When to buy? (From OriginPC, Xidax or DigitalStorm)

[fidelity101]

As the title says, when is the best time to buy a pre built computer? I've been looking for a few months now and I just cant believe how MUCH MORE expensive it is verses building it myself. I really like the looks of Origin's Genesis case, and I wouldn't even mind buying used, but prices are insane.

Is there a website that tracks previous promo codes and "sales" from different vendors? I don't mind waiting until the Fall, but I want a nice system capable of VR/gaming for the next several years.

I "wanted" a custom water cooling system but I can do without it. What I need is a 5930k CPU on an X99 mobo, an Nvidia 1080 or 980ti card (or two. ) and I'd like to spend under $4. I can build it myself for $2500(ish) ... it just blows my mind that buying from a vendor adds another $1500-$2000.

As an example, take this gentlemen's ebay thread...he's got $2100 worth of hardware and he's asking darn near full retail. (of course it's still for sale so that's saying something I suppose)
http://www.ebay.com/itm/222061188425

Is it really worth the $3250 (plus shipping) he's asking? The components are only worth about $2100(ish)

 

[VR PC-BUILD]

Why in the world are you not building it your-self at the price of $4K you can go for the extreme. Building yourself is not that hard.
I will make it even simpler for you if you want.

Here is what you can get for $4000

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: i7-6900K ($999.00)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i 77.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($119.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus SABERTOOTH X99 ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($307.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 950 PRO 512GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($317.00 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 1TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($316.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($84.29 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 3TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($84.29 @ OutletPC)
GPU: GTX1080 ($600.00)
GPU: GTX1080 ($600.00)
Case: NZXT Phantom 820 (Black) ATX Full Tower Case ($193.44 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Corsair 1000W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($184.78 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($18.89 @ OutletPC)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($18.89 @ OutletPC)
Total: $3985.43
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-05-23 09:37 EDT-0400
So don't waste your money on that.

If you want I can provide easy steps to build PC.

 

[fidelity101]

Thank you for the parts list! If I build I myself, I'd prefer a custom water cooled loop so I'd have to factor that cost into the build...maybe another $400-$500 based on a soft tube setup with twin 480mm radiators and a twin pump design. I already have a corsair 900d case, but it's HUGE! If I could pick up a Genesis case somewhere, I'd definitely make the switch as I like the design...but not the price and it's hard to find by itself.

I think I can safely devote $3200 to the build and $800 to the case and cooling parts (assuming I get a new case).

My initial point, and question, was that computers built (both used and new) seem to have a huge price increase and I'd like to know if there is ever a time of year in which the price delta is a bit more reasonable. Companies like origin and Xidax have to provide warranty support, they have to build it, they make a backup disc, etc...but the price difference is roughly a 200% markup.

 

[VR PC-BUILD]

Thank you for the parts list! If I build I myself, I'd prefer a custom water cooled loop so I'd have to factor that cost into the build...maybe another $400-$500 based on a soft tube setup with twin 480mm radiators and a twin pump design. I already have a corsair 900d case, but it's HUGE! If I could pick up a Genesis case somewhere, I'd definitely make the switch as I like the design...but not the price and it's hard to find by itself.

I think I can safely devote $3200 to the build and $800 to the case and cooling parts (assuming I get a new case).

My initial point, and question, was that computers built (both used and new) seem to have a huge price increase and I'd like to know if there is ever a time of year in which the price delta is a bit more reasonable. Companies like origin and Xidax have to provide warranty support, they have to build it, they make a backup disc, etc...but the price difference is roughly a 200% markup.

Custom water loop is a pain in the ass if you are okay with it then I will provide one.
It is really hard to setup and maintain and you don't get the boost you expect.
If this is your first build then I wouldn't recommend custom loop water cooling as I wouldn't like a person spending this much amount and if something went wrong I would feel very bad about it.
If you already have some build experience then it is fine .

Decision is yours.

If you want custom loop do you want with GPUs or without

 

[fidelity101]

My last system build was about 15 years ago so I'm pretty much starting from scratch. I picked the Corsair 900d case based on the huge amount of space for pretty much anything I need. After thinking about what I want out of this build, the 900d seems like insane overkill space wise. I'd like to go with a custom water loop based on 1.) it just looks cool! and 2.) The overclocking reviews of the 1080 seemed to indicate that a water cooled solution may really expand the potential of the 1080 system as even stock temperatures can reach 70C+ under load. So IF I stick with a Corsair 900d system, or any other full size case, I can still use at least one 480mm radiator and one 360mm-480mm radiator to keep the system cool under heavy loads.

