Hello folks!
Introduction, Listing of parts
I am about to build my first gaming pc. I have already selected the parts and would appreciate your comments and opinions, to assure that what I selected makes sense and there is no significant bottleneck. So, first, here is the list of parts I selected, and underneath I will go into further detail:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
CPU: Intel - Core i7-7700K 4.2GHz Quad-Core Processor (€343.90 @ Caseking)
CPU Cooler: Corsair - H90 94.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler (€101.00 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Motherboard: Asus - MAXIMUS IX CODE ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (€309.06 @ Mindfactory)
Memory: Corsair - Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory (€142.95 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Storage: Western Digital - Blue 1TB 2.5" Solid State Drive (€288.82 @ Mindfactory)
Video Card: EVGA - GeForce GTX 1080 Ti 11GB SC2 Video Card (€809.00 @ Caseking)
Case: Corsair - 750D Airflow Edition ATX Full Tower Case (€152.54 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Power Supply: be quiet! - DARK POWER PRO 11 750W 80+ Platinum Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (€172.11 @ Mindfactory)
Monitor: Asus - PG279Q ROG Swift 27.0" 2560x1440 165Hz Monitor (€806.94 @ Mindfactory)
Other: ELEGIANT 40-Pin IDE Female zu SATA 7 + 15Pin 22-Pin Male Adapter Konverter PATA zu SATA Karte (€6.99 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Total: €3133.31
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-05-31 10:27 CEST+0200
The pc should be able to render modern AAA titles in ultra-high, or at least very high graphics settings. I would like to play at 1440p and the games should have at least 60fps, desirable more. Occasionally, I would like to play on my TV, which has a 4K resolution. In the latter case, the graphics settings may be somewhat lower and 50-55fps would also be acceptable here. Some examples of the games I would like to play: Crysis 3, Far Cry 4, GTA V, Hitman, Watch Dogs 2, Sniper Ghost Warrior 3, Rise of the Tomb Raider etc.
CPU, Cooler, Motherboard, RAM
I chose the Intel Core i7 instead of the i5, because the pc should also be fast for other tasks than gaming. I occasionally develop C# programs in Visual Studio, and on my laptop, I must wait 7-10 seconds or so until the program is started and the debugger is running. That should be faster on the new pc. I am not going to overclock the CPU at first, but I selected the K-version and the Z270 chipset for two reasons: I would like to have the opportunity to overclock in the future, when I feel the CPU is getting too slow for modern programs, so that will save me some time until I have to buy another CPU. The other reason is that even when not overclocking, the 7700K has both a faster base clock and a faster boot clock than the 7700.
After reading some reviews, I initially went for the Noctua NH-D15 cooler. However, this cooler weighs over 1kg and many people claimed that this is fine if the pc stays in one spot only but could cause problems when the pc is moved. As stated before, I plan on moving the pc from my room to the living room occasionally, when I feel like playing on the TV. Therefore, I will move the pc probably on a weekly basis and I don't want to have to worry about the cooler damaging the motherboard every time I do so. Therefore, I went for a Corsair liquid cooler with one 140mm fan. I chose only one fan, because it's cheaper and I chose 140mm, because then I can exchange the fan with the Noctua NF-A15, to get even lower noise.
A friend of mine recommended the Asus Maximus IX Hero, since he is satisfied with it. I chose the Code instead of the Hero, since that board also has built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
I did not think too much about the RAM. I chose Corsair as a good known brand and 3200MHz since that is the "Sweetspot" per Linus Tech Tips, and after that the RAM just gets more expensive and the higher frequency doesn't provide any more value. I chose 16GB, which should be sufficient for my needs (gaming, some developing) split in two 8GB sticks, so I have the opportunity to add two more sticks in the future.
SSD, GPU, Screen
I chose to leave out the HDD and buy an SSD with a higher capacity instead, since I plan to have a lot of games installed and they all should be on the SSD for higher performance. When I need more space, I can always buy an additional HDD in the future.
