New Skylake based build advise requested

Hi,

I am finally looking to build a new PC to upgrade my distinctly ageing system in my sig. I need this system to do the following.

- Have as much storage as possible (current media collection is ~15tb)
- Be able to multi task like a beast, must be able to transcode a 1080p blu-ray for my wife using PLEX on her iPAD whilst also being able to crack out the latest games (and potentially ripping a blu-ray or using handbrake to convert a video).
- Should be able to run any game I throw at it for a good number of years
- Be extremely responsive
- Be able to disappear under my desk (SFF as much as possible).

With this in mind I am looking at the following components:
core i7 6700k - https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CP-582-IN
32gb dd4(2666mhz) memory - http://www.scan.co.uk/products/32gb...0-(2666)-non-ecc-unbuffered-cas-16-18-18-35-x
miTX Z170 motherboard (potentially - ASRock Z170 Gaming-ITX/ac)
Samsung SM951 M.2 pci-e SSD - https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HD-206-SA

2x 6tb WD green HDD - https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=HD-455-WD (will upgrade to 4 later on)
Lian LiPC-Q08B case - https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-186-LL
Corsair H60 heatsink - http://www.scan.co.uk/products/cors...cpu-cooler-lga1155-1156-775-1366-2011-am2-am3
120mm fan replacement for the HS - https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=FG-003-NC
140mm fan replacement for the front of the case - https://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=FG-021-NC

I have a 1tb Samsung 840 SSD

I was going to steal my Blu-ray drive and PSU from my current PC (is reusing that PSU a good idea?)

the mITX board is still to be released and I am waiting for confirmation what specs it has. I need 6xsata 3 at a minimum (1 for optical, 1 for 1tb ssd and 4 for other HDDs) and I have seen some rumors that it might have an M.2 port on the underside [ I hope so as that would make a great operating system drive] if it doesn't then I will remove the M.2 SSD from the shopping basket and boot from the samsung 1tb.
[Anyone got any advise on the new line up of z170 boards?]

As for memory I am tempted to jump up to the 32gb mark. However I take a hit on memory speed. There is no dual channel kits at 3ghz yet, 2666mhz is the highest. Should I in reality drop to 16gb at 3000mhz?

I have an oem version of windows 7 lying around [ it has been installed on PCs before], but I am hoping microsoft will let it upgrade to windows 10. If not ill buy a windows 10 license at that point.

As for graphics card - at first I will just put ion my old card (I don't expect to be beasting games just yet!) Will likely wait for Nvidias next generation in 6months-a year.

If anyone has an experience building a system in this case I would be grateful as it will be a tight build.

I am looking to buy this system when the mitx motherboards become available for skylake.

Thoughts/concerns?



EDIT: Adding the motherboard I am thinking of getting:

http://www.asrock.com/mb/Intel/Fatal1ty Z170 Gaming-ITXac/

A couple things of note:

If I were in your shoes I would prefer to have an HTPC host all of your data/media/etc so that it isn't all just on your gaming machine. You can run a free NAS-based distro with your current (old) machine and hold everything and do all of the transcoding etc.

I wouldn't bother going back 16GB of RAM at this point, 99% of cases won't go past that unless you are doing virtualization (VMs etc) or something that would utilize all of your RAM or using a RAM Drive (generally not worth the extra effort).

You will likely want a better cooler than the H60

Cheers for the quick response. Never been a huge fan of NAS drives. Always have acted sluggish and overpriced for what they are for me. I also try and keep the amount of technology to a minimum in the house. Prefer to keep one box as the server.
As for my current PC, it is too large and power hungry to work as a NAS. Currently my PC is set up in our guest room, so it needs to be left tidy. Having 2 PCs would definitely ruin this effect. Have cat 6 cable running from, this location down to my router and client PC in the lounge.

16gb atm ye, I'm just thinking of how things might change over the 5-10 years. Had the same choice on my current build. Got told 8gb was massive overkill but it is now normal.

As for cooler, what do you recommend? Space is the main limitation.

I have tried getting more advise on a better heatsink to no avail at the moment do you think cooling the 6700k with the corsair H60 is too optimistic?

For memory all current advise is saying 16gb is plenty for current gen stuff for gaming, high end power game users seem to be using 12-13gb.

32gb would add no extra performance for the foreseeable future. (Star citizen in 2016 seems to be the next memory intensive game on its way). However upgrading my memory in a few years would involve completely replacing it, which isn't that cost effective even assuming significant price drops (it would have to be ~50% price cut to break even).

With that in mind it is purely down to a question of speed, would there be a noticeable difference between 2666mhz at 16-18-18-35 and 3000mhz at 15-17-17-35?

For the motherboard, does http://www.asrock.com/mb/Intel/Fatal1ty Z170 Gaming-ITXac/
look good? I don't have any experience with ASRock, are they reliable?

It says if I use a sata M.2 drive then the sata 3 and 4 ports are disabled. I presume since I am using a pci-e based ssd in the M.2 port that wont be the case for me?

So I will be able to use all 6 sata ports and also the M.2 port (plus have no issues with my pci-e 3.0 16x port?) [Just want to confirm if I have read the specifications correctly].

Firey_chasm said:

I have tried getting more advise on a better heatsink to no avail at the moment do you think cooling the 6700k with the corsair H60 is too optimistic? It all depends on what your plans are for the 6700k. If running stock to a mild OC you will likely get as good performance out of a Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo, without the reliability issues of the H2O heatsinks. If you are really looking to push the Oc on the 6700k you will likely need something along the lines of a Corsair H 100i.

For memory all current advise is saying 16gb is plenty for current gen stuff for gaming, high end power game users seem to be using 12-13gb.

