Which is best?

[landonshah]

I’m looking into buying my first gaming pc, but with the new RTX cards coming out and the GTX 10-series cards running out of stock I’m losing some options. Also, there are some leaks for new a new ryzen 3000 series. I wouldn’t like to have any pricier than the 5th build. I also wouldn’t be able to build this for a little while, meaning some of the list’s GPUs may be gone by the time it’s going to be built. With this in mind which parts list looks best. Thanks in advance.

List 1: https://pcpartpicker.com/user/Landon_Shah/saved/fKwZRB
List 2: https://pcpartpicker.com/user/Landon_Shah/saved/82LLJx
List 3: https://pcpartpicker.com/user/Landon_Shah/saved/DqCP3C
List 4: https://pcpartpicker.com/user/Landon_Shah/saved/MztYTW
List 5: https://pcpartpicker.com/user/Landon_Shah/saved/jmxvnQ

 

[Frag Maniac]

Really depends whether you plan to stream or OC. Ryzens are better for streaming but worse if not, and $100 is a lot to spend on a cooler if you don't plan to OC.

 

[landonshah]

I don’t think I’ll stream a lot of any at all. But I do plan on overclocking

 

[Frag Maniac]

Go Intel then. I run all my games on a 8700k with EVGA 1080 SC with no OC on either, and it is more than adequate to run everything at 1080p60.

I've OCed before both CPU and GPU. Sure it will get you a few more frames, but it can also cause you to have to redo your OC when certain new games that are poorly coded (like a lot of Ubi games) cause it to be unstable.

 

[landonshah]

Which intel build is better?
https://pcpartpicker.com/user/Landon_Shah/saved/dG8cYJ
https://pcpartpicker.com/user/Landon_Shah/saved/WKjMZL

 

[Frag Maniac]

I'd honestly combine the two (8700k with 1070 Ti). The 9700k for the most part just runs hotter, and who knows if the Ray Tracing RTX is supposed to support will ever pan out any time soon.

You also don't need to spend anywhere near $125 on a cooler, and the combined total of the case and fans is pretty high. Just look for a decent case that includes a few fans.

I also recommend not getting a solid front panel case, as they restrict airflow.

 

[landonshah]

Doesn’t the fractal design meshify c have a mesh panel? What is a better case that you recommend?

 

[landonshah]

Also, you think that cooler is too much, even if I overclock? I’ve seen review videos where overclocking the 8700k has a huge difference.

 

[Frag Maniac]

I only mentioned solid front panels to avoid them if looking for an alternative case with a few fans included.

The thing with that cooler is you are paying an extreme high price for something that's barely more effective than a decent air cooler, and results on temps also depend on what kind of case setup you have.

I run a Cryorig H7 (best dollar for performance air cooler) on my 8700k, and it never goes above 60c on any games, a lot of them (including Ghost Recon Wildlands) no more than 55c. Then again, I have a case with extremely good ventilation and fan setup.

I also get 1080p60 with max settings on every game I play with a stock 8700k and 1080 SC. Personally I think OCing is overrated if you have decent spec, and just causes potential problems with stability. You can run stability tests for days with an OC, only to have one poorly coded game cause you to have to reconfigure it, like a lot of Ubisoft games.

 

[landonshah]

Ok, that makes sense. With the fractal meshify C and all of those fans (including the two that come in the case) will that be enough airflow to go with the same aircooler you were talking about?

 

[Frag Maniac]

Ok, that makes sense. With the fractal meshify C and all of those fans (including the two that come in the case) will that be enough airflow to go with the same aircooler you were talking about?

Personally I prefer a larger case with 3 front fans, even though I don't OC. At first it was bigger than I needed, but now I have 4 HDDs and two SSDs, one being a NVMe that peaks at 52c while running GRW on it, even with my ASUS MB's big heatsink on it.

What I'm saying is cases need to fit your current AND planned needs, which can also affect the temps they run at. The H7 cooler is plenty adequate for a 8700k at stock or moderate OC, key word being moderate, not excessive. It also depends on the ambient temp in the room you're using the PC though.

 

[landonshah]

What’s the reason for using a cryotig h7 when just for a few dollars more you could get a noctua nh-d15? Also, when you use an AIO does the radiator also work as a case fan?

 

[Frag Maniac]

What’s the reason for using a cryotig h7 when just for a few dollars more you could get a noctua nh-d15? Also, when you use an AIO does the radiator also work as a case fan?

Those coolers are never "a few dollars" apart in price. The NH-D15 is consistently more than twice the price. I paid $38 for my H7, which it still costs at Newegg. The NH-D15 is typically $90, which it's currently listed at on Amazon, Newegg, and PCPartPicker. What you're seeing is some vendors price gouging on the H7.

