Hey guys, I am getting a new PC for graduation with a $2500 budget. This PC has to last me at least halfway through college, so 2 years. My current build is all team red, with a blue theme. This build will be all team green/blue, but with a red theme. Here is my current parts list:
PSU: EVGA 750w G2
Motherboard: MSI X99A Gaming 7
CPU: Core i7 5820k
GPU: MSI 980Ti Gaming 6G
Case: NZXT S340 (Black and Red, really a pretty case!)
RAM: 2 4x4GB kits of PNY Anarchy X @ 2666MHz
Cooler: Corsair H100i GTX 240mm
Mass Storage: Seagate 2TB HDD
Boot Drive(s): 2x 240GB PNY CS1311 SSD's (Admittedly influenced by aesthetics)
There are a few accessories that I currently have budgeted for:
2x Corsair AF120 Red Fans
1x Bitfenix Alchemy Magnetic LED Strip
1x 5 Pack of red SATA connectors (dirt cheap)
1x AOC G2770PQU 144hz 1080p Monitor
A few things to note are that all suggestions must be from Amazon. I do not want to order parts from more than 1 place, and on top of that I have prime. I already have a nice mouse/keyboard. I want to be able to reach that max refresh rate as much as possible, and I realize this build is almost overkill for 1080p. Lastly, all of this stuff comes out to be just under $2500 on Amazon with free shipping ($2496). Any suggestions that help me get more for my money are welcome.
Better off going AMD on the GPU so you can save money on your display, this one includes a 1440p 144hz IPS display, but you could also get a 4k display at around the same price, both are free-sync
and I don't really bother with asthetics and it really doesn't matter at all, and hell if you're staying at college find crappy case so your PC looks cheap.
PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/29Wjf7
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/29Wjf7/by_merchant/
CPU: Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3GHz 6-Core Processor ($374.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.44 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus X99-A/USB 3.1 ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($253.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Crucial 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($69.99 @ Adorama)
Storage: Sandisk Ultra II 480GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($127.68 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.89 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Sapphire Radeon R9 Fury 4GB Video Card ($506.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Deepcool TESSERACT WH ATX Mid Tower Case ($34.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Rosewill Capstone 750W 80+ Gold Certified ATX Power Supply ($79.98 @ OutletPC)
Monitor: Acer XF270HU 144Hz 27.0" Monitor ($549.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $2077.92
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-02-15 20:42 EST-0500
Your setup you made will last you 3-4 years easy @1080p and seems to fit your color theme you wanted well.
@DarthSaboton looks like a pretty sollid build to me.
I really would rather not use an AMD GPU in the new build. I have been using one for a few years now and...have not been having a great experience. Also, the aesthetic really does matter to me. That build also cuts my RAM in half, which I will need for 3D rendering and other high intensity workloads.
GTX980Ti is a good choice.
It's something I keep around.
do you like marvel at your PC every single day or something? because otherwise asthetics really aren't that important.
and if you're going to do 3D modeling and all that, then you'd want a 4k display for productivity. so you have much more screen real estate, and with 4k, you save $400 going AMD/Free-sync vs G-sync for the same display specs 4k is over double the pixels of 1440p, you basically never have to buy another display again, although 32" 4k displays from korea are another option
4k IPS free-sync $500
https://pcpartpicker.com/part/lg-monitor-27mc67b
4k IPS G-sync $900, I think it's normally 800 though
https://pcpartpicker.com/part/asus-monitor-pg27aq
also what software are you using? as you might be better off throwing in a workstation GPU to the build.
and if you must stick with nvidia, then get a better display, and get like a 980 or something a 980ti is wasted on even a 144hz 1080p display. Also current gen nvidia GPUs don't look like they fully support DX 12/Vulkan features once those start to go main stream, and in the future nvidia may just try to phase out your GPU by causing performance hits here and there that they seem to be doing with kepler.
I have a Dell Ultrasharp QHD display I use for serious work. I'm sure people here understand that while performance is priority 1, some people (like me) like to take pride in how a system looks.
As for software, I will be using AutoCAD and other AutoDesk products. Likely Photoshop as well.
I don't think 1440p really compares well to a 4k display in terms of productivity, more so the larger 4k displays though
I don't think I'll ever get the whole asthetics thing, a PC sits in a corner and does work, it's not like it's really there to attract a mate or something
otherwise given your budget it's probably unnecessary but you may want to throw in a mid range workstation GPU for the better drivers/optimization in your workflow, photoshop really doesn't need it though
either a W5100 at $325
https://pcpartpicker.com/part/hp-video-card-j3g92at
or a Quadro K2200 at $427
https://pcpartpicker.com/part/pny-video-card-vcqk2200pb
the cards seem to be pretty much identical here for the most part, so probably want to go with the firepro, though the last gen cards are being tested here
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/best-workstation-graphics-card,3493-6.html
then you'd just either need to dual boot, or do a GPU passthrough to a virtual machine, which your CPU/motherboard should support well.
