Hi!

I have read the threads on building a poker sim/gaming PC and still need help...

I have played poker for many years but have NEVER used a solver. Right now it seems very daunting and a bit overwhelming, but I'm moving forward. I originally was going to build a PC based off the 3950x but then thought, "Well, the more cores the better so go TR 3960x" but I could be getting ahead of myself, so I'm posting here.

I've read solves taking days/weeks to run but I also know that's due to the complexity (BBs, number of players, different bet sizes, etc) of the solves. Do you guys find that you are often running super complex solves that take days/weeks? Is there a huge time difference between a 3950 & 3960? As a complete beginner will I be able to grow into a 3950 and still find it useful/efficient a year from now when I'm much more experienced?

I should mention I started buying the parts before reason got the best of me and already have: 1) Kraken Z73 (I learned afterwards that this is not ideal for TR processors as it doesn't cover the entire chip when cooling 2) 64g of Trident Neo Z 3600 RAM 3) Corsair AX1000 PSU

I'm still confused about how much storage I will need and was thinking about a 2TB SSD + a 4TB mechanical? But still not sure what goes on what and why...

I don't know whether I will be using Simple or Pio and anyone who has a strong opinion on either I would love to hear it. Right now I lean towards Simple.

I would also like this PC to run COD Modern Warfare, Flight Sim 2020, GTA etc at very good/excellent settings (I realize flight sim 2020 is designed for hardware to catch up to all it offers) so I'm thinking of waiting a couple of weeks to hear about nvidias new GPU's.

Misc question: Has anyone used a coach to learn how to use a solver that they would recommend?

Thanks so much for any help!

BY,

What's your budget here? What country are you in?

Hey Josem,

3-4K. USA, NYC.

postflop solvers work more than fine on any Ryzen 7 and 32gb ram
preflop and multi-way ye it could do with a bit more cpu and at least 64g gigs of ram, so a 3900x/3950x make sense
TR is overkill unless you plan on building massive databases and working the system 24/7

so if pre or mw are not in your plans, a 3700x is golden imo

Thanks, ion!

I really appreciate the feedback! If I went for the 3950 and say the Asus 570 Hero Viii mobo what would you recommend for SSD: 970 evo+ vs PCIe4 like sabrent rocket? For a mechanical HD is 4TB good?

Do you have a solver you like? Also, do you do any sim coaching?

Oh and lastly, what do you think about AIO cooling (Z73) vs Dark Rock Pro TR4?

Thank you so much for help!

ye I think a 3950 is the best value for money in the context of having to buy an all new pc, because you'd be paying just as much for ram/mobo/gpu/psu/case etc if you went for the 3900, so at the end of the day, when you draw the line, the system with the better cpu will yield a higher performance/$

as far as I'm aware, 970 Evo / WD Black SN750 / Sabrent Rocket / Adata SX8200pro are all great choices, just get the one that's cheaper or on sale imo

saved sims are not that large, I have 1 Tb of storage and have been working hard to fill half of that with solver files, so unless you have other large files like blue ray movies, lossless music and such, dunno if you need one at all. Can always add one later, it's a 10 min job.

I'd go for the tower cooler myself, easier to install and it will last you forever, the pump on the AIO dies at some point. Cooling wise they're within margin of error pretty much the same.

I use GTO+ for postflop (best value by far at 75$) and Simple Preflop. Simple also have a 3-way version, sold separately. These are 200$ a year / pop.

We can have a chat on skype or discord and I can point you in the right way, it doesn't take that long to learn the ropes. If you don't want to get a preflop solver, I can sell you the stuff I've worked on at a reasonable price, got both gto solves and pop exploits based on big database analysis.

Thank you so much, ion! I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your time and help!

Is a tower cooler just a fan like the dark rock pro?

Can I reach out to you in a couple/few of weeks when I get this thing built via pm?

sure thing
yep, Dark Rock Pro4 is a tower or air cooler
don't get the TR version if you're getting a Ryzen 9, TR stands for Thread Ripper

Copy that!

Thank you!

just noticed you said you already bought a really expensive AIO
can you return it? that thing's overkill and it's like 250$..

Haha, I sure can. I got it at B&H so I’ll just bring it back and get a fan. It looks so purty but not worth the hassle when it fails.

Thank you

now I'm not saying all in ones are bad, a lot of people use them, it's just that particular one is so damn expensive at 250$+ and you will also need a more expensive/specialized case to fit the 360mm radiator
but if you like it, keep it, don't worry about it, I'm sure that thing's built really well for the price and you should get some 5y warranty on it

I'm simply more of a min-max value for money kind of nerd and the Pro4 seems to be 1/3 of the price

Yeah listen to what ionutd is saying. He's got good points. I recently built a solving desktop and you will need good cooling. Rid of the AIO and use a DRP4.

personally, while my 3700x does the job I wish I got a 3900x. Honestly if you have the money to spent build the best PC you can.

I don't think getting a TR is a bad idea per say, but it will be if you end up bottlenecking your system.

Sent from my EML-L09 using Tapatalk

I hear ya, brother... It has a 6 year warranty and is well reviewed, but it is 3x the price of a good fan... but it has pretty colors to soothe me when I tilt

Thanks TRUST... I'm going to go 3950x and not go TR. Seems like a good compromise and a solid cpu.

btw here are some buying guides for ssd / mobo / case

https://linustechtips.com/main/topic...ssd-tier-list/

pick something from tier B, tier A are pro grade and overkill for your needs

https://linustechtips.com/main/topic...tier-list-eol/

tier A for 3950x

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XsMNu0gWlZw&t=1s

cases. good airflow is particularly important if you have an air cooler

Oh man! Thanks so much!

Black Yukon,

You can trust the feedback from ionutd here. He knows what he is talking about, and is a very credible source.

Thanks Josem, you are too kind

That feedback was more for Black Yukon, not you

I think it's hard to identify credible sources on the internet and distinguish them from idiot scammers/SEO crap/etc. Just trying to help!

Yeah, brother. When I made this post I was hoping ion would reply. Clearly knows his **** and seems like a good guy.

Thanks to both of you