New build 1440p

vlad2009

Hello all!

So I decide to make a new thread to ask a few questions, instead of hijacking other peoples threads.

About a month or so ago I had a thread where I planned a 700 build, but times have changed, I sold of my xbox one and TV in favour of a 1440p pc build instead.

I have enough money to start ordering things next week, however I have a couple of questions before I go ahead an order. All opinions and inputs much appreciated.

The plan is to build a 1440p capable Pc, which is good for gaming and one I can broadcast to twitch to at the same time.


I already have an Intel i5 4690k, and 8gb Kingston Hyper x Ram on the way.

I have also already decide on the following which I will be ordering from Mindfactory.de

Crucial BX100 250gb SSD
Enermax Liqmax 240 ii AIO cooler
Asus 290x

The monitor I will be getting is one of the korean ones from ebay called QNIX, 27" 1440p. ( apparently can be overclocked to 90Hz)

Now I need to Decide on the motherboard, PSU, and case.

I want to get the NZXT 340 case, but it's almost unavailable apart form overclockers.co.uk, and there it ends up at 90 euro due to the euro being very weak at the moment.

I was gonna go with the Asrock z97 extreme 3 MOBO, but I found out that it has one PCIe3.0 and one PCIe2.0, I'm guessing I'm better of going with 2 of the same ports In case I want to crossfire next year right?

And then I need to advice on the PSU, so If I want to crossfire in the future I would need a 750w I've been told. I was gonna get the EVGA supernova bronze, but turns out it's got pretty bad reviews. So now I'm looking at the Corsair cx750, Looks fine other than the multicolored wires I would need to change.

I would really appreciate if anyone had any input on this.

FobleAsNuck

Asus 290x is a poor choice here price-wise, I'd swap it for 970. And for the config you listed you don't need 750W. With 970 a good 500W will do it.

Asmooh

The monitor I will be getting is one of the korean ones from ebay called QNIX, 27" 1440p. ( apparently can be overclocked to 90Hz)

Why don't you get a normal monitor instead?

Now I need to Decide on the motherboard, PSU, and case.

Just get any good brand Z97 motherboard, get a decent brand PSU and case you can just get the cheapest one that can fit a 300mm videocard.

vlad2009

A 290x performs better at higher resolutions, and has full 4gb vram. Also the 750w psu is to futureproof for an extra 290 down the line, Probably should have mentioned that.

What is a normal monitor? a normal brand monitor or a 1080p monitor?

And I'm aware that I can get any good brand z97, but they all have different set ups and perks which is why I'm stuck in choosing.

Digital Solitude

Don't get a 970 at 1440p, stick with the 290x or a 290.

BeQuiet do a 750w PSU that's about €80, non modular but it should do.

ASRock Extreme3 is €120 or so, has 2 PCIe 3.0 slots. *Edit realise that's what you mentioned in op. Don't think there's much of a performance hit from cf on a 2.0 slot

Asmooh

I got this one with my I7: ASRock Fatal1ty Z97X Killer 158,90

good board, looks nice, good price and more "limited" than the Extreme series that Digital Solitude mentioned above.

I ment a good brand monitor, for psu i choose: Sea Sonic Platinum Series 760, expensive but best on the market for high(end) powered computers

yimrsg

FobleAsNuck wrote: »

Asus 290x is a poor choice here price-wise, I'd swap it for 970. And for the config you listed you don't need 750W. With 970 a good 500W will do it.

290x has dropped significantly in price of late, some down to ~£240. Others down to nearly £200 here.

http://www.scan.co.uk/shop/computer-hardware/all/gpu-amd/radeon-r9-290-pci-e-(2560-streams)/radeon-r9-290x-pci-e-(2816-streams)

Asmooh

yimrsg wrote: »

290x has dropped significantly in price of late, some down to ~£240. Others down to nearly £200 here.

http://www.scan.co.uk/shop/computer-hardware/all/gpu-amd/radeon-r9-290-pci-e-(2560-streams)/radeon-r9-290x-pci-e-(2816-streams)

290x is not the same as 290.

Cheapest on that website is :


LN58821
4GB Asus Radeon R9 290X DirectCU II, 5000MHz GDDR5, GPU 1000MHz, 2816 Streams, DP/DVI/HDMI
£227.15 inc VAT

vlad2009

I will prob go with the extreme 3 then, although I did see somewhere that it only has one PCIe3.0. and I will check out that PSU, need to make sure it has all black cables tho!

Asmooh

vlad2009 wrote: »

I will prob go with the extreme 3 then, although I did see somewhere that it only has one PCIe3.0. and I will check out that PSU, need to make sure it has all black cables tho!

why? the killer is way better?

