~$1100 Gaming/Multitasking PC

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1

Hello everyone, long time lurker first time poster.

Anyway, I'm in the market for a new PC and I got all the features I was looking for at around $1100 and I'd like some input about how I did.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/JJ8ZmG

CPU Intel Xeon E3-1231 V3:
I was looking for a CPU with at least 8 threads for a few reasons. While gaming I tend to run other programs in the background and have 30+ browser tabs open so a 4 core might be ok but not optimal. I also do some light editing so the extra threads help. Also with DX 12 and Vulkan coming out soon I'm hoping future games will take advantage of the 4 extra threads. I also went Intel instead of AMD for the single-thread performance (even though I like AMD as a company more) and the Xeon over an i7 because i have no real interest in overclocking and i save around $100 for a small performance decrease.

**I'm not getting a aftermarket heatsink ATM because 1.) The heatsink provided with the Xeon is better than Intels standard heatsink 2.) Not overclocking and 3.) the Xeon has a low TDP compared to an i7 overclocked. I may get different heatsink down the line if the stock is to loud or the CPU runs to hot but for now, from my research, the stock heatsink should be fine.

Gigabyte GA-H97N-WIFI Mini ITX:
I wanted to go with a Mini ITX build because i like the small form factor and since I'm not overclocking i don't see a need for a really robust power phase that a ATX board could provide. Also went with the H97 chipset because no interest in overclocking and at a Mini ITX size I have no plans to crossfire/SLI. I also wanted WIFI/Bluetooth so I can be flexible on where i can use my system and still get internet connection. I also have some Bluetooth device I'd like to connect to my PC. I use a external DAC (Fiio E17) to power my KRK KNS 8400s that works best with an optical connection so i wanted the S/PDIF Out connection. This motherboard had all that along with the Gigabyte name for around $100 just seemed like the best MB I could find on Newegg.

Crucial Ballistix Sport 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory:
Wanted 16GB over 8GB because of how much I multitask+light editing . MB and CPU support up to 1600, low profile, good reviews and ~$100 for 16GB seems standard.

PNY CS2111 240GB 2.5" SSD:
Wanted ~250GB for OS and to install my most used programs/games. Price per performance/size this SSD seems good. If you know more about this SSD please tell me. If it's bad I'll just switch to the Samsung EVO.

Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB:
Standard HD for mass storage. Nothing fancy.

Sapphire Radeon R9 390 8GB:
Went with AMD because I'm not a fan of Nvidia (Gameworks) and 8GB seems better in the long run then the 4GB (or 3.5) on the 970. The 390/970 seemed like the sweet spot for GPU price/performance for the higher tier cards and is the main reason I went with the 390. Also liked the 390 over the 290x for the added features.

Fractal Design Node 304 Mini ITX Tower Case:
A nice mini ITX case that doesn't look like swiss cheese. Has all the features I want in a itx case. Fractal Design has always been a favorite of mine when it came to case design.

EVGA SuperNOVA GS 650W 80+ Gold:
Was originally going to go for a corsair 600W bronze but for ~$20 more i get a nicer EVGA PSU, Gold cert and an extra 50W. Seemed like the best deal.

That took longer then i thought but there you have it. Any information you guys have would be greatly appreciative.

I'm also looking to get a new monitor with this build and I'm really heavily leaning towards the AMH A399U
that Wendell reviewed. I know the 390 isn't the best at pushing 4k but from what I've seen changing some settings in most games can really give you some great FPS in 4K. Plus at 4k you don't need crazy AA and what not. I may also invest in a 144hz monitor sometime down the road but outside of gaming the 4k 60hz just seems to have way more advantages then a 1080p 144hz. I also don't plan on getting a 1440p monitor. I just know it's going to end up being the 720p of this generation.

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From my own experience PNY isn't that great a company, I've had two instances where RAM sticks from them have died, even with normal use. I don't know if their SSDs or their new RAM is the same, but I just don't have the same trust, unless it's the workstation cards.

Other than that, it's a fine rig. You might consider a WD Red, because it will run longer and cooler, as it's a 5400 RPM drive and is built for the longer term. I'm sure you can afford it.

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Seems fine, though I'd shoot for the elite 130 case, it's nice and tiny, dunno if your cooler would 100% fit though given it's layout.

