High Contrast - High Performance (Intel 4690k - GTX 970)

[YoonAddicting]

 

High Contrast - High Performance

What is this build for?
A couple of years back, I bought an Acer Predator G3620, Yeah... I know, judge me >.< . It have held up quite well until recently where I have been experiencing various problems, such as shutdowns due to GPU failure (not BSOD, but just black screen), constantly failing graphics drivers and lastly, but definitely not least, a failing thermal sensor on the GPU as shown in the video below.

At first I only planned to upgrade the GPU to a 970 and get a new PSU along with it in order to play newer games such as GTA V and The Witcher 3 (which I already own, but didn't realize I didn't meet the minimum requirements *face palm*) and call it a day, but after a bit of research, I concluded the i5-2320 in the Acer might potentially have throttled the new GPU. I ended up deciding to just build something new from the scratch which I also have wanted to do for a while.

PCPartPicker part list
CPU: Intel Core i5-2320 3.0GHz Quad-Core Processor
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
CPU Cooler: Stock
Motherboard: Acer B75 Motherboard
Memory: 2x SK Hynix HMT351U6CFR8C-H9 4GB
Memory: 1x Nanya Technology NT2GC64B88G0NF-CG 2GB
GPU: Reference AMD Radeon HD 7770 2GB
PSU: Liteon 500w 80 Plus Bronze
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-08 17:17 EDT-0400
The theme of the build
As suggested by the title, this build will be high contrast, consisting primarily of black and/or white components.
The build for now
PCPartPicker part list
CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor
CPU Cooler: Enermax ETS-T40-W 105.9 CFM CPU Cooler
Motherboard: MSI Z97S SLI Krait Edition ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card
Case: NZXT S340 (White) ATX Mid Tower Case
Power Supply: Corsair 750W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 Pro (64-bit) (Student Edition)
Monitor: BenQ RL2450HT 24.0" Monitor
Keyboard: SteelSeries APEX Wired Gaming Keyboard
Mouse: Razer Razer Naga 2014 Wired Laser Mouse
Headphones: Audio-Technica M50x Headphones
Memory: Memory from the Previous PC
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-08 17:33 EDT-0400
 
I already had the peripherals and monitor, just thought I would include them ^^
 
For now, this is what I am going with. In Danish Kroner (DKK) it was 9669 DKK, which equates to roughly 1430 USD.
 
Later down the road I will be adding some new memory, additional fans, sleeved cables or extensions and some LED lighting (if any of you know some dimable LED lights, please say so, and they need to be more dimable than the NZXT kit) to it so it will end up looking like this eventually, hopefully.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor (Purchased For $0.00)
CPU Cooler: Enermax ETS-T40-W 105.9 CFM CPU Cooler (Purchased For $0.00)
Motherboard: MSI Z97S SLI Krait Edition ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (Purchased For $0.00)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($51.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury White 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($51.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (Purchased For $0.00)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (Purchased For $0.00)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card (2-Way SLI) (Purchased For $0.00)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 4GB WINDFORCE Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($349.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: NZXT S340 (White) ATX Mid Tower Case (Purchased For $0.00)
Power Supply: Corsair 750W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply (Purchased For $0.00)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 Pro OEM (64-bit) (Purchased For $0.00)
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series AF120 Quiet Edition 39.9 CFM 120mm Fan ($15.95 @ OutletPC)
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series SP120 Quiet Edition (2-Pack) 37.9 CFM 120mm Fans ($27.89 @ OutletPC)
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series AF140 Quiet Edition 67.8 CFM 140mm Fan ($21.59 @ OutletPC)
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series AF140 Quiet Edition 67.8 CFM 140mm Fan ($21.59 @ OutletPC)
Monitor: BenQ RL2450HT 24.0" Monitor
Keyboard: SteelSeries APEX Wired Gaming Keyboard (Purchased For $0.00)
Mouse: Razer Razer Naga 2014 Wired Laser Mouse (Purchased For $0.00)
Headphones: Audio-Technica M50x Headphones (Purchased For $0.00)
Other: Some sort of cable sleeving/cable extensions
Other: Dimable white LED light
Total: $540.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-08 17:48 EDT-0400
 
The assembly, Day 1
So I got the first batch of components in Tuesday this week, so I thought why not begin with the build?

