Advice/Help - My first Desktop

[Alec10121]

PcPartPicker link: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/9RQMYJ

 

I am planning to build my first gaming desktop soon. I am looking for components that will hopefully give me 60 fps on games like GTA V and Arma 3 medium to high graphics settings.I need help on primarily motherboard and RAM choice because those are the two things I do not have much experience with. I also ready somewhere that getting a core i7 would result in noperformance gain over a core i5 at 3.5 ghz. (Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor) All of the parts i have chosen are in the link at the top. Please check it out, I have no particular budget as of yet soI am open to going up to $1,500 dollars as of now so I can add maybe $400-$500 worth of more stuff. I really do not want to limit my computer and have it open to more expansions in the future. In orderto help people understand what kind of changes, I would probably get a better graphics card, RAM, and CPU. I am already considering a core i7 but I also do not know what to get for my specific purpose. 

[IanDrexP]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

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

CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i GTX 70.7 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler  ($109.99 @ NCIX US) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97-HD3P ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($86.98 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($56.98 @ OutletPC) 

Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($97.89 @ OutletPC) 

Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($70.99 @ Newegg) 

Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Video Card  ($649.99 @ B&H) 

Case: NZXT H440 (Black/Red) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($96.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($64.99 @ NCIX US) 

Case Fan: Cooler Master SickleFlow 69.7 CFM 120mm  Fan  ($5.99 @ NCIX US) 

Case Fan: Corsair Air Series AF140 Red 66.4 CFM 140mm  Fan  ($15.69 @ OutletPC) 

Total: $1476.47

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-06-19 11:44 EDT-0400

 

For gaming the i5 is more than enough

[Alec10121]

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

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

CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i GTX 70.7 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler  ($109.99 @ NCIX US) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97-HD3P ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($86.98 @ Newegg) 

Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($56.98 @ OutletPC) 

Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($97.89 @ OutletPC) 

Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($70.99 @ Newegg) 

Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Video Card  ($649.99 @ B&H) 

Case: NZXT H440 (Black/Red) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($96.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($64.99 @ NCIX US) 

Case Fan: Cooler Master SickleFlow 69.7 CFM 120mm  Fan  ($5.99 @ NCIX US) 

Case Fan: Corsair Air Series AF140 Red 66.4 CFM 140mm  Fan  ($15.69 @ OutletPC) 

Total: $1476.47

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-06-19 11:44 EDT-0400

 

For gaming the i5 is more than enough

 

I was aware of this but the GTX 980 ti has a length of 267mm but the case only has a clearance of 294mm with drive cages but a clearance of 406mm without them. I was woundering about the radiator being on the top mounting area and them having them in a push or pull set-up. I would like to have my computer primarily air cooled but i would be ok with the H100i if it is trusted and has not had many failures in the past. I also have read that there is two drive mounting points in the bottaom as this is where i would have to put my drives if i removed the drive cages for the graphics card. I would like to make sure that the case does indeed have two bottom mounting points and that everything will fit in this case with no problem and with space for air to move as well as for expansion

[IanDrexP]

I was aware of this but the GTX 980 ti has a length of 267mm but the case only has a clearance of 294mm with drive cages but a clearance of 406mm without them. I was woundering about the radiator being on the top mounting area and them having them in a push or pull set-up. I would like to have my computer primarily air cooled but i would be ok with the H100i if it is trusted and has not had many failures in the past. I also have read that there is two drive mounting points in the bottaom as this is where i would have to put my drives if i removed the drive cages for the graphics card. I would like to make sure that the case does indeed have two bottom mounting points and that everything will fit in this case with no problem and with space for air to move as well as for expansion

There will be no problems with clearance  The case can handle up to 11.5 inches length of GPUs with the drive cages on (The EVGA 980 Ti is only 10.5 inches) and yes you cant mount either a 3.5 or 2.5 inch drive on the bottom back plus 2 SSD mounts on the front on top of the PSU shroud. I would say the top would be best for mount the H100i if you go with that route because it will exhaust the air out of the case directly.

 

REFERENCE:

[Alec10121]

There will be no problems with clearance  The case can handle up to 11.5 inches length of GPUs with the drive cages on (The EVGA 980 Ti is only 10.5 inches) and yes you cant mount either a 3.5 or 2.5 inch drive on the bottom back plus 2 SSD mounts on the front on top of the PSU shroud. I would say the top would be best for mount the H100i if you go with that route because it will exhaust the air out of the case directly.

 

REFERENCE:

I actually changed up the layout of the case and changed it to a full tower, The Enthoo Pro, I changed it to an air cooler on the cpu, added a few new fans and changed the graphics card to a lower price one because the price of the (980 ti was actually 100$ more. The new build can be found here:http://pcpartpicker.com/p/ngrfgs. I also changed the ram to a low profile one due to clearance issues with the Hyper Evo 212. I would appreciate it if you reply to this topic when a new part comes out that is the same price as the type of component it would be replacing and it obviously has better performance numbers. Like if there is a better Graphics card to replace the current one, which i changed to a Gigabyte GTX 970 windforce edition, and is the same price with better performance please let me know. 

