New Build Help

[JustAnotherGeek]

Hey all! So I am in desperate need of a new computer. I have been using my laptop for home and work which is not working out so well. I need a home computer for video editing. However, I am on a really tight budget. I cannot afford to spend more than $1k which is low for a good video editing computer. I made a list of what I was thinking about, but its way over $1k (I have two different motherboards I as looking into). I was thinking about getting a high quality motherboard that would last so I could make upgrades later. Please help!

 

https://amzn.com/w/3H03H529TLG9W

 

Oh, per the rules....I live in the US, $1k budget, running 3 monitors, I will need Windows

 

Thanks in advance!

[HKZeroFive]

Yep, you're being way too ambitious on that budget. Doubt you need all the features the Deluxe series offers. Just get a simple hyperthreaded CPU. The GTX 970 is obsolete at that price, get the GTX 1060 or RX 480.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($239.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Motherboard: ASRock H97 Anniversary ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($69.88 @ OutletPC) 
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($59.99 @ NCIX US) 
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($90.99 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($47.49 @ OutletPC) 
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 1060 6GB ARMOR OC Video Card  ($269.99) 
Case: NZXT S340 (Black/Red) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($66.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA G2 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($70.98 @ Newegg) 
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit  ($83.89 @ OutletPC) 
Total: $1000.19
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-07-26 00:46 EDT-0400

[Energycore]

3 minutes ago, HKZeroFive said:

 

I'd get an E3 1230V5 and C232 Motherboard, but otherwise I agree with this build.

[JustAnotherGeek]

6 minutes ago, HKZeroFive said:

Yep, you're being way too ambitious on that budget. Doubt you need all the features the Deluxe series offers. Just get a simple hyperthreaded CPU. The GTX 970 is obsolete at that price, get the GTX 1060 or RX 480.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($239.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Motherboard: ASRock H97 Anniversary ATX LGA1150 Motherboard  ($69.88 @ OutletPC) 
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory  ($59.99 @ NCIX US) 
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($90.99 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($47.49 @ OutletPC) 
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 1060 6GB ARMOR OC Video Card  ($269.99) 
Case: NZXT S340 (Black/Red) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($66.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA G2 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($70.98 @ Newegg) 
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit  ($83.89 @ OutletPC) 
Total: $1000.19
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-07-26 00:46 EDT-0400

I have to admit, the last time I looked into building a computer was 10 years ago. I have been out of the game for a long time. How upgrade able is that motherboard? My concern is I do not want to build on a motherboard that is going to force me to upgrade 2-3 years down the road.

[MVPernula]

11 minutes ago, JustAnotherGeek said:

I have to admit, the last time I looked into building a computer was 10 years ago. I have been out of the game for a long time. How upgrade able is that motherboard? My concern is I do not want to build on a motherboard that is going to force me to upgrade 2-3 years down the road.

Not very upgradeable.

[Energycore]

8 minutes ago, JustAnotherGeek said:

I have to admit, the last time I looked into building a computer was 10 years ago. I have been out of the game for a long time. How upgrade able is that motherboard? My concern is I do not want to build on a motherboard that is going to force me to upgrade 2-3 years down the road.

Hmm. Upgradability in motherboards isn't really a thing imo, at best you can get one generation step which isn't much. Better to upgrade the mobo and CPU and RAM less frequently

[JustAnotherGeek]

1 minute ago, Energycore said:

Hmm. Upgradability in motherboards isn't really a thing imo, at best you can get one generation step which isn't much. Better to upgrade the mobo and CPU and RAM less frequently

Let me clarify, when I say upgrade-ability in the motherboard, I do not mean on the actual motherboard. I mean having a motherboard that can handle future upgrades or have I been out of the game so long that all of today's motherboards can handle any type of upgrade

[Energycore]

Just now, JustAnotherGeek said:

Let me clarify, when I say upgrade-ability in the motherboard, I do not mean on the actual motherboard. I mean having a motherboard that can handle future upgrades or have I been out of the game so long that all of today's motherboards can handle any type of upgrade

Do you mean being able to handle add-in cards, new storage form factors that build the storage PCB into the motherboard, and so on?

 

For one, PCI has been deprecated and now pretty much every AIC uses the PCI-Express interface. THat includes graphics, NICs, Sound cards (which are less needed now with pretty much every mobo having in integrated sound controller), etc.

[JustAnotherGeek]

8 minutes ago, Energycore said:

Do you mean being able to handle add-in cards, new storage form factors that build the storage PCB into the motherboard, and so on?

