Jump to content

Help My PC Build


Parker

Recommended Posts

I've finally been convinced by co-workers to build a PC (and my wife is happy that she'll get my current one) and I've picked out quite a few of the parts I want, but I need some help with the rest. Here is what I've decided on so far...

 

Case: Corsair Obsidian Series 750D Airflow Edition

CPU: Intel I7 8700K

GPU: EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 Ti FTW3 Hybrid

Memory: Corsair Vengeance DDR4 4000Mhz (32GB)

Storage: WD Blue 1TB Internal SSD (2 of these)

CPU Cooling: Thermaltake Water 3.0 360mm Riing Fans

Motherboard: Need help here

Power Supply: Need help here as well

Monitor: Not sure here either

Keyboard: Corsair K95 Platinum

Mouse: Logitech G502 Proteus Spectrum

 

As you can see, I still need help deciding on which motherboard I should purchase (I know I need it to be compatible with the CPU) as well as the power supply. I don't know exactly how much power I need for this build, I'm assuming fans and more cooling will require a beefier power supply. Also, is there anything else I'm missing or overlooking that I'll need to complete this PC? The goal is to have this completed by my birthday in July, if not sooner. 

 

Thanks for any help,

 

 

Parker
 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You're really going all out, huh.

 

I'd first like to address your RAM. Why 32GB? Unless you're doing intensive rendering and video design work, 16GB is more than enough for gaming. Also, 4000MHz is completely unnecessary. RAM speed has been proven not to affect performance much. There's really no need to go above 2400-3000MHz. Finding motherboards that actually utilise 4000MHz RAM is also going to make your search for this component much harder.

 

You'll be wanting a power supply that's ~800 watts. Your power supply only draws the wattage it needs with 20% extra to compensate for peripherals and such. I'd say 650-700 watts would be the minimum recommendation for your build. But best to have some extra leeway. It's also essential you get a good quality PSU from manufacturers such as Corsair.

 

You'll need a motherboard that supports your components, so in this case you'll want to search for one that supports your 8th gen CPU, RAM speed and RAM amount (modern motherboards support 32GB).

 

With your build, going any resolution below 4K would be silly.

 

EDIT: I've just checked your case again, your cooling solution should be fine. Sorry,

Edited by Hydroxypropanoic
  • Like 3
Link to comment
Share on other sites

4 minutes ago, Hydroxypropanoic said:

You're really going all out, huh.

 

I'd first like to address your RAM. Why 32GB? Unless you're doing intensive rendering and video design work, 16GB is more than enough for gaming. Also, 4000MHz is completely unnecessary. RAM speed has been proven not to affect performance much. There's really no need to go above 2400-3000MHz. Finding motherboards that actually utilise 4000MHz RAM is also going to make your search for this component much harder.

 

You'll be wanting a power supply that's ~800 watts. Your power supply only draws the wattage it needs with 20% extra to compensate for peripherals and such. I'd say 650-700 watts would be the minimum recommendation for your build. But best to have some extra leeway. It's also essential you get a good quality PSU from manufacturers such as Corsair.

 

You'll need a motherboard that supports your components, so in this case you'll want to search for one that supports your 8th gen CPU, RAM speed and RAM amount (modern motherboards support 32GB).

 

With your build, going any resolution below 4K would be silly. And your CPU cooling fans also won't fit in your chosen tower.

 

 

Thank you for the reply, I really appreciate it. I'll probably end up going with 16gb of RAM at first then, I can always add more easily if I decide I need it. I won't go with the 4000MhZ RAM either then if it doesn't make much of a difference, it'll save me a few bucks. 

 

I've been looking at motherboards for a while and I still don't understand the differences between them, but it looks like this one is pretty good and should be compatible with everything else.

 

Gigabyte Z370 AORUS Ultra Gaming

 

As far as a PSU, would something like this work well?

