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[Evo X]

They would be faster, there's no doubt about that. I think he just means you wouldn't really notice it so M.2 drives are needlessly expensive unless you're going for a super compact build. SATA3 SSDs already are capable of loading things very fast, so you're essentially paying a price premium for something that does the same thing but shaves off only a few seconds here and there.

Yeah, I know it never makes sense to be at the bleeding edge, but price/performance isn't really why enthusiasts do this. You could make the same case when it comes to other high end PC components or even other industries such as cars and fashion.

but if cost isn't an issue, would there be any drawbacks to picking up a 512GB M.2 for around the same price as one of the top 1TB SATA 3 SSDs, like a Samsung 850 Pro?

I mean, it's going to be paired with a 5960x and Titan X, so not exactly a budget build.

 

[LilJoka]

Yeah, but if cost isn't an issue, would there be any drawbacks to picking up a 512GB M.2 for around the same price as one of the top 1TB SATA 3 SSDs, like a Samsung 850 Pro?

I mean, it's going to be paired with a 5960x and Titan X, so not exactly a budget build.

Yes, you have half the space. Space is more important when speeds are already so high and nearly indistinguishable performance difference in real world scenarios.

 

[knitoe]

Huh? Why is that?

Wouldn't all my data transfers, applications, and games load faster?

Unless you are using 2 of those, data transfer will be limited to the slower drive. Also, software, apps, games and etc., don't load 1GB/s of data so faster speeds hardly makes a difference. Only when you deal with massive writes, like video editing, does it make a huge amount. If money is not an issue and you want the fastest, go ahead.

I have a Samsung 840 512mb along with my 1tb HDD in my current PC. So I'm good with that. I could be convinced to get a second SSD instead, but I think right now I'm better served getting a second larger storage HDD and another SSD in another year or two.

Yeah RAM is a bit overkill probably. I do like to work with really large size files in PS, but I should probably just get 16gb in 2 dimms and if for whatever crazy reason I need more I could buy another pair.

Since you already have a SSD, it's fine. I thought you didn't.

 

[Dina]

So...anyone?

I wouldn't take the warranty. Can you get the assembly without the warranty?

 

[Kabouter]

I wouldn't take the warranty. Can you get the assembly without the warranty?

Not without, but can lower that to one year warranty.

 

[mrklaw]

Honestly, I think I may just go for a pre-built. I'm simply finding the costs of the PC and the worries about part compatibility to be too much.

Honestly that's fine. I did that too with my current machine. But this thread is a really good way to help understand whether the build you are looking at is decent value for money (accepting that you are likely to be charged a premium for pre-built)

I knew I was looking for something relatively small, and liked the bitfenix prodigy. I wanted an i5 k series with 8GB ram and an SSD alongside a storage HDD. Found one on a 'today only' sale at Overclockers which was pretty much the same price as piecing it together myself.

 

[Enduin]

When are Skylake CPUs actually supposed to go on sale? I would almost pull the trigger right now on my build if they were available. Now I'm going to spend however many days/weeks until they hit retailers going over all the parts of my PC comparing parts and agonizing if I'm making the right choice.

 

[Evo X]

When are Skywell CPUs actually supposed to go on sale? I would almost pull the trigger right now on my build if they were available. Now I'm going to spend however many days/weeks until they hit retailers going over all the parts of my PC comparing parts and agonizing if I'm making the right choice.

It seems the US is going to be the last market to get Skylakes. From what I've read, small batched of pre-orders should be coming in next week with wider availability at the end of this month/start of next.

 

[Enduin]

It seems the US is going to be the last market to get Skylakes. From what I've read, small batched of pre-orders should be coming in next week with wider availability at the end of this month/start of next.

Oh well. That's not too bad. I was hoping to have my rig ready for MGSV, but no big deal if it's not ready in time. My current system has no problems running Ground Zeroes ~45 on a mix of High/max settings.

 

[LordAlu]

Okay, I've ordered all the parts to my PC. Cost me around £1170 in total. Should keep me going for a good 5 years I'm hoping!

Thanks again to Lord Alu especially for speccing the majority of the PC. So nervous though! I hope I don't botch it up and manage to actually get it up and running.

No problem. Take it steady when you're building and you'll be just fine.

 

[mkenyon]

So...anyone?

Solid. Make sure that PSU is a 140mm PSU though. Anything longer, and the GPU size gets obstructed.

