Any PC Gamers here? (About to buy a new Computer)

[RyCo1983]

Thanks hoss. Just curious. I will be building myself when I do.

 

[ThePiombino]

$2210 without shipping.

I splurged on the Rush shipping and 3 Day Air, and some extras like ultra-secure packaging, and the highest quality wiring. (made it a little more.)

Hey... you only graduate from college once right? Well... I'm only going to do it once anyway!





EDIT: You can get this rig for quite a bit cheaper if you build it yourself. I don't trust myself to do that though.

Enjoy bro, but I definitely would have built this myself and saved 25% lol

 

[JughedJones]

No doubt guys.

I'm just not a DIY kind of fella. I would happily pay someone a few hundred bucks to build this right. If something goes wrong, I can send it back and have them do it again!

I had nightmares about a week long project sitting on my table that when I try to boot it to post... I get nothing. I wouldn't even know what I did wrong!

You're definitely smarter to build it yourself though. I just want it NOW! I'm so excited!

 

[ThePiombino]

No doubt guys.

I'm am just not a DIY kind of fella. I would happily pay someone a few hundred bucks to build this right. If something goes wrong, I can send it back and have them do it again!

I had nightmares about a week long project sitting on my table that when I try to boot it to post... I get nothing. I wouldn't even know what I did wrong!

You're definitely smarter to build it yourself though. I just want it NOW! I'm so excited!

Few hundred bucks??? I'd gladly build your next one

 

[JughedJones]

Few hundred bucks??? I'd gladly build your next one

deal

 

[Andy in Sactown]

Okay, just for comparisons sake and to try to frame my own thinking into something useful, I'll compare your setup with something similar to what I recommended and subsequently built for a friend of mine last month:

Core components are the motherboard, CPU and main system memory (RAM). For parity, prices are all newegg from today, 6/18:

My recommendation:
Intel i7-4770k (Hasewell a.k.a. Ivy Bridge) $339.99
Gigabyte Z87X-OC $189.49
G.SKILL Ripjaws Z Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) PC3-17000 11-11-11-31 Timing $159.99

Total cost before applicable taxes and shipping: $689.47


Your current build:
Intel i7-4820k (Haswell-E a.k.a. Ivy-Bridge-E) $324.99
GIGABYTE GA-X79-UP4 $242.99
Corsair Vengeance 16GB [4x4GB] PC3-12800 9-9-9-24 Timings $162.99

Total cost before applicable taxes and shipping: $730.97


Net result:
Both extremely comparable performance wise. The primary difference is in the socket. The build I recommended runs on Intel Socket 1150. This has been the primary socket for most high end gaming machines since Haswell processors first hit the market.

Your build utilizes Socket 2011, which was designed to be the workstation oriented solution. Notice the 8 system memory slots and the quad memory controller. Also, your build is the superior choice IF you intend to run SLI. You have more I/O bandwidth courtesy of more PCI-E lanes (many 1150 boards make up for this with the addition of a PLEX chip, adding lanes to the Z87 chipset). I've found this to be a mute point, since most people, like yourself, get the best card they can and by the time that card drops significantly in price to make a cheap SLI setup, it's usually cheaper and more feasible to just upgrade the single GPU. This advantage is further nullified by the 4x4GB RAM configuration as the nice tight timings of those 4GB will not be utilized if you fill the other slots with larger modules that have looser timings (unless you get another 4x4GB kit to fill it out).

The rub:
The idea with sticking to Socket 1150 was that later Haswell designs would be cheap upgrades as the market penetration of 1150 almost certainly means there will be more parts released for the platform. The thinking being Socket 2011 would be a long ways off for an upgraded CPU and by then (Broadwell-E microarchitecture) it would be more expensive an upgrade as those are also workstation targeted parts a long ways off. But, true to form, Intel has screwed both of us. Improved Haswell chips that are Broadwell compatible will be Socket 1150 in name only, they are changing the pin out. Likewise, Broadwell-E parts are now expected to utilize the Socket 2011-3.

So in the end it's all pretty comparable. The smart bet was on 1150 to have a MUCH cheaper upgrade path, but no bet is a sure thing and we're both stuck in our respective platforms.

