Gaming + Dedicated Streaming PC setup, need advice

[ctx]

Hi.

 

I am about to purchase a 2 PC setup including 1 dedicated gaming PC, and 1 dedicated streaming PC. I have a 3rd PC already for browsing etc.

 

I do not plan on overclocking. I just want stable 144+fps on the gaming machine and to be able stream minimum 720p/60fps. Will be using a capture card (AverMedia Live Gamer HD C985).

 

I would love any opinions or advice at all on my chosen parts etc to make sure I'm not spending too much/too little money in any places. Been a looong time since I've put together a PC.

 

Gaming PC:

Motherboard: ASUS Prime Z370-A
CPU:  i7 8700K (Not sure if I should just go for the 8700 non-K... I know I said no overclock, but if I can afford the K is it worth it?)
CPU Fan: Noctua NH-D15 (overkill or ok?)
Graphics Card: 1080 Ti
RAM: 16gb Corsair 2400MHz
HDD: Samsung 960 EVO NVMe M.2 250GB
PSU: Seasonic Focus Plus Platinum 750W
CASE: Fractal Design Define S

 

Streaming PC Option 1 (cheaper, but is it good enough?):

Motherboard: ASUS Prime H370-A
CPU: i3 8100
CPU Fan: stock
Graphics Card: gtx 1050
RAM: 8gb Corsair 2400MHz
HDD: Samsung 960 EVO NVMe M.2 250GB
HDD (Storage): 1TB 3.5"
PSU: Seasonic Focus Gold 450W
CASE: Fractal Design Define S

 

Streaming PC Option 2 (more expensive, but is it worth it over the cheaper option?):

Motherboard: ASUS Prime Z370-A
CPU: i3 8350K or i5 8600K or i7 8700
CPU Fan: depends on CPU choice
Graphics Card: gtx 1050
RAM: 8gb Corsair 2400MHz
HDD: Samsung 960 EVO NVMe M.2 250GB

HDD (Storage): 1TB 3.5"
PSU: Seasonic Focus Gold 550W
CASE: Fractal Design Define S

 

Thanks for any advice!

[Taf the Ghost]

Go with the non-k if you're not going to OC. There's a 100 Mhz single-core boost difference. (Given what it takes to OC the 8700k to make it worth while, we've found the 8700 to be a really good price/performance choice.)

 

I'd go with the 8100 for a broadcast/encode PC. Streaming from a capture card isn't that intensive, but it takes a little bit.

[sillypenguin213]

As a twitch streamer, I would say the first setup will handle both gaming and streaming at the same time perfectly. I use 8600k and 1080ti. 

[PandaCopyRight]

32 minutes ago, sillypenguin213 said:

As a twitch streamer, I would say the first setup will handle both gaming and streaming at the same time perfectly. I use 8600k and 1080ti. 

as a person who does stream once in a while i do have to say that it makes the stream quite a bit smoother if you can offload the encoding load to at least another gpu in the system 

i personally use my old GTX960 for that in the same system as my 4790K and GTX1080. But yes i agree that the gaming pc alone could stream really well. Hell, i even have streamed on a 2 core cpu successfully  

other than that @ctx even the stream pc option 1 should be good enough but as i said, you can get another gpu like the gtx1050 for your gaming pc and use that for streaming on the same system that you game on.

Also should be able to do at least 1080p 60fps with a 2 pc setup (but that also depends on your internet)

For the Gaming PC the NH-D15 is not overkill

If you want slightly more (most likely not noticable) power and maybe in the future some overclocking. then go 8700K. if you dont and would want to save some money, get the non-k ad probably an H370 motherboard over a Z370

[Ordinarily_Greater]

1 hour ago, ctx said:

i7 8700K (Not sure if I should just go for the 8700 non-K... I know I said no overclock, but if I can afford the K is it worth it?)

no, don't go for the 8700K. go for the 8700 if you are not overclocking anyways. and a D15 is overkill for a 8700K

i would suggest the gaming PC to be this

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i7-8700 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor  ($298.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Motherboard: ASRock - B360M Pro4 Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($71.95 @ Newegg Business) 
Memory: Team - Dark 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory  ($150.98 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Crucial - MX500 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($109.85 @ OutletPC) 
Storage: Seagate - Constellation ES 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($59.99 @ Amazon) 
Video Card: Zotac - GeForce GTX 1080 Ti 11GB Mini Video Card  ($799.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Case: Fractal Design - Node 804 MicroATX Mid Tower Case  ($99.99 @ Newegg) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic - FOCUS Plus Gold 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($69.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Total: $1661.73
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-06-19 09:18 EDT-0400

 

As for the streaming PC i would go for the first option but can i give you another option as well?

