Finalizing my first build, your input would be greatly appreciated!

[rapidskar]

Hello all!

I'm finalizing my build with a budget of around $1000. This exceeds my stretch budget of $1200, but I think this is the best bang for my buck. Some uncertainties I have are the 1070 vs a 480. I'm hearing that dropping the i7 in favor of a high end i5 and paired with a 1070 is my better option.

Edit: I should say that I'm using this as a gaming rig, which will be completely separate from my work PC. Ideally, this rig would play Star Citizen maxed out on launch.

Here's the build:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-7600K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($238.75 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG H7 49.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($34.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus STRIX Z270-E GAMING ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($189.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($97.88 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 1070 8GB Dual Series Video Card ($384.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Thermaltake Versa N21 ATX Mid Tower Case ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA G2 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($78.89 @ OutletPC)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSC0B DVD/CD Writer ($16.88 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($88.58 @ OutletPC)
Case Fan: Cooler Master SickleFlow 69.7 CFM 120mm Fan ($3.34 @ Newegg)
Case Fan: Cooler Master SickleFlow 69.7 CFM 120mm Fan ($3.34 @ Newegg)
Case Fan: Cooler Master SickleFlow 69.7 CFM 120mm Fan ($3.34 @ Newegg)
Total: $1290.84
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-02-21 00:12 EST-0500
Your help would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

 

[imsqam]

First, stop and consider that Ryzen will be released very soon (2 wks+) and it looks like there will be a big shake up in the market. Buying an Intel based system right now might not be a good idea.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/antonyleather/2017/02/18/amd-ryzen-5-1600x-performance-leak-intel-will-be-worried/#7d709c7769ce

Okay, continuing with Intel we have to be careful, Star Citizen is a CPU intensive game which uses multiple threads. But first, the question is will you be overclocking? Based on the build I suspect not. I will assume here that you won't be overclocking but let me know if that is incorrect.

To get to an 8-thread CPU while maintaining the budget I went with Xeon/C232 build just like Tom's reviewed here
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/asrock-fatal1ty-xeon-e3v5-performance-gaming-oc-atx-motherboard,4914.html

Other Points
- Removed the H7, stock cooler will be fine (removed cost)
- Changed the RAM to 2133 which is appropriate for the Xeon/mobo (removed cost)
- Changed the SSD to the SP550. Not as good but gaming will not be affected (removed cost)
- Changed the case and removed the fans, this case will cool okay (removed cost)
- Changed the PSU, the Seasonic is a good PSU (removed cost)

Total cost went from $1304.67 (current value on PCPartPicker) to $1152.36 while achieving an 8-thread system.

PCPartPicker part list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/YWRbGf
Price breakdown by merchant: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/YWRbGf/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1230 V5 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($251.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock E3V5 Performance Gaming/OC ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($135.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: ADATA Premier SP550 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($72.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 1070 8GB Dual Series Video Card ($384.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair SPEC-01 RED ATX Mid Tower Case ($44.08 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12G 550W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply ($56.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSC0B DVD/CD Writer ($16.88 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($88.58 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1152.36
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-02-21 08:30 EST-0500

 

[MadOver]

For that money I would rather build a nice i7 machine with decent oc potential like this one:

PCPartPicker part list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/q8VTVY
Price breakdown by merchant: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/q8VTVY/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($279.99)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG H7 49.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($34.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty Z170 Gaming K4 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($139.81 @ OutletPC)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($169.99)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.33 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1070 8GB SC GAMING ACX 3.0 Black Edition Video Card ($379.99)
Case: Cooler Master MasterBox 5 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($46.99)
Power Supply: EVGA BQ 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($55.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $1256.95
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-02-21 09:15 EST-0500

 

[imsqam]

For that money I would rather build a nice i7 machine with decent oc potential like this one:

PCPartPicker part list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/q8VTVY
Price breakdown by merchant: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/q8VTVY/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($279.99)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG H7 49.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($34.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty Z170 Gaming K4 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($139.81 @ OutletPC)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($169.99)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.33 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1070 8GB SC GAMING ACX 3.0 Black Edition Video Card ($379.99)
Case: Cooler Master MasterBox 5 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($46.99)
Power Supply: EVGA BQ 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($55.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $1256.95
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-02-21 09:15 EST-0500

You missed the OS as part of the build and your case does not support an optical drive. Add these two in and your total would be $1362.41. Other issue is that I would be concerned about the BQ PSU in overclocking. Couldn't find any review on the 600W but reviews for the 750W and 850W seem to indicate that these units might not handle overclocking well (Ripple, noise and voltage stability issues).

Now for CPU performance, comparing the 1230 vs 7600K vs 6700K you will find that while the 6700K is faster than the 1230, the 1230 will outperform the 7600K, especially in CPU intensive applications.

https://www.cpubenchmark.net/compare.php?cmp%5B%5D=2565&cmp%5B%5D=2919&cmp%5B%5D=2693

And the i7 build will probably hit around $1400 when you swap out the PSU. The poster was trying to get the cost down.

