Build Advice I'm building a new PC. Did I think of everything?

failmau5

Commendable
Jun 12, 2020
11
0
1,510
Hi everyone!
I'm new to this forum, so please excuse me if I may have missed something about the rules in the sticky posts.

I am looking to build a new PC in the next few months and already prepared two possible builds - an AMD and an Intel build.
Before I add anything to the cart I wanted to make sure, that my chosen hardware is working well together.
So I'm basically looking for your advice, if the builds are OK or if you guys would replace any of the hardware with other components.

Right now I'm also not sure of which build I should choose, but I feel the AMD build more promising for the future (mainly because of PCIe 4.0 and the same socket for the next Ryzen generation).
I will also probably wait for the next Ryzen and RTX generations, so I need to know if the build will still be good after changing these 2 components.

I will use the PC mainly for gaming and occasional photo editing with Adobe PS, as well as some business stuff.

These are the builds I prepared:

AMD:
  • CPU: AMD Ryzen 3900X
  • Motherboard: ASUS ROG Strix X570-I
  • RAM: 2x 16GB G.Skill Tridenz Z RGB (DDR4-3200, CAS 16)
  • Graphics: ASUS GeForce Turbo RTX2070 Super 8G Evo
  • SSD: Seagate FireCuda 520 (2000GB, M.2 2280, PCIe 4.0)
  • Case: NZXT H210i
  • CPU Cooler: NZXT Kraken X63 (already checked if this AIO fits into the case)
  • PSU: Corsair RM650 (650W, 2019 Version)

Intel:
  • CPU: Intel Core i9-10900K
  • Motherboard: ASUS ROG Strix Z490-I
  • RAM: 2x 16GB G.Skill Tridenz Z RGB (DDR4-3200, CAS 16)
  • Graphics: ASUS GeForce Turbo RTX2070 Super 8G Evo
  • SSD: Corsair MP510 (2000GB, M.2 2280, PCIe 3.0)
  • Case: NZXT H210i
  • CPU Cooler: NZXT Kraken X63 (already checked if this AIO fits into the case)
  • PSU: Corsair RM650 (650W, 2019 Version)

What do you guys think? Did I think of everything necessary? Would you change anything? And would you rather choose the AMD or the Intel build?

Thanks a lot in advance!
 

Ferimer

Distinguished
Perfect, thanks!
You could benefit more and pay less if you went with a smaller 500gb SSD and looked for a 2tb HDD. Which I believe a p1 or p2 crucial NvMe 500gb is like $65 USD and 2tb Seagate is $55 US

There are just some games out there that dont truly benefit from the SSD. So saving the SSD for the OS and a couple games of your choice would be viable. Using the HDD to save and store files for business and the video editing you wish to do will go a long way.

If you are unsure about why im choosing to go down to Gen 3, just have a read at this https://www.techspot.com/review/1893-pcie-4-vs-pcie-3-ssd/

Essentially why pay over $400 for 3 more seconds? When in the end you can pay $130 (give or take) and have 500gigs more space and put that extra money else like a monitor or jump up to 32GB 3600mhz Sticks
 
Last edited:

failmau5

Commendable
Jun 12, 2020
11
0
1,510
You could benefit more and pay less if you went with a smaller 500gb SSD and looked for a 2tb HDD. Which I believe a p1 or p2 crucial NvMe 500gb is like $65 USD and 2tb Seagate is $55 US

There are just some games out there that dont truly benefit from the SSD. So saving the SSD for the OS and a couple games of your choice would be viable. Using the HDD to save and store files for business and the video editing you wish to do will go a long way.
Yes I thought of that too. I will probably compare the prices at the time of ordering and will then decide.
Maybe the price of M.2 drives will drop until then, you never know. :)
 

Ferimer

Distinguished
Yes I thought of that too. I will probably compare the prices at the time of ordering and will then decide.
Maybe the price of M.2 drives will drop until then, you never know. :)
The P2 Crucial is an M.2 Drive, its just NVMe. If you have your heart set on a gen 4 you could try the Gigabyte AORUS and go with the 2tb Seagate. Also the Red highlighted words are links to the product if you were unsure.
 
Hi everyone!
I'm new to this forum, so please excuse me if I may have missed something about the rules in the sticky posts.

