Please critique my mostly new Intel build

[vonkaar]

Howdy all, long time no see.

I was hoping that you modern-era types could help me out by critiquing my build plan.

Roughly, I'm talking about something like:

• I5-6600k
• Random_skylake_mb03
• Geforce GTX 970 or 980
• 16Gb RAM
• maaaaaaybe a new M.2 NVMe boot drive

I'll be reusing a few key components from my old build. This includes: 850w PSU, HAF 932 full-tower, Crucial SSD, WD Black for apps, monitor, keyboard & mouse.


Ideas & questions:

1. I've been a pretty avid overclocker for over 20 years now. So this is important to me. Getting an unlocked CPU and a good board is important. Having said that, I don't have to have the EXTREME setups for LN2 or even SLI. Just a good solid OC board. Suggestions?
2. GTX 970 vs 980. I'm only seeing a 15% improvement in most benchmarks, yet the 970 is significantly cheaper. Am I missing any obvious reasons to go 980?
3. I like things quiet. They don't have to be silent, but I can't stand a hard fan whine or even massively pushed air. My office is sound-proofed, so small noises tend to linger in here. I will likely use more self-contained liquid cooling for the quiet & efficiency. With that in mind, should I go with a GPU with a nice & quiet fan, or buy that Corsair bracket and put my old H100 loop on it? I'd then buy a new closed loop system for my CPU. Thoughts?
4. My little brother is insisting that I go with an M.2 SSD, saying the upgrade (SATA SSD to M.2) feels the same for him as going magnetic drive to SSD. Yes/no? Any product suggestions here?
5. Memory selection. I'm very behind the times on modern overclocking. How important is the RAM selection here? I'm not pushing for a bleeding-edge OC, just a very respectable push. Any product suggestions?
6. Last idea... should I stick in Broadwell? The main thought here is that I already own 3x 8Gb sticks and could get a 4th for <$50. Would I be better off with last year's technology at a discount (thereby more easily justifying a 980) with twice the RAM? Ugh... sorry to throw a monkey wrench in here. Thoughts?

Newegg has a 6600k/Asrock Pro4 combo for $365. That is where I'm at right now. I'm in the Dallas/Fort Worth area so I have access to most shops like Microcenter and Fry's.


Edited the long post. I simply wanted to get everything out there since literally nobody I knew on OCF is still around. Thanks in advance for the suggestions.

 

[vonkaar]

oh, also...
I'm not biased either way for ATI or Nvidia. I've just read about the noise/heat/power that modern AMD boards put out and it seemed the exact opposite for Nvidia. Am I wrong here?

 

[Dlaw]

I'd say use two of those memory sticks for a Devil's Canyon build. I mean, you essentially already have everything else you need for a solid build.

There's no budget listed, by the way. However, so long as you're okay with reusing your older parts (PS: how old is that PSU? You may want to swap that out also), and you're gaming at 1080p, that will max out almost every game.

 

[trents]

Go with an Intel CPU. If money is not an object go with Nvidia over ATI.

IF you are going to be significantly overclocking the CPU, go with a good AIO water kit but measure your case to make sure it will fit. If you will be cooling the video card as well with water then go with a custom water kit.

You never really stated what the purpose(s) for this machine is. May we assume your goal is to build the machine for high end gaming?

High speed memory does little for performance in most all applications. Don't put your money here unless you are doing a lot of specialty stuff like data base/file compression. GSkill seems to be the most popular brand around here with very few if any compatibility issues with a wide range of motherboards and chipsets.

Your post is very wordy and rambling. Just a tip here. Try to be more concise. We don't need a history of your computing life. Ask specific questions about this and that and don't feel you have to ask them all in the first post.

 

[vonkaar]

Dlaw: Thanks! The PSU was bought this year. My old one died in May (or so).

Trents: I wouldn't say money is no object. I have money to spend on this, but I'm all about avoiding diminishing returns. $200 for a 30% boost? Sign me up. But I won't spend a bunch of cash just to 'boot up faster' or get an extra 5 fps. I'm past caring about world record overclocks or anything like that. I like overclocking as a hobby and to extend the life of my rig. That's about it.

Goals - solid gaming for the next few years.

 

[Dlaw]

I'd go with the parts list I provided, and reuse everything else from your current rig. No need to spend more.

 

[vonkaar]

No reason to go to Skylake then? That will certainly save cash. And for the record, I was tasked (by my better half) to keep this under $2k. Right now I'm nowhere close to that, which is totally fine. If the difference between this $800 build and a $2k build is merely 'faster boots' then yeah, I'll go cheap. I've a 28" monitor that can do 1900x1200, and unless that dies I'm unlikely to move onto 4k any time soon.

Will the more edgy options like 980, or M.2 drive simply fall into the realm of diminishing returns? On some games, the 980 seemed to outpace the 970 by only a few FPS.

 

[trents]

If max gaming performance is your goal, spend money first on the GPU and then a CPU with high per core clock speed. Those should be your emphases. Can't see throwing money down on DDR4 for your stated needs. And SD drives dramatically speed up booting and loading times.

