New build for work + gaming

[Quooston]

You guys are awesome. I've been reviewing a few threads here and there and the great advice so freely given around here is totally balls-deep awesome.

 

So, this brings me to my humble request; I need to come up with a build for no more than 1500 AUD (1400 USD at time of writing) that can provide what I need as a software engineer and as a gamer. As an SE I run a few VMs occasionally and routinely dedicate 4GB of ram to a ramdisk for various tools which are IO heavy and are part of my all-day workflow. This also usually means that I am compiling all the time and writing lots of small files constantly, so an SSD is critical. CPU speed is important as it's greatly influences compile time, and threads are important because the tooling makes use of threads to do lots in parallel for quicker turnaround times.

 

From a gaming perspective, its most FPS (BF3/4) and will most certainly be Star Citizen when that comes around. I know Star Citizen has some heavy requirements now but I imagine that by the time its ready performance would have been tuned to allow for something not totally bleeding edge at the time. 

 

I am especially unsure about CPU, GPU and motherboard options. In terms of storage, I currently have a laptop with an 256GB SSD and another 500GB rust drive which has worked well and would probably do that again. For cheap wins, I will overclock but would not spend my life tweaking the rig etc. I have a great Antec case which I will reuse and don't want my study to sound like a Boeing is taking off under my desk. 

 

I am a bit of an audio snob, so above average on-board sound would be nice 

 

I don't need any peripherals, I have one 27" 2560x1440 monitor and will get another one later. 

 

Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

 

My take: http://au.pcpartpicker.com/p/npBCZL

 

Thanks!

[techjunkie867]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4820K 3.7GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($249.00 @ Centre Com)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H110 94.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler  ($146.00 @ Centre Com)
Motherboard: Asus P9X79 LE ATX LGA2011 Motherboard  ($239.00 @ CPL Online)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory  ($245.99 @ Mwave Australia)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($175.00 @ Mwave Australia)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($61.00 @ Centre Com)
Video Card: Asus Radeon R9 280 3GB DirectCU II Video Card  ($249.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Power Supply: Corsair RM 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($159.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Total: $1523.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-08-28 23:28 EST+1000

 

I know you said no more than 1500 but this is just over and I feel is pretty adequate for what you are wanting to do.

Went with 2011 socket which will allow for greater memory throughput and pci-e bandwidth. Plus you have an additional 4 open ram slots if you need to upgrade in the future.

[Quooston]

Thanks for your input techjunkie867. I'm now researching some of the suggestions you've made and it seems the 2011 vs 1150 debate is somewhat religious. I see where you are coming from; food for thought.

 

Also it looks like the R9 280 is clearly a better choice so thanks for that. 

 

Do you really think the liquid cooler is necessary? 

[Guest]

Thanks for your input techjunkie867. I'm now researching some of the suggestions you've made and it seems the 2011 vs 1150 debate is somewhat religious. I see where you are coming from; food for thought.

 

Also it looks like the R9 280 is clearly a better choice so thanks for that. 

 

Do you really think the liquid cooler is necessary? 

The i7 4820K won't offer anything over the Haswell i7 4790K. I would suggest waiting for Haswell-E but I don't know what the prices will be. It would give you a better upgrade path over 2011 socket though.

[techjunkie867]

I also would suggest waiting for the imminent release of the haswell-e. At the very least it will drop prices slightly of current gen processors. I wouldn't go with a Haswell-e build though due to your limited budget and ddr4 is going to extremely expensive. If you wanted to stockpile a little more money and wait a bit to see how the new architecture performs it might be worth it.

 

I do disagree with you lee... While it might not offer actual performance increase from the processor itself, or minimal albeit, the Ivy-e architecture allows throughput that Haswell doesn't. So the choice is more a socket choice, not a processor strictly.

 

No the liquid cooler is not necessary. But I would suggest it. If you're nervous about installing them, there are guides everywhere. If you don't want to, just pick up a nice aftermarket cooler that suites your likeness.

But you should be spending more than 30$ on a cooler though, ha.

[Quooston]

Thanks for the replies. I am going to wait for Haswell-E as suggested to see if prices drop. 

 

@techjunkie867 I hear you and will spend more on a cooler. 

 

I'm a little torn regarding the CPU... but as I'm waiting now I will stew on it and do more research.

[Quooston]

Whilst I appreciate the thought gone in to consider the 2011 socket, I think that the 1150 is the way to go atm for upgrade path if anything. 

 

Based on that, I will go with the 4790K and now I am stuck on the mobo. I like the Asus mobos, but I don't know whether to go with the MAXIMUS VII HERO or RANGER or ... Should I just go with the Z97-A? 

 

How reliable are these closed loop water cooling systems? Leaks etc? I am drawn to the Kraken Havik but water is far less obtrusive etc. I was thinking about the Noctua D-14 as its clearly awesome and so quiet, but shite the size of the thing is a little scary. Otherwise it's the water you recommended @techjunkie867. 

 

I have decided to reuse the SSD and rust I have in my laptop for now and also just stick with the HD6870 I have for the time being. I will definitely upgrade the graphics soonish, but this makes it an easier sell atm   I also will use the current Fractal Design R3 I have. 

 

Any comments appreciated. 

 

Here's my take: http://au.pcpartpicker.com/user/quooston/saved/wpfnTW

[pandorus13]

I think you're pretty well off. I'd personally recommend just going with air cooling . If you want to try water then go for something like the swiftech h220x or corsair 100i . Both trusted coolers overall . The 500$ should be ample for a decent graphics card. Although I'm pretty sure that your current processor is overkill for gaming , I'm not sure what your programming needs are and how much CPU intensive it is. I'd personally invest in much better GPUs.

[brob]

Go with the Asus Z97-A has all the basic features with decent sound and LAN.

 

I personally prefer the Noctua coolers, NH-U12 is a good choice if one doesn't intend to push the overclocking. It is smaller than their 140mm fan units and has no memory constraints.

 

Get the EVGA 220-G2-0750-XR psu. It is a little cheap than the RM-650, a little larger capacity, and much better quality. Don't know about down under, but in N.Am. it has a 10 year warranty.

 

I would also go with a less expensive memory part. Higher speed memory is not going to make a noticeable difference with the usage described.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($385.00 @ CPL Online)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U12S 55.0 CFM CPU Cooler  ($75.00 @ CPL Online)
Motherboard: Asus Z97-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($192.00 @ CPL Online)
Memory: Kingston Fury Black Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  ($188.00 @ CPL Online)
Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($148.00 @ CPL Online)
Total: $988.00
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-04 05:32 EST+1000

[Quooston]

Appreciated, thanks for the feedback.

[Quooston]

Just wanted to let you know that I went with this: http://au.pcpartpicker.com/p/jgjKnQ

 

Pretty much same as @bros recommendation but went with a NZXT Havik instead for cooling. 

 

I managed this 4.6GHz @ 1.27V, with IntelBurnTest reporting 79 degrees for the hottest core. How does that sound? It's my first overclock and wondering if I should push it further?

 

Thanks again for your input!