I am looking to build a new PC in the next few months and already prepared two possible builds - an AMD and an Intel build.
Before I add anything to the cart I wanted to make sure, that my chosen hardware is working well together.
So I'm basically looking for your advice, if the builds are OK or if you guys would replace any of the hardware with other components.

Right now I'm also not sure of which build I should choose, but I feel the AMD build more promising for the future (mainly because of PCIe 4.0 and the same socket for the next Ryzen generation).
I will also probably wait for the next Ryzen and RTX generations, so I need to know if the build will still be good after changing these 2 components.

I will use the PC mainly for gaming and occasional photo editing with Adobe PS, as well as some business stuff.

These are the builds I prepared:

AMD:
  • CPU: AMD Ryzen 3900X
  • Motherboard: ASUS ROG Strix X570-I
  • RAM: 2x 16GB G.Skill Tridenz Z RGB (DDR4-3200, CAS 16)
  • Graphics: ASUS GeForce Turbo RTX2070 Super 8G Evo
  • SSD: Seagate FireCuda 520 (2000GB, M.2 2280, PCIe 4.0)
  • Case: NZXT H210i
  • CPU Cooler: NZXT Kraken X63 (already checked if this AIO fits into the case)
  • PSU: Corsair RM650 (650W, 2019 Version)
Intel:
  • CPU: Intel Core i9-10900K
  • Motherboard: ASUS ROG Strix Z490-I
  • RAM: 2x 16GB G.Skill Tridenz Z RGB (DDR4-3200, CAS 16)
  • Graphics: ASUS GeForce Turbo RTX2070 Super 8G Evo
  • SSD: Corsair MP510 (2000GB, M.2 2280, PCIe 3.0)
  • Case: NZXT H210i
  • CPU Cooler: NZXT Kraken X63 (already checked if this AIO fits into the case)
  • PSU: Corsair RM650 (650W, 2019 Version)
What do you guys think? Did I think of everything necessary? Would you change anything? And would you rather choose the AMD or the Intel build?

Thanks a lot in advance!
While you checked to see if the AIO will fit, everything I'm seeing from the NZXT website says that while it allows for 2x140mm fans, only 240mm AIO will fit.
Radiator SupportFront: 2x 120mm with Push or Pull
Rear: 1x 120mm
https://www.nzxt.com/products/h210i-matte-white
If you need to use a 240mm AIO that won't be enough for the 10900K and would automatically disqualify it. That being said I agree that the 3900X is the better build choice.

For the 240mm AIO I would use the Arctic Liquid Freezer II.

For the RAM going with 3600MHz CL16 isn't worth the added cost over 3600MHz CL18. You will get at best 1-2% better performance for a 50% increase in cost. Even compared to 3200MHz CL16 the 3600MHz CL16 will only get your 3-5% more performance for 75% increase in cost.

I agree in part with the SSD recommendation above, however, I would set it up differently. For the cost of that 2TB Seagate SSD you can get a 500GB OS drive, 2TB Games drive, and 4TB HDD bulk storage drive.

Here is what I would do based on your wants and getting more for your money.
PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 3900X 3.8 GHz 12-Core Processor ($417.08 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: ARCTIC Liquid Freezer II 240 56.3 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler
Motherboard: Asus ROG Strix X570-I Gaming Mini ITX AM4 Motherboard ($339.99 @ Best Buy)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3600 CL18 Memory ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Blue SN550 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive ($64.98 @ Amazon)
Storage: ADATA XPG SX8200 Pro 2 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive ($259.99 @ Adorama)
Storage: Seagate Desktop HDD 4 TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive ($84.00 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Asus GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER 8 GB Turbo EVO Video Card ($529.99 @ B&H)
Case: NZXT H210i Mini ITX Tower Case ($112.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair RM (2019) 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($119.97 @ Newegg)
Total: $2058.98
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-06-12 10:19 EDT-0400
 
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Ferimer

Distinguished
While you checked to see if the AIO will fit, everything I'm seeing from the NZXT website says that while it allows for 2x140mm fans, only 240mm AIO will fit.
Radiator SupportFront: 2x 120mm with Push or Pull
Rear: 1x 120mm
https://www.nzxt.com/products/h210i-matte-white
If you need to use a 240mm AIO that won't be enough for the 10900K and would automatically disqualify it. That being said I agree that the 3900X is the better build choice.