After watching tons of benchmarks, I chose the GTX 1080 Ti, since that card apparently suits my needs very well. I chose EVGA due to their very good reputation in terms of customer service. The FTW3 adds an additional fan in comparison to the SC2. However, I have read a review stating that the additional fan does not add much value for the additional cost, so I chose the SC2. I would even be ok with turning the two fans up a little, since a cool system is more important to me than a quiet one, especially when gaming.
Regarding the screen, I am unsure if I should buy a 27-inch screen now, with the option to buy another 2 in the future and then have a triple-monitor setup, or if I should go with an ultrawide now. The selected screen is an IPS panel with 1440p, 165Hz and G-Sync. However, it is also very expensive, so I would appreciate opinions and recommendations.
Drive adapter, PSU
The IDE to SATA adapter is on the list, so I can reuse my old DVD-drive for some older games I still own on a disc.
Per EVGA, the PSU should have at least 600W when using that graphics card in a system. The calculator from Enermax gives me 543W for all the components I selected. When I now configure the boost clock of the CPU in the calculator, add some more RAM and some SSDs and HDDs, the calculator gives me 601W. Is a 750W PSU with a platinum certification a reasonable choice here? I think that this will not necessarily drain that much more power and prepare me for future upgrades and overclocking, but the PSU might be oversized, I am not sure. I would appreciate your thoughts here.
Summary
Per the "*How to Ask for New Build or Upgrade Advice*"-Sticky, here's a little summary of the most important aspects:
So, this is my first post, I hope it’s not too long
I would appreciate your feedback and suggestions especially to the CPU cooler, screen and PSU.
Regards and have wonderful day,
Danghor
Introduction, Listing of parts
I am about to build my first gaming pc. I have already selected the parts and would appreciate your comments and opinions, to assure that what I selected makes sense and there is no significant bottleneck. So, first, here is the list of parts I selected, and underneath I will go into further detail:
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
CPU: Intel - Core i7-7700K 4.2GHz Quad-Core Processor (€343.90 @ Caseking)
CPU Cooler: Corsair - H90 94.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler (€101.00 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Motherboard: Asus - MAXIMUS IX CODE ATX LGA1151 Motherboard (€309.06 @ Mindfactory)
Memory: Corsair - Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory (€142.95 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Storage: Western Digital - Blue 1TB 2.5" Solid State Drive (€288.82 @ Mindfactory)
Video Card: EVGA - GeForce GTX 1080 Ti 11GB SC2 Video Card (€809.00 @ Caseking)
Case: Corsair - 750D Airflow Edition ATX Full Tower Case (€152.54 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Power Supply: be quiet! - DARK POWER PRO 11 750W 80+ Platinum Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (€172.11 @ Mindfactory)
Monitor: Asus - PG279Q ROG Swift 27.0" 2560x1440 165Hz Monitor (€806.94 @ Mindfactory)
Other: ELEGIANT 40-Pin IDE Female zu SATA 7 + 15Pin 22-Pin Male Adapter Konverter PATA zu SATA Karte (€6.99 @ Amazon Deutschland)
Total: €3133.31
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-05-31 10:27 CEST+0200
The pc should be able to render modern AAA titles in ultra-high, or at least very high graphics settings. I would like to play at 1440p and the games should have at least 60fps, desirable more. Occasionally, I would like to play on my TV, which has a 4K resolution. In the latter case, the graphics settings may be somewhat lower and 50-55fps would also be acceptable here. Some examples of the games I would like to play: Crysis 3, Far Cry 4, GTA V, Hitman, Watch Dogs 2, Sniper Ghost Warrior 3, Rise of the Tomb Raider etc.
CPU, Cooler, Motherboard, RAM
I chose the Intel Core i7 instead of the i5, because the pc should also be fast for other tasks than gaming. I occasionally develop C# programs in Visual Studio, and on my laptop, I must wait 7-10 seconds or so until the program is started and the debugger is running. That should be faster on the new pc. I am not going to overclock the CPU at first, but I selected the K-version and the Z270 chipset for two reasons: I would like to have the opportunity to overclock in the future, when I feel the CPU is getting too slow for modern programs, so that will save me some time until I have to buy another CPU. The other reason is that even when not overclocking, the 7700K has both a faster base clock and a faster boot clock than the 7700.
