Gaming Build 5820k, 32GRam. 2x 970GTX

[romansamurai]

Hey guys.
I have been a long time reader, don't post much, but always come here for advice. You guys have been fantastic.
I actually build my first PC about 3 years ago with help from TomsHardware, never built a PC before, not much of a tech guru.
But, with your help, built it, have been able to play everything on it for past 3+ years (had to upgrade from 2x 480s to 780s at one point however) and writing this still on the same pc. It is showing age however, I'd like to give it to my younger brother and am thinking to build myself a new one after the holidays.

Was hoping for a little input. This is what I have come up with on partspicker as far as what to get. My budget is max 4500$.


PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3GHz 6-Core Processor ($299.99 @ Micro Center)
CPU Cooler: be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 3 93.3 CFM Fluid Dynamic Bearing CPU Cooler ($59.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: EVGA Classified EATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($399.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($599.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($599.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($159.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 512GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($289.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($99.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB ACX Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($329.98 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB ACX Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($329.98 @ NCIX US)
Case: Cooler Master Cosmos II (Black) ATX Full Tower Case ($259.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic Platinum 1000W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($192.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: LG BH16NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($89.90 @ B&H)
Optical Drive: LG BH16NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($89.90 @ B&H)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 Pro - 64-bit (OEM) (64-bit) ($129.94 @ OutletPC)
Wireless Network Adapter: Asus PCE-AC68 802.11a/b/g/n/ac PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($96.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $4029.59
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-10 00:44 EDT-0400

First, here's why I decided on certain things.
CPU: I opted for the i7-5820 because of it's price. I think it's a pretty good CPU that should last me hopefully 4-5 years. Open to Suggestions. I used this to help me gauge the quality vs price.
VIDEO: I went with 2x 970s, again because of their price. The 980 and the 780ti are more expensive and I think have more energy consumption. And based on GPUboss, the 980 and 780ti are very comparable with 780ti being slightly better. But, I'm open to suggestions on this.
HDD: I picked one SSD for the OS and main programs so I only really need 256GB on that. I picked another one for steam and other games so I went with a little bigger one. Figured 512GB should be sufficient. And the 3TB one is for all video and photos.
MOTHERBOARD: I picked the mother board really based on very little other than the fac that it's from EVGA and so will be my video cards and because it allows up to 128GB ram. Also it's one of the few ones with 2011LGA socket that I liked. I picked a cooler from the ones given as option really based on reviews.
POWER: I just picked one that seemed enough for what I'm running and still left room for possible 3rd 970. Based on reviews.
CASE: The coolermaster case is epic, I had to have it, i currently have a cooler master HAF932 full tower, love that case. Hoping the Cosmos2 will be most excellent as well. Although I don't know how many and which fans (if any) I should get for it, maybe it has enough?
RAM: Ram I just picked what had good reviews and good price per GB. So, I would really appreciate some feedback on that.
SOUND: I didn't get a sound card since I though the MB has a nice one, but I really know nothing about that, that's where you guys come in. Your input here is needed.
ETHERNET: Again, wasn't sure if I needed it...thought my motherboard has a good one?
WI-FI and Bluetooth is something I'd definitely like to have. As of right now I have about ~70mbs on my wi-fi at home with the landline running about 120mbs, so while a big difference, 70MBs at the moment is really enough for most of the things I want to do. So, I would like to become as cable free as possible. Blue tooth would be nice, but not as important. I just have some nice headphones I could use with the bluetooth.

Anyway, any help would be appreciated. I'd be buying all the parts around early spring, so hopefully by then they will go down in price. I'll update here any changes.

Thank you very much guys. I'm open to suggestions. My budget is max 4500$.

 

[Darkbreeze]

Ok, so WTF do you use this computer for, because that's some serious hardware. I can't think of anything aside from maybe professional rendering, graphics, raw audio and cad workstations that need even close to that. And are you aware that the 5820 only has 26 pci lanes, not 40 like the other Haswell-E models? I actually think it's a good value considering the 4790k is only twenty bucks less and the 5820k has almost double the cache. Clock speed is the only issue I'd have with it though as the 4790k is 500mhz faster on each of it's 4 cores and 8 threads. I don't really think there's much out there right now that can advantageously utilize more than 8 threads so I'm kinda see sawing on this point.

 

[Darkbreeze]

Do you have any plans to overclock this beast at all? If so, I'd go with a different cooler. The dark rock isn't the strongest performer, although that is a good price, and it's not the quietest cooler around either. The Noctua models kill it for not much more money.

 

[Darkbreeze]

Also, any particular reason for the EVGA EATX board over a standard sized X99 ATX model? If mean, if you do, that's great, and I'd really like to know what it is because it might be highly relevant, I'm just trying to think whether or not some of these items are really necessary or if you can get the same amount of performance while shaving your budget down some.

