Need feedback/advice on my first PC build

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mrkhly89

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I'm undertaking my first PC build and after spending a week researching parts and prices etc, heres the list of main parts i came up with:

MOBO: ASRock z170 extreme 4
CPU: Intel i5 6600k
GPU: ASUS Dual GTX 1060 6GB
RAM: Corsair Vengeance 8GB(2 x 4)2666MHz
PSU: Corsair SF600W
CPU cooler: cooler master 212x heatsink fan

I'm just looking for some general feedback about the choices I've made. I think I will get decent performane with these for a reasonable price, but I have a couple of specific queries.

The RAM. Is it enough? Ive heard from some that modern games now need 16GB!?

The PSU. Is 600W overkill? I had my eye on a gold standard 450W, but a relation, who is a sound engineer who knows about PSU's, told me that low wattage psu's run hot. Is he right?

Thanks in advance for any feedback/advice. :)
 
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Aeacus
It's true that the latest AAA titles can use up to 16GB of RAM.
If your budget allows, go for 2x 8GB DDR4 2800 Mhz or 3200 Mhz RAM. If not, go for 2x 4GB DDR4 2800 Mhz or 3200 Mhz RAM and after some time, buy the 2nd 2x 4GB DDR4 RAM kit with matching Mhz, so you can have 16GB of RAM in total.
As far as why i suggest getting either 2800 Mhz or 3200 Mhz is because your selected MoBo doesn't support 2666 Mhz nor 3000 Mhz RAM,
specs: http://www.asrock.com/mb/Intel/Z170%20Extreme4/?cat=Specifications

As far as 600W PSU goes, it is too much for your system that consumes about 300W in total. Also the Corsair SF series PSUs are intended to go in HTPC builds since the PSU is a SFX PSU and not a standard ATX PSU.
About 450W PSUs, it completely...
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Aeacus

Aeacus

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It's true that the latest AAA titles can use up to 16GB of RAM.
If your budget allows, go for 2x 8GB DDR4 2800 Mhz or 3200 Mhz RAM. If not, go for 2x 4GB DDR4 2800 Mhz or 3200 Mhz RAM and after some time, buy the 2nd 2x 4GB DDR4 RAM kit with matching Mhz, so you can have 16GB of RAM in total.
As far as why i suggest getting either 2800 Mhz or 3200 Mhz is because your selected MoBo doesn't support 2666 Mhz nor 3000 Mhz RAM,
specs: http://www.asrock.com/mb/Intel/Z170%20Extreme4/?cat=Specifications

As far as 600W PSU goes, it is too much for your system that consumes about 300W in total. Also the Corsair SF series PSUs are intended to go in HTPC builds since the PSU is a SFX PSU and not a standard ATX PSU.
About 450W PSUs, it completely depends on how good the PSU build quality is. Low build quality units tend to run hotter than good build quality units.
For good build quality unit, i suggest you look towards Seasonic M12II or G-series, in 500W range,
pcpp: https://pcpartpicker.com/products/compare/TgW9TW,DPCwrH/

About your CPU cooler, there are better mid-sized CPU coolers to choose from.
Here's further reading: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/best-cpu-coolers,4181.html
(Scroll down a bit to see mid-sized CPU coolers.)

In my Skylake build (full specs in my sig), i also have i5-6600K and i'm using the Arctic Freezer i32 in push-pull configuration. Freezer i32 is 2nd best mid-sized CPU cooler and you can easily upgrade it to push-pull configuration with any 120mm fan. Oh, Freezer i32 comes with semi-passive fan that doesn't turn at all until certain CPU temp is reached. For my i5-6600K, that temp was 52°C. With push-pull, the highest i've seen out of my CPU during benchmarking @ 3.9 Ghz was 55°C. Currently my CPU idles at 26°C.