Tuesday I got the case, motherboard, CPU and SSD in.

Gotta say that this motherboard is sexy  :wub:

I encountered a minor issue with the captive thumb screw... Oops? Luckily it seems like it was just me who were screwing it too much out, it simply screwed back in and functioned like usually and the other screws also came you the same way I found out. phew.

I hadn't really thought about the orientation of the SSD when putting it in the bracket. 

How the PC looked after day 1. You might not be able to see it, but I did some cable management and moved the top exhaust fan to the front instead, will post some pictures next time! 
 
Tomorrow, Thursday, I should receive the rest of the components and I post back once I am done assembling it for now!

 

Updates:

Update 1 - The finished build and benchmarks.

[SeanAngelo]

followed

 

[zacRupnow]

SSD is mounted backwards 

[YoonAddicting]

SSD is mounted backwards 

Yup, I realized that after I had mounted it in the bracket  :rolleyes:

[1Scotty1]

Yay, fellow black&white builder

[zacRupnow]

S340 is my favorite case under $200

[Overkilled]

How does the krait look in person better than the sabertooth Mark s?

[1Scotty1]

How does the krait look in person better than the sabertooth Mark s?

As an owner of the Krait myself I can tell you it looks much better. It is simple, yet elegant  the Mark S and all those "armored" motherboards are kinda overpriced for what they are and are more for the bling

[YoonAddicting]

How does the krait look in person better than the sabertooth Mark s?

Haven't seen the Sabertooth Mark S in person, but in general I think these armored motherboards looks super cheap, and they are super overpriced The Krait looks great, simple and elegant. There's a sticker with the motherboard name just under the first PCI-E 16x slot, but since it's a sticker, theoretically you should be able to remove it. Either way, it's hidden by PCI cards, unless you look at it from a 90 degree angle or underneath it.

 

____________________________________

I finished assembling the build thursday, but I have been busy with work, but hopefully I should have time to post the last part of the build log tonight Is there any specific benchmarks any of you are interested in? I have already run Heaven, Fire Strike, Intel XTU, Cinebench (CPU and GPU), and will probably run Bioshock Infinite tonight so I can post it together with the build log  :lol:

EDIT: So I were busy writing this post when suddenly the page refreshed... And for some reason it didn't save my post. I will be doing it tomorrow instead ^^'

I concluded that Bioshock has become a bit obsolete in terms of benchmarking, so didn't bother with that, however I did run GTA V for a bit to test it and tweak it.

[YoonAddicting]

Been busy with work for the past week, I am genuinely sorry, but here it is!
 
The build, part 2!

All of the parts for part 2 of the build.
 

So many plugs... x_X
 

So glad I got this CPU cooler, it's really sleek!


The fan on the CPU cooler has a switch to turn the LEDs on and off.
 

The fan also has 3 fan modes. I just turned it up to the highest and let the motherboard control it. It's not going over 1200 RPM at 100 load and 60C, while staying SUPER QUIET.
 

This GPU is SO sexy. Originally I had considered getting the STRIX for the 0 RPM mode, but decided getting this for the better cooling and just used the 0 RPM mod to make it run at 0 RPM, even in the Heaven benchmark!   
 

All of the parts needed from the shipment needed for the build. This CPU cooler has way too much mounting hardware...  :wacko:
 

I spend more than 20 minutes just putting on the back plate, it was crazy difficult. At first I had gotten one in, but it was the wrong hole. I almost called a friend over to come and help me. So if you choose this cooler, be warned, you need patience and steady hands!
 

