First rig for Engineering/ light gaming

[NaGoldfarb]

I am building my first PC for Engineering(SW, little bit Machine learning) and maybe some gamming down the line. 

I neede to duel boot the computer (Windows + Linux) which is why I have 2 drives (should I get a 3rd for my boot drive ????). I want to spend between $1000-$1500, and for it to last a few years. 

 

I put together the following PC on PC parts builder. Does anyone of any suggestions?

Will this PC work and is there anything else I have to buy that I dont know about?

 

PCPartPicker Part List: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/KLJmdX

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 2700X 3.7 GHz 8-Core Processor  ($238.88 @ Amazon) 
Motherboard: Gigabyte B450 AORUS PRO WIFI (rev. 1.0) ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($119.89 @ SuperBiiz) 
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory  ($164.99 @ Amazon) 
Storage: Samsung 860 Evo 500 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($74.99 @ Amazon) 
Storage: Samsung 860 Evo 500 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($74.99 @ Amazon) 
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER 8 GB WINDFORCE OC Video Card  ($399.99 @ Amazon) 
Case: Corsair Carbide Series 275R ATX Mid Tower Case  ($79.99 @ Corsair) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic FOCUS Plus Gold 550 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply  ($88.98 @ SuperBiiz) 
Total: $1242.70
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-08-26 09:33 EDT-0400

[NunoLava1998]

You don't need two drives to dual boot.

[Eumel2]

Yeah get one better SSD for example an MX500

THe RX5700XT currntly has better value than the 2060S as long as you dont need raytracing (which you most likely wont need)

 

do NOT get a Seasonic focus PSU those are bad. Instead get a BeQuiet one.

[NaGoldfarb]

Yes, I know but I like to keep the two OS sperate. I have had problems in the past where updating windows killed Grub then didn't know who to boot anymore. And another time where my hard drive failed and recover was a pain. I rather go with two 500GB then 1 TB drive

 

[brob]

The 3700X is a much more powerful cpu that is better suited to the described use.

 

The motherboard has a feature that allows the BIOS to be flashed without a cpu, removing any worry about the motherboard having an appropriate BIOS for the Zen 2 cpu.

 

If one wants a windowed case, I'd suggest a tempered glass window. Acrylic windows are prone to scratching and clouding.

 

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 3700X 3.6 GHz 8-Core Processor  ($327.79 @ OutletPC) 
Motherboard: MSI B450-A PRO ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($84.99 @ Amazon) 
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory  ($164.99 @ Amazon) 
Storage: Samsung 860 Evo 500 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($74.99 @ Amazon) 
Storage: Samsung 860 Evo 500 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($74.99 @ Amazon) 
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce RTX 2060 SUPER 8 GB WINDFORCE OC Video Card  ($399.99 @ Amazon) 
Case: Fractal Design Define C TG ATX Mid Tower Case  ($84.99 @ Amazon) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic FOCUS Plus Gold 550 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply  ($88.98 @ SuperBiiz) 
Total: $1301.71
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-08-26 09:54 EDT-0400

[cracmeister]

The build is okay. 

But concerning the future proof aspect I would recommend getting a Ryzen 3rd gen / Zen 2 and maybe a bigger PSU just to be safe and have  a little headroom for future builds/upgrades/overclocks etc.

 

With that budget I am used to seeing nvme drives, if you don't care about the extra performance they offer fine, but be sure to consider a nvme drive, pretty much standard in this budget range.

 

 

[NaGoldfarb]

1 minute ago, cracmeister said:

The build is okay. 

But concerning the future proof aspect I would recommend getting a Ryzen 3rd gen / Zen 2 and maybe a bigger PSU just to be safe and have  a little headroom for future builds/upgrades/overclocks etc.

 

With that budget I am used to seeing nvme drives, if you don't care about the extra performance they offer fine, but be sure to consider a nvme drive, pretty much standard in this budget range.

 

 

So would that mean swapping out the motherboard? 

[cracmeister]

You don't have to. 

The warning from PC-Part Picker: 

• Warning!Some AMD B450 chipset motherboards may need a BIOS update prior to using Zen 2 CPUs. Upgrading the BIOS may require a different CPU that is supported by older BIOS revisions.

There are some vendors who ship the old motherboard already updated, but most of them don't. Most likely you will have to update your BIOS to use the new CPU. @brob mentioned that this Motherboard can be updated without a CPU, which would be perfect for you. 

 

Also be sure to check some reviews of your motherboard. Most people decide to get a relatively cheap motherboard, which can cause some problems with a powerful cpu, powerful gpu, etc. sometimes a few bucks more on the motherboard are a game changer.

Especially if you plan to overclock. 

