New Rig | Quick Spec | Suggestions appreciated!

[sHAYM4N]

Hi all,

 

I'm looking to build a new high end rig to replace my ageing 2500k based setup.  It's about 5 years now since I last built one up, so hoping those in the know may be able to offer some advice or improvements to my initial list here, or any potential problems?

 

I'm a freelance graphic designer and work from home, (Blender, Photoshop, Premiere, ZBrush, Unity etc, a little gaming) so it's my daily machine and hoping to build something that will last me another 5 years or so..

 

I've budgeted for around £1500 initially, but it's more important to me that I get the guts as high end as possible, with headroom to upgrade some bits later down the line, so storage etc isn't as important atm (and possibly could be trimmed down to get this closer to budget).  If it runs a bit over it's not the end of the world, hopefully I can recoup a little from selling on some of my existing gear.

 

Prices are based from my local supplier (CCL), and it's just a quick spec I've run through to get an idea..

 

CPU - i7 6700k £309.98
Pushing for the 6700k for rendering and general performance that I need, with a little headroom for the 5 years.  Likely won't be overclocking it (apart from XMP profiles etc) but want the capability to do so if I need to later down the line.

 

CPU Cooler - Corsair H100i-GTX-Extreme £107.34
Again haven't looked into this much, so any suggestions here welcome!  Seems a popular choice, and prefer something reasonably easy to install (it's been a while!).  Won't be overclocking initially but want to keep the thing ticking daily, and cool when rendering etc..

 

Mobo- Gigabyte Z170X-GAMING-7 £172.98
Open to suggestions on this, no major requirements other than performance, and a decent amount of USB ports for peripherals.  Quickly went by a choice award it received, but will look into it further.

 

PSU - Coolermaster G750M - "Free" with mobo
Lifespan and enough juice to power the thing hopefully, it's included with the mobo, but any suggesions here welcome (esp if I go with another motherboard).

 

RAM - Corsair Vengeance LPX 32GB (2x 16GB) 3200MHz DDR4 £195.38
Again open to suggestions here, was hoping to move my 16GB over from my current system, but being DDR3 won't be a possibility, so will need to start afresh.  Could possibly drop to 16GB and upgrade later, but with the mobo being max 64GB would prefer 16GB sticks (so I can max it out if needed without having to completely replace).  Couldn't find an option for a single 16GB strip so roughed this out.  Not sure how much of a performance boost I'll see over 16GB to be honest.

 

SSD - Samsung EVO 500GB SSD £129.98
Will only be used for OS and software, I'm planning to move my OCZ 240GB SSD over from my current machine for game installs (BF4 and maybe another one or two).  Open to suggestions.

 

HDD Storage - WD Red 4TB SATA III £131.88
For production files, photoshop etc, realability mostly important here.  Will use my current 1TB HDD for docs, photos music etc, or possibly buy another later..  I backup via Crashplan, Onedrive etc, but 4TB should be enough for now.  Going by hearsay on WD being more reliable than Seagate etc..

 

Case - NZXT 450 £102.82
Had a Fractal R4 atm which I do like, but this or the 440 looks a little more suitable for radiators with the headroom?  Would ideally still like room for an optical drive, but could get an external one if totally necessary.  Open to suggestions here, solid build quality and a decent silence/cooling mix also important.

 

GFX Card - Gigabyte GTX 980 Ti Xtreme 6GB £579.59
Important for work and play not sure how much better the Xtreme version is over standard, but for an extra £40 in proportion seemed the best choice?

 

Sound Card - Not as important to me, will either use my existing card (Xonar DG) or mobo sound for the time being.

 

Current Total: £1729.95  (Will likely run closer to £2k with a new copy of windows, fans etc)

All help & suggestions greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance

[comicsansms]

What is the specs of your old computer?

[Zeinone]

Only thing I'd change is the PSU. Although its free I'd maybe sell it later and get and EVGA SuperNOVA G2 650W. The motherboard might be a bit overkill but nothing to worry about a lot. All in all great build !

[sHAYM4N]

2 hours ago, Comic_Sans_MS said:

What is the specs of your old computer?

Currently have...

