My First Build

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wheelswilly

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Sep 29, 2014
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Hey guys, this is my first post on this site, as well as my first gaming PC build. I would say I'm pretty novice when it comes to making a good set, so that's why I figure it would be a great idea to get some feedback before I give the green light on it. So any help would be appreciated! Thanks!

Here's my first build!

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/FjvTFT
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/FjvTFT/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($234.98 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: Enermax ETS-T40-BK 76.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI Z97-GAMING 5 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($147.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($78.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial MX100 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($109.97 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($53.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 280X 3GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($249.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master N600 Windowed ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic G 550W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Monitor: Asus VS228H-P 21.5" Monitor ($124.99 @ Newegg)
Wireless Network Adapter: Rosewill RNX-N250PCe 802.11b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($18.36 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: Aerocool Shark 82.6 CFM 120mm Fan ($14.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Keyboard: Arctic Cooling AC-K481 Wireless Mini Keyboard w/Touchpad ($28.23 @ Amazon)
Mouse: Gear Head MPT3100BLU-CP10 Wireless Optical Mouse ($20.99 @ Amazon)
Speakers: Logitech Z320 10W 2ch Speakers ($45.99 @ Dell)
Total: $1415.40
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-29 20:35 EDT-0400
 
Solution
M
I would advise the following changes:

Select the 4690K instead of the 4670K.

Select a motherboard with great built in audio already, so that you don't have to spend more on a redundant add-on sound card. (see MSI/Gigabyte/ASrock "gaming" motherboards).

The hyper 212 EVO is boring, everyone uses it. It's a great performer in it's price class but if you want something even remotely unique this isn't it. I'd select something else purely for novelty and uniqueness sake.

Replace RAM with crucial part # BLS2K8G3D1609ES2LX0

Increase SSD to 256GB MX100.

Replace overpriced GTX660 with similarly priced R9 280 or GTX760. (pick the R9 for more raw render performance, pick the GTX760 if you play DX11 games with notorious CPU bound...
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Outlander_04

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Nov 18, 2008
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I think you can improve that
Ditch the fan controller . Fun to have , but not important .
The sound card is probably no better than the sound on the mb .
The graphic card two generations old
The monitor too small for immersive gaming
Gamers do not need 16 gig of RAM

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/TTPRnQ
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/TTPRnQ/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($233.97 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($33.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Asus Z97-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($137.99 @ NCIX US)
Memory: Mushkin Blackline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($90.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Intel 520 Series Cherryville 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($64.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($53.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 970 4GB STRIX Video Card ($348.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: NZXT Phantom (Black) ATX Full Tower Case ($103.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Rosewill Capstone 550W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ OutletPC)
Monitor: LG 24MP55HQ-P 60Hz 23.8" Monitor ($144.00 @ Newegg)
Wireless Network Adapter: Rosewill RNX-N250PCe 802.11b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($18.36 @ Amazon)
Keyboard: Arctic Cooling AC-K481 Wireless Mini Keyboard w/Touchpad ($28.23 @ Amazon)
Mouse: Gear Head MPT3100BLU-CP10 Wireless Optical Mouse ($20.99 @ Amazon)
Speakers: Logitech Z320 10W 2ch Speakers ($45.99 @ Dell)
Total: $1486.41
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-29 05:22 EDT-0400

The graphics card performance will absolutely demolish the GTX 660
Everywhere else it will perform the same
 
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carson45

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Everything looks pretty good. Only thing I would change is your video card. If you can cut cost on something or spend a little more I would definitely go with a gtx 970. It would make a HUGE difference in performance for you.
 
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carson45

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Heres what I would change:

Only get 8GB of ram--save you $72
You dont need a sound card--save $28
You dont need a fan controller--save $30

Thats $130 savings. So you have budgeted $220 on a video card in your build. $220+$130= $350 now. That would cover it

 
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mdocod

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I would advise the following changes:

Select the 4690K instead of the 4670K.

Select a motherboard with great built in audio already, so that you don't have to spend more on a redundant add-on sound card. (see MSI/Gigabyte/ASrock "gaming" motherboards).

The hyper 212 EVO is boring, everyone uses it. It's a great performer in it's price class but if you want something even remotely unique this isn't it. I'd select something else purely for novelty and uniqueness sake.

Replace RAM with crucial part # BLS2K8G3D1609ES2LX0

Increase SSD to 256GB MX100.

