Comments on current build + questions

[Delhu]

Hey guys !
I'm planning to build a PC in the next months. My goal is to have something future proof (at least 2-3 years before I need to upgrade a part) to play in ultra a large range of games (fps (mainly bf4), rpg, ....)
Here is my current build: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/m7bDsY

Any remarks ?
Now I do have a few questions:

• 
  - I know that an i7 does not make more sense for gaming but if it can live longer before I need to upgrade it then I'm ready to put the money on the table.
  - Since Skylake cpu are out, should I go for it instead of the Haswell Devil Canyon ?
  - I'm lurking on the 980 ti (not the reference one). Isn't it too overkill ? Since it is a +CHF 250 on the bill (I would need to go for a 850W psu to be able to sli at a later date), I want to know if it is a waste of money or not.
  - I am considering switching the 256GB Pro to a 500 Evo. What are your thoughts on that ?
  - Should I go for more RAM (16GB) or a higher frequency one ?

Thanks in advance,
Delhu

 

[geofelt]

To answer your questions:

1. If the $100 price premium is not a deal breaker, buy the I7-4790K.
You get a better binned chip that runs at 4.0/4.4 without overclocking.
2. Now that Skylake is available, I would go that path. It is marginally more expensive for DDR4 ram. But, the Z170 chipset will replace the current Z97 and be compatible with more options in the future.
The I6-6600K is comparable to your initial build, but I think there is even more incentive to stretch an extra $100 for the I7-6700K.
3. For most games at 1080P, a GTX970 is fine. A GTX980 is really good. If in doubt, buy a EVGA card, They have a free 90 day trade up option for a stronger card.
4. I would opt for the 500gb EVO. Larger SSD's tend to perform a bit better. One advantage of a pro is longer endurance, but the larger ssd will have even more endurance. Not that endurance is an issue for any home usage.
Consider the merits of deferring on a hard drive until you need to store videos or large sequential filed.
5. More ram trumps faster ram. Buy all of your ram up front in a 2 x 8gb kit. 1866 speed is fine.
There is minimal(think 2%) difference in real app performance or fps between 1866 and the fastest ram available.

 

[Zerk2012]

The i5 is fine, 8gb of memory fine, get the EVO, I would also change the otherdrive to a WD black or blue drive 1TB if you need more in the future you can always add one.
For the motherboard it's more than I would spend you can do the exact same thing on a 150 buck board.
The 980 is not really a good buy when it comes to price verses performance, get the 980ti buy the time you would need anouther card for SLI you will be able to sell your card and buy the latest single card out and be better off.
Yes I would waite and get the new processor.

 

[Archaic59]

If I was spending that much on a new system, this is how I'd do it.
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/dM6XQ7

 

[Delhu]

Thank you for all the answers !

3. For most games at 1080P, a GTX970 is fine. A GTX980 is really good. If in doubt, buy a EVGA card, They have a free 90 day trade up option for a stronger card.

Actually, I am looking to hit the 144 FPS on ultra without disabling to many things.

The 980 is not really a good buy when it comes to price verses performance, get the 980ti buy the time you would need anouther card for SLI you will be able to sell your card and buy the latest single card out and be better off.

You mean that in terms of price/perfomance, the ti is better than the 980 ?

For the motherboard it's more than I would spend you can do the exact same thing on a 150 buck board.

Well, at my retailer, the ranger only costs CHF 3 more than a Z97-A. So I figured that it was better to go for the ranger.

2. Now that Skylake is available, I would go that path. It is marginally more expensive for DDR4 ram. But, the Z170 chipset will replace the current Z97 and be compatible with more options in the future.
The I6-6600K is comparable to your initial build, but I think there is even more incentive to stretch an extra $100 for the I7-6700K.

If I am not mistaken Skylake i7 is USD 350 and i5 is USD 250, so basically same prices as Haswell Devil Canyon before Skylake came out. But I'll need to get a LGA 1151 compatible mobo. Aren't they way more expensive than LGA1150 compatible mobos ?

 

[geofelt]

My observation is that Skylake motherboards are competitively priced with Z97.
DDR4 ram is a bit more expensive per gb.
The two Skylake processors are about the same price as their predecessors, but offer a bit more performance.

As to graphics cards, if budget is not a big issue, buy a GTX980ti superclock. It is as good as it gets today.
You should be able to game comfortably at 1440P . 4K monitor gaming can be done adequately for most games.

As to faster Z170 processors, I do not see that for at least a year out with kaby lake.
More than 4 cores is not helpful for the gamer. Most games depend heavily on the performance of a single master thread.
For multi threaded app production, the 6 and 8 core X99 based processors is likely the best.

 

[Delhu]

Ok, thank you for you input !

One thing that could really weight is the amp of the mobo. I've seen that rog z170 mobos have a better amp than z97 one and that it drives headphones ranging from 32 to 600 Ohms. I'm planning to buy a pair of DT990 Pro (250 ohms) along with an amp to drive them. Since good quality low-end amps cost at the very least 80$ (fiio for instance), not having to buy one could help me stretch my budget to the 980 ti.
Any input on that ?