For the 240mm AIO I would use the Arctic Liquid Freezer II.

For the RAM going with 3600MHz CL16 isn't worth the added cost over 3600MHz CL18. You will get at best 1-2% better performance for a 50% increase in cost. Even compared to 3200MHz CL16 the 3600MHz CL16 will only get your 3-5% more performance for 75% increase in cost.

I agree in part with the SSD recommendation above, however, I would set it up differently. For the cost of that 2TB Seagate SSD you can get a 500GB OS drive, 2TB Games drive, and 4TB HDD bulk storage drive.

Here is what I would do based on your wants and getting more for your money.
PCPartPicker Part List

CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 3900X 3.8 GHz 12-Core Processor ($417.08 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: ARCTIC Liquid Freezer II 240 56.3 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler
Motherboard: Asus ROG Strix X570-I Gaming Mini ITX AM4 Motherboard ($339.99 @ Best Buy)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3600 CL18 Memory ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Blue SN550 500 GB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive ($64.98 @ Amazon)
Storage: ADATA XPG SX8200 Pro 2 TB M.2-2280 NVME Solid State Drive ($259.99 @ Adorama)
Storage: Seagate Desktop HDD 4 TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive ($84.00 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Asus GeForce RTX 2070 SUPER 8 GB Turbo EVO Video Card ($529.99 @ B&H)
Case: NZXT H210i Mini ITX Tower Case ($112.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair RM (2019) 650 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply ($119.97 @ Newegg)
Total: $2058.98
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2020-06-12 10:19 EDT-0400
I do like this build and how you maximized his spending to provide him with more storage. Spending a tonne of money doesnt always mean best quality. I have heard that Seagate has known to run into problems on the SSD front so many people have stayed away. Western Digital is a really stable SSD. i think 2tB may be pushing a bit extreme on the SSD front for just games. You could just delete old games you arent playing anymore and go with a 1tb ssd for games? Entirely up to you though, but i do think this build is better suited for you
 
I do like this build and how you maximized his spending to provide him with more storage. Spending a tonne of money doesnt always mean best quality. I have heard that Seagate has known to run into problems on the SSD front so many people have stayed away. Western Digital is a really stable SSD. i think 2tB may be pushing a bit extreme on the SSD front for just games. You could just delete old games you arent playing anymore and go with a 1tb ssd for games? Entirely up to you though, but i do think this build is better suited for you
The WD SN550 is the best budget NVMe SSD you can get. For the OS & Applications you will not be able to tell the difference between it and a PCIe 4.0 SSD. In my HTPC I have a NVMe MyDigitalSSD SBX and I cannot tell any difference between it and my desktop with a SATA Corsair Neutron GTX.
 
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Love those ITX builds, I have done several for the challenge.
You could build either.
I particularly like the use of a blower cooler graphics card in such a confined case.

I have some suggestions:

1. If this build is primarily for gaming, I would spend less on the processor and more on the graphics card.
A balanced gamer will budget about 2x the cost of the processor for the graphics card.
A i7-10700K would game just as well, allowing more budget for a stronger graphics card. And, the top dog i9-10900K is in short supply and commands a premium.

2. You can buy a blower EVGA RTX2080 super and not bust your budget:
https://www.newegg.com/evga-geforce-rtx-2080-super-08g-p4-3080-kr/p/N82E16814487462
There is a top dog EVGA RTX2080ti blower version if money is no object.
If you will be gaming at 1080P such strong cards are not necessary. But if you will be looking to 1440P or 4k, then buy the strongest graphics card you can afford.


3. Using a aio cooler as a front intake is going to heat up your motherboard and graphics card.
That is not good. A A 280 aio like the Kraken X63 is really an air cooler. The only difference from a top air cooler like the Noctua NH-D15s is where the heat exchange place. They both have two 140mm radiators/towers.
But, the noctua costs less and will be quieter, more reliable, and will not heat up your motherboard or graphics card.

4. Love the trident ram. Ryzen benefits from faster ram so 3600 speed would be better there.
Intel does not depend on fast ram. 3200 speed is ok, but if you can find 3600 at a reasonable price, so much the better.