 

For one, PCI has been deprecated and now pretty much every AIC uses the PCI-Express interface. THat includes graphics, NICs, Sound cards (which are less needed now with pretty much every mobo having in integrated sound controller), etc.

No I mean, if I went with a lower end graphics card but decided to upgrade to something like the Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 GDDR5. Would it be able to handle it because it is GDDR5? or am I just way off base? I think I may just have to just do the research. I was trying to avoid spending the time to do all the research and have someone make some recommendations but I think the research may be required.

 

[Energycore]

Just now, JustAnotherGeek said:

No I mean, if I went with a lower end graphics card but decided to upgrade to something like the Gigabyte GeForce GTX 970 GDDR5. Would it be able to handle it because it is GDDR5? or am I just way off base? I think I may just have to just do the research. I was trying to avoid spending the time to do all the research and have someone make some recommendations but I think the research may be required.

You'll be fine upgrading your graphics card, like I said every AIC uses PCI-E and GPUs are no exception, this fact is unlikely to change. Should be able to upgrade GPU for quite a while.

[JustAnotherGeek]

Just now, Energycore said:

You'll be fine upgrading your graphics card, like I said every AIC uses PCI-E and GPUs are no exception, this fact is unlikely to change. Should be able to upgrade GPU for quite a while.

Thanks!

[Zyndo]

http://pcpartpicker.com/list/9hz6RG

 

@JustAnotherGeek This is the computer you should get. You want a current computer with a current motherboard with current features and going to last you years. That build up there does not offer that. It lacks DDR4 RAM (DDR3 is on its way out), It lacks USB 3.1 (Double the bandwidth of usb 3.0). It lacks USB type C (needed for a lot of current and upcoming devices, and is likely going to be the new connector that everything will run on instead of USB type A) It lacks a M.2 port (Next generation extreme storage performance speeds, up to 6 times faster than the current SATA III). On top of all of that it has inferior audio to my suggested build and has terrible PCIe expandability that doesn't allow for any multi GPU setups (My build supports crossfire) among other things. I could go on, but perhaps you get the idea.

 

Now, all that aside, lets talk performance. As far as raw performance goes, the i7 6700 is better architecture and supports higher clocks than his suggested Xeon. The 6700 is going to be a slightly better performer than this Xeon due to that, assuming you don't need ECC memory/RAM (if you don't know what that is, then you very likely do not need it. and based on your workload, its incredibly unlikely that you do). the DDR4 RAM on the 6700 setup is faster than the RAM on the Xeon build. The Samsung SSD IS slightly better than the Adata one I suggested. However in the real world the difference between the two will not be noticeable, and its much cheaper, so I opted for the Adata instead. We chose the same case because its awesome, and similar PSU's because they're high quality, and have great perks. My suggested PSU is a bit more expensive, but is more power efficient and comes with more wattage in case you ever wanted to go crossfire.

Sounds pretty good right? well the big kicker here is that he has a slightly better GPU in his build. That being said, the RX 480 is no slouch. Especially if you can stretch your budget a bit and get the 8GB version of the 480. the 480 currently loses to the 1060 in most games by a few fps. However, the 480 has a better API (Vulkan) and if/when more games start supporting that, then the RX 480 will come ahead. There are also rumors that the 480 has better DX12 performance, But I haven't seen any concrete reviews that it is better or worse than the 1060 when it comes to that point. I suggested the RX 480 primarily to fit your budget, and to allow you to crossfire in the future if you wanted to.

 

If you have any other questions feel free to ask.

[JustAnotherGeek]

5 minutes ago, Zyndo said:

http://pcpartpicker.com/list/9hz6RG

 

@JustAnotherGeek This is the computer you should get. You want a current computer with a current motherboard with current features and going to last you years. That build up there does not offer that. It lacks DDR4 RAM (DDR3 is on its way out), It lacks USB 3.1 (Double the bandwidth of usb 3.0). It lacks USB type C (needed for a lot of current and upcoming devices, and is likely going to be the new connector that everything will run on instead of USB type A) It lacks a M.2 port (Next generation extreme storage performance speeds, up to 6 times faster than the current SATA III). On top of all of that it has inferior audio to my suggested build and has terrible PCIe expandability that doesn't allow for any multi GPU setups (My build supports crossfire) among other things. I could go on, but perhaps you get the idea.

