First Solo Build

akiro525

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Jan 27, 2014
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Hello everyone

while i do have a custom built pc, it was done with a help of a friend and i will be honest,she did most of the work while i watched and tried to absorb as much as i can. Four years down the line the pc has served me well but i figure it is time for an upgrade but i want to do it by myself.

i have been researching for the last few days and i stumbled on a build posted on pcpartpicker
(https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/blog/127/gigabyte-z270X-gaming-7-build) i thought i would follow this word for word purely because there is a video accompanying it and for a first builder like myself that is incredibly helpful.

i decided to make a few changes and i was wandering if any of you more experienced builders will advise me whether what i have done is a step in the right direction or just stick to the professional guide?

https://pcpartpicker.com/user/akiro525/saved/#view=mp7gsY

As you can see, there are a few components missing and one of the biggest changes i made was going from the i7-7700k to the i5 7600k.

Storage,Optical drive - i have a hitachi 1TB drive in my current build which i plan to use, same for the optical

Power supply - i have a Corsair CXM 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply. would this power supply be sufficient or should i order a new one posted in the professional guide?

I am not too concerned about spending more for higher quality components,

I appreciate any input, thank you in advance

 
Solution

KyleADunn

Honorable


As long as that HDD is free of bad sectors it'll be fine to use. Do note, however, Windows licensing is based on motherboards. So when you change the mobo, it will make you reactivate your copy of windows. You should do a full reinstall anyway, for driver issue purposes.

Your PSU looks good. No need to buy the new one.

 
Original build

1. Cant recommend the water cooling solution ...overpriced, underperforming and loud.

2. Is budget an issue ? that's a lot of MoBo unless you have specific features you want, lower cost solutions would serve just as well

3. 3 TB and larger HDs have a substantially larger failure rate then 2 TB drives. Also, be aware that while your SSD will boot ya PC a bit faster, it doesn't do squat for all the stuff on the HD. Recommend a SSHD here

4. What resolution monitor ?

5. The 5 meter LED strip is way way too long, stick to the 1 or 2M Phanteks branded options

6. The 1080 is kinda dead at this point, squeezed in between the Ti and the 1070.... depending on resolution, I'd move up or down a step.

As to the changes ...

1. the 7600k is a great option when budget limits choices and you have no need for video editing, CAD and things like that.

2. The Thermaltake is a cheap imitation of a "real" water cooling solution with it's cheap aluminum radiator and teeny pump. it just doesn't stand up to other components in its price range. Look at 23:00 mark of video.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PYKdKVxbnp8

The Thermaltake w/ 2 x 120mm fans manages just 68C at 54 dbA while the Swiftech manages 65C at 43dbA.. That makes the Thermaltake more than twice as loud to provide 3C less cooling. On top of that, the Swiftech gives you a reservoir, a copper radiator, no mixed metals, a 1 gpm pump and the ability to add a water block on your GFX card since the system isn't closed and can be expanded.

http://www.swiftech.com/h320x2.aspx

And that's the 2 x 120mm Swiftch model... add 50% MORE cooling with the 3 x 120mm model ... all that for just $4 more.

http://www.swiftech.org/images/products/H320-X2-COLOR-PICS.jpg

Read this link to see what happens over time with aluminum rads and copper blocks

https://martinsliquidlab.wordpress.com/2012/01/24/corrosion-explored/

4. MoBo... check out the lower cost $40 lower) of the other K7 model, the link below compares features and i don't see anything worth the $40 other than the rebranded audio sunsystem

https://www.newegg.com/Product/Productcompare.aspx?CompareItemList=%2D1%7C13%2D128%2D963%5E13%2D128%2D963%2C13%2D128%2D964%5E13%2D128%2D964

If you are looking for more features and aesthetics, specifically with regard to overclocking, may want to look at the MSI XPower MoBo/// its $100 more but it looks great in the Phanteks Evolv TG Silver case
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813130968

I have a build waiting for the AIB 1080 Tis to drop and user wants Silver RAM
https://pcpartpicker.com/product/gVcMnQ/gskill-memory-f43000c15d16gvs

5. Still a great case.

6. May want to select RAM color to match MoBo highlights if aesthetics matter.

The CXM series is not something I 'd put in a new build but it is more than serviceable.
http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story6&reid=486

The HD certainly can be used ... but how old is it ? I retire them to backup service after 3.5 to 4 years
 
I would make some changes.

