Is this a good build?

[Utilize]

Ok so I think everything in this should work but I'm just wondering if I should change anything:

Motherboard: ASUS Z97-PRO GAMER
CPU: Intel i5 4690K
RAM: 16GB Kingston Hyper-X Fury
GPU: 4GB Zotac GTX 970
HDD: 1TB SATA
SSD: 120GB Kingston V300
PSU: 550W Corsair VS Series

Thanks!

 

[timeconsumer]

It's pretty good.

But you should swap the PSU for an XFX 550w or Seasonic (XFX is really cheap with the current mail-in rebate).
If you're just gaming you don't need 16gb of memory, 8gb is more than enough, if you want to save some money.
Judging by the motherboard and processor you appear to be putting an overclocking build together, what aftermarket cooler are you using?

 

[Utilize]

It's pretty good.

But you should swap the PSU for an XFX 550w or Seasonic (XFX is really cheap with the current mail-in rebate).
If you're just gaming you don't need 16gb of memory, 8gb is more than enough, if you want to save some money.
Judging by the motherboard and processor you appear to be putting an overclocking build together, what aftermarket cooler are you using?

See, that's the thing. I don't know if I will need to... Would downgrading to a 4590 or even a 4460 be an option without bottlenecking the graphics card? The cooler would be a CoolerMaster Hyper 212 EVO.

 

[timeconsumer]

See, that's the thing. I don't know if I will need to... Would downgrading to a 4590 or even a 4460 be an option without bottlenecking the graphics card? The cooler would be a CoolerMaster Hyper 212 EVO.

If you are not overclocking, the difference between a 4460/4590 and a 4690k would be almost unnoticeable in gaming performance. It only becomes worth the money after you make significant gains in clock speed...think 4.2Ghz+. A GTX 970 and an i5 (of any speed) is a very balanced build and you only stand to gain some FPS in certain CPU intensive titles.

If you want to leave the option open for the future, then buying a 4690k, Z97 board, and aftermarket cooler is not a bad choice. But remember, a quality Z97 board and cooler for significant OC'ing can cost you an extra $80+ on top of the premium for the "K" chip. And you are still gambling on the silicon lottery.

For some people (myself included, just not this current build[no $$$]), the joy and challenge of overclocking in itself is worth the money. Are you that kind of person?

 

[Utilize]

See, that's the thing. I don't know if I will need to... Would downgrading to a 4590 or even a 4460 be an option without bottlenecking the graphics card? The cooler would be a CoolerMaster Hyper 212 EVO.

If you are not overclocking, the difference between a 4460/4590 and a 4690k would be almost unnoticeable in gaming performance. It only becomes worth the money after you make significant gains in clock speed...think 4.2Ghz+. A GTX 970 and an i5 (of any speed) is a very balanced build and you only stand to gain some FPS in certain CPU intensive titles.

If you want to leave the option open for the future, then buying a 4690k, Z97 board, and aftermarket cooler is not a bad choice. But remember, a quality Z97 board and cooler for significant OC'ing can cost you an extra $80+ on top of the premium for the "K" chip. And you are still gambling on the silicon lottery.

For some people (myself included, just not this current build[no $$$]), the joy and challenge of overclocking in itself is worth the money. Are you that kind of person?

No, I'm not particularly that kind of person and the only thing I'd really be interested in overclocking (if I ever needed to) would be the graphics card. The motherboard attracted me because I've heard people saying that it has great ethernet speeds. Also, what would be the implications of downgrading to a Z97-E or even a Z97-P?

 

[timeconsumer]

No, I'm not particularly that kind of person and the only thing I'd really be interested in overclocking (if I ever needed to) would be the graphics card. The motherboard attracted me because I've heard people saying that it has great ethernet speeds. Also, what would be the implications of downgrading to a Z97-E or even a Z97-P?

Great ethernet speeds? I can't really imagine it could be any different than any other gigabit ethernet (which is on pretty much every board). Even if it was, gigabit ethernet is still far faster than the bandwidth that can be provided by any ISP right now.

You won't notice much difference going down to either of those other boards with your current build. There may be a few lost features like support for really fast memory (which you're not buying, and doesn't change much in gaming performance), or M.2 support. If I were you and doing a build for an i5 at stock clocks, I would get a 4460 or 4590 and an H97 board. Z97 just doesn't offer any additional benefits, unless you want to do an SLI build.

 

[Utilize]

No, I'm not particularly that kind of person and the only thing I'd really be interested in overclocking (if I ever needed to) would be the graphics card. The motherboard attracted me because I've heard people saying that it has great ethernet speeds. Also, what would be the implications of downgrading to a Z97-E or even a Z97-P?

