first time ground up gaming pc build, How does it look?

[techRipples]

Hey everyone, long time reader and first time poster of tom's.
I've been saving for a while now and finally made the budget mark for a new PC build, as this is my first ground up build, I thought I would get some suggestions and input from everyone as to what I should change out or possible problems I may run into with it.
Trying to stick to a black and red theme as best as possible.

Budget maximum of $3000 AUD and I plan to purchase within the next 3 months (waiting to see if I can get some decent deals on Christmas prices)

system will be mainly to play games on 1920X1080 but am looking to upgrade to a dual monitor, possibly 2k setup at some point down the line.

Water cooling is something I would very much like to run in this system but I am not sure if I trust myself to install it so any input on that would be great.

I already own a 3tb 7200rpm seagate barracuda (new and unopened), A reasonably old samsung blue ray drive (the one listed is a possible upgrade) and a TX950W Corsair PSU (I am thinking this will not be enough with the 2-way crossfire)
I'm also thinking of holding off for the new Aerocool Syclone II


New parts will be: pc part picker

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor
CPU Cooler: Corsair H75 54.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler
Motherboard: Asus MAXIMUS VII FORMULA ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
Memory: Corsair Vengeance Pro 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory
Storage: Corsair Force Series GS 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Video Card: 2X - Asus Radeon R9 290X 4GB DirectCU II Video Card (2-Way CrossFire)
Optical Drive: LG BH16NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer
Total: ~ $2500

First revision after much research that the XFX black r9 290X cards would be the better choice vs the asus version.

Final revision Much thanks to the excellent bsod1 for providing me with great advice.

 

[DonkeyOatie]

The problem was the Australian part. Many of us know that you are limited in what is available and that makes it difficult to offer advice because the 'usual suspects' are not available and the relative price points. It is also a higher-end build that is above my usual experience. When people wake up down-under you may get more responses.

 

[techRipples]

I can understand how being in Australia would affect availability and pricing but from what I can tell most of what I have here is available from most countries (its also possible for me to buy parts from US/EU parts suppliers where possible and I don't mind hunting around for them and haggling deals on international shipping) I am really just looking for general advice on bits and bobs such as,
will anything bottleneck?
would it be worth looking into a different set of GPUs for performance?
would it be more worth while looking into a higher chipset/CPU combo etc.
Any advice given I am happy to research and investigate but since this is my first ground up build I am not really sure of the ground I'm treading on.
Cheers for the heads up though.

 

[DonkeyOatie]

You appear to be preparing to overclock, are you going to?

If you do not overclock, have you considered a LGA1150 Xeon CPU?

You PSU is good for overclocking.

Here's a review of 290X crossfire http://www.techpowerup.com/reviews/AMD/R9_290X_CrossFire/4.html

Noisy, hot, and fast, sounds like a Holden at Bathurst

Perhaps a GTX980 with later SLI might be better to start with?

 

[techRipples]

I am currently learning to overclock, so it's on my list of things to try and experiment with later down the track, from what I know of asus Republic of Gamers mobos is they have an auto overclock features built into them although not 100% how reliable it is but this is why I opted for the liquid cooling on the CPU and if/when I get confident enough to overclock my GPU I can shell out for one of these.

The noise to me isn't a big deal as I live in a unit by myself and unless I'm watching a movie I pretty much live with headphones on but I have been debating if it would be more worth while with a R9 295X2 8gb.
If you had the option of the 3 which would you choose? I have read a lot of mixed reviews between them.

I am a little worried that 900w (if I buy a new one to match case colors) or my current 950w PSU wont be enough to run the crossfire 290X on full load even before overclocking. In saying that PSUs are one thing I am still a little in the dark on in terms of power consumption on load VS idle etc and how I will need to compensate for that.

 

[DonkeyOatie]

I don't have enough experience at the levels you are talking about. We'll have to wait for someone with that specific experience.

Philosophically, I favour simpler systems, and lees stressful systems with fewer possible points of failure.