As far as your GTX 1060 goes, here's further reading for helping you to choose the best GTX 1060 for your system,
link: https://gpunerd.com/guides/best-gtx-1060-brand

I have MSI Gaming X series GPU in my Skylake build but mine is 3GB version. And i can say that MSI Gaming X GPU is really quiet since the 2x Torx 2.0 fans it has doesn't turn at all until GPU reaches 60°C. And when the fans do turn on, they won't go with 100% off the bat, keeping the system nice and quiet. Oh, i also love the GPU looks, a perfect fit for my black & red themed build. MSI GPU also has RGB LED on it's side that can be synced with music via MSI Gaming App.
 
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mrkhly89

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Thank you for the quick and detailed reply.

The ASUS Dual g#gtx 1060, which has a white fan cover, has already been dispatched so its too late to change it. I got a good deal on it so hopefully it will be OK. I originally wanted the ROG Strix beauty but it costs way more.

I forgot to mention the case I chose is the Fractal Design R5 with white case fans. Plain and simple case and great reviews.

I'm going to take your advice and go for the Arctic Freezer i32 with the single white (see where I'm going with this? :wahoo:) fan, it has better reviews and looks, well, sturdier to me. Is it possible to add a second fan later for push/pull?

I can't believe I missed the RAM clock speed. I read somewhere that RAM will run at the lower speed by default? In any case the motherboard I chose has actually been discontinued, unbeknownst to Amazon and myself. They're not making it anymore so I have to choose a different one. The ASUS z170 pro looks good, supports all the clock speeds :heink: and is white and black, to match the whiteness of it all. What do you think?
OK so ill probably get 2 x 4GB of RAM for now and two more later like you suggested.

Now for the PSU. My own thoughts on it were to get a 450W like I said or something more powerful to give me some headroom for possible future upgrading. The Corsair CX550W is about half the price of the 600, though bronze standard as opposed to gold. To be honest the PSU's efficiency doesn't really bother me, its not going to draw a huge amount more current going from >80% to >90% efficiency. The temperature is more of an issue, but if like you say good quality units don't run too hot then that 550W should be fine.
(edit: I know you said Seasonic but they are expensive. Are Corsair good in your opinion? I mean the last thing I want is for my PSU to melt or blow up.)

Thank you Aeacus. I really appreciate your input. I stand to save around 500 euro building myself and the fact that the community is so willing to help makes the decision to build myself a no-brainer,
 
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Aeacus

Aeacus

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You can easily upgrade Freezer i32 from push to push-pull since you'll get 2 sets of fan mounting clips with the cooler. One set would be used up to install the stock fan while the 2nd set is left for further upgrade.

Under the spoiler is combined image of my Freezer i32:
Top left: Freezer i32 retail box.
Top right: Freezer i32 with stock fan and Arctic F12 PWM PST fan in push-pull configuration.
Bottom left: Freezer i32 with 2x Corsair ML120 Pro red LED fans in push-pull configuration.
Bottom right: Freezer i32 in action with Corsair mag-lev fans.
(click on image for full size)

If you don't enable the RAM's XMP profile from the BIOS then your 2666 Mhz RAM will run in 2133 Mhz by default.

As far as MoBo goes, you can also look towards MSI Krait Gaming series MoBos for your black & white theme, e.g:
Z170 Krait Gaming, specs: https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/Z170-KRAIT-GAMING.html#hero-overview
Z170A Krait Gaming, specs: https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/Z170A-KRAIT-GAMING.html#hero-overview
Z170A Krait Gaming R6 Siege, specs: https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/Z170A-KRAIT-GAMING-R6-SIEGE.html#hero-overview
Z170A Krait Gaming 3X, specs: https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/Z170A-KRAIT-GAMING-3X.html#hero-overview

Aesthetically speaking, MSI's Krait Gaming MoBos seem to match your build theme better than Asus'es gray & white Z170-Pro,
specs: https://www.asus.com/Motherboards/Z170-PRO/overview/

Corsair PSUs range from great quality (Tier one) up to low quality (Tier four), while Seasonic PSUs are only either great quality (Tier one) or good quality (Tier two),
PSU Tier list: http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/id-2547993/psu-tier-list.html

Corsair CX series PSU, at best is mediocre quality (Tier three) PSU if you get the one with black lettering. But if you get the older version of Corsair CX series PSU with the green lettering then that PSU is low quality (Tier four) PSU.
In Corsair lineup, there are great PSUs too, e.g HXi, AXi, RMi series. But since Corsair PSUs range greatly by quality, it's better to stick with Seasonic, especially if you don't know much about the PSU brands and build quality. Since the PSU is the most important component inside PC, you do not want to cheap out on a PSU if you care about your PC. So, aim for a good quality (Tier two) PSU.

