I just built a gaming pc and would appreciate some advice on Benchmark and Burn-in (I believe I updated all the drivers for video, systemboard, etc on Windows 10 )

1. what should I use to Benchmark a low-mid range gaming PC?

2. What software should I use to burn-in and monitor temps?

Asrock Z170

i5-6500

EVGA GTx970

Samsung SSD 250gb

Thanks for the quick response PredatorRules and redskins26rocs, i appreciate it!

Looks like I can't go wrong with either of those builds.

Uhm, that Corsair 250d looks kick ass....either that or the sales pitch video on newegg is just really good.

Purpose: Gaming only (likely on existing 1920x1200 Planar Monitor)

Case: mini ITX ( Bit Fenix? Cooler Master? Lian Li?)

PSU:

MOBO:

CPU:

RAM:

HDD:

SSD:

GPU:

OS: Windows 8.1

Budget: $1500 US (big fan of newegg.com so will likely purchase there)

It's that time again. My gaming PC is 4 years old and starting to feel the frame rate pain.

I would appreciate some advice on the general build I want to go for.

PC:

I've been bouncing around the idea of a mini itx build because that's something i haven't done before. But i'm not opposed to just getting a monstrous Coolermaster case and just get the job done.

Monitor:

I've been using the Planar’s PX2611W IPS Panel for a few years. Was expensive but well worth it in my opinion.

I Don't know whether to stick with Planar IPS, buy another one and have 2 going. Or go the 30" monitor route

Installing theXFX 5870 was a snap. Noise increase over my old video card is minimal. I was a bit concerned about the size of the card from all of the posts I've seen, but it fit easily into my Cooler Master Case.

I had a chance to test drive the card on Dragon Age II, Star Craft II, and Mass Effect 2 and it was surprisingly smooth with settings maxxed out. (Metro 2033 wouldn't launch due to a Physx error, so I'll have to try that later this week)

I'm feeling more confident that my 3 year old system is going to do well with Dragon Age II, Witcher 2, and whatever 2011 has to throw at it. 2012 though? I'm not so sure :roll:

I ran a 3dmark11 on it and got a 4046.

Thanks for all the replies. I do appreciate it!

I just ordered the XFX 5870 from Newegg.

I've been wanting to upgrade my video card for the past year.
Been running games fairly smooth at 1920x1200 for the past three years, but the frames rates are finally starting to slow down a bit.

I want to get upgraded and stablized before Dragon Age 2 and witcher 2 came out.(on high settings, not necessarily ULTIMATE settings)

$220 after rebate for an XFX 5870 seems like a helluva deal. I was also eying the 6950 and 6970, but was wondering if it would be like putting a dress on a pig...?

Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L
Q6600 G0
PC Power and Cooling S61EPS 610W Power Supply
G.SKILL 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL4D-4GBPK
EVGA 8800 GTS G92
Tuniq Tower
Windows 7 Ultimate x64
26" Planar PX2611W (1920x1200)
3DMARK06= 13,961 (11,800 before overclock)
Built 03/04/08 from Newegg ($895+tax)

How comes your psu is compatible with i7 yet all your other hardware is older than i7's release date, thats funny :DSPBoss

I couldn't even remember what power supply I had, so I had to look up the part number from my original New Egg invoice and search on the site. I guess they updated the description.

I built this box for $895+ tax on 03/04/08. Bought25 or so PC games in that time and they all played on high settings at 1920x1200. (except Crysis of course)

So when guys on this site say you can build a great gaming pc for under $1000 it's no joke!

I appreciatethe recommendations.Can my power supply handle it?

PC Power and Cooling S61EPS 610W Continuous @ 40°C EPS12V SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply compatible with core i7

PSU PCPWRCL|S610EPS RT

17-703-005

Been running games fairly smooth at 1920x1200 for the past couple years, but the frames rates are finally starting to slow down a bit. For Examples Star Craft2 was playable, but FPS wasn't quite as good as I'd like. I'd like to get another year out of this gaming rig if I could by upgrading the graphics card, but unsure of what cards would be a good upgrade to. I don't want to make the mistake of going overkill and getting a $400 card when a $200 would do the same thing in this 2.5 yr old beast.

Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L
Q6600 G0
G.SKILL 4GB(2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL4D-4GBPK
EVGA 8800 GTS G92
Tuniq Tower
Vista Ultimate x64
26" Planar PX2611W (1920x1200)
3DMARK06= 13,961 (11,800 before overclock)