Best picks for gaming rig? Value + performance

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slideways666

Limp Gawd
Joined
Apr 30, 2007
Messages
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Hi all..... Building a gaming rig for my buddies kid.. Been reading around and wanted to see if what i came up with makes sense for the build..

The kid is only going to game on this.. No encoding or anything else..

Im trying to find that right balance between value and performance.. Here is my list

6700k
ddr4 16 gigs(any of the top brands)
evga gtx970 whisper quiet
gigabyte z170http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B012N6ESTC?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_4&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER
samsung 850 pro 256g... Not the m.2--- my worry was they are so new there might be problems
Noctura d-15 cpu cooler


Any reason to go with a 4790k instead? Or the 6600k?
 
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Is your friend on a strict budget?

Where's the PSU?
 
Yeah he is pretty stuck on the budget of $1500.... It was like pulling teeth to get him to spend the $1500... If your not a gamer/computer person-- they all think anything more then $600 for a computer is too much.. You know how it is..

I still think this system will be pretty darn quick.. The speed tests i see of the 970gtx vs the 980gtx-- dont show that big of difference in fps... but the 960 vs 970 shows a big jump... All i read about cpu's and gaming says-- the 6600 is just as good as the 6700(for gaming-- and not encoding)... Though if i can get down to frys tommorrow -- im going to see if i can get them to price match microcenters $299 6700k price

As for the psu.. Not sure yet.. Figure A decent 750w psu will be more then enough..

Im just trying to see if there is anything else i should look at-=- that might be a better way to go.. I know i want intel/nvida combo.. 4790k? Though there isnt that big of a price difference from the 4790k and the 6600(not to mention the 6700 price matched @ 299)
 
If this really is for a gamer, where's the rest of the storage in this build? A 256GB SSD will hardly cut it for your main games, let alone everything else.

Not sure why you're going with the 850 Pro over the 850 EVO if this is for someone who's not going to notice any difference. Get the same capacity in MLC and use the extra money to get him a 980 or something. Same can be said for the $100 CPU cooler you picked. Is he even going to be OCing his CPU? I recommend against it for casuals like this, especially because you already know who's gonna get a call when his non-maintained case full of dust starts having heat issues. Just get a regular cooler and leave it at stock, and upgrade the videocard -- something he'll notice a lot more than a slight overclock.

If he's only going to have an SSD and nothing else, you should be looking at a ~500GB SSD *minimum* due to how big newer games are getting.

Also, what resolution is he gaming at, and what's his current monitor?
 
How about a 4690k with z97 board combo from Micro center. A 970 gtx. 16 gigs ddr 3. Evo 850 256 gig non pro boot. And magnetic hdd. Would be sub $800-900 and still play games well.
 
slideways666 said:
Hi all..... Building a gaming rig for my buddies kid.. Been reading around and wanted to see if what i came up with makes sense for the build..

The kid is only going to game on this.. No encoding or anything else..

Im trying to find that right balance between value and performance.. Here is my list

6700k
ddr4 16 gigs(any of the top brands)
evga gtx970 whisper quiet
gigabyte z170http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B012N6ESTC?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=ox_sc_act_title_4&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER
samsung 850 pro 256g... Not the m.2--- my worry was they are so new there might be problems
Noctura d-15 cpu cooler


Any reason to go with a 4790k instead? Or the 6600k?
Click to expand...



Wouldn't bother making a new build on an older platform.

Go with the 6600k as the 6700k or 4790k will not give him any benefit gaming. And i mean none. Also, go for 8gb ram instead of 16 (same as with the cpu, no benefit gaming).

The rest looks good, go for it!
 
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Does this kid really need to overclock to the extreme on an air cooler? You could spend half and go with a 120mm AIO water radiator setup.
 
Get the i5 instead. 75% of people who buy i7's waste 100 bucks because the i5 was more than enough for them. Ditch that cooler and get a cooler master 212 evo. Ditch the pro SSD, and get an EVO. Grab a 2tb or 1tb HDD for storage. Drop the RAM from 16gb to 8gb The remaining saved will get you your case, and power supply not included in this build.
 
trentchau said:
How about a 4690k with z97 board combo from Micro center. A 970 gtx. 16 gigs ddr 3. Evo 850 256 gig non pro boot. And magnetic hdd. Would be sub $800-900 and still play games well.
Click to expand...

This suggestion is solid IMO. I went z97 and 4690k. It was so much cheaper and definitely into diminishing returns performance land, especially with a modest OC on it. DDR3 is cheaper than DDR4 and I had 8GB laying around. :)
 
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Im digging this thread-- cause i agree with you guys.. that performance vs cost value is nice to find...

cpu... i was able to get the 6700k for 309... So for the same or better price then the 6600k and not that much more then the 4690k.... It seemed like a good way to go..

mobo... z170 gigabyte @ 129$ seems like a good buy. z97 boards weren't that much cheaper it seemed..

