Gaming machine spec advice

raze

Hello forum, I'm in need of a bit of guidance. I've been a Mac user for a decade, and am thinking about moving back to PC as main machine for gaming after years in the console wilderness. I wouldn't trust myself to build a PC from parts, so am looking to order a custom spec which I've given a bit of thought to - but there's lots of unknowns for me. First off, the standard questions:

1. What is your budget? Flexible, sub €3,000

2. What will be the main purpose of the computer? Gaming, FPS, BF4 etc

3. Do you need a copy of Windows? Yes

4. Can you use any parts from an old computer? Nope

5. Do you need a monitor? Yes, looking at Benq XL2411T which is 1920x1080

6. Do you need any of these peripherals? [Keyboard/Mouse/Wireless Card/Card Reader/Speakers/etc.] - Yes - card reader non-essential

7. Are you willing to try overclocking? I'm willing to buy overclocked I guess, but not overclock myself

8. How can you pay? [Bank Transfer/Credit Card/Laser]

9. When are you purchasing? No deadline. I would have ordered tonight, but hit some stumbling blocks

I've been looking at ordering from Hardwareversand after seeing some recommendations in this forum.

Currently the build is:
4770K (3.5GHz)
Asus Maximus VI Formula
16 Gb RAM @ 2400MHz
Case: Corsair Vengeance C70
GPU: GTX 780
PSU: Corsair HX1050 80 Plus Gold (see below)
Storage: Boot SSD Samsung 840 @ 120Gb, 2nd drive Barracuda Black 2TB
CPU Fan Corsair H110
OS: Windows 8.1 Pro 64-bit

So, I'm looking to build a machine that will run well for as long as it can, I'm thinking of going bigger than necessary on the PSU because in future I may think of a second GTX 780 in SLI.

HWVS won't ship the machine with the CPU fans fitted. Two questions about this - the mobo has a cooling system built-in, would this make the H110 redundant?

If I had to fit the fans myself on delivery is it a daunting job? I'm okay with basic hardware stuff, but I wouldn't know what to do with thermal paste.

I haven't been a Windows user for a while, I'm thinking Windows 8 would be the most recent, so be the best system to opt for - however all reviews focus on the hideous UI. Just in terms of DirectX and updates down the line, is Windows 8 the right choice, or is it much of a muchness between it and 7?

Finally, is it okay to rely on the mobo for bluetooth, wired and wireless networking? I don't have any special network or intranet requirements beyond basic use.

Thanks for reading, any guidance would be much appreciated.

uberpixie

raze wrote: »

I'm willing to buy overclocked I guess, but not overclock myself

Then skip the following:

Asus Maximus VI Formula @ €260 is a total waste if you are not going to overclock. You are wasting money that can be put into the graphics card.

go for:

Gigabyte Z87X-UD3H @ €149
http://www.hardwareversand.de/DDR3/79806/Gigabyte+Z87X-UD3H%2C+ATX.article

or

MSI Z87-G45 @ €136
http://www.hardwareversand.de/DDR3/79672/MSI+Z87-G45+Gaming%2C+ATX%2C+Sockel+1150.article



16 Gb RAM @ 2400MHz, not really much point unless you are benchmarking. A good 1866mhz set would be a good buy and there will be noticeable difference in performance.



4770K (3.5GHz): would nearly keep this as you can probably safely overclock using the software utilities that come with the board.


Case: Corsair Vengeance C70, I have seen a bad review for this case, air flow is not mean to be the best

http://www.anandtech.com/show/5834/corsair-vengeance-c70-case-review-going-for-the-gamers/7

http://hexus.net/tech/reviews/chassis/41201-corsair-vengeance-c70/?page=6
(this review advises to change the default fan config for slightly better cooling)

PSU: can be trimmed back to a good 850W unit, this would be more than enough power for a sli setup. The one you have picked is a good price,

Another option for around the same money: superflower 1000W Modular
http://www.hardwareversand.de/900+-+1000+Watts/38005/Super-Flower+SF1000P14XE+Golden+Green+Modular+80plus+gold.article

GFX card: Nvidia just announched a 780ti, slightly overclocker variant to try put a slight damper on AMDs "pending" Radeon R9-290x launch.

