Advice for first-ever build please

ThePuffin · November 14, 2017

Hello, I am planning my first-ever build and am hoping for some advice, thank you!

Goal: My computer will be used for a few things - general household, light gaming, and chess analysis. For chess, CPU is by far most important (# cores and speed).

Budget: While an i9 would be awesome, I think a 7900x+ build will be too costly. Budget needs to be below $2,000.

Look: Clean build and non-RGB. White/black theme.

Cooling/Noise: Noise matters a lot (silence is ideal), though cooling, especially of the CPU, is also important.

Settled Parts: I feel pretty settled on these parts, but any critiques welcome of course.

CPU: 8700k - With 6 cores and decent overclocking, I believe this offers excellent cost-efficiency for my build. I don't feel the need to max the overclock, but 4.5-4.8 would be great.

RAM: 2x8GB = 16B dual channel Trident Z 3200 at CAS 14 - I believe it's one of the lowest latency DDR4 RAMs, and that helps a bit with chess.

Motherboard: Maximus X Hero - Sounds like a great board, and I'd get WiFi version (for my purposes, integrated seems fine). Don't want RGB, but Aura seems cool and subtle.

GPU: MSI Gaming X 6GB 1060 - Lots of great reviews out there, and some say it is the quietest of the 1060s. I assume it'll easily support my light gaming. Is the MSI software fine?

PSU: Corsair RMx White 850 Watt 80+ Gold - Probably more than needed... but an overclocked 8700k needs power, yeah? Comes with white individually sleeved white cables and combs for the look.

Unsure Parts: Any thoughts?

Case: For a while I thought about the Corsair Air 540 for airflow and CPU cooling. However, my sense is it's not going to be super quiet. Now I'm thinking more about the Fractal Design R5, which seems to have sound dampening (and more dust filters). But I don't really understand how to assess cases. For example, the R5 seems to be quiet... but it comes stock with two fans with a max of 1000 RPM, right? Of course that's going to be quiet compared to a case with more and faster fans, right? That said, the R5 does seem to have sound dampening built-in, so the case itself - regardless of fans - does seem more silence-oriented. My main question is this... if I get the R5, can't I just remove all the drive bays so it's similar in structure to the Air 540, put 2 Notcua nf-a14 as front for intakes and 1 Notcua nf-a14 in the rear for exhaust for good cooling / positive pressure? Would that provide similar air flow to the 540 Air while being more quiet?

CPU Cooler: I'm thinking about the Noctua nh-d15s with the single 140mm fan. I would then plan to add a second 120mm Noctua fan. Goal is to ensure clearance for the RAM. Will that work?

Storage: Thinking either 1TB 850 EVO SSD or 1TB 950 EVO m.2. Is it worth the upgrade to the m.2, or is this a good place to save the money?

Thank you very much for any advice!

katoptrys · November 14, 2017

I would recommend going for a Ryzen if you really value core count and multi-threaded performance (not only does AMD have better multi-core performance but it will also be a bit cheaper).
The upgrade to M.2 isn't noticeable unless you do a TON of read/write, you should stick with a regular SATA SSD, it'll be better for your money.

As far as cases go... it's a mix of aesthetics and utility, it's up to you.