First build, australian prices are ****

[Hellvor1]

Just basically went for things that were balanced between good reviews, price, and how many other people also bought it. Came up with the list below. I already have a seagate 2TB HDD in brand new condition, so only a small SSD is on the list.

I'm expecting it to be able to play my games at max settings, such as total war series, civ 5+6, gta 5, banished, but most importantly if I can play Kerbal Space Program (AKA strut simulator) and send a 500 - 1k part rocket into orbit without too much lag then I'll be happy. My current PC can run these games albeit lowest possible graphics settings and they still lag/stutter.

Tell me what you think and any suggestions are welcome.

https://au.pcpartpicker.com/list/LRGryf

In the future I'll upgrade memory, graphics and cpu. I think the rest of it is ok for now and can allows for the upgrade of them parts.

 

[Hellfire13]

Optimized with current tech. and better parts. Should perform much better than your list...

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i5-8600K 3.6GHz 6-Core Processor ($364.00 @ Shopping Express)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG - H7 49.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($55.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Motherboard: ASRock - Z370 Pro4 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($169.00 @ Umart)
Memory: Team - Vulcan 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($129.00 @ Umart)
Storage: Kingston - A400 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($99.00 @ Shopping Express)
Video Card: Zotac - GeForce GTX 1060 6GB 6GB Mini Video Card ($429.00 @ Scorptec)
Case: Corsair - SPEC-01 RED ATX Mid Tower Case ($68.00 @ Shopping Express)
Power Supply: Corsair - CXM (2015) 450W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($75.00 @ Shopping Express)
Operating System: Microsoft - Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($124.00 @ Shopping Express)
Total: $1512.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-02-03 21:03 AEDT+1100


Edit: If you wanna save some money, then activate Windows later on. There is no performance penalty for doing that... https://www.howtogeek.com/244678/you-dont-need-a-product-key-to-install-and-use-windows-10/

 

[lewis02]

I'd recommend the i3 8350k instead of the 7600k as it's slightly better and costs almost $70 aud less. Also, you can get windows 10 for like $10 from ebay.

 

[Shadow777]

Just basically went for things that were balanced between good reviews, price, and how many other people also bought it. Came up with the list below. I already have a seagate 2TB HDD in brand new condition, so only a small SSD is on the list.

I'm expecting it to be able to play my games at max settings, such as total war series, civ 5+6, gta 5, banished, but most importantly if I can play Kerbal Space Program (AKA strut simulator) and send a 500 - 1k part rocket into orbit without too much lag then I'll be happy. My current PC can run these games albeit lowest possible graphics settings and they still lag/stutter.

Tell me what you think and any suggestions are welcome.

https://au.pcpartpicker.com/list/LRGryf

In the future I'll upgrade memory, graphics and cpu. I think the rest of it is ok for now and can allows for the upgrade of them parts.

Looks OK for me, just a few things though, try getting a non K Processor if you arent going to overlock it so you can save some extra bucks, and try getting a better SSD like the samsung evo ones, they are waaay better than kingston's btw i know i shouldnt say this but are u sure you need to buy an OS?.. xD

 

[Hellvor1]

@Hellfire so basically downgrade the motherboard and spend the extra on gpu?
@Lewis 10 bucks for w10? ill look into it, as long as it's legit. see below.
@jaslion so intel has no future in pc builds? I chose the i5 with the z270 motherboard so i could get an i7 later on.
@Shadow yea mate i need an OS haha, my current one isn't quite 'legit', it has a permanent activate logo on my screen (which I can remove, but I need to restart the computer every time)

If I don't need to pay for a real OS then that is a bloody bonus.

 

[Hellfire13]

The i5 you chose is last gen. and a dead platform now. Get current gen, as they are immensely better with extra cores and threads.

 

[lewis02]

@Hellfire so basically downgrade the motherboard and spend the extra on gpu?
@Lewis 10 bucks for w10? ill look into it, as long as it's legit. see below.
@jaslion so intel has no future in pc builds? I chose the i5 with the z270 motherboard so i could get an i7 later on.
@Shadow yea mate i need an OS haha, my current one isn't quite 'legit', it has a permanent activate logo on my screen (which I can remove, but I need to restart the computer every time)

If I don't need to pay for a real OS then that is a bloody bonus.

