Deciding on last parts to get for pc build, advice wanted

wolfleben · May 23, 2014, 1:45pm

So some news, I have gotten most of the parts to build my pc the only parts left to get are the gpu, another ssd, a blu-ray drive, and the os.

The parts I need the advice on are on the gpu side.

My resolution target will be 2560 x 1440. I want to run all my games at that resolution at 50 to 60 frames per second, if I can get higher great. I want it to last for at least 2 years before I have to upgrade the gpu.

To be clear I have every intention of adding a 2nd gpu and doing sli. So I have 2 possible builds to chose from (I'll mark the parts I've already bought.)

1. This build has two asus GTX 760 in SLI

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3Po48

Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker....48/by_merchant/

Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker....o48/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Micro Center) [Got it]

CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U12S 55.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($48.25 @ NCIX US) [Got it]

Motherboard: Asus Maximus VI Hero ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($199.99 @ Micro Center) [Got it]

Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($75.99 @ Newegg) [Got it]

Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($139.99 @ Amazon) [Have one]

Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($139.99 @ Amazon)

Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($144.99 @ Amazon)

Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 760 2GB DirectCU II Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($229.20 @ Newegg)

Case: Fractal Design Define R4 Blackout ATX Mid Tower Case ($103.92 @ Amazon) [Got it]

Power Supply: SeaSonic 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($139.99 @ Newegg) [Got it]

Optical Drive: Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($60.98 @ Newegg)

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ OutletPC)

Case Fan: Fractal Design FD-FAN-SSR2-140 66.0 CFM 140mm Fan ($13.28 @ NCIX US) [Got it]

Case Fan: Noctua NF-S12A PWM 120mm Fan ($13.99 @ NCIX US) [Got it, push pull is the plan on the air cooler]

Total: $1803.01

(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-05-23 09:23 EDT-0400)

2. This build has one asus 780 with the flexibility to add another asus 780 at a later time.

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3Po3r

Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker....3r/by_merchant/

Benchmarks: http://pcpartpicker....o3r/benchmarks/

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($189.99 @ Micro Center) [Got it]

CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U12S 55.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($48.25 @ NCIX US) [Got it]

Motherboard: Asus Maximus VI Hero ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($199.99 @ Micro Center) [Got it]

Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($75.99 @ Newegg) [Got it]

Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($139.99 @ Best Buy) [Got one]

Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($139.99 @ Best Buy)

Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($144.99 @ Amazon)

Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 780 3GB DirectCU II Video Card ($488.79 @ Amazon)

Case: Fractal Design Define R4 Blackout ATX Mid Tower Case ($103.92 @ Amazon) [Got it]

Power Supply: SeaSonic 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($139.99 @ Newegg) [Got it]

Optical Drive: Asus BW-12B1ST/BLK/G/AS Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($60.98 @ Newegg)

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ OutletPC)

Case Fan: Fractal Design FD-FAN-SSR2-140 66.0 CFM 140mm Fan ($13.28 @ NCIX US) [Got it]

Case Fan: Noctua NF-S12A PWM 120mm Fan ($13.99 @ NCIX US) [Got it, push pull is the plan on the air cooler]

Total: $1833.40

(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)

(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-05-23 09:33 EDT-0400)

So which of these two builds do I go with, the one where I get sli at the start or the one where I get sli in the future with a much more powerful card?

hoocee12 · May 23, 2014, 5:18pm

Why SLI? A single GPU would give you much better performance overall, since SLI scaling is never even near 100%, and some games do not even support it... Also SLI setup takes more Watts per FPS you are getting, so you would actually be saving money on electricity if you just buy a single more powerful GPU... A GTX 780 or R9 290 would be much better choice

Also, you might want to concider the Maximus VII Ranger Mobo, since it features the new Z97 chipset and a couple of new features at the same price.

Get the windowed version of that case. I am 99% sure you will regret it if you won't take it :D

Other than that, the build looks good to me :)

Invertedparadox · May 23, 2014, 5:26pm

Since both of these builds are around $1800, and neither are balanced well for maximum performance, I threw one together for you.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3PtKI

I chose the i5 4670k because it cannot be bottlenecked in single card configs,

The msi g55 z87 just because it's a good board,

The crucial 1x8gb because ram speeds and dual channel don't matter unless you have a hardcore sli setup and personally havn't ever needed any more than 6.5gb with everything open. Also, more room to upgrade.

WD black and 250gb 840 evo is a good combo.

Msi 780 ti because it's the cheapest 780 ti, it has MSI's mil spec caps, you can sell the cooler, it's a single card, and has no microstutter or sli compatability to deal with, overclocks well.

Fractal design XL because it supports lots of cooling.

Rm 650w corsair 80+ gold because it's more than enough for this system overclocked, and it's fully modular.

Blu ray/dvd/cd drive because they're still releevent.

Kraken G10 mount, kraken x60 for gpu cooling, Kraken x40 for cpu cooling. In addition to a better cooler, you also get the chance to put on some better thermal paste than msi's stock stuff.

A large speed increase overclocked (or stock) over the builds you posted and still 30$ less.

Windows 7 and 8 pro can be had on reddit's /r/softwareswap for $15-25.

If I missed anything let me know. Hope I helped.