Dolphin, the GameCube and Wii emulator - Forums

I'm building a PC for the first time ever just to run Dolphin, since if it can run Dolphin without any flaws then other emulators shouldn't be any trouble. Here's the setup I'm looking at:

Windows 7 x64 for the gaming; possibly Ubuntu x64 for everyday tasks
ATI HD 5830
Intel i5-4670K
ASRock Z87 PRO3
CORSAIR TX Series CMPSU-650TX 650W
20mm Sleeve Direct Touch 3 Heat Pipe CPU Cooler
16 GB cheapest ram I can find (probably 2 x 8 GB sticks unless 4 x 4 GB is better)
48X CD-ROM/16X DVD-ROM
GC controller USB adaptor (http://www.amazon.com/GC-Controller-Adap...mecube+usb)
Old HDD for storage
Samsung 840 120 GB SSD for startup and all programs

I'm not into overclocking and I'd like to be able to safely run even the most demanding Wii games without worrying about voltage or temperature issues, though I will keep an eye the best I can. I can't think of many off the top of my head but I've seen some issues with Skyward Sword and that's one I'd like to play for sure.

The GC controller is by far my favorite controller I've ever used. I plan on using it with every emulator I play. Has anyone had issues setting it up? The review on Amazon show some difficulty with triggers and Dolphin compatability but those seem to be getting better. A Wavebird would be ideal. I would probably scrap the project if I was limited to using a Wiimote for any games.

Also, has anyone had issues with running games from a DVD-ROM? I think it would make storage easier and keep a nostalgia feeling.

Thanks in advance for any help. I haven't decided on a tower yet, but I don't want to spend money where I don't have to so I'll probably go cheap there too.

BTW Dolphin is one of the best things I've ever come across. Thank you guys for all the work!

Decent build but you likely will need to overclock a bit, it's perfectly safe and doesn't always need any change to CPU voltage I'm playing through Zelda SS at the moment with LLE audio and I get a small bit of slowdown from time to time but it is only very little (95% speed lowest) Not 100% about the Haswell's but I think they also need an overclock for demanding games but someone will correct me if I'm wrong

EDIT: If you really don't want to overclock then don't get a unlocked CPU (Ending in K) you will save a bit of cash on that.

You'll need to OC to hit 100% consistently in Skyward Sword. It's not hard or particularly dangerous with Haswell K CPUs and Z87. To that end, I suggest this cooler ($10 more) instead of your current selection.


http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.as...6835103099

Thanks for the responses. I'll go with that fan instead, rokclimb15. If I shelled out the extra $100 for a i7-4770K, would it be worth it in the long run and still work with the current setup and fan? Either way, I will need to learn how to overclock. Just thinking ahead for PSP and PS2 emulators.

(07-09-2013, 06:12 AM)Romulation Station Wrote: [ -> ]Thanks for the responses. I'll go with that fan instead, rokclimb15. If I shelled out the extra $100 for a i7-4770K, would it be worth it in the long run and still work with the current setup and fan? Either way, I will need to learn how to overclock. Just thinking ahead for PSP and PS2 emulators.

For general usage or other specific applications that scale beyond 4 threads (video encoder for instance), it would provide benefit. I can't say if it would be worth it. It won't give you any benefit for Dolphin.

The i7 CPU is compatible with that board and the cooler I linked to. I've never overclocked an i7, but I'd imagine that you'll be dealing with a lot more heat output and it could require cooling from sources other than air, which is an area that I avoid. That's all informational though since it won't help you with Dolphin specifically. I know little about the PSP/PS2 emulators, but I doubt they scale beyond 4 threads as well.

Romulation Station Wrote:Also, has anyone had issues with running games from a DVD-ROM? I think it would make storage easier and keep a nostalgia feeling.

You can play back-up discs from Dolphin (e.g. you ripped the original ISO, then you burned it your own DVD) but it can't read original game discs. You can read the original discs for a number of PS1 emulators and PCSX2 however.

Romulation Station Wrote:If I shelled out the extra $100 for a i7-4770K, would it be worth it in the long run and still work with the current setup and fan?

For Dolphin, you won't get that much of a speed up (if any?). Dolphin normally only uses two "major" or main threads to do the bulk of its processing (three if you choose DSP on Dedicated Thread), but it won't fully utilize an i7's Hyperthreading. I'd save your $100 unless you need an i7 for other things (video editing, compression, multi-threaded stuff) like rokclimb15 said. For most emulators, you'd be fine with just the i5 and overclocking it to get your desired level of performance.

I'll stick with the i5 since the i7 has extra cooling requirements and is above the requirements of Dolphin. Thanks again for the help. Btw rokclimb you only linked to a fan and not a board.

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Kind of off topic but is there any advantage of getting 2 x 8 GB sticks vs. 4 x 4 GB sticks other than having 2 extra spots for future ram upgrades?

It might be a tiny bit faster to use dual channel RAM instead of Quad channel pretending to be dual channel. Either should be fine, though.

rokclimb15 Wrote:I've never overclocked an i7, but I'd imagine that you'll be dealing with a lot more heat output and it could require cooling from sources other than air

Any difference in temperature will be negligible at best. It has 2MB of extra L3 cache and HT. Neither of those is going to add any substantial amount of heat (HT might add a moderate amount of it's actually being used, but dolphin/pcsx2 won't use it).

AnyOldName3 Wrote:It might be a tiny bit faster to use dual channel RAM instead of Quad channel pretending to be dual channel. Either should be fine, though.

I object to using the term quad channel there. The number of dimm slots has nothing to do with the number of memory channels or memory controllers. He isn't going to see any difference in bandwidth or latency between those two setups.

(07-09-2013, 06:41 AM)Romulation Station Wrote: [ -> ]I'll stick with the i5 since the i7 has extra cooling requirements and is above the requirements of Dolphin. Thanks again for the help. Btw rokclimb you only linked to a fan and not a board.

The board you have selected is quite nice. I have nothing to offer there.