 

Corsair AX1200i

 

It is a 1200 watt power supply which is a little overkill, but it is better to go overboard than not have enough, right? Also, are you sure those cooling fans wouldn't fit the case? It is a full size Corsair and seems to have quite a bit of room inside. If not though, which case would you recommend? Or would it be better to just go with a little smaller fans (Corsair seem to have some nice options) and keep the case I want?

 

Again, thanks for the help, it is really appreciated. 

 

 

Parker

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I can tell someone's getting the vr bug! :)

 

 

Well I usually start with the motherboard and work my way from there. Especially since the motherboard will determine well... Pretty much everything. 

 

Though I'm pretty sure with what you picked out, any high end brand new motherboard will fit as long as it fits the case, just be wary of ALL the specs. (that case you picked doesn't take the larger motherboards btw, minis and smaller it seems). I would get a much larger case with more room to work with for all components. Especially sense I'm going to recommend a seperate water cooling system. 

 

But you can never have too much power! The more watts, the better in your case(no pun intended!). Sense I'm going to recommend looking into water cooling (seperate, not integrated), 1000watt would be safe. But the best way is to add it all up from what you've chosen. 

 

I disagree with hydro, if you're spending this amount, def go with 32GB ram. It will definitely come in handy, I love having 16 just for web browsing! That doesn't speak if Adobe premiere, photoshop, after effects, etc is used. 

 

So I would advise against a gpu with integrated water cooling. 

The 1080 ti is def top of the line, I'd actually encourage you to wait until the next iteration sense you don't want to finish till july. Which could cause you problems as sockets and such change. Plus price if you decide the 1080 ti is still sufficient.  

 

Also big note. LEDs just add cost, don't bother looking at anything with leds unless it fits perfectly or you don't have a choice. 

 

I would recommend against 2 1tb ssds

1 will only be used for the operating system. So 256GB Samsung evo pro will be great for the OS.

 

Sense it's a desktop I would have 

256GB evo pro ssd for OS

1TB evo(not pro) for some stuff

And a 2-8TB regular hdd for everything else. 

 

I wish I could have helped out far more, again I usually start with the motherboard and work my way, but I also haven't built a pc in 4 years. 

 

My truly truly personal recommendation so you get the performance with a lower $$$ sign, is to wait and then search people's builds and how well theirs is holding up. People love to post their new builds. You take a lot of work out. 

 

Also the motherboard is very special because it can bend you over due to it being fickle. I had an msi that no matter what would just give me tons of problems with overclocking. It would work, then it wouldn't one day. I finally just let it run without overclocking it. And that was with meticulous numbers so everything was balanced, ram speed, cpu speed, etc etc. Explained why I got it sub $200.

 

So ya again I highly recommend copying someone elses(and there's plenty out there). Because your wallet and performance aren't going to add up as it stands. 

 

I had more to say.... But I forgot... 

In the end building a pc isn't difficult, but planning each part can be, every # has to fit with the rest of the components for best results. Especially if you overclock(why wouldn't you?). And even more so if you want to plan for the future(not near future). 

 

Again I hope I helped at least a bit. I am rusty. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Although I have to add, if you pay me I'll do all the spec work! Heck I'll build the damn thing too! 

But as much as I'd like the cash, doing all the spec work is part of the fun of building it. And you become far more intimate with how it's working too. 

And it's cheaper. 

 

But if you get to a breaking point, I'll definitely do the hours of research for a couple hundred! It'll pay for my new ssd lol

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Even though you don't plan on getting it up till june, a great antiviral is always important. 

 

And this is the cheapest I've seen Bitdefender, ever. And it's the unlimited devices version!! 

Anyone who reads this should probably pounce on it. It's going to be gone in less than 24 hours. 

 

https://m.newegg.com/products/N82E16832719234?ignorebbr=1&utm_medium=Email&utm_source=IGNEFL112717&cm_mmc=EMC-IGNEFL112717-_-EMC-112717-Index-_-AntivirusInternetSecurity-_-32719234-S2A7C

 

Use promo code EMCBBCH76 to drop it down to the price

 

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

16gb ram is more than enough for gaming in all forms.