Z97 Extreme3
http://www.asrock.com/mb/Intel/Z97%20Extreme3/?cat=Specifications


Fatal1ty Z97X Killer
http://www.asrock.com/mb/Intel/Fatal1ty%20Z97X%20Killer/?cat=Specifications

Digital Solitude

vlad2009 wrote: »

I will prob go with the extreme 3 then, although I did see somewhere that it only has one PCIe3.0. and I will check out that PSU, need to make sure it has all black cables tho!

Let me look into the Extreme3 and get back to you because its confusing me the more I look into it.

Cables should not be seen Vlad!

Digital Solitude

vlad2009 wrote: »

I will prob go with the extreme 3 then, although I did see somewhere that it only has one PCIe3.0. and I will check out that PSU, need to make sure it has all black cables tho!

Let me look into the Extreme3 and get back to you because its confusing me the more I look into it.

Cables should not be seen Vlad!

vlad2009

Because the Fatal1ty is 60 quid more expensive and there is no need for it really.


That's what I mean Digital! They almost wont be seen at all, but the bits that are seen should be black and not multicolored.

Asmooh

vlad2009 wrote: »

Because the Fatal1ty is 60 quid more expensive and there is no need for it really.


That's what I mean Digital! They almost wont be seen at all, but the bits that are seen should be black and not multicolored.

well depending on what you are going to do, this board is bettrer for gaming.. but i would not choose that SSD you have either

Digital Solitude

vlad2009 wrote: »

Because the Fatal1ty is 60 quid more expensive and there is no need for it really.


That's what I mean Digital! They almost wont be seen at all, but the bits that are seen should be black and not multicolored.

Spray them From my understanding, the Extreme3 will has 2 PCIe3.0 slots. When there is one card, it uses x16 bandwidth, whereas in CF it only can use x8 on each card. According to google, there's very limited differences between dual x16 and dual x8, as most cards can't hit x16 anyways.

Tl;Dr an Extreme3 is not very limiting.

vlad2009

Asmooh wrote: »

well depending on what you are going to do, this board is bettrer for gaming.. but i would not choose that SSD you have either

I Don't think it's actually better for gaming, a motherboard doesn't make much of a difference in gaming. And whats wrong with the SSD? Plenty reviews vouch for it.

Digital Solitude wrote: »

Spray them From my understanding, the Extreme3 will has 2 PCIe3.0 slots. When there is one card, it uses x16 bandwidth, whereas in CF it only can use x8 on each card. According to google, there's very limited differences between dual x16 and dual x8, as most cards can't hit x16 anyways.

Tl;Dr an Extreme3 is not very limiting.

Its good to go then! thanks man! Also I cant seem to find the bequiet PSU you are talking about. there is one for like e150+ but I'm not sure if that's it?

Also looking at the the Antec 750

Digital Solitude

What are you looking for in your cases? I'll have a look for the PSU, where are you buying from?

Asmooh

vlad2009 wrote: »

I Don't think it's actually better for gaming, a motherboard doesn't make much of a difference in gaming. And whats wrong with the SSD? Plenty reviews vouch for it.





Its good to go then! thanks man! Also I cant seem to find the bequiet PSU you are talking about. there is one for like e150+ but I'm not sure if that's it?

Also looking at the the Antec 750

I would choose EVO 850 M.2 SSD (if your board supports it, otherwise normal one)

http://ssd.userbenchmark.com/Compare/Samsung-850-Evo-250GB-vs-Crucial-BX100-250GB/2977vs3145

vlad2009

Digital Solitude wrote: »

What are you looking for in your cases? I'll have a look for the PSU, where are you buying from?

I want the sleek minimal look that the s340 offers. Anywhere that has it in stock between all in all it comes in at 90-120 :eek:
It seems its not readily available at the moment.

I will be ordering from more than one place. So far I'll be ordering the SSD,GPU, and Cooler form Mindfactory.de will also check if they have a suitable PSU, and for the other bits like the mother board and case I will have to look elsewhere that has both in stock

vlad2009

Asmooh thanks for the suggestion but I'm still on somewhat a budget and would like to keep costs to a minimum.

Asmooh

if you want a cheap case, check: AeroCool GT Black Edition - Midtowermodel 32,90

Digital Solitude

My cases are plain black boxes that I shove out of the way so I'm probably no good there then... The BX100 is fine as an SSD. The BeQuiet I was on about is only 700w unfortunately, I think that searching Geizhals for 750w psus and comparing all the ones that come up is your best bet.

Digital Solitude

Let me know how the single card runs the QNIX Vlad, considering getting one for my 280x

..Brian..

I'll run some benchs with crossfire turned off later but I don't think a single 290 will cut it at 1440p.