 

[Darkbreeze]

Aside from those items, pretty sick build. The PSU might be slightly overkill too. Those cards actually use a lot less power than previous models and 850w is probably plenty for two 970s or 980s in SLI. But that's a great model you have picked out and the extra juice certainly isn't going to harm anything, it's just more money. I guess I'm hyper sensitive to the budget factor since that's usually the first concern for most people.

 

[romansamurai]

Hi Darkbreeze, thank you for your answers. Honestly it's just future proof. I do very little video editing and most of my CAD work is done on the workhorse in the office. This is mostly for keeping up with latest games over the next 4-5 years .
And, no. I didn't know that about the 5820, I only looked at the overall performance benchmarks and price points and it seemed really good, especially for the price.
As far as the motherboard, I only went with the EVGA because I tend to use EVGA cards and thought it's nice to have them from the same brand. Plus, that one is more future proof i thought with 128GB of ram possible. But, I always welcome advice.
I appreciate that, trust me, if I can get similar performance and spend less, i'd be happy.
For example, when I first build the PC, I am only getting the one set of Ram for 599$, the second set I'll get at a later point. 599$ is really expensive...so it'll have to wait a bit. Same thing with the second SSD and same thing with the second 970. I'll build the PC first, probably january-feb and I'll buy the second SSD probably march and the second 970 probably april. The Ram will be way later in the year since 32 as it is enough for awhile.

Thank you for the replies!

 

[Darkbreeze]

Ok, so with all that in mind, and considering it will likely be years and years and years before ANY game titles wants as much firepower as you have there to play at the absolute best settings, this I think would be far more suited for your needs and little upgrades could always be added to it down the road.

CPU, is fine.

CPU cooler. Noctua, 'nuff said.

Motherboard. ASUS, 'nuff said, but, the X99-Deluxe seems to be a better performer in the bench marks I've seen so far, and is cheaper.

http://www.ocaholic.ch/modules/smartsection/item.php?itemid=1425&page=18

The Samsung 840 Pro is a good performer and doesn't have the issues of the 840 EVO, at least that we know of. The HDD I changed. I went with a different 3TB model that has double the amount of cache which is going to make it significantly faster when accessing data from that drive.

Memory. There's not much real world noticeable difference between the 2666 and the 2400 and the 2400 is significantly cheaper. Since you will be mostly gaming and there are not many games that will even ever use 16GB of RAM much less 64, I think this is one case where more is not more, it's less. No reason to overburden the controller or pull unnecessary voltage from the PSU. This is a better config and you can add more if for some reason aliens land with star trek level quantum programmed games and you need to suddenly max out. Also, since the DDR4 is so new and there are not a whole lot of reviews of it yet, I went by what was available. The Crucial Ballistix Sport seems to have really good reviews, Crucial (Micron technology) has been in the game for a long time, since 1978, and has been known as a reliable brand when it comes to their non-budget brands. Their Lexar stuff is questionable but that's irrelevant.

I realize you like EVGA, and generally I do as well, but I've been reading a lot of threads on various forums regarding significant coil whine on the EVGA models. Their rep has assured several people that if coil whine is present they will take care of them, but why would you want to have to deal with that. The only benefit I see is that they will give you a free backplate for them. Huh. Big deal. I'd rather have a card that's quiet. Obviously you can go whichever direction you like on this.

Windows 8.1 pro is only beneficial if you need remote domain access, like if you need to join a domain on a work or school domain and join it remotely or if you need insane bitlocker encryption capability. I doubt you need either of those. It does not have any support for memory sizes larger than regular 64 bit Windows 8.1 so it's actually just a waste of money. Again, if you feel you need those features, by all means go for it but I don't see the need except in rare circumstances.

This should do all you want and much, much more than you will probably ever need in the foreseeable future. You can add another SSD and GPU later if you wish.


PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3GHz 6-Core Processor ($383.98 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D15 82.5 CFM CPU Cooler ($93.25 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus X99-DELUXE ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($357.29 @ Amazon)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($449.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 Pro Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($159.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Constellation ES.3 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($209.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 970 4GB STRIX Video Card ($349.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Cooler Master Cosmos II (Black) ATX Full Tower Case ($259.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA 1000 P2 1000W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($169.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: LG WH16NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($59.98 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 - 64-bit (OEM) (64-bit) ($90.26 @ OutletPC)
Wireless Network Adapter: Asus PCE-AC68 802.11a/b/g/n/ac PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($96.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $2681.69
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-10 14:18 EDT-0400

 

[romansamurai]

Wow, thank you so much! This is excellent. You're right on all the points. I'm happy to go with the asus mobo and video cards based on your input. And I didn't think I'd need 64GB ram but I honestly feel so behind in things (my current pc has 16...) that I thought to over compensate just to be safe. Thank you so much. I defer to your knowledge on this and this is so much better price wise. Thanks Darkbreeze, you're awesome.

