What's going on with this?

[Meatwad]

Dell used to use a proprietary mounting pattern for the motherboards which did not allow for standard motherboards to be mounted in the case.

Dell also used to do things like reverse the positive and negative 5V lines so you could not use a standard power supply either.

I say "used to" as it has been a while since I tore a Dell apart.  It is just something to be cautious about.

Last Dell case I tore apart still did this, it was a server case though. But a dremel and a tap kit made a standard motherboard fit in it just fine. I also used a non Dell power supply too just in case

[Puma44]

I have desire for VR at some point.  At this point, I'm not inclined to keep patching the current rig.  To be honest, I'm not all that motivated to build.  It's that "I don't know what I don't know" factor and follow on issues. 

[FLS]

You could buy a VR gaming computer with a cheaper nvidia video card, put in your 1070 and sell the other card.

[Puma44]

You could buy a VR gaming computer with a cheaper nvidia video card, put in your 1070 and sell the other card.

That has also been in the list of considerations. 

[Bizman]

Puma, building a PC is not hard at all. If you can build with Lego blocks, you can build a computer. Planning a good compilation is the difficult part, but here you have the best community to help. Just tell your budget and the tasks you wish your new system to perform and you'll soon get a shopping list.

If you still don't want to build it yourself, take that list and your video card to a local builder shop and let them do the assembling. There's advantages in that approach, the main one being that you don't have to worry about potential DOA components.

I am somewhat skeptic about any brand computers, they tend to dump soon-to-be obsolete components into their semi-budget systems.

[Puma44]

Thanks for the ideas Bizman. I'm considering a build via a very reputable local shop after coming up with a desired build list.  Cost: $2,000 max.  VR ready for down the road.  I want it to have up to date gear that can be modernized/upgraded in the future.

My computer room/cockpit is upstairs in the warmer part of the house and will remain there.  So, I want max efficiency cooling capability.

I have the 1070 card (8GB) and a Sound Blaster card to remove from the dead rig.  Both are 3-4 months new and were working perfectly when the MOBO died.  So, the desire is to use in the new rig.

Here's a list that I've come up with as a starting point:

  Intel I7-7700K processor, 4 cores, 8mb cache, Turbo boost 2.0, overclocked up to 4.4 ghz.

  850W multi GPU w/high performance liquid cooling.

  32gb DDPR4@ 2400mhz, capability to expand to 64gb.

  256gb PCIe SSD boot

  2 TB 7200 rpm SATA 6gb storage

  Tray loading dual layer DVD burner

  Intel 3165 1X1 802.11ac wireless LAN & Bluetooth 4.2

------------------------------------------------------

  Ready and capable of future VR


So, how's this list look?  Also, I'm interested in tower options.  Bring it on.  Thanks gents!   

[SJ001]

This is common with 10x nVidia card, I have a 1080, I figured it out but cant remember now, so don't spent lots of money or reformat yet, Ill try to see if I can remember what I did to stop it.

I think it was loose connection of card, yep remembering now, shut down PC, remove card, clean and reconnect, I also remember that didn't do it but worth checking, what finally fixed me was the power going to the card, shut down, unplug the 6 pin power connector going to card, clean and re-plug.

Good Luck!

Slam

[SJ001]

There is actually two 6 pin connectors, just looked, I swapped them around, Hadn't had the issue since.

[Puma44]

My mobo is dead.  It's a proprietary Dell.  I'm moving on with a new build.  Read below for the history.  Thanks!

[SJ001]

Ahh, OK, I did scan the replies, didn't read to accurate the full 4 pages, good luck, I just knew I didn't have a power problem and kept digging and fixed mine, sorry it wasn't the same issue for you.

Slam

[Puma44]

No sweat.  Thanks for the try.

[FLS]

Thanks for the ideas Bizman. I'm considering a build via a very reputable local shop after coming up with a desired build list.  Cost: $2,000 max.  VR ready for down the road.  I want it to have up to date gear that can be modernized/upgraded in the future.

My computer room/cockpit is upstairs in the warmer part of the house and will remain there.  So, I want max efficiency cooling capability.

I have the 1070 card (8GB) and a Sound Blaster card to remove from the dead rig.  Both are 3-4 months new and were working perfectly when the MOBO died.  So, the desire is to use in the new rig.

Here's a list that I've come up with as a starting point:

  Intel I7-7700K processor, 4 cores, 8mb cache, Turbo boost 2.0, overclocked up to 4.4 ghz.

  850W multi GPU w/high performance liquid cooling.

  32gb DDPR4@ 2400mhz, capability to expand to 64gb.

  256gb PCIe SSD boot

  2 TB 7200 rpm SATA 6gb storage

  Tray loading dual layer DVD burner

  Intel 3165 1X1 802.11ac wireless LAN & Bluetooth 4.2

------------------------------------------------------

  Ready and capable of future VR


So, how's this list look?  Also, I'm interested in tower options.  Bring it on.  Thanks gents!   

Which motherboard?

16 megs RAM is probably plenty.

If you use the I-7 you'll have to use Win10.

You don't need the SSD.

You don't need liquid cooling.

650W power supply is enough. Brand is important.

Just my opinion.   

[Puma44]

Which motherboard?  Another one of those "I don't know what I don't know" issues.  I've never had to shop for on, and it definitely won't be a Dell.

Which brand power supplies are recommended? 

Thanks for the input.

[Bizman]

Which motherboard? A full size ATX with a Z170 or Z270 chipset made by a reputable manufacturer. The price range varies from $86 to $378, but the most expensive ones aren't necessarily any better than the cheapest ones.

Seasonic is the most recommendable power supply manufacturer these days.

For the tower choose one that's sturdy and made using lots of mesh for best airflow.

Plus what FLS said about water cooling and SSD. And RAM, you can always add more if needed.

Oh, and if at all possible don't use wireless for gaming. Wired is full duplex, wireless is half duplex. What that means is that when an error occurs a wired connection will inform about it immediately using another lane whereas wireless will wait until there's no incoming traffic. Think about a home yard lane vs. a two way road.

[Puma44]

Thanks guys!  I really appreciate the input and ideas.

My reasoning on a Boot SSD and a conventional storage hard drive is based on past failure events.  Twice in the past, I have had the single conventional hard drive in a computer fail beyond recovery.  I may be wrong but, it seems that a single hard drive may get worked harder as both a boot and storage drive.  I say that based only my experience with the current dead mobo computer.  It originally had two conventional hard drives.  The one used as the boot failed.  I replaced it with an SSD and have had zero problems with it in almost seven years.  I also use an external backup storage source.

As I consider options for the build, using the current SSD and conventional hard drives would save on the cost.  I also plan to use the 1070 card and Creative sound card, both of which are 3-4 months new.

Why do I not want liquid cooling?  Is it better to load up with fans in a well configured tower? Consider that I'm in Arizona.  In the summer months, even with air conditioning, my upstairs computer location stays somewhat warm.  My current dead mobo rig has liquid cooling, three fans, but no side or top vents/mesh.  I've not had any obvious issues with it. 

Understand about the RAM.  I'd rather add more now and not have to later.

My current rig has a 750W power supply.  It was originally equipped with dual Radeon 4800 cross fired graphics cards before the game update and install of the 1070 card.

Good recommendation about wireless gaming.  That option was just a thought.  Not something I currently do or have plans for in the future.  So, I'll scratch that.

What are the differences between the Z170 and Z270 chipsets?  Which is recommended for my purposes?

In general, I prefer to overbuild a bit versus having to update later.

Thanks again for the input gents!  You've provided a lot of valuable info for consideration, not to mention making me a lot more knowledgeable.