 

• Fractal Design R4
• 2500k (only slightly Oc'd via xmp profile) with CM Seidon 120M
• Gigabyte Z68X-UD3P-B3
• 16GB Corsair Vengeance DDR3
• Gigabyte Geforce GTX 760 Windforce
• 240GB OCZ Vertex4 SSD (OS and software)
• Samsung HD103SJ 1TB (Storage)

[sHAYM4N]

1 hour ago, Zeinone said:

Only thing I'd change is the PSU. Although its free I'd maybe sell it later and get and EVGA SuperNOVA G2 650W. The motherboard might be a bit overkill but nothing to worry about a lot. All in all great build !

Thanks have updated it slightly, changed the PSU to a EVGA SuperNova 850 Platinum, and dropped the RAM to 16GB, not sure if 32 would be worth it atm.

£1627.52 via partpicker though will pay a bit more if it's worthwhile to get from the one supplier.  http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2mv63C
 

[Zeinone]

6 minutes ago, sHAYM4N said:

Thanks have updated it slightly, changed the PSU to a EVGA SuperNova 850 Platinum, and dropped the RAM to 16GB, not sure if 32 would be worth it atm.

£1627.52 via partpicker though will pay a bit more if it's worthwhile to get from the one supplier.  http://pcpartpicker.com/p/2mv63C
 

If you're not going for an SLI (you didn't mention it), then 850W is waaaay too much. I'm running the same GPU and i7-5820k on 750W due to 5 fans and lightning so I'm certain of no shortage in power (the Xtreme gaming has an extra adapter for OC, which comes in handy). Either way 850W is too much if you're not going for an SLI. Good luck !

Edited March 13, 2016 by Zeinone

[sHAYM4N]

1 minute ago, Zeinone said:

If you're not going for an SLI (you didn't mention it), then 850W is waaaay too much. I'm running the same GPU and i7-5820k on 750W due to 5 fans and lightning so I'm certain of no shortage in power (the Xtreme gaming has an extra adapter for OC, which comes in handy). Either way 850W if you're not going for an SLI. Good luck !

Thanks, may drop it to 750W then!  No plans on SLI (too expensive with the 980, and at that point there will probably be something new) It was mainly for headroom, will likely move my capture card over, possibly 2 monitors as now (keeping my old ProLite E2409HDS as the secondary, but looking at one of the Asus 4k's as my primary - want to check out size & quality in person though first)

[sHAYM4N]

Changed my spec and the goods are heading in today   Main reason for change was a deal I spotted at OCUK (https://www.overclockers.co.uk/elite-tier-skylake-bundle-intel-i7-6700k-4.50ghz-z170-viii-hero-16gb-3200mhz-ddr4-hybrid-coole-bu-044-as.html), similar grade mobo I think but with the SSD thrown in for free (with a copy of The Division), so was a deal clincher, after a lot of looking around, also changed the case to a Phanteks Enthoo Luxe.  Really liked the look of the cable managment, lots of room and the fact that I could still have an optical bay inside.

I have a few reservations on the included cooler/rad ( Asetek 240mm 570LXL http://www.asetek.com/desktop/oem-cpu-coolers/570lx/), it has been highly touted by OCUK but haven't found a lot of info on it, but will see how it fairs.  Also not sure with the best cooling setup atm, would likely have to mount it in the roof, (as I will still need one of the hdd cages at the front).  Presume intake would be better for the cpu on it, but will I end up having positive pressure having the sole 120 fan at the rear for exhaust?  (Also any recommendation on push/pull for the rad?  Saw the video with Linus recommending pull to aid cleaning, which would make sense as an intake - I could simply remove the top cover the hoover out any dust from the rad)  The enthoo Luxe includes one 200mm fan and an additional 120mm fan in the roof that I could move about.  I've heard I would be better with 2x120mms in the front, but again may just increase the positive pressure?  I could mount another 120mm in the basement as exhaust (at the expense of the PSU cover (would prefer not to really), that I guess may help shift some of the GPU heat, but that may negate a little of the intake from the front?  

Specs for my order (minus the cooler which is not available to pick) http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/p/6npMJx

Total cost ended up at £1,688.90, so based on the above with the (additional cost of a cooler) think it was a decent deal