Parts Review for New Gaming/Programming/Photography Build

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liquidbytes

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May 3, 2013
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I am building my first custom computer. I will be using it mainly for programming and gaming but I also am into photography (will be running photoshop and lightroom for editing).
I have a few different builds I am thinking about getting but am not sure which is the best one.

The first build with a 3820:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-3820 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor ($299.99 @ Newegg Canada)
CPU Cooler: Swiftech H220 55.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($149.99 @ NCIX)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-X79-UP4 ATX LGA2011 Motherboard ($233.00 @ Vuugo)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($65.44 @ DirectCanada)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($65.44 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($239.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($88.50 @ Vuugo)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($88.50 @ Vuugo)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 680 4GB Video Card ($529.99 @ Memory Express)
Case: Corsair 500R White ATX Mid Tower Case ($99.00 @ Canada Computers)
Power Supply: Corsair Professional 850W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($149.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.99 @ Canada Computers)
Monitor: Asus VG248QE 144Hz 24.0" Monitor ($279.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Monitor: Asus VG248QE 144Hz 24.0" Monitor ($279.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Total: $2589.80
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-05-03 02:40 EDT-0400)

The second build with a 3770K:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-3770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($319.99 @ Amazon Canada)
CPU Cooler: Swiftech H220 55.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($149.99 @ NCIX)
Motherboard: MSI Z77 MPOWER ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($199.50 @ Vuugo)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($116.76 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($239.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($88.50 @ Vuugo)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Black 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($88.50 @ Vuugo)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 680 2GB Video Card ($469.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Case: Cooler Master HAF X ATX Full Tower Case ($159.00 @ Canada Computers)
Power Supply: Corsair Professional 850W 80 PLUS Gold Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($149.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.99 @ Canada Computers)
Monitor: Asus VG248QE 144Hz 24.0" Monitor ($279.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Monitor: Asus VG248QE 144Hz 24.0" Monitor ($279.99 @ Newegg Canada)
Total: $2562.18
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-05-03 02:21 EDT-0400)

The third build would be to wait for the 4770K which comes out in a month. The only reason I would wait would be because I do not want what I buy now to become irrelevant in a month. I would like my build to be "future proof" and still be near the top in a few years.
 
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thasan1

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Mar 27, 2013
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is it me or both build seems identical???and if you are gonna use core i7-3820 insted of 3770 the Z77 mobo wont work with it. core i7-3820 needs a X79 mobo with LGA 2011 socket. and core i7-3770K has an unlocked multiplier so you can overclock it. haswell's gonna have 5-10% improve over IV bridge processors though.
 
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liquidbytes

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May 3, 2013
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sorry I can't copy and paste. I fixed it.
 
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Jack Revenant

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Apr 16, 2013
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Both builds look excellent, though I would tend to favour the second build. However, are you sure that the Haf X can mount the H220? At a glace, I didn't see any mountings for that large of a radiator in its specs.
 
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liquidbytes

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I am fairly sure that there it can mount them but will double check to be sure. The only reason I chose the Haf X was because of its good reviews and large size, which meant I could upgrade in the future, but I am happy to look into different options. Do you have any case recommendations?
 
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Jack Revenant

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The NZXT Switch 810 and Phantom 820 both have lots of cooling options, very large size, and support for just about any radiator on the market. The 810 is specifically designed for liquid cooling solutions, while the 820 is just an all-around good case which has lots of radiator capacity.
Switch 810: http://www.nzxt.com/new/products/crafted_series/switch_810
Phantom 820: http://www.nzxt.com/new/products/crafted_series/phantom_820

They cost $146 and $249 respectively when purchased at the cheapest online source.
 
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liquidbytes

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The 810 looks like a nice case, I will have to look into it. 820 also looks nice but 250 for a case is a little much.
 
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Jack Revenant

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Fair enough. I felt that it was worth it when I got mine, but I also had a somewhat larger budget to play with.
Looking over your build again, is there a particular reason you went with a single 4GB 680 instead of an SLI of 670s?
 
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liquidbytes

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Lower power consumption and cheaper. I would be willing to get the SLI but I did not think it would make a very big noticeable difference. If I got another monitor for Nvidea surround than I would probably Get another 680. I could be wrong though as this is my first build.
 
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Jack Revenant

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It would vary by the types of games you're playing. It's very similar to a 7950 CrossFire vs. a 7970 Ghz., the two cards are definitely more powerful, but the gains are only worthwhile if you actually get an improvement in experience. If you plan to play Crysis, it would matter, I'll tell you that. Short of that, however, I believe that a high-quality 680 like that should be able to max just about anything, and without the headaches of microstutter to boot. A large part of why I advocate SLI/CrossFire is that a lot of people come here for a build that they want to last for a reasonably long time without upgrades, and want the absolute maximum value for money. Your case may well be different, particularly if you're going to have the option to add a 680 at a later date.
 
