- Oct 20, 2022
- 3
- 1
- 15
Hi! I'm in the process of planning my new PC build. It will be a high-end gaming PC and I have most of the components nailed down (though I'm always open to suggestions if someone thinks there are better options). However, I need help selecting a proper case and planning my cooling solution.
1. The Basics (as per the sticky thread):
Approximate Purchase Date: within the next 6 weeks, but I could wait longer if that makes sense
Budget Range: 5-6000 € (Germany) in total, including the monitor
System Usage from Most to Least Important: 4K/144Hz gaming PC that can also handle relatively high amounts of web/office tasks on the side (e.g. having 40 script-heavy browser tabs open).
Are you buying a monitor: Yes
Parts to Upgrade: Everything except HDD (Toshiba 12 TB), keyboard (Logitech K230), mouse (Logitech G600), and headset (Logitech G935), which will all be transferred from my old PC.
Do you need to buy OS: No
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: I have some, but they are in Germany, so probably not relevant here
Parts Preferences: nVidia for graphics cards due to having a hard time with an AMD card in the past. Nothing is set in stone though.
Overclocking: No
SLI or Crossfire: No
Your Monitor Resolution: 4K/144 Hz
Additional Comments: Also requires high amounts of storage and cannot be very loud. No interest in overclocking or RGB.
Why Are You Upgrading: My Sandy Bridge i5 plus GTX 1660 really doesn't cut it any more for high-end gaming. I've been wanting to build a system capable of gaming in 4K at 120+ Hz for more than 4 years, but have been disappointed by nVidia's 20x and 30x series. With the RTX 4090, the performance that I keep looking for finally seems attainable.
Other details: see below
2. The Main Problems: Case & Cooling
The goal is to have a high-end gaming PC that is compatible with a huge library of games from the 80s to now and well into the future. It should run reliably and with minimal maintenance for a long time (I will pass it on to family members after some time, so a total lifetime of 10+ years is not out of the question).
To achieve the desired performance, I selected a 4090 GPU and a Ryzen 9 7900x GPU, the latter of which I'll probably put into Eco mode since the impact on gaming is small to negligible. Still, these parts need proper cooling. Due to the goals of reliable long-term duty and low maintenance, I do not want to use liquid cooling. The selected air cooler can dissipate 250W, which (if I understand correctly) should suffice for a 7900x, especially in eco mode. However, I'm guessing that I'll need to ensure a high amount of airflow, and I have no experience with that.
The situation gets more complicated due to 2 details:
3. Current list of planned components:
Feel free to suggest better options. At this point, even radical changes are still possible.
CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 7900X
Cooling: be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4
Mainboard: MSI MAG B650 Tomahawk WIFI
RAM: Corsair Vengeance grey DIMM Kit 32GB, DDR5-6000, CL36-36-36-76
System SSD: Western Digital WD_BLACK SN850X NVMe SSD 4TB, M.2
Data SSD: (to be added later, not part of current budget)
Data HDD: (12 TB HDD already present, 2nd bigger HDD to be added later, not part of current budget)
Optical Drive: Hitachi-LG Data Storage GH24NSD5 black, SATA
GPU: MSI GeForce RTX 4090 Suprim X 24G
PSU: be quiet! Dark Power Pro 12 1000W ATX 2.51
Case: Fractal Design Define 7 XL Black Solid
Monitor: Gigabyte Aorus FV43U
Mount: NewStar NM-D775BLACKPLUS with PureMounts Universal VESA Adapter VESA 50 x 50 to 200 x 200
Any comments and suggestions are welcome!
1. The Basics (as per the sticky thread):
Approximate Purchase Date: within the next 6 weeks, but I could wait longer if that makes sense
Budget Range: 5-6000 € (Germany) in total, including the monitor
System Usage from Most to Least Important: 4K/144Hz gaming PC that can also handle relatively high amounts of web/office tasks on the side (e.g. having 40 script-heavy browser tabs open).
Are you buying a monitor: Yes
Parts to Upgrade: Everything except HDD (Toshiba 12 TB), keyboard (Logitech K230), mouse (Logitech G600), and headset (Logitech G935), which will all be transferred from my old PC.
Do you need to buy OS: No
Preferred Website(s) for Parts: I have some, but they are in Germany, so probably not relevant here
Parts Preferences: nVidia for graphics cards due to having a hard time with an AMD card in the past. Nothing is set in stone though.
Overclocking: No
SLI or Crossfire: No
Your Monitor Resolution: 4K/144 Hz
Additional Comments: Also requires high amounts of storage and cannot be very loud. No interest in overclocking or RGB.
Why Are You Upgrading: My Sandy Bridge i5 plus GTX 1660 really doesn't cut it any more for high-end gaming. I've been wanting to build a system capable of gaming in 4K at 120+ Hz for more than 4 years, but have been disappointed by nVidia's 20x and 30x series. With the RTX 4090, the performance that I keep looking for finally seems attainable.
Other details: see below
2. The Main Problems: Case & Cooling
The goal is to have a high-end gaming PC that is compatible with a huge library of games from the 80s to now and well into the future. It should run reliably and with minimal maintenance for a long time (I will pass it on to family members after some time, so a total lifetime of 10+ years is not out of the question).
To achieve the desired performance, I selected a 4090 GPU and a Ryzen 9 7900x GPU, the latter of which I'll probably put into Eco mode since the impact on gaming is small to negligible. Still, these parts need proper cooling. Due to the goals of reliable long-term duty and low maintenance, I do not want to use liquid cooling. The selected air cooler can dissipate 250W, which (if I understand correctly) should suffice for a 7900x, especially in eco mode. However, I'm guessing that I'll need to ensure a high amount of airflow, and I have no experience with that.
The situation gets more complicated due to 2 details:
- The PC will be standing right next to our bed, and my lady sometimes sleeps while I'm gaming. So I have to keep the noise levels low. I'm considering an insulated case, but am unsure if that will provide the required cooling. That's where I definitely need help from someone with experience in airflow.
- In order to maintain compatibility, I would like to keep a 5.25 optical drive in the case. I noticed that this restricts the selection of cases quite a bit. If there is no other option, using an external drive could be a solution, but I'm trying to prevent that.
3. Current list of planned components:
Feel free to suggest better options. At this point, even radical changes are still possible.
CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 7900X
Cooling: be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4
Mainboard: MSI MAG B650 Tomahawk WIFI
RAM: Corsair Vengeance grey DIMM Kit 32GB, DDR5-6000, CL36-36-36-76
System SSD: Western Digital WD_BLACK SN850X NVMe SSD 4TB, M.2
Data SSD: (to be added later, not part of current budget)
Data HDD: (12 TB HDD already present, 2nd bigger HDD to be added later, not part of current budget)
Optical Drive: Hitachi-LG Data Storage GH24NSD5 black, SATA
GPU: MSI GeForce RTX 4090 Suprim X 24G
PSU: be quiet! Dark Power Pro 12 1000W ATX 2.51
Case: Fractal Design Define 7 XL Black Solid
Monitor: Gigabyte Aorus FV43U
Mount: NewStar NM-D775BLACKPLUS with PureMounts Universal VESA Adapter VESA 50 x 50 to 200 x 200
Any comments and suggestions are welcome!
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