your memory selection you are fine with not pushing towards 8000? Personally I haven't seen any meaningful gains opening up another gear with AMD as the AM5 architecture is solidly built around 6000 and the IMC shows this when stepping up a gear opening up to 8000 and online results (outside of memory bandwidth tests). I wouldn't be surprised if their next gen CPUs take advantage of the bandwidth more like Intel does but for now, 6000 is the sweet spot. Maybe see where you can dial it in right above that but never below. Cooler wise, I am still running an AC LF II 420 and as good as my EK Nucleus was for the SFF adventures, the AC LF II is even better. You can't go wrong with it. For optimal cooling, the Lian Li Galahad II Trinity 360mm seems to be the top dog atm (there was a recall on the first gen model with pump issues) but I love AC all in one design with minimal wiring and no software needed at all for control. Just plug it into the CPU fan control header and go. Final bonus is how quiet it runs with those 140mm fans. PSU, I would normally recommend EVGA but after doing some forum surfing on OCN and EVGA themselves, no one can seem to get in contact with support at all. Tickets aren't being supported and they do seem to be dying. My next choice would be Corsair or Seasonic. Corsair for excellent support and Seasonic for superior PSUs overall. Every time I had any type of problem with a product (memory x 2, PSU x 1), Corsair RMA was painless and easy. Welcome to desktops brother! 🙂

*** SOLD ***

**** SOLD ****

Ditto on both fronts. I also have a few back up M.2's and 2.5s for when I will need them. 🙂 That memory bus just kills it for the 4080....

What did the Z790 Apex Encore read for the SP? Sometimes older Asus chipsets aren't always accurate with newer Intel CPUs on the same socket. I know my Z690 D4 read my 13900ks all over the place but my Z790i Strix read it proper even with an initial launch BIOS (which I updated) and matched the seller's Z790 D4 board. Your Z790 chipset is the proper rating whatever it spit back. @tps3443 is alive and well over on the OCN forums. 🙂 Speaking of OCN forums, look at this monster 14900k:

Spot on post bro. I agree with every bit of it. The blessing and the curse of China though is like Japan many years ago they are grossly reliant on sustained output and exports. You can ever so slowly see the wheels turning for many countries who are exploring and implementing alternate manufacturing partners in other countries (India and Vietnam come to mind) to at least have backups when the shoe drops or start to move more production out of China. I expect an economical squeeze on China to slowly ramp up over the next few years on a much grander scale than what was done to Japan. Will it be effective? It depends on several factors one of them being worldwide corporate greed (including Nvidia) looking at the bigger picture and understand profits have a limit. Did you order two of them? According to the review, the listing is slightly misleading as you actually will only receive one heatsink in total with each side representing one of the pieces (hence, 2 pieces). They do look very much like the Byski ram jackets on the DDR4 I picked up from you a few years ago (which are still powering the Mrs. rig at 1:1 4133 on that 12900k).

Easy peasy, right in between the D and 4080 Super so a 4080ti with ~12416 cores and 20GB of memory on a ~320-bit bus for the low low price of $1199-$1399 (depending on final 4080 Super pricing) 🤣 Nice market for those AD102 GPU dies that are seriously defective too. Nvidia lets nothing go to waste. I wonder how many they've built up over the last 15 months......