Build Advice Could someone please review or check this build for me ?

Feb 8, 2023
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Hey guys,

my current motherboard has died and since I had a build from 2017, I wanted to build a new one.
Sadly I am not experienced in this and tried to read as much about the current gen as possible, though I would very much appreciate feedback / optimization suggestions. :)

Budget: 1.400€ max - living in Germany.
I use a Geforce 2070 super - and currently had no real problems with it.
Would like to keep the 2070 super for one or two years and then "only" upgrade the graphic card.
I feel like DDR-5 just isn't worth it right now and so this was my idea.
Not looking to overclock.
I am and will be using a 34" LG Ultragear monitor with 3440 x 1440p, it's limited to 144hz.

Usage will mainly be gaming - though I will not need to play new games on ultra as..well I will have a 2070 super for another one or two years.
I play a lot of different games, new to old, and would usually like to play at 144 fps.


ChassisFractal Define 7 Gray Solid
MotherboardASUS PRIME H770-Plus D4 Intel 1700 ATX
CPUIntel Core i5 13600 14 (6+8) 2.70GHz So.1700
Graphics CardREUSE: GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER GAMING OC 8G
GPU CustomisationNone
RAM64GB Corsair Vengeance LPX black DDR4-3200, CL16-20-20-38 (2x 32GB)
CPU Cooling SystemEndorfy Fortis 5
Thermal CompoundProlimatech PK-3 Nano Thermalpaste
Primary SSD2TB WD BLACK SN850X NVME SSD M.2 PCIE (Read: 7.300 MB/s, Write: 6.600 MB/s)
Secondary SSDREUSE: 1TB Samsung 970 EVO Plus M.2 NVMe SSD (Read: 3.500 MB/s, Write: 3.200 MB/s) with an external cooler on top - I probably won't need it but I already have it, so why not

Any help and advice is very much appreciated!!
 
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Feb 8, 2023
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Other than the graphics card, is there any other components you are reusing?
Only the Samsung 970 EVO Plus M.2 - the rest would all be new.

I know I could probably save on the tower - but I REALLY like the Fractal Define line.
Currently have a Define v2 but the backplate got messed up with the screws and I will not be able to insert a new motherboard in my current tower.
 
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Only the Samsung 970 EVO Plus M.2 - the rest would all be new.

I know I could probably safe on the tower - but I REALLY like the Fractal Define line.
Currently have a Define v2 but the backplate got messed up with the screws and I will not be able to insert a new motherboard in my current tower.
What is the capacity of your Samsung ... 500GB, 1TB, etc ...
 
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Your build works although the VRM's on that Asus board are a bit weak which could lead to thermal throttling.

Here's a few money savers.

Gen 3 SSD's tend to run cooler than the Gen 4.

https://geizhals.eu/samsung-ssd-970-evo-plus-2tb-mz-v7s2t0bw-a1972736.html
Samsung 970 EVO Plus 2TB M.2 PCIe 3.0 x4 NVME SSD €155,00

64GB of RAM is a bit extreme for a gaming build.

https://geizhals.eu/corsair-vengeance-lpx-schwarz-dimm-kit-32gb-cmk32gx4m2e3200c16-a2059176.html
Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4-3200 32GB (2x16GB) CL16 €79,90

https://geizhals.eu/intel-core-i5-13500-bx8071513500-a2871148.html
Intel Core i5-13500 €260,96

https://www.intel.com/content/www/u...-24m-cache-up-to-4-80-ghz/specifications.html

https://geizhals.eu/be-quiet-shadow-rock-3-bk004-a2237677.html
be quiet! Shadow Rock 3 €47,94

Optional case to have a look at. This case has good airflow.

https://geizhals.eu/fractal-design-pop-air-black-solid-fd-c-poa1a-01-a2760653.html
Fractal Design Pop Air Black Solid €93,21

 
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Feb 8, 2023
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I hadn't even looked at the Intel Core i5-13500 - these suggestions look awesome, thank you!

The CPU Cooling System Endorfy Fortis 5 is currently at 41,79€.
Is the be quiet! Shadow Rock 3 better? I looked at several systems and what I found was that the Endorfy Fortis 5 offers great performance for value and a good performance in general.
 
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I hadn't even looked at the Intel Core i5-13500 - these suggestions look awesome, thank you!

The CPU Cooling System Endorfy Fortis 5 is currently at 41,79€.
Is the be quiet! Shadow Rock 3 better? I looked at several systems and what I found was that the Endorfy Fortis 5 offers great performance for value and a good performance in general.
I had never heard of that cpu cooler until this thread but looking at the reviews it looks to be a good cooler. ^^

 
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You can build as is.

I have some thoughts:
The fractal define 7 looks like a great case for air cooling.
Two front 140mm intakes will supply good airflow for a cooler, the motherboard and the graphics card.

What is the make/model of your PSU and how old is it?
It should be ok since the main power draw is the 2070S.
But, the cpu can handle a much stronger graphics card which you might want for 4k gaming.
For that, a future psu upgrade might be in order.

64gb seems excessive. Normal gaming does well with 16gb. If you are concurrently multitasking then 32gb is what most will buy.
I would look for 3600 speed which should not be much more.

