Seeking advice for beast build

[Deco]

I've always wanted to build my own PC, and I'm finally in a position to do it. A friend with some experience has agreed to help me with the tough bits. I'm not sure how high to aim but I want a "beast"; being able to run Far Cry 5 (when it comes out) at max settings, 2160p & >60FPS feels like a great but not excessive goal (relevant article). I'm looking to overclock, watercool, delid and anything else that's worth the time and money.

 

What do you think I'll need to do this? Here's my tentative core parts list:

• CPU: Intel Core i9-7900X, delided, overclocked to 4.5GHz, US$924
• Mem: Corsair Vengeance RGB 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory White, US$440
• MB: Asus PRIME X299-A ATX LGA2066, US$280
• GPUs: 2x Asus GeForce GTX 1080 Ti 11GB STRIX, in SLI, US$1600
• Storage: 1x Samsung 960 EVO 500GB M.2-2280 SSD, US$240
• Storage: 1x Western Digital BLACK SERIES 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM HDD, US$240
• PSU: Corsair AX1200i 1200W, US$350
• Case: Phanteks Enthoo Evolv ATX Glass ATX Mid Tower Galaxy Silver, US$180
• OS: Windows 10 Home, US$100
• Total: ~US$4400

I went with an i9 instead of an i7 because I compile very large C++ projects and don't have anyone to sword-fight with. I use a Linux dev environment but I prefer the Windows UX; WSL is really good these days so I probably won't bother dual booting like my current machine.

 

Cooling stuff (I'm open to suggestions!):

• CPU/MB water block: ???
• GPU water blocks: ???
• Pump(s): ???
• Reservoir: ???
• Radiator(s): ???
• Tubing & connectors: ???
• Case fans: ???

Other stuff (mostly preference, but I'm open to suggestions like "this other monitor does what you want and it's cheaper" :) )

• Monitors: 2x Asus PB287Q 28" 3840x2160 60Hz, US$800
• Monitor (when it comes out): 1x Asus PG27UQ 27" 3840x2160 144Hz HDR G-SYNC, US$1200?
• Mouse: Logitech G903, US$125
• Keyboard: Keyboardio Model 01, US$330
• Gaming Keypad: Razer Orbweaver Chroma Stealth, US$130
• Headset: Logitech G933 Artemis Spectrum Snow 7.1, US$125
• Webcam: Logitech C922, US$80
• UPS: CyberPower CP1500PFCLCD UPS, 900W, 1500VA, US$215

I have so many questions! I'm still researching and don't expect to be spoon-fed all the answers, but I would greatly appreciate any advice even if it's just a link to a good article or video that will guide me in selecting the right parts and building this beast.

• Where on earth do I get started selecting liquid cooling components?
• Will this be a loud PC? Can you recommend any parts I should switch out to make it quieter?
• How many of hours of work do you think it will take to put this machine together?
• What would you estimate the total cost of this project as? I'm guessing about US$7000 including peripherals.
• Do I need a 1200W PSU?
• Are RAM water blocks worthwhile?
• Are there any major bottlenecks? And, subsequently, are there any parts that are overspec'd and won't be used to their full capability?
• How much can the 1080 Ti STRIXs be overclocked?
• Are there any compatibility or sizing issues?
• Should I wait for any upcoming major releases? I'm happy to wait up to 3 months.
• Will the Samsung 960 EVO offer drive encryption? Or should I upgrade to Win10 Pro to get BitLocker?
• How difficult is it to make the build look stylish? I love the look of this build.
• What's the best way to integrate one or more of these designs into the build?

 

Thank you in advance!!!

[Guest]

Instead of 2x 1080TI s i would get 2x 1180TIs. Because pascal is old now, the 1100 series should be out next year.

[benji_]

if you really want it and have the money dont let other people decide for you, decide on your own terms.

 

but yeah that pc will run pretty much every game on max settings 4k lol. although i would go for a couple titans xpp's if i was spending that kinda cash lol

[seon123]

EKWB has an easy to use configurator. Just select the parts you have, and select what and how you want to watercool them. Don't bother cooling the RAM. 

You can set the fan curves manually with the motherboard.

Should take a few hours. With water cooling, it should take a few more than usual.

A full custom loop usually costs ~€700, so about $800.

1200W can be a bit overkill, but if you overclock the CPU and GPUs, it's reasonable, imo.

Bottlenecks aren't really a worry. Avoiding them would just mean using every single part of the system 100%, which is impossible.

The silicon lottery is what decides how well any part overclocks, unless you make your own luck using LN2 or dry ice.

Should be fine for compatibility.

Gaming Volta might come out within a few months.

Not sure about encryption. Don't see any issues if TS supported by normal SSDs and HDDs.

Modding is not my thing, there is a sub section for that.

 

The 7820X costs $500 less than the 7900X, but with 2 fewer cores and fewer PCIe lanes. Worth considering, imo.

For things like game launch times and Windows boot times, an NVMe drive won't help a bit.

The Enthoo Evolv has pretty bad airflow.

The PG27AQ is a good monitor, not sure how it is compared to the one you've selected?

SLI is generally quote silly, and support is becoming less and less common. 

For watercooling, consider the 1080 Ti Armor. It's usually one of the cheapest, and has a good PCB (same as the Gaming X). 

[brob]

Unless the compiler and linker used are multithreaded, building a project of any size still uses only a couple of threads. An i9 would be totally wasted  The higher clock potential of an i7-8700K should end up offering much better performance.

 

If you are going to delid and go for maximal overclocking, get a motherboard designed for that purpose.

 

You might consider a single gpu and one designed for a custom loop. 

 

An NVMe drive is not going to provide a noticeable improvement in gaming and because of relatively small file sizes, little if any improvement in compiling and linking. A single large ssd will provide excellent overall performance and simplifies storage.

 

Even with overclocking cpu and gpu, a two GTX 1080 Ti system doesn't need a psu more than 850W. The manufacturers' estimates tend to be significantly higher than actual requirements. Add to that the fact that in real terms, a system does not spend a great deal of time maxed out. If you decide on two gpu, 850W would be fine and the paranoid might go with a 1000W unit.

 

If you want drive encryption, get Windows 10 Pro. Bitlocker will encrypt removable media as well as fixed. The Windows 10 OEM licenses do not permit use in DIY builds. One is supposed to buy a full retail version.

 

EKWB offers a number of starter kits available through Newegg. One can also use the custom configurator at ekwb.com. I've included a high performance kit. You will need a couple extra connectors and possibly some additional tubing and coolant to loop in the gpu. For better performance, it wouldn't hurt to add a 120mm radiator in the loop.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i7-8700K 3.7GHz 6-Core Processor  ($389.89 @ B&H) 
CPU Cooler: EKWB EK-KIT X360 Complete Triple 120mm Water / Liquid Cooling Kit 360mm ($389.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus - ROG MAXIMUS X APEX EATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($324.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Memory: G.Skill - Trident Z RGB 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4-3866 Memory  ($545.99 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Samsung - 850 EVO 4TB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($1459.75 @ Newegg Marketplace) 
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 1080 DirectX 12 GTX 1080 Ti SEA HAWK EK X 11GB 352-Bit GDDR5X PCI Express 3.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card  ($834.98 @ Newegg) 
Case: Fractal Design - Define R6 Black TG ATX Mid Tower Case  ($163.98 @ Newegg) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic - FOCUS Plus Platinum 850W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($139.99 @ B&H) 
Operating System: Microsoft - Windows 10 Pro Full 32/64-bit  ($189.00 @ B&H) 
Total: $4438.56
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-12-31 15:53 EST-0500