build processing power vs. graphics card

[N3v3r3nding_Newb]

I have a slight dilemma.  I am building a rig this summer mainly for gaming.  I can't really decide, though, which build I should go for.  I have made two different parts lists (http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2rN7zy vs. http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2cZg23).  This will be my first build.  I am running off a 7-year-old Lenovo Ideapad Z-570 right now, so I felt like it was time for an upgrade.  I have a current budget of roughly $2,000.00 (USD).  I will be upgrading things like the monitor at a later date.  I play mostly strategy games, but I will also dabble in more graphics-intensive titles like Arma 3 when I finally get a computer that can handle such games.  I am currently leaning towards the build with the 980 ti, but didn't know if my performance in strategy games would take a noticeable hit if I went that path.  Any suggestions to make it better are welcomed, and I thank you all in advance for your assistance.

[i_build_nanosuits]

Look, something like this would be much better...here is why:

Don't overspend on motherboard, they won't impact performance and this one for example is good enough. (all black, plenty of features: all good)

Go with a 2x8gb kit of DDR4 memory for Z170 (skylake) since this is a dual channel platform, it's better, more efficient, less stress on the memory controller and leave room for upgrade.

Never buy seagate harddrive, buy western digital instead.

Do not buy the Asus strix 980ti card, i own one it's not very good it runs hot and it's loud. The MSI gaming 6G card is much better.

Get a better case, this one is amazing for the price...

Powersupply this one is better it's more efficient has all black cables looks good and is more than enough wattage...10 years warranty by EVGA: as good as it gets.

You don't need that many fans, the case come with one or two already, so 2 extra fans is more than enough.

Spend more money on a 1440p monitor, the Gtx 980ti is a 1440p card and it looks so much better than 1080p...this 25'' is also an IPS display so the colors will be a lot better. it also has very thin bezels and it looks real good. Hope you like my advise!

 

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($249.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($24.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: MSI Z170A PC MATE ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($99.10 @ Amazon)
Memory: A-Data XPG Z1 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory  ($73.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Kingston Savage 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($89.99 @ B&H)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($49.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Video Card  ($649.99 @ B&H)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo Pro M ATX Mid Tower Case  ($79.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA G2 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSC0B DVD/CD Writer  ($15.89 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit)  ($87.95 @ OutletPC)
Case Fan: Rosewill Hyperborea 89.5 CFM 140mm  Fan  ($12.98 @ OutletPC)
Case Fan: Rosewill Hyperborea 89.5 CFM 140mm  Fan  ($12.98 @ OutletPC)
Monitor: Acer G257HU smidpx 60Hz 25.0" Monitor  ($259.99 @ B&H)
Keyboard: AZIO MGK1-K Wired Gaming Keyboard  ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Mouse: Logitech G502 Wired Optical Mouse  ($49.99 @ Best Buy)
Headphones: Kingston HyperX Cloud II 7.1 Channel Headset  ($96.05 @ Amazon)
Other: Cat6 Ethernet ($8.99)
Total: $2002.62
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-02-08 20:25 EST-0500

[Streetguru]

46 minutes ago, N3v3r3nding_Newb said:

I have a slight dilemma.  I am building a rig this summer mainly for gaming.  I can't really decide, though, which build I should go for.  I have made two dif

Why are you buying a high end GPU with the most basic 1080p IPS display?

 

If you're going to run games at 1080p, then buy a 4k display, and run games at 1080p on a 4k display, that is a way better solution than gimping your high end GPU with a low end display, that way you already have a 4k display and never have to buy a display again, in addition this one is free-sync so games will run smoother overall, and the 390 can actually do 4k is some less intensive games like dota 2, LoL, or elite dangerous potentially

 

Unless you need the extra cores from the 5820K then you'll want a Xeon 1231v3 for CPU performance

 

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/LLzxXL
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/LLzxXL/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($244.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H97M PRO4 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($70.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Corsair 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($78.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Sandisk Ultra II 480GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($133.99 @ Adorama)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($49.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: PowerColor Radeon R9 390 8GB PCS+ Video Card  ($303.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Core 1000 USB 3.0 MicroATX Mid Tower Case  ($34.99 @ Micro Center)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12II 620W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply  ($64.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Monitor: LG 27MC67-B 60Hz 27.0" Monitor  ($501.35 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $1484.16
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-02-08 21:01 EST-0500

[N3v3r3nding_Newb]

1 hour ago, Streetguru said:

Why are you buying a high end GPU with the most basic 1080p IPS display?

As I said, I'll be upgrading the monitor later.  Right now I'd rather get the pc hardware great, and then worry 'bout the monitor when I get more cash.