IF you ever go SLI, yours is the better choice. If you do not, then they are roughly comparable. Doubly so since neither chipset supports the upcoming DDR-4.

Glad to hear you upgraded the hard disc however, you'll want the space and those EVO SSD's are sweeeeet. You're going to be really, really pleased.

-Andy

 

[JughedJones]

Okay, just for comparisons sake and to try to frame my own thinking into something useful, I'll compare your setup with something similar to what I recommended and subsequently built for a friend of mine last month:

Core components are the motherboard, CPU and main system memory (RAM). For parity, prices are all newegg from today, 6/18:

My recommendation:
Intel i7-4770k (Hasewell a.k.a. Ivy Bridge) $339.99
Gigabyte Z87X-OC $189.49
G.SKILL Ripjaws Z Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) PC3-17000 11-11-11-31 Timing $159.99

Total cost before applicable taxes and shipping: $689.47


Your current build:
Intel i7-4820k (Haswell-E a.k.a. Ivy-Bridge-E) $324.99
GIGABYTE GA-X79-UP4 $242.99
Corsair Vengeance 16GB [4x4GB] PC3-12800 9-9-9-24 Timings $162.99

Total cost before applicable taxes and shipping: $730.97


Net result:
Both extremely comparable performance wise. The primary difference is in the socket. The build I recommended runs on Intel Socket 1150. This has been the primary socket for most high end gaming machines since Haswell processors first hit the market.

Your build utilizes Socket 2011, which was designed to be the workstation oriented solution. Notice the 8 system memory slots and the quad memory controller. Also, your build is the superior choice IF you intend to run SLI. You have more I/O bandwidth courtesy of more PCI-E lanes (many 1150 boards make up for this with the addition of a PLEX chip, adding lanes to the Z87 chipset). I've found this to be a mute point, since most people, like yourself, get the best card they can and by the time that card drops significantly in price to make a cheap SLI setup, it's usually cheaper and more feasible to just upgrade the single GPU. This advantage is further nullified by the 4x4GB RAM configuration as the nice tight timings of those 4GB will not be utilized if you fill the other slots with larger modules that have looser timings (unless you get another 4x4GB kit to fill it out).

The rub:
The idea with sticking to Socket 1150 was that later Haswell designs would be cheap upgrades as the market penetration of 1150 almost certainly means there will be more parts released for the platform. The thinking being Socket 2011 would be a long ways off for an upgraded CPU and by then (Broadwell-E microarchitecture) it would be more expensive an upgrade as those are also workstation targeted parts a long ways off. But, true to form, Intel has screwed both of us. Improved Haswell chips that are Broadwell compatible will be Socket 1150 in name only, they are changing the pin out. Likewise, Broadwell-E parts are now expected to utilize the Socket 2011-3.

So in the end it's all pretty comparable. The smart bet was on 1150 to have a MUCH cheaper upgrade path, but no bet is a sure thing and we're both stuck in our respective platforms.

IF you ever go SLI, yours is the better choice. If you do not, then they are roughly comparable. Doubly so since neither chipset supports the upcoming DDR-4.

Glad to hear you upgraded the hard disc however, you'll want the space and those EVO SSD's are sweeeeet. You're going to be really, really pleased.

-Andy

Andy... I should start by saying that I'm pretty sure what you said about the processors went right over my head. I hate being dumb about this stuff... I thought I was pretty knowledgeable!

I think I'm really happy about what you said. I chose to start from a 'pro' platform because the money I saved 'downgrading' from a 6 core i7 - to the quad that I have - saved a lot, and the money saved from 'down grading' to the GTX 780 from the Quadro they had stock saved me more.

I was able to get a much better case, much better stock RAM, a better cooling system, and double the HD sizes, all for less money.

Plus, I was able to upgrade a number of little things, and it's getting shipped faster!

Ordering a computer like this is stressful business. Every time you hit 'purchase' you think you could have done better. I'm really happy to hear that you think I did pretty good, even if I could have probably done a little better.

However, what do you think about the cooling system? I will be OK there right? I know you said it will be alright with an OC to 4.5 GHZ, but would you say that I shouldn't even consider going a little further on my own?

