New gaming build for racing sims (mid-high)

Skontrodude · May 9, 2018

Hi, my current build is dated 2011 so It's definitely time to start looking for something new. The goal is mainly to play racing sims at Full HD on 3x 144hz monitors (I already own one AOC G2790PX, two more will be added). I spent a few months trying to get some information and I have set up a first list, with a BUDGET of around 2000-2500 €/$:

CPU I7 8700K
CPU COOLER - Scythe - FUMA
MB ASRock - Z370 Extreme4
RAM Corsair - Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200
SSD Samsung - 860 Evo 500GB 2.5"
HDD generic for storage, 1 or 2 TB
GPU Asus - GeForce GTX 1080 8GB STRIX
PSU Corsair - TXM Gold 650W 80+ Gold
Cooler Master CM 690 III Window Edition Case

Any advice is appreciated, my main concern is the graphics card (there are so many options with a 1080 GPU) and the case: I don't have any space problem so I'd prefer a generously-sized mid-tower. Thank you all in advance.
Nick

sizzling · May 9, 2018

With triple 144Hz monitors Id be looking at nothing lower than the 1080Ti. If needed you could drop to a 8600k, at the resolution you will be running you won’t see the benefits of the 8700k as you will be gpu bound.

coozie7 · May 9, 2018

Please give us your location, prices vary widely across the Globe.

Agree with Sizzling; Really you'll want a GTX1080Ti for those displays, it's expensive I know but I think you'll be disappointed with a single GTX1080 for such fast paced games.

In the meantime here's a PcPartpicker listing using French prices as a guide for the Eurozone:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i5-8600K 3.6GHz 6-Core Processor (€224.99 @ Amazon France)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG - H7 49.0 CFM CPU Cooler (€44.48 @ Alternate)
Motherboard: ASRock - Z370 Pro4 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (€119.56 @ Amazon France)
Memory: G.Skill - Aegis 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory (€186.90 @ LDLC)
Storage: Samsung - 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (€203.30 @ Amazon France)
Storage: Hitachi - Ultrastar 7K3000 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (€64.90 @ Amazon France)
Video Card: Gigabyte - GeForce GTX 1080 Ti 11GB OC BLACK Video Card (€964.90 @ LDLC)
Case: Cooler Master - MasterBox Pro 5 RGB ATX Mid Tower Case (€75.45 @ LDLC)
Power Supply: SeaSonic - FOCUS Plus Gold 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply (€95.89 @ Amazon France)
Total: €1980.37
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-05-09 20:05 CEST+0200

Why the i5? At this kind of resolution the system is going to be bottlenecked ( held back ) by whatever GPU you use, I can save money by using a cheaper CPU without reducing overall performance.

Why the little H7? It's cheap.

Be VERY careful to check local prices and availability of the GTX1080Ti and avoid the single fan models, they throttle too easily.
And bear in mind their is several '1080Tis with build in liquid cooling, they are both cooler and generally quieter than the aircooled cards, one may be worth the price premium to you.

King Dranzer · May 9, 2018

Here is the list:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i7-8700K 3.7GHz 6-Core Processor (€319.90 @ Alza)
CPU Cooler: Corsair - H115i PRO 55.4 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler (€133.99 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Motherboard: Asus - ROG STRIX Z370-F GAMING ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (€190.81 @ Mindfactory)
Memory: G.Skill - Trident Z 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory (€152.74 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Storage: Samsung - 970 Evo 500GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive (€185.93 @ Mindfactory)
Storage: Seagate - Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (€57.88 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Video Card: Zotac - GeForce GTX 1080 Ti 11GB Mini Video Card (€754.94 @ Mindfactory)
Case: Phanteks - Enthoo Pro ATX Full Tower Case (€99.90 @ Caseking)
Power Supply: SeaSonic - FOCUS Plus Platinum 650W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply (€111.90 @ Caseking)
Monitor: Samsung - CHG90 49.0" 3840x1080 144Hz Monitor
Total: €2007.99
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-05-09 20:18 CEST+0200

Instead of going for 3 27" monitors get the above listed 49" Ultra-wide monitor which is equal to 3 x 27" monitors in screen dimension and in pixels. I saved you enough money to add-up to your monitor cost by which you can afford this Samsung Monitor. Probably by the time you buy the monitor there will be more options available at that aspect ration and size.

Skontrodude · May 10, 2018

sizzling :

coozie7 :

Thank you guys for your quick replies, the system will be mainly used to play iRacing and Assetto Corsa. Especially for iRacing, I have always heard it is a game that stress the CPU more than the GPU, therefore the initial choice of 1080 and 8700k. I will consider getting the 8600K and 1080Ti instead!

A few questions on the parts suggested by coozie7:
-I guess the H7 cooler is fine with the i5 but will it be enough in case I'll decide to stick (or upgrade in the future) with the i7? The Fuma seemed a good option without reaching the price of a Noctua D15 (I plan to do mild overclocking).

-The SSD you suggested costs around €200 while the 860 EVO €122 (2.5') or €144 (M.2). Why the big difference?

