Upgrade time

[Roger_C]

Hello,

 

Been watching Linus's YouTube channel and some others for a long time now. Happy to join this community on the forums as well.

Anyway, time to cut it to the chase.

If you check my current PC's specs in my profile (quick summary: i5, 2xGTX 760SLI, 8GB DDR3), it's obvious it reached its time. Even as a medium range build, it still works flawlessly and it provided countless hours of entertainment.

As I've started a new job at IBM and I'm looking at a possibility to get a decent upgrade, I've been looking around.

My budget is £1500-£2000.

1. CPU : Intel i7 6850K?

I want to get a CPU with 6 cores and at least 10MB cache (thinking of streaming or starting an YouTube channel for my Guild Wars 2 gameplay). 

Want to go with the 6800K if I get a 2nd GPU in future and I also want to get an M.2 drive for my OS at some point, so I guess I'll need a 40 lanes CPU.

2. Motherboard : Asus Strix X99?

New CPU includes new mobile and new RAM. I was also looking at the Rampage V if my budget will be enough.

3. GPU: GTX 1080?

This is the reason I might push the budget up to £2000. I just want to be able at least for a year (or less,lol) to run games on highest settings.

Also rendering recorded videos would benefit from this GPU.

Asus Strix over clocked or some Evga version?

4. CPU Cooler : Hydro 115i ?

Just want something to do the job but silent enough. If needed I'll replace those stock fans with the latest ones from Corsair, even if they'repriced at £20 each now (so probably looking at £100 for case + the ones on the radiator?)

5. M.2 ?

What would you suggest here? A 250GB should be more than enough for OS and loads of stuff.

6. Monitor?

Not for now, as I would exceedy budget by a lot. But I would like to see opinions for a 1440p IPS monitor. Not going for 4k, as it can push even a dual GTX 1080 setup to the limits or max settings gaming. And I also don't like the scaling on 4k, Windows has to catch up.

 

I kinda know what I want already and I've done some price research. Still, I'm asking here because one mind can't be as efficient as 100

I might have missed something or maybe haven't picked the right part for my needs.

To summarise, my PC will be used for mostly playing Guild Wars 2 on my free time, while recording or streaming and then possibly processing it.

 

Thanks for reading this long post.

Kind regards!

 

Edited July 25, 2016 by Roger_C

[Jack Dvorak]

The 6800k is only 28 lanes and you should have no problem with 28lanes.

[Jack Dvorak]

And from my experience the 6800k is great!

[Guest]

You should get one of those Samsung curved 1440 monitors that linus has. GTX 1080 should be fine for ultra gaming on that kind of monitor, and perfect for vr. 6800k is a great choice if you have the money, and an asus x99s board will go perfectly with that. Buy a m.2 drive for the os and a large wd black drive for games and recording.

[Z-Gaming]

As im looking for quality GW2 Gameplay, and i cant find none, which delays my starting the game, pleaaaase... do lots of videos. Maybe thief? D/S?  pleaaase?

[Roger_C]

Just now, Z-Gaming said:

As im looking for quality GW2 Gameplay, and i cant find none, which delays my starting the game, pleaaaase... do lots of videos. Maybe thief? D/S?  pleaaase?

You're lucky
I'm playing Thief for WvW and arenas and Warrior for PvE content.

[Z-Gaming]

Just now, Roger_C said:

You're lucky
I'm playing Thief for WvW and arenas and Warrior for PvE content.

YUS! When everything is ready, shoot me with a PM. I'll be sure to subscribe

[Jack Dvorak]

10 minutes ago, Roger_C said:

You're lucky
I'm playing Thief for WvW and arenas and Warrior for PvE content.

I'll sub to you to!

[CostcoSamples]

 

31 minutes ago, Roger_C said:

Hello,

 

Been watching Linus's YouTube channel and some others for a long time now. Happy to join this community on the forums as well.

Anyway, time to cut it to the chase.

If you check my current PC's specs in my profile (quick summary: i5, 2xGTX 760SLI, 8GB DDR3), it's obvious it reached its time. Even as a medium range build, it still works flawlessly and it provided countless hours of entertainment.

