PC build for developing games (Unity)

[miva2]

I'm looking to build a pc primarily for developing games in Unity.

I was looking for information on what to look for in hardware parts and saw some great info on this site. So I figured it's the perfect place to ask for professional advice

I don't have an extensive knowledge on hardware, so I'm interested in some important points to look at in parts. And also specific parts that suit my needs (and other components it requires or synergises well with). I have no experience with building a pc so anything that can point me in the right direction for that is also appreciated.
I'm currently reading through this guide and checked the BestConfigs of this month among some other pages. PCPartPicker looks useful, I'll check that out soon.

I'm a programmer and most of my work will be done in Unity (or well... the IDE associated with it). It needs to be able to run Unity and similar software fluently and obviously needs to run games as well. I'm not interested in playing everything in the highest possible settings, it just needs to run everything smoothly.

I'm looking for a build around €800 ($1083.72). It can be more if I will benefit from it. It would be awesome if I could make a beast below that pricepoint.
I had my eyes on an Intel i7 4790 cpu. I could save a lot with an i5 but I think it's worth getting the extra edge and making my pc more future-proof.
I don't know much about the current video cards. I currently have a Sapphire ATI Radeon HD 4770. Very happy with it but it's served it's time. A Modern version of that one (or equivalent Nvidia card) would be nice. Note that it had a great performance/price ratio in it's time. Radeon R9 270X (~€185) maybe?
An SSD would be useful. 120GB is enough. Is anything less than that recommended?
As for RAM, I'm not sure yet how much I should get. Compared to my current 2GB, 8GB is a huge improvement. 16GB would be nice but maybe a bit luxurious. If the price allows me to, I'm considering 16GB if it will be useful for me and for extra future-proofing. Is it a good idea to get a single 8GB ram stick and maybe upgrade it later with a second one when I feel the need to? Does the second one need to be the same model as the first one or is a newer version just as good?(in case they don't sell the old one anymore)
A harddisk with 1TB or 2TB would be best for me I think. 500GB will be filled up fast and then I need to spend on external disks, can just as well go for a bigger internal one. Doesn't need to be super fast, just decent enough to not become too much of a bottleneck. Perhaps 1TB for now with the ability to add more later.

I don't know much about the other parts yet, mainly: motherboard, PSU, cooling, case. Any points on what I need to look for in those are greatly appreciated!

Thank you for your help!
I'll continue looking more into it and might update this post when I get a clearer view of what I need.

=============================================================================

My currently selected items:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor (€289.68 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Motherboard: ASRock H97 PRO4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (€74.97 @ Hardwareversand)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive (€109.35 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (€50.39 @ Pixmania DE)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 270X 4GB Dual-X Video Card (€190.89 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case (€91.52 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Power Supply: Antec High Current Gamer 620W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (€91.48 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit)
Total: €898.28
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Thank you numanator, Black_Plague!

update1:
Added the Samsung 840 EVO 120GB ssd and changed price to euro
update2:
Swapped 120GB SSD for 250GB SSD

requirements:

• 
  ■ mobo needs 4 ram slots (so I can make a 2 x 4GB setup and upgrade to 4 x 4GB later)
  ■ ssd at least 120GB
  ■ hdd at least 1TB (2TB is good too, more only if really cheap)
  ■ preferred size of case smaller than: width: 23,5cm depth: 46cm height: 50cm
  The depth and height can be a bit over that value since there is room to wiggle but the width should be preferable <23cm so it still fits easily in this pc holder under my desk.

notes:
What is the difference between these 2 windows 8 version? http://pcpartpicker.com/part/microsoft-os-wn700615 and http://pcpartpicker.com/part/microsoft-os-885370635690
I chose the highest rated RAM on pcpartpicker as there were no suggestions.

 

[Black_Plague]

You have 2 options here.
A desktop or a laptop.
What will you get from a desktop you cant get from a laptop?
+less heat problems
+better performance
+desktop computers are cheaper
+easier to fix if a part is broken
-harder to carry around
-you may need to buy an external battery so you don't lose progress if electricity goes off
What will you get from a laptop you cant get from desktop?
+easier to carry
+built in battery
-compressed parts may heat faster
-less performance
-expensive
-repair takes more time and costs more

What do i recommend you?
I recommend you to buy an intel core i7 2.2 ghz at least.(i don't trust amd's prices )
And nvidia gt750m or better graphics card.(gb of graphics card isnt important. The second number is important. 9 is best and 1 is worst)(2 gb of graphics card would be ok.)
A computer with 1x8gb ram will coat more than 2x4gb. It depends on your budget. (I recommend at least 8 gb ddr3 ram)
You dont need a cd/dvd reader. Most programs can be bought on internet on these days. A cd/dvd driver you wont use will cost you extra 150$
At least 750gb HDD if you dont have any external HDD's.

 

[miva2]

You have 2 options here.
A desktop or a laptop.
What will you get from a desktop you cant get from a laptop?
+less heat problems
+better performance
+desktop computers are cheaper
+easier to fix if a part is broken
-harder to carry around
-you may need to buy an external battery so you don't lose progress if electricity goes off
What will you get from a laptop you cant get from desktop?
+easier to carry
+built in battery
-compressed parts may heat faster
-less performance
-expensive
-repair takes more time and costs more

What do i recommend you?
I recommend you to buy an intel core i7 2.2 ghz at least.(i don't trust amd's prices )
And nvidia gt750m or better graphics card.(gb of graphics card isnt important. The second number is important. 9 is best and 1 is worst)(2 gb of graphics card would be ok.)
A computer with 1x8gb ram will coat more than 2x4gb. It depends on your budget. (I recommend at least 8 gb ddr3 ram)
You dont need a cd/dvd reader. Most programs can be bought on internet on these days. A cd/dvd driver you wont use will cost you extra 150$
At least 750gb HDD if you dont have any external HDD's.