If you guys think 8gb is enough.. then cool.. 8gb it is... saving 50$ there

gpu--- still feel like the gtx970 is the way to go... Very close fps as the 980 and $200 less...

cooler... If you guys really dont think the bigger cooler is the way to go-- here is a smaller one for 40$ vs the 99 for the big octura.. My thought was while gaming the cpu would get pretty hot too.. How about this one for $65? Sort of in the middle if big daddy and the smaller 40$ one..

ssd... Is the 850 evo as reliable as the pro? I had read before that the evo's didnt last as long bla bla bla.. But if its not that big of a deal then i agree... a 120gb evo will save $50-$60 -- so that is good.. Can put that $ to the bigger storage drive...

How am i doing so far?

Any suggestions on which Hard drive to get? the 3tb with intelli power is only 109
 
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Just stick with the CM 212+ or CM 212 EVO for a CPU cooler. Should be around or below $30.
 
Any thoughts on hard drive? 3tb enough? Brand?

How about psu? 500-750 would be enough juice... One brand holding its head higher these days?
 
slideways666 said:
ssd... Is the 850 evo as reliable as the pro? I had read before that the evo's didnt last as long bla bla bla.. But if its not that big of a deal then i agree... a 120gb evo will save $50-$60 -- so that is good.. Can put that $ to the bigger storage drive...
Click to expand...
The Evo is still a solid SSD. Technically the Pro has a higher chance of being more reliable but the Evo is still reliable enough. However, do not get ANY SSD below 240GB as those smaller SSDs are bother slower and horribly overpriced for what you're getting. The sweet spot is the 250GB range. So basically get the Samsung Evo 250GB.
slideways666 said:
Any thoughts on hard drive? 3tb enough? Brand?

How about psu? 500-750 would be enough juice... One brand holding its head higher these days?
Click to expand...

Go for this Toshiba 3TB drive:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822149396

As for the PSU, get this fantastic PSU deal:
$110 - eVGA SuperNOVA 750G2 750W Modular PSU
 
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Do you guys think -- it would be better to get a 980ti and do a 4670 i5 setup.... vs a 970gtx with a 6700 and z170? .... Im starting to think that the gpu is doing all the work.. And most of these games arnt cpu dependent... So the kid is on a older cpu-- its not bottlenecked anyways... but a current monster card would make a bid difference...

thoughts?
 
The stronger CPU route generally. A CPU is significantly more costlier and harder to upgrade than a GPU.
 
I'd save some cash on the PSU -- $110 for a 750 watt is kind of crazy when you can get something like the Corsair I'm using (which is handling dual 980Tis and an OCed 2500K just fine) for $90 or less. $20 is $20.

I'd stick with 16GB of RAM -- 8GB is fine now, but I suspect this machine will be used for a long time, and more RAM is always a nice thing.

As others have said, the HSF is overkill, and a CM 212 will do fine for $30 or so.


As for GPU choice, the 970 is a solid card assuming they are running 1080P and willing to turn some settings down, however rarely. I'd only consider the 980Ti if they may be going to 1440P or 4K in the future. Get them a nice case, keyboard and mouse, stuff like that.
 
Dangman--- i hear you and agree.... though looking at the fps resluts from different tests you see guys getting close to the same performance with a 2700k that they are with a 6700k...

Sigh... my buddy is STUCK @ $1500 and wont budge..

Right now im looking at
120gb samsung 850 evo @ 69
hgst 3tb drive @ 69
8gb ddr4 @ 65
z170 gigabyte mobo @ 130
6700k @ 309
cpu cooler @ 35
psu @ 110
case @ 50
asus dvd @ 20
-----------------------------------------
$875

and that doesnt inlude the gpu... If i go with a
970gtx @ $314
--------------------------------
$1171

or a gtx980 @ 489
-------------------------------
$1364

or a 980ti @ $659
--------------------------------
$1534

and i still need to get a mouse/keyboard and screen...

Keyboard = 105
mouse @ 55$
------------------------------
1171+105+55=1331
1364+105+55=1524
1534+105+55=1694

And we dont even have a screen yet..

could get a costco 27" samsung For 170$
1331 +170=1531$
1524--i could give the kid 2 of my older asus 24" screens = 1524$

I feel like im stuck.. I think the best bet would be 6700k +980gtx but then we are out of $ for a new screen...
 
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Pretty sure you could get a 980ti in that budget even with the 6700k, assuming he doesn't need a display?

