SamuelWN

On the off-chance someone has a similar issue in the future (my condolences to you, if so), it seems that the PSU was killing the motherboards (it chewed through 3 motherboards by the end of it). After RMA-ing the PSU and getting a new motherboard: Finally! Success!

Swapped out PSU for known good: no difference Swapped out RAM for known good: no difference Swapped out CPU (1900x for 2950x): no difference (was expecting to at least get a POST error) I feel like I must be going crazy

From not checking the voltage switch or damage from the loose wire? Because if it were due to the voltage, I wouldn't think it would work for powering the pump, would it? (Unfortunately currently at work, so I can't actually check it to be 100% sure about its setting.)

@NelizMastr Yeah, same issue. @AngryBeaver I don't remember checking that, but I can't imagine that being the issue. FYI: I never received a new PSU from EVGA, just a new 24-pin connector.

I have a new build that I've been working on and am having trouble getting it to power-on (parts list here, though I'm currently trying to boot it with a 1900x installed, in order to flash the BIOS). Background: After assembling everything, I was able to get the computer to turn on, but the CPU led was lit and got an error code of EE (or 33, not sure). I then noticed that the 24 pin connector had a wire loose (3.3v line) and would not snap back into place. I received a replacement from EVGA and ordered a set of CableMod cables, but then the issue turned into the computer not powering on at all. Assuming the MoBo was injured, I RMAed it (Amazon's return policy is pretty great), but the issue persists. Current status: If I disconnect every power cable from the motherboard and jumper the 24-pin connector, the PSU powers on just fine (PSU fan spins, etc.) and I'm able to run the pump via it's molex connector. However, when the 24-pin and CPU cables are connected to the motherboard, it will not boot even to the point of the PSU fan spinning up (even using the on-board power button), regardless of whether I use the new EVGA cable or the CableMod cable. I've even tried connecting the CPU power cables into the motherboard and jumping the 24-pin with no luck. Is this a weird form of PSU death, or am I missing something? Might a small spark from the loose wire killed something in the PSU?

Alrighty, so essentially just go for the one with the greatest available power-draw and best quality VRMs. Anything else to look for?

When looking to purchase a GPU with the intent of liquid cooling it, is there any point for buying anything more fancy than the reference version? Would the higher TDP of some of the third-party designs translate into a higher maximum boost-clock, or is it all moot when not using the stock cooler? Thanks for your thoughts, I've been wondering this for a while now.

I'd really like the Kova. I work at the National Cancer Institute as an imaging analysis and visualization programmer and, to be frank: the provided peripherals a kinda suck (think Dell M-UVDEL1 mice level of suck; I wound up bringing in my personal K70 keyboard to use). Having a mouse that not only feels better in the hand, but also has some nice macro functionality would definitely improve my daily workflow (in addition to making my workstation look that much more ballin' ).

Revised parts list: PCPartPicker part list: https://pcpartpicker.com/p/f2yPqs Price breakdown by merchant: https://pcpartpicker.com/p/f2yPqs/by_merchant/ CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($359.99 @ NCIX US) CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Nepton 240M 76.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler (Purchased For $96.99) Motherboard: Asus Z170-A ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($158.99 @ SuperBiiz) Memory: Mushkin Redline 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($148.98 @ Directron) Storage: Samsung 850 Pro Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (Purchased For $134.00) Storage: Western Digital WD Green 2TB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive (Purchased For $72.99) Storage: Western Digital WD Green 2TB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive (Purchased For $72.99) Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (Purchased For $49.99) Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 960 2GB FTW ACX 2.0+ Video Card ($201.99 @ NCIX US) Case: Antec GX500 ATX Mid Tower Case (Purchased For $44.99) Power Supply: Rosewill Capstone 750W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply (Purchased For $69.99) Wired Network Adapter: TP-Link TG-3468 10/100/1000 Mbps PCI-Express x1 Network Adapter (Purchased For $12.90) Other: StarTech 4 Port PCI Express 2.0 SATA III 6Gbps RAID Controller Card (Purchased For $63.95) Other: Ubuntu 14.04.3 (Desktop) (Purchased For $0.00) Total (Not Yet Purchased): $869.95 Total (Purchased): $618.79 Total: $1488.74 Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-08-18 22:23 EDT-0400

gcc, mpicc, etc also: "*scoffs*"? Huh?

My display is only 1080p.

It's not a big deal for gaming, but I do a lot of highly threaded programming

Really? I haven't had to set up an nvidea gpu in a while and they used to do a good job with that.

I do a lot of heavily threaded programming, so I think it'd make sense to spend the extra few bucks to get hyperthreading... Also, I'm kinda looking for an NVIDEA GPU (they do a better job with Linux drivers) I'll definitely look into that watercooling rig, though...

I mainly do just highly threaded C++ imaging analysis (ITK). I was toying with the idea of a GTX 960 (here). Other than for gaming / CUDA programming, etc, would it make all that much of a difference?