As I've started a new job at IBM and I'm looking at a possibility to get a decent upgrade, I've been looking around.

My budget is £1500-£2000.

1. CPU : Intel i7 6800K?

I want to get a CPU with 6 cores and at least 10MB cache (thinking of streaming or starting an YouTube channel for my Guild Wars 2 gameplay). 

Want to go with the 6800K if I get a 2nd GPU in future and I also want to get an M.2 drive for my OS at some point, so I guess I'll need a 40 lanes CPU.

2. Motherboard : Asus Strix X99?

New CPU includes new mobile and new RAM. I was also looking at the Rampage V if my budget will be enough.

3. GPU: GTX 1080?

This is the reason I might push the budget up to £2000. I just want to be able at least for a year (or less,lol) to run games on highest settings.

Also rendering recorded videos would benefit from this GPU.

Asus Strix over clocked or some Evga version?

4. CPU Cooler : Hydro 115i ?

Just want something to do the job but silent enough. If needed I'll replace those stock fans with the latest ones from Corsair, even if they'repriced at £20 each now (so probably looking at £100 for case + the ones on the radiator?)

5. M.2 ?

What would you suggest here? A 250GB should be more than enough for OS and loads of stuff.

6. Monitor?

Not for now, as I would exceedy budget by a lot. But I would like to see opinions for a 1440p IPS monitor. Not going for 4k, as it can push even a dual GTX 1080 setup to the limits or max settings gaming. And I also don't like the scaling on 4k, Windows has to catch up.

 

I kinda know what I want already and I've done some price research. Still, I'm asking here because one mind can't be as efficient as 100

I might have missed something or maybe haven't picked the right part for my needs.

To summarise, my PC will be used for mostly playing Guild Wars 2 on my free time, while recording or streaming and then possibly processing it.

 

Thanks for reading this long post.

Kind regards!

 

1. If you go with a 6700k you can stick to the z170 platform and save a lot of money.  6700k does better for gaming (higher clock speeds), and is still a very strong choice for video editing (hyperthreading).

2. Go with a z170 board - much better value

3. 1080 is awesome, STRIX seems like probably the best value right now.

4. I wouldn't spend much on a CPU cooler, just get a decent air cooler and don't both with liquid.  Better to spend that money on other parts IMO.  

5. I think 250 gb is too small for primary drive if you want to keep your games and OS on it.  You should try to get around 500 gb if possible, or larger.  You can get PCIe M.2 or you can get SATA M.2.  Be sure you match the right kind of drive to the motherboard you select.  Keep in mind that a PCIe SSD is faster and more expensive, but honestly you won't notice a difference unless you do a lot of working with very large files.  And if that is the case, you will need more than 500 gb, which gets very expensive if going PCIe SSD.  Just get the biggest SATA SSD you can afford and I think you'll be happy with it.

6. Monitor is definitely the hardest choice.  1440p IPS is a very good choice, but you need to figure out how much budget is left for the monitor.  Acer XB271HU and Asus PG279Q are the best in this category, with 165hz refresh rate and Gsync.  They are very expensive.  There are lots of cheaper 60hz IPS displays to chose from.

 

 

[Roger_C]

23 minutes ago, CostcoSamples said:

 

1. If you go with a 6700k you can stick to the z170 platform and save a lot of money.  6700k does better for gaming (higher clock speeds), and is still a very strong choice for video editing (hyperthreading).

2. Go with a z170 board - much better value

3. 1080 is awesome, STRIX seems like probably the best value right now.

4. I wouldn't spend much on a CPU cooler, just get a decent air cooler and don't both with liquid.  Better to spend that money on other parts IMO.  

5. I think 250 gb is too small for primary drive if you want to keep your games and OS on it.  You should try to get around 500 gb if possible, or larger.  You can get PCIe M.2 or you can get SATA M.2.  Be sure you match the right kind of drive to the motherboard you select.  Keep in mind that a PCIe SSD is faster and more expensive, but honestly you won't notice a difference unless you do a lot of working with very large files.  And if that is the case, you will need more than 500 gb, which gets very expensive if going PCIe SSD.  Just get the biggest SATA SSD you can afford and I think you'll be happy with it.

