Software Developer PC Build (< €1000, Netherlands)

[SammLeach]

Hi.

I need to build a Software Development Desktop machine. I am moving to the Netherlands. The budget is < €1000. I will be developing for Android, iOS (on a upgraded mid 2010 mbp) and web. Apart from Software Development I will do light image and video editing. Heavy web browsing. I will install Windows 10 that I already own. It would be nice to be able to run VMs so I think minimum 16GB.

No gaming!

The PC will power a LG 29EA73-P ultrawide that I already own or a normal 1080P monitor. In the future I would like to be able to power 2 4K monitors. No peripherals or monitor needed. I would have liked to buy a new MacBook Pro but cannot afford the €2k - €3k investment and want a powerful desktop instead.

I am thinking:

CPU: Powerful but best bang for buck

Air HSF for a little overclock

RAM: 16GB performance

SSD: PCI-e if that is what is fastest these days. 500GB

HDD: What ever is the most bang for buck. 2TB maybe. The more the better.

Simple PC case with easy USB port access

I think for development one of the more important parts is the SSD. I may be mistaken.

The last PC I built and watercooled was in 2006 so I am quite out of the loop!

I would like to know where is the best place in the Netherlands to buy the parts.

Thanks a lot!

[cortexcortex]

I must note that a single 500GB PCIe would cost you about $500 alone, and you also haven't said anything about a GPU?

[jimakos234]

snip

Will you game, or do u need the build strictly for software development?

[STRMfrmXMN]

Hi.

 

I need to build a Software Development Desktop machine. I am moving to the Netherlands. The budget is < €1000. I will be developing for Android, iOS (on a upgraded mid 2010 mbp) and web. Apart from Software Development I will do light image and video editing. Heavy web browsing. I will install Windows 10 that I already own. It would be nice to be able to run VMs so I think minimum 16GB.

 

The PC will power a LG 29EA73-P ultrawide or a normal 1080P monitor. In the future I would like to be able to power 2 4K monitors. No peripherals. I would have liked to buy a new MacBook Pro but cannot afford the €2k - €3k investment and want a powerful desktop instead.

 

I am thinking:

 

CPU: Powerful but best bang for buck

Air HSF for a little overclock

RAM: 16GB performance

SSD: PCI-e if that is what is fastest these days. 500GB

HDD: What ever is the most bang for buck. 2TB maybe. The more the better.

Simple PC case.

 

I think for development one of the more important parts is the SSD. I may be mistaken.

 

The last PC I built and watercooled was in 2006 so I am quite out of the loop!

 

I would like to know where is the best place in the Netherlands to buy the parts.

 

Thanks a lot!

I'm IP banned from PC Part picker but here's a general guideline for you:

 

Core i5 4460

Asus B85M G R2.0

16GB RAM of whatever is cheapest

500 GB SSD that isn't a Kingston V300 (SATA)

2 TB Hitachi Desktar hard drive as those are amazing and can be found cheap.

Fractal Define R4 is amazingly cheap nowadays but if it's too big you can find a Micro ATX case like a Cooler Master N200 to fit.

EVGA 550W GS power supply or Antec High Current Gamer 520W. EVGAs B2 series is also good. Check my PSU whitelist in my sig for more good power supplies

Whatever GPU you think you'll need that you still have money for. I would think an R9 380 would be plenty for you but I could be wrong.

[blackmalicious]

I'm IP banned from PC Part picker but here's a general guideline for you:

 

Core i5 4460

Asus B85M G R2.0

16GB RAM of whatever is cheapest

500 GB SSD that isn't a Kingston V300 (SATA)

2 TB Hitachi Desktar hard drive as those are amazing and can be found cheap.

Fractal Define R4 is amazingly cheap nowadays but if it's too big you can find a Micro ATX case like a Cooler Master N200 to fit.

EVGA 550W GS power supply or Antec High Current Gamer 520W. EVGAs B2 series is also good. Check my PSU whitelist in my sig for more good power supplies

Whatever GPU you think you'll need that you still have money for. I would think an R9 380 would be plenty for you but I could be wrong.

Damn what did you do to ip ban you D:

[Stefan1024]

In general you need for software development (compillation especially) the fastest storage you can get (e.g. Intel 750, 2400MHz RAM) and good single core performance like the i7-6770(K).

Normally you don't get a more performance from >4 cores. However for video editing it helps a lot.

 

For your usage you will get away with a cheap GPU.

[Litargirio]

I think for development one of the more important parts is the SSD. I may be mistaken.

 

SSD is only for the sake of responsiveness. It feels a million times better to use an OS on an SSD than on a HDD.

 

RAM: 16GB performance

 

All ram performs  the same. Whatever is the cheapest.