You can download the free version of windows 10 from microsoft, which you seem to have already. If you want a paid license, just get a product key off ebay. I got one from a seller called lastoffershere for about $13 aud and it works great.

 

[coozie7]

Actually, Hellfire lists an extremely well thought out build, I doubt you'll really need to upgrade the i5 8600K any time soon and the less expensive MB shouldn't really be much of an issue.
Probably the only thing I would consider changing is dropping to a 3Gb GTX 1060, but that's really just being a tightwad. 😉

If you really, REALLY want an i7 later I'll suggest you get one now and aim a lot lower in the graphics side, at least that way you'll only need to upgrade the GPU later on, rather than both parts:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i7-8700K 3.7GHz 6-Core Processor ($519.00 @ Mwave Australia)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG - H5 Ultimate 76.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($79.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Motherboard: ASRock - Z370 Pro4 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($169.00 @ Umart)
Memory: Team - Vulcan 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($129.00 @ Umart)
Storage: Kingston - A400 240GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($99.00 @ Shopping Express)
Video Card: Asus - GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4GB Expedition OC Video Card ($245.00 @ Umart)
Case: Cooler Master - MasterBox Lite 5 ATX Mid Tower Case ($64.00 @ Shopping Express)
Power Supply: Silverstone - Strider Plus 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($89.00 @ Umart)
Operating System: Microsoft - Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($124.00 @ Shopping Express)
Total: $1517.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-02-03 21:32 AEDT+1100

 

[Hellvor1]

Oh shit I see now. 7th gen and 8th gen. I didn't even notice it. I am confused as hell now, i7's are 6th gen but perform better? Why did they put effort into 8th gen with i5 series and not i7? I'm lost, need to do a bit more research on this.

I have around 2k - 2.5k to spend but I'm a not a loose spender, if someone can give me a quick brief on i3/i5/i7 series and how the generations are involved I might spend the extra on it. My line of thinking was i3 is inferior to i5, i5 is inferior to i7, but this gen stuff mixed it all up.

Ryzen looks less confusing. I like less confusing.

 

[lewis02]

Oh shit I see now. 7th gen and 8th gen. I didn't even notice it. I am confused as hell now, i7's are 6th gen but perform better? Why did they put effort into 8th gen with i5 series and not i7? I'm lost, need to do a bit more research on this.

I have around 2k - 2.5k to spend but I'm a not a loose spender, if someone can give me a quick brief on i3/i5/i7 series and how the generations are involved I might spend the extra on it. My line of thinking was i3 is inferior to i5, i5 is inferior to i7, but this gen stuff mixed it all up.

Ryzen looks less confusing. I like less confusing.

New generations are just updated models of cpu. An i5 will always be better than an i3 of the same generation, and an i7 better than an i5 of the same generation. However, with the recent generation of cpus, i3s are better than i5s of the previous generation, as they now have 4 cores and 4 threads. The recent generation of cpus has given i3s, i5s and i7s 2 more cores and overall better performance.

For only gaming, 4 cores and 4 threads is enough. For how much longer, I can't be sure. If you have the money to spend, definitely spend the extra money on an 8th gen i5 or i7, as these are more future proof since they have 6 cores. If you'll only be gaming, an i5 8th gen will be more than enough, but if you plan to stream I would recommend an i7.

Edit: Ryzen is definitely more future proof than intel, as amd will support the current platform until at least 2020.

 

[coozie7]

Roughly:
Up to gen 7: i3 2 cores plus HT, i5, 4 cores and no HT, i7 4 cores with HT.
Gen 8; i3 4 cores, no HT, i5 6 cores, no HT, i7 6 cores plus HT.
It's mainly the increase in core count that makes the difference between gen 7 and 8 per core performance is a little improved but not by a massive amount.

With your current budget you COULD up the game significantly by sticking with the build listed by Hellfire and going for a GTX1070Ti straight off BUT, GPU prices are currently really silly and TBH you'll be hard pressed to get a better build for less.

One point that is really relevant is; What display are you using and will you upgrade that in the near future?

 

[Hellvor1]

Well I'm getting drunk and this is fun, it's like putting together a puzzle. Thanks to everyone for the replies I think I'll generally stick to the original build, but upgrade the CPU to an i5 8th gen and minus the damn expensive OS, I'll download it and buy a cheap key.

-edit- Coozie thanks mate, simplified and easy to understand. I'm new to all of this * so this is a learning experience.