13600 is a fine processor.
Intel has a fine separation of performance as you move through the product line.
13600K will have a slightly higher boost clock.
Or, I5-13400 may well do.
For 4k gaming, the graphics card may be more important than the cpu.
Pick your performance point.
Look into this review of the I5-13400:
https://www.tomshardware.com/news/intel-core-i5-13400-core-i5-13400f-cpu-review
Of interest is that they found DDR4 to perform as well or better than DDR5.
The 13400 stock cooler did as well or better than a 280 AIO that was also tested.

Your selected cooler looks to be adequate. Most coolers will come with paste.
Paste is not that important, so long as you use some.
 
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Feb 8, 2023
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The question whether there will be thermal throttle due to the VRM being weak makes me question whether it will be the right motherboard.
I haven't found any tests/reviews of the board and haven't found a good one in the same price range.
I had thought about buying the Z790 but it's way more expensive.
I believe the lanes have to fit the CPU and only the Z790 and H770 had that.
As I won't need DDR-5 in the next few years I didn't opt for the expensive Z790.
Is that wise?

My reason behind the 13600 was mainly that it's supposed to have the new Raptor Cove cores and I thought it would be an improvement.
Haven't really understood the difference though to be honest. I had read the following article on that:
https://www.techpowerup.com/298887/...n-4-and-golden-cove-spring-surprising-results
Obviously its performance is better - and the price difference of 40€ seems to be worth it. Not sure though - just stating my thoughts in case I've erred with my logic behind it.

DDR-5 just doesn't feel worth it for the current "price up" for me.
I prefer the Define 7 tower as I believe it will be more silent than the Pop Air and has a lot of room for upcoming size changes in graphic cards I think.
I don't know how many fans I should include though and which ones.

Concerning the PSU - I have a be quiet 650W PSU from 2017.
I wanted to buy the ADATA Core Reactor 850W as a lot of CPUs have their "sweetspot" at the middle range of supply and thus I wanted to go a bit above what I will need: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B07Z8J5JJ5...=geizhals10-21&ascsubtag=X4PVDzqnDCNQ1W6zASwA
Had thought about Corsair RMx Series 2021 RM850x 850W ATX 2.4 aswell.
The ADATA XPG Core Reactor 750W seems to be the sweetspot for the price though.
If there are better options - would highly appreciate suggestions. The ADATA seems to be better with the current builds though as far as I understand.


Thank you guys so very much for the information and support!
 
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The only difference I can see between the 13600 and the 13500 is that the 13600 boost to 5.0GHz and the 13500 boost to 4.8GHz. Otherwise they have the identical amount of cores, cache and memory support. I believe you have to step up to the i5 13600K / KF in order to get the Raptor Lake e-cores which allows those cpu's to natively support DDR5 5600 while giving you more L2 cache.

https://www.intel.com/content/www/u...-24m-cache-up-to-5-10-ghz/specifications.html

https://www.intel.com/content/www/u...-24m-cache-up-to-5-00-ghz/specifications.html

https://www.intel.com/content/www/u...-24m-cache-up-to-4-80-ghz/specifications.html

This board is more expensive but it has much better VRM's and according to the Asus site it's updated to support 13 gen cpu's.

https://geizhals.eu/asus-tuf-gaming-h670-pro-wifi-d4-90mb1900-m0eay0-a2661022.html
ASUS TUF Gaming H670-Pro WIFI D4 €217,80

 
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Feb 8, 2023
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I just built my pc and found that it needs a BIOS update for the ASUS TUF Gaming H670-Pro WIFI D4 to work.
As I do not have a 12th gen Intel CPU and the ..friggin motherboard does not have a USB Flashback button, is there a way to update the bios without buying a 12th gen CPU?

Sorry for the question - I should have checked before I bought the thing but I did not.
 
I just built my pc and found that it needs a BIOS update for the ASUS TUF Gaming H670-Pro WIFI D4 to work.
As I do not have a 12th gen Intel CPU and the ..friggin motherboard does not have a USB Flashback button, is there a way to update the bios without buying a 12th gen CPU?

Sorry for the question - I should have checked before I bought the thing but I did not.
I appologize for recommending that board. I looked at the Asus site where it said that board was updated with the latest bios to run 13 gen cpu's and took their information for granted. You can take that board to a local PC shop and have them update the bios using a 12 gen cpu for a small fee or send that board back telling them it is not updated with the latest bios.
 
Feb 8, 2023
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No no no, that's 100% on me - I should have checked deeper - but they are not exactly making it easy finding out on their page. And customer reviews differ.

I am very grateful for all your help, information and recommendations!
Had just hoped there would be another way - but quite frankly, that's no issue at all, just takes a little more time but the end result will be worth it! :)
 
No no no, that's 100% on me - I should have checked deeper - but they are not exactly making it easy finding out on their page. And customer reviews differ.

I am very grateful for all your help, information and recommendations!
Had just hoped there would be another way - but quite frankly, that's no issue at all, just takes a little more time but the end result will be worth it! :)
This is on Asus.

Intel® LGA 1700 socket: Ready for 13th & 12th Gen Intel® processors
 
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