X99 or Z97?

Hi everyone!

I'm building a desktop PC for gaming and development purposes and (most likely) plan to dual boot Windows/Linux, each with their own SSD.

I have configured two almost-identical builds, except for the socket type. I was torn between the 5930k and the 4790k. I was going with the Gigabyte G1 Gaming for my Z97 selection, and the Gigabyte SOC Champion for the X99.

I don't NEED the 6 core. The 40 PCI Express lanes are what grabbed my attention over the lower 5820k. I was mainly thinking with the 6 core choice that the X99 socket would then allow me to upgrade down the road to the 8 core, and may give me a bit longer life out of the mother board itself.

Considering that the Broadwell chips are 'supposedly' going to be compatible with the 1150 socket, I am now thinking it may be more advantageous to get the 4790k, over clock it, and call it a day until the next Intel release.

I'm curious what forum members here would advise?

For the best bang for the buck, I would go Z97. The X99 is a sweet platform, but pricey. The ASRock Z97 Extreme 6 is THE board to get for the 4790K

What Neb said. If you cant use the cores that the X99 platform gives, you, there is not a point to get it... nor that made for overclocking board.

For Z97, grab the ASRock Z97 Extreme 6 (so long as it has the features you need/want) and call it a day.

I appreciate the responses! Z97 it is..

The ASRock Extreme 6 looks great as well! Could either of you give me a quick run down of how it compares to the Gigabyte Gaming 7 and Gigabyte SOC Force?

Obviously it doesn't have the Killer ethernet card, but it has the ultra M.2. As an aside, I was planning on using Samsung's 850 Pro. Could that take advantage of the ultra M.2?

Aside from that my only concern was the PCI Express lanes, but unless I wanted more than 2 video cards it would be equivalent to either of the other boards? [if I haven't lost it yet]

The SOC Force is a purpose built OCing board, you'll find more usable features on a more consumer oriented board.
The Gaming 7 is nice, but I wouldn't say it's worth the extra cash over the Extreme6 unless it has some particular feature you need.

Most people want Intel Ethernet, not Killer, FYI.

The 850 Pro uses SATA, not M.2
Why not an 850 EVO? That could save you a lot of cash.

ATMINSIDE said:

The SOC Force is a purpose built OCing board, you'll find more usable features on a more consumer oriented board.
The Gaming 7 is nice, but I wouldn't say it's worth the extra cash over the Extreme6 unless it has some particular feature you need.

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That's really about all I needed to know. Past the possibility of running SLI in 6mo-1yr I don't have many other requirements.

ATMINSIDE said:

Most people want Intel Ethernet, not Killer, FYI.

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I didn't know this. Last I checked (about 5 years ago), I believe it was the other way around. Knowing about networking and the networking stack, I'd have to really delve into the specifications to really understand why there would be any difference (aside from just better hardware components, perhaps). Honestly, I had felt it was a gimmick anyhow.

ATMINSIDE said:

The 850 Pro uses SATA, not M.2
Why not an 850 EVO? That could save you a lot of cash.

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That is a very good question. Of course, my only honest answer is for the STATS!! Even though I would never notice the difference, I like seeing the larger numbers, haha. I may actually knock those down to the EVO models. To be honest, I'm still getting used to these awesome SSD's not costing > $1k. lol

That being said, I was looking at the wireless version of the Extreme 6. I'm not sure what all of this Intel Storage Technology is (if not another gimmick), but aside from that the only difference I can tell from Newegg is that the non-AC board has a newer version of the M.2 spec. Is that correct, or is this just a typo? I suppose down the road if I wanted to get a super fast M.2 drive this would be a concern.

The EVO models are perfect for any daily/gaming machine. I've been using my 500GB 840 EVO for over 2 years now and it has been flawless.
Use the money going from Pro -> EVO to get a bigger size

Ultra M.2 isn't a "newer" spec, it's simply faster. It utilizes more lanes.
If you're planning to run SLI, you're still good with M.2. The GPUs will pull from the CPU's 3.0 lanes, while M.2 will pull from the chipset's 2.0 lanes.

ATMINSIDE said:

The EVO models are perfect for any daily/gaming machine. I've been using my 500GB 840 EVO for over 2 years now and it has been flawless.
Use the money going from Pro -> EVO to get a bigger size

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Good advice! I think I am going to go with the 850 Evo's. One 250GB that I'll partition for my operating systems (2), and then a 500GB for Games/Applications.

ATMINSIDE said:

Ultra M.2 isn't a "newer" spec, it's simply faster. It utilizes more lanes.
If you're planning to run SLI, you're still good with M.2. The GPUs will pull from the CPU's 3.0 lanes, while M.2 will pull from the chipset's 2.0 lanes.

