My first build! Would like some advice on my plan

[Lisa.Lisa]

I'm pretty stoked about building my first PC and would love some advice on my plan so far. 

 

Budget: $1200-$1600

Intended Uses: Photoshop, Some smaller video editing/3D animation projects,...  (not really planning on gaming)

What I want: FAST!, upgradable in the future, ability to handle multiple large demanding programs at once

What I probably don't need: I don't feel like I'd ever overclock my PC or use it for big games. I'm also not too concerned with aesthetics and don't plan on getting a case with a window. 

 

 

Originally I thought I'd go for DDR3 and a 4th or 5th generation i7 because they were a bit cheaper and seemed quite similar in performance to newer generations and DDR4?? However I realized that I would be limited in my abilities to make upgrades down the road, if my board was limited to DDR3 and an older generation CPU... Is that accurate?

 

 

CPU: i7 6700k

RAM: DDR4 16GB

Mobo: this I'm still stuck on... I like USB ports and want some what future proof

SSD: 120 GB (for operation system, photoshop...)

HD: 2TB 

Case: Corsair 200R

Video Card: to save money I was actually wondering if I could get away with no video card for a while...?

Power supply: EVGA 650w gold (is 650W really overkill for my intended uses? I think it might be...)

CPU cooler:  Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler?

Wifi card:  TP-Link TL-WDN4800 802.11a/b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter?

 

http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/vyd87P

 

 

Really appreciate any advice/feedback! Thanks!

 

 

[Vercii]

Here's a nice build that's actually in your budget and upgradeable in the future.

 

PCPartPicker part list: http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/CZ4sRB
Price breakdown by merchant: http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/CZ4sRB/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($298.98 @ DirectCanada) 
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($40.25 @ Vuugo) 
Motherboard: Asus Z170-A ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($213.98 @ DirectCanada) 
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  ($47.56 @ DirectCanada) 
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($115.98 @ DirectCanada) 
Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($158.50 @ shopRBC) 
Video Card: MSI Radeon R9 390 8GB Video Card  ($459.00 @ Vuugo) 
Case: NZXT S340 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($98.05 @ Vuugo) 
Power Supply: XFX TS 650W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply  ($114.99 @ Newegg Canada) 
Total: $1547.29
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-03-15 16:13 EDT-0400

[verydogesuchwow]

I would get 32gb of memory, given you need a lot of power for rendering in photoshop and what not

[verydogesuchwow]

6 minutes ago, Vercii said:

-snip-

why a r9 390 when the OP won't be gaming?

[verydogesuchwow]

PCPartPicker part list: http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/2jjZgs
Price breakdown by merchant: http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/p/2jjZgs/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($298.98 @ DirectCanada) 
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($40.25 @ Vuugo) 
Motherboard: Asus Z170-A ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($213.98 @ DirectCanada) 
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory  ($190.99 @ Canada Computers) 
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($115.98 @ DirectCanada) 
Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($158.50 @ shopRBC) 
Case: NZXT S340 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($98.05 @ Vuugo) 
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($109.98 @ DirectCanada) 
Total: $1226.71
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-03-15 16:22 EDT-0400

 

I would go for this

[Lotus]

First of all, no top-end system is easily upgradable. With your budget, you'll be putting a top of the line CPU in whatever socket you end up with (I recommend 2011-3). When new lines of CPUs come out, unless it's a die shrink (where performance gains are minimal but power efficiency is improved), it's going to be on a new socket. You cant put a Skylakke CPU into a haswell motherboard. The only easilly upgradable thing you can do is leave open DIMMs on your motherboard for future expansion, and GPUs fit anything so that's no issue. Basically, drop the idea that whatever youre getting will be compatable with new stuff, because  a platform change is a big deal and unavoidable when moving to a new architecture.

 

The only time easily upgradable is relevent is if someone can only afford an i3 now and in a few weeks/months can afford an i7, but for some reason cannot delay the purchase of the i3. Any longer and it'll be a platform change and they'll have to either buy old stock or do a platform change.

 

[Lisa.Lisa]

Thanks so much for your replies!

 

Could you help me with a few clarifying questions?

 

Motherboards:

- unless advertised, most mobos don't include wifi, correct? So I should also plan on getting a PCI wifi adapter right? (there's no ethernet jack where I plan on keeping my computer)

- how do I know what to look for in a mobo? Like when I compare the gigabye ga-z170xp to the asus z170-a, their specs seem similar, yet there's a $50 price difference

 

CPU:

-  @verydogesuchwowand @Vercii, you both suggested the i5. What is your reasoning for the i5 over the i7 if I have room in my budget for the extra $190? Is the i7 overkill for my intended uses?

 

Future proofing:

- @Lotus thank you for explaining this, I've been confused about future proofing.

- Okay so for me, I think the only thing I'd likely replace in a few years would be the RAM. Otherwise I'm likely going to be buying a new mobo and CPU. So if I'm only going to be upgrading the RAM, does this mean I can buy a cheaper mobo?

 

 

[verydogesuchwow]

yeah, you need a wifi adapter (they're around $18 on Amazon)

for what you're doing, an i7 won't help much, so might as well save you some money

[Lotus]

Motherboards do not affect performance. They simply have a featureset. Yes, on certain sockets VRM quality matters, but on intel it's a non-issue since they separate out their high TDP chips onto a different socket (2011). Basically, if you're getting a more expensive motherboard, you're paying for extra features such as hard-points for a voltmeter to manually check voltages for overclock purposes, a big read clear CMOS button right on the motherboard, a PLX chip for sharing of PCIE lanes to 3 or more GPUs on the same motherboard in consumer sockets, and so on. Almost all of these features are going to go unused, and so getting them would simply be a waste of money. Go for the cheapest motherboard from a brand you trust that meets your needs. Paying more is throwing money away. For instance, if you get a i5-6600k and want to overclock, make sure you get a z170 chipset board. However getting a $200 board won't mean you can overclock to faster clock speeds than the $80 board. That's a common misconception.

