I've spent the past week extensively researching the different components of a PC and their functions. Before now, I have had no experience working with hardware. I am confident I have come to a proper conclusion on what I will require from my first build. However, I would greatly appreciate askig some questions for feedback on my proposed build from the more experienced member base of this community.
Mostly I will be using my PC for audio recording and production. I will be using a combination of acoustic, MIDI and software based instruments. Beyond that, I anticipate to return to my old hobby of 3D and video game design. Screen capturing and video rendering will be part of this (Source Filmmaker, as one example), which I remember to be extremely demanding on my old system. Image editing will also fall under this umbrella. Gaming is a tertiary priority in this build. I will be playing some games, but not very often.
Here are the proposed specs of my build:
I have decided on the Intel i7-6800k for the two extra cores over the i7-6700k, sacrificing some clock speed. I presume working with content creation will benefit from such a CPU, especially since I will be regularly multitasking. The 28 PCIe lanes instead the 40 of most Broadwell-E CPUs should be enough, as I don't see myself going beyond a setup with two GPUs. Although, I fortunately don't have a budget for this build, so would it be just worth it to invest in a i7-6900k? I think the 6950X is just ridiculous, on that note. I also don't want to spend money on resources I won't end up utilizing.
I want to build a system with longevity in mind. I intend on upgrading as my needs and what software I will be using becomes more resource intensive. Will the X-99 A II Motherboard suffice? I looked at the Deluxe II and it honestly looked like overkill for my current needs. The A II also seems to me like it will be future friendly enough.
The memory and storage is where I'm not completely sure of my choices. From what I've read, with prices of DDR4 memory as low as they are, purchasing the newest and best technology available is ideal. G.Skill has regularly been mentioned as a good brand in my research, as well as Corsair. The current flagship brand by G.Skill, Trident Z, however doesn't have 2400MHZ memory which is what is approved for the i7-6800k. Corsair's top line of memory, Dominator Platinum, does. I chose G.Skill over Corsair because of G.Skill's recommendation on the Toms's Hardware best memory of 2016 article. Am I correct in my assumptions of purchasing memory? Would Corsair's Dominator Platinum be a better choice? Should I just buy 32GB instead of 16GB? As well, since the X-99 A II is rated for bandwidth up to 3333MHZ, would I benefit from purchasing a higher bandwidth? I haven't found any evidence in my research that going beyond what bandwidth the CPU is rated to handle would make any difference. Choosing memory is overwhelming, there being so many choices.
As for storage, it seemed like an overly simple choice for such a complex topic. Because of the DMI limit of the X99 chipset, an M.2 SSD will already hit or come very close to the 20Mbps bottleneck, also rendering a RAID setup redundant. Considering this, I took the same approach I took for choosing the memory, choosing the newest and best technology available. I picked the 1TB Samsung 960 EVO NVMe, again, from the Tom's Hardware Best Storage of 2016 article. Like with the memory, am I correct in my logic for this choice?
I've purposely gone overboard with the PSU and the CPU cooler, keeping longevity in mind. I can't see myself overclocking or running a setup with two or more GPUs now or anytime soon, but who knows? I've chosen the NZXT Phantom 410 as a Case, also because of it's TH Editor's Choice and it's access to four front panel USB ports instead of two, which is what I found most cases to offer.
The last specific question I have is about the NIC. Again I decided to choose the latest and best available, in this case from Intel. However, what I want to know is if the Intel Dual Band Wireless AC-8265 will work in a PCIe 2.0 slot? I'm confused here, since the specifications state the Board Form Factor to be "M.2 2230 or M.2 1216", and the System Interface Type to be "PCIe, USB". I want to reserve the X-99 A II's M.2 slot for the SSD.
This is quite the long post, but with this being my first build, I want to be certain I have everything right. Are there any other recommendations or changes that I can make for a better system? While I don't want to go overboard, I fortunately don't have a budget set for this build. Thanks for reading!