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That's good to know. I've been reading up crash-course style to understand some of these hardware specifications I'm unfamiliar with. I have a degree in computer science, but that doesn't mean much at all for hardware.

Since you are so helpful, an off topic question: Fan controller is the only thing I believe I'm lacking to complete this build. I've read a couple good things about the Corsair Mini Commander; but then my friend said he had heard some bad things regarding that. My main concern with it from what I've read is just the fact that I'll be using two OS'. If I configure the settings on Windows, will they transfer over to Linux even if I'm not using one of these Open Source software solutions for it? I assume the settings are stored in the Mini unit itself from the software, but I don't know.

Ultimately it would be nice to individually tie fans to various temperature sensors and have them spin up a specified amount for various temperatures. From what I've seen that doesn't seem possible, even with the Commander. Am I wrong here? The 900D case comes with 5 fans, plus the 2 that are coming with the H100i. It'd be nice to control them all from the same unit, whichever it ends up being. Any suggestions?

I would use the motherboard controls to set them at the UEFI level.

Two options:
- Buy quiet fans and just let them run 100%
- Buy PWM fans and control the curve in the UEFI

Depends how sensitive you are to sound.

The CPU fan will already regulate itself unless you change it to be something else. Same for the GPU.

If you look at M.2 then there are actually 2 standards PCIE and SATA. M.2 SATA drives are as fast as standard SATA but have M.2 connector. M.2 PCIE can make higher bandwidth. It's good to check what motherboard can support as for example ASUS RVE is not supporting M.2 SATA drives at all while even the cheapest MSI is supporting every standard.

Sounds reasonable to me, M.2 SATA support is redundant IMO

If going with an M.2 one would obviously want PCIe 2x or 4x bandwidth

ATMINSIDE, I think letting the BIOS control PWM fans is my choice. That being said, that 900D case comes with AF140L and AF120 fans. The fans themselves seem fine, but they are not PWM judging from the 3 pin connectors they require. Corsair has PWM equivalents of those fans. Would you recommend those, or another option?

Woomack and Witchdoctor, thankfully the motherboard I chose does support the M.2 PCIE standard. Now that I know more about it, I'm not as concerned with it. But when evaluating motherboards side-by-side there are a lot of options to consider!

I'd recommend a better fan. The AF fans are alright, but not great. They have a narrow PWM control window and are generally a bit noisy.
Also, look at getting the Swiftech PWM splitter if you want to control all your fans.

If you want high quality, quiet fans look at Noctua. Their Redux lineup is simply a different color scheme of their original fan, but the industrialPPC lineup is a high-power version.
You should be fine with the original or Redux, especially for case fans.

ATMINSIDE said:

...

If you want high quality, quiet fans look at Noctua. Their Redux lineup is simply a different color scheme of their original fan, but the industrialPPC lineup is a high-power version.
You should be fine with the original or Redux, especially for case fans.

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Thank you for the suggestion! I think the Redux line will be great and go with the case colors very well. I think I'm going to go with 1 of their 240mm Noctua NF-P14s redux-1500 PWM, and 3 120mm Noctua NF-S12B redux-1200 PWM. At ~26 and ~18 decibels, I don't think those will be bad at all! Especially considering the H110i CPU cooler.

Are you planning to use any of the Noctua fans with the H110i or use the stock fans for it?

I was just going to use the stock fans. But, maybe I may as well just get a couple more 140's for that as well. I'm assuming I'd need a different model from Noctua for the radiator mount though, correct?

You want higher static pressure for the radiator fans than case fans.
Either the one you picked or the NF-A14 industrialPPC-2000 PWM would be great options.

Have you already bought the H110i? A Swiftech H220-X or H240-X would be a much better purchase.

Excellent. I saw the industrial fans when I was looking at the other options.

I have already ordered the H110i, but mainly due to not being able to find the H240-X available anywhere. I've spoken to Newegg though and they will accept the return without a restocking fee if I happen to find the H240-X somewhere. Have any secret merchants that might carry it? Ha

Why not an H220-X?
http://www.performance-pcs.com/swiftech-h220-x-dual-120mm-cpu-liquid-cooling-kit.html

That same site will let you backorder the H240-X btw.

That's a fair enough question. I was just looking to stick with the same 140mm fan size. I see claims that the 120mm has more static pressure, so that may be the better option.

The Corsair cooler I got was the "Hydro Series H110 Extreme Cooling". Since they have so many coolers with the H110 designation I figured I'd clarify. Whether that is any different from their other 240mm options as far as cooling capacity, I can't tell. It seems hard to even find mention of how many GPM the Swiftech and Corsair have.

I'm not sure how the 220 vs. 240 compare, do you? It may not make any difference for my use, and it does seem they are using better components all around on the Swiftech, so I'd prefer that (Cause I'm OCD, ofc).