Thanks again, brother!

-Brian

 

[Andy in Sactown]

Drunk again (surprise). Thanks for the post explaining your purchasing process. Like I said in my first post, I usually like to start a build by understanding what the customer is trying to accomplish. I should have guessed you were a FSX guy after you posted an image of the flight controls you ordered.

You're going to be super happy, Dude. But since you're trying to get the maximum performance from 2 cores, a nice overclock would benefit you greatly.

I'll look around and see if I can find any data on your cooler with an Ivy-E, but most people wouldn't pair the two. 4.5GHZ should be easy from some of the preliminary looking around I did before I went off the reservation.

Good news is AIO (All-in-One) watercooling setups are pretty much as interchangeable as a heatsink. Still need to see what you can mount on the top of your case (best place for your radiator).

EDIT: I bet you can clock higher, but the fun starts when you have it running and can use some basic tools to gauge where you are at.

 

[brick4956]

Ive got a gtx titan card by evga

 

[ClausentoTate]

Haven't read any other posts, but just my initial impressions.

1) Have you parted out the cost? I've built comparable machines to top-end alienwares for close to $1K less than they sell them for, just by shopping around for like an hour. Do not go to Bestbuy/CC/Radioshack/etc for any hardware you need either, Newegg that shiz. If you're worried about warranties, things typically break near the very beginning when you put it together or near the end of the manufacturer warranty. Never seems to happen between for me. Building computers is SO SO SO easy, just spend 2 hours and save thousands over your lifetime.

2) After going liquid cooling for a number of years, I'd definitely tell you to go a different direction just because of the issues it can cause and the maintenance required. Hardware is way ahead of software right now, cooling shouldn't be an issue. VERY few games use more than 2 cores anyway and none are optimized for more than 2.

3) Any reason you can't get a RAID with two 60gb SSDs? Totally worth it if it's available. It's one of the few things you'll actually notice. I'm sure you know but only put CPU/GPU intensive game files/windows files on the 120GB and anything else should be on the 1TB.

4) I personally would go a different direction with the MB. You're paying for 4x SLI capability and not using it. You're probably not going to need the 4 extra RAM slots if you already have 16GB.

5) For the love of God and all that is Holy, if it's your first time overclocking, check what others are doing first and then GO SLOW. Use a program to test it for at least an hour at full CPU capacity before settling on something. Especially with liquid cooling and limited knowledge of maintenance, you are going to want to not kill your chip and have to take it out, mail it back, replace it, remount the cooling system (after flushing it), weed out bubbles, etc. just because you were impatient. Been there and have also sprung a leak before... expensive mistake. Edit: DO NOT IMMEDIATELY UP THE WATTAGE TO THE TOP OF THE RANGE

6) Not a fan of the case. You're paying for really nice hardware, get a view! You're going to want to see if your system has bubbles as well?

7) That second slot on the GTX sure looks like DVI-D... which means you won't be able to use a second monitor. See if you can find a DVI/VGA or DVI-I/DVI-I for dual-monitor goodness for your flight-sims/browsing the web while gaming.

TLDR; There are improvements, but a pretty badass rig. I'm super jelly. Please don't get liquid cooling if you don't know what you're doing.

 

[ClausentoTate]

I had nightmares about a week long project sitting on my table that when I try to boot it to post... I get nothing. I wouldn't even know what I did wrong!

It's easy, if you get beeps you just look up what's wrong and if you don't, it's your MB

 

[JughedJones]

Andy:

I'm trying to do, basically, everything you suggested now. lol.

Intel® Core™ i7-4770K

GIGABYTE GA-G1.Sniper Z97 LGA 1150 Intel Z97


They didn't have precisely the MOBA you suggested, but this one seemed to be about right. Plus, I'm sticking with vengeneance but going 8x2.

Thanks, man! (And I'm not changing another THING!!!)


ClausentoTate: You have some really good advice too, but I'm stuck on liquid cooling right now. I intend to take OCing very slow. I've got one shot at it without any recourse with the protection plan I got. I can just send the whole damn comp back and they'll do it again