Standard ATX PSU size is 160mm, so you have to go out of your way to find the right one. The best one I know of offhand is the CoolerMaster VS-M series.

It'll run EUIV no problem

Yeah, I know it never makes sense to be at the bleeding edge, but price/performance isn't really why enthusiasts do this. You could make the same case when it comes to other high end PC components or even other industries such as cars and fashion.

but if cost isn't an issue, would there be any drawbacks to picking up a 512GB M.2 for around the same price as one of the top 1TB SATA 3 SSDs, like a Samsung 850 Pro?

I mean, it's going to be paired with a 5960x and Titan X, so not exactly a budget build.

Yeah, you get half the space for slightly faster loading times in games, with zero noticeable benefit in regular windows/application usage.

 

[Lil'DigiOp]

Hi PCGAF,

How's everyone doing?


I need some help in making a decision coming up pretty soon. At first I was planning to build a PC, but after some thought I realize that possibly the better option would be to invest in an older Mac Pro and possibly just upgrade what I can. Reason being Mac is more reliable and still gives me a windows desktop and I really want to run a dual processor setup.

If there is anyone here who is familiar with the Mac Pro hardware, I need some guidance before I jump right into my decision. I will be using this computer for music production and video production.

1. Comparing processors, Having a dual Xeon processor setup seems to be superior than even having the latest I7 chips installed with a newer architecture. Am I truly getting more for my money by using this route?

2. Is there anything that could throttle my performance when upgrading? I know the MB is PCI 2.0, am I losing any perks going with that? Would I be able to add in USB 3.0 cards or is that a pointless investment because of PCI 2.0 bandwidth?

3. Friend of mine gave me a brief 101 in processors. He told me that Clock Speed is king, with number of cores being a close second. He said the best valued performance will come from the best clock speed to core ratio in the processor I choose to go with. Is he correct in this instance? I would be better going with a 3.33hz Quad core than a 2.4ghz eight core?


I think thats most of my questions for right now, If you need more info from me, just let me know. Thanks guys.

Feel free to suggest alternatives to my plans as well.

 

[Evo X]

Yes, you have half the space. Space is more important when speeds are already so high and nearly indistinguishable performance difference in real world scenarios.

Unless you are using 2 of those, data transfer will be limited to the slower drive. Also, software, apps, games and etc., don't load 1GB/s of data so faster speeds hardly makes a difference. Only when you deal with massive writes, like video editing, does it make a huge amount. If money is not an issue and you want the fastest, go ahead.

Yeah, you get half the space for slightly faster loading times in games, with zero noticeable benefit in regular windows/application usage.

Hmmm.. ok. Thanks for the insight.

I don't mind spending extra money on high end things, but ONLY if there is a noticeable upgrade in quality and the item can justify the higher cost.

If you guys truly think the real world differences are imperceptible, I will go with the 1TB 850 Pro instead.

 

[Kabouter]

Solid. Make sure that PSU is a 140mm PSU though. Anything longer, and the GPU size gets obstructed.

Standard ATX PSU size is 160mm, so you have to go out of your way to find the right one. The best one I know of offhand is the CoolerMaster VS-M series.

It'll run EUIV no problem

Awesome, thanks

 

[Kudo]

Yep, it's an easy choice to go with something like that if I do the build by myself, the speed doesn't cost too much. My domestic builder has awful memory prices / selection so if I went with them, then I'd be more inclined to consider whether DDR4-2133 is sufficient.

Thanks for the feedback. It looks like a U12S doesn't fill the case anywhere near as much, and weighs half as much as the D15. Definitely going to consider it.

Buying memory from Finland?
http://www.verkkokauppa.com/fi/prod...-Gaming-DDR4-3000-Mhz-16-Gt-4-x-4-Gt-muistimo
Good deal on mobo, cpu and memory if you want to go for slower memory
http://www.verkkokauppa.com/fi/prod...Ranger-emolevy-Intel-Core-i7-6700K-suoritin-j

 

[mkenyon]

Hmmm.. ok. Thanks for the insight.

I don't mind spending extra money on high end things, but ONLY if there is a noticeable upgrade in quality and the item can justify the higher cost.

If you guys truly think the real world differences are imperceptible, I will go with the 1TB 850 Pro instead.

I installed one in my work server. I didn't notice a difference from the 830 Pro (RAID 1) it replaced, outside of boot time. And that's even with hosting a database.

