PC upgrade - second (larger) SSD?

pjm1

pjm1

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Current PC is getting sluggish with PS smart sharpen etc and I really don't want to upgrade the mobo but that might be what you end up recommending me :(

Gigabyte GA-H81M-HD3 mobo
i7-4790K 4GHz
16GB RAM maxed out
100GB SDD for boot disk, page, scratch etc. - on SATA3
1TB HDD for files, system backup - currently on second and final SATA3
2TB external network drive for system+HDD backup
Cloud storage for more backup, file storage, versioning etc.

So I can't increase my RAM without ripping out my mobo and replacing... which may be the next step as 16GB could be my limiting factor here.
But immediate concerns are the lack of boot disk space - I've survived with 100GB for a couple of years now but I'm tempted to switch in either a 500GB Samsung 850 Evo or maybe a slightly slower 1TB SSD. The HDD would then be moved to one of the two SATA2 connectors.

Any thoughts? Given I spend about 10-15 minutes each week "managing" my storage, gut feel is I need to address that first.

Second related question is whether there's any benefit these days from setting boot disk as the larger SSD and then having page file, scratch files etc. on the second 100GB SSD? Is there an optimal page file size? I'm running with 15GB now.

Cheers!
 
No - only 9GB used... good point.

My main point of pain is Smart Sharpen in PS. Even with medium-res D750 files it's taking maybe a minute to apply changes / adjust opacity or blend mode etc. Everything else is fine - just SS, which unfortunately I do use :(

Also my Haswell i7 used to overhead terribly (without overclocking) so I've had to set it to autothrottle. Which is a bit frustrating having a fast processor which is limiting itself some of the time because of temp issues. Perhaps I should have RMAd it, but it's probably too late now!
 
Yes, but I think it's a problem with those Haswells - and changing cooler apparently didn't affect the problem. As I said, I should have RMA'd it when I had the chance but I bought the CPU when it was first released so I've had it probably close to 2 years now! It used to shutdown when I played Elite - which I now don't have time to mess around with... as photography has replaced that particular pastime :)
 
neil_g said:
could look at the AiO sealed water coolers?

what sort of temps does it run?
Click to expand...

If I dethrottle it, it jumps up to 100c under reasonable load. This is at stock timings etc. (it's a K and I did originally envisage OCing - not any more obviously!)

And that triggers an emergency shutdown, obviously.

From the research I did it seems there may have been a dodgy batch of 4790s and no amount of cooling will fix it :(
 
neil_g said:
not even if you delid and/or redo the thermal goo under the lid?

surely if its a known issue then you should still get the option to replace it.
Click to expand...

Yeah probably should - I'll speak to the place I bought it from and do a bit of googlery.

In the meantime I've ordered a 500GB SSD. For £110 it seemed like a worthwhile "business expense" - this is a work computer after all :) I'll ghost the OS over tomorrow when it arrives and at least I'll have more space until I fill it all up again!
 
I delidded my 4790k. No throttling issues before hand but did get a nice temp drop after removing the crap stock paste* and replacing it with cool lab liquid ultra. *NB I am aware the black goo is the main issue however.
 
Don't use thermal compound buy some liquid metal
 
Ok, thanks Mark.

New SSD installed alongside existing one and the HDD. Currently running Reflect to clone the original OS SSD to the new one. I'll probably leave the old one sitting as it is for a week until I'm happy I haven't messed anything up, then I'll have a play with moving page files, scratch etc.

Also, I've managed to get my CPU to run at a consistent 4GHz which should really be much of an achievement, but it took a lot of fiddling to get it off "dynamic" mode. Unfortunately the CPU temps are now sitting at about 90C :( with just 2 cores active. As soon as I do anything complicated in PS etc., it starts thermal throttling again - albeit not to the extent it was before (reducing the multiplier down to 10x from 40x!)

I can OC it to 4.2GHz without mucking around with voltages but the core temps start going silly, so I'm going to leave off that until it's more stable at stock.

Cheers - will let you now how I get on with the new SSD.
 
Yeah - it's been like that since I got it TBF. I didn't realise that was the issue until it started rebooting randomly. It's better with the case side off (currently at 76 with a youtube video running and LR loaded) but something's not right.

I might just order a new cooler just to see if it improves things.

Cheers all (the new SSD is great - it's nearly empty :) )
 
Currently I am running a NZXT Kraken X31 AIO over the top of a G3258 chip and the temps are silly low. Not yet had chance to put in a 4790k even though one is sitting outside the case so can not say yet what the temps will be like on that chip. If it the current chip that is the problem, maybe an i5 4690 if hyper-threading is not needed may be a way to go as that chip and X31 is the same price as a 4790k on its own.
 
If you know its a known problem then its simply a faulty product and you shouldn’t have to deal with the consequences.
1 - get a print out, link, pdf export of the web page of it being recognised as such with this batch from multiple reputable sources.
2 - Install and run something like CPUID, and taking a screenshot showing the temperature without throttling when idle and make a video on your phone/camera of the screen showing the temp rise under load and thermal cut off.
3 - upload the evidence to dropbox and send the company you bought it from a link and ask for a replacement.
4 - if no joy then go to Citizens Advice who should be able to provide some leverage.


Under EU law you have the minimum right to a 2 year guarantee for faulty products.
http://europa.eu/youreurope/citizens/consumers/shopping/guarantees-returns/index_en.htm

Good luck
 
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