All my 3 PCs: Skylake, Haswell and AMD are powered by Seasonic. Full specs in my sig. (Got PRIME series in Skylake, M12II EVO series in Haswell and S12II series in AMD.)

If you're low on cash, go with Seasonic S12II-520, which is fully wired, same as Corsair CX550, with the same 80+ Bronze efficiency but with far better build quality,
pcpp: https://pcpartpicker.com/product/fZyFf7/seasonic-power-supply-s12ii520bronze

Though, if the Seasonic M12II-520 EVO and Seasonic G-550 that i linked to you earlier are expensive to you, then look up how much my Seasonic PRIME 650 80+ Titanium costs. :pt1cable:
 
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mrkhly89

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Fantastic advice all around, and especially on the PSU, thank you.

So the Corsair CX550 (the one with the black lettering) i chose is actually low quality with little or no safety features, incredible. Another bullet dodged. I'll have a look at buying a better one when I get home this evening.


 
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Aeacus

Aeacus

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You're welcome. :)

Reason why Corsair PSUs range from great quality to low quality is because Corsair doesn't make it's PSUs but instead they buy the PSUs in from PSU OEMs, mostly from Channel Well Technology who is 2nd grade PSU OEM.

Seasonic, in the other hand, is a 1st grade PSU OEM. They are also the oldest PSU OEM in the world by being in business for over 40 years and they know what they are doing. That's why all Seasonic PSUs are only either great or good quality units. Seasonic doesn't only sell PSUs under it's own name. As being PSU OEM, they also supply other famous brands with PSUs, e.g Antec, Be Quiet, Corsair, EVGA, XFX etc.

In CPU world, there is constant battle between Intel and AMD; in GPU world, there's constant battle between Nvidia and Radeon; while in PSU world, there's constant battle between Seasonic and Super Flower.

Super Flower also sells it's PSUs under it's own name but their lineup is much smaller and harder to get when compared to the Seasonic.
 
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mrkhly89

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I see. I'm glad I came here for advice, you obviously know your stuff.

With that in mind and following further reading I've decided to again take your advice. This time with regard to the PSU and motherboard. I will get the Seasonic M12-II EVO 520W and the MSI Intel Z170 KRAIT-GAMING-3X http://amzn.eu/1AjRPgH

So here'smy full list as of now:

MOBO: MSI Intel Z170 KRAIT-GAMING-3X
CPU: Intel i5 6600k 3.5GHz Skylake
GPU: ASUS Dual GTX 1060 6GB
RAM: Corsair Vengeance 8GB(2 x 4)2666MHz
PSU: Seasonic M12-II EVO 520W
CPU cooler: Arctic Freezer i32
Storage: Toshiba P300 1TB HDD; Samsung 250GB 850 EVO SSD
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 Black ATX Midtower

Peripherals: Logitech G810 Orion Mechanical Keyboard; Logitech G403 Mouse

Extras: So far just a Fractal Design GP-14 fan to match the one intake fan included with the case.


I know the mobo doesn't have 2666MHz listed as one of it's clock speeds but as far as I can tell I just won't be able to select a 2666MHz XMP setting. I should still be able to manually overclock the RAM up to 2666MHz, from what I've read. Well, I guess I'm bound to find out because the RAM has already been shipped and I definitely want the MSI mobo, even if it means having to get different cards later. :vomi:

I went for Logitech simply because I bought a Logitech Extreme 3D Pro for ~ 60 euro about 13 or 14 years ago and I still use it to this day. I mean it has seen thousands of hours use (I got it when I started flight simming, I was 14 or 15. I'm 28 now). About two years ago there was even a fault with the twist rudder function due to the wearing down of a plastic lever inside the casing. I shoved a tiny piece of insulation off a copper wire over the worn plastic, put back on the casing and I had a working rudder again :bounce:

So yeah, I like Logitech :D
 
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Aeacus

Aeacus

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Your build looks good.