 

Now, all that aside, lets talk performance. As far as raw performance goes, the i7 6700 is better architecture and supports higher clocks than his suggested Xeon. The 6700 is going to be a slightly better performer than this Xeon due to that, assuming you don't need ECC memory/RAM (if you don't know what that is, then you very likely do not need it. and based on your workload, its incredibly unlikely that you do). the DDR4 RAM on the 6700 setup is faster than the RAM on the Xeon build. The Samsung SSD IS slightly better than the Adata one I suggested. However in the real world the difference between the two will not be noticeable, and its much cheaper, so I opted for the Adata instead. We chose the same case because its awesome, and similar PSU's because they're high quality, and have great perks. My suggested PSU is a bit more expensive, but is more power efficient and comes with more wattage in case you ever wanted to go crossfire.

Sounds pretty good right? well the big kicker here is that he has a slightly better GPU in his build. That being said, the RX 480 is no slouch. Especially if you can stretch your budget a bit and get the 8GB version of the 480. the 480 currently loses to the 1060 in most games by a few fps. However, the 480 has a better API (Vulkan) and if/when more games start supporting that, then the RX 480 will come ahead. There are also rumors that the 480 has better DX12 performance, But I haven't seen any concrete reviews that it is better or worse than the 1060 when it comes to that point. I suggested the RX 480 primarily to fit your budget, and to allow you to crossfire in the future if you wanted to.

 

If you have any other questions feel free to ask.

Thank you for this! Few questions....

 

is ECC beneficial? also, I have never overclocked so would it be better to go with Xeon if I am not planning on overclocking? As far as graphics, I am willing to spend a few extra for the 1060 but it doesnt seem like anyone has it in stock. Also, how about cooling? I was thinking about going with Corsair Hydro Series H100i v2

 

[Zyndo]

Just now, JustAnotherGeek said:

Thank you for this! Few questions....

 

is ECC beneficial? also, I have never overclocked so would it be better to go with Xeon if I am not planning on overclocking? As far as graphics, I am willing to spend a few extra for the 1060 but it doesnt seem like anyone has it in stock. Also, how about cooling? I was thinking about going with Corsair Hydro Series H100i v2

 

ECC is beneficial in the right situations. ECC stands for Error Correcting Code. Its only necessary in professional grade servers, or places where you need absolutely unforgiving amounts of assurance when it comes to information security such as when dealing with highly sensitive information like finances. don't want some super rare  RAM glitch to show up at the wrong time and bankrupt someone ;). That is about the only thing that Xeon can do that the 6700 can't.

 

the 6700 I'm suggesting cannot overclock. If you want the 6700k which CAN overclock, then its going to cost more to get a motherboard that can support it and a cooler that can handle it. So no, if you want to overclock or not, the Xeon isn't better against the 6700 or 6700k. the "K" after the chip name means the chip is "unlocked". "Unlocked" means that its performance and voltage numbers are now adjustable (instead of being at a fixed rate decided by intel). Unlocked CPU's can overclock. Locked CPU's cannot (although there are workarounds for that if you're really desparate, but don't ask me how ;P)

 

When it comes to cooling, the 6700 will come with a stock intel fan. IF you can afford it, I would recommend getting something like a hyper 212 EVO or a Cryorig H7 (The H7 is a bit more expensive, but its better, quieter, and looks way cooler imo). You don't need to get either of them, a stock intel fan will probably perform fine if you don't mind a little extra noise in your system. Again, if you want a cooler for an overclockable chip, we can discuss that, but its going to cost alot more if you want a high overclock.  (P.S. the H7 can usually be gotten for around 35-40 bucks if you want it, right now the price is a bit higher than it has been of late. you could wait for the price to come down if you had your heart set on that one, or you could get any one of a dozen other decent low end aftermarket coolers).

 

Stock is limited on the 1060 and 480's because they are fairly new cards and everyone is buying them. It may be tough to get one for the next little while, but if you're a little patient, or really vigilant, you will get one. no problem.

[JustAnotherGeek]

9 minutes ago, Zyndo said:

ECC is beneficial in the right situations. ECC stands for Error Correcting Code. Its only necessary in professional grade servers, or places where you need absolutely unforgiving amounts of assurance when it comes to information security such as when dealing with highly sensitive information like finances. don't want some super rare  RAM glitch to show up at the wrong time and bankrupt someone ;). That is about the only thing that Xeon can do that the 6700 can't.

