First build, gaming desktop. Looking for advice and recommendations, thanks.

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Thandau

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Feb 5, 2014
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Hey there.

This is gonna be a little long, as I've already spent much time reading coming up with questions, so on to the form we go!

Approximate Purchase Date: Within in a month or so.

Budget Range: My absolute max is 12000 DKK (about 2100 USD), but I'd really prefer to stay below 10000 DKK (1810 USD), I live in denmark where we have wonderfully high goods tax. My current build would cost me about 8300 DKK (1500 USD).

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming first and foremost(RPG's mostly, strategy and singleplayer FPS), watching movies+anime, light photoshop work, surfing, school work and I think that covers everything.

Monitor: Maybe? If I can get a good monitor for a decent price. I'd like to get a new one and use my current as a second monitor, but I'd only be gaming on one, the other would be used for work/school/internet and stuff. I would however like advice on what to get/look for in a new monitor.

My current resolution is 1680x1050, but I would like to upgrade to at least 1920x1080 or 1920x1200 at some point within the too distant future (half a year or so).


Build:
My build :D
http://de.pcpartpicker.com/p/2NFAI

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor (€199.90 @ Caseking)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i 77.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler (€99.99 @ Pixmania DE)
Motherboard: MSI Z87-GD65 Gaming ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (€171.11 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory (€85.30 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk (€139.02 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 770 2GB Video Card (€312.90 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case (€93.24 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Total: €1101.46
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-02-05 17:27 CET+0100)

I'm looking to cannibalise a few parts of my old desktop if possible, they are:
PSU: Corsair Enthusiast TX850 V2 [Link](I had to replace my current desktop's PSU a year or two back, this one is from sometime 2012).
HDD: 2x1TB 7200rpm SATA2 in raid.
Wireless Adapter: TP-Link something USB (Yes, it is USB, I really don't see how it could not be compatible, but I like to be thorough>.>).
Optical Drive: 48x16x Lite-On DVD Black PATA.
22x Samsung DVD/RW DL Black SATA.
Memory: 4x2GB DDR3 1066MHz. (If the Ripjaws more than a slight upgrade, I wouldn't mind spending the extra on teh memory.)

If it's not possible to cannabalize anything, I'd really appreciate recommendations on what to get instead.

A few concerns:
1) Compatibility, does the build even work?

2) CPU cooling, it's either the liquid in the list of a Noctua NH-D14/U14S. It seems the H100i is significantly louder(37.7 dbA to the U14S' max 24.6 dbA) and more expensive. So is it significantly more effective? And I've heard/read that the weight of the fans can be a strain on the motherboard, something I should take into consideration? And last cooling question, how many fans would I really need?

3) GTX 770 or 780? I'm considering going with the 780,for future proofing and for future new monitor/multimonitor setup (though as stated earlier, I'll only be gaming on one monitor). Might it be better to get the 770 now and then upgrade with another 770 in SLI later on?

4) Just to make the list complete, monitor. Recommendations? What to look for? Does it make any difference if I wait or not? The waiting is mostly because I don't really like spending large blobs of money at the same time.


OS!: I’m fairly sure I could get a new copy of win7 through work. I still have the win7 install cd’s for my current system, I thought I could just use them?

Location: Denmark, Copenhagen area/region.

Overclocking: Yes/Maybe, I’ve never done overclocking before, first I was scared I’d melt my CPU if I tried it <.>, then my pc didn't support it, but after reading a lot about it, it is now something I'd like to play with.
 
And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: Basically I want to be ready for when Dark Souls 2+GTA5 is released on pc. My current desktop is a 4/5 years old, prebuilt machine. And it would be nice to finally be able to play some of the other "new" releases(AC:IV, Borderlands 2.) which my current desktop can't run to my satisfaction.

Also, preview button doesn't work for me o_O, so sorry for any evil formatting.

