Seeking Your Expertise with My PC Build Plan

dextertheboygenius on 02/09/2016 - 15:36
Last edited 02/09/2016 - 15:36

Hi Guys,

It's been over 10 years since I built a PC. Have been computing on hand me downs for a while now and the time has finally come to build myself a nice PC.

I want the rig to be:

  • Moderately economical, was thinking between ($1400-1700)
  • Future proof with the ability to overclock when it ages a bit.

What I want to achieve from the PC:

  • I am a casual gamer, have been playing old games on the aging PC. Not looking to be a avid gamer but would like to try out the new titles.
  • I really liked the Dell DFO U2715H deal and thought it was an awesome monitor. Also, I have never played on 1440p, so that will be an awesome experience. I know its only 60Hz, but since I play casually I'm not really bothered about frame rates.
  • Do a bit of photo editing.
  • General computing.
  • Might run few VMs as a home lab setup.

Looking around I was thinking about the below setup:

  • CPU: Intel i7 6700K - $469 (I know its not needed for most games, but future proof with the ability to overclock)
  • Cooler: Dont have much expertise with liquid cooling, so will go with the stock cooler for now. And then replace with a better cooler when I plan to OC.
  • Motherboard: I know i need a Z170 but I really cant decide on one. ASUS, Gigabyte or MSI?
  • SSD and HDD: Already have a 250GB Samsung 750 EVO and WD 2TB. So don't need to buy these.
  • RAM: Would love to make it 16Gigs or single 8Gig now, if it exceeds budget. Can add another 8Gig later.
  • GPU: Was originally thinking about going with GTX 1060, but I think I might need GTX 1070 if I need to play at 1440p.
  • PSU: Will be calculating the power and then deciding on it. Heard good things about the eVGA SuperNOVA G1 650W 80PLUS Gold Power Supply.
  • Case: Don't want a big tower. So probably a Mid Tower with a glass panel. Something like the NZXT Source S340 Mid-Tower Case. $109
  • KB/Mouse: Not really fussed, so something cheap will do. Like a Razer or Corsair combo.
  • Monitor: Waiting for another Dell U2715H DFO deal. $499.

I would really appreciate your insights about my plan and your suggestions/help with this.

Thanks

Computing

Comments

  • alabatusa on 02/09/2016 - 15:52

    Looks solid,

    But why not go M-ATX?

    Small form factor are nice. Getting so much performance from a smaller sized build feels great

    I'd def go minimum 1070, 6600k should be enough.

    • dextertheboygenius on 02/09/2016 - 16:33

      Thanks. Are you aware of any performance/cooling issues with M-ATX? Might explore that option.

      • alabatusa on 02/09/2016 - 16:48

        Nope, As long as your fans/cooling is placed right no difference.

        I beleive since its smaller it less air within the case to move out to get new air in.

        Only thing harder with m-atx can be cable management or putting the system together due to tighter fitting spots.

        M-atx is good as it gives you enough pci-e slots, while being smaller. So you can add a pci-e wifi if your mobo doesnt have wifi or a soundcard if you want better sound. Usually have enough sata headers for decent amount of drives.

        So if your only going to use one GFX card, you could also just go m-itx(tiniest main form factor)

        • dextertheboygenius on 02/09/2016 - 17:06

          Wow thats some good insight. Thanks for the info. Will deffo look at this option.

  • enzioFirenze on 02/09/2016 - 16:24
    +1

    looks good mate, be warned though, k series processors don't come with stock coolers, I recommend Noctua NH-D15, it's often times better or on par with the best water coolers unless you plan to have a custom loop. Also if you plan to overclock, go for an Asus motherboard, their general aesthetics are also nice since you'll have a glass panel to show off :)

    Def go for the 1070, 1060 will struggle a bit with 1440p and won't be future proof either.

    • dextertheboygenius on 02/09/2016 - 16:37

      Thanks mate. Yeah I read about the Noctua NH-D15. Now that I think about it, might as well get it and run with it.

