Gaming/Everyday, Future-Proof, Sexy

[LeifMasrud]

Hello everybody!

I wanted to post my upcoming build here as a bit of a sanity check. I would greatly appreciate any critique the community can provide. Thank you in advance!

 

About me:

I live in the US. I'm a long-time veteran of custom PC building (built my first custom PC in the mid-90s), but my last (personal) build was in 2006 (not counting a few upgrades along the way). I've done a bunch of research to try and get a handle on what has changed in the last 8 years, but I probably have some blind-spots. I don't want to waste any money, but if a few extra dollars will better meet my goals (especially future-proofing) I'd rather spend it now than regret it later.

 

About my goals:

As a gamer I have generally moved away from AAA titles and enjoy more indie games (Minecraft, Prison Architect, Fez, World of Goo, etc), with exceptions for my favorite franchises (Starcraft, Diablo, Crysis/FarCry, GalCiv, Bioshock, Halflife/Portal, Deus Ex, Mass Effect, Skyrim, etc.). In other words, my daily gaming needs are pretty modest, but when a game on my wishlist comes out, I'd like it to run as well as possible.

 

My everyday needs are also fairly modest. I publish youtube videos via webcam and game-capture software (usually Minecraft and Bandicam), and I'm a tab fiend in my web-browser (I have 20 chrome tabs open now, probably double that earlier today). I occasionally run image editing software and do some web and game development as well.

 

I'd like this machine to be as future-proof as possible. My current machine has lasted me 8 years with a graphics-card upgrade and a RAM upgrade in years 6 and 7. If I could get a similar lifespan out of my new one, I'd be very happy.

 

Looks are not the most important thing, but I've never before built a flashy PC and I'd like to make this one a looker if it doesn't add a lot of expense. I'm definitely considering a whole-system water cooling option, but I'm undecided about cost vs. benefit. After everything is settled I might even throw a bit of sexy lighting in too.

 

My budget:

If I can get 8 years out of the machine, my budget would be around $1200 ($150/year which is about what I got from my last machine - including upgrades), not including keyboard/mouse.

 

About my (proposed) build:

http://pcpartpicker.com/user/LeifMasrud/saved/qZfD4D

• Case: NZXT H440 Black/Red
• CPU: Intel Core i7 4790k
• CPU Cooler: Stock (Later upgrade to whole-system water-cooling)
• Motherboard: Asus Maximus VII Formula
• Graphics Card: Asus GTX 760 DC2OC (Later upgrade to a second 760 SLI)
• RAM: G.Skill Trident X DDR3 1600 16GB Kit (2x8GB)
• Power Supply: Corsair HX750i 80+ Platinum Full Modular

 

I already have a copy of 64-bit Windows 7 Pro, 2 SSDs, a 1TB HDD, Monitor, Webcam, Speakers, Mic, Etc. I could definitely use a new keyboard and mouse, however:

• Keyboard: Corsair K70 RGB Brown Switch
• Mouse: Razer Deathadder Chroma

 

Questions:

• Given my goals, have I wasted any money?
• Would alternative components give me more future-proofness without breaking the bank?
• Have I mismatched any components (i.e. created a needless bottleneck)?
• Is it a waste to consider a whole-system water-cooling option?

 

Current system:

In case anybody is interested:

• Case: Athenatech A416BS.400 (some cheapo $30 case, iirc)
• CPU: Intel Core2 6400 2.13GHz
• CPU Cooler: Stock Intel heatsink/fan
• Motherboard: Intel DP965LT
• Graphics Card: GeForce 7600 GT later upgraded to GeForce GTX 460
• RAM: 6GB of who-knows what (3 DIMMs, all different)
• Power Supply: Corsair HX750 non-modular

[Flight1sim]

If you want 8 years out of your PC, go X99 or even a higher end PSU/GPU/SSD/Water Cooling

WELCOME TO THE LTT FORUMS!!!   I hope you enjoy your stay

Please read the C.O.C (in my signature) and if you'd like, change your theme to 'Night' (directions located in my signature)

[jnmbhj]

It seems like a great build considering your not going to play AAA titles 

[thekeemo]

$150 a year is a bit tough

 

just add the H440

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($309.99 @ Newegg) 

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($28.99 @ Micro Center) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-Gaming 5 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($161.98 @ Newegg) 

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  ($154.98 @ OutletPC) 

Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card  ($368.99 @ NCIX US) 

Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($104.99 @ NCIX US) 

Total: $1104.92

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-12-08 20:19 EST-0500

[Cheese4395]

I think that you might want to try and be willing to just spend the money on getting a 980/970 and worry about SLI-ing later. 

 

I also agree that if you are really looking for a lasting machine going x99 with your needs might be more beneficially although it is much more expensive at the time of writing this. 

 

You might want to also think of getting an EVGA 850W G2 as its a very good psu for your needs. Although if you plan on getting a 970/980 you really probably only need a 650W unless you go SLI in the future. 

 

I would rethink the motherboard as it is overpriced and you will likely not use all the features included.

 

 

 

$150 a year is a bit tough but check the 3rd link in my signature

 

just add the H440

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

 

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($299.99 @ Newegg) 

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($22.99 @ Micro Center) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-Gaming 5 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($119.99 @ Newegg) 

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  ($121.99 @ Newegg) 

Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($109.00 @ Amazon) 

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($69.99 @ Amazon) 

Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card  ($354.98 @ NCIX US) 

Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($89.99 @ NCIX US) 

Total: $1175.92

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-29 17:16 EST-0500

 

Damn you beat me to it. 