I assume from the GTX1080, that this will be used primarily for gaming.

1. On the cpu, a I5-7600K is very good so long as you will overclock it. That is easy to do, but if you will not, then it is better to spend $100 more and run a I7-7700K at stock.
In either case, there is no need for liquid cooling.
A noctua NH-U12s or NH-U14s will cost less, be easier to mount, and cool sufficiently well.
See my rant on liquid cooling at the end.

2. A GTX1080 will want about a 520w psu. While the CX corsair units are prone to failure, they are not dangerous so I would continue to use it.

My canned rant on liquid cooling:
------------------------start of rant-------------------
You buy a liquid cooler to be able to extract an extra multiplier or two out of your OC.
How much do you really need?
I do not much like all in one liquid coolers when a good air cooler like a Noctua or phanteks can do the job just as well.
A liquid cooler will be expensive, noisy, less reliable, and will not cool any better
in a well ventilated case.
Liquid cooling is really air cooling, it just puts the heat exchange in a different place.
The orientation of the radiator will cause a problem.
If you orient it to take in cool air from the outside, you will cool the cpu better, but the hot air then circulates inside the case heating up the graphics card and motherboard.
If you orient it to exhaust(which I think is better) , then your cpu cooling will be less effective because it uses pre heated case air.
And... I have read too many tales of woe when a liquid cooler leaks.
google "H100 leak"
I would support an AIO cooler only in a space restricted case.
-----------------------end of rant--------------------------

Your pc will be quieter, more reliable, and will be cooled equally well with a decent air cooler.
 


Canned response to canned rant :)

As has been noted before, the canned rant only applies to CLC type liquid cooling ... certainly not custom loops or AIOs with copper rads which:

-certainly do cool better as evidenced by test results in above video and can cool quieter than air coolers.
-radiators are properly oriented only one way (intake) and actually lower inside case air temp due to the extra fans producing a higher turnover rate... 3 fans pushing air in means 3 fans worth of hot air being pushed out of the case. Air coolers remove 0 hot air from the case. Neither option has a measurable impact on the performance of inside the case components.
-Air exits the rads at 2-3C hotter than it comes in. Assuming for a moment that it wasn't being forced out within a half second and replaced immediately be cool air coming in, what component is it that is going to be affected by 28C as opposed to 25C ? CLCs operate at higher Delta T so is a lil bit hotter.
-That case comes w/ 3 fans ... adding the additional intakes makes it 6 fans and thereby lowering inside case temps significantly (verified on test bed). Case interior air volume is about 1.78 cuft. Even at 50% of rated fan air flow that's the entire case volume being turned over bringing in fresh outside cool air about every 0.53 seconds or 115 times a minute
-Adding 3 140mm case fans exhausting air on top ? bad idea.... that makes 2 fans blowing in with air inlet filters restricting air flow and 4 fans blowing out w/ no restriction.... end result about 3 x the flow going out as in leading to strong negative case pressure. So the air preheated by the CPU (90-120 watts) will exit the top, and hot exhaust air from the 250 watt GPU and the 650 watt PSU will be sucked back into the case thru the rear case grilles. With the top fans as intakes, positive pressure... no hot exhaust will be sucked back in and no dust along with it. Don't see any value in pushing a smaller amount of heat out, only to suck a larger volume of heat back in.

From a cooling perspective ... custom loops > OLC AIOs > best air coolers > CLCs
From a noise perspective ... custom loops > best air coolers > OLC AIOs > CLCs


 

akiro525

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Jan 27, 2014
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10,510
 

akiro525

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Jan 27, 2014
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10,510


thanks for the detailed response, i really appreciate it. budget is not an issue. i am not planning on using an SSD. i will get one eventually but right now its not a concern. im not going to get the strip, aesthetics is not something i care about.
i have 2 1080 monitors.