The other benefit, which I appreciated with some of my other setups using mSATA, is that the drive is just right there on the board. If it's your only drive, then you don't even need to plug in a SATA cable to your PSU, which leads to super clean builds.

 

[Willectro]

Performance varies according to what kind of tests you run and what use case and scenario you have, as well as your daily use.

Depending on what you'll be doing with the PC, you could stand to benefit from higher speed DDR4 RAM. It seems to be that 2133MHz and 2400MHz are not really recommended. Here, take a look at these links:

Gamestar.de game benchmarks on memory speed
HardOCP overclocking memory scaling tests
Guru3D i7 6700K review memory testing
Legit Reviews' DDR4 memory benchmarking​

You shouldn't have any trouble with either case at all, seeing as they have the PSU in a separate chamber from the motherboard and all you have to do is pull the necessary cables through to where they need to go. There's more than enough room to tie up loose ends and have a clean-looking system even with a non-modular power supply. When you said V750, were you talking about this model? That's a good power supply, but the price is high at the moment. If you look at the price tracker, it has dropped to $100 CAD in the past, so $130 isn't a good price.

If you're looking for a good 750 watt power supply at a lower price, then let me recommend you my usual go-to choice: the EVGA Supernova B2 750 watt model ($75 after $30 rebate). It's semi-modular and of comparable quality to the Cooler Master V750 you were looking at and costs about $50 less if you include the rebate. Otherwise it's only about $20 cheaper.

You can compare the two power supplies here by the same review website. Jonny Guru gave the EVGA model a 9.0 rating while the Cooler Master model scored a 9.4 rating.

Otherwise if you're looking for gold efficiency and fully modular cabling, you can get the Antec EDG-750 ($125 after $30 rebate) for a few dollars less than the Cooler Master V750. HardOCP's review of the Antec was very positive, and they did note that the unit was impressively quiet.



They would be faster, there's no doubt about that. I think he just means you wouldn't really notice it so M.2 drives are needlessly expensive unless you're going for a super compact build. SATA3 SSDs already are capable of loading things very fast, so you're essentially paying a price premium for something that does the same thing but shaves off only a few seconds here and there.

Great, thanks for a advice, and yes it was that model. Have to look at the evga too now.

 

[mkenyon]

Hi PCGAF,

How's everyone doing?


I need some help in making a decision coming up pretty soon. At first I was planning to build a PC, but after some thought I realize that possibly the better option would be to invest in an older Mac Pro and possibly just upgrade what I can. Reason being Mac is more reliable and still gives me a windows desktop and I really want to run a dual processor setup.

If there is anyone here who is familiar with the Mac Pro hardware, I need some guidance before I jump right into my decision. I will be using this computer for music production and video production.

1. Comparing processors, Having a dual Xeon processor setup seems to be superior than even having the latest I7 chips installed with a newer architecture. Am I truly getting more for my money by using this route?

2. Is there anything that could throttle my performance when upgrading? I know the MB is PCI 2.0, am I losing any perks going with that? Would I be able to add in USB 3.0 cards or is that a pointless investment because of PCI 2.0 bandwidth?

3. Friend of mine gave me a brief 101 in processors. He told me that Clock Speed is king, with number of cores being a close second. He said the best valued performance will come from the best clock speed to core ratio in the processor I choose to go with. Is he correct in this instance? I would be better going with a 3.33hz Quad core than a 2.4ghz eight core?


I think thats most of my questions for right now, If you need more info from me, just let me know. Thanks guys.

Feel free to suggest alternatives to my plans as well.

I assume this isn't for gaming? That changes a lot in terms of each of your questions.

 

[Lil'DigiOp]

I assume this isn't for gaming? That changes a lot in terms of each of your questions.

Yeah, no gaming just audio production and video production.

I'll build a smaller PC for gaming.

 

[Dr.brain64]

I am considering upgrading my gfx. I currently have the msi gtx 560 ti (2gigs - twin frozr ii).

- Canada here
- Budget $500
- I like msi so I will continue with the brand

GTX 960, 970, 980 ? Is the 960 even woth it? (I think I can't afford the 980) Which one to choose??

(i5 3570 / 8 gigs ram / 550 watts / 1 screen 1080p)

Thanks!

