Gaming PC Help

[jdgordon1]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($219.88 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: NZXT Kraken X61 106.1 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($128.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-Gaming 5 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($138.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($142.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($122.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: *Toshiba Product Series😀T01ACA 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($65.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 980 4GB STRIX Video Card ($551.98 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Phantom 820 (White) ATX Full Tower Case ($199.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($58.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $1630.78
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-01-19 23:01 EST-0500

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4590 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($186.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: ASRock H97 PRO4 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($83.98 @ OutletPC)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($73.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($129.98 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($49.88 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 295X2 8GB Core Edition Video Card ($719.99 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Phantom 820 (White) ATX Full Tower Case ($199.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair Professional 1050W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($169.98 @ OutletPC)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($18.75 @ OutletPC)
Wireless Network Adapter: TP-Link TL-WDN4800 802.11a/b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($36.82 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1670.23
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-01-19 23:02 EST-0500

Which of these gaming PC builds looks better? I'm also open to suggestions. I'm a first time PC builder, and I'm looking to play the most demanding games on the highest settings.

 

[Jdogz427]

both are very powerful but the 295x2 will beat out the 980 bc it is a dual-gpu card with 2 very powerful gpus on it. it will only have 4GB of usable VRAM though. that being said you can run a lot of todays games at 4K with it, while you will need 2 980s to run the same games at the same settings as the 295x2. HOWEVER the 295x2 will use a lot more power and YOU NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT YOU USE INDIVIDUAL 8 PIN PCIE CONNECTORS. NOT A JOINED ONE OTHERWISE YOU CAN DESTROY THE COMPUTER. the card has like a 500W TDP.

That being said also both are very nice although the 295x2 build has a slightly less powerful CPU, but not by that much. if you wanted to upgrade it to the same as the other build and also get the other MOBO it will be even better.

In conclusion. Most people on these forums would be proud to own either build.

 

[YourLocal]

Yeah they're both good builds but if you're going to spend all that money why don't you just buy a i7 processor?

 

[jdgordon1]

If I upgrade the CPU on the second one would I also need to add the CPU cooler?

 

[Jdogz427]

If I upgrade the CPU on the second one would I also need to add the CPU cooler?

if you wanted to overclock then yes, also make sure the motherboards are compatible

 

[jdgordon1]

Is the pc part picker filter reliable? It says it doesn't sense any compatibility issues.

 

[jdgordon1]

And what difference does the amount of VRAM make?

 

[Jdogz427]

And what difference does the amount of VRAM make?

and yes the PC partpicker is very reliable. hundreds if not thousands of builders trust it.
higher VRAM is better for higher resolution. watch this video. it will tell you everything you need to know about it
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Utv144XeHag

 

[jdgordon1]

And what difference does the amount of VRAM make?

and yes the PC partpicker is very reliable. hundreds if not thousands of builders trust it.
higher VRAM is better for higher resolution. watch this video. it will tell you everything you need to know about it
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Utv144XeHag

Ok, so do you thing that 4GB VRAM would be enough? Like I said before, I want to be able to play demanding games on maxed settings without any issues. And since it seems to make a difference, I will also probably install mods on stuff like Skyrim.

 

[Jdogz427]

And what difference does the amount of VRAM make?

and yes the PC partpicker is very reliable. hundreds if not thousands of builders trust it.
higher VRAM is better for higher resolution. watch this video. it will tell you everything you need to know about it
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Utv144XeHag

Ok, so do you thing that 4GB VRAM would be enough? Like I said before, I want to be able to play demanding games on maxed settings without any issues. And since it seems to make a difference, I will also probably install mods on stuff like Skyrim.

for 1080p Absolutely you can max those games out, 1440p most games maxed and yes, 4K, medium settings for single 980 to get 60FPS, 295x2 can get high if not ultra at 60FPS

 

[jdgordon1]

And what difference does the amount of VRAM make?

and yes the PC partpicker is very reliable. hundreds if not thousands of builders trust it.
higher VRAM is better for higher resolution. watch this video. it will tell you everything you need to know about it
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Utv144XeHag

Ok, so do you thing that 4GB VRAM would be enough? Like I said before, I want to be able to play demanding games on maxed settings without any issues. And since it seems to make a difference, I will also probably install mods on stuff like Skyrim.

for 1080p Absolutely you can max those games out, 1440p most games maxed and yes, 4K, medium settings for single 980 to get 60FPS, 295x2 can get high if not ultra at 60FPS

Just so I know, what video card would you recommend that has more VRAM?

 

[Jdogz427]

And what difference does the amount of VRAM make?

and yes the PC partpicker is very reliable. hundreds if not thousands of builders trust it.
higher VRAM is better for higher resolution. watch this video. it will tell you everything you need to know about it
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Utv144XeHag

Ok, so do you thing that 4GB VRAM would be enough? Like I said before, I want to be able to play demanding games on maxed settings without any issues. And since it seems to make a difference, I will also probably install mods on stuff like Skyrim.

for 1080p Absolutely you can max those games out, 1440p most games maxed and yes, 4K, medium settings for single 980 to get 60FPS, 295x2 can get high if not ultra at 60FPS

Just so I know, what video card would you recommend that has more VRAM?

you can try to get your hands on the 8Gb r9 290x from sapphire that linus used, EXPENSIVE but you will have 8GB of VRAM even if you CFX 2 together

 

[Jdogz427]

Grab 2 of these babies and you can run almost anything at 4K http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202129 maybe even Crysis 3 at ultra(probably not crysis 3 at ultra maybe very high, but most other games definitely at atleast high if not very high or ultra)

 

[jdgordon1]

And what difference does the amount of VRAM make?

and yes the PC partpicker is very reliable. hundreds if not thousands of builders trust it.
higher VRAM is better for higher resolution. watch this video. it will tell you everything you need to know about it
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Utv144XeHag

Ok, so do you thing that 4GB VRAM would be enough? Like I said before, I want to be able to play demanding games on maxed settings without any issues. And since it seems to make a difference, I will also probably install mods on stuff like Skyrim.

for 1080p Absolutely you can max those games out, 1440p most games maxed and yes, 4K, medium settings for single 980 to get 60FPS, 295x2 can get high if not ultra at 60FPS

Just so I know, what video card would you recommend that has more VRAM?

you can try to get your hands on the 8Gb r9 290x from sapphire that linus used, EXPENSIVE but you will have 8GB of VRAM even if you CFX 2 together

How does the r9 290x stack up against the Radeon 295X2? Because it's a lot cheaper.

 

[jdgordon1]

Grab 2 of these babies and you can run almost anything at 4K http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202129 maybe even Crysis 3 at ultra(probably not crysis 3 at ultra maybe very high, but most other games definitely at atleast high if not very high or ultra)

Wow, why is it so much cheaper?

 

[Jdogz427]

Grab 2 of these babies and you can run almost anything at 4K http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814202129 maybe even Crysis 3 at ultra(probably not crysis 3 at ultra maybe very high, but most other games definitely at atleast high if not very high or ultra)

Wow, why is it so much cheaper?

because the 295x2 is a dual gpu card while the 290x is a single gpucard but with double the ram.