[Herman Mcpootis]

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 3700X 3.6 GHz 8-Core Processor  ($327.79 @ OutletPC) 
Motherboard: MSI B450-A PRO ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($84.99 @ Amazon) 
Memory: OLOy WarHawk RGB 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory  ($129.99 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Crucial MX500 500 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($64.89 @ OutletPC) 
Storage: Sabrent Rocket 512 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive  ($59.98 @ Amazon) 
Video Card: Asus GeForce RTX 2070 8 GB STRIX GAMING OC Video Card  ($419.99 @ Newegg) 
Case: Cooler Master MasterBox NR600 (w/o ODD) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($69.99 @ Amazon) 
Power Supply: Cooler Master MWE Gold 550 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply  ($74.99 @ Amazon) 
Total: $1232.61
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-08-26 10:46 EDT-0400

[NaGoldfarb]

7 minutes ago, Herman Mcpootis said:

PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 3700X 3.6 GHz 8-Core Processor  ($327.79 @ OutletPC) 
Motherboard: MSI B450-A PRO ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($84.99 @ Amazon) 
Memory: OLOy WarHawk RGB 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory  ($129.99 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Crucial MX500 500 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($64.89 @ OutletPC) 
Storage: Sabrent Rocket 512 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive  ($59.98 @ Amazon) 
Video Card: Asus GeForce RTX 2070 8 GB STRIX GAMING OC Video Card  ($419.99 @ Newegg) 
Case: Cooler Master MasterBox NR600 (w/o ODD) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($69.99 @ Amazon) 
Power Supply: Cooler Master MWE Gold 550 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply  ($74.99 @ Amazon) 
Total: $1232.61
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-08-26 10:46 EDT-0400

Whats the advantage of this build? 

[Herman Mcpootis]

Just now, NaGoldfarb said:

Whats the advantage of this build? 

better CPU, one SSD is much faster, and better PSU.

[brob]

24 minutes ago, Herman Mcpootis said:

better CPU, one SSD is much faster, and better PSU.

 

The MWE 550W is not a better psu than Focus Plus Gold 550W.

[Fasauceome]

6 minutes ago, brob said:

 

The MWE 550W is not a better psu than Focus Plus Gold 550W.

OPP problems much? Until the focus 2.0 hits the scene I'm not confident in recommending it.

[LukeSavenije]

2 minutes ago, brob said:

 

The MWE 550W is not a better psu than Focus Plus Gold 550W.

gx, px, gm, sgx and nzxt e i agree on

 

but the vanilla, boy oh boy that thing has problems

[LukeSavenije]

1 minute ago, Fasauceome said:

OCP problems much? Until the focus 2.0 hits the scene I'm not confident in recommending it.

it actually is out already, but not really availible

[GoldenLag]

3 minutes ago, brob said:

 

The MWE 550W is not a better psu than Focus Plus Gold 550W.

Pre-2018. Yes, if you dont care about the very sensetive OCP

 

Post-january-2018, hah, nope

[GoldenLag]

Just now, LukeSavenije said:

it actually is out already, but not really availible

Is it labeled differently? Or do we have to wait untill the old model runs out before you can be "safe"?

[LukeSavenije]

2 minutes ago, GoldenLag said:

Is it labeled differently? Or do we have to wait untill the old model runs out before you can be "safe"?

they're named focus gm, px, gx and sgx according to an article on JG

[GoldenLag]

1 minute ago, LukeSavenije said:

they're named focus gm, px, gx and sgx according to an article on JG

Ah, ive seen a couple of those. Good to know

[LukeSavenije]

5 minutes ago, GoldenLag said:

Ah, ive seen a couple of those. Good to know

but then again, no reviews yet

 

so we don't know for sure if it has any of the problems or not

 

edit: correction, sgx has been reviewed, no problems so far

Edited August 26, 2019 by LukeSavenije

[brob]

16 minutes ago, Fasauceome said:

OPP problems much? Until the focus 2.0 hits the scene I'm not confident in recommending it.

 

IMO, the OPP issue does not make it inferior to an MWE Gold.

 

While I rarely recommend the model, I wouldn't try to change someone's mind if that is the unit they have chosen.

[NaGoldfarb]

so what PSU should I get, im confused now. 

Also im looking at the 2060 super, RTX 5600 TX, and the 2070. They all seem close to each other. 

[brob]

1 hour ago, NaGoldfarb said:

so what PSU should I get, im confused now. 

Also im looking at the 2060 super, RTX 5600 TX, and the 2070. They all seem close to each other. 

 

A good choice is Corsair RMx (2018) (it is currently the same price as the 550W model. More expensive and very good is SeaSonic FOCUS Plus Platinum.

 

Optimal gpu choice depends on the software you will be using. Machine learning and design software may have particular preferences.

[NaGoldfarb]

I dont plan on doing heavy machine learning (im not an expert and don't plan on becoming one. Just want something powerful enough to do with tensorflow). I mostly do modeling and simulation 

[NaGoldfarb]

most care about solidworks and bullet physics