[IanDrexP]

I actually changed up the layout of the case and changed it to a full tower, The Enthoo Pro, I changed it to an air cooler on the cpu, added a few new fans and changed the graphics card to a lower price one because the price of the (980 ti was actually 100$ more. The new build can be found here:http://pcpartpicker.com/p/ngrfgs. I also changed the ram to a low profile one due to clearance issues with the Hyper Evo 212. I would appreciate it if you reply to this topic when a new part comes out that is the same price as the type of component it would be replacing and it obviously has better performance numbers. Like if there is a better Graphics card to replace the current one, which i changed to a Gigabyte GTX 970 windforce edition, and is the same price with better performance please let me know. 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

Thermal Compound: Prolimatech PK-3 Nano Aluminum High-Grade 1.5g Thermal Paste  ($6.97 @ Amazon) 

Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon R9 390X 8GB SOC Video Card  ($429.99 @ Amazon) 

Total: $436.96

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-06-22 01:47 EDT-0400

 

How about AMD's new R9 390X? It has double the VRAM of the 970 which will be useful for higher resolutions like 1440p and above and also for enabling AA in your games. I recommend the thermal compound since I think it gives the best temps and only costs a little.

[Alec10121]

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

Thermal Compound: Prolimatech PK-3 Nano Aluminum High-Grade 1.5g Thermal Paste  ($6.97 @ Amazon) 

Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon R9 390X 8GB SOC Video Card  ($429.99 @ Amazon) 

Total: $436.96

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-06-22 01:47 EDT-0400

 

How about AMD's new R9 390X? It has double the VRAM of the 970 which will be useful for higher resolutions like 1440p and above and also for enabling AA in your games. I recommend the thermal compound since I think it gives the best temps and only costs a little.

 

I think that the r9 390x is a little out of my budget. I definitely appreciate your help as this is my first build. If you can provide links to a few review regarding the graphics card that in your opinion cover almost everything about it software and physical feature wise. If you can find videos to convince me to save 100 more dollars over my current $1200 configuration I will definitely consider it. Do you think I have to worry about newer stuff coming out in the next 5-6 months, possibly even 7, that are worth looking at. I know there will most likely be a new range of graphics cards and possibly processors. Should I only worry about new graphics cards or should i worry about the changing of many other components too. Like motherboards, hard drives, RAM, processors, coolers, etc. Please let me know and if you can let me know when i should change to a better graphics card if it comes out in the coming months while I am attempting to save up money for my build. 

 

         Once again thanks for the help,

         -Alec

 

 

 

Add-On: As soon as i looked up the new graphics card this is what i was greeted with:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kEcbLRnbVI

I dont think i will be getting this because my budget got down to about $1,200 to $1,250. Thanks for the suggestion but i will most likely be gaming at 1080p as a result of this being my first build. I also do not have a monitor so if you have a $200-$300 solution with G-sync that you recommend i would also really appreciate it. I prefer 20-30 inch monitors as well at 1080p. If G-sync is a lot more please give me a monitor without it and let me know.

[Sam Z Man]

@Alec10121 for what you want to do this fits the bill and a little bit beyond, there is no need to go overkill, but the 960 was lacking, you could get another 290X and do triple 1080p surround if you want.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

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

CPU Cooler: be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 3 93.3 CFM Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler  ($89.90 @ Newegg) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-Gaming 5 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($96.00 @ SuperBiiz) 

Memory: Kingston Fury Red Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  ($56.99 @ Amazon) 

Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($97.89 @ OutletPC) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($49.99 @ Newegg) 

Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon R9 290X 4GB Gaming Video Card  ($298.98 @ Newegg) 

Case: NZXT H440 (Black/Red) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($96.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA GS 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($64.99 @ NCIX US) 

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 OEM (64-bit)  ($86.98 @ OutletPC) 

Total: $1158.70

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-06-22 02:24 EDT-0400

 

 

Oh stick with the i5 by the way.

[IanDrexP]

I think that the r9 390x is a little out of my budget. I definitely appreciate your help as this is my first build. If you can provide links to a few review regarding the graphics card that in your opinion cover almost everything about it software and physical feature wise. If you can find videos to convince me to save 100 more dollars over my current $1200 configuration I will definitely consider it. Do you think I have to worry about newer stuff coming out in the next 5-6 months, possibly even 7, that are worth looking at. I know there will most likely be a new range of graphics cards and possibly processors. Should I only worry about new graphics cards or should i worry about the changing of many other components too. Like motherboards, hard drives, RAM, processors, coolers, etc. Please let me know and if you can let me know when i should change to a better graphics card if it comes out in the coming months while I am attempting to save up money for my build. 

 

         Once again thanks for the help,

         -Alec

 

 

 

Add-On: As soon as i looked up the new graphics card this is what i was greeted with:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kEcbLRnbVI

I dont think i will be getting this because my budget got down to about $1,200 to $1,250. Thanks for the suggestion but i will most likely be gaming at 1080p as a result of this being my first build. I also do not have a monitor so if you have a $200-$300 solution with G-sync that you recommend i would also really appreciate it. I prefer 20-30 inch monitors as well at 1080p. If G-sync is a lot more please give me a monitor without it and let me know.