 

the 6700 I'm suggesting cannot overclock. If you want the 6700k which CAN overclock, then its going to cost more to get a motherboard that can support it and a cooler that can handle it. So no, if you want to overclock or not, the Xeon isn't better against the 6700 or 6700k. the "K" after the chip name means the chip is "unlocked". "Unlocked" means that its performance and voltage numbers are now adjustable (instead of being at a fixed rate decided by intel). Unlocked CPU's can overclock. Locked CPU's cannot (although there are workarounds for that if you're really desparate, but don't ask me how ;P)

 

When it comes to cooling, the 6700 will come with a stock intel fan. IF you can afford it, I would recommend getting something like a hyper 212 EVO or a Cryorig H7 (The H7 is a bit more expensive, but its better, quieter, and looks way cooler imo). You don't need to get either of them, a stock intel fan will probably perform fine if you don't mind a little extra noise in your system. Again, if you want a cooler for an overclockable chip, we can discuss that, but its going to cost alot more if you want a high overclock.  (P.S. the H7 can usually be gotten for around 35-40 bucks if you want it, right now the price is a bit higher than it has been of late. you could wait for the price to come down if you had your heart set on that one, or you could get any one of a dozen other decent low end aftermarket coolers).

 

Stock is limited on the 1060 and 480's because they are fairly new cards and everyone is buying them. It may be tough to get one for the next little while, but if you're a little patient, or really vigilant, you will get one. no problem.

So this seems like the build....

 

http://pcpartpicker.com/list/Gc9cqk

 

I want to go with a white/blue led look

[Zyndo]

Just now, JustAnotherGeek said:

So this seems like the build....

 

http://pcpartpicker.com/list/Gc9cqk

 

I want to go with a white/blue led look

Well if you want a little more white, you could always try the cryorig C7. Its a low profile cooler that will have the fan facing towards your window, rather than the bulky cooler that the H7 is. The H7 is certainly a better cooler, but you don't need that much cooling headroom on a nonoverclocked chip. the C7 will keep your CPU cool enough (they claim 25% cooler than a stock intel fan), it MAY look better (depending on your preferences) and its currently cheaper. that's just an option.

http://pcpartpicker.com/product/Lbhj4D/cryorig-cpu-cooler-c7

 

Also, since white is the name of the game here, perhaps some more truly white RAM will help, rather than the silver of the ones I suggested earlier.
http://pcpartpicker.com/product/FH2rxr/crucial-memory-bls2k8g4d240fsc

 

All that being said, there is also absolutely nothing wrong with getting the components in the build you just linked. My two suggestions here were just to try and make things a little more aesthetically pleasing and/or colour coordinated if that was your aim. The only other thing would be that there are cheaper white cases if you wanted, but there is also absolutely nothing wrong with purchasing that Phantom if it really tickles your fancy =)

[JustAnotherGeek]

7 minutes ago, Zyndo said:

Well if you want a little more white, you could always try the cryorig C7. Its a low profile cooler that will have the fan facing towards your window, rather than the bulky cooler that the H7 is. The H7 is certainly a better cooler, but you don't need that much cooling headroom on a nonoverclocked chip. the C7 will keep your CPU cool enough (they claim 25% cooler than a stock intel fan), it MAY look better (depending on your preferences) and its currently cheaper. that's just an option.

http://pcpartpicker.com/product/Lbhj4D/cryorig-cpu-cooler-c7

 

Also, since white is the name of the game here, perhaps some more truly white RAM will help, rather than the silver of the ones I suggested earlier.
http://pcpartpicker.com/product/FH2rxr/crucial-memory-bls2k8g4d240fsc

 

All that being said, there is also absolutely nothing wrong with getting the components in the build you just linked. My two suggestions here were just to try and make things a little more aesthetically pleasing and/or colour coordinated if that was your aim. The only other thing would be that there are cheaper white cases if you wanted, but there is also absolutely nothing wrong with purchasing that Phantom if it really tickles your fancy =)

Really appreciate the help! I definitely want to go with an aesthetically pleasing look. I want white with blue lights, maybe blue fan lights.