Also if you want to future proof and leave the option open to add another 290, get an 850w PSU instead. They will run on a 750w, I had mine on a 750w for about 6 months, but even with my cards and CPU (3570k) at stock I was getting peaks of 700w being drawn from the wall so no overclocking and I don't like the idea of running the PSU at 95% during long gaming sessions etc!

Finally, and most importantly, you have to consider the heat a pair of 290s will produce. It's actually ridiculous! On air, I had to run the card fans at 100% and all 7 case fans at 100% also and the top card STILL hit 95°c and began to throttle by up to 20% as a result of the heat. The bottom card would be in the high 80's. My PC sounded like a hair dryer and it still wasn't enough! And these were a pair of Asus cards with their Dcii coolers, not reference cards.

I now have them watercooled with a 120mm, a 240mm and a 360mm radiator and they are still difficult to keep under control.

I paid €800 for these two cards when they were new, I wouldn't do it again.

..Brian..

Here's two runs of Valley at 1440p. The first with crossfire disabled and the second with it enabled. I think the results speak for themselves.

Single card:




Crossfire:

Digital Solitude

That's savage upscaling Brian! Do you game with CF Disabled? I can comfortably run anything at 60+ with AA turned down, and my Heaven fps is only 27.

Based off that comparison, I can't see any reason a single 290 would be inadequate

EoinHef

I had a pair of 7950's in CF and they have a much lower tdp that the 290 and my god were they loud!!

Could keep them reasonably cool as the were vapor x's but once the fan sppeds reached around the 50% mark they became ridiculously loud. Ended up dialling back the overclocks to keep the heat and noise in check. They had great performance together and i felt CF scaled well in most games but dam they were hot and loud!

vlad2009

Brian thank you for the info! that was something I really needed to know from somebody that has experience in 1440p.

Heat and space issues was something I was thinking about, and it is also pushing me to go 1080p instead. I don't really know what to do now.

vlad2009

Lost my wallet so can't order today (((( at least my money wasn't in it. I have decided I may just stick with 1080p and get an ultrawide monitor. also swapping the 290x for a 970 instead.
To colour match the build I'm getting the z97s krait mobo.


Any opinions?

SterlingArcher

vlad2009 wrote: »

Lost my wallet so can't order today (((( at least my money wasn't in it. I have decided I may just stick with 1080p and get an ultrawide monitor. also swapping the 290x for a 970 instead.
To colour match the build I'm getting the z97s krait mobo.


Any opinions?

Personally vlad id go 1080p. Enjoy it at ultra settings and high fps.

Before you know it new gpus be out, new monitors. You'll pick up a second 970 and a proper 144hz 1440p monitor For a fraction of the cost now.

EoinHef

Not a bad idea,although after going 1440p i dont think i could go back.

What 970 you getting?

Only white one i know is the galax HOF

vlad2009

Yeah you're right Sterling, It's not that big yet so I should definitely wait.

I'm going for the MSI gtx 970, unfortunately it's not the colour I need, but I may paint over the red bits that can be seen with white paint.
The galax HOF looks tasty tho! I also read online that the MSI is good for overclocking. Would a 630w PSU be enough for the build if I plan on overclocking?

EoinHef

More than enough,could probably get away with 970 sli and a bit of overclocking if its a decent unit

SterlingArcher

If its the Thermaltake Berlin, anything over 700 w one will run you 80+ euro.

Don't know how that works for your budget.

vlad2009

it's a Thermaltake but not the Berlin version.

It's this one: http://www.mindfactory.de/product_info.php/630-Watt-Thermaltake-Smart-SE-Modular-80-_836866.html

Has decent reviews, although I'm still slightly skeptical as I heard the PSU quality is very important.

vlad2009

AHHHH IM SO EXCITEDDD!!!!!

Just placed my order! Ended up going with the Gigabyte G1 970 instead, and also decided to get another 8gb of ram as I plan on streaming with twitch, and was told that it is probably a good idea.

So the spec list:

i5 4690k
16gb Hyper X Ram (white)
MSI z97s Krait black and white motherboard
Crucial BX100 250gb SSD
GTX 970 G1 Gigabyte
630 SE modular PSU by Thermaltake
Enermax Liqmax ii 240 Liquid cpu cooler
Nzxt source white 340 case.

Can't wait for it all to get here. Went a bit over the planned expenditure, as I got more ram, and little hidden costs cropped up too. Also had to order from 2 different sites, but it's done now so now we just play the waiting game.
I actually don't have enough to buy that LG monitor, so it will have to wait a little bit, and I forgot to order a cheapo keyboard so gonna have to fish an old one from some mates or something.

Don't know how I'm gonna manage with all my assessments now haha, literally shaking with excitement.