 

[Darkbreeze]

You could probably get by with just 16GB on the RAM to save a few more bucks, if you want. There are few tasks that need more than that, most of them in professional video, graphics, sound and CAD. I've only actually seen a very few couple of games that wanted 16GB for best performance and none that wanted more, but as you say, the future is coming and who know what it holds. 32GB might be overkill now, but who knows what might happen in a year or two. Of course, you could always go with 16 now and 32 later. Going with 32 now wouldn't hurt anything though.

 

[romansamurai]

I appreciate your input, thank you so much. I have saved your parts suggested and will work on getting those as I can financially, hopefully have it built by beginning of next year (jan/feb). I'll post it here as I go and as I need more advice. Thank you so much. <3

P.S. Looking at the Asus X99, I think it comes with a wifi adapter so I can save a few bucks by not getting the extra card, right?

http://www.asus.com/websites/global/products/WodJPah7ECKFSsxv/img/hp/overview/overview-full.png

 

[logainofhades]

This would be my choice. Other builds above have overly expensive hardware. You can get better performance for less with this.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3GHz 6-Core Processor ($383.95 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: NZXT HAVIK 140 90.3 CFM CPU Cooler ($66.74 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock X99 Extreme4 ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($239.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($449.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial MX100 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($109.99 @ Micro Center)
Storage: Crucial MX100 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($109.99 @ Micro Center)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($101.98 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($101.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 970 4GB STRIX Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($355.91 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 970 4GB STRIX Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($355.91 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair Carbide Series 300R Windowed ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: EVGA 850W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($89.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: LG WH16NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($59.98 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 - 64-bit (OEM) (64-bit) ($90.26 @ OutletPC)
Wireless Network Adapter: Gigabyte GC-WB867D-I 802.11a/b/g/n/ac PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($32.28 @ Amazon)
Total: $2628.93
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-15 16:37 EDT-0400

 

[Teemi]

Are you going for a 4k monitor or something? A computer budget of $1500 should future proof you for the next few years for sure. Then all you need to do is upgrade the gpu. I think you need to reconsider the amount you want to spend on the computer unless you are going for 4k.

 

[bsod1]

you don't need to spend so much lawl. but well, if you've got all the money in the world, here you go


PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3GHz 6-Core Processor ($383.95 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i 77.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus X99-DELUXE ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($381.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Corsair DOMINATOR Platinum 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($459.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 1TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($425.44 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 4TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($229.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 980 4GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($559.99 @ B&H)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 980 4GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($559.99 @ B&H)
Case: NZXT Phantom 820 (White) ATX Full Tower Case ($219.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair 860W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($199.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Pioneer BDR-2209 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($85.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $3572.29
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-10-15 17:33 EDT-0400

 

[romansamurai]

Lol I'm not made of money. I work hard and I like to treat myself sometimes. I built my current one for about 2800$ and I'm still able to play everything ie Shadow of Mordor on max settings or Skyrim supermodded on max settings etc. But It's only 12gb ram, the processor is i7 970, it's showing age a bit, considering my laptop has a better processor now. So really the most important things that I want to upgrade is the processor, motherboard and ram. Once I get the case, mobo and ram. I'm going to use my current 1200 (lol) watt supply and my 780 gtxs until I have money to get the 970s. I'm also going to use my current 256 GB 840 pro and my 2x 1TB HDDs until I have money for the ones I want and I can use my 12GB ram for now also. Once I build my computer with the parts I want, I will donate my old one (putting it all back together again) to my brother who has my OLD computer I donated to him. His computer is showing age, example - he couldn't play Dead Rising 3 even on lower setting (i know the game is horribly optimized for PC, but still) and has to play shadow of mordor on low setting etc. So, I'm happy to give him my pc.

So, that said, as you suggested Teemi my immediate expense is about 980$ (Mobo + CPU is about 700$, the case is like 280$. Then, I get other parts as I go. And hopefully will have all the parts I want by early spring inside the sexy Cosmos II

Hope that all makes sense guys. Thank you so much for your suggestions.

Also, i shied away from the 980s because compared to the 970s the 2x 980s don't warrant the 400$ extra for them. The difference is there but it's maybe 7% increase in passmark score (http://www.videocardbenchmark.net/high_end_gpus.html) and GPU boss rates them pretty close as well. I figured saving 400$ will pay for my RAM .

Also, now I can't decide between the ASRock motherboard or the Asus <3

P.S My current rig is (if memory serves me right on the components):
Asus P6X58D Premium Motherboard
I7-970 or I7-930 i'd have to check when I get home.
12GB 1600MHZ RAM (Corsair?..I think)
2x 780 GTX
1200 Watt Cooler Master PSU (GOLD?...i think)
HAF 932 Full Tower.
I forgot the name of the CPU FAN, but most of the fans i have are from GELID. (i have 4x on the side, 2 on top, one in back, one in front)
I think that's all.