Great ethernet speeds? I can't really imagine it could be any different than any other gigabit ethernet (which is on pretty much every board). Even if it was, gigabit ethernet is still far faster than the bandwidth that can be provided by any ISP right now.

You won't notice much difference going down to either of those other boards with your current build. There may be a few lost features like support for really fast memory (which you're not buying, and doesn't change much in gaming performance), or M.2 support. If I were you and doing a build for an i5 at stock clocks, I would get a 4460 or 4590 and an H97 board. Z97 just doesn't offer any additional benefits, unless you want to do an SLI build.

Yeah, popping another 970 in their in the future may be an option I want to take so keeping options open would be preferable. I guess since I'm not overclocking the CPU or motherboard I can just use the stock cooler right? I think I'll go for the ASUS Z97-E to keep my options open then go to a 240GB SSD using the spare money. Also, what do you think of the case I'm looking at: http://www.zalman.com/global/product/Product_Read.php?Idx=935
Would it be worth it to install a few more fans?

 

[timeconsumer]

Yeah, popping another 970 in their in the future may be an option I want to take so keeping options open would be preferable. I guess since I'm not overclocking the CPU or motherboard I can just use the stock cooler right? I think I'll go for the ASUS Z97-E to keep my options open then go to a 240GB SSD using the spare money. Also, what do you think of the case I'm looking at: http://www.zalman.com/global/product/Product_Read.php?Idx=935
Would it be worth it to install a few more fans?

That makes sense, Z97 E is a good choice for future SLI. Also give yourself a little more juice with the power supply in that case. http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-power-supply-220gs0650v1 should work (made by Seasonic).

With cases you don't have much to worry about, if you like the way it looks, buy it. GTX 970s and i5s don't put out a lot of heat, so I think it has plenty of fans stock. But you can always add more, just for fun. I have a bunch in my case.

 

[Utilize]

Yeah, popping another 970 in their in the future may be an option I want to take so keeping options open would be preferable. I guess since I'm not overclocking the CPU or motherboard I can just use the stock cooler right? I think I'll go for the ASUS Z97-E to keep my options open then go to a 240GB SSD using the spare money. Also, what do you think of the case I'm looking at: http://www.zalman.com/global/product/Product_Read.php?Idx=935
Would it be worth it to install a few more fans?

That makes sense, Z97 E is a good choice for future SLI. Also give yourself a little more juice with the power supply in that case. http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-power-supply-220gs0650v1 should work (made by Seasonic).

With cases you don't have much to worry about, if you like the way it looks, buy it. GTX 970s and i5s don't put out a lot of heat, so I think it has plenty of fans stock. But you can always add more, just for fun. I have a bunch in my case.

Oh, I thought a 550W would be enough. What about the CPU cooler?

 

[timeconsumer]

Oh, I thought a 550W would be enough. What about the CPU cooler?

For a single card, yes. Even an SLI setup it will probably be okay. But with dual-card configs I think it's better to have a little extra power. 650w or 750w will give you some breathing room. If you're not overclocking than a stock cooler will work fine.

 

[Utilize]

Oh, I thought a 550W would be enough. What about the CPU cooler?

For a single card, yes. Even an SLI setup it will probably be okay. But with dual-card configs I think it's better to have a little extra power. 650w or 750w will give you some breathing room. If you're not overclocking than a stock cooler will work fine.

Ok so just to make sure I understood you, 550W will be fine with that case with a single card but if I'm running dual 970s in the future I should go for a 650 or 750W?

 

[timeconsumer]

Ok so just to make sure I understood you, 550W will be fine with that case with a single card but if I'm running dual 970s in the future I should go for a 650 or 750W?

Correct, it's nice to have a little extra power with SLI setups. EVGA Supernova 750w G2 would be my choice, it has a 10 year warranty and is an excellent PSU. But if that doesn't fit in the budget a 650w EVGA Supernova GS, or a 650 Seasonic S12G will provide enough power as well.

 

[Utilize]

Ok so just to make sure I understood you, 550W will be fine with that case with a single card but if I'm running dual 970s in the future I should go for a 650 or 750W?

Correct, it's nice to have a little extra power with SLI setups. EVGA Supernova 750w G2 would be my choice, it has a 10 year warranty and is an excellent PSU. But if that doesn't fit in the budget a 650w EVGA Supernova GS, or a 650 Seasonic S12G will provide enough power as well.

Alright. I'll see how it goes. I might just stick with a single 970 then. Thanks for your help!