The Hand of Nod

[jessicametal]

So I'm building a gaming/streaming/audio recording computer to also use for school tasks (such as Word/Powerpoint/Excel/etc) and while I originally had a pcpartpicker build called "white lightning" all set up, I decided to change a lot of the parts and go from a Black/White/Blue build to the more traditional Black/Red build since there are more quality parts available in that color scheme (and I do have a bit of a preference for MSI mobos). I chose this particular name because I grew up with the Command and Conquer games and I always thought that Nod had some of the coolest buildings and vehicles.

 

So here are the specs for the build:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($316.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

CPU Cooler: Corsair H80i 77.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler  ($79.99 @ NCIX US) 

Thermal Compound: Arctic Silver 5 High-Density Polysynthetic Silver 3.5g Thermal Paste  ($6.89 @ OutletPC) 

Motherboard: MSI Z97-GAMING 5 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($129.99 @ Amazon) 

Memory: G.Skill Sniper Gaming Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($117.00 @ Newegg) 

Storage: Patriot Blaze 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($95.99 @ NCIX US) 

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($96.88 @ OutletPC) 

Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card  ($359.99 @ Amazon) 

Case: Corsair SPEC-03 White ATX Mid Tower Case  ($59.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: SeaSonic 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($104.99 @ Newegg) 

Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer  ($16.98 @ OutletPC) 

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (32/64-bit)  ($102.93 @ Amazon) 

Monitor: Asus VG248QE 144Hz 24.0" Monitor  ($264.99 @ Adorama) 

Wireless Network Adapter: Rosewill N900PCE 802.11a/b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter  ($29.59 @ OutletPC) 

Case Fan: BitFenix BFF-LPRO-14025R-RP 86.7 CFM 140mm  Fan  ($15.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Case Fan: BitFenix BFF-LPRO-14025R-RP 86.7 CFM 140mm  Fan  ($15.99 @ SuperBiiz) 

Case Fan: LEPA LP-BOL12P-R 81.5 CFM 120mm  Fan  ($14.77 @ Amazon) 

Case Fan: LEPA LP-BOL12P-R 81.5 CFM 120mm  Fan  ($14.77 @ Amazon) 

Case Fan: LEPA LP-BOL12P-R 81.5 CFM 120mm  Fan  ($14.77 @ Amazon) 

Fan Controller: NZXT Sentry Mix 2 Fan Controller  ($27.98 @ OutletPC) 

Keyboard: Cooler Master CM Storm Devastator Gaming Bundle Wired Gaming Keyboard w/Optical Mouse  ($27.99 @ NCIX US) 

Total: $1915.45

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-02-03 11:54 EST-0500

 

 

 

 

I already bought the case (back when I was planning the black/white/blue build), and I plan to just swap out the fans and pretend it's a SPEC 03 Red.   :lol:

So here's the case. (apologies in advance for my "smart"phone not knowing the correct angle to take pictures)

 

I actually did buy that keyboard/mouse combo, but with the blue LEDs. I decided to keep using that on my laptop and just get the red LED set since I really like that particular gaming keyboard/mouse set.

 

I will be ordering the rest of the parts here in a couple of days once the bank removes the hold on the rest of my funds. I'll take pics as I continue with it.

 

 

 

Also with the build name, I dig it more and more because it's also a reference to the amount of gaming power I will be holding in my very hands:

   

 

[Nineshadow]

+1 for the name.

Really.

 

Nod is totally awesome. Better paint a sidepanel with the logo.

[The Toaster]

Upon seeing the build name, memories of playing command and conquer on my parent's windows 95 PC came rushing back to me.

 

Also, I would have opted for a Dark Rock Pro 3 cooler at that price point, due to the lack of cooling of singe fan radiators.

Kane would be proud.

[ELSknutson]

I love an hate that case 

the cooler is going to be a pain to put in with all toughs fans

[jessicametal]

Upon seeing the build name, memories of playing command and conquer on my parent's windows 95 PC came rushing back to me.

 

Also, I would have opted for a Dark Rock Pro 3 cooler at that price point, due to the lack of cooling of singe fan radiators.

Kane would be proud.

That's exactly the cooler I originally wanted for this build, but that damn case wouldn't support it.  :lol: 

So I went with the h80i as I know for certain that it's Corsair certified for that case.