[brob]

Here is a mini-ITX build. Just because it is small does not mean that it is not upgradeable. In my experience about the only thing that does get upgraded is the gpu. The psu in this build will support a fairly decent gpu.

 

If one is not going to overclock there is really no need to go with an i7-6700K. Granted it has a higher base clock than the locked version, but unless one is running cpu intensive applications the difference will not be noticeable. An i7 with 16GB of memory with a decent ssd should be enough power for the work described.

 

The mini-ITX motherboard has dual-band a/b/g/n/ac WiFi and Bluetooth 4.0. It also has on-board headers for 2 USB 2.0 and 2 USB 3.0 ports as well as 2 USB 2.0 and 6 USB 3.0 connectors on the rear i/o panel.

 

I've used an SFX psu to make things a little easier inside the case.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($329.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-L9x65 33.8 CFM CPU Cooler  ($49.96 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock Z170M-ITX/ac Mini ITX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($127.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill NT Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory  ($58.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($149.89 @ OutletPC)
Case: Fractal Design Define Nano S Mini ITX Desktop Case  ($66.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: Silverstone 600W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular SFX Power Supply  ($128.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit)  ($89.92 @ Amazon)
Total: $1002.72
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-03-15 23:22 EDT-0400

[Lisa.Lisa]

@verydogesuchwow That's good to know. The reason I was thinking of an i7 is I thought it'd be faster. But you don't think I'd really notice a difference in speed?

 

@Lotus I like the idea of saving money on a mobo! Are Gigabyte, Asus, and MSI generally the best brands to go for?

 

How about the size of the mobo? Should I stick with an ATX since it's my first build and a larger mobo will be easier to work with? I noticed that the micro and mini ATXs are sometimes cheaper

 

@brob I like the price and number of USB ports on the ASRock. Will a mini ITX be more difficult to work with than an ATX since it's smaller? Also, what does an SFX power supply mean?

[verydogesuchwow]

2 minutes ago, Lisa.Lisa said:

@verydogesuchwow That's good to know. The reason I was thinking of an i7 is I thought it'd be faster. But you don't think I'd really notice a difference in speed?

 

@Lotus I like the idea of saving money on a mobo! Are Gigabyte, Asus, and MSI generally the best brands to go for?

 

How about the size of the mobo? Should I stick with an ATX since it's my first build and a larger mobo will be easier to work with? I noticed that the micro and mini ATXs are sometimes cheaper

 

@brob I like the price and number of USB ports on the ASRock. Will a mini ITX be more difficult to work with than an ATX since it's smaller? Also, what does an SFX power supply mean?

there won't be a huge jump in performance for your needs, right

 

yeah they are the best brands, go with ATX, more ability to expand for the future, even if it's more expensive

 

SFX psu is a brand

[brob]

16 minutes ago, Lisa.Lisa said:

@verydogesuchwow That's good to know. The reason I was thinking of an i7 is I thought it'd be faster. But you don't think I'd really notice a difference in speed?

 

@Lotus I like the idea of saving money on a mobo! Are Gigabyte, Asus, and MSI generally the best brands to go for?

 

How about the size of the mobo? Should I stick with an ATX since it's my first build and a larger mobo will be easier to work with? I noticed that the micro and mini ATXs are sometimes cheaper

 

@brob I like the price and number of USB ports on the ASRock. Will a mini ITX be more difficult to work with than an ATX since it's smaller? Also, what does an SFX power supply mean?

SFX is a size/format of psu. It has smaller dimensions than ATX psu. The model I included comes with an adapter plate so that it mounts properly in an ATX opening.

 

Mini-ITX is not really more difficult since all the connections are the same. But things are a more confined, so one does need to plan out the assembly with a little more care. The advantage of the size is that these motherboards generally have on-board WiFi. The disadvantages are limited expansion slots (only 1) and only 2 memory slots.

 

An i5 has 4 non-hyperthreaded cores. An i7 has 4 hyperthreaded cores. An i7 is simply more powerful, as the price indicates. Given that an i7 fits in the budget and that the system will be used for editing, it seems reasonable to include one.

[Lisa.Lisa]

Would the Gigabyte GA-Z170-HD3 ATX LGA 1151 likely be a good motherboard for my needs, as well as good quality? It seems to be one of the less expensive mobos while still getting decent ratings. 

 

This is currently my updated build plan:  

 

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($496.35 @ Vuugo) 
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($35.99 @ Amazon Canada) 
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170-HD3 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($144.75 @ Vuugo) 
Memory: Kingston HyperX Fury Black 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  ($89.99 @ NCIX) 
Storage: Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($57.87 @ BestDirect) 
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($66.75 @ shopRBC) 
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case  ($74.98 @ Newegg Canada) 
Power Supply: Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($59.98 @ NCIX) 
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit)  ($126.00 @ shopRBC) 
Wireless Network Adapter: TP-Link TL-WDN4800 802.11a/b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter  ($43.98 @ DirectCanada) 

Total: $1208.99

 

[Lisa.Lisa]

I noticed that Costco has a Dell XPS 8900 on sale right now for $1140 CAD, and its specs look a bit better than my planned build...

 

http://www.costco.ca/Dell%E2%84%A2-XPS-8900-English-Desktop%2c-i7-6700.product.100240521.html

 

But would a prebuilt Dell computer be poorer quality than what I could build? Because just comparing the specs, it looks like I'd save money if I bought the one from Costco..