<3

 

[bsod1]

Also, now I can't decide between the ASrock motherboard or the Asus <3

ASUS

 

[Darkbreeze]

There should never BE any question, if the question is do I choose ASRock or ASUS. ASUS wins hands down on any level. The only category ASRock can win is price. If performance and features are what you want along with reliability, it's always ASUS followed by Gigabyte, then ASRock and MSI. At least for those mainstream brands. There are some ECS motherboards that are damn good and perhaps a few other gems like some of the EVGA boards but for the money I always recommend ASUS and it always delivers. If you want something pretty damn good but a little cheaper, go with Gigabyte. If you're on a budget, ASRock.

 

[romansamurai]

Thank you guys for answering me. My current mobo is asus too. I like Asus. Thanks again! And I am a firm believer on spending a little more to get quality. quality > price whenever possible.

 

[Darkbreeze]

And I am a firm believer on spending a little more to get quality. quality > price whenever possible.

THAT, is what I'm talking about. It's not always possible, especially for some people who live in areas where hardware is ridiculously priced considering it's mostly made in their backyard, but I can't tell you how often a twenty to fifty dollar difference has meant double the longevity.

 

[romansamurai]

Alright, I'm back. going to buy the motherboard and the processor. And I had a question before I do. What do you feel about 5930 (549$) and 4930 (459$) in comparison to the 5820. I am pretty set on the 5820, but if either one of the two will give me better longevity I'd prefer them. As far as performance, I think for gaming 5820 and 5930 are comparable, no? Thank you.

Also, for now I'm buying only one stick of Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB 288-Pin 2400. I'll buy 3 more sticks later. That should be fine for now, no?
<3

Oh and another thing. I need some fans. I think 2x 140mm for the top of cosmos and 2x 120mm for the side of cosmos. Any suggestions?
Happy thanksgiving btw.

 

[g-unit1111]

I'm just wondering why the need for 64GB of RAM? You do know that for gaming you'll never fully utilize that right? And also I'm wondering wyhy the need for two BD-R drives? You don't even need one anymore - everything is going to online streaming.

 

[-Lone-]

Here are the coolest fans for you

http://www.coolermaster.com/m/pdtView.php?lv01_type=&prd_id=P1306050001b35d

 

[romansamurai]

I'm just wondering why the need for 64GB of RAM? You do know that for gaming you'll never fully utilize that right? And also I'm wondering wyhy the need for two BD-R drives? You don't even need one anymore - everything is going to online streaming.

That was the original though, I'm going with darkbreeze's suggestions and going to cap at 32. But to start off as I mentioned I am only getting 8 GB.

Thank you for the reply -Lone-

Now any thought about the CPU? I have everything already in cart ready to order, just want to make sure 5820 is the one I'm going to order.

 

[-Lone-]

If you have no problems with money, go with the 5930k and take it to the max like me

Edit: With that budget setup, maybe you should do the same thing as me, lol.

 

[leeb2013]

Wow that i7 is cheap, I'd get it definitely. Shame it's nearly double the price here on oz.

 

[romansamurai]

Ok thanks guys. I went with 5930 and the Jetflo 120 fans, ty for that suggestion. I also went up to 2x8GB of the crucial sticks that Darkbreeze recommended.

This is what it looks like right now. I'm going to use some of my current hard drives (i have an 840 evo 256GB that -I will switch to my laptop once I get the ones I want - and a 4 1TB 7200RPM Seagate HDDs) and will get the others when I can, I wanted to get all 850s, but newegg doesn't have any 512gb/1tb in stock, i tried to pre-order and it just removes it from the cart. I went with newegg because of their financing.

Total came out to 2474$, but I got a year to pay it with no interest and can try to put the computer together now.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-5930K 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D15 82.5 CFM CPU Cooler
Motherboard: Asus X99-DELUXE ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory
Storage: Samsung 850 Pro Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 970 4GB STRIX Video Card
Case: Cooler Master Cosmos II (Black) ATX Full Tower Case
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA 1000 P2 1000W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply
Optical Drive: LG WH16NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 - 64-bit (OEM) (64-bit)
Wireless Network Adapter: Asus PCE-AC68 802.11a/b/g/n/ac PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter
Case Fan: Cooler Master JetFlo 95.0 CFM 120mm Fan
Case Fan: Cooler Master JetFlo 95.0 CFM 120mm Fan
Case Fan: Cooler Master JetFlo 95.0 CFM 120mm Fan
Case Fan: Cooler Master JetFlo 95.0 CFM 120mm Fan
Case Fan: Cooler Master JetFlo 95.0 CFM 120mm Fan
Total: $0.00
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-28 03:20 EST-0500