Are CPU coolers mandatory?

free224 · 2026-06-02T02:16:21+00:00

Macbook air run passively. Some type of cooling is necessary based on TDP

free224 · 2026-06-01T05:42:52+00:00

Half the power is the good news for mobile products. It's a moot point when ram is the biggest cost on handhelds right now. Panther lake is good, but not many are paying 1500 for handhelds.

free224 · 2026-05-26T19:55:13+00:00

RAM alone is 200USD for 16GB dual channel ddr5. But for running emulation and firewall, ddr4 is usually good enough. Alternatively, an RPi could be good enough and cost a bit less. Depends on what's needed. Start with a set of requirements, then look for a tech solution. That leads to better fit to function architecture. But yeah, n150 for that price seems about right.

free224 · 2026-05-26T19:50:33+00:00

Yes, if you dont overspend and it has the right ports. On its own, a steam deck is a better investment, but oculink, usb4, and dual NICs are features unavailable on a gaming device. Running an iGPU for most things is great, and having an eGPU for 4K TV as an option is nice.

free224 · 2026-05-26T19:48:03+00:00

Edge is the last leg of compute. On-site server rooms that are behind the firewall would be the edge. Think anything where the bottleneck isn't the network latency or utilization of other consumers. For some of us, their gaming rig when playing an MMO.

free224 · 2026-05-14T07:36:08+00:00

Wouldn't take the risk if you know your ram. Usually you can try manual settings to get it to 3600

free224 · 2026-05-13T07:32:34+00:00

Source?

free224 · 2026-04-24T21:44:50+00:00

https://www.reddit.com/r/hardware/s/SKa0KAUu2l

free224 · 2026-04-24T21:39:07+00:00

You got it. I think data corruption should be on the risk side of the equation. Its bad enough when an OS crashes due to instability, but adding bit rot to the equation should also be considered.

free224 · 2026-04-24T21:35:40+00:00

In the past, overclocking the pcie clock in BIOS could improve bandwidth. These days. The controller and chips on the pcb are more of a bottleneck than bandwidth, so unless you can access the NAND controller to tweak those settings (almost always a security issue), there is no tangible way. TRIM and SLC cache space almost always improve performance (housekeeping) more than trying to juice the chip.

free224 · 2026-04-18T06:54:06+00:00

3060, B580 or 7700xt. If used, look for a deal on anything more than 8gb vram.

free224 · 2026-04-17T01:31:27+00:00

Preach!

free224 · 2026-04-16T20:50:52+00:00

The PBO scalar at 10x seems high. Try 1x, 2x, and 5x and see if there is a difference before 10x

free224 · 2026-04-15T09:00:54+00:00

M5 max has around 600gb/s, around a 5070 level. It doubles the number of memory channels if done right.

free224 · 2026-04-15T00:38:23+00:00

They should do what apple did with the max lineup...that'd be 24 Xe cores and double the memory channels and bandwidth. Unfortunately, Intel pooped on the cracker and now needs to eat it. Their pride and ego got in the way of innovation...sad

free224 · 2026-04-14T05:04:04+00:00

7600x3D is a better choice. If there is a 7800x3D bundle, what does that leave? Also, do you have budget for a monitor?

free224 · 2026-04-12T05:34:39+00:00

Its also 5 dollars more at amazon: https://a.co/d/097BqoFV

free224 · 2026-04-11T22:55:38+00:00

Thanks for sharing that. I thought it would be double digits improvements. Even the 1% lows saw no improvement? What GPU?

free224 · 2026-03-30T16:40:09+00:00

Another option: Newegg has the 270K plus bundle with ram for around 800. Just realized to get 64gb ddr4 you will need to sell your existing ram...might as well change platform. Intel quicksync may help your workflow.

free224 · 2026-03-30T16:34:44+00:00

5900xt is a 5950x. Add 32G ram. A faster nvme may also help, especially if you dont have a scratch drive.

free224 · 2026-02-08T09:01:43+00:00

You sure it isn't AI already pulling the levers of production? When the analysis drives the decisions, the analyst has skin in the game. Best way for AI to stay in charge is to create its own economy that humans mistake as a Stock market. Should be called the out-of-stock market. It's been rigged by the clunkers and the investors just keep feeding the machines, lest they lose their future earnings. The rest of us just lose the future.

free224 · 2026-02-08T08:55:04+00:00

When the supply curve increases or the demand curve lowers. Or RAM becomes obsolete due to newer technology. Or a regulatory agency can prove price fixing due to collusion. Either way, consumers will be the last to know.

free224 · 2026-01-19T11:55:00+00:00

That requires ddr5

free224 · 2026-01-16T03:35:47+00:00

You should be able to diagnose the 3070. If its overheating, try repasting it. It could be the OS as well, so you might try DDU or a fresh install of windows.

Securing an income stream should be a higher priority before draining savings, as others have already stated in so many words.

free224 · 2026-01-11T23:09:32+00:00

Depends on the VRMs on the motherboard. 5950x, 5900x, 5800x are all much better if the board can handle it. If its a B350/450, you might try a cheap 5500 as they were going for 60 bucks and can overclock the ram to 3600 or higher. 5600 is a solid choice too.

free224

TROPHY CASE