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liquidbytes

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I am ok adding a few upgrades at a later date if they are necessary.

I still would like the build to last a longish time and still be relevant. Do you think that waiting for Haswell will be worth the wait? Will the price of the 4770k and a new motherboard be a lot more than what I am currently getting? Also, do you think the 3820 would be worth it just to be able to upgrade to a six core processor?

Sorry for all these questions. I just want to be absolutely sure before making such a big purchase.
 
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Jack Revenant

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If you're okay with adding another 680 later (and don't mind a bit of price inefficiency), I'd say stick with the single 680.

I'm unsure of what the Haswell processors/motherboards will cost, as I hadn't been watching the news regarding them very carefully. Honestly, from what I've heard, Haswell doesn't look that impressive. Not to say that it's not worth it, if you can wait, but I don't think you'll get a lot of benefit either. Having an upgrade-friendly mobo, however, might well be worth it, so if you want to wait for Haswell I completely understand.

The ability to upgrade to a six-core is a fairly large benefit, but only if you actually need a six-core. Honestly, I don't know how heavily your specific usage will tax your CPU, though I'd be surprised if it causes difficulties for an overclocked 3770k/4770k. However, more upgrade capacity is good upgrade capacity, if you have the budget and a mind to spend it.

Believe me, this is nothing compared to the number of questions I asked when I made my first system. It's never a bad idea to be careful when you're spending this amount of money.
 
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liquidbytes

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I agree that I probably do not need a six-core cpu. I think I am going to wait for the Haswell to come out in about a month and get a 4770k(or something similar) and motherboard with the parts from my second build. I understand that it will not be much of an upgrade from the Ivy bridge cpu's but I know I would regret buying a 3770k right before the newer model came out. I am just worried that the 1150 motherboards that come out right away may not work properly or have some issues.
 
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Jack Revenant

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That concern about motherboards is actually what lead me to buy a 3770k for my own recently built machine. If it's a big worry for you, but you want upgradability, you may actually benefit from simply going for the 3820 and X79 mobo. That said, if you wait a little while after the release and check the reviews, you're not that likely to get a lemon.
 
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liquidbytes

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Do you know how long after the Ivy bridge cpu's came out that a motherboard was safe to buy?
 
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Jack Revenant

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Afraid not. I got into PC gaming after Ivy Bridge was released and there were good motherboards available.
 
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liquidbytes

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Do you think that the Ivy bridge's will still be considered "fast" in a few years. I would be fine getting the 3770K now if it will still be able to run everything a few years down the road. The reason being that, the motherboards coming out for the Haswell will continue to improve and the ones released in a few years will be a lot better than the ones released in June. This means that in a few years I would probably be better of buying a new motherboard along with a cpu, regardless of wether or not I bought the new cpu now. With the fact that the Haswell has only a slight performance increase on the 3770k (an increase I will most likely never see), I am now thinking about going with my second build. Do I have the right idea here? Or am I way off.


 
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Jack Revenant

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Well, let me put it this way: for my own very recent build, I chose to use the 3770k. I believe that, with overclocking, it will be able to keep up just fine for the next few years, in the same way that pleanty of people are still going just fine with Sandy Bridge processors presently and have no intention of upgrading soon.
That said, my planned use for the computer (essentially pure gaming) may not be as CPU-heavy as your planned applications. However, if you get a solid overclock in, I doubt that the 3770k will be slowing you down in the forseeable future.
 
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liquidbytes

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With your recent build are you only gaming? Do you know if a quad core processor can efficiently run Photoshop for photo editing and possibly some programs which use the cpu more intensively? How much of a difference does a quad core cpu actually make?
 
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Jack Revenant

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My build is primarily gaming, with a small amount of video editing mixed-in. The 3770k is generally rated as a fine (or often better than fine) editing CPU on this site. I'm not sure what exact gains you would get from a six core as opposed to a quad core, as the sort of programmes which require or benefit from that sort of thing don't fall within my area of expertise.
 
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liquidbytes

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I think I will get the 3770k then. Regarding the other parts of my build, What do you think of the motherboard? I have read some good reviews on the board but would you have any suggestions for different boards?
 
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Jack Revenant

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I don't really know anything about that particular motherboard, but for your price range I tend to advocate the ASRock Extreme6, or, if you like really long warranties and are willing to pay a premium for them, the ASUS Sabertooth, which I myself use. That said, the Sabertooth is by no means the most value-efficient board.

 
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