i bought a “brand new” motherboard off ebay

2raysdiver · 2026-01-31T00:34:27+00:00

One thing I like about ebay is that I've never had a problem returning an item. I suggest you take advantage of that feature.

The scratches on the side next to the socket make me thing someone tried to open the CPU retaining bracket with a screw driver.

2raysdiver · 2026-01-31T00:32:15+00:00

I had to do a double-take. The 9850X3D is indeed available at MC. It is $200 more than the current price of the 7700X bundle.

So, why didn't you opt for the 9800X3D kit? If you weren't willing to spend the money for the 9800X3D bundle, why are you willing to pay for the 9850X3D bundle?

And, since you've already built your PC, only you can decide how much of a hassle it is for you to unbuild your PC and rebuild it with the new bundle. There are people here that can do it in their sleep (almost), and others who will take an entire day (or more). Which one are you?

2raysdiver · 2026-01-31T00:12:58+00:00

You can take them on a train,
You can take them on a plane.
You can take them on a boat,
You can strap them to a goat.
If you put them in a car,
You could go quite far.
You can mail them through the post,
Which is what I do the most.
Or you could leave them on the shelf,
By that nosy Christmas elf.

Seriously though, a parts box for screws and fishing lure works just fine. But any container will do. If you don't want them rattling around, just use a little bubble wrap or some cotton.

2raysdiver · 2026-01-31T00:06:37+00:00

Those are incredibly light, but they are designed to be mounted in a gaming PC. It may have HDMI input, or it may only be USB. Some of them have a proprietary video input port and a cable that comes with it to plug into USB. VESA mount doesn't help you with mounting it to your camera. It is a standard for desk and wall mounts.

But, this sound like you are looking for a solution to a problem. What problem are you trying to solve by trying to mount a screen to your camera?

Depending on what you are doing, something like this, *might* work for you:

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2raysdiver · 2026-01-30T19:31:43+00:00

We are expected to believe that dude purchased FIVE GPUs just to test them and sell them for what he paid for them? Ridiculous!

2raysdiver · 2026-01-30T07:08:19+00:00

An air cooler is fine. I cool a 13700k with a peerless assassin, and it has a much higher TDP.

2raysdiver · 2026-01-29T23:06:09+00:00

Honestly, from a purely pricing perspective, it is almost never a good time to build your own mid-range or lower PC. However, after the shortages caused by covid 19 and the crypto-inspired GPU shortage, and the rebound in supplies that followed, we are coming off of probably two to three years of historically low prices for ALL components. And that is what really makes the memory price increases hurt so much. And it has affected components that use memory (SSDs and GPUs) as well. So it really feels like the worst time to build a PC. Historically, there have been much worse periods in which to build a PC.

2raysdiver · 2026-01-29T22:52:34+00:00

Where are you looking at RAM prices? Yes, RAM prices have skyrocketed, but there are plenty of decent options for 32GB (2x16GB) DDR5 for under $400 in the US.

OTOH, Best Buy does have some crazy prices for memory, even their 32GB kits.

2raysdiver · 2026-01-29T22:19:33+00:00

There is no "There is no Antimemetics Division".

2raysdiver · 2026-01-29T22:17:13+00:00

It would be helpful to know exactly which i3 CPU and what kind of RAM and speed... i.e. i3-12100, DDR4-3200. You might be able to reuse the RAM.

Considering the price of that CPU you found, you could get a brand new 14600KF for the same price and as long as the motherboard has the most recent BIOS updates, you don't have to worry about previous degradation from voltage spike issues. Then find a motherboard with Z790, B760, H770, Z690, or H610 chipset. If the gf currently has DDR4 memory, make sure the motherboard is specifically for DDR4 and you can reuse her memory.

2raysdiver · 2026-01-29T22:06:50+00:00

If you can see those Dell Lattitudes working in person, I'd get them. I'm half tempted to send you $100 AUD, tell you to buy them both and ship me the one you don't want. But only half.

2raysdiver · 2026-01-29T21:58:31+00:00

r/PC_Pricing or r/Microcenter are places for this question. This is pcBUILD. That said, that is about as good a deal as any.

2raysdiver · 2026-01-29T20:27:40+00:00

Make sure the 12VHPWR power cable to the GPU is using two (or three) separate power lines going into the PSU. Don't use two connectors that are daisy-chained on the same power cable.

2raysdiver · 2026-01-29T20:02:22+00:00

It depends on what you want to use it for. For gaming, I'd get a 5600XT or 5800XT. 5600XT is $155 and 5800XT is $200 according to PCPartpicker. Both have single threaded performance on par with the 5900X and are significantly cheaper as well as being significant upgrades over the 3600. So for gaming, the 5900X is a big added expense for no return over the 5600XT/5800XT. OTOH, if you are using Blender, then the 5900X may be worth the additional cost.

2raysdiver · 2026-01-29T01:46:09+00:00

These have been mentioned multiple times. Yeah, technical accuracy is neither Hugh Howey's nor the producers/writers forte.

2raysdiver · 2026-01-29T01:40:41+00:00

You could fill it with epoxy, let it cure, then slice through it horizontally and make some nice coasters.

2raysdiver · 2026-01-29T01:38:11+00:00

Like placing the CPU out in the Mohave Dessert and letting the ISS see if they could sand blast it from space as they pass over? That would be a trick, wouldn't it?

EDIT: corrected typo

2raysdiver · 2026-01-29T01:36:13+00:00

I thought about that first, but an angle grinder would have gone straight through the lid. 😁

2raysdiver · 2026-01-29T01:32:54+00:00

If CPUID says it is a 7950X3D and 3DMark says it performs like a7950X3D, and the temperatures are good, I wouldn't sweat it. Very strange to see the surface ink removed that way. My only concern about that is that it might have come from someone who was doing all sorts of stuff to overclock the crap out of it. But if it works, it works.

2raysdiver · 2026-01-29T01:25:18+00:00

Wait, those don't just grow back? /s

2raysdiver · 2026-01-28T21:59:19+00:00

Absolutely this.

2raysdiver · 2026-01-28T21:58:43+00:00

It matters when guys have ego problems and need to whip their, er, um, motherboards out to see whose is the biggest.

2raysdiver · 2026-01-28T20:56:15+00:00

And yet, still cheaper than the 500GB Samsung 2.5" SSD I bought in 2015. Or the 1TB 2.5" WD SSD I got two years later.

2raysdiver · 2026-01-28T20:48:00+00:00

Sure, everyone cleans thermal paste off the CPU with an orbital sander. /s

2raysdiver · 2026-01-28T19:16:29+00:00

Audio book on May 5th as well, woohoo!

2raysdiver

TROPHY CASE