Mostly I will be using my PC for audio recording and production. I will be using a combination of acoustic, MIDI and software based instruments. Beyond that, I anticipate to return to my old hobby of 3D and video game design. Screen capturing and video rendering will be part of this (Source Filmmaker, as one example), which I remember to be extremely demanding on my old system. Image editing will also fall under this umbrella. Gaming is a tertiary priority in this build. I will be playing some games, but not very often.
Here are the proposed specs of my build:
Intel i7-6800k
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070
Asus X-99 A II
G.Skill Ripjaws 4 Series 16GB (4x4GB) DDR4-2400
Samsung 960 EVO NVMe (1TB)
EVGA Supernova 850W T2
ID Cooling Frostflow 120L Closed-Loop CPU Cooler
Intel Dual Band Wireless AC-8265
NZXT Phantom 410
I have decided on the Intel i7-6800k for the two extra cores over the i7-6700k, sacrificing some clock speed. I presume working with content creation will benefit from such a CPU, especially since I will be regularly multitasking. The 28 PCIe lanes instead the 40 of most Broadwell-E CPUs should be enough, as I don't see myself going beyond a setup with two GPUs. Although, I fortunately don't have a budget for this build, so would it be just worth it to invest in a i7-6900k? I think the 6950X is just ridiculous, on that note. I also don't want to spend money on resources I won't end up utilizing.
I want to build a system with longevity in mind. I intend on upgrading as my needs and what software I will be using becomes more resource intensive. Will the X-99 A II Motherboard suffice? I looked at the Deluxe II and it honestly looked like overkill for my current needs. The A II also seems to me like it will be future friendly enough.
The memory and storage is where I'm not completely sure of my choices. From what I've read, with prices of DDR4 memory as low as they are, purchasing the newest and best technology available is ideal. G.Skill has regularly been mentioned as a good brand in my research, as well as Corsair. The current flagship brand by G.Skill, Trident Z, however doesn't have 2400MHZ memory which is what is approved for the i7-6800k. Corsair's top line of memory, Dominator Platinum, does. I chose G.Skill over Corsair because of G.Skill's recommendation on the Toms's Hardware best memory of 2016 article. Am I correct in my assumptions of purchasing memory? Would Corsair's Dominator Platinum be a better choice? Should I just buy 32GB instead of 16GB? As well, since the X-99 A II is rated for bandwidth up to 3333MHZ, would I benefit from purchasing a higher bandwidth? I haven't found any evidence in my research that going beyond what bandwidth the CPU is rated to handle would make any difference. Choosing memory is overwhelming, there being so many choices.
As for storage, it seemed like an overly simple choice for such a complex topic. Because of the DMI limit of the X99 chipset, an M.2 SSD will already hit or come very close to the 20Mbps bottleneck, also rendering a RAID setup redundant. Considering this, I took the same approach I took for choosing the memory, choosing the newest and best technology available. I picked the 1TB Samsung 960 EVO NVMe, again, from the Tom's Hardware Best Storage of 2016 article. Like with the memory, am I correct in my logic for this choice?
I've purposely gone overboard with the PSU and the CPU cooler, keeping longevity in mind. I can't see myself overclocking or running a setup with two or more GPUs now or anytime soon, but who knows? I've chosen the NZXT Phantom 410 as a Case, also because of it's TH Editor's Choice and it's access to four front panel USB ports instead of two, which is what I found most cases to offer.
The last specific question I have is about the NIC. Again I decided to choose the latest and best available, in this case from Intel. However, what I want to know is if the Intel Dual Band Wireless AC-8265 will work in a PCIe 2.0 slot? I'm confused here, since the specifications state the Board Form Factor to be "M.2 2230 or M.2 1216", and the System Interface Type to be "PCIe, USB". I want to reserve the X-99 A II's M.2 slot for the SSD.
This is quite the long post, but with this being my first build, I want to be certain I have everything right. Are there any other recommendations or changes that I can make for a better system? While I don't want to go overboard, I fortunately don't have a budget set for this build. Thanks for reading!
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