Ram is mostly used for opening program, running functions, etc. so it's not really needed unless you're running so many programs at once.

 

Power supply I stick to 1000+ for the simple fact if you want to run fan controllers/etc. LED lights, etc. its better to have more than not enough. 

 

I've only used the corsair water cooling, the sealed ones, just like in your image. So that should work. 

Edited by DARKB1KE
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 11/21/2017 at 2:13 AM, Parker said:

 

Thank you for the reply, I really appreciate it. I'll probably end up going with 16gb of RAM at first then, I can always add more easily if I decide I need it. I won't go with the 4000MhZ RAM either then if it doesn't make much of a difference, it'll save me a few bucks. 

 

I've been looking at motherboards for a while and I still don't understand the differences between them, but it looks like this one is pretty good and should be compatible with everything else.

 

Gigabyte Z370 AORUS Ultra Gaming

 

As far as a PSU, would something like this work well?

 

Corsair AX1200i

 

It is a 1200 watt power supply which is a little overkill, but it is better to go overboard than not have enough, right? Also, are you sure those cooling fans wouldn't fit the case? It is a full size Corsair and seems to have quite a bit of room inside. If not though, which case would you recommend? Or would it be better to just go with a little smaller fans (Corsair seem to have some nice options) and keep the case I want?

 

Again, thanks for the help, it is really appreciated. 

 

 

Parker

 

1200? xD Yes, it's super overkill. And going a bit overboard is not necessarily good when it comes to PSU. Looking at the rest of your build, 760 is probably more than enough too, and I think it would be even with double the GPU.

 

Great CPU, 8700K I mean. If you wanna save some money, there's always 8600K too. 8700K has hyper threading and twice the threads, but same amount of cores. Might have a bit more cache too. This matters if you run a lot of programs at the same time, and I do mean a lot of them, or if you run some very CPU heavy programs.

 

GTX 1080 is great, but these GPUs get "old" so fast. Though, the x80 models are usually pretty solid in terms of not getting outperformed before next two x70 version (3 years). Unless you're going to do a lot of 4k gaming, and you mainly do 1080p, then you may as well stick with GTX 1070.

 

The case might collect a lot of dust with the fans in the front, but not sure. It seems to have filter behind the fans, but that means the fans will be filled with dust quite easily.

 

I see you go for a full tower. Have you considered trying to make a very small build too? :D I did one for my wife and she was pretty happy with it. I'm talking mini-ITX size! :D Sure, the mobo will be smaller, have less slots, only one GPU for example, but do you need it? It's nice with a small case too. :) 

Edited by MMDE
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 21/11/2017 at 1:13 AM, Parker said:

I've been looking at motherboards for a while and I still don't understand the differences between them, but it looks like this one is pretty good and should be compatible with everything else.

 

Gigabyte Z370 AORUS Ultra Gaming

 

As far as a PSU, would something like this work well?

 

Corsair AX1200i

 

It is a 1200 watt power supply which is a little overkill, but it is better to go overboard than not have enough, right? Also, are you sure those cooling fans wouldn't fit the case? It is a full size Corsair and seems to have quite a bit of room inside. If not though, which case would you recommend? Or would it be better to just go with a little smaller fans (Corsair seem to have some nice options) and keep the case I want?

 


With motherboards you want to make sure it has all the IO your components and peripherals need, basically. And that it can actually support what you're plugging into it. The motherboard linked would be perfectly fine for your build.

 

Your PSU is unnecessary in both its price and its watts. Check your GPU's power draw here, and CPU's power draw here. These numbers don't account for overclocking (nor the rest of your build), but it gives you an idea. I've found a PSU here that still provides unnecessary extra watts, but at a much lower price. If you never knew, the difference between Bronze, Silver, Gold and Platinum PSU's is how many unnecessary extra watts it draws from the wall. I've found a post that summarises this well:

 

 

It really depends on what units you are looking at how long it will take to pay off, some units also barely miss the next level up so they may be a better value. Overall, each higher level is about 2 percentage points more efficient than the one below it at 20/50/100.

