Can I cut corners for this build?

[burak.akcayy]

Hello everybody,

I'm building a gaming pc and you can see the components below:

Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4, 2x8GB, 2400MHz, CL16: 160Euro


Asus Prime Z270-A Gaming Mainboard:151 Euro


Asus ROG Strix GeForce GTX1060 6GB:330 Euro

Intel i7 4790k: 100 Euro(second-hand from my streamer friend, no defect)


Corsair Hydro Series CW-9060025-WW, H100i V2 GT: 110 Euro


Corsair CSM Series 80 Plus Gold Power Supply Unit - 750 W: 98 Euro

Thermaltake Versa H23 Midi Mesh Tower Case Toolless USB3.0 Black Interior 12cm Fan: 40 Euro


Drevo x1 Pro 128GB SSD Solid State Drive Upgrade SATAIII 560MB/S When Read 500MB/S (Write), 128gb : 52 Euro

Toshiba P300 1TB 64MB 7200RPM 3.5-Inch SATA INTERNAL HARD DRIVE: 44 Euro

What are your suggestions? Is it a good build or are some components could be replaced with cheaper ones to cut the corners?

 

[neatfeatguy]

First and most important thing, the MB you listed isn't going to work with that CPU. The Z270 is a LGA1151 socket board and your CPU is a LGA1150. You need to find something with a Z97 chip. The CPU is Haswell chip and has a LGA1150 socket.
With that being said about the CPU and Motherboard not being compatible, you'll need to also pick up DDR3 RAM.

You don't need 750W PSU. You might be able to save a few bucks if you go with a similar rated PSU that's 600W.

Do you plan on trying to put a heavy overclock on the CPU? If not, trim back the cooler to something a little less expensive such as Noctua NH-D14 or a decent, but much lower priced cooler such as the Evo 212. You just need to make sure they'll fit in the case you're looking to get.

 

[burak.akcayy]

Ouw, I see. Thank you very much! Which Z97 would you recommend for this build? So if I will go for Z97 can I go for ddr4? Actually, I am not planning to OC it but as I've heard this model of CPU (i7 4790k) is reaching high temperature easily so wanted to prevent it with liquid cooler.

 

[neatfeatguy]

Ouw, I see. Thank you very much! Which Z97 would you recommend for this build? So if I will go for Z97 can I go for ddr4? Actually, I am not planning to OC it but as I've heard this model of CPU (i7 4790k) is reaching high temperature easily so wanted to prevent it with liquid cooler.

If you don't plan on overclocking, there really isn't a reason to grab up a pricey AIO cooler. Any decent air cooler will work well. If you wish to save a good bit, look at the CoolerMaster Evo 212. In the States one runs around $25-30 whereas the Corsair H100i runs $100-110.

As for a motherboard, LGA1150 boards are becoming harder to come across since the CPUs aren't manufactured for that socket anymore. The couple of boards I've used for a LGA1150 CPUs are:
ASUS z97-ar (in my main computer)
ASRock Z87 Extreme4 (in my server/media computer)
ASRock Z97 Extreme5 (in my brother's computer)

Your best bet would be to find some Z97 chipset boards that are available to you and hopefully they won't be priced too high. Once you find a couple, just read up on a few reviews online and make a decision from there. If you're not overclocking, that's okay, but it would be ideal to have a Z97 board just in case you want to.

You can't use DDR4 with LGA1150. You have to use DDR3.

 

[ohiou_grad_2006]

The other thing you could cut, although preferable not to, but you could look at the GTX 1060 3gb card. It should perform close to the 6gb version like you have listed, but there may be sometimes, especially moving forward, where games will want more vram and you may have to turn down some settings at that time.

 

[SneakLerd]

There is not need for 2400Mhz RAM sticks.
You will not see a noticable difference between 1866Mhz and 2400Mhz.
The 1866Mhz is usually much cheaper.

 

[aquielisunari]

Cheaper? Which online retailer are you going to use? Might be cheaper over here but not where you are.


I use a MSI Z97 PC Mate, 8GB 1866MHz RAM, 970 FTW from EVGA and the 212 Evo with my 4690K.