 

[techRipples]

That's cool, I very much appreciate your input as it has made me do some more research on the GTX cards in comparison to the 290x and I have read that SLI outweighs Crossfire so it may be an option if I increase my budget, but at an extra ~$300 per GPU I am kind of stuck wondering if that might be the way to go haha.
Thanks again.

 

[DonkeyOatie]

I don't know what you are aiming for, you see. Consider a single GTX980, then go up to SLI if you need to/want to.

 

[techRipples]

My end goal is a system that should happily keep up with gaming requirements on 2k for the next few years, a system that might seem like an upper tier high end system now but will pretty much end up being adequate in a few years, this is how my previous systems have always been so its kind of embedded in me now, I am not one to do constant GPU/ram and cpu/mobo upgrades (I will happily add some extra ram or a new GPU if it comes down to it but I cant justify $1200 every ~6-8months in constant upgrades).
Bought my RoG system just on 4 years ago now and everyone at the time told me its was overkill but up until the last ~3-4 months it has played 90% of the games I have wanted to play on high - ultra 1080p happily and I would like to do the same with this build.

 

[DonkeyOatie]

I understand you position completely. I prefer a different approach. $1200 every 6-8 months is mental to me. Adding a second SLI GTX in a year or so to maintain the goodie, seems reasonable.

Here am I replacing a seven year old laptop.

 

[techRipples]

I try to stick to a 3-5 year cycle on my pc's I have always had I.T. friends who overclock my system and maintain them for me when required (which I am trying to learn myself lately so I am capable of self maintaining my pc) and I find it a good amount of time to put away enough money (~$50 a week) and build up a cash pile for my next build, sometimes I tap into that reserve for a minor upgrade or repair cost but an upper tier $3000 build seems to be the balance point of not too pricey but not forcing me to constantly change parts or compromise too heavily on the detail/smooth playability level of my games.

 

[bsod1]

I like this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($397.00 @ Centre Com)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D15 82.5 CFM CPU Cooler ($105.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Motherboard: Asus Z97-PRO(Wi-Fi ac) ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($269.00 @ Mwave Australia)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Z Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($209.58 @ Mwave Australia)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($135.00 @ Centre Com)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 4GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($729.00 @ PLE Computers)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 4GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($729.00 @ PLE Computers)
Total: $2573.58
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-19 14:34 EST+1100

 

[techRipples]

I like this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($397.00 @ Centre Com)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($89.00 @ Mwave Australia)
Motherboard: Asus Z97-PRO(Wi-Fi ac) ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($269.00 @ Mwave Australia)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Z Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($209.58 @ Mwave Australia)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($135.00 @ Centre Com)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 4GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($729.00 @ PLE Computers)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 4GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($729.00 @ PLE Computers)
Total: $2557.58
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-19 14:20 EST+1100

Cheers for the input bsod1 that is a really solid build, can I ask for a small breakdown (if possible) as to why the GTX 980s over the r9's and the swap to the Noctua as the corsair liquid cpu cooler are ~ the same price?
I am in no way saying YYY is beter than ZZZ or anything like that I just like to have a bit of info brought to the party as to the differences in them I might be over looking or why they would be your choice over another part?

Funny you added the noctua into that mix as well as its currently sitting in my PC that I am using now haha, I had an issue with the glue letting go on the grills and one of my fans fell out onto my GPU one day but thats not bad considering it sat there perfectly for 4 years previous.

 

[bsod1]

I like this:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($397.00 @ Centre Com)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D15 82.5 CFM CPU Cooler ($105.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Motherboard: Asus Z97-PRO(Wi-Fi ac) ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($269.00 @ Mwave Australia)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Z Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($209.58 @ Mwave Australia)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($135.00 @ Centre Com)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 4GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($729.00 @ PLE Computers)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 4GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($729.00 @ PLE Computers)
Total: $2573.58
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-19 14:34 EST+1100

Cheers for the input bsod1 that is a really solid build, can I ask for a small breakdown (if possible) as to why the GTX 980s over the r9's and the swap to the Noctua as the corsair liquid cpu cooler are ~ the same price?
I am in no way saying YYY is beter than ZZZ or anything like that I just like to have a bit of info brought to the party as to the differences in them I might be over looking or why they would be your choice over another part?