Here is some quick math for you, lets suppose you have a 500 W power supply, a system that pulls 250 W at full load, and is on 8 hour a day running at full load all the time(unrealistic but makes for much easier math), that puts your PSU at 50% load so its going to be at peak efficiency.

Power drawn from the wall:
Basic - 312.5 W
Bronze - 304.9 W
Silver - 294.1 W
Gold - 277.8 W
Platinum - 271.7 W

That means that over basic you save 7.6 W/h with bronze, 18.4 W/h with silver, 34.7 W/h with gold, and 40.8 W/h with platinum. With 8 hours a day at full load that comes out to be 1.82 kWh, 4.42 kWh, 8.33 kWh, and 9.79 kWh saved per month with bronze, silver, gold, and platinum respectively. If you pay 15 cents per kWh that means that over the course of 1 year having a platinum rated PSU over basic saves you about $17.62 so it could take quite a while to pay for the difference with energy savings alone, but in general silver rated units and up are much better quality than basic rated units.

(source)
 

 

I made a mistake in regards to your cooling fans. They'll fit fine.

 

On 21/11/2017 at 1:52 AM, Dav9834 said:

Although I have to add, if you pay me I'll do all the spec work! Heck I'll build the damn thing too! 

 

I'll definitely do the hours of research for a couple hundred! It'll pay for my new ssd lol

 

This is extortion.

 

www.pcpartpicker.com

 

15 hours ago, DARKB1KE said:

Power supply I stick to 1000+ for the simple fact if you want to run fan controllers/etc. LED lights, etc. its better to have more than not enough. 

 

With fans drawing 1.8 watts on average, and RGB fans powering their LED's from their own blade's rotation, 100s of extra watts specifically for these additions is rather silly.

 

15 hours ago, MMDE said:

The case might collect a lot of dust with the fans in the front, but not sure. It seems to have filter behind the fans, but that means the fans will be filled with dust quite easily.

 

I see you go for a full tower. Have you considered trying to make a very small build too? :D 

 

Fans at the front of a case intake fresh and cool air for the GPU and CPU fans to utilise. Front intake fans paired with a back extraction fan ensures no warm is recycled and overstayed inside the case. The dust-filters work a charm. But require a monthly clean I would say (I need to clean mine). Going below Micro-ATX would impose serious hardware and cooling limitations. I'm now curious about your wife's Mini-ATX build.

Edited by Hydroxypropanoic
  • Like 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Hydroxypropanoic said:

 

 

  Reveal hidden contents

It really depends on what units you are looking at how long it will take to pay off, some units also barely miss the next level up so they may be a better value. Overall, each higher level is about 2 percentage points more efficient than the one below it at 20/50/100.

Here is some quick math for you, lets suppose you have a 500 W power supply, a system that pulls 250 W at full load, and is on 8 hour a day running at full load all the time(unrealistic but makes for much easier math), that puts your PSU at 50% load so its going to be at peak efficiency.

Power drawn from the wall:
Basic - 312.5 W
Bronze - 304.9 W
Silver - 294.1 W
Gold - 277.8 W
Platinum - 271.7 W

That means that over basic you save 7.6 W/h with bronze, 18.4 W/h with silver, 34.7 W/h with gold, and 40.8 W/h with platinum. With 8 hours a day at full load that comes out to be 1.82 kWh, 4.42 kWh, 8.33 kWh, and 9.79 kWh saved per month with bronze, silver, gold, and platinum respectively. If you pay 15 cents per kWh that means that over the course of 1 year having a platinum rated PSU over basic saves you about $17.62 so it could take quite a while to pay for the difference with energy savings alone, but in general silver rated units and up are much better quality than basic rated units.