The AIO solutions available for the CPU seem fairly competitive with custom loops so it's really a matter of what video cards I'm going to end up with and what they require in order to remain cool. I plan on using twin Nvidia 1080 setups and water cooling them seems like a good way to maximize their potential given the overclocking reviews. If EVGA or another 3rd party vendor comes out with AIO solutions, it definitely would make life easier but having a water cooling loop inside the Corsair 900d with two 480mm radiators would be a pretty cool option as well.

Lots of options...fortunately I have time.

What would you pick for a decent full size case? I really like the look of the Genesis and using the Corsair 900d for anything short of a full water cooling loop would be a waste.

 

[VR PC-BUILD]

Do you have a 900D because if you already have corsair 900d than it is the best case you can get for water cooling.

 

[fidelity101]

The 900d is great for a custom loop but it's just to big for the space I have available. I may switch it out for a used corsair 780T as its a bit smaller but still plenty of space for a water loop should I go that route.

 

[VR PC-BUILD]

The 900d is great for a custom loop but it's just to big for the space I have available. I may switch it out for a used corsair 780T as its a bit smaller but still plenty of space for a water loop should I go that route.

You need place for two 420mm rads and reservoir pump

 

[fidelity101]

Why two 420mm radiators? Looks like I found someone to swap cases with so I will soon have a Corsair 750d case which is a little more practical size wise. The 900 is great but I just won't have space for it on my desktop. It has room for one 360mm radiator and one 280mm radiator which should be adequate.

http://www.corsair.com/en-us/obsidian-series-750d-full-tower-atx-case

Radiator Mount Locations Front: 240/280mm
Top: 240/280/360mm
Rear: 120/140mm
Bottom: 120/240mm

This case is much smaller and lighter than the 900d, which is good and bad. Bad because I can't install a crazy amount of components without worrying about space limitations AND the case is mostly plastic. Good because I can actually place the case on my desk. I'm thinking of picking up two more 24" monitors and going with a 3 monitor setup for gaming. The desktop can be placed behind the center monitor.

I'm leaning towards the X99 platform, 5930k CPU, 32Gb ram, twin Nvidia 1080 video cards in SLI configuration. The only question now is do I really need to go with a custom water cooling loop or can I get away with several AIO solutions. I'm thinking I could get a 360mm radiator for the CPU and wait until a 3rd party vendor releases the 1080 cards with a 240mm AIO solution, which I'd have room for at the bottom and front of the case respectively. That would be much easier to maintain but definitely wouldn't look as nice. I've also heard the front bezel of the Corsair 750d case is very restrictive so I'm going to pick up a front bezel that's already opened up...like this. http://mnpctech.com/mnpctech-clear-case-pc-panels/corsair-750d-front-plate/corsair-750d-cnc-milled-vented-front-bezel-plate.html

 

[VR PC-BUILD]

K two 360mm rads will be good enough will provide you the setup in a moment.

 

[fidelity101]

After LOTS of research (and several hardware failures 48-72 hours post build) I'm finally up and running with a computer system that would have easily cost over $6000 through xidax or Origin. Of course, I wouldn't have had to spend 50+ hours diagnosing a bad motherboard and a failed CPU but I guess it's time value of money... I have neither time nor money.

$4000 got me
6850k CPU (sitting very comfortably at 4285.4mhz which is downgraded from 4500mhz...I wanted to keep voltage under 1.375v)
Asus Deluxe II motherboard
EK X360 kit with extra SE240 radiator, 8 Vardar 1850kv fans, lots of 5050 compatible LED lights from Performance-PCS
Thermaltake SP RGB LED Fan (3 pack with controller)
G.Skill 32Gb 3200mhz Cas 14 ram
Samsung 950 Pro 512Gb drive
SanDisk Ultra II 960Gb drive
Seagate 4TB HDD
Inwin 909 case
Lots of spare parts I'm probably never going to use like 2-1 and 3-1 4 pin splitters, 2-1 molex connectors, LED 3mm and 5mm lights, and other various parts.

So...thank you everyone for your help! This computer is great and I'm getting 18500-18800 on 3dmark so I'm happy with the performance.