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Ryzen 5 1600 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor  ($174.69 @ OutletPC) 
Motherboard: ASRock - AB350M Pro4 Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard  ($64.99 @ Newegg) 
Memory: G.Skill - Aegis 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  ($83.98 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Crucial - MX500 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($109.85 @ OutletPC) 
Video Card: EVGA - GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4GB ACX 2.0 Video Card  ($189.99 @ Amazon) 
Case: Fractal Design - Node 804 MicroATX Mid Tower Case  ($99.99 @ Newegg) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic - FOCUS Plus Gold 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($69.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Total: $793.48
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-06-19 09:24 EDT-0400

[Ordinarily_Greater]

@ctx Here is your Original Parts list on the Gaming PC on PC Part Picker in USD

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i7-8700K 3.7GHz 6-Core Processor  ($339.99 @ Best Buy) 
CPU Cooler: Noctua - NH-D15 82.5 CFM CPU Cooler  ($86.20 @ Newegg) 
Motherboard: Asus - Prime Z370-A ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($162.20 @ OutletPC) 
Memory: Corsair - Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory  ($169.99 @ Amazon) 
Storage: Samsung - 960 EVO 250GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive  ($103.59 @ Newegg Marketplace) 
Video Card: Zotac - GeForce GTX 1080 Ti 11GB AMP Edition Video Card  ($778.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Case: Fractal Design - Define S ATX Mid Tower Case  ($72.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic - FOCUS Plus Platinum 750W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($101.20 @ Newegg) 
Total: $1815.15
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-06-19 09:40 EDT-0400

 

Also your Streaming PC (Option 1, should be noted that there is no motherboard named as H370-A, so i opted to get as listed below)

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i3-8100 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor  ($118.69 @ OutletPC) 
Motherboard: Asus - Prime H370-Plus ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($104.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Memory: Corsair - Vengeance LPX 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory  ($82.99 @ Amazon) 
Storage: Samsung - 960 EVO 250GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive  ($103.59 @ Newegg Marketplace) 
Storage: Seagate - Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($46.88 @ OutletPC) 
Video Card: EVGA - GeForce GTX 1050 2GB ACX 2.0 Video Card  ($144.98 @ Newegg) 
Case: Fractal Design - Define S ATX Mid Tower Case  ($72.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic - FOCUS Gold 450W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($53.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Total: $729.10
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-06-19 09:42 EDT-0400

[brob]

Coffee Lake i5 and i7 are better matched with DDR45-2666 memory. Faster is even better on Z370 motherboards.

 

NVMe boot drives have not proven to be noticeably faster in general desktop and gaming systems. Depending on pricing, a larger SATA III ssd can offer better overall performance.

 

I like the use of Seasonic Focus and Focus Plus psu. If there is a significant price differential, a 650W psu is more than sufficient for a gaming build. I would actually go with all Gold models. 

[ctx]

Woah at the responses. Thank you everyone! Helps me a lot and I feel far more confident in what to choose now. And I will save a lot of money which is always good.

 

I will go for the cheaper option for the streaming PC, with some tweaks according to suggestions from multiple of you. Saves me a bunch of money, so my sincere thanks. Partly going for a two-PC setup to take advantage of two internet connections. Appreciate the advice of using the single PC - makes me glad it's powerful enough though!

 

For the gaming PC:

 

1. I will go with the 8700. I would still like to get an aftermarket cooler for it though, to keep it quieter, and as cool as I can just for peace of mind / fun. I don't mind too much how much it costs (air only though). If the Noctua DH-15 is overkill, what are some good ones for that CPU? A smaller Noctua maybe?

 

2. RE the PSU, I went with the 750W because I like modular PSUs, and seasonic (on the site I am shopping at) did not have a 650W or 550W modular PSU. I like my seasonic psus, but it sounds like 750W is way too much? Should I suck it up and go for a non-modular 650W or 550W.

 

3. I was originally going with 2400MHz RAM. I saw 2666 suggested, is it a noticable difference? And what if I could get 3000 or 3200MHz? Would that be worthwhile or no.

[Zeorth]

18 minutes ago, ctx said:

Woah at the responses. Thank you everyone! Helps me a lot and I feel far more confident in what to choose now. And I will save a lot of money which is always good.

