$5000+ PC-In-A-Desk School Project

[Lechero Pablo]

Hey all!

 

Apologies in advance for garbage formatting, metric units and lengthy post, just a senior student asking for the kindness and helping hand of you all <3

 

(TL;DR at the bottom)

 

I'm an Australian Year 12 student making a custom PC-In-A-Desk as my major work for one of my subjects (Design & Technology). I have saved up a lot in preparation for this project and my budget for the entire project is $7000 AUD give or take (prefer to save money in places still). The desk will become my workstation and gaming station for many years to come, I'm aiming for longevity here, Something that I won't have to be swapping out parts/upgrading from for atleast 4 years or so. The desk itself will be (apologies for metric lengths) 180cm long, 75cm wide and around 74cm high (legs of desk are 58cm high, taking into consideration my own leg room and computer cavity etc in total it will be around 74cm high) and feature a glass top in the middle with a size of 136.4cm x 60cm. The desk itself I am currently in the process of making. I have 3D modeled the main jist of my desk in CAD, (will figure out fan holes, entire layout etc. after its constructed):

Screenshots of desk here: https://imgur.com/a/ANUqZ

 

I don't want to spend more than $700AUD on the desk itself, already between the MDF ($200 AUD) and customly made glass ($300 AUD) i've hit $500 and I'm not sure how much all the LED strips, paint etc. will cost me. more info on this further down.

 

AIM: Longevity is key here. The computer I want to be able to handle high end games without struggle (all AAA games, potentially at 4k someday when 1080p dies), Some minor 3D work and Graphical stuffs, 2 Monitor setup that I don't have to upgrade/fix/touch/massage for the next 4-5 years. A desk that looks damn good, With its RGB glory and beefy but silent operation.

 

Okay so, I've divided my budget into rough parts, I already know for the most part what parts I want and have done extensive looking and I feel these all suit my needs/wants. I have only bought the wood and a few tools currently, most of the physical work I will utilize my schools woodwork rooms for. Asking for suggestions on this, all and any help/opinions are appreciated!

 

ROUGH TOTAL: $6256 AUD

 

PC Itself: ~$3370 AUD

 

CPU: Intel Core i7 8700K Hex Core LGA 1151-2 3.70 GHz Unlocked CPU Processor ($510~, pretty firm on this cpu, should be good for 5+ years without upgrading right?)

Motherboard: ASUS ROG Maximus X Hero Z370 LGA 1151-2 ATX Motherboard ($460~, open to suggestion of other mobos but I like the look and pre mounted i/o shield, 2 assignable rgb headers etc.)

Graphics Card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti 11GB GDDR5X Founders Edition Video Card ($1200~, pretty firm on this too, should last me long time and is capable of everything)

RAM: G.Skill Trident Z RGB 32GB (4x 8GB) DDR4 3200Mhz Memory ($670~ don't really mind what mhz its at, just looking for bling and 32gb memory)

SSD: Samsung 860 Evo 500GB ($230~, not really too fussed over the m.2 ssd hype. would prefer a 1TB SSD but the price kinda deters me abit lmao)

HDD: WD WD4004FZWX 4TB Black 3.5" 7200RPM ($284~, again open to suggestions, want to avoid seagate as their hard drives sometimes die outta nowhere and I want longevity, seagate scares me  )

Power Supply: Corsair HX-1000i ATX ($300~, should be able to handle the overclocked cpu and gpu and all the other rgb vomit right? open to suggestions here too)

 

Water Cooling, inc. fans: ~$1136 AUD

 

Fans:

4x Cooler Master MasterFan Pro 120 Air Balance RGB Fan ($80~, for intake, aura sync compatible and am pretty firm on these for intake)

6x Cooler Master MasterFan Pro 120 Air Pressure RGB Fan ($120~, for the 2 360mm radiators, pretty firm on these too for the rgb aura sync vomit)

 

Radiators: 2x EK-CoolStream PE 360 ($240~,want to go with EKWB, they the best for water cooling)

CPU Block: EK-Supremacy EVO - Gold (entire loop will be un-dyed, clear tubed distilled water, doesn't have to be gold, is just more of a want, nickel or copper will be fine)

GPU Block: EK-FC GeForce GTX FE - Nickel ($150~)

 Backplate: EK-FC1080 GTX Backplate - Black ($40~)

Pumps: 2x EK-XTOP Revo D5 PWM - Plexi (incl. sleeved pump) ($320~, pumps so expensive , figured 1 pump running 2 radiators and the big length of the loop would be abit weak so I went with two)

Reservoir: EK-RES X3 400 ($90~, one long res with silver coils inside will look cool)

Tubing: 2x EK-DuraClear 11,1/15,9mm 3M RETAIL ($60~, hardline tubing may look nicer but cutting it all and doing hardline tubing myself gives me nightmares lol)

Fittings: 14x EK-ACF Fitting 12/16mm - Black ($126~, will change size of tubing etc if anyone suggests I should, just figured an OD of 16mm is easier for me to drill many holes for all the tubing in my desk)

Other accessories and such: 

this area is incomplete cause it'll include price of distilled water, silver coil etc. and anything else i might need related to cooling and such. will add to this as I go.

