Replacing X51 R2 with Aurora – which model

Question

Hi Team,

Thinking of replacing my X51 with one of the new Aurora models.

I basically play Battlefield / War Thunder and Arma (with add-ons)

Would like to delve into virtual reality at some point.

Anyone suggest which model I should look at ? on the Dutch site the entry level VR model is the i7 8700 GTX 1060, just wondering if the i5 8400 with the GTX 1050 would suffice.

Thanks for any advice.

Regards

Mark

beamermt79 · Answer

Hello! Short answer is no. The 1050 is not VR 'certified', only 1060 and above last I checked. I believe you have to have an i7 or higher as well but with the 8000 series Intel chips i'm not sure since I haven't read into them as yet. Save yourself some potential issues and get the i7 with the 1060.

Tesla1856 · Answer

For those games (at high res and graphics settings) I suggest

Intel-i7

16gb ram (2 physical DIMMs are better)

Liquid-Cooler and 850w PS

GTX-1070

M.2/NVMe SSD as boot drive (240gb or larger)

... basically, loaded :Smile:

For VR, GTX-1070 will do it, but a GTX-1080 or higher would be better.

Afrokiwi · Answer

@Tesla1856

That’s one **bleep** of a rig , couldn’t quite justify the 2K spend, cut down on a few things, Dell really do have a huge markup on discs and memory. Thanks for the input.

Why do I see people recommending 250 or 500 GB SSD, why not 1TB, is there a technical reason or is it simply price?

Afrokiwi · Answer

Thanks !! :-)

Tesla1856 · Answer

@Afrokiwi wrote:

@Tesla1856

1. That’s one **bleep** of a rig , couldn’t quite justify the 2K spend, cut down on a few things,

2. Dell really do have a huge markup on discs and memory. Thanks for the input.

3. Why do I see people recommending 250 or 500 GB SSD, why not 1TB, is there a technical reason or is it simply price?

1. If you want to play those kind of games (in high res), machine usable for at least 3 years, and toying with VR ... that's what it costs. It's not like I am recommending an Area51-R4.

Sure, I have an Aurora-R6, but I've also still got my Aurora-R1 from 2010 in service. Who just needs one computer these days? Now with a SSD and GTX-1070 ... hopefully it will stay relevant for another 3 years. It was a good buy.

2. Memory? I guess a bit but it's not too bad if you stick to mainstream configs. Same with HDD/SSD. The Samsungs are pretty nice and anything M2.NVMe is pricey.

3. Right, cost. Same reason you think $1700 is too much. Seldom played large games and data-files can go on cheaper conventional 2.5inch SSD or even a spinner HDD. Both of those you could add later.

Afrokiwi · Answer

So I can simply add or replace the existing drive with a 1 TB M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD ? there are slots available (hadn’t even heard of M.2 until you mentioned it, looks like a memory stick on steroids to me)

Tesla1856 · Answer

Yes, you can. However, there is only ONE M.2-NVMe slot.

However, the most cost effective and long-run easiest solution would be to:

1. Pre-Config and buy with affordable 512gb M.2-NVMe SSD for OS, Apps, Utils.

2. Load a few of your favorite (large) games there too.

3. In months or years when you start running out of room, add your own (cheaper) 2.5inch SATA-SSD and/or 2-4gb spinner HDD.

Much easier and no disk-imaging required. Just add-on (don't redo or re-buy)

Afrokiwi · Answer

Darn, when I did the configuration of my rig yesterday I didn’t see that the 1T and 512 GB were M.2 discs, I just thought they were overprices SSDs. My plan was to purchase a M.2 separately using the 2 TB hard drive as a data disc. Is this still an option for me, as in can I add the M.2 and use a recovery disc (I am hoping rig comes with one) to create a M.2 system disc?

How difficult is it to physical add the M.2, I am told it fits onto the motherboard.

Tesla1856 · Answer

@Afrokiwi wrote:

1. My plan was to purchase a M.2 separately using the 2 TB hard drive as a data disc. Is this still an option for me,

2. as in can I add the M.2 and use a recovery disc to create a M.2 system disc?

3. (I am hoping rig comes with one)

4. How difficult is it to physical add the M.2, I am told it fits onto the motherboard.

1. Yes

2. Might require a clean-install

3. No, but you can make a USB flash-drive one, or download an ISO

4. Easy

Tesla1856 · Answer

@Afrokiwi wrote:

1. My plan was to purchase a M.2 separately using the 2 TB hard drive as a data disc. Is this still an option for me,

2. as in can I add the M.2 and use a recovery disc (I am hoping rig comes with one) to create a M.2 system disc?

3. How difficult is it to physical add the M.2, I am told it fits onto the motherboard.

Not sure what happened to my other post. :Angry:

1. Yes

2. Might take a clean-install

3. Easy

Afrokiwi · Answer

Received my R7 rig last weekend, swapped the 1T disc with a 1T M2 (why doesn’t Dell or Samsun supply a screw!!), wow, 10 seconds to fully logged in, very impressive plus ARMA 3 runs like a dream at 60 FPS everything set to ultra/high, seriously impressed.

I did have to do a clean install (no recovery image??) and download all the drivers/apps from the corresponding Dell support site.

I also had to set SATA Operation to AHCI in the Bios to be able to boot off the W10 USB, is that as expected ?

A very happy Aurora owner

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Replacing X51 R2 with Aurora – which model

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