 

I will go for the cheaper option for the streaming PC, with some tweaks according to suggestions from multiple of you. Saves me a bunch of money, so my sincere thanks. Partly going for a two-PC setup to take advantage of two internet connections. Appreciate the advice of using the single PC - makes me glad it's powerful enough though!

 

For the gaming PC:

 

1. I will go with the 8700. I would still like to get an aftermarket cooler for it though, to keep it quieter, and as cool as I can just for peace of mind / fun. I don't mind too much how much it costs (air only though). If the Noctua DH-15 is overkill, what are some good ones for that CPU? A smaller Noctua maybe?

 

2. RE the PSU, I went with the 750W because I like modular PSUs, and seasonic (on the site I am shopping at) did not have a 650W or 550W modular PSU. I like my seasonic psus, but it sounds like 750W is way too much? Should I suck it up and go for a non-modular 650W or 550W.

 

3. I was originally going with 2400MHz RAM. I saw 2666 suggested, is it a noticable difference? And what if I could get 3000 or 3200MHz? Would that be worthwhile or no.

The Noctua DH-15 is overkill but it’s always better to keep your pc cool. 

 

Considering that most PSUs are most efficient at around the 50-70% the 750W would be a good choice if you want fully modular one. 

 

Its not not going to be a huge difference but it’ll be better for your pc to get 2666 MHz. If your going for 3000-3200 MHz instead of 2666MHz you probably won’t notice it but I would still recommend 3000 MHz or 3200 if it isn’t to much more expensive. 

[brob]

1 hour ago, ctx said:

Woah at the responses. Thank you everyone! Helps me a lot and I feel far more confident in what to choose now. And I will save a lot of money which is always good.

 

I will go for the cheaper option for the streaming PC, with some tweaks according to suggestions from multiple of you. Saves me a bunch of money, so my sincere thanks. Partly going for a two-PC setup to take advantage of two internet connections. Appreciate the advice of using the single PC - makes me glad it's powerful enough though!

 

For the gaming PC:

 

1. I will go with the 8700. I would still like to get an aftermarket cooler for it though, to keep it quieter, and as cool as I can just for peace of mind / fun. I don't mind too much how much it costs (air only though). If the Noctua DH-15 is overkill, what are some good ones for that CPU? A smaller Noctua maybe?

 

2. RE the PSU, I went with the 750W because I like modular PSUs, and seasonic (on the site I am shopping at) did not have a 650W or 550W modular PSU. I like my seasonic psus, but it sounds like 750W is way too much? Should I suck it up and go for a non-modular 650W or 550W.

 

3. I was originally going with 2400MHz RAM. I saw 2666 suggested, is it a noticable difference? And what if I could get 3000 or 3200MHz? Would that be worthwhile or no.

1. Because of the way Intel is reporting TDP a larger cooler is not a bad choice. You might consider the Dark Rock Pro 4. Performance is very similar to the NH-D15 and it has better memory clearance.
2. Seasonic makes a number of psu models. If the 750W is a Seasonic Focus Plus Gold, it's a reasonable choice. If the 550W and 650W models are Seasonic Focus Gold, they would be okay choices, but the fully modular 750W would be my choice as well.
3. It's debatable how noticeable faster memory would be with Intel cpu. With common desktop tasks faster memory should make for a smoother feeling. It will make a difference when streaming. Getting DDR4-3000/DDR4-3200 will not make a difference on an Intel H370, B360, or H310 motherboard. It will make a difference on Z370 and Ryzen motherboards. Test data indicates that Ryzen cpu perform better with faster memory.

[ctx]

Thanks again, sorry for my response delay. I will check out the dark rock pro 4. I don't mind getting something overkill as far as cooling goes.

 

The 750W PSU is a Focus Plus Platinum (Modular).

 

I just want to say thanks to everyone that responded to this thread, I feel very happy with the two final builds I have come up with for these PCs, and I couldn't have done it confidently without the help from all of you. I appreciate it!

[ctx]

Also, which of this RAM would be best match for the i7-8700 (they are cheapest to most expensive):

 

Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2x8GB) 2400MHz DDR4, 16-16-16-39, 1.2v

 

Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2x8GB) 3000MHz DDR4, 16-18-18-36, 1.35v

 

Corsair Vengeance 16GB (2x8GB) 3200MHz DDR4, 16-19-19-36, 1.35v

[brob]

If using a z370 motherboard then the DDR4-3200 would be best, followed by the DDR4-3000. Otherwise DDR4-2666 would be best. If DDR4-2666 is not available, then DDR4-3000 will be fine.