Need versatile build with longevity

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Kindaconstant

Honorable
Jun 9, 2013
3
0
10,510
Looking to replace a 5 year old desktop. I have built two in the past so I’m comfortable with the process but my knowledge is still limited.

I always say I’m going to upgrade as I go but I never actually get around to it so I’m looking for a build that isn’t dependent on upgrades.

Main uses will be games (MMOs and RTSs, I’m not a hardcore FPSer,) Vulcan (3D mine planning software,) and MAYBE some SolidWorks and MatLab, though not much. The future of the computer might include satelitte image analysis type stuff.

Budget is about $1000 (not including a monitor, OS, keyboard, mouse etc) I’m in Milwaukee, WI, so no MicroCenter .

Not interested in overclocking

Noise is kind of an annoyance for so I was considering watercooling for the processor. Does this help reduce noise or is it not worth it if im not overclocking?

I’m also unfamiliar with if I would benefit from SSD. 1TB harddrive is fine for the time being.

Any input would be appreciated. Thanks!
 
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ssddx

ssddx

Titan
May 27, 2009
17,054
5
74,965
are you interested in using a z77 based board and the previous gen i5 cpu (you could get a better gpu and better components)

or going with a new z87 based board and the new haswell i5 cpu (slightly better performance but higher cost)

is the $1000 budget an absolute or is there wiggle room depending on if certain upgrades are worthwhile?

how demanding of an application is vulcan? if its pretty intense you may want an i7 instead of an i5.

both air and water can be loud. it depends on many circumstances. if you have a big case that is very open with good airflow then you should be fine. if you have a smaller case with bad airflow then your fans will tend to run fast and loud. i have a full tower case and still have the stock heatsink on my i7-920 (circa 2010) and it never spools up past 40-50%. thats a stock heatsink in a non-open full tower. an open full tower with a heatsink would be much better but you get my point. if you buy a good cpu cooler be it air or water you shouldnt have any trouble if your case ambient temperatures are low. this makes picking out a good case paramount.

a ssd will not improve gaming performance except possibly making the game start up faster or loading levels faster. frames per second are not altered. a ssd will make your pc boot faster, resume faster, windows will seem more snappy and some programs that rely on hdd access will be improved. my laptop can boot in under 9 seconds and it uses a ssd.

solidworks and other professional applications perform best with professional graphic card solutions (ie quadro graphics cards). these cards arent the best for gaming on. consumer graphics cards are ideal for gaming but not quite as good for professional applications. if you go with a good high level gpu in the consumer market you should be fine though.

i am a fellow cad user so i can definitely relate.

if you can get back to me on some of your preferences, clarity on the budget and thoughts on what i have said i can put together something for you. i can put something better together for you once you get me some more info.
 
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K

Kindaconstant

Honorable
Jun 9, 2013
3
0
10,510


As far as board preference, that's probably what gives me the most decision trouble. That's where the future proofing comes in for me. Whatever is going to give me the most time between necessary replacement is what i'm after.

I could probably come up to $1100-1200 if it's really going to bring up the worth.

Vulcan doesn't seem all that demanding, although i7 vs i5 comes back to build longevity i guess.

For now i could probably go with air cooling. I assume it's possible to leave the option of adding a watercooler down the road. It's been more of a curiosity than anything, so it won't make or break the build.
 
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K

Kindaconstant

Honorable
Jun 9, 2013
3
0
10,510


I don't see any features that stick out. As long as it has at least 4 memory slots and the onboard audio is good, it doesn't make a difference to me.
 
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RedJaron

RedJaron

Splendid
Sep 20, 2011
4,225
0
23,160
PCPartPicker part list

CPU: Intel Core i5-3470 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($179.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock B75 PRO3-M Micro ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($52.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial M4 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($119.99 @ Microcenter)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($67.23 @ Outlet PC)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon HD 7950 3GB Video Card ($287.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Silverstone RV03B-W ATX Full Tower Case ($144.00 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Antec EarthWatts Green 650W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($66.79 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1005.95

If you don't want to OC, this is the way I'd go for a firm $1000 budget. If you have some wiggle room, go for a K-series and a Z77 board. If you have more wiggle room, get an i7 for the extra logical cores.

I have a Raven case and they're very good at cooling and very quiet. Sapphire Vapor-X cards are also very quiet. The Radeon has better compute to throw at your non-gaming tasks.

EDIT: Noticed the M4 was from Micro Center. Newegg has it for only $10 more.
 
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