[STRMfrmXMN]

Damn what did you do to ip ban you D:

http://linustechtips.com/main/topic/393862-the-story-of-getting-ip-banned-from-pcpartpicker-rant/

[Amazingasian]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor  (€257.84 @ Mindfactory) 

Motherboard: ASRock H97M PRO4 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  (€88.61 @ Mindfactory) 

Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory  (€90.90 @ Amazon Deutschland) 

Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  (€175.74 @ Mindfactory) 

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  (€52.02 @ Mindfactory) 

Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 280X 3GB Black Edition Double Dissipation Video Card  (€264.90 @ Caseking) 

Case: Cooler Master N200 MicroATX Mid Tower Case  (€46.74 @ Mindfactory) 

Power Supply: Antec High Current Gamer 620W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  (€97.89 @ Amazon Deutschland) 

Total: €1074.64

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-26 22:54 CEST+0200

[arvark]

Damn what did you do to ip ban you D:

[Bob Jim]

I'm IP banned from PC Part picker but here's a general guideline for you:

 

Core i5 4460

Asus B85M G R2.0

16GB RAM of whatever is cheapest

500 GB SSD that isn't a Kingston V300 (SATA)

2 TB Hitachi Desktar hard drive as those are amazing and can be found cheap.

Fractal Define R4 is amazingly cheap nowadays but if it's too big you can find a Micro ATX case like a Cooler Master N200 to fit.

EVGA 550W GS power supply or Antec High Current Gamer 520W. EVGAs B2 series is also good. Check my PSU whitelist in my sig for more good power supplies

Whatever GPU you think you'll need that you still have money for. I would think an R9 380 would be plenty for you but I could be wrong.

How is it even possible to get ip banned, lol?

[jimakos234]

The 950 is there in case you decide to play some games(also the xeon doesnt have an igpu so..). For 2 4k monitors tho, if it is for gaming, you need to raise the budget

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor  (€257.84 @ Mindfactory)
CPU Cooler: Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro Rev.2 45.0 CFM Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler  (€19.90 @ Caseking)
Motherboard: MSI H97 PC MATE ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  (€82.89 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  (€89.84 @ Mindfactory)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  (€175.74 @ Mindfactory)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  (€75.53 @ Mindfactory)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 950 2GB Dual WindForce Video Card  (€160.94 @ Mindfactory)
Case: NZXT Source 210 Elite (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case  (€49.90 @ Caseking)
Power Supply: XFX TS 650W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply  (€76.83 @ Mindfactory)
Total: €989.41
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-26 22:58 CEST+0200

[STRMfrmXMN]

How is it even possible to get ip banned, lol?

I posted a link above. It's possible if they break their own CoC.

[SammLeach]

Would a 256GB PCI-e SSD be worth the performance gains?

Strictly no gaming!

Thanks for your suggestions but please explain why you picked each part so I can compare with other options.

Does all RAM really perform the same these days? Back in the DDR1 days this was certainly not the case!

What is the difference between a Xeon and i7 in the context of Software development. It will be 95% development and 5% image and video editing.

[jimakos234]

Would a 256GB PCI-e SSD be worth the performance gains?

Strictly no gaming!

Thanks for your suggestions but please explain why you picked each part so I can compare with other options.

Does all RAM really perform the same these days? Back in the DDR1 days this was certainly not the case!

What is the difference between a Xeon and i7 in the context of Software development. It will be 95% development and 5% image and video editing.

 no, better a 500gb ssd for the same price

The xeon is a server grade cpu, an i7 without the igpu(intel hd) and with ecc memory support

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor  (€257.84 @ Mindfactory)

CPU Cooler: Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro Rev.2 45.0 CFM Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler  (€19.90 @ Caseking)

The stock cooler can be noisy, and this one is quiet enough (you can remove it if you want, for extra savings)

Motherboard: MSI H97 PC MATE ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  (€82.89 @ Amazon Deutschland)

h97 mobo, supporting haswell refresh out of the box, withou any needs for bios upgrade.It also supports 32 gigs of rams, up to 1600mhz effective speed.

Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  (€89.84 @ Mindfactory)

16 gigs of ddr3 ram, with low cas latency(9) at a good price, while meeting the standard haswell specification 1600mhz speed 1,5 volts

Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  (€175.74 @ Mindfactory)

One of the best ssd, with great read/write speeds and large capacity, at a good price point

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  (€75.53 @ Mindfactory)

A reliable hdd with large storage room, with good rpm speed and cache, on the cheap

Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 950 2GB Dual WindForce Video Card  (€160.94 @ Mindfactory)

Since the xeon doesnt have an igpu, you need a video card. Nvidia low budget gaming gpu, with CUDA cores. 4k @60hz support and 2gb of gddr5 vram

Case: NZXT Source 210 Elite (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case  (€49.90 @ Caseking)

A solid quality ,cheap case, that will get the job done, with nice airflow and cable management

Power Supply: XFX TS 650W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply  (€76.83 @ Mindfactory)

A gold rated power supply, that will fullfill all your system needs, by xfx, made by seasonic, one of the best psu manufacturers. Tier 2 rated

Total: €989.41

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-26 23:15 CEST+0200

[SammLeach]

no, better a 500gb ssd for the same price

The xeon is a server grade cpu, an i7 without the igpu(intel hd) and with ecc memory support

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchantCPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor  (€257.84 @ Mindfactory)

CPU Cooler: Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro Rev.2 45.0 CFM Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler  (€19.90 @ Caseking)

The stock cooler can be noisy, and this one is quiet enough (you can remove it if you want, for extra savings)

Motherboard: MSI H97 PC MATE ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  (€82.89 @ Amazon Deutschland)

h97 mobo, supporting haswell refresh out of the box, withou any needs for bios upgrade.It also supports 32 gigs of rams, up to 1600mhz effective speed.

Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  (€89.84 @ Mindfactory)

16 gigs of ddr3 ram, with low cas latency(9) at a good price, while meeting the standard haswell specification 1600mhz speed 1,5 volts

Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  (€175.74 @ Mindfactory)

One of the best ssd, with great read/write speeds and large capacity, at a good price point

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  (€75.53 @ Mindfactory)

A reliable hdd with large storage room, with good rpm speed and cache, on the cheap

Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 950 2GB Dual WindForce Video Card  (€160.94 @ Mindfactory)

Since the xeon doesnt have an igpu, you need a video card. Nvidia low budget gaming gpu, with CUDA cores. 4k @60hz support and 2gb of gddr5 vram

Case: NZXT Source 210 Elite (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case  (€49.90 @ Caseking)

A solid quality ,cheap case, that will get the job done, with nice airflow and cable management

Power Supply: XFX TS 650W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply  (€76.83 @ Mindfactory)

A gold rated power supply, that will fullfill all your system needs, by xfx, made by seasonic, one of the best psu manufacturers. Tier 2 rated

Total: €989.41Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when availableGenerated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-26 23:15 CEST+0200

This looks very good but I am not sure I need to spend €160 on a graphics card if I will not be gaming. Is this for the 4k? At the moment I will be powering a 2560 ultrawide or a standard 1080P monitor. Could I cut this down to a €50 graphics card or use onboard with an i7? What real advantages do I get from the Xeon? If the Xeon is better performance than an equivalent i7 I am all for it.

Could you explain more why the Xeon?

Thanks!

[jimakos234]

This looks very good but I am not sure I need to spend €160 on a graphics card if I will not be gaming. Is this for the 4k? At the moment I will be powering a 2560 ultrawide or a standard 1080P monitor. Could I cut this down to a €50 graphics card or use onboard with an i7? What real advantages do I get from the Xeon? If the Xeon is better performance than an equivalent i7 I am all for it.

Could you explain more why the Xeon?

Thanks!

You can get 4k at 30fps. The xeon is the i7 4790 without the intel graphics and with ecc memory support, as i said before, and it is clocked a bit lower.(200mhz, not that noticable)

But it comes cheaper, like 100 euros in some regions. If you needed the ecc memory, the xeon would be the only way to go. Since you need neither the external gpu nor ecc memory, i think the i7 will be a better option. The xeon would be a better choice if you wanted the external gpu+i7, since you wouldn't be using the igpu, but not this time.Here is the revised build.

 

 

http://de.pcpartpicker.com/p/r7CRmG

 

[SammLeach]

You can get 4k at 30fps. The xeon is the i7 4790 without the intel graphics and with ecc memory support, as i said before, and it is clocked a bit lower.(200mhz, not that noticable)

But it comes cheaper, like 100 euros in some regions. If you needed the ecc memory, the xeon would be the only way to go. Since you need neither the external gpu nor ecc memory, i think the i7 will be a better option. The xeon would be a better choice if you wanted the external gpu+i7, since you wouldn't be using the igpu, but not this time.Here is the revised build.

 

 

http://de.pcpartpicker.com/p/r7CRmG

 

 

Thanks. How does the i7 4790K compare with the normal i7 4790 ? Should I get the i7 4790K if I can afford it?

When I get a 4k monitor I will buy a graphics card to power it.

[jimakos234]

Thanks. How does the i7 4790K compare with the normal i7 4790 ? Should I get the i7 4790K if I can afford it?