I should also mention that I've seen tests of a Scythe Fuma equaling performance of a NH-D15 at almost half the price, while being MUCH smaller. You're comparing the NH-D15 to the H7 is apples to oranges though, because one has two fans and a massive heatsink, the H7 has one fan and is much smaller (Scythe Fuma has 2 fans, and a 3rd can be added).

Even still I've seen tests comparing a Cryorig H5 with smaller heatsink and one fan, and it equals the temp of the NH-D15 in a lot of tests. What you have to ask yourself is do you want to pay that much just for 1c better cooling (only in certain tests), and have a massive, heavy cooler that can 1, conflict with side intake fans, 2 potentially warp your MB, and 3, make it hard to reach other parts.

The fact that I run a side fan blowing cool air on my GPU was part of my decision, a bigger, taller HS would not have allowed it, but the H7 also performs plenty well enough for my needs.

 

[landonshah]

I think I will change a few thing to allow good cooling and a rtx 2080 let me know what you think (the cpu cooler is the stock one.)
https://pcpartpicker.com/user/Landon_Shah/saved/PjNmqs

 

[Frag Maniac]

Again, I prefer Intel unless you're going to be streaming all your games. I also feel RTX is a waste of time until they can prove the high price is worth it with a lot of Ray Traced games that actually run at decent frame rates with it turned on. As of now it's no more than a buy on faith early adopter product that's overpriced.

 

[landonshah]

Doesn’t it have more gpu power and offer more FPS in games (that aren’t Ray-tracing compatible)

 

[Frag Maniac]

Doesn’t it have more gpu power and offer more FPS in games (that aren’t Ray-tracing compatible)

Yes, a 2070 = a 1070 Ti, a 2080 = a 1080 Ti. Thing is though, that's the normal performance increase for a new model. The problem is they also tack on a premium price for Ray Tracing that isn't really a thing yet, and has poor frame rate when it's been demoed by review sites even on special drivers.

Plus, don't know if you're aware of it or not, but many have speculated the poor performance is a problem with the new GDDR6 VRAM standard. RTX was clearly rushed to market. The first sign was Nvidia bragging about it at the stage demo for it with zero proof of performance, which is usually the norm.

 

[landonshah]

I’ll go with the rtx card. Mainly because I don’t think a company that big would push out a product that won’t work. Also, with the high price of the 1080s right now won’t you spend more on a 1080ti than a rtx 2080. And can’t you disable ray-tracing in the settings of the games if there is bad performance?

 

[Frag Maniac]

I’ll go with the rtx card. Mainly because I don’t think a company that big would push out a product that won’t work. Also, with the high price of the 1080s right now won’t you spend more on a 1080ti than a rtx 2080. And can’t you disable ray-tracing in the settings of the games if there is bad performance?

Sorry, but your opinion on RTX working is pure speculation. Clearly you are not up to speed on this. The reason the 1080 series has gone up in price is two fold. 1, they are not in production anymore, so stock is dwindling, 2, poor RTX performance (including even graphics artifacts) and lack of Ray Tracing in games and lousy frame rates from review sites on Ray Tracing with game demos only available to them, are largely why the 1080s have been so sought after.

Whenever you have a situation where stock is dwindling and demand is high, you get vendors indulging in price gouging, such as what happens when miners buy up tons of certain GPU models. So you can complain all you want about high 1080 prices, but what it really comes down to is unfortunate timing on your part. Part of what causes insane Nvidia pricing though is AMD's inability to compete in the GPU market. This means it's all the more imperative you follow GPU development news closely.

Those of us whom have been following news on Ray Tracing for some time were skeptical it would amount to anything when GPUs supporting it finally launched. An employee from Nvidia made it known via a video well before RTX launched (or was even known of by the public), that it's mostly going to be for developers for some time. He said it would be a while before it shows up in very many games, and a while after that before it becomes practical to consumers due to performance issues.

You can speculate all you want, but you DID come here asking for advice what to buy. If you're going to turn it around like you don't need that advice based on nothing but speculation, I'll leave someone else to respond. I see little sense in trying to convince someone of yesterday's news when they're being stubborn over no more than market hype. There's a lot of hype these days, you need to check facts, not speculate on the faith that companies like Nvidia are being honest.

 

[landonshah]

I’m this build I found a zotac gtx 1080 for only $550 (https://pcpartpicker.com/product/KC648d/zotac-geforce-gtx-1080-8gb-amp-edition-video-card-zt-p10800c-10p), but, like I said, I don’t have the money to buy the whole system yet and I want to see what comes out at CES. Thank you for helping me understand and I know that I came across like I didn’t want your help, but I definitely do. Should I buy this graphics card while the price is down and then wait for the rest of the parts or should I see what comes out a CES?

 

[Frag Maniac]

If you don't have a system to use it in, no. Never buy a part based on price if it will just sit unused for months.

 

[landonshah]

Ok, then I’ll wait