$1500 Computer Build

stl522013

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Can somebody please make me a build that costs at max $1500 for circuit analysis. And preferably a Skylake CPU (unless it would be better to get a really good 22nm i7) and if possible a smaller form factor motherboard. Thanks.
 

stl522013

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Sorry, I was in a rush. It is a circuit analysis build, and yes I need an OS, and I would like a small mobo so it can go into a small case, and please keep the cooler an air cooler. And the budget is anywhere from $1000-$1500. Thanks for any help.
 
I generally don't recommend getting the latest and greatest and putting users on the bleeding edge. If interested in the new Z120 based boards / CPUs, I'd want to wait till the 2nd / 3rd stepping to allow them to get the bugaboos out and tweak performance. If ya don't wanna wait, then I'd recommend Z97... if ya can, then I'd put together the build come mid November and purchase parts on black friday.

Are we talking $1500 w/ or w/o peripherals / OS ?

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Swiftech H220-X 55.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($139.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: MSI Z97-GAMING 5 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($145.89 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Mushkin Redline 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-2400 Memory ($114.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($64.79 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Hybrid Internal Hard Drive ($89.88 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 970 4GB Twin Frozr V Video Card ($333.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo Luxe ATX Full Tower Case ($159.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($99.99 @ NCIX US)
Case Fan: Phanteks PH-F140SP_BK 82.1 CFM 140mm Fan ($14.99 @ Amazon)
Other: Phanteks 2 Meter LED Strip ($24.99)
Total: $1419.47
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-08-25 22:44 EDT-0400

Note:

I'd recommend the H240-X over the H220-X but PCPP can't display it. Add $10
http://www.swiftech.com/H240-X.aspx



 

stl522013

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Do you know of a smaller and cheaper case? Maybe a micro or mini (I get them mixed up a lot) motherboard and case? And I would prefer WD for reliability. And since this is for circuit analysis, would it be better to get a 4790K or a Xeon E3 1241 or 1231 V3?
 
-Skylake i7 CPU with good quality air cooler.
-Micro ATX board and case.
-Inexpensive video card. Need better for your purpose?

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($359.99 @ NCIX US)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG H7 49.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($34.50 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus Z170M-PLUS Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($129.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws 4 Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($134.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($119.99 @ Micro Center)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 950 2GB SSC ACX 2.0 Video Card ($169.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Corsair 350D Window MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA G2 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($84.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 OEM (64-bit) ($88.88 @ NCIX US)
Total: $1230.30
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-08-25 23:00 EDT-0400
 
Well given your clarifications, I have less faith in the above build as to suitability for your intended purposes.

Still, again, I'd wait if you want skylake to 1) let the bugs shake out and 2) because I haven't seen any interesting ITX / mATX MoBs as yet. My early forays with Z87 / Z97 boards certainly placed me on the bleeding edge, especially from Asus, did not go well as early steppings had issues with external drives not recovering from sleep and BIOS clock freeze issues.

And I should mention that most ITX / mATX solutions are gaming oriented for LAN party boxes. Not that that is a bad thing as a good gaming MoBo / GFX card for example is a great CAD MoBo / GFX card. However most workstation class boards are ATX ... so just how important is that small case ?

Will need some info as to the software used for for circuit analysis and its recommended system requirements in order to determine if it will benefit from the more workstation oriented.

So I will hold off on MoBo / CPU / RAM / GFX and give ya the following until such time as you can give some direction with regard to above:


PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU Cooler: Phanteks PH-TC14PE 78.1 CFM CPU Cooler ($64.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($64.79 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Hybrid Internal Hard Drive ($89.88 @ OutletPC)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo EVOLV MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($129.99 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 OEM (64-bit) ($133.89 @ OutletPC)
Total: $483.54
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-08-25 23:29 EDT-0400

The why's ....

-SSD for OS and critical applications ... SSHD cause it will load your data faster than anything else. It's about 50% faster than the WD Black.

-Cooler is best bang for the buck on the $50 - $75 range and has very attractive appearance.

-Case - Stunning looks and finish, and well the reviews / ratings say it all
http://www.hitechlegion.com/reviews/cases/44770-phanteks-evolv-atx-aluminum-case-review

-OS - Best thing about it, it's not Windows 10 or 8 but you can upgrade to 10 if you want and Pro version will let you delay force fed updates which could bring your engineering software to a halt. Been that, suffered that with AutoCAD.

Again, questions needed to hit the rest of the components:

1. Can you wait for the 2nd / 3rd steppings of CPU and MoBo to arrive and get you off the bleeding edge by waiting for debugged and performance tweaked components ? As we haven't seen them tested much, it remains to be seen which ones are the winners and losers. Mid November would be the time to plan fo Z170 allowing you to take advantage of these tweaks / improvements as well as Black Friday pricing. Read more on stepping and reasons to avoid the 1st ones here:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stepping_level

2. How important is the small case ? I must say there are not many attractive offerings in the mATX class, at least not yet and not for your stated usage. There's not a one out yet that we would put in any of our workstations here in our engineering office.

Most mATX boards are gaming oriented and the sound solutions are also a bit weak for the most part ... would only matter if listening to music while working is a factor.

Among the larger boards, the Asus Z170 deluxe is one that fits the bill of a workstation class MoBo but at $320 cost is a bit steep tho not unexpected for what it delivers. The Gigabyte GA-Z170X-UD5 is another rugged board that looks promising at $190 as does the Asus 170-A at $165

3. When we do circuit design here for power and control in plant construction, it goes straight from brain to CAD but these designs are rather simple compared to what I imagine you are using.... integrated circuits ? Electronics ? If you could point to the software page, we could get a better idea of what your needs will be ?

-Does the software benefit from an increased number of CPU threads ? ... that will best determine the chipset platform and CPU choice.

-Does the software benefit from CUDA ? That will determine the GFX needs to a large extent.

-Does the software benefit any way from double precision or other aspects of workstation class GFX cards ?

-RAM whether DDR4 for Z170 / X99 or DDR3 for Z97 will definitely be high speed 2400 or above
 

madchemist83

Distinguished
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($242.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG H7 49.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($34.50 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock H97M PRO4 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($67.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Sniper Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($77.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($89.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($119.99 @ Micro Center)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 970 4GB STRIX Video Card ($318.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo EVOLV MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($16.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 OEM (64-bit) ($133.89 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1273.30
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-08-25 23:21 EDT-0400
 
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