By the way, I am from Italy, so any suggestion within the Eurozone is fine! Thanks again

King Dranzer · May 10, 2018

Here is the list:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i7-8700K 3.7GHz 6-Core Processor (€319.99 @ Amazon Italia)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG - H5 Universal 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler (€46.58 @ Amazon Italia)
Motherboard: Asus - TUF Z370 Plus Gaming ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (€143.83 @ Amazon Italia)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory (€141.80 @ Amazon Italia)
Storage: Samsung - 970 Evo 500GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive
Storage: Seagate - Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (€71.89 @ Alternate Italia)
Video Card: Zotac - GeForce GTX 1080 Ti 11GB Mini Video Card (€788.99 @ Amazon Italia)
Case: Phanteks - Enthoo Pro M ATX Mid Tower Case (€95.00 @ Amazon Italia)
Power Supply: EVGA - SuperNOVA G2 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply (€181.12 @ Amazon Italia)
Total: €1789.20
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-05-10 10:16 CEST+0200

That SAMSUNG 970EVO is available in Amazon.it for €220. The difference is of the speed as it is lot faster than 860EVO.

coozie7 · May 10, 2018

The H7 was just for demonstration, the Sythe FUMA would be a better choice though, especially for when you start overclocking.

The pricing may just be due to regional variations, again swap it for another as you wish.

Here's a revised build with Italian pricing:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i7-8700K 3.7GHz 6-Core Processor (€319.99 @ Amazon Italia)
CPU Cooler: Scythe - FUMA Rev.B 79.0 CFM CPU Cooler (€54.90 @ Amazon Italia)
Motherboard: MSI - Z370 GAMING PRO CARBON ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (€176.38 @ Amazon Italia)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory (€185.43 @ Amazon Italia)
Storage: Samsung - 860 Evo 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (€122.94 @ Amazon Italia)
Storage: Seagate - Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (€71.89 @ Alternate Italia)
Video Card: EVGA - GeForce GTX 1080 Ti 11GB FTW3 HYBRID GAMING Video Card (€942.27 @ Amazon Italia)
Case: Cooler Master - MasterBox Pro 5 RGB ATX Mid Tower Case (€83.99 @ Amazon Italia)
Power Supply: SeaSonic - FOCUS Plus Gold 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply (€99.76 @ Amazon Italia)
Total: €2057.55
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-05-10 19:32 CEST+0200

As you can see, I've made a few changes.

Moving to an i7 added about 70 Euro to the cost, you can drop to the less expensive i5 8600K but I feel the extra cost is worth it in this case.

Better motherboard, more suited to overclocking.

Cheaper 500Gb SSD.

The EVGA GTX1080Ti I chose is one of the more expensive ones thanks to its excellent hybrid cooling solution.

That big power supply actually is a little cheaper than the 650Watt version!

Skontrodude · May 10, 2018

King Dranzer :

Thanks to you as well for your suggestions, just a few things:

- that video card has a great price but I heard those mini versions are struggling a little bit with high temps against the standard solutions... what do you think?

- the 49' monitor you suggested above is awesome, but I think the triple solution provide better immersion in racing sims as the peripheral view is entirely covered by the monitors (180° laterally). I never tried any of those config but it seems that the curved monitor is not "curved" enough, although the lack of frames in the middle should be amazing!

King Dranzer · May 10, 2018

Zotac mini is not bad at all for general use and has ability to be pushed a bit. But if it is pushed as much as ASUS STIX or EVGA ACX card then it will thermal throttle. I don't expect anyone trying to push GTX1080Ti Zotac mini that far as even at base settings it perform exceptionally well and comes with 5YR(2yrs + 3Yr extension free) warranty.

Yes you are correct that curved monitor will not be as curved as you can setup 3 monitors but it will be bezel-less. That was just one of the option you can choose from. If you are comfortable with triple monitor setup then go for it. If you stick with triple monitor setup I will recommend getting better GTX1080Ti from EVGA or ASUS as you have extra budget to spend on.

Do some research about that curved Extra wide monitor and decide. Take your time and don't hurry the build.

coozie7 · May 10, 2018

The mini card won't exactly struggle as such, what it will do is lower its boost frequency more quickly than a better cooled card, and it will drop speed even more quickly if it's overclocked: OC=more heat=higher temperatures=lower boost clock to keep the temperatures within Nvidias predetermined limits.
That said, it won't exactly be a slouch.

Not sure if the 970 Evo is worth the extra 100 Euro, but even adding one to my build still keeps you comfortably below your 2500 Euro ceiling and I pushed its price of my suggested build up by selecting one of the top class GTX1080Ti versions available.

One point about that big Samsung monitor, the few I can find are all around 1200 Euro!

Agree totally with King Dranzer about taking your time, this is a large amount of cash to be spending, especially when you add in the cost of the display/s. Is there anywhere like a TV or electricals shop where you can see a similarly sized display to the big Samsung CHG90 working? Even a lower resolution TV will at least give you an idea as to what that display will look like at home.

Skontrodude · May 13, 2018

Thank you both again for your help, I think I have a better idea of what I need. I'll stick with the triple monitor, I already own one and I "just" need to pay €600 to add the other two.

As for the video card, the EVGA price is again above € 1000 (1022 today) so I I'll wait a bit more and hopefully it'll come down again. Price fluctuation is crazy these days for GPUs...

Regarding the case, i love both your suggestions, the CM is unavailable (would be shipped in 1-2 months) so I'll go with the Phanteks, it really seems amazing!

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