6. Monitor is definitely the hardest choice.  1440p IPS is a very good choice, but you need to figure out how much budget is left for the monitor.  Acer XB271HU and Asus PG279Q are the best in this category, with 165hz refresh rate and Gsync.  They are very expensive.  There are lots of cheaper 60hz IPS displays to chose from.

 

 

@1 and 2
 If i go with the 6700k, it has only 4 cores. Keep in mind if i'm streaming that's going to be a lot on it. Both xplit and OBS are heavy while encoding. Also, MMOs tend to put pressure on CPUs as well as they constantly load maps. Then, it  has only 16 PCI lanes. If i go dual GPU later on and M.2 drive, it won't be enough.
@4. 
As for the CPU cooler. They went down in prices and i just don't want to keep cleaning the heat sinks anymore. And they look cool
@5.
I have bought a 1TB SSD already that i'll be using for games and scrap storage for video recordings. 250GB should be really enough for OS and video editing software.
@6.
The Asus PG279Q was my choice as well so far. It is damn expensive, but if i get it later on when i'll be done with my upgrade (i'll treat myself for Christmass i guess  ) it wouldn't hurt my wallet that bad. After all, i'll buy it once and hopefully it will last me for the next 5 years easily. My last monitor was a 17" TN and i had it for 9 years.

[Roger_C]

49 minutes ago, Z-Gaming said:

As im looking for quality GW2 Gameplay, and i cant find none, which delays my starting the game, pleaaaase... do lots of videos. Maybe thief? D/S?  pleaaase?

P.S. : There was a guy that had awesome GW2 Thief gameplay videos. Look up for Yishis Gaming. Unfortunately he hasn't been active for a while. Don't know if he quited GW2 or just not uploading anything anymore.

[BuckGup]

1 hour ago, Jack Dvorak said:

And from my experience the 6800k is great!

Yup same here. Also you get 16 more lanes from you onboard chipset

[Renton577]

1 hour ago, Roger_C said:

@1 and 2
 If i go with the 6700k, it has only 4 cores. Keep in mind if i'm streaming that's going to be a lot on it. Both xplit and OBS are heavy while encoding. Also, MMOs tend to put pressure on CPUs as well as they constantly load maps. Then, it  has only 16 PCI lanes. If i go dual GPU later on and M.2 drive, it won't be enough.
@4. 
As for the CPU cooler. They went down in prices and i just don't want to keep cleaning the heat sinks anymore. And they look cool
@5.
I have bought a 1TB SSD already that i'll be using for games and scrap storage for video recordings. 250GB should be really enough for OS and video editing software.
@6.
The Asus PG279Q was my choice as well so far. It is damn expensive, but if i get it later on when i'll be done with my upgrade (i'll treat myself for Christmass i guess  ) it wouldn't hurt my wallet that bad. After all, i'll buy it once and hopefully it will last me for the next 5 years easily. My last monitor was a 17" TN and i had it for 9 years.

Streaming does put some load on the CPU but couldn't you offload that and actually be better off with an internal capture card in this case? Also gonna say I'm a bit jealous of the GTX 1080 action, I'm rockin a GTX Titan Black since I got a good deal on it but I've only heard awesome things about the 1080.

[Roger_C]

58 minutes ago, SamStrecker said:

Yup same here. Also you get 16 more lanes from you onboard chipset

Not sure I get what you mean here...
"16 more lanes" ? You only get as many lanes as your CPU is able to. The fact that the mobo has 4 or 5 physical PCI-E slots only gives you the ability to use all the 28 or 40 lanes of your CPU but to lower capacity (hence you see in the mobo specs 18/18/8 or 8/8/4/4 , etc)

[Roger_C]

2 minutes ago, Renton577 said:

Streaming does put some load on the CPU but couldn't you offload that and actually be better off with an internal capture card in this case? Also gonna say I'm a bit jealous of the GTX 1080 action, I'm rockin a GTX Titan Black since I got a good deal on it but I've only heard awesome things about the 1080.