Replace overpriced GTX660 with similarly priced R9 280 or GTX760. (pick the R9 for more raw render performance, pick the GTX760 if you play DX11 games with notorious CPU bound conditions, as it will wind up with better performance in those conditions with NV's proprietary DX11 drivers.)

If this is intended to remain a single GPU system, the Seasonic G 550W would be my choice, and is often priced similarly. The modular version comes with nice looking black ribbon cables.

Full towers can introduce cable length issues for smaller PSUs and are really intended for use in configurations with multiple GPUs, custom water loops, or high drive-count systems. For simplicity sake, and space sake, I would advise sticking with a mid-tower build or smaller unless you have plans for the full tower that need the space.

Fan controller may prove redundant if you select a motherboard with a decent number of 4-pin fan headers.

----------

A GTX970 would be great, but perhaps a bit out of balance on a $125 1080P 21" monitor. Always remember that your GPU+Monitor represents the visual quality aspect of the build, not the performance. Performance originates with the CPU. Any performance characteristic that is "bound" by the GPU is always inversely adjustable with visual quality. You can play at 60FPS on just about any modern GPU made, the difference between a ~$100, ~$200, and ~$400 GPU is the ability to play at 720P, 1080P, or 1440P respectively at that ~60FPS.
 
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wheelswilly

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Sep 29, 2014
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Yeah I changed to the 4690K because it's literally a few dollars more.

Since it's my first build, I definitely want it to be unique to me, so I will continue to look for a more unique cooler.

How can I find RAM with that crucial part #? Seems kind of difficult to me.

I have no plans to add GPUs or add anything like custom water loops or more drives, so I will definitely switch to a mid-tower.

So basically with the monitor I'm choosing, the R9 or GTX 760 would be in balance?

Thanks for all the help so far!
 
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mdocod

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just copy the part number to the clipboard, and paste it into the search box at pcpartpicker, it will take you straight to the link...

http://pcpartpicker.com/part/crucial-memory-bls2k8g3d1609es2lx0

---------------

How much GPU is useful for a particular monitor is a somewhat subjective issue. I'm of the opinion that for 1080P in general anything from a GTX660/R7-265(7850) up to the GTX770(680)/R9-280X(7970) class of GPUs is a good fit, as any of them are going to be able to deliver a smooth result at good visual quality settings. The difference in render throughput between the bottom of this range and the top of this range is about +60%. The GPUs on the bottom of this range can play games at the same FPS as GPUs at the top of this range with a small change to visual quality settings. The GPUs below this "range" are better suited to 720P gaming, while GPUs above this "range" are better suited to 1440P gaming.

Doesn't mean you can't use a GTX970 or R9 290 to run a 1080P monitor, but more often than not, you'll wind up with the refresh of the monitor as your bottleneck, which, IMO, means "wasted" render throughput.
 
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wheelswilly

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Sep 29, 2014
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So as a part of my budget currently, I don't think I can get 16gb of RAM right now, so do you think you could post a RAM stick you like that is 8gb?

So if you look at the changes to my build at the first post you'll see that I changed my cpu cooler and the mobo to one that recommended under the MSI gaming series. I also changed my case to a mid-tower.

However, I'm getting two notes about some incompatibility issues, maybe you can help:

Some Intel Z87 chipset motherboards may need a BIOS update prior to using Haswell Refresh CPUs.
Unable to verify the Raidmax ATX-502WBG ATX Mid Tower Case has sufficient space to fit the XFX Radeon R9 280X 3GB Double Dissipation Video Card.
 
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mdocod

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We can "fix" those compatibility notes straight away:

1. Choose a Z97 chipset board.
2. Don't buy a raidmax- anything.

Here's some ideas for memory that starts off at conservative speeds and voltages, and could be manually configured to go "Faster" with custom timings/voltage:
http://pcpartpicker.com/part/crucial-memory-blt2k4g3d1608et3lx0
http://pcpartpicker.com/part/mushkin-memory-997166

The redline has slightly elevated heatspreaders, check clearances!!

Here's some ideas for 2x4GB kits that have XMP profiled speeds/voltages that are more aggressive. These would offer a more plug-n-play option for overclocking the memory:
http://pcpartpicker.com/part/mushkin-memory-997084
http://pcpartpicker.com/part/gskill-memory-f32400c10d8gtx

Those last 2 appear to have removable tops on the heat spreaders so should work with a decent variety of heatsinks. I believe these are all configured dual rank dimms.
 
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