Build for: Lightroom performance, Longevity, Quite.

[Spikkel]

Intro: So yeah, Lightroom is either poorly coded or power hungry, but bottom-line: on a budget/old system IT IS SLOW!

So I want to surprise my wife with a new build, and throw the old DDR2-system out the window.

 

1. Budget & Location

Budget is R20 000 - R30 000 (which is about 1500 - 2300 USD with an exchange rate of 13.2 R/USD at the time of writing this).

I am located in South-Africa and the best retailer and parts I have access to (not limited to) can be found here: http://www.pcint.co.za/en/components , But no Noctua fans 

Parts that I aim to carry over from the previous build include an 8TB Seagate archive HDD, 4TB WD HDD, Samsung Evo 250 GB SSD, Thermaltake 700W PSU, PS2 Keyboard (if possible), USB mouse, USB WiFi, USB Printer, USB monitor calibrator, USB card reader, USB Cam, and DVI monitor. (need a lot of external USBs for new build)

 

2. Aim

Aim 1: LIGHTROOM PERFORMANCE!!! (Adobe photo editing). Not a lot of 'Photoshop-ing'. Exporting and rendering previews can be run overnight (that is what she does on her current system), but she needs more performance during general tasks while editing, while having waaaay to many tabs open in a browser, and possibly running iTunes as well. (Windows system)

 

Aim 2: Longevity. Careful consideration of parts allowed her current system to last more than a decade (with the exception of SSD and HDD upgrades), I would like the same for this one. I.e. Intel optane ready, USB 3.1 type C etc. The i5 7600 might be cheaper but the i7 7700K might be still fast enough a decade from now (stuff like that).

 

Aim 3: Quite. Working alone from home, with no AC in the office, all you hear the whole day is the hum of the computer fans.

 

No gaming. (Well... I would love to, but this is mainly for her work.)

 

3. Monitors

Only one 1080p, but with longevity in mind the system should be able to handle 2x 4K monitors.

 

4. Current plan and motivation:

• Corsair 600Q Inverse ATX Full-Tower (Quite) Case - 3x AF140L (140 mm Airflow optimized, low noise) fans included - R 2745 (208 USD) [I like the formal look, 4xfront usb and fan control, enough space inside for upgrading to water cooling or whatever in the future]
• Asus ROG series Z270 Maximus 9 (iX) Hero MB - R 4845 (367 USD) [Like the many USB in I/O, includes USB 3.1 type C, 2x M.2, Z270 Chipset - which is relatively new, etc]
• Intel i7 7700K - R 5699 (432 USD) [After a lot of research I've come to the conclusion that Lightroom doesn't really use more than 4 cores, also the X99 chipset is older as well as the 6th generation chips, and would be a lot more expensive build.
• CoolerMaster Hyper 612 V.2 Air Cooler - R 827 (63 USD) [low noise at under 20db, can be used without fans for a passive cooling, figured the 600Q has got good enough airflow already]
• Corsair Vengeance 32GB DDR4-2400 Kit(4 x 8GB) Lpx with low-profile heatsink - R 3989 (302 USD) [So here I'm very unsure about memory size and speed, the MB spec says: "4x dual channel DDR4-4133(O.C)/2133 with XMP support up to 32Gb" Does that mean I can OC the RAM from 2400 - 4133, or do I OC the MB from 2133 to 2400, or can I run the 2400 at 2133, or is it better to just buy the 2133 RAM for about 13 USD less?????
• GPU - No Idea!!! - I just know that I want one with only one fan exhausting to the back of the case, not one of those with 3 fans, and should be able to handle 2x 4K monitors.. Suggestions?

5. Conclusion

Please advise on build compatibility, do you think a have a good set to meet my aims? RAM? GPU?

 

Thank you all in advance!!!

 

 

[SeanAngelo]

27 minutes ago, Spikkel said:

 

change your font colour please.

[DarkBlade2117]

I'll make quick notes.

-Do you really need that mobo? You could spend half that.

-Have you looked at the Phanteks P400s TGE?

-An R7 1700 for what the use case may be an option

[Spikkel]

29 minutes ago, SeanAngelo said:

change your font colour please.

I don't understand, it is standard black on my side?

[SeanAngelo]

6 minutes ago, Spikkel said:

I don't understand, it is standard black on my side?

yeah, some people have the dark theme and the font may blend with it and they can't see it.

[Spikkel]

29 minutes ago, DarkBlade2117 said:

I'll make quick notes.

-Do you really need that mobo? You could spend half that.

-Have you looked at the Phanteks P400s TGE?

-An R7 1700 for what the use case may be an option

Thank you for the reply.

1. No I don't need that particular MD, just though it looked like it had the most recent tech and a good deal of USBs. Also I feel like the MB is the 'investment' part of a build with longevity in mind. I'm open to suggestions?
2. The Phanteks looks great, I love it! Doesn't seem to be available locally, will keep looking.
3. As for the Razen, for pretty much the same price, it has a lot slower clock than the 7700K, also to my knowledge Lightroom doesn't really utilize the extra 4 cores. Or am I missing something?