Had a thought about a capture card. Which is quite a good option if you're only recording. But streaming and capture cards don't go really well, not yet.
Then, it takes another PCI-E slot
Man, I wish there would be a 80 lanes CPU out there and a kickass E-ATX mobo with all the features in the world :)))

[Renton577]

2 minutes ago, Roger_C said:

Had a thought about a capture card. Which is quite a good option if you're only recording. But streaming and capture cards don't go really well, not yet.
Then, it takes another PCI-E slot
Man, I wish there would be a 80 lanes CPU out there and a kickass E-ATX mobo with all the features in the world :)))

Yeah you have a point, although I do understand the issue with streaming on a PCI capture card, there are ways around it though, very roundabout ways like plugging the video card output directly into the capture card then the capture card to the monitor, but if you do want your streaming to be CPU bound I would really look into a 6 to 8 core i7. I have a quad core laptop i7-4710HQ and even when I'm docked to an external GPU being my Titan Black and overclocked to desktop clocks I have issues with the CPU load effecting gameplay when I play CPU intensive games, although its more on the GPU side of things where the bottleneck comes into play, I tend to see that games that really stress my GPU cause frames to drop on the stream and I cant offload the task to the 980M or HD 4600 because it has to be set to the card where the content is outputting or the stream will just be black. Its a bit of a tightrope walk to stream without a capture card in my opinion. Maybe a good USB capture device is an option if you're worried about PCI lanes, I'm not sure though.

[Roger_C]

37 minutes ago, Renton577 said:

Yeah you have a point, although I do understand the issue with streaming on a PCI capture card, there are ways around it though, very roundabout ways like plugging the video card output directly into the capture card then the capture card to the monitor, but if you do want your streaming to be CPU bound I would really look into a 6 to 8 core i7. I have a quad core laptop i7-4710HQ and even when I'm docked to an external GPU being my Titan Black and overclocked to desktop clocks I have issues with the CPU load effecting gameplay when I play CPU intensive games, although its more on the GPU side of things where the bottleneck comes into play, I tend to see that games that really stress my GPU cause frames to drop on the stream and I cant offload the task to the 980M or HD 4600 because it has to be set to the card where the content is outputting or the stream will just be black. Its a bit of a tightrope walk to stream without a capture card in my opinion. Maybe a good USB capture device is an option if you're worried about PCI lanes, I'm not sure though.

I know what you mean. I've had endless headaches to figure out these kind of issues with OBS. But I have found a way to do it. My current i5 is the downside, tho. It's just not able to deal with both running the game and streaming.
My original post was wrong, I've edited the CPU I am looking for (was 6800k first, miss typed).
I know 6850K isn't cheap, but it should last me for the next 3-5 years and be able to deal with the workload I'm going to throw at it.
As for an USB capture device, depending the resolution I'll be streaming at, I guess I would have to find something with Thunderbolt compatibility?

[Renton577]

8 minutes ago, Roger_C said:

I know what you mean. I've had endless headaches to figure out these kind of issues with OBS. But I have found a way to do it. My current i5 is the downside, tho. It's just not able to deal with both running the game and streaming.
My original post was wrong, I've edited the CPU I am looking for (was 6800k first, miss typed).
I know 6850K isn't cheap, but it should last me for the next 3-5 years and be able to deal with the workload I'm going to throw at it.
As for an USB capture device, depending the resolution I'll be streaming at, I guess I would have to find something with Thunderbolt compatibility?

That CPU will definitely do fine, and on the capture card it wouldn't necessarily have to be thunderbolt, I mean you could just get a capture card with a HDMI pass through on USB 3.0 should do fine, now if you will be playing at 4K I don't know if they make USB capture cards that support 4K 60fps pass through over HDMI.