 

[vonkaar]

Got it. Makes sense. Boot times have never swayed me; my system stays online nearly 24/7 anyway and when I reboot it, an extra 30 seconds won't kill me. But load times - I understand that argument for sure.

I'm totally cool with staying in DDR3.

My case was bought back when I was running 8 HDDs and a huge custom water loop. Now it's this cavernous full-tower with a tiny SSD, 1 HDD and a little 2x120mm radiator up top. I'm certain that I can fit a second radiator in the mix if I were to WC my GPU. I used to love the hobby of tweaking & maintaining a custom water loop. But these days I'm completely sold on the ease of a sealed all-in-one setup. How do you feel about the idea of 2x sealed systems like this?

 

[EarthDog]

No reason to go to Skylake then? That will certainly save cash. And for the record, I was tasked (by my better half) to keep this under $2k. Right now I'm nowhere close to that, which is totally fine. If the difference between this $800 build and a $2k build is merely 'faster boots' then yeah, I'll go cheap. I've a 28" monitor that can do 1900x1200, and unless that dies I'm unlikely to move onto 4k any time soon.

Will the more edgy options like 980, or M.2 drive simply fall into the realm of diminishing returns? On some games, the 980 seemed to outpace the 970 by only a few FPS.

Here is the wrench in the spokes...

I would go skylake. I don't see a point in getting older technology. While that platform is incredibly capable, its still a few % slower, and it doesn't have an upgrade path. It gives you all of the features of the latest chipset. True, some of that can be found in Z97. But with your budget, I would spend to get a Z170/Skylake. If you want to save some money, there is NOTHING wrong with Z97 and a 4790K.

I would also get an SSD (I have no idea what an "SD" is) regardless. While it certainly does improve boot times, it also significantly improves game load times. To be without an SSD today is just not cool, LOL. Let me give you an example... in BF4, when switching maps, with an SSD it takes around 30s or so. With a HDD, I have seen 2 minutes. Brand new PC on a HDD with this budget? No!

M.2 is up to you. An SSD is already leaps and bounds faster so an NVME based M.2 drive I would believe is a diminishing return.

I would also go 980 over a 970. While there is only a 10-15% difference, it also has full use of its 4GB of vram versus the 970 that has 3.5GB full speed and then another 500MB gimped. If you are keeping it a few years, that may buy you more time of stutter free game play. You can easily get Skylake, a 980, and an SSD and be well under that budget.

So...........

$385 - 6700K (at newegg, a TON cheaper at Microcenter!!!)
$150 - Gigabyte Z170 G1 Gaming 3
$120 - GSkill 2x8GB DDR4 2800 CL15
$500 - EVGA GTX 980 ACX2
$87 - 256GB Samsung 850 EVO (Dont need this as your other is likely fine...

So assuming newegg pricing and no new SSD: $1155

The difference between it and a Devil's Canyon build...: $45(CPU difference from newegg) + $120 (for having to buy DDR4). The motherboard I chose for Z170 is cheaper than the one chosen for Z97 -$20 (you could get a cheaper board there, note) = $145.

 

[vonkaar]

Haha, I love it. Basically, I'm like this total glutton who WANTS to eat the pint of ice cream but needs someone to say, "do it... DO IT!" I totally wanted to get a 980 but there was this voice in the back of my head saying, "ah, the 970 is fine..." So, thanks for that motivation.

For the SSD, I have a good Crucial one right now, though it's only 128Gb. I was thinking of eventually getting a 512 and putting my active games on it. But for now I'll likely just rebuild on the 128.

There's an open box 980 at my local Microcenter for $467.

 

[trents]

I would also get an SSD (I have no idea what an "SD" is)

Okay, okay Mr. eagle eye proof reader.

 

[Dlaw]

Another way you could go, is 980ti on the z97 platform. You'd pretty much be set for a good long time with that. I have a hard time recommending skylake when you already have over $100 worth of ram, and you can reuse all but your board and CPU. Ultimately it is your money, and I'm not saying that skylake would be a bad investment, but for the cash you'd save, that's what I would do.

 

[Bishoff]

Another way you could go, is 980ti on the z97 platform. You'd pretty much be set for a good long time with that. I have a hard time recommending skylake when you already have over $100 worth of ram, and you can reuse all but your board and CPU. Ultimately it is your money, and I'm not saying that skylake would be a bad investment, but for the cash you'd save, that's what I would do.

Ram is super cheap right now..why not go for DDR4? The 980 Ti for his 1900 X 1200 monitor is lulz. Unless he's planning to go 1440 very soon (which he indicated he wasn't), then the 980 is the best bet. ED's build list above is perfect for the OP

 

[Dlaw]

Ram is super cheap right now..why not go for DDR4? The 980 Ti for his 1900 X 1200 monitor is lulz. Unless he's planning to go 1440 very soon (which he indicated he wasn't), then the 980 is the best bet. ED's build list above is perfect for the OP

I explained why I wouldn't go DDR4, to save $120. That $120 is the difference between a 980 and 980Ti, and the CPU and board are about the same price. A 4790k and 980Ti is a more powerful build than a 6700k and 980 for about the same price. I'd spend the money on the more powerful build.