[SeanAngelo]

2 hours ago, Spikkel said:

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-7700K 4.2GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($343.49 @ OutletPC) 
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($24.88 @ OutletPC) 
Motherboard: Asus TUF Z270 MARK 2 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($138.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory  ($219.97 @ Jet) 
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($177.89 @ OutletPC) 
Storage: Samsung 960 Evo 500GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive  ($249.99 @ B&H) 
Storage: Hitachi Ultrastar 7K4000 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($69.99 @ Amazon) 
Case: NZXT S340 (Black/Red) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($66.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Power Supply: Corsair RMx 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($99.99 @ Amazon) 
Monitor: Asus PB278Q 27.0" 2560x1440 60Hz Monitor  ($348.99 @ Amazon) 
Monitor: Asus PB278Q 27.0" 2560x1440 60Hz Monitor  ($348.99 @ Amazon) 
Total: $2090.16
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-03-30 10:53 EDT-0400

[Spikkel]

9 minutes ago, SeanAngelo said:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-7700K 4.2GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($343.49 @ OutletPC) 
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler  ($24.88 @ OutletPC) 
Motherboard: Asus TUF Z270 MARK 2 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($138.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory  ($219.97 @ Jet) 
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($177.89 @ OutletPC) 
Storage: Samsung 960 Evo 500GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive  ($249.99 @ B&H) 
Storage: Hitachi Ultrastar 7K4000 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($69.99 @ Amazon) 
Case: NZXT S340 (Black/Red) ATX Mid Tower Case  ($66.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Power Supply: Corsair RMx 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($99.99 @ Amazon) 
Monitor: Asus PB278Q 27.0" 2560x1440 60Hz Monitor  ($348.99 @ Amazon) 
Monitor: Asus PB278Q 27.0" 2560x1440 60Hz Monitor  ($348.99 @ Amazon) 
Total: $2090.16
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-03-30 10:53 EDT-0400

Looks good,

But that CPU cooler is a bit more noisier

Had a look at that MB as well, looks good.

Already have storage, Monitor and PSU

The case is as far as I can tell not a quite option.

GPU??

[MrMcFarts]

Here is a comparison of 7700k and ryzen for Lightroom 

 

https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/Adobe-Lightroom-CC-2015-8-AMD-Ryzen-7-1700X-1800X-Performance-910/

[SeanAngelo]

5 hours ago, Spikkel said:

Looks good,

But that CPU cooler is a bit more noisier

Had a look at that MB as well, looks good.

Already have storage, Monitor and PSU

The case is as far as I can tell not a quite option.

GPU??

you could get a noctua nh-u14s if you want, it will offer better cooling and less noise at high rpms.

 

what storage set up you have? and are your monitors IPS, by any chance? what's your power supply?

 

the case has nothing to do with the noise, it's the fans. you can always change them and swap them out for quieter ones. case is fine apart from that.

 

you can get a 1050 to save cash and it'll be more than plenty for you for lightroom to make developing your images a lot faster.

[Spikkel]

17 hours ago, MrMcFarts said:

Here is a comparison of 7700k and ryzen for Lightroom 

 

https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/Adobe-Lightroom-CC-2015-8-AMD-Ryzen-7-1700X-1800X-Performance-910/

Wow, thanx! Great article. OK, since exporting is not an issue for my wife, the 7700K seems like a solid choice here. Do you perhaps know of a similar article comparing GPUs for Lightroom, I can't seem to find one.

[Spikkel]

On 3/30/2017 at 10:27 PM, SeanAngelo said:

you could get a noctua nh-u14s if you want, it will offer better cooling and less noise at high rpms.

 

what storage set up you have? and are your monitors IPS, by any chance? what's your power supply?

 

the case has nothing to do with the noise, it's the fans. you can always change them and swap them out for quieter ones. case is fine apart from that.

 

you can get a 1050 to save cash and it'll be more than plenty for you for lightroom to make developing your images a lot faster.

Thanx for the info.

Unfortunately Noctua is currently not imported to South-Africa for some reason. But I can get my hands on Corsair's AF140 Quite edition fans (140mm).

Storage: Samsung Evo 250 GB SSD, 4TB WD HDD, 8TB Seagate Archive HDD, and 8TB WD My Cloud NAS.

Currently have 1x 24" 1080p LG IPS, I want GPU to be able to handle 2x 4K IPS monitors.

PSU: 700W Thermaltake

[SeanAngelo]

23 hours ago, Spikkel said:

Thanx for the info.

Unfortunately Noctua is currently not imported to South-Africa for some reason. But I can get my hands on Corsair's AF140 Quite edition fans (140mm).

Storage: Samsung Evo 250 GB SSD, 4TB WD HDD, 8TB Seagate Archive HDD, and 8TB Seagate My Cloud NAS.

Currently have 1x 24" 1080p LG IPS, I want GPU to be able to handle 2x 4K IPS monitors.

PSU: 700W Thermaltake

yeah, changing the fan is a good option.

 

I'd add another SSD for cache and all that stuff so Lightroom runs quicker.

 

the GTX 1050 is more than capable of handling 2 4k monitors

 

more than enough wattage.