[N3v3r3nding_Newb]

1 hour ago, i_build_nanosuits said:

Look, something like this would be much better...here is why:

Don't overspend on motherboard, they won't impact performance and this one for example is good enough. (all black, plenty of features: all good)

Go with a 2x8gb kit of DDR4 memory for Z170 (skylake) since this is a dual channel platform, it's better, more efficient, less stress on the memory controller and leave room for upgrade.

Never buy seagate harddrive, buy western digital instead.

Do not buy the Asus strix 980ti card, i own one it's not very good it runs hot and it's loud. The MSI gaming 6G card is much better.

Get a better case, this one is amazing for the price...

Powersupply this one is better it's more efficient has all black cables looks good and is more than enough wattage...10 years warranty by EVGA: as good as it gets.

You don't need that many fans, the case come with one or two already, so 2 extra fans is more than enough.

Spend more money on a 1440p monitor, the Gtx 980ti is a 1440p card and it looks so much better than 1080p...this 25'' is also an IPS display so the colors will be a lot better. it also has very thin bezels and it looks real good. Hope you like my advise!

 

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($249.99 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($24.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: MSI Z170A PC MATE ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($99.10 @ Amazon)
Memory: A-Data XPG Z1 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory  ($73.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Kingston Savage 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($89.99 @ B&H)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($49.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Video Card  ($649.99 @ B&H)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo Pro M ATX Mid Tower Case  ($79.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA G2 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSC0B DVD/CD Writer  ($15.89 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit)  ($87.95 @ OutletPC)
Case Fan: Rosewill Hyperborea 89.5 CFM 140mm  Fan  ($12.98 @ OutletPC)
Case Fan: Rosewill Hyperborea 89.5 CFM 140mm  Fan  ($12.98 @ OutletPC)
Monitor: Acer G257HU smidpx 60Hz 25.0" Monitor  ($259.99 @ B&H)
Keyboard: AZIO MGK1-K Wired Gaming Keyboard  ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Mouse: Logitech G502 Wired Optical Mouse  ($49.99 @ Best Buy)
Headphones: Kingston HyperX Cloud II 7.1 Channel Headset  ($96.05 @ Amazon)
Other: Cat6 Ethernet ($8.99)
Total: $2002.62
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-02-08 20:25 EST-0500

Thanks for the help!  Those were some great suggestions.  All I did was change my SSD to bring it back down closer to budget.  It costs $20.00 less, but doesn't sacrifice much speed.  Thanks again.

[Guest]

Ok, I have the Asus GTX 980ti DC3 6GB, it's not over clocked yet, as for the it it runs "hot and it's loud" I haven't had a problem with mine, the fans kick in as needed, and I have played Rise of the tomb raider at max setting on a 1080p 23" monitor, (yes I'll be upgrading monitor later i'm not rich).

 

Another note, I really would ask why you're wanting 16GB of RAM, if you are not streaming, not video editing or photo editing, and the CPU dosn't need the RAM, I would think about dropping it from 16GB to 8GB and the money save get the better SSD,

[Streetguru]

6 hours ago, N3v3r3nding_Newb said:

As I said, I'll be upgrading the monitor later.  Right now I'd rather get the pc hardware great, and then worry 'bout the monitor when I get more cash.

Spoiler

 

That's so not a good way to go about it, like I said, you're playing at 1080p, so play at 1080p on a higher end display, and upgrade your GPU later

 

Display prices don't fall as fast as GPU prices, and new display tech doesn't really come out as often as new GPU tech, especially with HBM2 GPUs coming out this summer, and those will be able to drive the 4k display you buy now and you get more performance per dollar down the line as GPU prices won't really increase, but their performance will.

 

it makes very little sense to buy a high end GPU with a low end display as when you do buy your new display, probably 4k + G-sync

A you'll pay $300 more for G-sync vs free-sync with 4k IPS displays last I checked

 

and B when you get your 4k display, you have a card that can't run it, instead of buying the display now, and then when you upgrade your GPU later, the new GPUs that can actually run 4k will be out and you'll have gotten much more value for your money

 

Let me maybe simply this for you

 

GPU now does what 4k 40fps? for $600

 

New GPUs in say 6 months, with HBM2 and all that, will be doing 4k 60fps for $600

 

that is why you buy a 4k display rather than a high end GPU right now


and now visual aid, so let's say you buy the 980ti now, in 6 months, that performance gap between the 780ti and 980ti here, is you, you will have less performance than the guy who bought the 4k display with a mid range GPU, you're effectively costing yourself performance in the long run to game better at 1080p, which isn't a smart investment,

980ti & 780ti benchmarks

https://youtu.be/fL9EshHlU4Q?t=506

[N3v3r3nding_Newb]

6 hours ago, Streetguru said:

  Reveal hidden contents

 

That's so not a good way to go about it, like I said, you're playing at 1080p, so play at 1080p on a higher end display, and upgrade your GPU later

 

Display prices don't fall as fast as GPU prices, and new display tech doesn't really come out as often as new GPU tech, especially with HBM2 GPUs coming out this summer, and those will be able to drive the 4k display you buy now and you get more performance per dollar down the line as GPU prices won't really increase, but their performance will.