5. In a top end build like this, I fully support a 2tb ssd. But, why not get the best, which I think is the 2tb samsung 970 evo plus:
https://www.newegg.com/samsung-970-evo-plus-2tb/p/N82E16820147744?&quicklink=true
To compare the performance of different ssd devices go to anandtech bench:
https://www.anandtech.com/bench/SSD18/2447
You can directly compare two competeing ssd devices.
There will be a difference.

5. Your psu is excellent.

As to future upgrades, the truth is that a cpu upgrade is almost always accompanied by a new motherboard.
pcie 4.0 is touted as a future, but we have no such devices available yet. Z490 motherboards are supposed to be capable of 4.0 if/when the needs arise. I see that a samsung 980 pro 4.0 ssd is supposed to be launched in a couple of months.
I shudder to think what a 2tb version is going to cost.

6. What monitor/s are you planning on?
 

failmau5

Commendable
Jun 12, 2020
11
0
1,510
Thanks for the many suggestions and tips guys!

@jeremyj_83:
I found a couple of posts of people who managed to mount the X63 in the case.
For example that one here.

Regarding storage suggestions:
I guess I will go for a high-end 500GB M.2 and a cheaper 1000GB one.

@geofelt:
Thanks for the tip about the cooling!
What do you think about a rear mounted AIO like the Kraken M22 and using normal 140mm fans in the front?
As for the monitor, I recently bought a Philips 346B1C (34", 3440x1440, 100hz).
 
Thanks for the many suggestions and tips guys!

@jeremyj_83:
I found a couple of posts of people who managed to mount the X63 in the case.
For example that one here.

Regarding storage suggestions:
I guess I will go for a high-end 500GB M.2 and a cheaper 1000GB one.

@geofelt:
Thanks for the tip about the cooling!
What do you think about a rear mounted AIO like the Kraken M22 and using normal 140mm fans in the front?
As for the monitor, I recently bought a Philips 346B1C (34", 3440x1440, 100hz).
A 120/140mm AIO will only really be able to do about 150ish Watt TDP. If you were using a Ryzen 3600 for example you could use that, but I wouldn't for a 3900X and for sure not any 10th Gen i5, i7, or i9.
 

failmau5

Commendable
Jun 12, 2020
11
0
1,510
A 120/140mm AIO will only really be able to do about 150ish Watt TDP. If you were using a Ryzen 3600 for example you could use that, but I wouldn't for a 3900X and for sure not any 10th Gen i5, i7, or i9.
Alright, so you would recommend an all-air cooling in the case?
I will also look into your Fractal Design case as a possibility.
 

failmau5

Commendable
Jun 12, 2020
11
0
1,510
Okay guys, long time no see!
I've done a lot of research in the meantime and configured myself another AMD build, which will be ready for the next Ryzen and RTX generations.

What do you think about this build?

  • Case: Ncase M1 (latest version with optimized air flow)
  • Motherboard: ASUS ROG Strix B550-I Gaming (replaced the X570 mainly because of the USB-C header; also it is way cheaper and the connectivity is enough for my needs)
  • CPU: AMD Ryzen 3900X (for now, will be replaced with 4th Gen)
  • RAM: 2x 16GB G.Skill Trident Z (DDR4-3600, CL16; which apparently is a sweet spot configuration for the Ryzen)
  • Graphics: RTX 2080 Super Founders Edition (for now, will be replaced with 3000 series)
  • Primary SSD: Seagate FireCuda 520 (1000GB, PCIe 4.0; still this one, as I found a bunch of positive reviews; I would go for the Corsair MP600, but I'm not a fan of removing the pre-mounted heatsink)
  • Secondary SSD: Kingston A2000 (1000GB, PCIe 3.0)
  • CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i Pro (replaced the Kraken, as I don't need the fancy pump design in the Ncase; I also looked at the H100x, what do you think about this one?)
  • PSU: Corsair SF750 Platinum (do you think I could even go for the SF600?)
  • Fans: Noctua NF-A12x25 (they will replace the stock fans on the AIO), Noctua NF-F12 (bottom intake) (fan choice and setup is mainly based on this video)

I know this will be a pretty expensive build, but I'm not looking at cost right now as I'm currently saving enough money for that kind of hardware.

Thanks a lot in advance for your suggestions!