First time building, big budget, have a few questions, general tips/opinions also welcome!

[Guest]

So, I found that I have 3 simultaneous conditions: interest in high-end gaming, a big budget, and a desire to build a PC to truly make it my own. I've been around the internet a bit, and here's the rig I came up with (conceptually; I haven't ordered anything yet). Notes: I didn't include a mouse because I already have a Razer Deathadder, and $1750 is my budget cap.
I'm trying to go for both a lot of power and leave room for upgrades. I picked a processor that won't be anywhere near obsolete in years, I wanted an SLI-compatible motherboard so I can pop in a second GPU once the GTX 760 starts showing age, I went with 2x8GB RAM instead of 4x4GB so I can double up without throwing anything away if I ever need to (8GB is enough for most people, but not for me. I do video editing and graphics art work, occasionally with stupidly high image resolutions like 12693x9243, and both of which almost completely eat up my current computer's 8GB). The smaller HDD is intended to be a backup for important things, and it will be disconnected/powered off most of the time.
I have a few questions. First, is an 850W power supply overkill? I know everything degrades a little over time and the Asus power calculator says I need at least 700W, so I figured that ~20% extra would be an appropriate amount.
Also, will an H100i cooler fit in a 300R case? This thread says it can, but that it's dependent on RAM and the motherboard. Is there a way to know if it will be spatially compatible with my chosen parts before I buy anything? If it won't work, what's a good alternative CPU cooler that would fit?
Lastly, do I have enough in terms of cooling? Is an H100i, four 140mm fans, and a 120mm fan sufficient for heavy duty gaming and computing?
Any thoughts, opinions, part suggestions, and criticisms are welcome, especially if you can help me reduce my costs without sacrificing performance or reliability!
Edit: Current rig after feedback

 

[terry4536]

First of all I would recommend http://pcpartpicker.com/ to organize your build.
A 850 watt power supply is overkill unless you plan to have multiple graphics cards.

The h100i should fit. I would wait until you have the system up an running to buy more cooling.

 

[terry4536]

You can go to Corsair for compatibility information.

 

[terry4536]

The Corsair web page states that it supports 240/280mm radiators, but it also specifies that the compatible corsair watercoolers are:

Compatible Corsair Liquid Coolers
H55, H60, H75, H80I

 

[Guest]

"Here's the rig I came up with" is a hyperlink (http://pcpartpicker.com/p/NncqrH). Also, I do plan on going with an SLI configuration eventually, but Asus says that doing so would increase the total wattage needed up to about 1000, so the 850W one I currently have in mind wouldn't be sufficient anyway. Thanks for the quick response!

 

[terry4536]

I would avoid Corsair CX and RM series, they are problematic. The AX and HX series are OK. I would recommend Seasonic or XFX power supplies.

What is the purpose of the extra 250GB HDD?


The rest is fine. If you are wanting a high end system, you may consider bumping up the graphics card. The GTX 760 is a mid range card. The GTX 770 and an eventual SLI would be more of the system that you seem to want.

 

[Guest]

The second HDD is there for backup of important files, and I figured that having a second, smaller drive would be a good method of backing stuff up. 250GB is way more than enough for that purpose, and I'm going to either have it spun down or completely disconnected whenever I'm not transferring files to or from it, so its life hopefully will be really long.
This is my current build after your suggestions and a tiny bit more tinkering of my own: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/b4mDQ7
Keep the tips coming if you have any more!

 

[terry4536]

The problem with that is that you will limit the number of restore points on a 250 GB HDD. Plus the cost difference is minimal between that and 1TB HDD. But it is your choice.

If you can stand another change, I would bump up the RAM 1866 CL9 1.5V or better.
G.SKILL Sniper Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1866 (PC3 14900) Desktop Memory Model F3-1866C9D-16GSR $169 -10% off sale

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231627&cm_re=1866-_-20-231-627-_-Product

This is very fast top of the line memory for comparison.

G.SKILL Trident X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 2400 (PC3 19200) Desktop Memory Model F3-2400C10D-16GTX $189.99
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820231589



It looks like a great gaming system in the making.

 

[Guest]

Update: Going with a 1TB backup drive, that tidbit about system restore points is good to know. More importantly, I also decided to ditch my SLI-based attempt for some futureproofing. It's probably more cost-effective to just get a new single card once the 770 falls behind rather than doubling up on what by then would be considered older. I also get to completely avoid microstutter and other drawbacks of SLI I might have encountered. Anyway, here's where I'm at now: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/bHkJpg
I haven't chosen a monitor yet, but I'll get on that soon enough. Is there anything else I can optimize?

 

[terry4536]

No, that is pretty much it. Did you intend to get the non-K processor? For all practical purposes, it eliminates any overclocking of the CPU.

I think you will be happy with it.

And you are exactly correct about a single high end graphics card over two in SLI or Crossfire.

 

[Guest]

Yeah, I know, I don't intend to overclock. The 4790's stock performance should do just fine and I don't want to reduce its service life. Here's my final result: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/8WZcgs
I went a little over my stated budget, but that's only because I can't resist a 144hz monitor from a decent manufacturer for such a low price. Thank you so much for your help!

 

[terry4536]

I have an Asus 144Hz monitor. The 144Hz feature really does result in a better monitor. Even the mouse pointer is much more responsive on that monitor. It is like the pointer is "slippery" (I have multiple monitors so it is easy to see the differences). I haven't seen the Benq, but it is well respected, as well.