 

RGB Vomit (discluding fans & ram) $400?

 

This is something i'll probably decide and look into once my desk is actually built, from there ill figure out where i want my strips and stuffs, really prefer and want to go out of my own way to make everything compatible with aura sync, more than 2 softwares for my RGB goodness annoys me at the thought.

 

Physical Desk:

 

This is gonna be a crude list bc ive bought a bunch of crap already for this but I felt like id include it

3x 2400mm x 1200mm x18mm MDF: $200AUD

Custom cut glass (been quoted different prices for this ranging from $200 to $400, I dont want to use one going on gumtree(australian craigslist) or whatever. I want my own, no scratches etc.)

121mm Holesaw ($50, this thing was hard to find and is expensive just for a hole saw, i cri )

A stupid amount of screws: $5 (lol)

Paint & incidentals & other crap i might need: $300?

 

Front USB/headphone jack panel which I have no idea where i'd buy but I know I want one, that way I dont have to reach around to the back of my desk and plugin a USB or whatever.

 

Power button (figured id just make my own, splicing it together with some CableMod cables sounds easy enough for me)

 

Cables (CableMod sponsor me lol): $400 AUD?

 

I plan to figure out the exact length of cables and such that I need when I finish constructing my desk for the most part, I'll do all the measurements, hoping you guys help me out with that, especially with fan hubs compatible with Aura Sync and the stupid amount of LED strips and all my water cooling crap. Thank god CableMod exists because finding extensions for all the different cables I need smells like a nightmare)

 

Peripherals & Such:

 

This is where I ask for help/opinions. I don't want to spend $600+ per monitor. I am not sure if 1080p 144hz monitors last the years as 4k is the thing nowadays. I currently use a dual 24' 60hz setup and while I love having 2 screens, the 60hz part bothers me a lot. I would rather have 144hz 1080p monitors over say 60hz 4k monitors. 1440p 144hz dual monitors smells really nice to me but the cost of that deters me a lot to be honest. I do not want 3 monitors, 3 monitors is too much for my eyes. I'll only ever need 2, 3 is (ironically) overkill in my opinion. If you guys think otherwise please let me know. In terms of mice, keyboard and headset I am happy with my g502 mouse, Am looking for a good preferably 5.1 or 7.1 surround sound AND wireless headset (currently have my eye on the hyperX cloud flight, it just lacks the audio i want but its wireless and nice). The current keyboard I have is the Razer Deathstalker. It's an old, membrane flat keyed keyboard that I've been using since 2012 and I still love it but I need an upgrade. I NEED silent keys, I can't stand the loudness of mechanical keys so I'm currently eyeballing the G910 Orion Spectrum. I still want mechanical keys, just silent ones. Am very open to suggestions for all these, please. Thankyou if you read everything. I appreciate it heaps.

 

TL;DR: Aussie High School student with more cash than an 18 year old student should have is building a custom PC In a Desk for his HSC Design & Technology Major Work, that he will use for gaming, web browsing and some 3D work and Graphical imaging stuffs. He has very messily listed his needs and wants and is asking for suggestions and any help one has to offer.

[seon123]

Looks like a really nice project. 

 

You might want to consider X299, for the upgradability and expansion options. Traditionally, Intel's HEDT platform has gotten two generations of CPUs, so next gen HEDT CPUs will be a potential upgrade path. You also have current gen CPUs with up to 18 cores. You also get quad channel memory support.

 

Are you sure you want to spend that much on the motherboard? You can get really good motherboards for half of that. 

According to Asus' website, the X Hero has two RGB headers and a single addressable RGB header. The Z370-F Strix looks somewhat similar, and has that as well. 

If you don't absolutely need Asus Aura Sync, you can get something like the Extreme4. 

 

The MSI 1080 Ti Armor isn't available on PCPP AU, but it has a very good PCB, and is often among the less expensive 1080 Tis. 

 

Do you really need 32GB RAM? Currently, RAM prices are unusually high. You might want to get 16GB now, and potentially upgrade next year or so.

 

All HDDs have a chance of failing. Backblaze rs stats of their failure rates, but they don't seem to have WD 4TB drives. Since you have an SSD, any 7200RPM HDD should be fine, the WD Black isn't necessary.

https://www.backblaze.com/blog/hard-drive-failure-rates-q3-2017/

 

1000W is way overkill. 550-650W is plenty for an overclocked mainstream platform with a single GPU. The RMx is available for a decent price, and it's among the quietest PSUs. Cybenetics has noise level testing, you can find the stats on their website. https://www.cybenetics.com/index.php?option=database

 

For the CPU block, a monoblock with cooling for both the CPU and motherboard is an option. It'll help cool the VRMs on the motherboard. 