      Thanks for recommending the Asus, I am comparing the boards and the prices at the moment. Hopefully the 1070 comes down in price a bit.

      Cheers

      • enzioFirenze on 02/09/2016 - 16:46

        yeah it's kick-ass :D I actually got a Asus Z170 Pro Gaming Motherboard when I wanted to go with 6700k but Intel released 6800k around the same time so I sold the mobo and built a 6800k system. Still used the NH-D15 though, that's one kick ass cooler, at 100% fan speed, I can barely hear it

        • dextertheboygenius on 02/09/2016 - 17:08

          Nice! The 6800K is quite expensive at the moment tho, but i'm sure it flies! Was reading up on the NH-D15, the performance is really impressive. Thanks

        • Diji1 on 02/09/2016 - 17:43

          so I sold the mobo and built a 6800k system

          6800K is slower for things like games due to lower single thread processing speeds right?

        • Quiz on 02/09/2016 - 17:48

          @dextertheboygenius:

          I've been looking at building a new mATX PC too.

          Are you sure the Noctua NH-D15 will fit inside the NZXT Source S340? It's a big cooler. Double check.

          I'm thinking of going with a Cooler Master Hyper 212X. About half the price of the Noctua.

        • enzioFirenze on 02/09/2016 - 17:53

          @Diji1: theoretically yeah but the difference isn't noticeable when coupled with a powerful GPU. I built my system for scientific computing though so wasn't too fussed :)

        • enzioFirenze on 02/09/2016 - 18:36

          @Quiz: I forgot that, yeah looking at the compatibility with the case is a good idea, it certainly is one tall heat sink :)

  • Diji1 on 02/09/2016 - 17:41
    +2

    I'm not sold on the idea of overclocking giving some "future-proofing", a concept that was pretty thin to start with.

    This is because a non-overclockable system costs substantially less for the same base CPU and chipset. The RAM, PSU also cost less. And as well non-overclockable versions of i5/7 coming with a heatsink already that is fairly quiet meaning no need to buy a heatsink for many people.

    But anyhow, if you want the additional performance (and some people find the process fun) then by all means, worth it.

    You also seem to be making the mistake a lot of people make which is spending money on CPU speed when GPU will be the bottleneck for gaming. Using a GTX 1060 at 1440p is not ideal and you should be buying a GTX 1070 instead.

    • scrimshaw on 02/09/2016 - 19:03

      Good reasoning here, I also suggest not getting Core-K processors unless your wallet is fat enough to accomodate the highest-tier GPU's.

      The core i7 is also still a quad core processor. It might be obvious already, but the only difference between the i5 and i7 is the hyperthreading.

      Hyperthreading can cause performance losses as shown in this series of benchmarks. I suggest reading it in it's entirety.
      https://www.techpowerup.com/forums/threads/gaming-benchmarks…

      So you might want to rethink the Core i7 — maybe save the dosh and use the money elsewhere.

  • Ryugen on 02/09/2016 - 21:06

    How much future proofing are we talking about here? Are we talking about skipping a generation or 2 or going for another 10 years? I ask because different priorities would factor in depending on intended life of PC.

    Short run, like skipping a generation or 2 Overclocking will provide a small performance boost to NON-gaming aspects sure. I know a lot of people kick it up a notch after warranty has expired to get a few more speeds without worrying about voiding any warranties. That said though….is going from 3Ghz to 4Ghz(or 5ghz or 6 if you have liquid nitrogen on hand) on your processor speed going to make much of a difference to your needs? The only place you will feel this increase are any applications where it's heavily reliant on raw processing power (coding, compiling, calculations etc). As Diiji1 mentioned, gaming is almost always bottle-necked by the GPU. Also even a basic overclock will put your computer out of commission for maybe 24hrs depending on how thorough you are with your testing. I did the process on one of my past computers, never again just because it was so tedious.