Not going to argue over KB and mouse since those are completely personal choices. Feel free to go with the ones that like you the most.

I have Corsair STRAFE RGB mechanical KB with Cherry MX Silent switches and i'm happy with mine. :) Though, my cheap-end gaming mouse needs upgrading and i'm still deciding which one to get.

Oh, did you look up how much my Seasonic PRIME 650 80+ Titanium costs? :D
 
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mrkhly89

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Yeah it costs ~ €200 here :ouch:

Today I've been doing some reading about the MSI vs Asus z170 boards on this forum and most people recommend the Asus, especially for overclocking. To be honest I probably won't overclock the 6600k right away, I jsut got it to have the option in the future.

Also there seems to be a consensus that Asus's quality control is better, but then I read some reviews saying that the Asus z170 pro has a cheap feel like plastic.

So, I just don't know what mobo to get. But, if you recommend the MSI over Asus then thats what i'll go for because you gave solid advice so far :D

Plus if it all goes wrong I can blame you :lol:
 
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Aeacus

Aeacus

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Well, i payed €206.80 for my PRIME 650 80+ Titanium. :D My PSU is 3rd most expensive component inside my Skylake build, costing even more than my full-tower Corsair 760T case.

Asus is the most popular MoBo maker and a lot of people like Asus. Also, Asus is far bigger company than MSI with lots of more customers who up vote them. Not saying that Asus is bad, just explaining why most people favor Asus.

Rather than looking the brand as whole, read the reviews of the specific products since every company has it's lemons.
Here's few reviews of your selected MSI Z170A Krait Gaming 3X if you haven't already read those,
link 1: http://proclockers.com/reviews/motherboards/msi-z170a-krait-gaming-3x-motherboard-review?nopaging=1
link 2: http://www.pcgameware.co.uk/reviews/motherboards/msi-z170a-krait-gaming-motherboard-review/

For example, Tom's Hardware did a review on my MSI Z170A Gaming M5 MoBo,
link: http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/msi-z170a-gaming-m5-motherboard,4319.html

And even though my MoBo seems to have 2nd tier overclocking, i'm pleased with mine. Did get my i5-6600K from 3.5 Ghz to stable 4.1 Ghz with ease and i can't say that my MoBo would have 2nd tier overclocking. Also, i'm not intending to push my CPU hard since high overclocking level will decrease CPU's lifespan. Not planning to burn out my CPU in 2 years while having it running at 4.7 Ghz or so.
As far as my MoBo goes, i picked it by the features it has (e.g 2x M.2 SSD slots, 3-way SLI support, plenty of USB ports, one PS/2 port) and the nice black & red theme was just the icing on the cake. :)
 
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mrkhly89

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OK my mind is at ease. I'll go for the MSI, support the little guy and all that :D

Damn thats a sweet case. Now I'm sorry I didnt pay a bit more for a nicer one. But it's ok the important parts are inside the box, so I'm happy enough.

Maybe I'll get a nicer case for my next build. I haven't even started putting it together yet and I'm already hooked. I'm afraid that I wont enjoy using it as much as I enjoyed building it :D
 
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Aeacus

Aeacus

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Since PC cases are personal choices, i didn't suggest you something else. I figured that you like plain cases since i know plenty of people who do.

In general, there are 4 kinds of people when it comes to PC cases: 1.those who like plain cases; 2.those who like fancy cases; 3.those who doesn't care at all about case looks; 4.those who want to build their own PC case.

Since i love fancy cases, the fanciest looking one i've seen so far is CircleCT Phoenix,
link: http://www.circlect.com/gaming-accessories/gaming-cabinets/phoenix.html
Sadly, CircleCT doesn't do international shipping. So, i went with Corsair 760T for my Skylake build that is also one great looking case.

