Please review my new gaming system build budget is $950

welchs101

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Below is a system build i am planning. I have had good luck posting my builds on this site as people make really good suggestions and recommendations.

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($214.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97-HD3 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($82.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: *Team Dark 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($56.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: *Transcend SSD370 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($50.00 @ Amazon)
Storage: *Hitachi Ultrastar 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($40.00 @ Amazon)
Video Card: *Zotac GeForce GTX 970 4GB Video Card ($319.99 @ B&H)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case ($99.75 @ Directron)
Power Supply: Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($59.88 @ OutletPC)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.79 @ OutletPC)
Total: $944.27
 
Solution
Best memory access and bandwidth on modern dual channel memory controllers comes from installing 2 ranks of memory per channel of the memory controller, thus enabling both rank and channel interleave. Rank interleave primarily effects access latency (which has the secondary effect of improving effective bandwidth in real workloads), while channel interleave primarily effects bandwidth (which has the secondary effect of improving access latency in real workloads)..

Most 2x4GB DDR3 kits sold these days have 1 rank of memory per DIMM.

All 1x8GB DDR3 DIMM's are configured dual rank.

2x8GB configuration guarantees you get both interleave functions, and plenty of memory for the long haul.

If that's not an option, a 2x4GB memory kit...

royalcrown

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If your not gonna overclock faster ram won't matter, ppl are gonna flame your power supply as sucking when it is adequate, there IS better however and seasonic or non CX series is usually recomended by the power supply gurus on here.

The define r4 is nice but the 5 is also awesome...
 

welchs101

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when i click on the links you provided they do not take me to the actual pc part picker value.......any idea why?

also why is the power supply you selected "better".....just trying to understand as i thought corsair was a good power supply

also why did you choose this case over the other? again just curious
 

welchs101

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royalcrown, what does "ppl" mean?

also what did you mean by "ppl are gonna flame your power supply as sucking when it is adequate, there IS better however and seasonic or non CX series is usually recomended by the power supply gurus on here."


what did you like about the R5 case that the R4 does not have?
 
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($224.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock Z97 Extreme3 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($104.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ares Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory ($70.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial BX100 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($68.15 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($50.96 @ Directron)
Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 970 4GB Video Card ($319.99 @ B&H)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply ($48.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Total: $939.04
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-02-25 07:52 EST-0500
 

welchs101

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thanks rockie i will review.

royalcrown, i reviewed the links you sent. sounds like the corsair cx series is something i should stay away from. is this what you ment by the statement "ppl are gonna flame your power supply as sucking when it is adequate, there IS better however and seasonic or non CX series is usually recomended by the power supply gurus on here."

also, what does "ppl" mean........does it mean power supply?
 

royalcrown

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ppl= people

The r5 has a little more space above the motherboard for thicker coolers, the mounting holes are positioned better, better behind the tray cable management as well. The front intake looks nicer, the door will open from either side where the r4 is hinged on the left and can't change it. Just things I like, the r4 is still an excellent case.

My define XL r2 a bigger r4) is very quiet, it is why I bought it. Very thick metal and very sturdy. All the cases are good however and we all have our personal preferences.



 

welchs101

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rockie, i just reviewed your answer again......for some reason i thought the psu you recommended was like $170 .........but when i click on the link now it is more inline with what i would expect.........however, if the psu you recommend is good how come there are no reviews for this psu...........kinda cautious about buying a psu that no one has reviewed.
 

royalcrown

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Here you go, and Johnnyguru is regarded as one of the best sites for this sort of review.

http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=225


 

mdocod

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XFX PSU's are OEMed by Seasonic using all high grade, oversized, high temp rated components. They can deliver their label rating continuously at elevated ambient temperatures with ease.

CX PSU's are built with lower quality parts, with less headroom in sizing and temperature tolerance for a given "power" class. A CX series PSU does not have the headroom in design you get with competing models from other brands. The CX series is a bit overpriced (enjoying the corsair name inflation) for what you get.

In otherwords, when sizing the PSU to a system, we have to "oversize" more when using CX PSU's than we would if selecting from one of the many competing options that have better efficiency and more built-in thermal and power headroom.

