i7-4790 vs i5-4690 for GrandMA2 3D Lighting Visualization

[LxTrex]

I plan to do a lot of event and concert lighting visualization in addition to gaming and was wondering if the i7-4790k would see markedly better performance over the i5-4690k.

I've seen the benchmarks, and the cost/benefit just isn't there for gaming, but would it help with GrandMA2 on PC and GrandMA2 3D?

I know lighting visualization is pretty niche, but I was hoping to get some insight on whether the 100 bucks could be worth spending if my computer is trying to calculate a few 100 light beams simultaneously.

Heres a link to the software and it's info if that helps.
http://www.malighting.com/en/support-downloads/software.html

 

[volcanoscout]

The height is a slight concern. I haven't looked at measurements yet, but I'm hoping to pick out all the parts and then measure last, making substitutions when things wouldn't fit.

As for the cooling, I plan on trying out an H100i for the CPU and possibly a smaller one for the GPU. But I'll hold off until I have the money; as well as on the OC of course, don't want to fry the damn thing! Interestingly enough, I found this video that uses the H100i in the case I planned to get. And I happen to like the modded look of the radiator on the top (especially in a black case), so all the better. I had just skipped to the cooling section but I might just watch the rest of this video now that I've found it.

I'm curious about the scaling as well. By far I know the least about the specifics of RAM so I'd be interested to see how that turns out. Honestly, at this point just let me know how you like you're rig once you've made the swap to the i7

The H100i should do you fine. I don't mess with liquid cooling myself, but there's about a bajillion people using it that swear by it. I'm on the road now, but will be home on the 13th and am timing the parts deliveries so there all waiting for me to play with. Adding in a Recon 2 fan controller, Hero VII, 4790K, and either 16GB or 32GB of Trident X 2400/9. I'll let you know how it goes.

 

[kira70591]

You can always use an air cooler such as the Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo or the Noctua DH-14. The Noctua will provide greater performance but the Hyper 212 Evo gives you the best performance bang for your buck. It is a great cooler which I have personally used many times and which I have installed on my machine at the moment.

 

[volcanoscout]

You can always use an air cooler such as the Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo or the Noctua DH-14. The Noctua will provide greater performance but the Hyper 212 Evo gives you the best performance bang for your buck. It is a great cooler which I have personally used many times and which I have installed on my machine at the moment.

I would vote for either of them also (I have the D14), but he'd have to change out the RAM. No way Vengeance sticks will fit with either of them. I don't think they'd work with the D15 either, even with the new RAM spreader-friendly form factor. But there's lots of good choices for RAM will fit. I can understand the H100i attraction though - performance is on par with the D14 and 15 and it looks cool, I just can't handle the noise.

 

[LxTrex]

I'm open to other ideas. is the noise you're referring to on the h100i the fans on the radiator? or something else? I was under the impression water cooling would be quieter. Maybe I'm just misinformed on the subject. My motivation to move towards water cooling would be to minimize on noise. It's not a huge deal to me, but certainly a factor I keep in mind.

 

[volcanoscout]

Depends on your tolerance level. I've stuck my head in at least a dozen builds that use the H100i and what I hear is clicks from the fans and a constant whoosh-whoosh-whoosh from the rest of it. In an absolute sense it's pretty quiet, but not next to a high-end HSF (heat sink and fan). A lot of users replace the stock fans but that still leaves the whoosh-whoosh-whoosh. The Corsair H100i has comparable cooling performance to the NH-D14, looks cool, and leaves your mobo unobstructed.

A high-end HSF takes up a lot of real estate on your mobo and many of them have RAM clearance issues, but they're very quiet. They can obstruct access to components if you're a tinkerer, but once you get the hang of it pulling and reinstalling them is a cinch.

Newegg reviews of the H100i (and there are 869 of them as of this morning) have 50% of reviewers giving it a top rating. The NH-D14 has over a thousand, with 88% giving it 5 Eggs.

 

[kira70591]

If space is an issue, I again would recommend the Hyper 212 Evo. You can move the fan to the other side if you wish and use it in pull, or you can slide the fan up on the heat sink so that it gives your memory more clearance. It depends on your motherboard placement of the memory sockets but my G. Skill Ripjaws fit under the fan on my heatsink... just had to move it up a bit.