 

Hand crafting and water cooling aren't things I know much about at all, someone else should help with that 

 

You can get front panel ports with several USB ports, but I'm unsure where you can buy those. 

 

@CableMod has a user here, can't hurt to ask.

 

A single 1440p 100Hz ultrawide can be a compromise between all the other options?

 

There are some keyboards with MX Silent switches, and you can also add O-rings to quiet them down. 

[brob]

PSU is so over required capacity that the system will spend most of its time operating at the lower end or outside the 80+ Gold efficiency envelope. A 650W model would be more than sufficient. Seasonic currently has excellent pricing on its new Focus Plus Gold line. Quiet, fully modular with a 10 year warranty in a small package (140mm x 150mm x 86mm). Cablemod has replacement cables for these psu, if needed.

 

You might consider salvaging a front i/o panel from an old case. Some case manufacturers offer front i/o panels as replacement parts. This, for example, is a replacement front control panel for a Corsair Carbide 400C. Check the Corsair site for other front control / i/o panel options.

 

[Jtalk4456]

Let me know how you built/setup the power button. I'm doing a desk pc build as well in the near future and I've been looking for one

[Lechero Pablo]

On 2/19/2018 at 11:29 PM, seon123 said:

Looks like a really nice project. 

 

You might want to consider X299, for the upgradability and expansion options. Traditionally, Intel's HEDT platform has gotten two generations of CPUs, so next gen HEDT CPUs will be a potential upgrade path. You also have current gen CPUs with up to 18 cores. You also get quad channel memory support.

 

Are you sure you want to spend that much on the motherboard? You can get really good motherboards for half of that. 

According to Asus' website, the X Hero has two RGB headers and a single addressable RGB header. The Z370-F Strix looks somewhat similar, and has that as well. 

If you don't absolutely need Asus Aura Sync, you can get something like the Extreme4. 

 

The MSI 1080 Ti Armor isn't available on PCPP AU, but it has a very good PCB, and is often among the less expensive 1080 Tis. 

 

Do you really need 32GB RAM? Currently, RAM prices are unusually high. You might want to get 16GB now, and potentially upgrade next year or so.

 

All HDDs have a chance of failing. Backblaze rs stats of their failure rates, but they don't seem to have WD 4TB drives. Since you have an SSD, any 7200RPM HDD should be fine, the WD Black isn't necessary.

https://www.backblaze.com/blog/hard-drive-failure-rates-q3-2017/

 

1000W is way overkill. 550-650W is plenty for an overclocked mainstream platform with a single GPU. The RMx is available for a decent price, and it's among the quietest PSUs. Cybenetics has noise level testing, you can find the stats on their website. https://www.cybenetics.com/index.php?option=database

 

For the CPU block, a monoblock with cooling for both the CPU and motherboard is an option. It'll help cool the VRMs on the motherboard. 

 

Hand crafting and water cooling aren't things I know much about at all, someone else should help with that 

 

You can get front panel ports with several USB ports, but I'm unsure where you can buy those. 

 

@CableMod has a user here, can't hurt to ask.

 

A single 1440p 100Hz ultrawide can be a compromise between all the other options?

 

There are some keyboards with MX Silent switches, and you can also add O-rings to quiet them down. 

Thankyou for the massive feedback and help. I have been able to snag a FE 1080TI from Nvidias website of all places. I guess they restocked and nobody has noticed yet. I'm taking your advice on the HDD, ram and PSU. Thanks heaps as the site you linked has noise readings etc. this was very helpful and I will be going for a RMx. I will be doing some though juggling between the i7-7820X and 8700k over the week or so. Would you happen to know a relatively safe overclock that wont wear out my CPU over the years or does overclocking not take a toll on longevity if it's cooled appropriately?. Thankyou again for the massive input I really appreciate it!

[Lechero Pablo]

On 2/20/2018 at 3:25 AM, brob said:

PSU is so over required capacity that the system will spend most of its time operating at the lower end or outside the 80+ Gold efficiency envelope. A 650W model would be more than sufficient. Seasonic currently has excellent pricing on its new Focus Plus Gold line. Quiet, fully modular with a 10 year warranty in a small package (140mm x 150mm x 86mm). Cablemod has replacement cables for these psu, if needed.

 

You might consider salvaging a front i/o panel from an old case. Some case manufacturers offer front i/o panels as replacement parts. This, for example, is a replacement front control panel for a Corsair Carbide 400C. Check the Corsair site for other front control / i/o panel options.

 

Yes that's something I did not think of. Thankyou for the input!