Why exactly would I need to dual boot?
Looks like a great build. One tiny suggestion: the 5820K is a fantastic chip, and it makes perfect sense for doing a cheap-as-possible X99 gaming build, but since you've got a comfortable budget and look to be using your machine for more than just gaming, I would at least consider the possibility of stepping up to a 5930K and possibly a slightly-beefier power supply, especially if you do intend to keep using it beyond the two years you've indicated. This thing will fly for two years, but if you start adding graphics cards, m.2 drives, capture/raid cards and such, after a few years you might start to feel the pinch of those 28 lanes.
More and more devices are competing for PCIe lanes these days, and if you're doing IT-related studies, you really don't know how your computing needs might change after a couple of years. 3-way SLI for VR? NVME RAID arrays? Some crazy as-of-yet unannounced XPoint drives? Insane video capture peripherals? Thunderbolt cards? Going 5820K + 750 W PSU means you get maximum bang-for-the-buck right now. A 5930K is less sexy, but it does give you a lot more room to expand. Just a thought.
Some really good food for thought. I will weigh my options and try to figure out exactly what my work will entail. Thanks for the suggestion!
Because workstation cards don't run games very well, they're optimized differently.
From some quick research, in the applications I use, the 980Ti slaughters both my current card, and both cards you suggested. Even the Tek Syndicate video I watched that inspired me to build this system uses 980Ti's.
but it doesn't have the driver optimization of workstation cards, and while it is the fastest single GPU right now, it's kind of wasted at 1080p, and you have to pay extra for adaptive sync, which is why overall an AMD card is a bit better approach. or saving money and getting a 980 at the very least, which would give you more SSD storage or a better display potentially.
I will be trying to drive 1080p at 144hz, so it really isn't as overkill as it seems. I have literally no interest in adaptive sync, from either company. I have been team red for my past 2 builds, and have been rather disappointed. As a consumer, the logical thing to do is to stop buying AMD cards. If that means paying the NVIDIA tax, then so be it.
Here is my build.
Its very close to your build. The difference is that I went with the MSI x99 sli board, a much faster but smaller ssd, and much faster ram.
The MSI board you choose might look cool, but it is a little too over the top. I have the gaming 7 motherboard myself and the killer network controller is just a pain in the butt. The audio software is also kind of annoying as well.
I am kicking myself for not going with the more basic SLI board.
The SSD I choose because it will be much faster for cad. Yes you do loose some space, but it should make up for it in speed.
For ram, I went with a single 32GB kit so that you can add in more later for need be. Its also 3200mhz ram with a cas latency of 14 which is out-freaking-standing.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
Type|Item|Price
:----|:----|:----
CPU | Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3GHz 6-Core Processor | $374.99 @ Newegg
CPU Cooler | Corsair H110i GTX 104.7 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler | $109.99 @ Newegg
Motherboard | MSI X99A SLI PLUS ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard | $211.06 @ Amazon
Memory | G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory | $244.99 @ Newegg
Storage | Samsung 950 PRO 512GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive | $297.49 @ Micro Center
Storage | Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive | $65.99 @ SuperBiiz
Video Card | EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB FTW ACX 2.0+ Video Card | $634.99 @ NCIX US
Case | NZXT S340 (Black/Red) ATX Mid Tower Case | $84.98 @ Newegg
Power Supply | EVGA 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply | $79.99 @ NCIX US
Monitor | Acer XG270HU 144Hz 27.0" Monitor | $399.99 @ Micro Center
| Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts |
| Total (before mail-in rebates) | $2554.46
| Mail-in rebates | -$50.00
| Total | $2504.46
| Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-02-15 21:30 EST-0500 |
I upgraded to a 980ti from a 290X 8GB and I do mostly Video AE, and Premiere Pro CC work but some 3D stuff and when I tested the 980Ti it was noticeably faster in render times and playback. I also run a 144hz 1080p monitor and the 980ti inst under full load in some games that I play at max settings.
980ti is well worth it for productivity.
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I will think about the motherboard swap, as I have also heard elsewhere that the Killer NIC's can be a PITA. Other than that, people seem to be skipping the part where I ask all suggestions to come from amazon.
Even something like a 390/970 can already push really high frame rates for 144hz 1080p though, and an adaptive sync display makes everything smoother as it's going to be rather difficult to maintain 144fps as a minimum frame rate in modern games even with the best hardware thus where adaptive sync comes in, and free-sync at least costs within 50 dollars more to get at
if you save money on your GPU you can put that to either a better display or next generation GPU when they come out in 6 months, giving you overall more performance for your money
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/sapphire-nitro-r9-390-8g-d5,4245.html