A CX600 is more or less interchangeable with a 450W Seasonic G or Rosewill Capstone in terms of application, but I'd rather have the latter in most cases.

If you were to take a CX600 and a Rosewill Capstone 450W and put them both on a 500W dummy load and run them continuously with elevated ambient temps, 24/7, the CX600 would almost certainly fail first.
 

welchs101

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rockie,

question about your memory selection. I am not a memory expert.......but the one i selected was a single stick (8G) of DDR3 1600MHz while yours was a selection of 2 4G sticks of DDR3 1866MHz.........is there any difference or is one better than another.........i am NOT going to be overclocking or tweeking as i dont have enough knowledge to do so
 

welchs101

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ok online ordering stuff and i found this combo from newegg that i wanted to get your opinion on.



GIGABYTE GA-Z97X-SLI LGA 1150 Intel Z97 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard (Model:GA-Z97X-SLI)
Intel Core i5-4690 Haswell Quad-Core 3.5GHz LGA 1150 84W Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 4600 BX80646I54690 (Model:BX80646I54690)
G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model F3-12800CL10S-8GBXL (Model:F3-12800CL10S-8GBXL)
price for combo appears to be: $369 plus $20 mail in rebate

as compared to

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($214.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97-HD3 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($82.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: CORSAIR Vengeance 8GB (2 x 4GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CMZ8GX3M2A1600C9
price when added up is $367

one question i have is i think this new MOB is better but the memory is only a single 8GB stick instead of two 4GB sticks.....i have never ordred a single stick like this to put into a computer
 

mdocod

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The GA-Z97X-SLI and GA-Z97-HD3 are very weak by Z97 board standards, especially the HD3. If you're not overclocking, There are numerous H97 boards around the same price that are actually nicer.

Examples ~$100-120:
GIGABYTE G1.Sniper H6
ASUS H97-PRO GAMER
MSI H97 GAMING 3
ASRock Fatal1ty H97 Killer



If you do want a Z97 board for overclocking, decent options start at ~$125+:
ASRock Z97 EXTREME4
GA-Z97X-Gaming 3
GA-Z97X-Gaming 5
MSI Z97S SLI Krait Edition
MSI Z97-G45 Gaming

 

welchs101

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what about the 1 stick of 8GB.........is it better to get two 4GB sticks.....or does it really matter? what make the Z97 i selected weak and why are the ones you selected "nicer" thanks for responding
 

mdocod

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Best memory access and bandwidth on modern dual channel memory controllers comes from installing 2 ranks of memory per channel of the memory controller, thus enabling both rank and channel interleave. Rank interleave primarily effects access latency (which has the secondary effect of improving effective bandwidth in real workloads), while channel interleave primarily effects bandwidth (which has the secondary effect of improving access latency in real workloads)..

Most 2x4GB DDR3 kits sold these days have 1 rank of memory per DIMM.

All 1x8GB DDR3 DIMM's are configured dual rank.

2x8GB configuration guarantees you get both interleave functions, and plenty of memory for the long haul.

If that's not an option, a 2x4GB memory kit with dual rank dimms offers the same access and bandwidth performance but less quantity.

After that, running a 2x4GB kit of single rank DIMM's is the next best option. (channel interleave only).

Finally, a single 1x8GB dual rank DIMM (rank interleave only) is slightly worse still.

The "worst" case scenario would be running a single channel single rank 4GB or smaller DIMM.

Each "step" up the run here, (from no interleave, to rank only, to channel only, to both) can effect a slight improvement in system performance. The exact gains will vary from workload to workload.

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If you're in the market/budget for 8GB of RAM, get a 2x4GB Crucial Ballistix Sport kit. They are inexpensive, and the only budget 2x4GB kit I can confirm is configured with dual rank dimm's.

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The GA-Z97X-SLI and GA-Z97-HD3 have relatively weak voltage regulation for an overclocking board, and less robust onboard audio. In fact, every H97 board I have listed in my previous post has a more robust CPU-VRM design and audio subsystem than the Z97-HD3. (and the H97 chipset isn't even intended for overclocking).
 
Solution