PC help

Use the latest one. Don't upgrade your bios regularly like you would with regular software though. Failure on installing a bios is a mess.
 
DJM said:
You can install the @BIOS utility software for the board from the site and update and flash the BIOS through windows. Guaranteed to get the latest and correct BIOS firmware.

http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=4568#utility
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Thanks! It worked. Not sure why I did not see the updates to the bios in my search. This tool made it simple and my pc actually booted up! Turned it off now, need to buy some thermal paste. Thanks everyone for the help, much appreciated!!!
 
Good to hear. Is that i7 unlocked? My unlocked i5 runs at 4.6Ghz vs 3.5Ghz stock.
 
Intel CPU numbers that end in K are multiplier unlocked
 
I have an Octacore Amd fx8500 overclocked to 4.5ghz.I be ballin' ;)
 
wonderings said:
No idea what that means. I am a Mac guy playing in the pic world learning as I go about all this.
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Unlocking has to do with overclocking.

Your speed is calculated by frequency * multiplier generally speaking. There's some other settings involved that I don't remember off the top of my head. The problem with locked processors is that the multiplier is locked, meaning you have to change the frequency. Changing the frequency affects RAM speed which adds another variable to stress/stability test.

Generally speaking, CPUs containing the same architecture or generation are created in batches. The yield of each CPU is different (how fast they can go) on initial batches. So what Intel and AMD do is market the underperformers as different "models". After a few batches, the yields get much better but the models remain. So what I normally do is buy the cheapest (slowest) model in the line and overclock it beyond what the top model is capable of.

Note that this is not as effective on models that have cores laser locked; much more common in GPUs.
 
wonderings said:
No idea what that means. I am a Mac guy playing in the pic world learning as I go about all this.
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CPU's run based on a "heartbeat" produced by a signal.
For a simple example, say the CPU can do 1 instruction per heartbeat, and there are 100 heartbeats per second.
If we change the signal so that there are 110 heartbeats per second, then the CPU will be able to do more in one second, at a cost of more heat being produced.

The CPU's are rated and tested based upon how fast they can run, but there is some leeway.
So you can afford to replace it, then you run it faster, and just buy a new one if you burn it out.

That's why some hunks of metal (heat sinks), and fans are so expensive now.

Personally, I tend to bottom feed i.e. buy stuff as it's becoming obsolete and the prices are lowest.
Even less current CPU's can run my games and multitask just fine, it tends to be the internet that's the bottleneck.
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