(source)
 

 

This is extortion.

Think you're using that word a litttttlle to freely? 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 hours ago, Hydroxypropanoic said:

Fans at the front of a case intake fresh and cool air for the GPU and CPU fans to utilise. Front intake fans paired with a back extraction fan ensures no warm is recycled and overstayed inside the case. The dust-filters work a charm. But require a monthly clean I would say (I need to clean mine). Going below Micro-ATX would impose serious hardware and cooling limitations. I'm now curious about your wife's Mini-ATX build.

 

I think you missed my point. The fans themselves aren't the issue. I was reacting to no fine filter in front of it, so the fans and a fine filter behind them would be filled with a lot more dust rather than only a fine filter you could clean.

 

Mini-ITX*

 

This was the mobo:

https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/GA-Z270N-WIFI-rev-10

 

Yes, limited PCIe lanes, so if you wanna install more than just a GPU, then there's not much room for it. It does however come with everything she wanted that could need the extra slots. And yes, if you want more PCIe lanes, then you gotta go bigger mobo than mini-itx.

 

Case:

http://www.fractal-design.com/home/product/cases/define-series/define-nano-s

203 x 330 x 400mm :D Your screen is likely larger, but of course it's wider than your screen. ;p

 

Thing to note about the case is that one requirement the case got was it's width. It was about placing it on a shelf, which this one fit extremely well. It's intended for atx PSU, but if you look up images of this, you'll see this leaves almost no space for the GPU to "breathe". This is intentional, and you're supposed to go with a one fan GPU, where the one fan is not going to get covered by the PSU. I bet two fans go okay too. You can also go for an SFX PSU, which is much smaller. There's less outputs on it, but PSUs like SF600 is amazing. In the case of SF600 you'd need a longer power cable from PSU to power the mobo, because the one it comes with is too short. Can either be extension cable or just buy a new longer one from Corsair or something. And because ATX PSU was intended, you need something like this to not get a big open hole at the back of the case:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01AWFVKRO/

 

SFX PSU is a lot smaller than ATX PSUs! :D

 

And that case is even intended to do water cooling, but not required.

 

So yeah, you can go mini-itx if you know your needs.

 

There's other even smaller mini-itx cases that are pretty good. As I said, this is the one we went with because of the width limitation.

Edited by MMDE
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 11/21/2017 at 1:18 AM, Parker said:

 

I'm not a big memory expert, not keeping up with the latest in overclocking etc, but I guess you intend to buy 2 of these sets, so you get 32GB. I kinda want more RAM for my current PC. Only got 2x8. :( Why? I love to dedicate some of it as temporary storage space, which memory of course is, but I mean for data that is often accessed and I want accessed fast, but programs want to save on HDD and not memory. Better performance and less reading and writing to the HDDs that way. For example, I do this with web browsers. Massive performance boost.

 

Anyway, point is, I totally approve of 32GB memory if you're going to use it. 16GB is probably enough for most people, but I've seen more and more need for more than 16GB. :)

 

What I really wanted to comment on was the speed on this memory. 4000Mhz is not really supported by the CPU, this is the kind of thing the motherboard supports. As I said, I'm not all that into it, but I think you need to set the motherboard in specific overclock profiles to even take advantage of this. So it's important that motherboard supports this speed if you intend to use it. As for gaming, maybe it has a small effect, but if you work with very specialized software, maybe stuff you program yourself or heavy engines that requires a lot of memory etc, then speed could probably make a decent difference. The latency of that memory seemed fine to me.

 

 

3 minutes ago, Fragtaster said:

First off: wow, what a expensive build. 32gb of 4000mhz, Vengeance, FTW3...definitely not 32gb (why not 16GB, unless its also a work PC) of 3000mhz TridentZ or a Strix.

 

Damn, you ninja'd me! :| 

Edited by MMDE
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...