If you're interested how my build looks like, then i've shared some pics about it here in the forums,
1st set of pics: http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/id-3272328/show-newest-system-upgrade-components.html#19094564
2nd set of pics: http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/id-3272328/show-newest-system-upgrade-components.html#19158458
3rd set of pics: http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/id-3272328/show-newest-system-upgrade-components/page-2.html#19277195
4th set of pics: http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/id-3272328/show-newest-system-upgrade-components/page-3.html#19439439
5th set of pics: http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/id-3272328/show-newest-system-upgrade-components/page-5.html#19565270
(Note: All links are different.)

If you enjoy installing components into your PC as do i, you can also do the same what i'm doing: i'm buying one or two components for my Skylake build every month. So, that i can take my Skylake build partly apart, while enjoying the monthly components installment and improving my build even further. :) The 5 links above are actually links to my monthly build log.
 
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mrkhly89

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I’m definitely a guy who likes plain cases, though I also like fancy ones that are kinda plain, you know? :D

When the R5 arrived I was impressed. It’s very nice in person and has loads of room for future upgrading of the components. The only thing I don’t like about it is the power switch which looks nice, but seems to stick a bit. The case has a fan controller but I’m wondering if the Mobo also has fan control and if so, I guess the Mobo would be better, especially if it’s automatic.

Your build looks great. I will definitely consider buying upgraded parts in the future, like maybe a 1070 for 4K resolution.

I’ll keep this thread updated with how the build goes. The rest of the parts will arrive this week.


 
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Aeacus

Aeacus

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Your MoBo has 2x CPU fan headers and 3x case fan headers while all are 4-pin. MoBo can control connected 4-pin fans in PWM mode or DC mode and 3-pin fans in DC mode. While your case fan controller has DC mode only.
For 4-pin fans, you're best connecting them to the MoBo since you can control your fans via PWM mode. But if you have 3-pin fans then it doesn't matter much where you connect them for DC mode (voltage control).

Though, connecting fans to the MoBo allow you to set custom fan curve from BIOS where your fans ramp up depending on your preferences. Or you can set your fans to run in SMART mode where fan speeds adjust by the system temperature. If you connect your fans to your case built-in fan controller (3 channels, 3 speed), you have limited control over the speeds of your fans.
My Corsair 760T also has built-in fan controller (4 channels, 2 speed) but since the control over the fans is so limited, i went with 6 channel fan controller that gives me absolute voltage control for each connected fan separately.

GTX 1070 is great for 1440p (2K). It will do 4K too but on low/medium settings. For proper 4K GPU, look towards GTX 1080, that can do medium/high settings @ 4K or better yet, a GTX 1080 Ti for high/ultra settings @ 4K.
 
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mrkhly89

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So, I completed the build and I'm happy to report it works. I was expecting the Arctic freexer i32 to arrive last Friday, but seeing as it didn't, and that was the only part I was waiting on, I decided to buy another one locally so I could go ahead with the build over the weekend. So here is the full parts list:

MOBO: MSI Intel Z170 KRAIT-GAMING-3X
CPU: Intel i5 6600k 3.5GHz Skylake
GPU: ASUS Dual GTX 1060 6GB
RAM: Corsair Vengeance 8GB(2 x 4)2666MHz
PSU: Seasonic M12-II EVO 520W
CPU cooler: Cooler Masterhyper 103
Storage: Toshiba P300 1TB HDD; Samsung 250GB 850 EVO SSD
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 Black ATX Midtower

Peripherals: Logitech G810 Orion Keyboard; Logitech G403 Mouse; Acer K272HL 27' Monitor; IIyama 22' Touchscreen Monitor (not sure of the model)

At the moment the processor is overclocked to 4.1GHz using the game boost button in the bios. The RAM is also overclocked to 2400MHz using the XMP. This is fine for now, I don't expect to have any performance issues at this.

I ran Arma 3 last night for a few hours while monitoring temps etc. The processor never hit 60C and the GPU reached about 68C.

I'll upload some photos soon as I can
 
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mrkhly89

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:) Thanks! Yes the mobo looks even better in person. The only issue I had with it was the I/O shield being a bit tricky, but it's ok. :)

OK I'll post them there also!
 
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