    Long run, your parts will break before an issue with speed. Motherboard capacitors popping, PSU frying itself, GPU dieing etc. Best to get the most adequate selection of parts possible but spend time rather than money on consistent maintenance (dusting, proper air flow and ventilation, general house cleaning). Clean and cool computers last for longer. You can always turn down your graphics for games that come out in 3-4 years.

    Your part selection looks solid and would easily be usable 3-4 years down the track given no hardware faults.

  • ProjectZero on 02/09/2016 - 23:12

    Based on the specs, you're looking at roughly 300W in total. I recently "put together" similar parts on PCpartspicker

    I'd recommend a silverstone, corsair or seasonic PSU, they generally run really quiet and to me, seems to be more reliable.

    If you do plan on overclocking, either a D15 or if your budget allows it, a AiO watercooler. D15 would be a good enough cooler BUT it will be louder then the watercooling when you really need the extra cooling since air cooling is generally louder than AiO watercooling under high stress. I've had a look at the GTX, effectively 1060 is good enough to play 1440p games with around 60fps BUT if you are looking to futureproof a bit, then 1070 would be the better choice as you can get one for around from the deals posted here for around the same as a local 1060 (if you are looking for aftermarket coolers and such).

  • jzdhgkd on 03/09/2016 - 00:02

    CPU: VMs definitely benefit from hyperthreading but otherwise 6600k is much more bang-for-your-buck

    Cooler: I know NH-D15 is the go-to cooler around the world but I ended up going for the cryorig R1. Why? Because I can't stand those horrendous brown fans! Honestly, this ugly ass thing vs this work of art. Anyway at these price points it's mostly diminishing returns. D15 wins by a couple of degrees that you'd never notice in the end anyway.

    Motherboard: From the endless research I did, seems most mobos are pretty similar. Out of the three brands you listed you can't go wrong.

    RAM: RAM is now pretty cheap again. May as well get 16gb.

    GPU: 1070.. just do it ;)

    PSU: I think your choice is sound. The G2 is supposedly one of the best ones (according to jonnyguru) but G1 should be good enough for 99% of scenarios.

    Case/KB/Mouse/Monitor: very much personal preference

    Enjoy the new build! :D

  • tight-ass on 03/09/2016 - 04:54
    +1

    I built my pc recently and found this website really helpful - https://au.pcpartpicker.com/

    Simply put your pc together using this website and it will let you know of any conflicts/issues. It will also let you know the costs involved.

  • theHMASfriendship on 03/09/2016 - 10:45

    Regarding 6600k vs 6700k - this might help with the decision https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EhaB1dqYv_I

    Personally I'd go the 6600k. You can team it with something like the Cooler Master Hyper 212X which will comfortably handle some mild overclocking.

    I'd also look into mATX cases, much smaller than the big towers and the only thing is that they can be a little fiddly to put together (less room to get your hands around it). Just make sure you check things like graphics card lengths and cpu cooler clearances (the case supplier should have this info). I have the Silverstone TJ08E which is a nice looking discrete case that's pretty compact and decent quality and fit a graphics card up to 330mm, you can get this for around $110. May restrict your ability to go water cooled though. I built my PC a couple of years ago now so there may be some better case options floating around now.

    Maybe try and push for the 1070 if it's in your budget, and save a little on some of the other things (e.g. CPU, kb/mouse etc.) to fit it in your budget. Don't skimp out on PSU though.

    Happy building!

  • dextertheboygenius on 05/09/2016 - 09:53

    Thank you for your insights and really helpful comments. Was away for the weekend so could respond earlier.

    Will finalise the build soon and come back to you guys.

    Thanks again.

  • the frost on 05/09/2016 - 12:08
    -1

    Just a warning on your RAM situation: If you buy 8GB now, and choose to upgrade it later and find a better deal with 2x8GB sticks, don't put 3 sticks in there. You'll get all sorts of random blue screens at different times, with no real explanation about what's going on. 1, 2 or 4 sticks works, 3 doesn't.

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