Thank you very much for your reply Black_Plague!
I am looking for a desktop here.

The cpu that I'm leaning toward is this one. Well above 2.2Ghz
I believe the Nvidia gt750m is a laptop card. I can easily get better cards at a lower price. I don't see why you recommend that one.
A stick of 8GB is more than double the price of the equivalent of 4GB?
On the website of my local pc store I notice they sell almost only dual ram sticks. I assume this is also more performant than a single ram stick. After reading a bit more (including this topic and others) the loss of a single ram stick is not much and will greatly help in future proofing. [strike]So I think I'm leaning towards that solution.[/strike] After some more reading and talking to someone I came to the conclusion that I can just as well start out with a 2 x 4GB setup and later on upgrade this to a 4 x 4GB. I'm not going to go above 16GB in the coming years so I should be fine. I need a motherboard with 4 slots then but those are common I've been told.
Are you sure a cd/dvd drive will cost me $150? I'd like to see what you are looking at then. According to these bestconfigs it's around $20. Which I will gladly pay for those times I need to use a disk. Unless if I misunderstood you and you are talking about something else.
I agree on the HDD but I think I'll crank it up to 1TB, perhaps 2TB if I find a good deal.

Thanks for your help. More suggestions are always welcome!

 

[Black_Plague]

I thought you might want advantage of carrying your computer, that explains laptop parts doesn't it?
Also i live in Turkey and technology costs too much.
By the way that CPU looks good. It will be fine for 5-8 years.

 

[numanator]

Do you want to overclock your CPU or would you prefer to leave it at stock clocks?

 

[numanator]

If you don't plan to overclock the CPU then this build would work pretty well for you:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1230 V3 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($249.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H97 PRO4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($86.66 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 280 3GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($209.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Antec High Current Gamer 620W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($59.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($15.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $757.57
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

The Xeon 1230v3 is basically a i7 without the integrated GPU for $80 less (but is locked so it cannot be overclocked).
For the Mobo, you typically pick based on what your needs/wants are: overclocking? multiple graphics cards? sound quality? etc. The H97 series mobos are decent but cannot support overclocking or multiple GPUs
For the Power supply, it is typically sized based on the GPU and CPU but a good quality 600w is enough for pretty much any single graphics card out now. Brands/modles to look at for PSUs are any Seasonic, any XFX, Antec (HCG series), Corsair (AX/TX/HX series only), EVGA G2 series.
The case I picked out has good cooling and some sound dampening to keep it quiet.

 

[miva2]

If you don't plan to overclock the CPU then this build would work pretty well for you:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1230 V3 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($249.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: ASRock H97 PRO4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($86.66 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 280 3GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($209.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Antec High Current Gamer 620W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($59.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($15.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $757.57
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

The Xeon 1230v3 is basically a i7 without the integrated GPU for $80 less (but is locked so it cannot be overclocked).
For the Mobo, you typically pick based on what your needs/wants are: overclocking? multiple graphics cards? sound quality? etc. The H97 series mobos are decent but cannot support overclocking or multiple GPUs
For the Power supply, it is typically sized based on the GPU and CPU but a good quality 600w is enough for pretty much any single graphics card out now. Brands/modles to look at for PSUs are any Seasonic, any XFX, Antec (HCG series), Corsair (AX/TX/HX series only), EVGA G2 series.
The case I picked out has good cooling and some sound dampening to keep it quiet.

Thank you very much for your reply numanator!

Looks good!
I'll research that Xeon processor some more. I've heard it's meant for servers. My system is for gamedevelopment (so obviously needs to be optimized for games as well). But if it's based on an i7 that should be no problem
Is the integrated gpu in other processors even used at all when there is a dedicated graphics card? If the integrated gpu in an i7 is worthless I might go for the xeon like you suggest. If it can help my system, I think I'll go for the i7 I mentioned earlier then.

I don't think I will overclock. At least not at first, maybe I'll change my mind later. It's no problem if it is locked.

I'll look some more in the motherboard you suggested, thanks! It does not need support for multiple gpu's but does need to support multiple screens. (but that is already in my graphics card I guess so maybe not so important after all)

I see you suggest a Radeon R9 280. What are the benefits of that one compared to my earlier selected R9 270X?
This one has 4GB. Just looking at the numbers this 270X looks better. They are also the same price. Is there a reason to choose the 280 above the 270X?

Thanks for your help, much appreciated!

I updated my build
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor ($304.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock H97 PRO4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($76.66 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($82.98 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 270X 4GB Dual-X Video Card ($208.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case ($99.98 @ OutletPC)
Power Supply: Antec High Current Gamer 620W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($86.81 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1020.36
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

I also put it in my first post along with some extra notes. I will edit the first post when I change some things.

 

[numanator]

The VRAM of a video card is not a good indicator of GPU performance. The VRAM is kind of like a ceiling where it is the max vram you can use but a higher vram does not mean more performance. The 4gb is wasted on the 270x unless you are running 2 of them in crossfire since a single 270x wouldn't have the graphical processing power to fully utilize the 4gb vram.

Basically, the r9 280 is a bit more powerful, best indicator would be some benchmarks (most seem to show the 280 performing 5-10 FPS better than the 270x).

For the i7s when you have a dedicated GPU the integrated GPU is automatically disabled so it does nothing (unless your GPU breaks).

For running multiple monitors, all of them should be connected to the GPU. Anything that is connected to the mobo would try to run on the integrated graphics.