Second Build, Suggestions Please ^_^

[Lucasko]

TLDR- Suggest a build meant for hardcore gaming with moderate video editing and streaming that fits a flexible (+ /- $300) $2k USD budget (not including monitor(s)/peripherals).  If able, also offer information to help turn my below decision points into conclusions.

 

Greetings,

My name is Lucas.  I will be buying parts for my second build and I need your help to determine what parts I will need for this.  

 

Aim- Most of my time is spent on my pc.  I am a very hardcore gamer.  In addition to gaming, I also do moderate video editing (I use my gaming footage to make dorky youtube vids  ).  I'm planning on streaming once I build this pc. I don't plan to overclock.       

 

Budget- I'm looking to spend around $2k USD.  If I spend a few hundred less, then it's more $ in my pocket.  If I spend a few hundred over $2k to get noticeable performance/enjoyment, that is also fine with me.  I live in Ohio, a Midwestern state in the USA (which may affect shipping or other factors).

 

Decision Points:

 

AMD v Intel- I'm leaning toward Intel.  My first build was AMD, and it would be nice to see how I like intel.  I've read that AMD is in general better for cheaper builds, but that Intel is better if you happen to be going higher end.  I'm also under the impression that the multiple cores of AMD handles video editing better, but I'm not sure how much better.  Thoughts? 

 

SLI / Crossfire- I was thinking of using two video cards for this build.  This will boost the power needed and heat output.  Would this cause problems?  I'm leaning toward this because I've heard that, as an example, 2 gtx 970s is better performance per dollar than 1 gtx 980.  I have no clue what adding a second monitor may do to this.         

 

1 or 2 Moniters- I like the idea of 2 monitors.  I plan to be streaming games, and this allows me to put sensitive information on one monitor while playing on another.  In addition, I watch all my television on the computer.  It's nice to be able to watch a show while playing a game and dual monitors makes this very easy.  How would this affect my GPU(s)?  Do GPUs split the workload even, or does one GPU apply to one monitor?  It feels like a waste to have 1 GPU focused on a show or movie while another is focused on the heavy lifting of my game.    

 

Water Cooling v Air cooling- I don't plan to overclock.  The research I've done suggests that water cooling is unnecessary when not overclocking.  If I have 2 GPUs and 2 monitors, can I still safely cool with just fans?  

 

Overclocking- I don't plan on overclocking at all.  Is this stupid?  Is there some big benefit that I'm missing out on?  If the performance boost is minimal, I don't want to risk harming my pc.

 

SSD- I plan on at least putting my OS on a small SSD.  I am toying with the idea of using a much bigger SSD for the games I frequently play as well as the video editor  and video recorder (fraps) I will be using.  I am unsure what size I want.  Do I just go for a 32 gb or go for the gusto and get a 512 (or larger)?  Regardless of the size SSD I get, I will have a 1-3 TB harddrive for additional storage.  What is everyone's thoughts on the SSD size?  How does my fraps use affect this decision?  (check out the "fraps during gaming" decision point below).                   

 

Fraps during gaming- On my first build, I could not run fraps during a video game because of lag.  What would allow me to run fraps during gaming?  Does that involve the CPU?  RAM?  Type of hard drives?  Motherboard?  Everything?  The files from recording live games can reach 10s or even hundreds of GBs until I compress them.  Does the harddrive that Fraps is recording to make a difference in game performance?

 

Windows 7 or 8?- My first build has Windows 7.  Is it transferable to this new PC without removing it off the old one?  I like the style of 7, but have been told 8 can mimic 7 if I choose to set it up this way.  Thoughts?  If I need to fork over the $ for a new OS, so be it.

 

Size of PSU- I tend to not skrimp on the PSU.  Do I want 750, 1k W, or higher?  How much difference does SLI and Dual Moniter make on the wattage required to safely power my build?

 

RAM- 16 or 36?  Would 36 speed up (or rather prevent a bottle neck during) my video editing, video compression, and recording with fraps?  Would extra RAM ensure I could have a library of internet tabs open while I game?

 

Thank you very much for your time.  All input is greatly appreciated.

 

Regards,

Lucas

[ShadowCaptain]

 Fraps during gaming- On my first build, I could not run fraps during a video game because of lag.  What would allow me to run fraps during gaming?  Does that involve the CPU?  RAM?  Type of hard drives?  Motherboard?  Everything?  The files from recording live games can reach 10s or even hundreds of GBs until I compress them.  Does the harddrive that Fraps is recording to make a difference in game performance?