If you choose to get the H100i you can always replace the fans with something such as the Corsair SP120 Quiet Edition. They have great static pressure and I have filled out my case with them. The more fans you have, the more that you can turn down the RPMS for reduced noise and still maintain good airflow throughout the case.

Remember, watercooling is still dependent on the ambient temperature of the room. The temperature of the air that is going through the rad matters quite a bit as does the surface area of the rad that you are using. The more surface area, the more cool it has the possibility of running.

 

[LxTrex]

In light of that I wouldn't use the h100i. My plan (as of this morning, but I'm sure it will change later) is to get a CM Storm Trooper and put a full water cooling system (CPU, GPU, etc.) in instead of the AIOs when I get the money. In the meantime I'll be content without aftermarket heatsinks; I'll just hold off on any OC.

As for RAM, ideally it will be low profile regardless of what I end up doing. I don't want to be a year down the line and need to replace memory for other things I'm doing. Just a simple bit of - if you could call it this - 'future-proofing' IMO.

Kira, I'm not sure I agree with your ambient temp comment. I'm not saying it wouldn't play a factor, but wouldn't the same hold true for air as well? With a proper push-pull on the Rad, I don't see how it could be less efficient than the same room temp air simply running through the rig. If anything, wouldn't a room with hot air be MORE efficient with a Rad due to water's Thermo properties (specific heat and rate of transfer). I will admit, my physics is pretty rusty (especially when it comes to Thermo), so correct me if I'm wrong.

Somewhat on/off topic was this article on fan performance on radiators. It's a little dated yes, but I do have to buy fans and would like to get ones that will work equally well for air cooling and rad cooling. SP120 Quiets definitely seem like a good choice.

 

[kira70591]

Ambient room temperature plays the same role with air coolers as well. If the room temperature is high, this will increase the temperature inside of the case which will increase the temperature of your CPU and the coolant inside of the loop. If warm air is being pushed through your radiator it will not help heat transfer at all as well as having side effect of the coolant reaching a higher temperature at a quicker rate.

Most of the time, you cannot cool a part below ambient temperature unless you go with LN2. It will only get as cool as the air that is flowing through the part whether it be an air cooler heatsink or a radiator.

Many people think that a water cooler is their answer; however, if you have decent room temperature, air coolers can be used quite effectively for overclocking at a lower cost than water cooling. Yes, water cooling does more effectively transfer heat if you have the hardware to pull the heat away from the rad but many people do not need that extra performance for what they are doing. The main benefit is that it frees up a lot of space in your case which can aid airflow.

Also, push pull honestly does not help that much. I believe that LinusTechTips has a video of this on his youtube channel. It does help but not to the degree that people think that it does.

 

[LxTrex]

Okay, after spending my entire morning looking up water cooling, and discovering Tiny Tom Logan's Orca rig, I need to stop gawking at the possibilities and just get on with it.

So, since you've all been so helpful - seriously, thank you - I was hoping I could get a little help finishing this guy out. As of right now, the machine looks as follows:

Asus Z97-A
Intel Core i7-4970k
AMD Radeon R9 290
G.Skill Sniper Series (2x8) 1688/9
Seagate 1TB 7200rpm

All inside a CM Storm Trooper.

Everybody loves SP120 quiets. But I think I'm going to try the NZXT FN V2s. Thoughts on these? From what I can tell, the performance/price is far superior. Plus, they're cheap enough that I can get a full set.
Should I replace the stock fans in the front?

Also, Im a bit miffed about how much power I'm going to need. I'm in the states so 120v AC, but how much Wattage will I need? Especially if I plan to OC and water cool not too far down the line. Side note: I will add an optical drive, and wi-fi card as needed, as well as a sound card (eventually) if that makes a big difference in power.

Again, thanks for the help guys. I'm excited to make the final decisions and start shopping.

PS: Kira, I'll have to just experiment and find out for myself on air vs water. We'll see how far the air can take me. In the frigid upstate NY winters, air might actually be spectacular haha

 

[kira70591]

I would look for at least a 750w PSU. Corsair makes some fantastic ones. Try to stay away form the CS series though as they are more for basic workstation builds. A RM is more along the line of what you would be looking for.

I would wait to order replacement fans for the front of the case. You had might as well see how you like them before you spend money on replacing something that you have not seen. I do not know the price of the NZXT fans but price may be mitigated for the Corsair ones if you did not see the twin pack. You can get the twin pack of SP120s for around 29.99 not on sale.