Wife gave me the OK - Build Advise Please

FA20 · December 25, 2015

I've never had a gaming PC before, and I'm willing to just jump into the deep end straight away. My budget is around $2500 (US) but that does include peripherals, so it could be stretched if need be. I'm aiming for a system that can easily max any game (Far Cry 3, Witcher 3, GTA5) at 1440p 120Hz (single monitor). I don't want a system that will be stressed too hard at that resolution. I don't want to have to run a game at anything but the monitors native resolution. I also do photo & video editing occasionally. Mostly I want the system to be future proof (gaming wise) for years to come.

I am a complete novice when it comes to selecting my parts on my own. So my compiled list here is mostly taken from build guides I've seen online. I just have a few questions I hope you guys can clear up for me.

1. I don't, at this point, intend to overclock (mostly because I'm unaware of what benefits it may offer) so is the i7 6700k necessary? What benefits does it offer over the 4790k?

2. Under what conditions would 16GB of system memory be insufficient?

3. What monitor (1440p & IPS) would you recommend? This is one area I don't want to compromise on. Is G-Sync that good?

Any advice is always appreciated, cheers.

Merry Christmas.

-Tony

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($419.99 @ Newegg)

CPU Cooler: Corsair H110 94.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($104.99 @ Newegg)

Motherboard: Asus MAXIMUS VIII HERO ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($219.99 @ SuperBiiz)

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($99.99 @ Newegg)

Storage: Samsung 950 PRO 256GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($182.99 @ NCIX US)

Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($68.97 @ OutletPC)

Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Video Card ($629.99 @ Amazon)

Case: Fractal Design Define S w/Window ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.99 @ NCIX US)

Power Supply: EVGA 850W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($109.99 @ Amazon)

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit) ($89.88 @ OutletPC)

Monitor: Acer XB270HU bprz 144Hz 27.0" Monitor ($764.98 @ Directron)

Total: $2761.75

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-12-25 02:30 EST-0500

Samppa221 · December 25, 2015

1. Overclocking gives more performance. 6700k gives DDR4 over the DDR3 ram what the 4790k uses.

2. idk

3. If money ain't problem Asus ROG Swift PG279Q

Streetguru · December 25, 2015

I've never had a gaming PC before, and I'm willing to just jump into the deep end straight away. My budget is around $2500 (US) but that does include peripherals, so it could be stretched if

Unlike the previous ASUS 144hz IPS free-sync display that only went to 90hz, this one has the full range for free-sync, and it's a good deal cheaper than the G-sync displays with the same specs, course the only games a high refresh rate really matters for is twitch shooters...better off with a 40" 4k display for productivity

http://www.overclock.net/t/1581706/acer-xf270hu-144hz-ips-1440p-freesync-4ms-members-club

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/4tychM

Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/4tychM/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($329.99 @ SuperBiiz)

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Amazon)

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97MX-Gaming 5 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($119.99 @ Micro Center)

Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($59.99 @ Newegg)

Storage: A-Data Premier SP550 480GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($122.99 @ NCIX US)

Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.98 @ OutletPC)

Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 Fury 4GB Video Card ($496.98 @ Newegg)

Case: Deepcool TESSERACT SW ATX Mid Tower Case ($42.98 @ Newegg)

Power Supply: Corsair RM 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($99.99 @ Amazon)

Monitor: Acer XF270HU 144Hz 27.0" Monitor ($591.77 @ Amazon)

Total: $1944.65

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-12-25 04:07 EST-0500

brob · December 25, 2015

...

1. I don't, at this point, intend to overclock (mostly because I'm unaware of what benefits it may offer) so is the i7 6700k necessary? What benefits does it offer over the 4790k?

2. Under what conditions would 16GB of system memory be insufficient?

3. What monitor (1440p & IPS) would you recommend? This is one area I don't want to compromise on. Is G-Sync that good?

Any advice is always appreciated, cheers.

Merry Christmas.

-Tony

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

...

Nice build. I don't think you need to change anything. Although I would likely choose NZXT Kraken X61 or Corsair H100i GTX instead of the H110 cpu cooler. They are quieter and do a better job cooling.

If one is not going to overclock an i7-6700K is not strictly necessary. But it is the highest clocked LGA1151 cpu. It has better performance than the i7-4790K and Z170 motherboards support new technology including M.2 (M), USB 3.1, etc.

More than 16GB would be of use if one were editing large video projects, especially at higher resolutions; editing higher resolution photos; building large 3D models; etc. Having an M.2 (M) drive mitigates the need somewhat.