<Language, please>

 

[madmatt30]

Saved you $100 , better case, better psu, better gpu.
Ignorenthe 2.8ghz base clock on the 8400 , it runs 3.8ghz all 6 cores the majority of the time.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i5-8400 2.8GHz 6-Core Processor ($255.00 @ Umart)
Motherboard: ASRock - Z370 Pro4 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($169.00 @ Umart)
Memory: Corsair - Vengeance LPX 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($159.00 @ Umart)
Storage: Kingston - A400 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($59.00 @ Shopping Express)
Video Card: GALAX - GeForce GTX 1060 6GB 6GB OC Video Card ($449.00 @ Mwave Australia)
Case: Phanteks - Eclipse P300 Tempered Glass ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.00 @ PCCaseGear)
Power Supply: Corsair - CXM 550W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($95.00 @ Shopping Express)
Operating System: Microsoft - Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($124.00 @ Shopping Express)
Total: $1389.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-02-03 22:14 AEDT+1100


8400+1060. 6gb = the best price to performance combo currently available.

Be thankful mining gpu prices havent filted over to oz yet or that gpu would be $600-700

 

[lewis02]

Well I'm getting drunk and this is fun, it's like putting together a puzzle. Thanks to everyone for the replies I think I'll generally stick to the original build, but upgrade the CPU to an i5 8th gen and minus the damn expensive OS, I'll download it and buy a cheap key.

-edit- Coozie thanks mate, simplified and easy to understand. I'm new to all of this shit so this is a learning experience.

If you want to stick to your original build, please consider the i3 8350k over the i5 7600k. It's cheaper, offers better performance and gives you a better upgrade path. (If you go with 7th gen you'll need to upgrade your motherboard to upgrade to 8th gen).

Edit: this would be your build with an i3 8350k.
https://au.pcpartpicker.com/list/dzXjjc
$1397
Edit 2: nvm I misread your post
https://au.pcpartpicker.com/list/mFm6nn
this would be your build with an 8600k

 

[Hellvor1]

Using a Benq 1920x1080 24". Good size, doesn't screw the colors up.

 

[coozie7]

Try to moderate the language, mate.

Yep, it's confusing but that can be part of the fun in designing a system. 😉

Yep, going for an i5 8600K/Z370MB makes sense it's not much more expensive than a gen 7 build and a good deal stronger.

 

[madmatt30]

Id stick with the 8400 over the 8350k , ioc is plenty fast enough to drive even a 144htz screen.
2 extra core is just so much better future proofing wise.
Id honestly go 16gb ram from the off , doable for your original budget with the 8400.

 

[Hellfire13]

Check the build i listed again. When you come to this forum, all the experts above are already researched and gives you the best advice, so that you can save your research time.
Get one of the current gen. platforms listed above. They should all perform better than last gen.

 

[madmatt30]

2 pointers - stick with the cxm corsair psu's , the evga you listed originally is poor quality , the strider plus is decent but not as good quality as the corsair.

If you stick with the masterbox 5 lite you need to purchase an extra 120mm fan for exhaust use.

 

[USAFRet]

Regarding the $10 OS license from ebay....don't.
Many are the stories here where people did that, and it just turned into $10 and time wasted.
It works initially, and then poof, unactivated after a while.

Just buy a valid OS license. It's maybe 10% of your total build price. Budget for that.
You wouldn't go for 8GB RAM for $10 would you? You'd instantly see it as a scam. Software is no different.

 

[lewis02]

Regarding the $10 OS license from ebay....don't.
Many are the stories here where people did that, and it just turned into $10 and time wasted.
It works initially, and then poof, unactivated after a while.

Just buy a valid OS license. It's maybe 10% of your total build price. Budget for that.
You wouldn't go for 8GB RAM for $10 would you? You'd instantly see it as a scam. Software is no different.

I've had mine going for almost a year now without issues. Even if it does deactivate, it's only $10, and windows still works fine without product key.

 

[USAFRet]

I've had mine going for almost a year now without issues. Even if it does deactivate, it's only $10, and windows still works fine without product key.

Not every license from ebay comes back as invalid. Many do though.

Yes, Win 10 works just fine without. I have a long running test of an unactivated Win 10 Pro install in a VM, just to see what happens. 422 days, no change.

So why bother with the $10? Either get a valid license, or don't bother at all.