Advice for Custom Gaming Rig & Questions

[adragalus]

Hello all,

I'm new to the desktop scene and Tom's Hardware both, but I figured it would be a good place to ask questions and pitch ideas as I try to hammer the kinks out of my first build. Sorry if my questions are naive or incorrect.

BUSINESS THE FIRST -- BUILD*
This is the build I'm currently planning. I'm open to changes and tweaks, but this is what I've come up with so far. Total price as configured comes out to about $2500.
Case: Corsair Carbide-series 500R Mid-Tower (Amazon)
CPU: Intel i7-4770K 3.5GHz (Newegg)
GPU: AMD Radeon R9-290X 4GB**
RAM: 2x8GB Corsair Vengeance LP 1600MHz (Newegg)
PSU: Corsair HX850 850W (Newegg)
SSD: Corsair 600-series 240GB (Newegg
HDD: WD Black 2TB 7200RPM (Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus Maximus Hero (Newegg)
Wifi: D-Link DWA-548 PCIe adaptor*** (Amazon)
Keyboard: Razer Deathstalker Expert (Amazon)
Monitor: Asus PB278Q 1560x1440 27" (Amazon)

*Some links are to Amazon, sorry. These are just the best deals I could find, not necessarily the most informative pages
**This is my current idea, this is flexible and depends heavily on release benchmarks/Nvidia price drops/etc.
***The router in my house is too far away for an ethernet cord, so having this option is useful for me


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BUSINESS THE SECOND -- QUESTIONS
1) I read something in the motherboard feedback on Newegg about PCIe 3.0 16x slots and performance through these slots dropping to 8x when used in Crossfire/SLI. Is it possible to keep maximum bandwidth with these slots, were I to use dual GPUs?

2) Given the build I have, would the fans that come with the motherboard/case be sufficient, or should I invest in additional cooling units? I would like to stay away from watercooling.

3) I'm tempted to get the 1440p monitor to take full advantage of my system, and of better resolution, but do 1080p games look awful on a higher resolution? What would the best display grade be?


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BUSINESS THE THIRD -- NOTES
1) I don't plan on overclocking much, so this was not build with crazy cooling or heavily OCable components in mind.
2) I have no preference between AMD and Nvidia, and care only about performance and price. Right now, the 290X is looking very attractive, but with Nvidia planning price drops and the release of a new GPU, apparently, it could go either way. I chose a motherboard with flexibility and SLI/Crossfire capability in mind.

 

[Tradesman1]

Looks like a good build, you'll be very happy with the 4770K and Hero combo, love mine.

1. No, it's a limitation of the CPU and the number of PCI-E lanes it supports
2. Many start with what's in the case, others add immediately, unless I know for sure extra are needed I normally start with whats there
3. Display is personal pref, many swear by the higher 144 monitors, with others lower is fine

1. If OCing at all will want a CPU cooler, would look to a Hyper 212 EVO for up to about 4.4, over that maybe a Phantek should suffice, I went with the CM GTS V8
2. I prefer nVidia, but the new AMDs look like I might grab one to play with

 

[adragalus]

Is the PCIe thing universal to the current generation? The 4770K looks like a very attractive processor. As long as the performance drop isn't particularly noticeable, I have no issue with it. Dual-GPUs aren't a current plan, but I want to allow for future upgrades as much as possible.

For clarification, I'm not planning at OCing at all. If that changes, I'll look into cooling units. Given the build and the fact that the 500R comes with 3 120mm fans and 1 220mm, would those be sufficient for a stock build?

 

[Tradesman1]

On 1150 yes, the socket 2011 CPUs can carry 3-4 way SLI/XFire at better setting as they support many more PCI-E lanes (why often called like IB PCI-E)

At stock I'd say yes, multiple GPU's will also add heat

 

[adragalus]

Okay, thanks. It seems more trouble than it's worth to go find a non-1150 setup. How big is the performance impact, approximately?

Also, on the subject of GPUs: the dual-core nature of the 690 apparently causes issues in some games, meaning that the Titan looks more reliable on Nvidia's end. I'd prefer to stay cheaper than that, given AMD's new release, but price drops might open up for options. What do people recommend for single-GPU builds, to get really good performance.

I'd also take dual suggestions, if they really do boost performance by a lot.

 

[Tradesman1]

Between the 1150s and the 2011s, it can be fairly high, but at a price, if going to 2011 the entry level quad cores are around $300, then you move straign to the hex-cores (6) at about $570-$580 and on to the big boys at over a grand, the 4930K to me is the sweet spot ($580) if going that route, though for primarily gaming the 4820K would be good and you gain the extra PCI-E lanes and greater SLI multiple card support, downside to that is beyond 2 GPUs the scalling (performance wise) seldom justifies the cost

 

[adragalus]

In that case, what would you recommend for the motherboard? I do like the Hero, would it require a bump up to something like the Asus Extreme?

 

[Tradesman1]

Mobo on the 2011 or the 1150? Sorry not sure what you mean

 

[adragalus]

Mobo on the 2011 or the 1150? Sorry not sure what you mean

For a jump to the 2011, sorry.

 

[Tradesman1]

I'm looking at the Asus Deluxe, brand new, handles SLI/Xfire up to 3 cards (dual at full X16 or tri at 16/8/8), DRAM up to 64GB and freq of 2800 (though I doubt the CPUs will handle full 64GB of 2800...maybe 2666)...another good one is the Gene to the lower end, if looking full 4 GPU, then the Rampage Extreme or ASUS P9X79-E WS

 

[adragalus]

Cost/benefit for RAM above 1600 doesn't really seem worth it for me, though feel free to correct me if I'm wrong.

The X79 looks neat, not too expensive. I'll consider, depending on what the new GPUs look like. Thanks so far. Any weigh-in so far as GPUs goes? I'm glad for any help, very new here.

 

[Tradesman1]

For gaming 1600/9 is the accepted entry level, I'd suggest minimum of 1866 as most everybody does more with their rig than simply game.

GPUs are somewhat up in the air, until we see some reliable testing with the new AMD R7 and R9 GPUs, I don't feel confident saying much, at present we are relying on what AMD says/spouts. Which if you remember Bulldozer was suppose to roll over Sandy Bridge i5 2500K - Failure, Pliedriver was suppose to pound SB 15 2500K and IB 3750K into the ground, another failure (except in video rendering) so I'm am waiting to see, at the moment I still like nVidia overall and SLI over XFire