[CostcoSamples]

2 hours ago, Roger_C said:

@1 and 2
 If i go with the 6700k, it has only 4 cores. Keep in mind if i'm streaming that's going to be a lot on it. Both xplit and OBS are heavy while encoding. Also, MMOs tend to put pressure on CPUs as well as they constantly load maps. Then, it  has only 16 PCI lanes. If i go dual GPU later on and M.2 drive, it won't be enough.
@4. 
As for the CPU cooler. They went down in prices and i just don't want to keep cleaning the heat sinks anymore. And they look cool
@5.
I have bought a 1TB SSD already that i'll be using for games and scrap storage for video recordings. 250GB should be really enough for OS and video editing software.
@6.
The Asus PG279Q was my choice as well so far. It is damn expensive, but if i get it later on when i'll be done with my upgrade (i'll treat myself for Christmass i guess  ) it wouldn't hurt my wallet that bad. After all, i'll buy it once and hopefully it will last me for the next 5 years easily. My last monitor was a 17" TN and i had it for 9 years.

Do keep in mind the 6700k has 16 but you also get an extra 4 more on the z170 platform for PCIe drives.  Anyway it sounds like you want more cores.  Just don't let the pcie lanes be your deciding factor as I think you could easily make it work with 16+4.

 

You'll still have to clean your radiator, same as you would for a heatsink.  When I upgraded my build, I made sure to have positive case pressure and all intake fans have dust filters.  Makes a really big difference.

[Roger_C]

44 minutes ago, CostcoSamples said:

Do keep in mind the 6700k has 16 but you also get an extra 4 more on the z170 platform for PCIe drives.  Anyway it sounds like you want more cores.  Just don't let the pcie lanes be your deciding factor as I think you could easily make it work with 16+4.

 

You'll still have to clean your radiator, same as you would for a heatsink.  When I upgraded my build, I made sure to have positive case pressure and all intake fans have dust filters.  Makes a really big difference.

You're the second person saying this. @SamStrecker said something similar earlier as well.
What am i missing here? Do some motherboards provide extra PCI lanes ? How does that work ?
And it is not really a decisive factor. But keep in mind once i set up this rig, i won't really touch it for the next 3-5 years, unless if i am going to add a 2nd video card.
2 video cards at 16x, then a M.2 drive, that's 36 lanes gone at once.

[BuckGup]

Just now, Roger_C said:

You're the second person saying this. @SamStrecker said something similar earlier as well.
What am i missing here? Do some motherboards provide extra PCI lanes ? How does that work ?
And it is not really a decisive factor. But keep in mind once i set up this rig, i won't really touch it for the next 3-5 years, unless if i am going to add a 2nd video card.
2 video cards at 16x, then a M.2 drive, that's 36 lanes gone at once.

The onboard chipset can handle 4X or more depending on some things but normally 4X. You usually have to use the most bottom PCIE slot

[CostcoSamples]

4 hours ago, Roger_C said:

You're the second person saying this. @SamStrecker said something similar earlier as well.
What am i missing here? Do some motherboards provide extra PCI lanes ? How does that work ?
And it is not really a decisive factor. But keep in mind once i set up this rig, i won't really touch it for the next 3-5 years, unless if i am going to add a 2nd video card.
2 video cards at 16x, then a M.2 drive, that's 36 lanes gone at once.

The extra pcie lanes on the z170 platform are not directly linked to the CPU, but rather, they are routed through the motherboard chipset, which is probably why they only give you 4 lanes (bandwidth is limited).  It is enough to run a pcie SSD at x4 3.0, and I think they are linked directly to certain pci slots or the M.2 slot.  My guess is that x99 boards have something similar.

 

Also keep in mind that we are still not at the point of saturating 8 lanes of pcie 3.0 even with a gtx 1080.  There are numerous websites testing this.  too lazy to link any right now, but I looked it up recently because I was curious for my personal rig.  So you could easily run a pair of 1080s on 16 lanes (8 lanes each) and be totally fine.

 

One last thing to think about.  The best GPU purchasing strategy in the long run, IMO, is to buy a new one every 2 years, rather than adding a second one for SLI.  Scaling and driver issues, extra heat output (is a big deal on long gaming sessions), need for high wattage PSU.  Better to avoid these issues by selling your two year old card for a decent price and put that toward a next gen GPU.  For example, I bought my gtx 970 nearly two years ago.  I will sell it this fall for about 1/2 to 1/3 what I paid, and upgrade to either a 1070 or 1080.  It's like getting a new GPU every two years for roughly 30% to 40% off.  It works best if you buy right away when next gen is released.