When I get a 4k monitor I will buy a graphics card to power it.

you will need a z97 mobo in order to overclock it,which they tend to be more expensive, and an aftermarket cpu cooler in order to keep the temps low

It is better for sure, but it comes with a cost.

[SammLeach]

In general you need for software development (compillation especially) the fastest storage you can get (e.g. Intel 750, 2400MHz RAM) and good single core performance like the i7-6770(K).

Normally you don't get a more performance from >4 cores. However for video editing it helps a lot.

 

For your usage you will get away with a cheap GPU.

 

I took your advise and ended up with something like this:

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor  (€397.61 @ Mindfactory) 

CPU Cooler: Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro Rev.2 45.0 CFM Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler  (€19.90 @ Caseking) 

Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty Z170 Gaming-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard  (€201.53 @ Mindfactory) 

Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory  (€110.37 @ Mindfactory) 

Storage: Intel 750 Series 400GB PCI-E Solid State Drive  (€404.31 @ Mindfactory) 

Case: Thermaltake Core V1 Mini ITX Tower Case  (€40.97 @ Amazon Deutschland) 

Power Supply: Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  (€79.90 @ Caseking) 

Total: €1254.59

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-30 23:46 CEST+0200

I am still not sure on the Mobo, PSU or cooler

[jimakos234]

 

I took your advise and ended up with something like this:

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor  (€397.61 @ Mindfactory) 

CPU Cooler: Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro Rev.2 45.0 CFM Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler  (€19.90 @ Caseking) 

Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty Z170 Gaming-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard  (€201.53 @ Mindfactory) 

Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory  (€110.37 @ Mindfactory) 

Storage: Intel 750 Series 400GB PCI-E Solid State Drive  (€404.31 @ Mindfactory) 

Case: Thermaltake Core V1 Mini ITX Tower Case  (€40.97 @ Amazon Deutschland) 

Power Supply: Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  (€79.90 @ Caseking) 

Total: €1254.59

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-30 23:46 CEST+0200

I am still not sure on the Mobo, PSU or cooler

 

Cpu cooler and mobo are ok. The psu is not recommended for high end builds.

[Stefan1024]

 

I took your advise and ended up with something like this:

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

 

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor  (€397.61 @ Mindfactory) 

CPU Cooler: Arctic Cooling Freezer 7 Pro Rev.2 45.0 CFM Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler  (€19.90 @ Caseking) 

Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty Z170 Gaming-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard  (€201.53 @ Mindfactory) 

Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory  (€110.37 @ Mindfactory) 

Storage: Intel 750 Series 400GB PCI-E Solid State Drive  (€404.31 @ Mindfactory) 

Case: Thermaltake Core V1 Mini ITX Tower Case  (€40.97 @ Amazon Deutschland) 

Power Supply: Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  (€79.90 @ Caseking) 

Total: €1254.59

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-09-30 23:46 CEST+0200

I am still not sure on the Mobo, PSU or cooler

 

While this build is powerfull, you can save a considerable amount of money by going with the i7-4790k, Z97 and DDR3.

Also in the near future the Samsung 950 Pro (NVME) will be released and mmay offer a better performance/dollar ratio than the Intel 750.

[SammLeach]

While this build is powerfull, you can save a considerable amount of money by going with the i7-4790k, Z97 and DDR3.

Also in the near future the Samsung 950 Pro (NVME) will be released and mmay offer a better performance/dollar ratio than the Intel 750.

 

I am worried about investing in an old socket when a new one has just come out. I feel more comfortable spending a bit more for a brand new socket.

 

I am looking at the 512GB Samsung SM951 that can be bought for around €300. It's cheaper and higher capacity.

The Asrock mobo will be able to run the Samsung M.2 at full PCI-e x4 speeds, right?

[Stefan1024]

I am worried about investing in an old socket when a new one has just come out. I feel more comfortable spending a bit more for a brand new socket.

I am looking at the 512GB Samsung SM951 that can be bought for around €300. It's cheaper and higher capacity.

The Asrock mobo will be able to run the Samsung M.2 at full PCI-e x4 speeds, right?

As you have free PCI-e slots you can allways get an adapter for the M.2 drive for about 10$, so don't worry.

Due to the rapid change in sockets and the relatively smal oerformance improvements you will most likely need a new MoBo when you upgrade in 3-4 years anyway.

The DDR4 RAM on the other hand can be reused, but DDR3 can't. Meanwhile DDR3 is cheaper now.

Also the "brand new" stuff has very often a bad price to performance ratio. Z170 is better overall, but with Z97 you get more performance for 1000€.

[Stefan1024]

Oh you have choosen the itx one. Why don't you go matx?