I cannot help you with monitors sorry because I have no extensive knowledge about them. I would suggest posting on the LTT display sub-forum: http://linustechtips.com/main/forum/42-displays/ and asking for help there regarding a monitor. Keep an eye out on the coming of Intel's Skylake, AMD's Fiji and Fury. Not necessarily on the release themselves but their predecessors will most likely see a price decrease because of the releases.

[Alec10121]

 

@Alec10121 for what you want to do this fits the bill and a little bit beyond, there is no need to go overkill, but the 960 was lacking, you could get another 290X and do triple 1080p surround if you want.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

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

CPU Cooler: be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 3 93.3 CFM Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler  ($89.90 @ Newegg) 

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-Gaming 5 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($96.00 @ SuperBiiz) 

Memory: Kingston Fury Red Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  ($56.99 @ Amazon) 

Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($97.89 @ OutletPC) 

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($49.99 @ Newegg) 

Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon R9 290X 4GB Gaming Video Card  ($298.98 @ Newegg) 

Case: NZXT H440 (Black/Red) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($96.99 @ Newegg) 

Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA GS 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($64.99 @ NCIX US) 

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 OEM (64-bit)  ($86.98 @ OutletPC) 

Total: $1158.70

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-06-22 02:24 EDT-0400

 

 

Oh stick with the i5 by the way.

 

I looked for a comparison on the gtx 970 that i picked with the r9. here is what I got: 

please correct me if i am wrong but this is just what i came by, and I will be sticking with the GTX 970. I am also going to look at the cooler. Are you sure that the memory will clear this cooler? Or is the Heat sync to large?

[Sam Z Man]

I looked for a comparison on the gtx 970 that i picked with the r9. here is what I got:

please correct me if i am wrong but this is just what i came by, and I will be sticking with the GTX 970. I am also going to look at the cooler. Are you sure that the memory will clear this cooler? Or is the Heat sync to large?

The card be was comparing was a 290 not a 290X so thoes test results are not accurate.

Also the ram will work fine with the CPU cooler.

[paps511]

For a $1`500 machine, you should be able to fit more than a 970 into it. For my personal $1`100 build, I used a 970, but would have gotten a 980 or now a 980Ti if I had a bit more budget.

[brob]

If you drop the fans you can go with MSI Radeon R9 390X 8GB Video Card for the gpu. (Go with a WD Blue if you really want to keep the budget under US$1,200.)

 

Two wrist straps are not needed . . . unless there are two of you working on the build at the same time.

[Alec10121]

brob, on 22 Jun 2015 - 1:03 PM, said:

If you drop the fans you can go with MSI Radeon R9 390X 8GB Video Card for the gpu. (Go with a WD Blue if you really want to keep the budget under US$1,200.)

 

Two wrist straps are not needed . . . unless there are two of you working on the build at the same time.

 I will probably keep the fans due to the want to expand in the future or possible overclock with minor adjustments to the coolers and such. Two people are working on the build so two are needed.I will probably use a WD Blue to save a few dollars.

 

 

For a $1`500 machine, you should be able to fit more than a 970 into it. For my personal $1`100 build, I used a 970, but would have gotten a 980 or now a 980Ti if I had a bit more budget.

I am using a GTX 970 for my build because i have now modified my budget to more 1,200 or 1,300 dollar build. This should also handle 1080p at 60fps fine and I may even play at setting like medium - high depending on the load. I do not plan to build this for another 6 months so this may become less expensive and I could get a better graphics card.

 

 

 

One more  question: Could the Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo fit in this case? I would like to make sure before purchasing.

[brob]

brob, on 22 Jun 2015 - 1:03 PM, said:

 I will probably keep the fans due to the want to expand in the future or possible overclock with minor adjustments to the coolers and such. Two people are working on the build so two are needed.I will probably use a WD Blue to save a few dollars.

 

 

I am using a GTX 970 for my build because i have now modified my budget to more 1,200 or 1,300 dollar build. This should also handle 1080p at 60fps fine and I may even play at setting like medium - high depending on the load. I do not plan to build this for another 6 months so this may become less expensive and I could get a better graphics card.

 

 

 

One more  question: Could the Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo fit in this case? I would like to make sure before purchasing.

 

The only place to mount the extra fans without removing stock ones is the top 3x120mm/2x140mm.

 

The H440 has clearance for cpu coolers up to 170mm. The Hyper 212 EVO is ~159mm tall.

[Sam Z Man]

If you drop the fans you can go with MSI Radeon R9 390X 8GB Video Card for the gpu. (Go with a WD Blue if you really want to keep the budget under US$1,200.)

 

Two wrist straps are not needed . . . unless there are two of you working on the build at the same time.

You could get a 290X that has a clock speed of 1.05 GHz out of the box, and save 100$ because who needs 8gb of vram for 1080p.