Thank you very much in advance for any help you can provide ^_^
 
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AshyCFC

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Oct 12, 2013
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I'll make a more thorough post on the pc. 1. 1866mhz 8GB Ram will perform great compared to 1066mhz 4gb.

2. All the parts are compatible but go for the single 780. Some games are dodgy/do not respond well to crossfire.

3. You'll need to reinstall windows when you make your system so make sure you've got a working activation key.
 
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animal

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Jan 23, 2010
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To try and answer some of your concerns:

1. Compatibility - it appears as everything you have selected are compatible.

2. CPU cooling - whatever you decide to go with will be fine. Personally, I prefer air cooling as the only thing that can/will go bad are the fans and they are generally minimal cost to replace. With an AIO WC solution, when the pump goes bad (or a leak develops) you are looking at replacing the entire thing. I worry about the potential damage to a motherboard that a heavy air cooler can have over time. However, my current build uses a Prolimatech Genesis and have been using it for about 2 1/2 - 3 yrs and so far so good. Unless you will be moving your rig around a lot (or go to a lot of LAN parties), I wouldn't be too concerned with either of the Noctua's you listed.

3. The GPU you get will depend on what you are expecting out of it. Myself, I'd go for the best single GPU I could afford. By the time you would need a performance increase (especially since you are looking at a single monitor set-up) either the prices for a second GPU to SLI or a better GPU will be available.

4. For a monitor, I'd suggest the Asus VG248QE or the Asus VG278HE. The NVidia G-Sync upgrade kit is/should be available now for about $200 US. Or I believe G-Sync monitors will be available later this year.

A few thoughts/suggestions:

1. Depending on how much photo/video editing you are contemplating, you may want to consider going i7.

2. As previously stated, you will see a significant improvement with the new RAM.

3. Unless you have a retail version OS package that came with both 32-bit and 64-bit installation disks, chances are you have an OEM version which means it is tied to your original motherboard. A new OS will probably have to be acquired/purchased.

4. If you are truly wanting to get into overclocking, there are better gaming/overclocking motherboards available, although it is possible the MSI may suit your needs.
 
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Thandau

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Feb 5, 2014
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Thanks for the feedback.

1. Great!

2. I see. I don't plan on moving it around, outside of something like moving to a new place >.>. and air cooling is not as noisy (which doesn't really make sense to me, but oh well) and quite a bit cheaper. So I suppose it's mostly the weight that's a factor. With the U14S weighing 950g (2.1 Lbs) and the D14 weighing 1240g (2.7 Lbs)
Edit: I forgot to ask, with fans, how many should I get? Since I plan on doing some overclocking., do I need one to replace the stock CPU cooler?

3. That's what I usually prefer to do as well. When I buy a new.. something, I prefer to buy the best I can afford so it'll last longer. The ol' quality over quantity. And if some games play well with two GPUs I'd rather get one really good.

4. Thanks, I'll have a look at those.

And now you broke my list by starting over from 1 D:

I'm really not doing much photoshopping, and no video stuff. Mostly maps and random doodles. No heavy compressing or high resolutions detailed drawings or whatever it is that requires a lot of processing power.

My OS is probably an OEM, it did come pre-installed. Well, going to poke around at work, see if they don't have a spare lying around :p

As for the motherboard, initially I was wavering between the MSI Z87 G45, MSI Z87 GD65 and MSI Z87 MPOWER (pcpartpicker links), but read that the mpower was only for quote 'extreme overclocking'. I'm new to overclocking, so not sure how much I'll end up doing, but I'd like to have the option. What would you suggest?
 
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animal

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Most of the newer "gaming" ("Z"-series) motherboards have built-in/preset levels that you can run as well as other overclocking options within their suite of software that comes with the motherboard. Probably the best and easiest to use come from Asus and EVGA, although EVGA's motherboard selection is not what it once was. Personally I'd look into the Asus Maximus VI Hero, entry-level ROG board that would probably meet your needs.
 
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