This, pretty much: http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/cooling/2014/05/01/noctua-nh-d15-review/2

The only watercooler that actually makes performance gains imo is NZXT Kraken and above. Air coolers are quieter, (I just changed the Noctuas to D15. (Not D14)

This is why http://gpuboss.com/gpus/Radeon-R9-290X-vs-GeForce-GTX-980 I chose the 980s over the 290X

 

[techRipples]

would it be worth opting for EVGA Superclocked ACX 2.0 GeForce GTX 980 as its only an extra $100 and you did come in under budget by ~$500 so there is a bit of budge room there.
there are also STRIX cards by asus but from what I can find out STRIX is purely to do with cooling not performance directly

after reading that noctua review I am reminded why i bought the older style dual fan noctua when I had my current system built, I mainly like the low form factor on the watercooler more than anything as the noctua is an extremely large unit but after looking at that i guess you cant beat it with much else without breaking an extra $50-$100

 

[bsod1]

would it be worth opting for EVGA Superclocked ACX 2.0 GeForce GTX 980 as its only an extra $100 and you did come in under budget by ~$500 so there is a bit of budge room there.
there are also STRIX cards by asus but from what I can find out STRIX is purely to do with cooling not performance directly

I don't know if it makes any real world difference but this description should give you an idea: http://www.evga.com/products/product.aspx?pn=04g-p4-2983-kr

 

[bsod1]

well it does offer 1.27 Ghz opposed to 1.13 Ghz. Go for it!

 

[bsod1]

Here, if you want watercooling!

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($397.00 @ Centre Com)
CPU Cooler: NZXT Kraken X61 106.1 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($159.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Motherboard: Asus Z97-PRO(Wi-Fi ac) ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($269.00 @ Mwave Australia)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Z Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($209.58 @ Mwave Australia)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($135.00 @ Centre Com)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 4GB Superclocked ACX 2.0 Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($779.00 @ Mwave Australia)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 4GB Superclocked ACX 2.0 Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($779.00 @ Mwave Australia)
Total: $2727.58
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-19 15:11 EST+1100

EDIT: make sure that will fit into your case.

 

[techRipples]

Its not a huge difference but I did some quick skimming on a few sites and the ACX 2.0 is a reasonable amount cooler from what I can find (which I see as a fairly big up side when driving 2 GPU so close together) and it just might stop that little extra bit of heat making it to the noctua during long gaming sessions.

I was just thinking that about the case and size, I quite like the design of the Syclone II but it may be more worth while taking a full tower over a mid considering what will be inside it.

 

[bsod1]

Even picked a case for you under AUD 3000 haha

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($397.00 @ Centre Com)
CPU Cooler: NZXT Kraken X61 106.1 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($159.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Motherboard: Asus Z97-PRO(Wi-Fi ac) ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($269.00 @ Mwave Australia)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Z Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($209.58 @ Mwave Australia)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($135.00 @ Centre Com)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 4GB Superclocked ACX 2.0 Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($779.00 @ Mwave Australia)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 4GB Superclocked ACX 2.0 Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($779.00 @ Mwave Australia)
Case: NZXT Phantom 820 (Black) ATX Full Tower Case ($255.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Total: $2982.58
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-19 15:20 EST+1100

 

[techRipples]

I think you just hit my build right on the head and have me sold on the 980s, everything seems to be right where I was aiming for, I will do my research on the parts so I know them in and out by the time they arrive and when they get here I will put up a build thread to let you know how everything went and turned out!

Thank you for suggesting the 980 at first donkey you had me reading for the last few hours and the benchmark from you bsod had me sold as soon as I started reading the benchmark, I am extremely grateful for the input as this is the first time I have had to make these decisions on how my build will turn out right until the last detail.

+100 rep for not chewing me out for being a picky bastard also bsod haha.

 

[bsod1]

np.