After reading some reviews, I initially went for the Noctua NH-D15 cooler. However, this cooler weighs over 1kg and many people claimed that this is fine if the pc stays in one spot only but could cause problems when the pc is moved. As stated before, I plan on moving the pc from my room to the living room occasionally, when I feel like playing on the TV. Therefore, I will move the pc probably on a weekly basis and I don't want to have to worry about the cooler damaging the motherboard every time I do so. Therefore, I went for a Corsair liquid cooler with one 140mm fan. I chose only one fan, because it's cheaper and I chose 140mm, because then I can exchange the fan with the Noctua NF-A15, to get even lower noise.
A friend of mine recommended the Asus Maximus IX Hero, since he is satisfied with it. I chose the Code instead of the Hero, since that board also has built-in Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
I did not think too much about the RAM. I chose Corsair as a good known brand and 3200MHz since that is the "Sweetspot" per Linus Tech Tips, and after that the RAM just gets more expensive and the higher frequency doesn't provide any more value. I chose 16GB, which should be sufficient for my needs (gaming, some developing) split in two 8GB sticks, so I have the opportunity to add two more sticks in the future.
SSD, GPU, Screen
I chose to leave out the HDD and buy an SSD with a higher capacity instead, since I plan to have a lot of games installed and they all should be on the SSD for higher performance. When I need more space, I can always buy an additional HDD in the future.
After watching tons of benchmarks, I chose the GTX 1080 Ti, since that card apparently suits my needs very well. I chose EVGA due to their very good reputation in terms of customer service. The FTW3 adds an additional fan in comparison to the SC2. However, I have read a review stating that the additional fan does not add much value for the additional cost, so I chose the SC2. I would even be ok with turning the two fans up a little, since a cool system is more important to me than a quiet one, especially when gaming.
Regarding the screen, I am unsure if I should buy a 27-inch screen now, with the option to buy another 2 in the future and then have a triple-monitor setup, or if I should go with an ultrawide now. The selected screen is an IPS panel with 1440p, 165Hz and G-Sync. However, it is also very expensive, so I would appreciate opinions and recommendations.
Drive adapter, PSU
The IDE to SATA adapter is on the list, so I can reuse my old DVD-drive for some older games I still own on a disc.
Per EVGA, the PSU should have at least 600W when using that graphics card in a system. The calculator from Enermax gives me 543W for all the components I selected. When I now configure the boost clock of the CPU in the calculator, add some more RAM and some SSDs and HDDs, the calculator gives me 601W. Is a 750W PSU with a platinum certification a reasonable choice here? I think that this will not necessarily drain that much more power and prepare me for future upgrades and overclocking, but the PSU might be oversized, I am not sure. I would appreciate your thoughts here.
Summary
Per the "*How to Ask for New Build or Upgrade Advice*"-Sticky, here's a little summary of the most important aspects:
Approximate Purchase Date: end of June 2017 at the latest
Budget Range: 3500€ including screens and peripherals
System Usage from Most to Least Important: Gaming, Developing, Browsing the Web
Are you buying a monitor: Yes
Parts to Upgrade: almost everything, just the old IDE DVD-drive will be reused
Do you need to buy OS: No
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: Amazon.de, Mindfactory, Alternate
Location: Germany, will buy everything in German online stores
Parts Preferences: Intel CPU, Nvidia GPU
Overclocking: maybe in the future
SLI or Crossfire: not a hard requirement, but the option would be nice
Your Monitor Resolution: currently 1080p, planning to get a 1440p, want to have the option to play on 4K (TV)
Additional Comments: looks don't matter; example Games: Crysis 3, Far Cry 4, Watch Dogs 2, GTA V; example software: Visual Studio 2017
And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: I finally want to be able to play AAA titles at ultra-settings.
So, this is my first post, I hope it’s not too long
I would appreciate your feedback and suggestions especially to the CPU cooler, screen and PSU.Regards and have wonderful day,
Danghor
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