 

 

will do a build for you but first: ill answer a few queries

 

Dont bother with fraps anymore, use shadowplay (get an nvidia GPU) the files are smaller but high quality, and there is basically no performance loss during recording

 

Also, overclocking is free performance really, even on a mediocre cheap air cooling you can overclock and get free extra performance, if not pushing it hard there is really no hard done to components, that said you dont HAVE to

 

IMO get a large SSS 256 or more, some games especially things like battlefield benefit greatly from being launched from SSD, it then means that you can install games and programs on your SSD, and run your recordings and stuff to hard drives seperately which improves performance

 

So IMO

 

Intel, SLI 970s, 2 Displays (1 nice one for gaming, cheap second one for monitoring chat/youtube/ etc), basic AIO cooler or good air cooler, BIG SSD, use shadowplay, windows 8.1, 16gb ram is PLENTY

 

Here is my idea for a build, for a second screen use your old one or get a cheap one

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($318.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

CPU Cooler: be quiet! Dark Rock 3 113.8 CFM Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler  ($59.90 @ Newegg) 

Motherboard: MSI Z97-G55 SLI ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($108.99 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Mushkin Blackline 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($124.99 @ Newegg) 

Storage: Crucial MX100 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($104.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($77.75 @ OutletPC) 

Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card (2-Way SLI)  ($348.95 @ B&H) 

Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card (2-Way SLI)  ($348.95 @ B&H) 

Case: Corsair 450D ATX Mid Tower Case  ($109.99 @ NCIX US) 

Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($69.99 @ NCIX US) 

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit)  ($89.98 @ OutletPC) 

Monitor: Asus PB278Q 27.0" Monitor  ($449.99 @ NCIX US) 

Total: $2213.46

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-01-08 05:27 EST-0500

[WoodenMarker]

Why not oc?

Sli/cf has issues with compatibility and will produce more heat than a single card. Auxiliary displays use very few resources.

Water cooling is not necessary. 

Oc'ing is usually free performance when it comes to the graphics card and is worth it if you're spending an ample budget on a system. Otherwise, not oc'ing is usually the better value.

Just get a larger ssd for your os, programs, and games. ~500GB is a good size for that. Record to your hdd with fraps. Fraps generally has to do with the settings used and the hdd. I'd suggest using shadowplay when possible instead if quality doesn't need to be lossless.

Win7 is transferable but can only be attached to one system at a time. Most 'issues' with Win8 can be fixed by changing program associations and adding in the start menu.

A good 650w is already plenty for a 970 sli. A decent 550w is plenty for any single gpu system.

16GB ram is already plenty. More ram would likely be unused and more ram than needed serves no purpose. 

 

What's your total budget including that of peripherals? What peripherals are needed?

[Lucasko]

 

 

Here is my idea for a build

 

 

Thank you so much for the build, and the information!  This gives me a great foundation.  Also, I'll definitely give shadowplay a try.  I was leaning toward duo gtx 970s from 2 seperate source suggestions, so it works out well  

 

 

 

What's your total budget including that of peripherals? What peripherals are needed?

 

 

Thank you for the information!  I'm indecisive on the total budget including peripherals because I'm unsure how much will transferred from my current pc, so I was just excluding them from the list.  Eventually, I will likely get a new mouse, mouse anchor, desk-sized mouse pad, keyboard, professional mic, headset, speakers, chair, and possibly 1-2 monitors.  It's possible for me to avoid all of those purchases for now by simply using the lackluster items I'm currently using.  I'll probably wait until I have my pc built to decide what $ I'm willing to spend on the peripherals.         

[WoodenMarker]

Thank you so much for the build, and the information!  This gives me a great foundation.  Also, I'll definitely give shadowplay a try.  I was leaning toward duo gtx 970s from 2 seperate source suggestions, so it works out well

Thank you for the information!  I'm indecisive on the total budget including peripherals because I'm unsure how much will transferred from my current pc, so I was just excluding them from the list.  Eventually, I will likely get a new mouse, mouse anchor, desk-sized mouse pad, keyboard, professional mic, headset, speakers, chair, and possibly 1-2 monitors.  It's possible for me to avoid all of those purchases for now by simply using the lackluster items I'm currently using.  I'll probably wait until I have my pc built to decide what $ I'm willing to spend on the peripherals.         