 

[tarheel91]

Thanks for the info, I didn't even think the Z170-Pro Gaming's amp would make much of a difference. And yeah, I was thinking that it might be a motherboard or PSU issue. In either case, the Z170-Pro Gaming's improved audio chipset and USB port shielding against EMI as well as the fact that I'll be building a new PC (new PSU and motherboard, etc) will solve or prevent issues with what seems to be a good headset.

One thing I recommend is finding the Johnny Guru review of whatever PSU you're looking at and checking out ripple. There are plenty of otherwise good PSUs with subpar ripple. No amount of shielding will help if your signal is poor.

 

[Xplatformer]

I am considering upgrading my gfx. I currently have the msi gtx 560 ti (2gigs - twin frozr ii).

- Canada here
- Budget $500
- I like msi so I will continue with the brand

GTX 960, 970, 980 ? Is the 960 even woth it? (I think I can't afford the 980) Which one to choose??

(i5 3570 / 8 gigs ram / 550 watts / 1 screen 1080p)

Thanks!

I chose a 970 due to my need to run Cryengine games well. If you don't need to go over 65 fps in most games and can deal with Medium/High settings instead of ULTRA...the 960 will save you $100.

I'm glad I bought my 970 even though I was considering the 960 heavily.

I don't think I'll ever get that "what iff" feeling in my gut with the 970. If I bought a 960 I'd be happy with it, but whenever I didn't pull in 60fps I'd question my decision.

 

[Yudoken]

I am considering upgrading my gfx. I currently have the msi gtx 560 ti (2gigs - twin frozr ii).

- Canada here
- Budget $500
- I like msi so I will continue with the brand

GTX 960, 970, 980 ? Is the 960 even woth it? (I think I can't afford the 980) Which one to choose??

(i5 3570 / 8 gigs ram / 550 watts / 1 screen 1080p)

Thanks!

970 without a doubt.
price to performance winner.

 

[Dr.brain64]

I chose a 970 due to my need to run Cryengine games well. If you don't need to go over 65 fps in most games and can deal with Medium/High settings instead of ULTRA...the 960 will save you $100.

I'm glad I bought my 970 even though I was considering the 960 heavily.

I don't think I'll ever get that "what iff" feeling in my gut with the 970. If I bought a 960 I'd be happy with it, but whenever I didn't pull in 60fps I'd question my decision.

970 without a doubt.
price to performance winner.

970 it is!
Thank you

 

[Sub_Level]

Speaking of 970, is H97 an ok choice over Z97 for that video card if you don't plan on SLI'ing it? (or overclocking the CPU for that matter)

 

[opticalmace]

Do you need to worry about overheating for external 3.5" HDD enclosures?

I was thinking of only keeping SSDs in my case and accessing an external HDD or two occasionally for backups. Maybe something like this: http://www.amazon.com/Sabrent-External-Lay-Flat-Docking-EC-DFLT/dp/B00LS5NFQ2/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top?ie=UTF8

Any thoughts?

 

[kennah]

Not to be a negative nancy, but you probably won't even notice those speeds.

Doing it anyway.

 

[Evo X]

Alright, I ordered the white Enthoo Luxe case, 1TB Samsung 850 Pro SSD, and NZXT Kraken X61 AIO cooler because those will all work regardless of which platform I decide to go with.

Only thing I haven't ordered yet is motherboard because I am still not sure whether to go X99 or Z170.

From all the benchmarks out now, an overclocked 6700K paired with 3000+mhz ram is without a doubt the best CPU in the world for gaming due to the IPC and higher clock speeds.

Maybe things will change in the future, but for now, it seems 4 fast cores still have the edge over slower 6 and 8 core CPUs when it comes to gaming.

I don't do any video editing, or content creation on my PC. It's mainly for games, browsing GAF, and some very light web design and programming work, so even taking cost out of the equation, I'm wondering if it even makes any sense to get an 8 core CPU and 32GB of ram?

Picking the right tool for the job is more important than picking the most expensive one. Getting a 5960X for gaming kind of feels like buying a Ferrari to do farm work.

What do you guys think?

 

[RGM79]

One thing I recommend is finding the Johnny Guru review of whatever PSU you're looking at and checking out ripple. There are plenty of otherwise good PSUs with subpar ripple. No amount of shielding will help if your signal is poor.

Thanks, that is a good idea. I just have no idea if my current Seasonic PSU is outputting clean power. I've had it for about 6 years, but in terms of design it came out about 10 years ago. I already have a power supply to buy in mind and ripple is good but not great. It's just that the next best PSU for ripple is another $50 on top of the price tag of the PSU I had in mind, and I don't get anything else except for higher efficiency. I don't think it's necessarily worth it.

