I'm going to upgrade to a new PC and have decided to build my own. This will be a gaming PC and my first build. I have tried to research the components and would like any comments or concerns pointed out before I order them. I have a parts list at http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/p/CGr2hM and have put a list of links to the parts with my reasons for choosing them at the bottom of this post.
Approximate Purchase Date:
Soon. I'm hoping to have this up and running in February.
Budget Range:
£1500 or thereabouts. I've got some flexibility.
System Usage from Most to Least Important:
Gaming, internet, word processing, storage of digital photos (only holiday pictures and things like that - it doesn't need a massive amount of storage).
Parts Not Required:
I'm going to reuse my keboard, mouse and monitor. I've also decided not to include a solid state drive as I don't find boot and loading times bad even with my old system.
Preferred Website(s) for Parts:
None.
Country:
UK
Parts Preferences:
Intel Skylake CPU and Nvidia GeForce GTX 970 for graphics.
Overclocking:
Potentially. I'm planning to run without overclocking to start with, but may add it as the machine gets older.
SLI or Crossfire:
I'm going with Nvidia, so SLI.
Monitor Resolution:
1920 x 1080
Additional Comments:
I'm aware some of the components on my list are probably overkill for a relative beginner. I'd rather have too much capability than too little, and I want to leave myself flexibility to try overclocking and other customisation when I want to.
Linked parts list:
CPU
Intel Core i5-6600K. If I'm building a good new PC, I want to get a new Intel CPU. The i7-6700K is way more than I need, so that leaves me with the i5-6600K.
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/intel-core-i5-6600k-s-1151-skylake-quad-core-35ghz-39ghz-turbo-6mb-cache-1150mhz-gpu-35x-ratio-91w-c
CPU cooler
RAIJINTEK PALLAS 56.5 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler. Chosen mainly because of the Tom's Hardware review of it (at http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/raijintek-pallas-slim-cpu-cooler,review-33266.html). It's good value, has plenty of cooling power for my needs and using a smaller, lighter cooler takes away the minor worries I had about the reports of coolers bending the new Intel CPUs.
http://www.kikatek.com/P674081/0R100004-Raijintek-0R100004-Raijintek-Pallas?source=froogle&gclid=CIyYrun0xMoCFRKeGwodqJkKJQ
Motherboard
MSI Z170A GAMING M5 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard. This should give me good performance straight out the box. It will also allow me to overclock as and when I need to.
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/msi-z170a-gaming-m5-intel-z170-s-1151-ddr4-satae-m2-(pcie-sata)-sli-crossfire-killer-lan-usb-31-gen2
Memory
G.Skill Ripjaws 4 series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory. 16GB might be more than I'll need, but I don't see any real drawbacks to getting it.
http://www.newegg.com/global/uk/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231867&cm_re=F4-2800C16D-16GRR-_-20-231-867-_-Product
Storage
Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive. This seems like a fairly standard choice. I don't see myself needing large amounts of storage, 1TB should be plenty. As I mentioned above, I've decided not to include a solid state drive. I don't find boot and loading times a problem with just a hard drive, possibly because I grew up with a Spectrum, loading things from tape!
http://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Storage/Hard+Drives/3.5+Inch+SATA+Drives/640GB+-+1TB/1TB+Seagate+Barracuda+SATA+III+Hard+Drive+?productId=48501&source=pcpartpicker
Video card
Zotac GeForce GTX 970 4GB AMP! Extreme Core Edition Video Card. This is going to be a gaming PC, so I want a good graphics card. This seems to be one of the best.
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/4gb-zotac-gtx-970-amp!-extreme-core-ed-pcie-30-7200mhz-gddr5-gpu-1228mhz-boost-1380mhz-cores-1664-3x
Case
Phanteks Enthoo Pro ATX Full Tower Case. I don't really care about having a fancy case. This one should have plenty of space to fit everything in and good airflow. Simple and functional.
http://www.newegg.com/global/uk/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811854003&cm_re=Phanteks_Enthoo_Pro_ATX_Full_Tower-_-11-854-003-_-Product
Power supply
EVGA SuperNOVA GS 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply. Not much to say about this. It's gold certified and 550W is enough for my system. I don't think I can go wrong with this choice.
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/550w-evga-supernova-gs-psu-fully-modular-80plus-gold-45a-single-rail-sli-crossfirex-support-whisper-
Optical drive
Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer. Yes, I know it's old-fashioned to have an optical drive. The thing is, I still have a lot of CDs and DVDs, and I can see myself using the writer to back up important files. It's not expensive, so I've included one.
http://www.novatech.co.uk/products/components/opticaldrives/dvddrives/internaldvddrives/Samsung/SH-224FBBEBE.html?#utm_source=affiliatewindow&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_campaign=PCPartPicker
Operating system
Microsoft Windows 10 Home. I did have Windows 8, then took the free upgrade to Windows 10. I didn't get on with it at first, but I'm now doing OK with it, so I may as well go with Windows 10 for this. This comes on a USB, but that's not a problem, I've booted operating systems off USBs before.
http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msuk/en_GB/pdp/Windows-10-Home/productID.320418600?s_kwcid=AL!4249!3!76796564445!e!!g!!buy%20windows%2010&WT.mc_id=pointitsem+Google+Adwords+Windows+10+-+UK&ef_id=VabXWQAABPtSM-ep:20160125125927:s
Wireless network adapter
ASUS PCE-AC68 Dual-band Wireless-AC1900 Adapter IEEE 802.11ac, IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n PCI Express. This has the latest protocols and should do the job well.