 

[Jarmund]

First, stop and consider that Ryzen will be released very soon (2 wks+) and it looks like there will be a big shake up in the market. Buying an Intel based system right now might not be a good idea.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/antonyleather/2017/02/18/amd-ryzen-5-1600x-performance-leak-intel-will-be-worried/#7d709c7769ce

Okay, continuing with Intel we have to be careful, Star Citizen is a CPU intensive game which uses multiple threads. But first, the question is will you be overclocking? Based on the build I suspect not. I will assume here that you won't be overclocking but let me know if that is incorrect.

To get to an 8-thread CPU while maintaining the budget I went with Xeon/C232 build just like Tom's reviewed here
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/asrock-fatal1ty-xeon-e3v5-performance-gaming-oc-atx-motherboard,4914.html

Other Points
- Removed the H7, stock cooler will be fine (removed cost)
- Changed the RAM to 2133 which is appropriate for the Xeon/mobo (removed cost)
- Changed the SSD to the SP550. Not as good but gaming will not be affected (removed cost)
- Changed the case and removed the fans, this case will cool okay (removed cost)
- Changed the PSU, the Seasonic is a good PSU (removed cost)

Total cost went from $1304.67 (current value on PCPartPicker) to $1152.36 while achieving an 8-thread system.

PCPartPicker part list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/YWRbGf
Price breakdown by merchant: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/YWRbGf/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1230 V5 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($251.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock E3V5 Performance Gaming/OC ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($135.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: ADATA Premier SP550 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($72.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 1070 8GB Dual Series Video Card ($384.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair SPEC-01 RED ATX Mid Tower Case ($44.08 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12G 550W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply ($56.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSC0B DVD/CD Writer ($16.88 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($88.58 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1152.36
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-02-21 08:30 EST-0500

i must say... that's an awesome setup... pulling an 8 thread system under $1200 is not easy, well done my firend.
Although feature-wise you are sacrificing a lot by using this motherboard. it's got the bare minimum to work with as toms pointed out in their review.
And yes, waiting for Ryzen is the best thing everyone can do at this point; hope AMD lives up to it's hype.

with that said i propose this build if OP isn't willing to wait for Ryzen.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-7600K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($238.75 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG R1 Ultimate 76.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($89.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z270X-Ultra Gaming ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($158.33 @ OutletPC)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($99.97 @ Jet)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($97.88 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: MSI GeForce GTX 1070 8GB Video Card ($409.99 @ Newegg)
Case: DIYPC Silence-BK-Window ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 650W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($17.88 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($88.58 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1331.24
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-02-21 12:12 EST-0500

it may cost a bit more but i think it's a solid setup nontheless with more features. might not have those 8 threads but i tried to compensate it by giving it a heavy OC potential. the case is entirely optional .

Edit:i know OP wanted to bring down the cost but i tried to do the most feature rich pc while keeping the costs as low as possible. (i mean compared to OP's build mine is only $40 more after rebates)

 

[imsqam]

Thank you for the kind words Jarmund. I was just trying to make the best choices while keeping the price under $1200.

Normally I too would go with an i5 in this price range but for here the Star Citizen requirement concerns me. In its current development it is one of the the most CPU intensive games out there, loves threads. Also, the big queston is whether the poster will or will not be overclocking.

To round out the potential build types below is a non-overclocking i7 build which is over budget. But again, wait for the release of Ryzen in a few weeks. Everybody is in a holding pattern.

PCPartPicker part list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/Kn6bGf
Price breakdown by merchant: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/Kn6bGf/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i7-7700 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor ($308.49 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG H7 49.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($34.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty Z270 Gaming K4 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($139.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill TridentZ Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial MX300 275GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($89.88 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Seagate BarraCuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.77 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1070 8GB SC GAMING ACX 3.0 Black Edition Video Card ($379.99 @ Jet)
Case: Zalman Z11 NEO ATX Mid Tower Case ($55.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12G 550W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply ($56.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSC0B DVD/CD Writer ($16.88 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($88.58 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1341.41
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-02-22 08:33 EST-0500

 

[Jarmund]

Thank you for the kind words Jarmund. I was just trying to make the best choices while keeping the price under $1200.

Normally I too would go with an i5 in this price range but for here the Star Citizen requirement concerns me. In its current development it is one of the the most CPU intensive games out there, loves threads. Also, the big queston is whether the poster will or will not be overclocking.

To round out the potential build types below is a non-overclocking i7 build which is over budget. But again, wait for the release of Ryzen in a few weeks. Everybody is in a holding pattern.

PCPartPicker part list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/Kn6bGf
Price breakdown by merchant: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/Kn6bGf/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i7-7700 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor ($308.49 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG H7 49.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($34.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock Fatal1ty Z270 Gaming K4 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($139.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill TridentZ Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($119.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial MX300 275GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($89.88 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Seagate BarraCuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.77 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1070 8GB SC GAMING ACX 3.0 Black Edition Video Card ($379.99 @ Jet)
Case: Zalman Z11 NEO ATX Mid Tower Case ($55.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic S12G 550W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply ($56.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSC0B DVD/CD Writer ($16.88 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($88.58 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1341.41
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-02-22 08:33 EST-0500

Ryzen is finally here!! checkout this video (seriously, after watching it you will not want to go intel!)