I've not heard of my chip's relative constantly running a fever. I have heard about the Kaby Lake 7700K running hot but not the 4790K. Sure, there are personal issues but... I use a 212 for my CPU and have been for over a year. Currently at 32C(sorry about that) with an ambient temp. of 75F.

There are many PSU's that are less expensive than that and your build only needs a 500W PSU. 750W is a LOT of padding. Offering a cheaper one meaning that we need to know exactly where you're shopping.

A gaming PC doesn't NEED a SSD. Games these days are exceeding 50GB. 120GB is relatively microscopic.

 

[burak.akcayy]

All answers were so helpful, I am new to this forum and as I can see it's the best one so far. Actually, I don't want to save money on Graphics Card as the games want more and more recently. When it comes to SSD I am planning to locate my Windows there only to run it faster (I am not sure if it helps) I didn't know that 4790k is not compatible with DDR4, I found it so cheap (which is 200 euros cheaper) so I wanted to build my pc on this processor. But as I can see on other forums people say that DDR3 will be dead soon. So do you think that buying DDR3 and motherboard and building my PC on this is worth it? And If I will go for this option will there be much difference in benchmark results such as FPS? Also, I've read that buying DDR3L is a better choice for 4790K due to the voltage difference, what do you think?

 

[SneakLerd]

All answers were so helpful, I am new to this forum and as I can see it's the best one so far. Actually, I don't want to save money on Graphics Card as the games want more and more recently. I didn't know that 4790k is not compatible with DDR4, I found it so cheap (which is 200 euros cheaper) so I wanted to build my pc on this processor. But as I can see on other forums people say that DDR3 will be dead soon. So do you think that buying DDR3 and motherboard and building my PC on this is worth it? And If I will go for this option will there be much difference in benchmark results such as FPS?

If going for a long lasting PC, yes it's absolutely worth it getting DDR3. In gaming there are little to none difference between DDR3 and DDR4.
I cannot see it dying, since you can still easily get DDR2 RAM, which is long outdated.

 

[aquielisunari]

The 4790K and DDR3 are not and will not be dead for at least a few years. Do you remember the 2500K? It's still being used today. With a significant OC it can still dance with AAA games at varying FPS with a proper(1060 or better) GPU. As long as the rest of your parts aren't stupid expensive I see it as being worth it. Buying a brand new 4790K at full price instead of using the latest gen. CPU is not something I recommend. You have a unique situation.

Of course there will be a FPS difference between Hasswell, Skylake and Coffee Lake i7 processors. Their edge goes away when the value(so very cheap 4790) and potential performance of your rig is considered.

 

[J_E_D_70]

Yes get the ssd - windows on it, everything else on hdd.

 

[ohiou_grad_2006]

Go ahead and get more ddr3. That i7 and setup should give you 2-3 more years before needing a major upgrade.

 

[neatfeatguy]

You can't really beat the cost of the CPU. Even if you don't overclock it, she's got enough under her belt to be a solid CPU for a good 3+ years, especially if you apply a decent overclock to it a few years down the road. I've had my i5-4670k since January of 2014 and I still run her on stock speeds. I can overclock her to 4.4 if I really need to. I should get another 3-5 years out of this CPU before it no longer fits my needs.

If the parts you originally listed were all compatible they would total out to be (not including the CPU cost) 985 Euros. I'm not entirely sure on your location and how easy you can get parts, but using pcpartpicker.com for United Kingdom (prices things in pounds, so 985 Euros is about 888 pounds), you could do something like this:

https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/psYWHN - This build gives you everything you're looking for at a total of about 696 pounds (773 Euros)

https://uk.pcpartpicker.com/list/GYrchq - This build gives you a GTX 1070 for a total of about 808 pounds (897 Euros)

Clearly, just idea builds for you to think about. You can build a similar gaming computer with compatible parts for almost 200 Euros less then what you're looking to spend. Or you could build one with a better GPU that would cost you almost the same.

 

[burak.akcayy]

Thank you all guys, have a great weekend!

 

[aquielisunari]

Thank you all guys, have a great weekend!

You're welcome 😀

Glad we could help.