[Zyndo]

Well, with all the work we put into making the inside of your case look awesome and white, why do you want a case like the phantom that doesn't really allow you to see inside of it? There are some cases out there that come with built in LED's and great aesthetics whilst allowing for a windowed side panel to see your awesome hardware. Something like this may be what you're looking for:

http://pcpartpicker.com/product/CvLypg/phanteks-case-phes614lwt

 

If you want something smaller or cheaper, there are tons of cases available in white. Here is just a short list of ones I often recommend, and you can decide for yourself what you want (or another one entirely if you wish)

 

NZXT S340

Corsair 400C

NZXT H440

Bit Fenix Nova (although this one is pretty cheap its not the greatest build quality)

Bit Fenix Comrade

Phanteks Eclipse P400

Fractal Design R5

 

Alot of these cases do not have room for a CD drive though. If you want one, you're going to have to choose carefully, or just pick up an external disc drive like a USB powered one rather than an internal SATA powered one. That's nice so you can use it when you need it, store it in a drawer when you don't, and its not really much more expensive than a SATA CD drive. This would allow you to choose any case you want even if it doesn't support internal 5.25" bays

 

 

You can still get the Phantom if you want though. There is absolutely nothing wrong with it. This is your computer, and that may very well be the case of your dreams. Nothing wrong with it at all. I'm just a fan of side window cases, and thought I would share that opinion with you in case you weren't aware of that option; after all, your internal components are going to look pretty sweet when everything is assembled

[JustAnotherGeek]

19 minutes ago, Zyndo said:

Well, with all the work we put into making the inside of your case look awesome and white, why do you want a case like the phantom that doesn't really allow you to see inside of it? There are some cases out there that come with build in LED's and great aesthetics whilst allowing for a windowed side panel to see your awesome hardware. Something like this may be what you're looking for:

http://pcpartpicker.com/product/CvLypg/phanteks-case-phes614lwt

 

If you want something smaller or cheaper, there are tons of cases available in white. Here is just a short list of ones I often recommend, and you can decide for yourself what you want.

 

NZXT S340

Corsair 400C

NZXT H440

Bit Fenix Nova (although this one is pretty cheap its not the greatest build quality)

Bit Fenix Comrade

Phanteks Eclipse P400

Fractal Design R5

 

Alot of these cases do not have room for a CD drive though. If you want one, you're going to have to choose carefully, or just pick up an external disc drive like a USB power one rather than an internal SATA powered one. That's nice so you can use it when you need it, store it in a drawer when you don't, and its not really much more expensive than a SATA CD drive. This would allow you to choose any case you want even if it doesn't support internal 5.25" bays

 

 

You can still get the Phantom if you want though. There is absolutely nothing wrong with it. This is your computer, and that may very well be the case of your dreams. Nothing wrong with it at all. I'm just a fan of side window cases, and thought I would share some options with you in case you weren't aware of that option since your internal components are going to look pretty sweet when everything is assembled

Yea I'm trying to find something I like. I am either going to go with a black with red lights or white with blue lights. I want a case with a fan in the front to show blue led lights. You think a full tower is going to be too big?

[Zyndo]

"too big" is a personal opinion. if it works for you, then its never too big .

 

If you want a case that is white, has a side window, and a visible front mounted fan, there are options. but usually you're going to have to get a case, and then buy LED fans if that is your aim. You could get something like a Phanteks Enthoo Pro in white, then get a blue 200mm LED fan for the front (or black version and get red fan). You could get a corsair AIr 540 in white or black and fans in the front and top. You could also get the case I have in white or black (see my picture and/or the link in my signature). The side window isn't all that good, but if you don't care about it, then don't worry.

There are hundreds of cases out there on t he market, it will be difficult for me to find the right one for you since choosing a case is largely a personal decision. I can't tell you what you think should look good. Only you can know that. If you're looking for more options, head to the websites of Corsair, NZXT, Phanteks, Thermaltake, and so on then just look at all of their cases. Or if you just want that phantom you mentioned earlier, don't let me talk you out of it. get the phantom then =)

[JustAnotherGeek]

1 hour ago, Zyndo said:

"too big" is a personal opinion. if it works for you, then its never too big .

 

If you want a case that is white, has a side window, and a visible front mounted fan, there are options. but usually you're going to have to get a case, and then buy LED fans if that is your aim. You could get something like a Phanteks Enthoo Pro in white, then get a blue 200mm LED fan for the front (or black version and get red fan). You could get a corsair AIr 540 in white or black and fans in the front and top. You could also get the case I have in white or black (see my picture and/or the link in my signature). The side window isn't all that good, but if you don't care about it, then don't worry.

There are hundreds of cases out there on t he market, it will be difficult for me to find the right one for you since choosing a case is largely a personal decision. I can't tell you what you think should look good. Only you can know that. If you're looking for more options, head to the websites of Corsair, NZXT, Phanteks, Thermaltake, and so on then just look at all of their cases. Or if you just want that phantom you mentioned earlier, don't let me talk you out of it. get the phantom then =)

Yea, Im going to spend a little time finding the case I like. Thanks for all the help!