First build in a long time. Would appreciate any input!

[InternetG]

Hi all,

Having not built a PC since 2008, I am really out the loop in terms of components and good PC builds. I am finally building a new one and would really appreciate any input.

£800 is the budge target. I work with various CAD and design software (AutoCAD, Photoshop, Blender etc.), but also plan to play some video games on it.

Here is a list I have manage to put together.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor (£235.99 @ Amazon UK)
Motherboard: Asus Z87-K ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (£89.84 @ Scan.co.uk)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£64.25 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Kingston SSDNow KC300 60GB 2.5" Solid State Disk (£46.60 @ Ebuyer)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£35.94 @ Aria PC)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 760 2GB DirectCU II Video Card (£184.39 @ CCL Computers)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 430 ATX Mid Tower Case (£36.65 @ Aria PC)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (£51.93 @ Amazon UK)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer (£11.98 @ Scan.co.uk)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) (£80.37 @ Amazon UK)
Total: £837.94
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-05-10 12:46 BST+0100)

My concerns are:

• 
  The only reason I took the i7 is to take advantage of the hyper threading. As well as the work with CAD/ modding programs, I sometimes play about with 3d rendering and game engines.. Would the cost of the i7 4770k be justified in this case? (Around £70 plus from the i5 4670k)
  
  The chosen motherboard only has 1 PCI 3.0 slot, thus I cannot expand into a SLI set up in the future. Should I look for another motherboard?
  
  In the attempt to keep the cost down, I have not taken any aftermarket fans. I do not plan on OC right off the bat, however will I be running into heat problems without it?
  
  Will it all fit in the case? I am still trying to working out it.

Sorry everything is in GBP. I really look forward to reading your replies!

P.S. I am aware I am already £40 over, however I initially forgot to add a case.

 

[Suztera]

I would not considered SLI really. I prefer single gpu than two for heat issues and drivers issues .
Kingston SSDnow V300 now uses cheap flash memory that doesn't meet up to their specs. I would spend more on a Samsung EVO or Crucial M500. 60GB isn't worth it in my option when 120GB is only £30 higher.
Corsair CX 600 is a mediocre power supply. You can find better power supply than that.

 

[Suztera]

Here is a better option:
This xeon is like an i7 with hyperthreading but has no integrated graphics or overclocking
Got a better case and a better SSD and power supply.
Slightly over the budget but worth it.
Reason for 750W power supply is there is over £3 difference. If you want to save £3 you can drop to the 650W.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1230 V3 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor (£176.39 @ Aria PC)
Motherboard: ASRock H87 Performance ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (£80.96 @ Amazon UK)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£64.25 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk (£59.89 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£35.94 @ Aria PC)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 760 2GB DirectCU II Video Card (£184.39 @ CCL Computers)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case (£45.90 @ Amazon UK)
Power Supply: XFX 750W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (£69.78 @ Amazon UK)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer (£11.98 @ Scan.co.uk)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) (£80.35 @ Amazon UK)
Total: £809.83
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-05-10 13:29 BST+0100)

 

[jshoop]

you could grab a xeon e3 1230v3, its just a i7 4770 without integrated graphics and a 100mhx speed drop. If you dont care for overclocking, the xeon would be great. its just a little more expensive than the i5. also, since theres no overclocking, you can save on the z87 board and get an h87, h81, or b85 motherboard. You would also lose the ability to crossfire/sli though too. suztera made some great points too, single gpus are better in the long run. the v300 has had some problems, they changed the manufacturer or something and performance took a big hit. and you should get a better psu. heres something i'd reccomend:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1230 V3 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor (£176.39 @ Aria PC)
Motherboard: ASRock Z87 Extreme3 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (£86.44 @ Amazon UK)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (£64.25 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk (£59.89 @ Amazon UK)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (£35.94 @ Aria PC)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 760 2GB DirectCU II Video Card (£184.39 @ CCL Computers)
Case: Cooler Master Elite 430 ATX Mid Tower Case (£36.65 @ Aria PC)
Power Supply: XFX 650W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (£66.98 @ Dabs)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer (£11.98 @ Scan.co.uk)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) (£80.35 @ Amazon UK)
Total: £803.26
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-05-10 13:39 BST+0100)

i kept the z87 motherboard for sli/crossfire support (the one you chose doesnt support sli), but you can swtich it out for any h87 motherboard to save some money. i also changed the ssd to a bigger and better 840 evo, and upgraded the psu.

 

[jshoop]

Here is a better option:
This xeon is like an i7 with hyperthreading but has no integrated graphics or overclocking
Got a better case and a better SSD and power supply.
Slightly over the budget but worth it.
Reason for 750W power supply is there is over £3 difference. If you want to save £3 you can drop to the 650W.

we put nearly the exact same build together, haha. i didnt see you posted it while i was configuring mine. great minds think alike i guess

 

[InternetG]

Wow, almost the same build

Thank you very much for these builds. The change in CPU really helps the budget. I do not really intend to overclock (I'm not the familiar with overclocking anyway).

But for my education's sake, I do have to ask:

What do the integrated graphics on a CPU do if you have a dedicated GPU?

 

[Suztera]

Wow, almost the same build

Thank you very much for these builds. The change in CPU really helps the budget. I do not really intend to overclock (I'm not the familiar with overclocking anyway).

But for my education's sake, I do have to ask:

What do the integrated graphics on a CPU do if you have a dedicated GPU?

When you play games, it doesn't really uses the integrated cpu. For general uses, i believe your motherboard or gpu drivers will use the integrated graphic where possible if there isn't a need for the gpu to run. However, you can change the settings to always use your gpu and disregard your integrated graphics

 

[InternetG]

When you play games, it doesn't really uses the integrated cpu. For general uses, i believe your motherboard or gpu drivers will use the integrated graphic where possible if there isn't a need for the gpu to run. However, you can change the settings to always use your gpu and disregard your integrated graphics

Thank you!

 

[jshoop]

since you have a dedicated graphics card, the integrated graphics would be disabled anyway. also, i think when your rendering stuff it will activate integrated graphics to help render faster, though i doubt integrated graphics help render much anyway, it probably only subtracts a second or two from total render time, so it doesnt make much of a difference

 

[InternetG]

I was discussing the Xeon build with a friend and he pointed out that according to Intel's site, the Xeon is not compatible with any motherboards we have been discussing. What am I missing?

Here is a link:

http://ark.intel.com/products/75054/Intel-Xeon-Processor-E3-1230-v3-8M-Cache-3_30-GHz#@compatibility

 

[Suztera]

I was discussing the Xeon build with a friend and he pointed out that according to Intel's site, the Xeon is not compatible with any motherboards we have been discussing. What am I missing?

Here is a link:

http://ark.intel.com/products/75054/Intel-Xeon-Processor-E3-1230-v3-8M-Cache-3_30-GHz#@compatibility

It is compatible. H87 is socket 1150 which is Haswell. It will be fine. The xeon uses socket 1150.