[jessicametal]

Yeah I'm unbelievably stoked for this build. I haven't built a computer in years, but I'm really excited to have something that can play all of the games in my steam library. I got my current laptop back in 2012 thinking that I'd be covered for a little while. Yet I can't even play half the games in my steam library on it (damn HD 3000 graphics), so it will be awesome to have all 70+ titles available to me and I'll have the space to store all of them. I'll probably add another 970, another 16GB of RAM and at least one more of those monitors to my setup later on. I'll need the extra memory for running all those audio VSTs in my DAW when I start doing crazy stuff like quad-tracking guitars and what not. :lol:

[don]

Looks great but i think you should paint the 5 1/4 and optical.

[jessicametal]

Alright, some changes to the build had to be made because I quickly learned that SuperBiiz has HORRIBLE customer service and they like to randomly hang up on you when you try to work out the massive issues that you get when trying to order online. As such, I opted for the 120GB version of that Patriot Blaze for now, and I'm going to hold off on the two 140mm fans for later. 

But the parts are ordered and coming in the mail.  B)

Total cost of build after taxes and shipping: $2052.78.
I also dropped an extra $100 for a Samsung WB35F 16.2MP camera from Walmart and a 16GB microSD for it so that I can take high res pics of the build.

Oh and as per request, I went ahead and got a large clear vinyl sticker of this for the side panel:
http://www.cafepress.com/mf/32913823/nodcircular_sticker?productId=1020841667

[Mew]

I would recommend opting for Intel's 7260AC or their updated 7265AC over the Rosewill. Better yet, try to use lan over wifi.

[jessicametal]

And the first wave of items is coming in...

 

[Tearass]

I love an hate that case 

the cooler is going to be a pain to put in with all toughs fans

 

The colour looks a little interesting  :unsure:

[AmbellinaThePrise]

So excited to see this build be completed, Jess!

[jessicametal]

Okay, so minus the 3TB HDD that Outlet PC conveniently forgot to include in the box with my thermal compound and fan controller, I have all the parts for this build now. Today consisted of doing a parts check on the mobo box just to see if everything works. It POST'd up. Spent the next six hours trying to get everything all together and managing the cables. I go to boot up and no power to mobo. My guess is that one of two things happened...
1.) I used CPU fan #2 for the test boot and it was plugged into CPU fan #1 when I had the H80i installed. Might just be a case of me changing the fan header back to #2 (some mobos won't power up until there's power to the CPU fan as a failsafe)
2.) There is something shorting out the mobo (could be the water cooler screws, or the screws that are supposed to be holding the mobo in place) and as a result, it won't boot up.

I'm too exhausted to mess with it anymore tonight, so I'll keep working on it little by little over the next few days. I'm in the middle of a move and it's just chaos on top of trying to troubleshoot a PC. If I have time in the morning before I run more errands, I'll load up pics of the build in progress. Also, feel free to chime in with advice in case I missed something. Or to just laugh at me. That works too.  :lol:


tl;dr version:
CURSE YOU GDI!!! :angry:  :angry:  :angry:

[jessicametal]

And I finally did it. (sort of)
I switched back to the stock cooler, double checked all my headers, and this beast fired right up. Once I get some more thermal compound, I'll take another crack at installing the H80i. Pics will be posted from the new PC once I have all the programs and drivers installed.       



KANE LIVES!!!!

[rentaspoon]

Just a note if you didn't know already C&C Gold is freeware now as well as tiberium sun

[Not_Sean]

I'll give this a follow, Always keen on a fresh build even if the true power lies in GDI Titans.... 

[jessicametal]

Behold brethren!

So yeah, this build has had its fair share of snafus. Some were my bad, some were the fault of companies with less than desirable shipping habits. But all in all, there was something exceedingly satisfying when I managed to overclock that i7 to 4.4GHz and see my system open and close files/programs/browsers/etc. with THE utmost quickness. Seeing that MSI mobo light up with it's sick red LEDs along with the red LEDs of my LEPA fans made me happier than words could ever describe. For once in my life I will have a computer that will last me for a little while and it will be years before I ever have to worry about not being able to keep up with my game library and VST programs.

Now that I found my thermal compound, I can give installing the H80i another shot as I'm not too thrilled about my CPU idling at 42C and encountering thermal throttling when I tried benchmarking with Intel's XTU program. Also, while I battle with OutletPC on the fact that they didn't send me the drive I paid for, I ordered a backup 1TB drive from newegg to tide me over.

Hope you all enjoy the pics and if I can learn video editing on this sick machine, I'll make a legit B-roll of it.