 

it makes very little sense to buy a high end GPU with a low end display as when you do buy your new display, probably 4k + G-sync

A you'll pay $300 more for G-sync vs free-sync with 4k IPS displays last I checked

 

and B when you get your 4k display, you have a card that can't run it, instead of buying the display now, and then when you upgrade your GPU later, the new GPUs that can actually run 4k will be out and you'll have gotten much more value for your money

 

Let me maybe simply this for you

 

GPU now does what 4k 40fps? for $600

 

New GPUs in say 6 months, with HBM2 and all that, will be doing 4k 60fps for $600

 

that is why you buy a 4k display rather than a high end GPU right now


and now visual aid, so let's say you buy the 980ti now, in 6 months, that performance gap between the 780ti and 980ti here, is you, you will have less performance than the guy who bought the 4k display with a mid range GPU, you're effectively costing yourself performance in the long run to game better at 1080p, which isn't a smart investment.

 

While i don't disagree with the huge performance gap that will almost definitely exist between the current cards and Pascal, I also don't think that they'll be anywhere near as cheap as the current cards are because of that performance gap.  Remember, though, that I'll be building it this summer (towards the end) and if it looks like the new cards will be cheaper than I currently think they will be, I'll definitely wait until the release of the mid-range Pascal cards.

[Streetguru]

3 hours ago, N3v3r3nding_Newb said:

9 hours ago, Streetguru said:

  Reveal hidden contents

 

That's so not a good way to go about it, like I said, you're playing at 1080p, so play at 1080p on a higher end display, and upgrade your GPU later

 

Display prices don't fall as fast as GPU prices, and new display tech doesn't really come out as often as new GPU tech, especially with HBM2 GPUs coming out this summer, and those will be able to drive the 4k display you buy now and you get more performance per dollar down the line as GPU prices won't really increase, but their performance will.

 

it makes very little sense to buy a high end GPU with a low end display as when you do buy your new display, probably 4k + G-sync

A you'll pay $300 more for G-sync vs free-sync with 4k IPS displays last I checked

 

and B when you get your 4k display, you have a card that can't run it, instead of buying the display now, and then when you upgrade your GPU later, the new GPUs that can actually run 4k will be out and you'll have gotten much more value for your money

 

Let me maybe simply this for you

 

Hope you mean polaris because you're still going to save money on an adaptive sync display from AMD

 

Musta missed the summer part, then all of this was pointless

 

also Moore's law man, maybe not doubling transistors anymore, but it still holds true that you get more performance at the same price, the 750ti was $699 when launched, 980ti was $650, 1080ti will most likely end up around there. Granted the 500/600 series cards were priced at 500 but they didn't really have anything to fill the price gap between them and the dual GPU cards.

[N3v3r3nding_Newb]

8 hours ago, Streetguru said:

Hope you mean polaris because you're still going to save money on an adaptive sync display from AMD

 

Musta missed the summer part, then all of this was pointless

 

also Moore's law man, maybe not doubling transistors anymore, but it still holds true that you get more performance at the same price, the 750ti was $699 when launched, 980ti was $650, 1080ti will most likely end up around there. Granted the 500/600 series cards were priced at 500 but they didn't really have anything to fill the price gap between them and the dual GPU cards.

Whichever gets more performance per dollar is the one I'm gonna go with.  Probably AMD, but Nvidia might be it.  The less-pricey adaptive sync monitor is a good point.  I did just read this forum topic, though, that says that Pascal could very well not live up to gaming expectations 

[Streetguru]

13 minutes ago, N3v3r3nding_Newb said:

Whichever gets more performance per dollar is the one I'm gonna go with.  Probably AMD, but Nvidia might be it.  The less-pricey adaptive sync monitor is a good point.  I did just read this forum topic, though, that says that Pascal could very well not live up to gaming expectations 

I think the current rumor is that it's focused on workstation stuff ya, so dunno, also they'd have to fix their DX12 support issues.