Help me confirm (Or choose) this motherboard for my new build !

[testtube5]

So I'm about to hit the Buy button on the 8700k and some DDR4 and X motherboard. I'm going to stick everything else I have in my current rig into the new MB and add on as I go...

I put this build together rather quickly as all I have thought about thoroughly is my choice of CPU and RAM - https://pcpartpicker.com/list/Kqs2qk

I don't really need tips atm on what to swap out for any piece but the motherboard but that is a *general* idea of what I'd like the final build to look like.

I spend 2/3rds of my waking life on the computer...I game a lot, browse a lot, I multibox MMOs (This is actually the build's main purpose as I do it for a living, but the add-ons are more of a "want", not a "need" type of thing, especially the 1080 ti since I'm not *really* a "OMG Everything has to be 4k 144hz Ultra x16 AA" kinda guy and the game I multibox for a living on is over 20 years old), and I archive a LOT / move around files constantly.

I'm certainly going to OC as high as I can reasonably manage. I want to *eventually* get into video production but that's currently an afterthought at the moment. I'm 90%ish certain that I will never go SLI with this build (Although I'd like the option to be able to) and I'd like to end up with the nvme SSD (possibly 2) and 3-4 SATA HDDs.

I mainly want the option to upgrade / future proof as much as possible here, but I don't want to break the bank (275$ is the most I want to spend on the MB)

I'd consider myself beginner to intermediate as far as build knowledge goes, but the MB always is my toughest choice; especially since *not a single MB on the planet" is rated more than 4/5 stars on ANY website...which tends to scare me away from all of them.

Should I stick with my choice? If not, what would you recommend and why? (And possibly list a few options and why you chose those options if you can)

Thanks in advance for any assistance. =)

PS. I really like ASUS.

 

[lumineZ]

The performance is good on the Maximus X Hero, but really all Z370 board perform roughly within the same 2% margin of error with an exception here and there.
Good overclocking board to. But that is ofc more down to the silicone lottery on the CPU.


2 things I am wondering about is:

1. NVMe 960pro.
What are you going to put on that drive? Are you sure the workload you are going to put on it will use the speeds it can deliver?

2. With the current system you have listed maybe take a look at higher speed RAM? no need to go overboard but for 6700k - 7700k - 8700k I would say go for 3200Mhz on the memory since that seems to be the sweet spot for performance / value.

 

[testtube5]

1. NVMe 960pro.
What are you going to put on that drive? Are you sure the workload you are going to put on it will use the speeds it can deliver?

2. With the current system you have listed maybe take a look at higher speed RAM? no need to go overboard but for 6700k - 7700k - 8700k I would say go for 3200Mhz on the memory since that seems to be the sweet spot for performance / value.

As for the 960 pro: The game that I multibox is one in which I am constantly loading in and out of new areas. This, being for my job, is easily the most important part (other than threads for more clients) of a suitable build for such a thing. The only real splurge is that I don't really need one with that much space; but I would pay a 500$ without hesitation if it meant 1-2 second faster load times. 1-2 seconds could (and has many times) be the difference between "in game" life and death and thus, a waste of 30 to 90 minutes of my time depending on which event I'm attempting. (It's unlikely you've heard of the game so it wouldnt be able to elaborate on this without a novel of text. That said, I need the fastest drive I can possibly buy, And on that note - If you know of any faster SSD that's "consumer-price friendly" please name it.)

I'm unfamiliar with RAID 0 and I'm not even sure if I can do that with an nvme SSD or if that has absolutely nothing to do with the ability to put in RAID, but if so, another nvme drive is going on the grocery list.

Aaaand...as for the RAM, this also confuses me for two reasons. I'm looking at the 8700k that is saying it supports only 2666mhz, but you're not the first person to tell me 3200mhz is the sweet spot. Why is this? And second, I'm wondering how worthy that clock speed to cost ratio would actually be for performance (and performance in what form exactly, FPS? Load times?)

 

[lumineZ]

Ah I see. Well just dont be supriced if you dont see mutch of a difference with the NVMe compared to a SATA SSD when it comes to load times and overall gaming performance.