This is how I would spend your money. It is much much better and should last you a long time.

[Suffokation]

Firstly, I recommend changing the power supply around, if you wish to have a good solid power supply at the same wattage I recommend the EVGA Supernova G2. It's much cheaper and I regard it as the best gold supply out there.

Also, your choice of the i7 is quite odd, I would recommend strongly that you take it down to a i5 4670K, as for games the difference is within a margin of error and even for slight rendering, it won't make a massive difference.

Also, the motherboard could be easily downgraded to a slightly cheaper ROG board. The Formula in my opinion is a silly motherboard if you are going with a GTX 760.

With all of these downgrades I recommend you put the cash into a GTX 970 or a 290.

[LeifMasrud]

I'm feeling very unsure about the motherboard. I really like the Asus Maximus VII Formula, but I wonder if I'm throwing my money away on fancy overclocking and water-cooling features when the Maximus VII Hero would perform just as well. Given that longevity is an important goal for me I'm inclined to go a bit over-the-top now rather than have regrets later. Anybody have any thoughts about my motherboard choice?

 

 

If you want 8 years out of your PC, go X99 or even a higher end PSU/GPU/SSD/Water Cooling

 

Is X99 a good idea? It looked like more of an enterprise-level technology that would be way overkill for home-office/gaming use. What are the advantages if I'm not interested in 4-way SLI or 64G RAM?

[ComradeHX]

Make sure you get a GTX 970 and switch cpu to i5(best one that fits the budget, make sure it's part of haswell-refresh) to compensate.

"Future-proof" isn't possible(always something better/more efficient around the corner) and definitely not with your budget.

[Flight1sim]

I'm feeling very unsure about the motherboard. I really like the Asus Maximus VII Formula, but I wonder if I'm throwing my money away on fancy overclocking and water-cooling features when the Maximus VII Hero would perform just as well. Given that longevity is an important goal for me I'm inclined to go a bit over-the-top now rather than have regrets later. Anybody have any thoughts about my motherboard choice?

 

 

 

Is X99 a good idea? It looked like more of an enterprise-level technology that would be way overkill for home-office/gaming use. What are the advantages if I'm not interested in 4-way SLI or 64G RAM?

I mean if you really want it to last a long time

[OhhTee]

I mean if you really want it to last a long time

 

He's gonna want a bigger budget if he wants x99. I don't really think x99 is worth it unless you REALLY REALLY need all that power. Definitely not worth it if it's a gaming rig.

[monjanger]

This is a future proof machine. Trust me, its a beast. It can handle your games at max setting at 60FPS.

 

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($219.99 @ Newegg) 

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($32.45 @ Amazon) 

Motherboard: MSI Z97-GAMING 5 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($144.98 @ OutletPC) 

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($77.98 @ OutletPC) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($53.89 @ Directron) 

Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB Superclocked ACX 2.0 Video Card  ($351.98 @ Newegg) 

Case: Corsair 750D ATX Full Tower Case  ($134.99 @ Amazon) 

Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($79.48 @ Mwave) 

Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer  ($18.88 @ OutletPC) 

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit)  ($99.98 @ OutletPC) 

Total: $1214.60

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-12-08 20:37 EST-0500

[LeifMasrud]

He's gonna want a bigger budget if he wants x99. I don't really think x99 is worth it unless you REALLY REALLY need all that power. Definitely not worth it if it's a gaming rig.

 

I'm inclined to agree. Everything is going to cost more for X99, and I'm not sure I would really benefit much given the moderate computing I normally do.

 

Nobody has yet commented on water cooling. I'm beginning to get the impression that water-cooling is pretty much just aesthetic unless you're seriously overclocking your CPU and GPUs. Is this correct? Other than looking cool are there any real performance benefits to water cooling over air? I suspect not since I've always used stock air coolers and never had heat issues (with the exception of a mini-ITX build I recently did, but that's a different story).

[OhhTee]

I'm inclined to agree. Everything is going to cost more for X99, and I'm not sure I would really benefit much given the moderate computing I normally do.

 

Nobody has yet commented on water cooling. I'm beginning to get the impression that water-cooling is pretty much just aesthetic unless you're seriously overclocking your CPU and GPUs. Is this correct? Other than looking cool are there any real performance benefits to water cooling over air? I suspect not since I've always used stock air coolers and never had heat issues (with the exception of a mini-ITX build I recently did, but that's a different story).

 

Watercooling isn't a necessity, it's mainly for hardcore overclockers or people who want to make a build that is as silent as possible. Water is better at transferring heat away than air so if you use water to cool your system, you can run fans at lower rpm to reduce the noise level. You don't really need an aftermarket cooler if you're only just using stock settings. That's what the stock coolers are for.  Unless you have a case that is pure crap and has no air flow. Or components that get super hot.

[LeifMasrud]

Thank you everybody for your input! It's really helpful to hear some other perspectives.

 

Now I'm looking at my motherboard choice in terms of audio. The Maximus VII Formula seems to have a really nice onboard audio solution, but I'm not much of an audiophile. Will I see any audio quality benefit (games, pandora, youtube, podcasts) going with something fancy like the Formula vs something more basic? Should I even consider a sound card (Tek says no)?