Hep me build $3500 Ultimate Desktop Computer - First Time Build

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WallStreetMusician

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May 27, 2016
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1,510
Originally Budgeted: $3500

Effective budget left for build: $2500
(Note: I have already spent $1000 on a monitor last year - Samsung 34" QHD Curved 34UC97C-B 3440x1440 )

Purpose: Gaming, Photo/Video/Audio Editing, Equities Trading, all round productivity.

I am looking to build a desktop computer with as many top tier parts as possible that would serve me for the next few years. I have been reading a lot of reviews and watching videos, the sheer number of options has left me totally confused.

Please advise me on the following parts:

1) CPU: was thinking i7 6700k (like to experiment with overclocking).

2) Motherboard: would like a feature packed board. I liked the ASUS Z170 Deluxe on paper but been reading issues with this product. Is there a similar or better alternative?

3) Graphics card: GTX 970, 980, 980Ti, R9 390, R9 390x - not sure which one would be the best to go with my 34" Samsung (3440x1440).

4) Case: Full tower or Mid tower? Would want a high quality case that would allow me to add/upgrade components in future.

5) RAM: What brand/make, MHz and GB?

6) SSD: considering an m.2 SSD, which one should i get? Should i also get a second SATA ssd?

7) HDD: Want to setup raid - 2x 4TB perhaps? what should i get?

8) PSU: would like a power supply that could handle current parts and then some future upgrades. Want this to be the best. I experience power spikes (fluctuations) in my home occasionally.

9) Fans: How many fans do i need? And what sizes? Do the fans also glow?

10) CPU Cooler - What make/brand model # ?

11) Radiator - What size(s) and how many - if required?

12) Custom Liquid cooling loop - Does this really help? Would i need one? I live in a very hot area. Although i am confident of assembling a PC but liquid cooling seems challenging. But with your guidance i don't mind giving it a shot.

13) Custom parts - For cable management and all other stuff that i missed out.

14) Keyboard and mouse - although i have one of these lying around so these can be bought/upgraded later.
Sorry for asking too many questions but you guys are the best and i have my hopes pinned on you.

Thanks in advance.
 
Solution
g-unit1111
1) CPU: was thinking i7 6700k (like to experiment with overclocking).
Click to expand...

Usually I don't advise people to wait but Broadwell-E is going to start showing up around August, and if you're going to sink this much money into a PC it would definitely be worth taking a look at the i7-6800K, though you most certainly don't need a $1,000 or a $1500 CPU for this kind of build.

2) Motherboard: would like a feature packed board. I liked the ASUS Z170 Deluxe on paper but been reading issues with this product. Is there a similar or better alternative?
Click to expand...

Again I'd suggest looking at Broadwell-E.

3) Graphics card: GTX 970, 980, 980Ti, R9 390, R9 390x - not sure which one would be the best to go with my 34" Samsung (3440x1440).
Click to expand...

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Kane1414

Kane1414

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Sep 22, 2013
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Ok I'm in class but I did as much as I could. This is what I would do. I didn't total or anything. I only got the first five done. Hope this is helpful somehow.

1. Intel Core i7-6700K http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819117559
2. GIGABYTE G1 Gaming GA-Z170X-Gaming 7 http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA1N83UY3332
3. MSI GeForce GTX 980TI GAMING or ASUS ROG GeForce GTX 980 Ti MATRIX (Depending how much you wanna pay.) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814127912&cm_re=GTX_980Ti-_-14-127-912-_-Product or http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814126046&cm_re=GTX_980Ti-_-14-121-979-_-Product
4. NZXT Phantom PHAN-003RD http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811146074
5. G.SKILL Ripjaws V Series 32GB (4 x 8GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 3333 (PC4 26600) http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820232276
 
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CV_Taihou

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Dec 3, 2015
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Not much point in going with 980ti's now that the 1080 has arrived. Depending on OP's purchase date, they might be better off waiting for the 1080ti to come out and building the system around an SLI'd pair of those. I do second the i7-6700k (or whatever the newest top of the line i7 is when they buy. This has nothing but good parts (some are overkill for what you need (PSU, RAM are the first that come to mind), but still has 2 grand left for GPU's

i7-6700k Build

 
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V

VR PC-BUILD

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May 14, 2016
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Here is the build

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Motherboard: Asus SABERTOOTH X99 ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($307.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($69.88 @ OutletPC)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($69.88 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Samsung SM951 128GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($117.90 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($81.45 @ Amazon)
Case: Corsair 750D ATX Full Tower Case ($129.99 @ B&H)
Power Supply: Corsair 1000W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($188.79 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-16D1HT Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($59.98 @ Newegg)
Other: i7-6900K ($1000.00)
Other: GTX1080 ($600.00)
Other: GTX1080 ($600.00)
Total: $3225.86
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-05-27 13:00 EDT-0400

Did not include CPU cooler as I will give you custom water loop setup
 
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g-unit1111

g-unit1111

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1) CPU: was thinking i7 6700k (like to experiment with overclocking).
Click to expand...

