Build log with a weird backstory or how I subconsciously made a themed build before I even knew the theme

[Linusinium]

*I am in no way affiliated with MSI, Corsair or any other brands I may mention here. I wish I were though.

 

It was difficult to classify as into which sub forum I should post this thread in since it's kind of a build log but I've started building this PC about 2 years ago. there are some truly bizarre coincidences, the last one drove me to post the whole history. I didn't think it would be appropriate for the build log section of the forum so I'm posting this in OT, mods feel free to move it if there is a sub forum where it belongs more than here.

 

I'll update the thread with pics when schedule permits as I'm moving the setup around but for now:

 

Started planning this, what was at that point a 1440p build in 2014 with a future 4K compatibility in mind. Narrowed it down to 3 cases and was favoring the Corsair for the GPU space, I figured even down the road, 4K wouldn't be doable with a single card and I was worried if 12" cards would become the norm.  I wanted to wait a little longer before I start buying and building but a good friend I've known forever was about to get married, they had a wedding gift registry so as I was buying gifts randomly from their list, I saw a promo that gave me the incentive to treat myself too. I got their gifts from registry which included a Game of Thrones book set but I wasn't really paying attention, I just selected 3 gifts from the list and went back to shopping to buy the 760T. That took a while to make it ship to me and not to the couple as gift lol but eventually, it worked. However, this "select a free gift" popup kept annoying me and preventing from finishing the order. Eventually I gave up and angrily clicked options on the popup to make it go away and finish the order. I had no idea what free gift I selected, didn't even care, just wanted to get past it. The same day I decide to get a CPU and a mobo too so I brush up on my research, see that things barely changed, I got a 4790K and I wanted a decent but affordable Z97 board, most reviews pointed to this:

 

 

As I was building the system, I noted the dragon theme for the mobo but at that point, I didn't even care. I was never the guy to pay attention to other factors beside performance. I should note that at this point, I had 0 exposure to game of thrones/a song of ice and fire.

The second time I took the PC out on the balcony to clean it (I have a mini compressor), I scratched the right panel pretty bad. I couldn't stop looking at it. The free gift from the popup that kept annoying me as I was buying gift for the friends that were getting married had arrived in the mail. It was a red sticker/decal. I ended up putting it on the panel only because it covered up the scratch perfectly, I justified the sticker (usually find that stuff tacky) by having it match the mobo theme. This is the sticker: 

 

 Anyway, that's how I started representing house Targaryen before I even knew about it! was weird because as I eventually started watching the show, it became my favorite TV show ever:

 Fast forward to 2015, I got two failed tries to buy a 55" monitor, both arrived with cracked screens, I eventually settle on buying locally, a 65" TV, once everything else is up to par.

1440p was already too much for the 970 and I saw used 980TI's drop to $400. I figured I'll stay at 1440p for a while, a 980ti fits the purpose well and offers a reasonable option of going SLI down the road.

The only used 980TI for exactly $400 that I could find was this one:

 

Now it's getting creepy, I never made a themed build, let alone start it before I was even aware of the theme. But what's a Targaryen without a 3rd dragon right?

 

After 2 cracked monitor screens, I finally accepted the reality that I missed the window of when perfect pixel units were shipped with crates to ensure safe arrival. BTW, If anyone reading this is considering importing a 50"+ plus monitor, have it shipped via crate or forget about it. Anyway, after realizing the monitor isn't happening, I started looking into TV's as monitors, after a lengthy research and a few visits to local stores, settled on a 65" Samsung KS8000 so now I needed to look at GPU again. I opened [H] and newest for sale thread had a 980TI, I researched the seller's heat and ebay, offered him $300, he agreed and I paid him before even realizing it's the exact same model as the one I bought before, enter the third dragon. 

 

After getting the second card, I remembered I'll need a SLI bridge. I fired up newegg and ordered the first bridge I saw. Of course, as you may guess by now, it was a dragon themed SLI bridge, this one: 

 

Once I started watching Game of Thrones, It felt really strange when I realized I had the sticker on the case all along, as the house represented in the sticker became my favorite one.

 

 After waiting for so long to finish and finally move the PC into the living room I got anxious and serious about finishing the 4K upgrade ASAP and since the PC is moving into the living room, I bought a Corsair Lapdog as well and a K70 for it.

With everything else in place, it was time to check out the TV's in person to help make the decision. I went to Best Buy, got to the TV section and I was drawn to a TV that had the Game of Thrones blu-ray playing, it was the Samsung that I had favored all along. The BB sales guy threw it in to make the sale too lol: 

 

Anyway, I thought I should share this here.