You're at $850 or so now. Assuming you take my advice and stay with 16GB RAM that puts you at $900. $600 left to work with, and all you need is the GPU; better to get him the 980ti and use a shitty old mouse and keyboard for a while than get the 970, if it's really worrying you.

Obviously if you need a monitor then the 980ti is out of the question.
 
i dont see how i can get the ti into the budget at all.. If you look above-- youll see that i was at $875 for the computer minus the gpu... with a ti it comes out to almost $1700...

That doesnt include a monitor---- which i can give the kid a 24" i have laying around-- even two of them...

and im sure i can get a cheaper keyboard and mouse.. maybe save 100 there..

hmmm but still pretty far from the $1500.. With a cheap ass keyboard and mouse and no monitor cost-- it would still be about $1650.... That is with only 8 gigs of ram too..
 
You can get a Zotac 980ti AMP! (same card I have, very nice triple fan cooler on it) for $630 shipped. http://www.amazon.com/ZOTAC GeForce...ie=UTF8&qid=1446805172&sr=1-42&keywords=980ti

If for whatever reason you prefer the stock blower cooler, that's available for the same price. Main consideration is card length -- the AMP! cooler overhangs the end of the card, making an already long card even longer.

I'll reiterate though -- I don't think it's necessary by any stretch. At 1080P a 970 is very capable, and chances are he can sell it in a year or so and get Pascal or whatever's out for a bigger boost if needed.

Don't see a need for a new screen if you aren't using a 24". Plenty big.

Cheap Rosewill keyboard with n-key rollover - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...m_re=rosewill_keyboard-_-23-201-069-_-Product
2000DPI mouse with solid reviews - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16826567003&ignorebbr=1

$30 for the pair. Kid isn't going to care if the keyboard is mechanical or not, and I've used that mouse before, it's very good for the price.

If you'd rather go with something a little flashier, there's this for $30 -- http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ..._re=coolermaster_mouse-_-23-129-030-_-Product


Fractal Design 750w modular PSU $75 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produ...m_re=750w_power_supply-_-17-580-016-_-Product

Swap the PSUs out, go with cheaper keyboard and mouse, and you can get the 980ti in budget.
 
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silent-circuit said:
I'd save some cash on the PSU -- $110 for a 750 watt is kind of crazy when you can get something like the Corsair I'm using (which is handling dual 980Tis and an OCed 2500K just fine) for $90 or less. $20 is $20.
Click to expand...

The big problem with that suggestion is that Corsair does not currently offer a good-quality "750-watt" PSU at your stated price point. In fact, the only "750-watt" PSUs Corsair offers are either decent quality but priced significantly higher than $110, or are one of the CX models that cannot reliably output more than 585 watts or so.

So, even $50 for a low-end Corsair 750-watt PSU that's effectively only a 560-watt PSU is stupidly high. The only CX-series PSUs that are worth buying at all are the 430-watt model and (only if the price is no higher than $45) the 500-watt model. Neither of those PSUs is suitable for a PC that's powering any high-end core components. All the other CX/CX-M series models are junk, IMHO.
 
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slideways666 said:
Dangman--- i hear you and agree.... though looking at the fps resluts from different tests you see guys getting close to the same performance with a 2700k that they are with a 6700k...

Sigh... my buddy is STUCK @ $1500 and wont budge..

Right now im looking at
120gb samsung 850 evo @ 69
hgst 3tb drive @ 69
8gb ddr4 @ 65
z170 gigabyte mobo @ 130
6700k @ 309
cpu cooler @ 35
psu @ 110
case @ 50
asus dvd @ 20
-----------------------------------------
$875
Click to expand...
There's a lot of things wrong with that setup as well as the actual links too. Wait, did you already buy the CPU?

Again, do NOT get that 120GB SSD. It is in no way shape or form a good buy when $11 more gets you twice as much space and more performance:
$82 - Crucial BX100 250GB SSD

$65 for that RAM is pretty overpriced since you'll be fine with this $50 stick:
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820226717&ignorebbr=1

That HDD link is for a reseller's HGST 2TB drive, not a 3TB Drive. In addition, the mobo link is for an older Z97 motherboard. But yes the Gigabyte GA-Z170XP-SLI seems like a decent motherboard so far.

Don't try to cram in the 980Ti as it's causing you to go with low quality parts for the rest of the PC. Stick with the 980 and eVGA PSU

Go for this HSF and DVD drive to save a little bit of money:
$29 - Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus HSF
$18 - Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD Burner

Upgrade the case as that case isn't that good or suitable for a system with a GTX 980 in it:
$70 - Corsair Graphite Series 230T Black ATX Case
$70 - NZXT S340 White ATX Case
$74 - NZXT S340 Black ATX Case
 
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