Dragonzeanse

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU:  Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($319.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler:  NZXT Kraken X60 98.3 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler  ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Thermal Compound:  Innovation Cooling Diamond "7 Carat" 1.5g Thermal Paste  ($6.40 @ Amazon)
Motherboard:  Gigabyte GA-Z87X-UD4H ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($164.99 @ Newegg)
Memory:  G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($134.99 @ Newegg)
Storage:  Samsung EVO 1TB 2.5" Solid State Disk  ($489.81 @ Amazon)
Storage:  Western Digital Red 3TB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($129.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card:  Asus GeForce GTX 780 Ti 3GB Video Card  ($715.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case:  Corsair Air 540 Silver ATX Mid Tower Case  ($125.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply:  Corsair 860W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($189.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive:  LG WH14NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer  ($67.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Operating System:  Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit)  ($89.98 @ OutletPC)
Monitor:  Asus PB238Q 23.0" Monitor  ($206.14 @ Amazon)
Monitor:  Asus PA279Q 27.0" Monitor  ($789.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case Fan:  Phanteks PH-F140HP_RD 88.6 CFM 140mm  Fan  ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Case Fan:  Phanteks PH-F140HP_RD 88.6 CFM 140mm  Fan  ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Case Fan:  Phanteks PH-F140HP_RD 88.6 CFM 140mm  Fan  ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Case Fan:  Phanteks PH-F140HP_RD 88.6 CFM 140mm  Fan  ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Case Fan:  Phanteks PH-F140HP_RD 88.6 CFM 140mm  Fan  ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Fan Controller:  NZXT Sentry Mesh Fan Controller  ($21.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Headphones:  Sennheiser HD 650 Headphones  ($454.02 @ Amazon)
Speakers:  Audioengine A2 (Black) 30W 2ch Speakers  ($199.00 @ Newegg)
Other: Corsair Vengeance K70 (Cherry MX Brown) ($129.99)
Other: Blue Snowball ($58.52)
Total: $4490.69
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-04-02 10:49 EDT-0400)

Q: WHY YOU NO CUSTOM LOOP?
A: I don't see the point. Several hundred dollars for a slight increase in performance is a terrible proposal. Pick high-quality fans that can run quietly, and overclock only when you have to. With those hundreds of dollars spent on a custom loop, I'd rather just buy new parts. It's not like a custom loop is any more future proof than the PC's constituent parts.

Q: WHY AREN'T YOU DOING RAID?
A: I don't care about RAID; I just don't. I'd rather just buy one very large drive rather than multiple with less space. A 1 TB SSD for a boot drive and primary use with a 3 TB hard drive is good enough for me. I could pick a faster SSD, but I'd rather just keep the files I use most on the boot drive. I currently use a 120 GB SSD for a boot drive and although it was a fantastic deal, if I saw a deal on a 240-256 GB SSD at the time, I would have bought that.

Q: WHERE IS YOUR HEADSET?
A: There isn't one. Headsets usually sound terrible. Most headset manufacturers who are designing gaming headsets spend money in the wrong places like styling and virtual surround sound (seriously, you don't need VSS). Instead, I would buy a very nice pair of headphones and a nice microphone, separately. I'm not predisposed to hate headsets, but I'm much maligned against them for a reason.

Q: DON'T BLU-RAY DRIVES SUCK ON PC?
A: Their functionality is a tad flaky, but I'd like to have a blu-ray drive in my PC since I prefer to have everything in one device. I don't want to have to get a separate blu-ray player, especially if my gaming PC practically is my home theater system.

Q: YOU DON'T NEED 16 GB RAM FOR GAMING.
A: Not yet. You think dual 780 Tis are going to lose their power anytime soon? I wouldn't call it "future proofing," but more "future resilient." Besides, what if I want to run multiple applications at once that demand quite a bit of RAM?

Q: HAH, TRICKED YOU! IF YOU WANT FUTURE RESILIENT, WHY YOU NO LGA 2011?! GOT YOU NOW!
A: By the time I upgrade to something better for gaming, LGA 2011 would be outdated. When building a gaming PC, you pick a faster processor because you want it to power your graphics cards, not the other way around. That's why bottlenecks exist with Athlons and GTX Titans. The i7-4770K is nothing to scoff at. Even that processor is arguably overkill for what I'd use it for. An Extreme Edition CPU from Intel is good only for professional use like video editing and 3D modeling. For gaming, LGA 2011 processors just generate more heat and cost a lot more. Pass.

Q: WELL, WHAT ABOUT YOUR MOTHERBOARD? IT'S NOT AN ASUS MAXIMUS VI/SABERTOOTH!
A: You do realize that Asus isn't the only manufacturer that produces high-end motherboards, right? They're some of the best, but Gigabyte has incredible products, too, with plenty of overclocking features. But I'm not an enthusiast overclocker.

Q: YOU NO OVERCLOCK? WTF?
A: What's the point? I already said that an LGA 2011 CPU wouldn't really benefit me, and the i7-4770K is better than what I need it for. Besides, I didn't say I don't overclock; I don't currently, but I would do it to eek out a little bit more performance from my CPU. Considering that Intel and Nvidia are practically foaming at the mouth to put an end to overclocking, might as well do it while I still can.

Q: WHY DO YOU USE WINDOWS 8.1 IN YOUR DREAM PC?
A: Like it or not, it's an improvement over Windows 7. The UI is awful, don't get me wrong, but the hate is also somewhat overexaggerated. When you started using a computer, did you know any better how to make sense of the UI? Anyone can relearn for the sake of 8.1, though I would make the argument that we shouldn't have to since it's just a touchscreen interface shoehorned into a product that never needed it. That said, Windows 8.1 is a genuine step up from Windows 7 in a lot of regards, particularly security, search functionality, and even a slight bump in gaming performance. Besides, Microsoft is going to keep supporting it longer than Windows 7, like it or not.

Q: DOESN'T THAT AMP/DAC SUCK? IT'S SO CHEAP!
A: Myths of audio galore. The funny story behind the Objective2 amp is that it was designed by an engineer named NwAvGuy when he was unsatisfied with the audio market. He put his money where his mouth was and designed the amplifier to compete with hardware that cost hundreds of dollars more to prove that you don't need something ridiculously expensive in order to produce great sound. The reason you see it sold by Mayflower is because it's an open-source device protected by a Creative Commons license.

Q: YOU DON'T USE LEDS/DECALS?
A: I don't really see a point. Who am I going to share my computer with? The internet? LEDs aren't really anything special when a billion other people use them. Sure, a BitFenix Alchemy strip would look cool, but I don't really care to spend much money on cosmetics. By the way, stop putting stickers on your cases. They look awful, especially those large EVGA stickers.

Q: THAT'S NOT WHAT LINUS WOULD BUILD!
A: Why do you presume that just because I'm on LinusTechTips, I have to agree with everything Linus says? Form your own opinion sometime, it's great. I have nothing against Linus. That doesn't mean I nod my head in approval to every video he makes.

Q: I WOULD USE X AND Y HARDWARE INSTEAD!
A: My mistake, I thought I was making my dream computer.

Q: I have a genuine suggestion for your dream system that I think would improve it.
A: Cool. Let's talk sometime.