 

[Shining Sunshine]

Thanks, that is a good idea. I just have no idea if my current Seasonic PSU is outputting clean power. I've had it for about 6 years, but in terms of design it came out about 10 years ago. I already have a power supply to buy in mind and ripple is good but not great. It's just that the next best PSU for ripple is another $50 on top of the price tag of the PSU I had in mind, and I don't get anything else except for higher efficiency. I don't think it's necessarily worth it.

I also use this.

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/id-2547993/psu-tier-list.html

A relative list of the best PSUs in terms of quality components.
You could find a tier 1 quality PSU for under $100.

 

[opticalmace]

Alright, I ordered the white Enthoo Luxe case, 1TB Samsung 850 Pro SSD, and NZXT Kraken X61 AIO cooler because those will all work regardless of which platform I decide to go with.

Only thing I haven't ordered yet is motherboard because I am still not sure whether to go X99 or Z170.

From all the benchmarks out now, an overclocked 6700K paired with 3000+mhz ram is without a doubt the best CPU in the world for gaming due to the IPC and higher clock speeds.

Maybe things will change in the future, but for now, it seems 4 fast cores still have the edge over slower 6 and 8 core CPUs when it comes to gaming.

I don't do any video editing, or content creation on my PC. It's mainly for games, browsing GAF, and some very light web design and programming work, so even taking cost out of the equation, I'm wondering if it even makes any sense to get an 8 core CPU and 32GB of ram?

Picking the right tool for the job is more important than picking the most expensive one. Getting a 5960X for gaming kind of feels like buying a Ferrari to do farm work.

What do you guys think?

Didn't you already buy the 5960X?

You definitely need to take a moment and figure out what your priorities are with this build. In terms of gaming performance, an X99 setup at (say) 4.3Ghz won't be that far behind a 4.7Ghz Z170, and you get a couple extra cores out of it (if you go for the 5820 or 5930). edit: GPU will be more important anyway at that point for gaming.

Are you planning on SLI? What resolution will you be gaming at?

 

[harz-marz]

For those that game on a 1440P screen, what sacrifices do you usually make to get a game running at 60fps. Any advice?

I am waiting on my new cpu (6600K, upgraded from a 2500 non-k)

A lot of games I can hit this no problem, but can't in Crysis 3 (but I think this is only possible in SLI at this res)

Thoughts?

 

[opticalmace]

For those that game on a 1440P screen, what sacrifices do you usually make to get a game running at 60fps. Any advice?

I am waiting on my new cpu (6600K, upgraded from a 2500 non-k)

A lot of games I can hit this no problem, but can't in Crysis 3 (but I think this is only possible in SLI at this res)

Thoughts?

What GPU?

 

[Evo X]

Didn't you already buy the 5960X?

You definitely need to take a moment and figure out what your priorities are with this build. In terms of gaming performance, an X99 setup at (say) 4.3Ghz won't be that far behind a 4.7Ghz Z170, and you get a couple extra cores out of it (if you go for the 5820 or 5930). edit: GPU will be more important anyway at that point for gaming.

Are you planning on SLI? What resolution will you be gaming at?

Yeah, I bought the 5960x already, but haven't opened it yet so I can still return it.

I like sticking to single cards since SLI doesn't work with DSR+GSYNC. Have one Titan X right now, probably swap it for Pascal Titan whenever that comes out.

I play at 2560x1440, but run 4K DSR for some of the less intensive games.

 

[harz-marz]

What GPU?

I have a single 980 ti

 

[opticalmace]

Yeah, I bought the 5960x already, but haven't opened it yet so I can still return it.

I like sticking to single cards since SLI doesn't work with DSR+GSYNC. Have one Titan X right now, probably swap it for Pascal Titan whenever that comes out.

I play at 2560x1440, but run 4K DSR for some of the less intensive games.

Basically it comes down to the extra 2 cores of X99 (assuming 5820/5930) versus a bit more CPU performance and maybe an extra chipset feature or two (not that familiar with Skylake) with Z170.

Since you're pretty much going to be GPU limited, I would go for the former. With only one card you have enough PCIE lanes left over with the 5820K to take care of future additions (e.g. PCIE SSDs and whatnot), so I would go for that. I think microcenter has the 5820 for $299 if you have one around (or at least, did). Of course, you have to give the 5820 a nice overclock.