Usually I don't advise people to wait but Broadwell-E is going to start showing up around August, and if you're going to sink this much money into a PC it would definitely be worth taking a look at the i7-6800K, though you most certainly don't need a $1,000 or a $1500 CPU for this kind of build.

2) Motherboard: would like a feature packed board. I liked the ASUS Z170 Deluxe on paper but been reading issues with this product. Is there a similar or better alternative?
Click to expand...

Again I'd suggest looking at Broadwell-E.

3) Graphics card: GTX 970, 980, 980Ti, R9 390, R9 390x - not sure which one would be the best to go with my 34" Samsung (3440x1440).
Click to expand...

New GPUs are out this week - the 1080 and 1070 will be light years ahead of the current 9XX crop especially if you've got a 3440x1440 ultra wide. You will definitely want the latest there.

4) Case: Full tower or Mid tower? Would want a high quality case that would allow me to add/upgrade components in future.
Click to expand...

Honestly I'd look at cooling first and that will determine if a full tower is needed. Right now there's a lot of mid tower cases that have full tower room like the Enthoo Pro / Luxe and the Corsair 760T. But if you're going with a custom liquid loop, I'd look at what my cooling requirements are going to be. If you're going with a custom loop, the size of the radiator you're buying will determine what case you go with. 280mm (2 x 140) - go with a mid tower. Anything more than that (420mm, etc) go with a full tower.

5) RAM: What brand/make, MHz and GB?
Click to expand...

RAM needs vary from person to person. Gaming you don't need more than 2 x 8GB or 4 x 4GB. G.Skill is good, and their Trident-Z series is particularly excellent. Corsair Vengeance LPX is always a good choice as well. 32GB as has been suggested is overkill for most gaming but if VR is your goal that need could change.

7) HDD: Want to setup raid - 2x 4TB perhaps? what should i get?
Click to expand...

If you're investing this kind of cash for sure you want to buy an M2. The Samsung 950 Pro is one of the best out there and it's what I have in my personal system.

8) PSU: would like a power supply that could handle current parts and then some future upgrades. Want this to be the best. I experience power spikes (fluctuations) in my home occasionally.
Click to expand...

For sure. Tier 1 PSUs are generally Seasonic X, Corsair AXi / HXi, and EVGA G2/P2/T2.

9) Fans: How many fans do i need? And what sizes? Do the fans also glow?
Click to expand...

That's kind of a tricky question because that's determined by the size of the case you use.And how many mounts are on said case. You can only buy as many fans as your case allows.

10) CPU Cooler - What make/brand model # ?

11) Radiator - What size(s) and how many - if required?

12) Custom Liquid cooling loop - Does this really help? Would i need one? I live in a very hot area. Although i am confident of assembling a PC but liquid cooling seems challenging. But with your guidance i don't mind giving it a shot.
Click to expand...

If you're going with custom liquid, definitely check out EKWB. Their Predator radiators are among the best of the best: https://www.ekwb.com/

13) Custom parts - For cable management and all other stuff that i missed out.
Click to expand...

That's another tricky question - a lot of variables, and especially since that is determined by the color scheme you're going with.

So here's an idea of one I might suggest using X99 using a black and white theme:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

Motherboard: Asus X99-DELUXE/U3.1 ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($379.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: G.Skill TridentZ Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($104.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 950 PRO 512GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($316.97 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($117.99 @ Micro Center)
Case: Corsair 760T White V2 ATX Full Tower Case ($149.99 @ Micro Center)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA 1000 P2 1000W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($179.99 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Pro OEM (64-bit) ($138.89 @ OutletPC)
Other: EKWB K360 ($372.00)
Other: Intel 3.7GHz Core i7-6800K ($399.99)
Other: EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 ACX 3.0 ($639.99)
Other: EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 ACX 3.0 (2-Way SLI) ($639.99)
Total: $3440.78
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-05-27 17:02 EDT-0400
 