For the memory the 2666Mhz is more of a "reference"
On the 8700k you can run mutch higher like DDR4-3000, DDR4-3200, DDR4-3600, DDR4-3866, and DDR4-4000 for starters. You can go higher if you want but to be totaly fair... why??

Going from 2666 to 3200 you will see a small gain in avg. FPS maybe up 1 - 4 fps depending on the game. But the real difference is in the minimum and dips you can get.
And there can be a difference in load time also depending on what kind of game again you are playing. And if you hammer the computer with workloads then ofc the 3200Mhz will get the job done faster than 2666Mhz. Not by alot but over time you will sence it.

And of the overall parts you have gotten, I really find it hard to belive that going from 2666 to 3200Mhz will break the bank

Or you can go for the 2666Mhz and just OC it yourself and tighten the timings and tada you should be in the 3200Mhz area. (silicone lottery again)

 

[testtube5]

Haha I didn't really mean to say that it would break the bank=p. Like I said I'm still kind've a beginner with computer build / part knowledge and I didn't really know what the jump in RAM speed *actually* does down to the fundamentals. Getting a better idea of each part by the day but this is only the 2nd build I've put together in my life. And the first one was just me spamming this forum over and over with "Hey build a PC for me" and then re-posting it 10 times until everyone agreed on it lol....This time I've spent the last 3-4 weeks pretty much 8 hours a day cramming as much knowledge as I possibly could. I've learned a LOT relative to what I knew 3-4 weeks ago, but compared to the entirety of hardware subject material I have a looooong ways to go.

Thanks for the tips, was a big help.

Going to just stick with the ROG Maximus Hero MB I have on that list unless someone else feels like chiming in with additional input before I pull the trigger (probably around midnight tonight). And I'll upgrade the RAM to 3200mhz.

 

[lumineZ]

always spend alot of time before you buy to read up, look at several tests etc on all parts until you feel safe to push the "BUY" button

Overall you can almost never go wrong with an Asus ROG board from what I have seen.
I have the Hero IX with the 7700k and it works like a charm.

Are there boards out there that can do the same job as the Hero? yes. At a lower price? yes. But they dont have the look of the Asus board.

 

[testtube5]

Last question I have before I hit the Buy button.

Here's currently what I was about to purchase:

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/LQdL8K

However, with what I listed / in the original post, is there any reason I can't save myself another ~50 bucks going with this instead?:

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/GXBZVY

The only thing that I can see would be a reason to purchase the more expensive one would be that I see comments in the ratings of this Motherboard that it has voltage issues. Was this fixed / What do you guys think? Which one should I go for?

 

[lumineZ]

Depends if you are going to overclock the CPU and by how mutch.

Mild to avg. OC on the CPU the ROG STRIX Z370-E GAMING is more than enough.

If you wanna push the CPU to the limit then I would go for the HERO.

Normal users will not see or feel any difference if they would try both boards.

 

[testtube5]

What about the voltage problem that people seem to say about the Strix version?

 

[lumineZ]

Get the latest BIOS update and it should be "fixed."


Watch this video by OC3D to get your answer.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=6&v=n7Tth9bcgSo

 

[testtube5]

LAST question before I purchase. Will the water cooler I mentioned in the original post's pcpartpicker build. If I DO purchase the Hero MB, Will that Liquid Cooler be able to handle the temperatures I'll be getting if I do end up buying the Hero MB to max out as much CPU OC as possible?

 

[testtube5]

LAST question before I purchase. Will the water cooler I mentioned in the original post's pcpartpicker build. If I DO purchase the Hero MB, Will that Liquid Cooler be able to handle the temperatures I'll be getting if I do end up buying the Hero MB to max out as much CPU OC as possible?

(Sorry for double post)

 

[testtube5]

Bump. Looking to hit the buy button ASAP.

 

[lumineZ]

Yes. But you might be running the fans at high RPM depending on how mutch load the 8700k is under and for how long.
And overall the fans that comes with all AIO`s... they are not good.

So you can look into getting 2 other fans, or if you have the room. 4 fans to run in push / pull config (lower RPM needed = less noise)