This should hopefullt push prices down a little on the 780s over the next few weeks....

raze wrote: »

HWVS won't ship the machine with the CPU fans fitted. Two questions about this - the mobo has a cooling system built-in, would this make the H110 redundant?

You need to fit a cpu cooler...... No ifs/buts/maybes.....

raze wrote: »

If I had to fit the fans myself on delivery is it a daunting job? I'm okay with basic hardware stuff, but I wouldn't know what to do with thermal paste.

If you are buying a closed loop water cooler: there will prob be thermal paste already applied to the unit. You just follow the instructions and install the cooler.

The only trick to thermal paste: put a a small blob the size of a grain of rice dead centre of the chip and then install the cpu cooler, the weight of the cooler will evenly spread the paste.

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/thermal-paste-heat-sink-heat-spreader,3600.html
(more than you will ever want to know about thermal paste....)

raze wrote: »

Finally, is it okay to rely on the mobo for bluetooth, wired and wireless networking? I don't have any special network or intranet requirements beyond basic use.

Yes, they are usually fine.

SterlingArcher

If you're in no rush maybe hold off. The gtx 780ti is supposed to drop November. Might be worth the hold off. If past ti releases are anything to go by.

raze

Thanks to you both - lots of food for thought uberpixie and SterlingArcher.

I will hold off for a while - not just because of the price drop, but also because I'm finding that every component is its own rabbit hole of knowledge I don't quite understand yet.

As an example of this, I have just thought of SLI as something for the future - but to keep it as an option I'd have to plan for it now. I know the future second card would have to be the same as any I go for now - but is one 780 the same as the next? Or if I buy a third party GPU can I only get an identical GPU from the same third party in future? If so, might I struggle to find a product in a few years time due to discontinued lines? Retailers don't always offer stock cards, but maybe that is what I should be confining myself to.

Other sticking points - form factors - for case, mobo, headroom for fans. Where to refer to for bottlenecks - e.g. RAM clock speed: specs on the Gigabyte mobo's bus clocks are listed as 1600 MHz, 1333 MHz, 3000 MHz, 2933 MHz. So would 2400 MHz RAM be handled as normal, or stepped down to 1600 MHz?

Anyway, safe to say I'm at a stage where I'm conjuring complexities for myself and losing sight of why I want the machine and what it's going to be used for. Taking more time to assess all options would be the best course.

SterlingArcher

raze wrote: »

Thanks to you both - lots of food for thought uberpixie and SterlingArcher.

I will hold off for a while - not just because of the price drop, but also because I'm finding that every component is its own rabbit hole of knowledge I don't quite understand yet.

As an example of this, I have just thought of SLI as something for the future - but to keep it as an option I'd have to plan for it now. I know the future second card would have to be the same as any I go for now - but is one 780 the same as the next? Or if I buy a third party GPU can I only get an identical GPU from the same third party in future? If so, might I struggle to find a product in a few years time due to discontinued lines? Retailers don't always offer stock cards, but maybe that is what I should be confining myself to.

Other sticking points - form factors - for case, mobo, headroom for fans. Where to refer to for bottlenecks - e.g. RAM clock speed: specs on the Gigabyte mobo's bus clocks are listed as 1600 MHz, 1333 MHz, 3000 MHz, 2933 MHz. So would 2400 MHz RAM be handled as normal, or stepped down to 1600 MHz?

Anyway, safe to say I'm at a stage where I'm conjuring complexities for myself and losing sight of why I want the machine and what it's going to be used for. Taking more time to assess all options would be the best course.

Haha how deep does the rabbit hole go. We have all been there at some stage. Eyes bloodshot from benchmarks
and reviews. (first world problems)


As far as the Gpu situation goes once it is of the same type ( gtx780) branding does not matter asus evga blah blah. As long as it is 2 gtx 780 2gigs. As to use a 4 gig 780 card with a 2 gig 780 card would lose its memory value. Would work but just would read as 2 780s 2gig.

Anyway best of luck.

BloodBath

You have a big ass budget there. You should be going for 1440p. You won't need dual cards for 1080p.

raze

I'm thinking about the Benq for its 1ms response time - which probably would make no odds for online gaming which is all I'm thinking about. I have no point of reference for resolutions though - I don't know what cards will handle and I don't know what pixel size looks like as it scales. My current monitor is sub 1080p.