Why a professional mic along with a headset? What do you currently have?

It's better to figure out your total budget and work from it as a whole to not end up unnecessarily skimping or overspending.

[Lucasko]

Why a professional mic along with a headset? What do you currently have?

It's better to figure out your total budget and work from it as a whole to not end up unnecessarily skimping or overspending.

 

For the Mic-

Currently I have a $35 plantronics headset.  After having two lackluster ~$100 headsets in a row, I tried a cheap temporary replacement and it's ended up being my go-to headset for surprisingly pristine audio and microphone quality (at least for gaming) for the last ~4 years.  However, when it comes to recording youtube commentary, the lack of a pop-filter and better mic has left the audio quality less than ideal (even with a ghetto make-shift pop-filter I crafted from a glove  ).  My thought process (without yet researching the topic) was that I'd eventually get a decent microphone (I was thinking in the $100 range, perhaps professional was a bad word choice), get a separate headset that have no attached mic, or decent speakers (since I could use the $100 microphone), and use my current headset if I need a headset with a mic.

 

For my Total Budget-

I chose $2k USD +/- $300 for everything not including peripherals because most peripherals I want are optional.  It would be nice to have use of my first PC, so my thoughts are 1 monitor ~$300, Mouse ~$70, Keyboard ~$100, Mouse Pad ~$30.  I left these estimates are on the high side just in-case.  This leaves my old monitor, mouse, keyboard, and mouse pad for my old system.  When my old system doesn't need the monitor, I can use that for my 2nd low quality monitor in my new build.  So I suppose in total the low end budget for the build and peripherals would be about $2,500 give or take $300.

 

If I were to do a high end estimate, I would need to include things like 2 monitors (assuming my GF suddenly becomes a full fledged pc gamer, unlikely ) a new chair, mic, etc.  It is unlikely I would get most of these things for a while.  Sorry for being rather indecisive.  Does that help show where my mindset is?         

[WoodenMarker]

For the Mic-

Currently I have a $35 plantronics headset.  After having two lackluster ~$100 headsets in a row, I tried a cheap temporary replacement and it's ended up being my go-to headset for surprisingly pristine audio and microphone quality (at least for gaming) for the last ~4 years.  However, when it comes to recording youtube commentary, the lack of a pop-filter and better mic has left the audio quality less than ideal (even with a ghetto make-shift pop-filter I crafted from a glove  ).  My thought process (without yet researching the topic) was that I'd eventually get a decent microphone (I was thinking in the $100 range, perhaps professional was a bad word choice), get a separate headset that have no attached mic, or decent speakers (since I could use the $100 microphone), and use my current headset if I need a headset with a mic.

 

For my Total Budget-

I chose $2k USD +/- $300 for everything not including peripherals because most peripherals I want are optional.  It would be nice to have use of my first PC, so my thoughts are 1 monitor ~$300, Mouse ~$70, Keyboard ~$100, Mouse Pad ~$30.  I left these estimates are on the high side just in-case.  This leaves my old monitor, mouse, keyboard, and mouse pad for my old system.  When my old system doesn't need the monitor, I can use that for my 2nd low quality monitor in my new build.  So I suppose in total the low end budget for the build and peripherals would be about $2,500 give or take $300.

 

If I were to do a high end estimate, I would need to include things like 2 monitors (assuming my GF suddenly becomes a full fledged pc gamer, unlikely ) a new chair, mic, etc.  It is unlikely I would get most of these things for a while.  Sorry for being rather indecisive.  Does that help show where my mindset is?         

I think you're looking for something like this:

 

Rough recommendations: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/t3YyZL

I'd suggest not bothering to sli for the sake of getting better displays. 

As for speakers/headphones/mic, I'd point you towards the audio subforum for more in-depth help after the build itself is planned out.

[Lucasko]

I think you're looking for something like this:

 

Rough recommendations: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/t3YyZL

I'd suggest not bothering to sli for the sake of getting better displays. 

As for speakers/headphones/mic, I'd point you towards the audio subforum for more in-depth help after the build itself is planned out.

 

Thanks very much for all of your advice!  Now I have some tough decisions to make  Very helpful.