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Solution
G

Guest

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You can either get the video card in this build right now, or wait for Polaris or Pascal to be released.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($338.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H110 94.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($118.17 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI Z170A GAMING M7 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($214.99 @ Micro Center)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($154.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 950 PRO 512GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($316.97 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 4TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($196.88 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital BLACK SERIES 4TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($196.88 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 Fury 4GB Triple Dissipation Video Card ($499.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Corsair 450D ATX Mid Tower Case ($117.47 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA 1000G2 1000W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($149.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: LG WH14NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($45.85 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit) ($85.95 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: Noctua NF-A14 industrialPPC-3000 PWM 158.5 CFM 140mm Fan ($26.89 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: Noctua NF-A14 industrialPPC-3000 PWM 158.5 CFM 140mm Fan ($26.89 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: Noctua NF-F12 industrialPPC-3000 PWM 109.9 CFM 120mm Fan ($22.49 @ OutletPC)
Total: $2513.39
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-05-27 18:14 EDT-0400

Note: The two NF-A14 fans are for the front intakes, the NF-F12 is for the rear exhaust.
 
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Tradesman1

Tradesman1

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Jun 5, 2013
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_____________

Sorry just a question, why go with a high end build and buy 2 sets of DRAM that offer no guarantees of working together? It'd never a good idea to mix pacakges of DRAM even if the same exact model.
 
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g-unit1111

g-unit1111

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$2500 for a single Fury X? Seriously? Why would you get a Fury X when:

A) AMD has new GPUs coming in the next couple of months
B) The GTX 1080 has doube the performance of the 980TI for less money?

The Fury X is not a purchase you should be making right now. Period.
 
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VR PC-BUILD

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Never had any problem in past 9years by doing so.
 
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Tradesman1

Tradesman1

Legenda in Aeternum
Jun 5, 2013
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Might look through the forums, full of people trying to mix DRAM and no joy. That's why the manufacturers test sticks together to make packages, you can pull them right off the assembly line and they might or might not play. If it was as simple to mix as you infer, then the manufacturers would simply sell one stick packages and maximize profits. Also the man ufactures guarantee by the packages, mixed packages no guarantees. Don't know of a single DRAM or mobo manufacturer that will suggest mixing packages is OK
 
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CV_Taihou

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No point in going with anything but a 1080. I'm more than likely going to wait for the non-founders edition cards to show up just so I don't have some silver monstrosity in my Red and Black build :p

Completely agree though. Don't buy a Fury X
 
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USAFRet

USAFRet

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Personally, I would NOT recommend spending that much on a first time build. Especially with a theoretical custom liquid cooling situation.

$800 on a pile of parts PC today as a learning experience will return you $2500 later in experience.

Like modding cars. You don't start out modding a Ferrari. You start on a FIAT. For your next one, then look at the Ferrari. You'll have a better idea of what pitfalls to avoid.
 
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VR PC-BUILD

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May 14, 2016
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Here is the build:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU Cooler: Thermaltake Water 3.0 Ultimate 99.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($119.72 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus Asus SABERTOOTH X99 ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($307.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($194.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung 950 PRO 256GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($177.00 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($80.88 @ Amazon)
Case: Corsair 750D ATX Full Tower Case ($129.99 @ B&H)
Power Supply: Corsair 1000W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($186.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-16D1HT Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($59.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus BW-16D1HT Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($59.98 @ Newegg)
Other: i7-6900K ($1000.00)
Other: GTX1080 ($600.00)
Other: GTX1080 ($600.00)
Total: $3517.52
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-05-28 13:39 EDT-0400
 
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USAFRet

USAFRet

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7sroQjt.jpg

2 x bluray drives? Why?
2 x GTX 1080? How about we wait until they are actually released.
Seagate 3TB? From BackBlaze report of thousands of drives in actual use, that is the actual worst of any drive over 1TB
we could continue...
 
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g-unit1111

g-unit1111

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2 blu ray drives? Why do you even need *A* blu ray drive? You don't even really need an optical drive. And why do you need a $1,000 CPU when a $450 one will perform just as well in games? And that cooler - on that budget you should be getting a Swiftech H240 or a EKWB Predator. At minimum.
 
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g-unit1111

g-unit1111

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For what? They're not much use of anything any more. And they're too expensive and impractical for backups. In fact more cases and laptop manufacturers are doing away with optical drive bays than ever before.
 
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Yogi2367

Yogi2367

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I'd pick this as the absolute best advice going.
 
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