The system with the CPU cooler and RAM. I know the ram isn't pretty, but it works and I plan on upgrading to 16 GB soon, hopefully HyperX Fury, however I need to check the height clearance.
 

... and with the GPU.
 
I was a bit worried about the GPU not fitting because of the shroud, but it is a tight fit it looks like.
 

The cable management from left side with the window.
 

... and from the back of the motherboard tray.
 

 
The old computer vs the new one.

The old Acer PC.
 

The new PC

 
The setup

My setup with the new PC. The Apex Keyboard are lighting up white.
Usually my setup isn't this clean, but you get the idea
 
Performance benchmarks!
So what we all want to know, how does it perform?! Well, I gotta say, very well!
I managed to overclock the CPU to 4.4 GHz without manually adjusting the voltage in the BIOS. Had some stability issues with 4.5 GHz and over, so I just went with 4.4 GHz.
As for the GPU I got it overclocked to 1530 MHz and the memory to 3920 MHz, that's +138 MHz for the CPU and +420 for the memory. Both core voltage and power limit maxed. As others have said in the past, it seems like the voltage is holding the card a bit back, but I am happy with this. As mentioned among the build pictures I did the 0 RPM BIOS mod to the GPU and it works brilliantly.

Anyways! On to the benchmarks!

 

I ran all of the benchmarks 3 times in order to get a proper idea of average use.

 

Cinebench R15

Run 1:

OpenGL: 128.68 FPS

CPU: 659 cb

Run 2:

OpenGL: 129.52 FPS

CPU: 658 cb

Run 3:

OpenGL: 129.91 FPS

CPU: 662 cb

Average:

OpenGL: 129,37 FPS

CPU: 659,67 cb

 

Intel Extreme Tuning Utility

Run 1: 603 marks

Run 2: 597 marks

Run 3: 604 marks

Average: 601,33 marks

 

Unigine Heaven 4.0

Run 1:

FPS: 84,6

Score: 2131

Run 2:

FPS: 84.9

Score: 2138

Run 3:

FPS: 84.9

Score: 2138

Average:

FPS: 84,8

Score: 2135,67

 

FutureMark 3DMark Fire Strike 1.1

Run 1: 10963

Run 2: 10970

Run 3: 10840

Average: 10924,33

 

Idle stats:

 

Nice cool temps and trees outside my window are more noisy than my PC, even when the CPU is running at full load, if I have my window open.

 

Upgrades to do in the future:

I have a couple of things I wish to do in the future at some point:

• Buy 16 GB of HyperX Fury Black/White RAM
• Replace the stock fans with Corsair AF and SP fans possibly
• Add white LED lighting, preferably dimable. (NZXT sleeved LED kit or Aqua Computer Farbwerk USB, feel free to come with suggestions.)
• Change the blue LEDs in the GPU to white ones. Detailed here
• Place white or black carbon fiber vinyl on top of it top prevent dust from entering through the top.
• Potentially add another 970 in the future.

 

The conclusion

After all of this, I am really happy with how this build turned out, been playing a bit of GTA V and have been really pleased with the performance.

 

One little issue I have noticed are that there is a lot of dust build up on the inside of the window, which I can't seem to get off without it coming back within a day or so. I will have to buy a can of compressed air at some point, but do any of you have a suggestion?

I have also uploaded a few additional pictures to an imgur album, where I will also be writing a few comments to the pictures. Imgur album link.

 

Thanks for coming along the ride and hope you enjoyed! Any comments are appreciated! 

[SkilledRebuilds]

I've got not much to say (lost for words?) but............that's really nice, beautiful & well done, enjoy.

/What an upgrade!!!! Old vs New, Super proud jobbie.

[YoonAddicting]

I've got not much to say (lost for words?) but............that's really nice, beautiful & well done, enjoy.

/What an upgrade!!!! Old vs New, Super proud jobbie.

Thank you ^^ I gotta say it was a well needed upgrade, yeah.