 

[RGM79]

I also use this.

http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/id-2547993/psu-tier-list.html

A relative list of the best PSUs in terms of quality components.
You could find a tier 1 quality PSU for under $100.

Thanks. I've neglected to mention that I'm in Canada, and power supply prices aren't great. To clarify further, I'm going to buy a EVGA Supernova B2 750 watt model (tier 2), and as far as I know, the cheapest tier 1 model available to me is the XFX Pro Series XXX 750 watt model which is a $25 premium over the EVGA B2 and I lose the semi-modular cabling.

 

[Hazaro]

Will make new thread when I get back from work today, suggestions on thread titles?

Probably going back to having 2500K in it again.
Also a good time to mention part/peripheral updates as well.

 

[harz-marz]

Will make new thread when I get back from work today, suggestions on thread titles?

Probably going back to having 2500K in it again.
Also a good time to mention part/peripheral updates as well.

"I don't need a new PC - but I am gonna upgrade anyway!"

Sums me up!

 

[CreepingFear]

"I don't need a new PC - but I am gonna upgrade anyway!"

Sums me up!

Same.

 

[Evo X]

Basically it comes down to the extra 2 cores of X99 (assuming 5820/5930) versus a bit more CPU performance and maybe an extra chipset feature or two (not that familiar with Skylake) with Z170.

Since you're pretty much going to be GPU limited, I would go for the former. With only one card you have enough PCIE lanes left over with the 5820K to take care of future additions (e.g. PCIE SSDs and whatnot), so I would go for that. I think microcenter has the 5820 for $299 if you have one around (or at least, did). Of course, you have to give the 5820 a nice overclock.

Yeah, the 5820 seems like a great bargain if you want to get into a 6 core. 5930 seems like a weird proposition. $200 more only for some extra PCI-E lanes. If you have a PC that's gonna be running 3-4 way SLI, I'd imagine you would spring for the 5960.

Will make new thread when I get back from work today, suggestions on thread titles?

Probably going back to having 2500K in it again.
Also a good time to mention part/peripheral updates as well.

"Skylake was a mistake. It's nothing but trash."

At least that's what GAF sentiment seems to be in the other thread. lol

 

[Shining Sunshine]

Thanks. I've neglected to mention that I'm in Canada, and power supply prices aren't great. To clarify further, I'm going to buy a EVGA Supernova B2 750 watt model (tier 2), and as far as I know, the cheapest tier 1 model available to me is the XFX Pro Series XXX 750 watt model which is a $25 premium over the EVGA B2 and I lose the semi-modular cabling.

That's a good buy. I would actually go for the EVGA Supernova G2 750W 80+ Gold if you go tier 1. It's at $124.99 at NCIX. Also rated highly at Johnny Guru.

Despite what Partpicker says for NCIX, their site shows that they do have stock, but might take 5-10 additional days for shipping or if you pick up at a store.

http://www.ncix.com/detail/evga-supernova-750-g2-80plus-9b-94405-1012.htm?affiliateid=7474144

 

[Quotient]

"Skylake was a mistake. It's nothing but trash."

At least that's what GAF sentiment seems to be in the other thread. lol

What is current sentiment for Skylake, for a new PC build is Skylake a good buy?

EDIT: e.g. if you were to build a new PC would you buy a i5-4690k or i5-6600k?

 

[Aceshighhhh]

I'm trying to get an efficient build for around $800 USD. This is what I've got so far:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($224.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($25.98 @ OutletPC)

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H97M-D3H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($79.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Tactical Tracer 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($66.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 960 2GB Video Card ($189.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Silverstone PS07B MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($65.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 520W 80+ Bronze Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($59.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $841.85
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-08-10 18:01 EDT-0400



I don't plan on OC'ing but I may upgrade the video card in the future. Any improvements I can make for cost/power?

 

[harz-marz]

I'm trying to get an efficient build for around $800 USD. This is what I've got so far:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($224.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($25.98 @ OutletPC)

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H97M-D3H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($79.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Tactical Tracer 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($66.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 960 2GB Video Card ($189.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Silverstone PS07B MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($65.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 520W 80+ Bronze Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($59.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $841.85
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-08-10 18:01 EDT-0400



I don't plan on OC'ing but I may upgrade the video card in the future. Any improvements I can make for cost/power?