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/asus-pce-ac68-pci-e-600plus1300mbps-80211n-ac-24-5ghz-dual-band-ac1300-wireless-adaptor
Approximate Purchase Date:
Soon. I'm hoping to have this up and running in February.
Budget Range:
£1500 or thereabouts. I've got some flexibility.
System Usage from Most to Least Important:
Gaming, internet, word processing, storage of digital photos (only holiday pictures and things like that - it doesn't need a massive amount of storage).
Parts Not Required:
I'm going to reuse my keboard, mouse and monitor. I've also decided not to include a solid state drive as I don't find boot and loading times bad even with my old system.
Preferred Website(s) for Parts:
None.
Country:
UK
Parts Preferences:
Intel Skylake CPU and Nvidia GeForce GTX 970 for graphics.
Overclocking:
Potentially. I'm planning to run without overclocking to start with, but may add it as the machine gets older.
SLI or Crossfire:
I'm going with Nvidia, so SLI.
Monitor Resolution:
1920 x 1080
Additional Comments:
I'm aware some of the components on my list are probably overkill for a relative beginner. I'd rather have too much capability than too little, and I want to leave myself flexibility to try overclocking and other customisation when I want to.
Linked parts list:
CPU
Intel Core i5-6600K. If I'm building a good new PC, I want to get a new Intel CPU. The i7-6700K is way more than I need, so that leaves me with the i5-6600K.
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/intel-core-i5-6600k-s-1151-skylake-quad-core-35ghz-39ghz-turbo-6mb-cache-1150mhz-gpu-35x-ratio-91w-c
CPU cooler
RAIJINTEK PALLAS 56.5 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler. Chosen mainly because of the Tom's Hardware review of it (at http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/raijintek-pallas-slim-cpu-cooler,review-33266.html). It's good value, has plenty of cooling power for my needs and using a smaller, lighter cooler takes away the minor worries I had about the reports of coolers bending the new Intel CPUs.
http://www.kikatek.com/P674081/0R100004-Raijintek-0R100004-Raijintek-Pallas?source=froogle&gclid=CIyYrun0xMoCFRKeGwodqJkKJQ
Motherboard
MSI Z170A GAMING M5 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard. This should give me good performance straight out the box. It will also allow me to overclock as and when I need to.
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/msi-z170a-gaming-m5-intel-z170-s-1151-ddr4-satae-m2-(pcie-sata)-sli-crossfire-killer-lan-usb-31-gen2
Memory
G.Skill Ripjaws 4 series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory. 16GB might be more than I'll need, but I don't see any real drawbacks to getting it.
http://www.newegg.com/global/uk/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231867&cm_re=F4-2800C16D-16GRR-_-20-231-867-_-Product
Storage
Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive. This seems like a fairly standard choice. I don't see myself needing large amounts of storage, 1TB should be plenty. As I mentioned above, I've decided not to include a solid state drive. I don't find boot and loading times a problem with just a hard drive, possibly because I grew up with a Spectrum, loading things from tape!
http://www.aria.co.uk/Products/Storage/Hard+Drives/3.5+Inch+SATA+Drives/640GB+-+1TB/1TB+Seagate+Barracuda+SATA+III+Hard+Drive+?productId=48501&source=pcpartpicker
Video card
Zotac GeForce GTX 970 4GB AMP! Extreme Core Edition Video Card. This is going to be a gaming PC, so I want a good graphics card. This seems to be one of the best.
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/4gb-zotac-gtx-970-amp!-extreme-core-ed-pcie-30-7200mhz-gddr5-gpu-1228mhz-boost-1380mhz-cores-1664-3x
Case
Phanteks Enthoo Pro ATX Full Tower Case. I don't really care about having a fancy case. This one should have plenty of space to fit everything in and good airflow. Simple and functional.
http://www.newegg.com/global/uk/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811854003&cm_re=Phanteks_Enthoo_Pro_ATX_Full_Tower-_-11-854-003-_-Product
Power supply
EVGA SuperNOVA GS 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply. Not much to say about this. It's gold certified and 550W is enough for my system. I don't think I can go wrong with this choice.
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/550w-evga-supernova-gs-psu-fully-modular-80plus-gold-45a-single-rail-sli-crossfirex-support-whisper-
Optical drive
Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer. Yes, I know it's old-fashioned to have an optical drive. The thing is, I still have a lot of CDs and DVDs, and I can see myself using the writer to back up important files. It's not expensive, so I've included one.
http://www.novatech.co.uk/products/components/opticaldrives/dvddrives/internaldvddrives/Samsung/SH-224FBBEBE.html?#utm_source=affiliatewindow&utm_medium=affiliate&utm_campaign=PCPartPicker
Operating system
Microsoft Windows 10 Home. I did have Windows 8, then took the free upgrade to Windows 10. I didn't get on with it at first, but I'm now doing OK with it, so I may as well go with Windows 10 for this. This comes on a USB, but that's not a problem, I've booted operating systems off USBs before.
http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msuk/en_GB/pdp/Windows-10-Home/productID.320418600?s_kwcid=AL!4249!3!76796564445!e!!g!!buy%20windows%2010&WT.mc_id=pointitsem+Google+Adwords+Windows+10+-+UK&ef_id=VabXWQAABPtSM-ep:20160125125927:s
Wireless network adapter
ASUS PCE-AC68 Dual-band Wireless-AC1900 Adapter IEEE 802.11ac, IEEE 802.11a/b/g/n PCI Express. This has the latest protocols and should do the job well.
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/asus-pce-ac68-pci-e-600plus1300mbps-80211n-ac-24-5ghz-dual-band-ac1300-wireless-adaptor
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