1) great i will get the 7600k, i havent used cad since i left uni nor do i do any editing.
2) i had no idea about swifttech, thanks for the info will look into it more and switch it
3)like i mentioned above aesthetics is the least of my concern, i dont plan to overlcock so will go for the lower model

i think i will use the power supply for now, and then replace it down the line maybe

thanks again for the input
 

akiro525

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Jan 27, 2014
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i also asked in another forum, a user came up with this as response

CPU: Intel Core i5-7600K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($233.79 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D9L 46.4 CFM CPU Cooler ($52.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z270MX-Gaming 5 Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($159.89 @ OutletPC)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Toshiba 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (Purchased For $0.00)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1060 6GB 6GB GAMING Video Card ($234.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Apevia X-QPACK3-CL MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($55.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($96.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: LG WH14NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer (Purchased For $0.00)

any thoughts, i see that he is also a fan of air cooling, pardon the pun
i would upgrade the 1060 definitely
 

akiro525

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Jan 27, 2014
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also his reasoning if it helps

CPU: The new generation of the same thing you had
Mobo: The new generation of the same thing you had
Cooler: Upgraded - better performance and much quieter. Go with the 212 evo if you don't care about noise or don't plan on high overclocks.
Ram: Much faster and only slightly more expensive
SSD: Great all around SSD and much higher quality for only a few dollars more
GPU: Same
Case: Same (Actually really like the looks of this case. The dual windows is pretty cool)
PSU: Very high quality PSU. Fully modular. Never cheap out on a PSU as if it goes it's taking a lot of your rig with it.
Windows: Same Windows OS - just a much cheaper price. Buy the $1 protection plan and you're good to go.
 

WiiUMasterGman

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May 11, 2016
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PCPartPicker part list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/FDPKbj
Price breakdown by merchant: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/FDPKbj/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i5-7600K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($234.89 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($65.95 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus TUF Z270 MARK 2 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($138.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($101.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO 250GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($97.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 1080 8GB G1 Gaming Video Card ($529.98 @ Amazon)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo Evolv ATX Glass ATX Mid Tower Case ($189.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1359.68
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-03-28 10:22 EDT-0400

As long as you overclock this you should be fine
 

akiro525

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Jan 27, 2014
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thanks for taking your time to help me, i really appreciate it. just a quick question if i dont over overclock, will i be bottlenecking the graphics card? i have never overclocked in my life. i intend to do some research into it once i get home from work. but in your opinion do you think a novice like me can accomplish it, is it difficult to do?
 

WiiUMasterGman

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For me I just used MSI OC Genie. It did everything for me. It won't bottleneck but overclocking is always a good idea. If you don't trust yourself then don't do yourself. You could always do research and look on YouTube for your specific motherboard
 


Pretty much what I suggested in my post but have one huge objection and one that's more of a suggestion

1. I'd avoid that Asus MoBo and run away fast ... Asus has moved to cheap / substandard, last generation audio solution (ALC 887) for their mid ranged boards which makes it poor choices for Gaming oriented builds. The MSI SLI Plus has current generation ALC 1220 and redefines value at this price point (Anandtech's words not mine) and the Z270 version and is cheaper to boot at $129

review of Z170 version
http://www.anandtech.com/show/10236/the-msi-z170a-sli-plus-review

At this point in time, there’s no one area I can point at and say there’s a critical flaw. MSI has engineered a great motherboard that’s cheap, easy to use, comes with a few extra features, looks good and performs well. It’s not the best out of everything, but at $130 it strikes me as a potential best seller for MSI. $130 for something like this, and how easy it was to use, makes it more special than most. It also makes incredible value for gaming, despite not being part of the gaming range. It’s a new standard, and any motherboard up to $180 should easily be worried about what extra is being offered.

2. I'd wait for the 1080 Ti AIB boards to drop.

a) It will fit in OPs budget
b) Like what happened with the 9xx series, the arrival of the 1080 Ti has pretty much rendered the 1080 irrelevant. The 1070 comes very close in performance to the 1080 so if you are going to spend an extra $125, for that little jump, you might as well go for the 1080 Ti for a HUGE jump.
c) the the TI is not in the cards, when it drops, price of the selected 1080 will drop.
 
Solution

akiro525

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Jan 27, 2014
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10,510
i see thanks for the advice everyone, i will take it and wait for the TI, see how the prices are affected. it does seem a bit silly trying to build a system now. thanks again everyone. i will probably ask again for some advice to help choose the components again.