I would save a little extra and go for the 970.

 

[Evo X]

What is current sentiment for Skylake, for a new PC build is Skylake a good buy?

EDIT: e.g. if you were to build a new PC would you buy a i5-4690k or i5-6600k?

If you're building a new gaming rig, no reason not to go for Skylake over Haswell. Even if it doesn't bring a huge performance jump over the last gen processors, it's got some nice chip set upgrades that were first introduced in the X99 enthusiast platform.

 

[Smokey]

Alright, I ordered the white Enthoo Luxe case, 1TB Samsung 850 Pro SSD, and NZXT Kraken X61 AIO cooler because those will all work regardless of which platform I decide to go with.

Only thing I haven't ordered yet is motherboard because I am still not sure whether to go X99 or Z170.

From all the benchmarks out now, an overclocked 6700K paired with 3000+mhz ram is without a doubt the best CPU in the world for gaming due to the IPC and higher clock speeds.

Maybe things will change in the future, but for now, it seems 4 fast cores still have the edge over slower 6 and 8 core CPUs when it comes to gaming.

I don't do any video editing, or content creation on my PC. It's mainly for games, browsing GAF, and some very light web design and programming work, so even taking cost out of the equation, I'm wondering if it even makes any sense to get an 8 core CPU and 32GB of ram?

Picking the right tool for the job is more important than picking the most expensive one. Getting a 5960X for gaming kind of feels like buying a Ferrari to do farm work.

What do you guys think?

I thought I was ready to pass the crown to you, but clearly I was mistaken

You let MK talk you out of a sweet PCIe SSD and then delivered this gem: "Getting a 5960X for gaming kind of feels like buying a Ferrari to do farm work"

Words can't express how disappointed I am right now

For those that game on a 1440P screen, what sacrifices do you usually make to get a game running at 60fps. Any advice?

I am waiting on my new cpu (6600K, upgraded from a 2500 non-k)

A lot of games I can hit this no problem, but can't in Crysis 3 (but I think this is only possible in SLI at this res)

Thoughts?

Sacrifice nothing.
Buy another GPU

/s

Spoiler

or maybe not

AA is usually the biggest offender of < 60fps

 

[Evo X]

I thought I was ready to pass the crown to you, but clearly I was mistaken

You let MK talk you out of a sweet PCIe SSD and then delivered this gem: "Getting a 5960X for gaming kind of feels like buying a Ferrari to do farm work"

Words can't express how disappointed I am right now

;_;

It's still not too late, I can change! Give me another chance.

brb. Cancelling my 850 Pro order and getting dat M.2 hotness.

 

[Enduin]

Are there any disadvantages to fully modular PSUs? I hate cable management and being able to only have the cables there I need and not half a dozen I don't hanging around would be awesome.

 

[RGM79]

I'm trying to get an efficient build for around $800 USD. This is what I've got so far:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($224.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($25.98 @ OutletPC)

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H97M-D3H Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($79.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Tactical Tracer 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($66.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 960 2GB Video Card ($189.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Silverstone PS07B MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($65.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 520W 80+ Bronze Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($59.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $841.85
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-08-10 18:01 EDT-0400

I don't plan on OC'ing but I may upgrade the video card in the future. Any improvements I can make for cost/power?

Ooh, I love minmaxing. I managed to fit better parts than what you had for a lower overall price.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($224.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($25.98 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus Z97-E ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($91.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: Mushkin Blackline 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-2133 Memory ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Toshiba 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($44.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 970 4GB STRIX Video Card ($313.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: NZXT Source 210 (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($29.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $831.90
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-08-10 18:27 EDT-0400

If you're absolutely sure you don't want to overclock, then some money can be saved by going with alternative parts.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($237.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Asus H81M-D PLUS Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($44.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($38.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Toshiba 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($44.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 970 4GB STRIX Video Card ($313.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Fractal Design Core 1000 USB 3.0 MicroATX Mid Tower Case ($22.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($49.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $753.93
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-08-10 18:31 EDT-0400

Both builds include a GTX 970.

Are there any disadvantages to fully modular PSUs? I hate cable management and being able to only have the cables there I need and not half a dozen I don't hanging around would be awesome.

They might be slightly longer than non-modular power supplies because of the need to build modular plugs into the power supply's casing. That's pretty much it. Unless you're building in a very small and cramped case, it's probably a non-issue.