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Get a SamsungEVO, PNY products died on me way to often. Sandisk, Samsung and Kingston are good in my experience.

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I'd only change the SSD to a samsung, crucial or intel. The rest is looks really good. Just be sure that the 390 isnt a triple slot model.

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Samsung SSDs had the 840 Evo firmware debacle and then Samsung did another hit and miss in terms of firmware on the 840 under Linux (Samsung specified that they can do TRIM with NCQ but they did not implement it, but because of the misinformation linux did not handle it correctly and so problems ensued).

Sources are:
https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/fstrim/+bug/1449005

That should be reason enough to not trust Samsung outright with your next SSD. If they are careless enough to report false specs ....

Fun Fact: I have both a Samsung and a PNY SSD in my main rig. Hearing about troubles with PNY does not really fill me with joy :/

@OP:
Good thinking with the xeon. Crucial offers a lifetime warranty on memory (which is not useful, but shows trust in the own product). Have you looked at the Fractal Core 500? I have both the 2300 and the 1300 and I am very content with them (also with the fact that they differ in size but look very much the same, which is the look I wanted).

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Looks like a rock sollid little mini -itx build to me.

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This is the exact same thing i would build if i had the money, just maybe in a different case. That is gonna be a sweet build.

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Hey thank you all for the great feedback. Taking what you've said I've got an updated list.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/Cx64TW

Now it's a little more expensive then the last one (less then $100 more) but in terms of reliability and for factor i think this really hits well.

New Items:

Crucial MX200 250GB 2.5
With the reliability around the PNY SSD being fishy i went with something I know will be rock solid. At first I was going to go with the Samsung but @Garfield has convinced me other wise. I know for a fact Crucial makes very reliable SSD so I went with their newer MX200 series over the older MX100.

Gigabyte Radeon R9 390
Like @deejeta said the triple fan cooler on the Sapphire made the card to long to fit in most cases in this ITX form factor so I picked the Gigabyte for the shorter length and 3 display ports.

But what really makes this new list interesting is the new case and PSU.

Silverstone ML07B HTPC Case
When @Streetguru and @Garfield mentioned different cases I went and did some more research and that research ultimately led me to the ML07B. Don't get me wrong the Fractal Core 500 and Elite 130 case are great but when doing my research I fell in love with the idea of having a powerful PC around the size and shape of modern consoles (this case being only slightly bigger than a ps4). After doing some research the ML07B hit everything i wanted in this form factor. ITX, room for a large graphics card, at least 1 3.5" and 2.5" slots for drives and even an option to install an optical Blue-ray/DVD player (though only slim slot loading bluray/DVD drive but hey it will look neat and tidy). All this at a price very close to the Nod 304 made it all the sweeter. I really like this case for it's size and looks but it does have one big downside. The PSU has to be SFX form factor.

Silverstone 600W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular SFX Power Supply
At around $130 this is ~$30 more than the original psu and it lost 50w but it's not all bad. The cables that come with it are shorter which are great vs full length cables on a ATX psu for a ITX build. With other Silverstone psus you have to buy a shorten cable kit which runs for ~$30 on amazon. Overall the price jump is annoying but it's still a fully modular gold+ psu so I'm ok with it.

Their you have it, a slight increase in the overall price but the new case just made this build a lot more appealing to me. This is something you could keep in your living room or throw in a backpack and take it with you on the go. I'm still looking for critic on the build so please tell me what you think of it.

1 Like
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You sure about that case? That thing is nearly the size of a micro ATX case, just thinner.

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I wish I had a picture to compare but looking at the dimensions of, for example the Cooler Master N200 (just a micro that's popular on newegg) the size difference is noticeable. If you had them both standing up the ML07B is the same height but about 4 inches shorter in width and depth. 4 inches doesn't sound like much but when taken from 2 dimension sides it will look and be a lot smaller. I just measured 4 inches on my current case (some random mid tower) and you'd be surprised 4 inches off of a computer case looks.

Dimensions (W x H x D) for ML07B are (382 x 105 x 350mm)
Dimensions (W x H x D) for N200 are (202 x 378 x 445mm)
*since we are standing the ML07B up you have to switch the W and H around.

Plus since I can stand the ML07B up or on it's side allows me more places I can put it. That's something I really wanted from this build, flexibility on where i can put the computer. It's one of the reasons i wanted the build in wireless/bluetooth.