32gb would add no extra performance for the foreseeable future. (Star citizen in 2016 seems to be the next memory intensive game on its way). However upgrading my memory in a few years would involve completely replacing it, which isn't that cost effective even assuming significant price drops (it would have to be ~50% price cut to break even). I use 8g of memory and at times run 4 monitors with multiple windows and programs open and have never had an issue with lack of memory. If primarily gaming, I find it hard to believe that 16g of ram will not be enough. You can always grab a set of 2X8g sticks and add another if you find you are having memory related issues.

With that in mind it is purely down to a question of speed, would there be a noticeable difference between 2666mhz at 16-18-18-35 and 3000mhz at 15-17-17-35? Most likely no you will not notice any difference. If you really are a stickler and actually measure your performance you may see a slight difference but we are talking a few FPS in gaming. In reality without actually measuring the performance or doing benchmarking you will not notice the difference.

For the motherboard, does http://www.asrock.com/mb/Intel/Fatal1ty Z170 Gaming-ITXac/
look good? I don't have any experience with ASRock, are they reliable? Asrock has been making really nice motherboards of late, for the money they are tough to beat.

Click to expand...

The rest of your questions I will leave to someone that has more knowledge in that area then I.

Thanks for the response. It will only be mildly overclocked if anything. Main reason for concern is that it is a tiny case. Both coolers you mentioned will not fit unfortunately the corsair 100 clashes with the optical drive and the coolermaster is too tall I believe (max heatsink height the case can manage is apparently 110mm).

I agree entirely 16gb is enough for now. This is me trying to predict how the market will change (complete guess work in reality ) - I am still on the fence between 16gb and 32gb. I cant add another stick. the mITX boards have only 2 DIMMs

For the speed that was my thoughts as well.

Glad to hear that about ASRock as the specs on that board are insane to the competition I have seen around atm.

My bad for not looking at the components as a whole. With that case you are correct, the coolers I mentioned will not work. Due to the limited space your original choice looks to be the best option. Though, your overclocking will likely be limited by it. As far as the ram goes, I just down see 16 g not being enough even 3-4 years down the road. You will likely be replacing it with faster DDR4 ram, as it is still in it's infancy, before you run into a situation where it's not enough.

Mandrake4565 said:

You will likely be replacing it with faster DDR4 ram, as it is still in it's infancy, before you run into a situation where it's not enough.

Click to expand...

That is a potentially very true statement! I think you guys are slowly talking sense into me, and pointing me back at 16gb!!

I have a new question though, I have currently assumed I will replace the case and HS fans. Do you think it is needed at all? Or to save ~£35 should I stick with the fans that are supplied? I have always ran with separate fans in my builds but haven't measured the difference it makes.

Just to add a bit of context I have approached this whole build with trying to make sure that it will work with so many components compressed into such a small space, so was looking for the best fans to go with the best HS I could fit. However I am not sure how much difference the fans will make (or not as the case may be).

[from a long term perspective the graphics card will be the equivalent of the NVIDIA 980 (likely waiting till next year to get the 1000 series [Pascal] or whatever it turns out to be)]

It makes sense to me to get it and see thermals and noise. If it isn't where you want them to be, then get new fans/case.

Honestly... that 5850 would kill me.. I would go ahead and upgrade the GPU now.

EarthDog said:

It makes sense to me to get it and see thermals and noise. If it isn't where you want them to be, then get new fans/case.

Honestly... that 5850 would kill me.. I would go ahead and upgrade the GPU now.

Click to expand...

Makes sense on the fans.

As for the 5850, it is a little dated now! but has done me proud - it has run everything I have thrown at it for years! I had two choices when building this rig either cut the cost across the board, drop down to an i5 etc and pick up a new GPU (a GPU which is mid life cycle) or build the rig I want now and pick up the GPU later!

I was reading a little bit about this case Phanteks Enthoo Evolv, it may be a good option for you though it's a little bit larger then the Lian Li. It's a little less money and can fit up to a 240/280 MM radiator as well a decent sized Air heatsink. It comes with a 200mm fan pre installed and the ability to add 3 more 120/140mm fan. The only issue I see is it may not be small enough for you. As far as the 5850 goes, if it is holding it's own with the games you play, then build the system you specked out. If it's not then it is decision time. I still have my 5850 it is indeed a good Gpu for it's time but no way I could play the modern games that I do with it. You could always overclock it, to try and get some more life out of it.

Can I suggest you look into a nas solution as well? You can build a free-nas machine for $350 or so minus hdds that uses very little energy and generates very little heat too boot. Yet with raid-z you have many advantages over standard raid and you get redundancy to protect your data. Throw it wherever your router is and let it sit there quietly working for you.

Then you can dump family photos, movies, all your music and access it from any device in your home too boot. Keeing the hdd's out of your main rig keeps your temps down as well. There is also a slew of other features free-nas can do.

Mandrake:
Nice looking case, although unfortunately it looks like it only supports 2xHDD I will be expanding to 4x6tb(or larger if available) in the future

The 5850 definitely needs replacing I just think I can hold out for the next gen

SuperTuner
My current hard drives will be become my backup (External 4tb drives). All critical data I have backed up in 2 other locations, so raid offers no extra benefits to me.

My router is my lounge, if I had a NAS it would have to live next to my main rig as that is the best location for it (upstairs). Plus the reason for the small main rig is for it to almost disappear away. having 2 boxes (one NAS and one PC would negate this benefit).

Also all previous experience I have had with NAS drives (and experience of people I know) is they are quite sluggish [irritatingly so]. I think a lot of them can now trans-code blu-ray rips, but I don't know if they can do 4k etc. Also managing my collection takes forever when copying over a network.