Little help please?

I'm looking for a little guidance. I'm wanting to build a new PC to be able to hand down my current PC to my step-son. First I'll give the details of the current machine and I'll also describe what each of us would be doing on our PC's.

The current system is as follows:
Corsair GS700 PSU
ASRock Z77 Extreme 4
Intel Core i5 3570K (Stock Speeds as I've not wanted to risk OC as I know nothing about it.)
8GB DDR3 Ram(G.Skill, forget the series)
120GB Samsung 840 Pro SSD
EVGA Nvidia GTX 660 2GB

What "I" do: I currently play a lot of different games, from Steam games, WOW, ArcheAge, SWTOR, BattleField... I do some coding and minimal graphics work.
What the step-son does: YouTube, Steam games, homework. Nothing major....

With the above information... What do you think would be my best option? I can't afford to build another $2000 machine(That's how much this one was total when I put it together 2.5 years ago.) but I'd like to be able to get him a PC that he can play all his steam games on max settings with no problems as well as myself having a machine that I can play all of my games on max settings with without any issues...

I was thinking about trying to put together a Core i7 4790K machine for myself and giving him this one... But I don't know that I really need that much....

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you guys!

Budget? More precise the better of course.

4790k is unnecessary for your requirements. i5 again it appears. In fact, that build looks fine honestly, just some refreshes and updates.



off the cuff, heres a solid 1000$ build. Should last you quite some time with that 970 as well. You can obviously downgrade a bit, get a 280x, theres a good 100 bucks, cheaper case for 50 more dollars, rest is kinda... up to you I guess.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/fsQZjX

So you'd recommend keeping basically the same setup in a new machine except replacing some parts with updated brands/models?

If I am building a new machine to hand this one down, obviously I want the new machine to WAY out perform the old. I've not heard of Patriot ram very much and have always went with G.Skill, also the power supply, how much do I really need? I always went with around 700 watts in the case I'd want to over clock or add a second video card down the road. If the i7 is overkill, then I'll definitely go with the update i5. For cooling I was going to go with a corsair AIO liquid cooling system(again in case I'd want to over clock)

I have the basic idea of the system I'd like to build. Just unsure on some components. Such as CPU cooling, ram and PSU. I've also read mixed reviews on the GTX 970's... Not sure which brand I'd be better off going with... Ugh..

Also, is the GTX 970 really worth getting? Seems I've read the article from Tom's Hardware on December 2014's best video cards and the old GTX 780ti out performs the 970 by quite a bit... Now I'm even more confused on the GPU end on what I should go with...

I like Bob's build...

To answer your question about the 970 vs 780ti. The 780ti uses nearly double the amount of power the 970 will and performs around the same. The 780ti also costs a lot more than the 970. Those two factors alone should make your choice pretty easy, especially the cost considering its performance.

Alright, this is what "I" came up with. Thoughts, ideas, changes? Still missing a PSU. I was looking at the Corsair HX650(Parts Picker doesn't seem to have the fully modular one like NewEgg has.)

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/hL6sP6

I doubled the ram and went with G.Skill and switched from the Samsung EVO to the Samsung PRO.
Please let me know your thoughts. NewEgg's cost would be $1,357.91. PC Part Picker cost would be $1196.92 without a PSU.

I don't see the point in the 850 Pro for your uses. If the 850 Evo is out, grab it. If not Crucial MX100 is solid bang for the buck as well.

I don't see the point in a "K" processor when you are not overclocking. If you will, then Z97/"K" is the right choice.

16GB of ram is overkill... 8GB is fine.

I do plan to give over clocking a whirl. My intentions were to do it with my current machine but life got in the way. I have some extra time now and am wanting to pass this machine on and build myself something new...

Do you think the Corsair H100i will be okay or would you go with some other cooler? My concerns are clearance, the air coolers just seem so gigantic!

EarthDog said:

I don't see the point in the 850 Pro for your uses. If the 850 Evo is out, grab it. If not Crucial MX100 is solid bang for the buck as well.

I don't see the point in a "K" processor when you are not overclocking. If you will, then Z97/"K" is the right choice.

16GB of ram is overkill... 8GB is fine.

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Agreed!
Sammy 840 Evo is $119 and you're not going to notice the difference between that and the 850, the MX100 ED mentioned is even less at $100.00. Both are tough to beat for the price.

Do you think the Corsair H100i will be okay or would you go with some other cooler? My concerns are clearance, the air coolers just seem so gigantic!

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Unless you're planning on really pushing an overclock stick to air. They work and are reliable unlike what I've seen from the AIO H2O units.

anthraxbot said:

I do plan to give over clocking a whirl. My intentions were to do it with my current machine but life got in the way. I have some extra time now and am wanting to pass this machine on and build myself something new...

Do you think the Corsair H100i will be okay or would you go with some other cooler? My concerns are clearance, the air coolers just seem so gigantic!

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H100i should be fine so long as the case chosen supports the 2x120mm radiator.

If i were to go with an air cooler, which would you recommend?

Bang for your buck that will allow moderate overclocking, Coolermaster Hyper 212 EVO.

EarthDog said:

Bang for your buck that will allow moderate overclocking, Coolermaster Hyper 212 EVO.

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Yup!

Couple things

1) I would get an nh-d15 over the h100. Works better, more quiet, more reliable.
2) The 212 is "good" but not great, but unbeatable for the cost.
3) get the seasonic m12ii 620 over the hx650.

Will these air coolers fit in the case in my build link above? I'm quite tired of the loud pc and would really like to have one of these "silent" cases.

By the way thank you all very much for your help! It's greatly appreciated!

Sure does!

anthraxbot said:

Will these air coolers fit in the case in my build link above? I'm quite tired of the loud pc and would really like to have one of these "silent" cases.

By the way thank you all very much for your help! It's greatly appreciated!

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Your case is 9.1" wide so it should be able to accommodate all air coolers. If you were willing to spend the money on a H100 I agree with BOB about the Noctua, it will be nearly in audible. You're more likely to hear the case fans then the Noctua.

Thanks all for the input/help!!

This is what my final build is looking like it's going to be...

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/NThgK8

Can you guys give any input or other recommendations for this?

I don't understand the need for the nhd15 or the h110 personally. Unless you are benchmarking or want to push your overclock to the limit, there isn't a need. Want...well, that is another story.

And last I recall the h110i trades punches or beats the nhd15.

Edit: they are all super close, lol.. and I see h100.. which cranked beats it bht is of course louder.http://www.bit-tech.net/hardware/cooling/2014/05/01/noctua-nh-d15-review/2

I don't understand the need for the nhd15 or the h110 personally. Unless you are benchmarking or want to push your overclock to the limit, there isn't a need. Want...well, that is another story.

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ED my thought's on recommending the Noctua was because anthraxbot mentioned he wanted it to be quiet. I doubt the CM 212 Evo would be heard though if the cpu was oced it may be.

Can you guys give any input or other recommendations for this?

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Looks good to me!