Build Help for Gaming (and Streaming?) on Ultrawide

[Tyerker]

After seeing an Ultrawide in person... It must be so. I am likely going to end up with a 2560x1080 34" monitor. I imagine that an i5 and a GTX 970 would likely be plenty to game on this for most games. However, if I am intending to capture as I'm playing, encode video for Youtube, and/or stream to Twitch or something, how much additional headroom would I need? Would the i7's hyper threading make a big difference here? Would I need more GPU power to capture/stream and play at the same time?

I am probably going to be playing TF2, CS:GO, Bioshock Infinite, H1Z1, modded Skyrim, and eventually Star Citizen and No Man's Sky. I already have GTA V for PS4, but I may end up playing it, as well.

So, seeing as an i5/970 will likely game fine at this resolution, what kind of additional power will I likely need to stream/capture while playing?

 

[dudleycpa]

What software do you plan on using and how much RAM do you have?

Since you are planning on 1080 the 970 should work great. You may have read up on it here: http://www.geforce.com/geforce-experience/system-requirements

 

[ATMINSIDE]

Does the capture software you plan to use need CPU or GPU power for converting on the fly?

 

[Tyerker]

Well... I have no idea what software I will use. I am open to suggestions. I just knew there would be some layer of processing going on that would require more power (CPU/RAM/GPU). I am intending a 2x8GB kit for the RAM, which will give me space to upgrade to 32GB if necessary.

 

[sobe]

I would recommend ShadowPlay or OBS, either is fine and either will use NVENC to use your vid card to encode your streaming assuming using an NVIDIA card.

ShadowPlay essentially comes with your driver package download, and I love it, but OBS is nice if you want flexibility and customization for different windows or screens to be streamed.

 

[Tyerker]

I would recommend ShadowPlay or OBS, either is fine and either will use NVENC to use your vid card to encode your streaming assuming using an NVIDIA card.

ShadowPlay essentially comes with your driver package download, and I love it, but OBS is nice if you want flexibility and customization for different windows or screens to be streamed.

So am I right in assuming both of these softwares would utilize GPU power primarily?

I'm more or less trying to figure out if I am looking at i5/970, i5/980(ti), i7/970, or i7/980(ti) to play these games at more or less full detail while capturing / streaming through Twitch.

After looking, it seems Shadowplay might be the best option for my purposes. Constant recording for capturing moments, streaming to Twitch, and recording long sessions manually. Just need some idea of the performance impact (I know the Shadowplay site says minimum) so I don't end up getting 35 FPS when I could be getting 45.

 

[dudleycpa]

So am I right in assuming both of these softwares would utilize GPU power primarily?

I'm more or less trying to figure out if I am looking at i5/970, i5/980(ti), i7/970, or i7/980(ti) to play these games at more or less full detail while capturing / streaming through Twitch.

After looking, it seems Shadowplay might be the best option for my purposes. Constant recording for capturing moments, streaming to Twitch, and recording long sessions manually. Just need some idea of the performance impact (I know the Shadowplay site says minimum) so I don't end up getting 35 FPS when I could be getting 45.

All of those combinations with 16GB of ram should work great. What does Shadowplay list as the requirements? Unless it does support hyperthreading it doesn't make sense that an i7 would be that much faster than an i5 (all things being equal).

Trying to figure out what the "sweet spot" is - you have a budget in mind?

Stay dry! The storms aren't stopping anytime soon.

 

[Mpegger]

From my understanding, the mpeg4 encoder is additional silicon on certain nVidia cards that provide hardware encoding, without using any of the GPU to perform or assist in encoding. The performance impact comes into play when the frame grabber transfers the data to the encoder. I do not fully understand how that part works, but the transfer would be where any performance hit would occur, which should be minimal. I know from experience @ 1080p I see no noticeable difference in my fps at all.

 

[sobe]

Can't speak for everyone of course but I started using Shadowplay on a GTX 780 and aside from a buggy version, it has been flawless with no visible difference when it's on or off. I only moved to OBS simplydue to the flexibility of setting up several "scenes" for stream priority. Shadowplay though id absolutely fantastic from just doing recordings of gameplay in realtime, capturing the last 5minutes, or streaming to twitch.

My personal experience with it has been phenomenal and it SEEMED to have no impact on performance.

 

[Tyerker]

So, I am not in the position (right now) to build outright. However, I got an EVGA Z97 FTW motherboard for $50 after MIR, and decided it was too good of a deal to pass up. I can go i5 or i7, and can do SLI in the future, if it becomes necessary.

As far as the budget, I am aiming for maybe $1250-1500 for the tower. Here is the i5 Build I have come up with.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4690K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.99 @ Micro Center)
CPU Cooler: Phanteks PH-TC12DX_BK 68.5 CFM CPU Cooler ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: EVGA Z97 FTW ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (Purchased For $80.00)
Memory: G.Skill Trident X 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($104.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($177.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB SSC ACX 2.0 Video Card ($338.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Corsair Air 540 Silver ATX Mid Tower Case ($79.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($64.99 @ NCIX US)
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series AF120 Red 52.2 CFM 120mm Fan ($12.99 @ NCIX US)
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series AF120 Red 52.2 CFM 120mm Fan ($12.99 @ NCIX US)
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series AF120 Red 52.2 CFM 120mm Fan ($12.99 @ NCIX US)
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series AF120 Red 52.2 CFM 120mm Fan ($12.99 @ NCIX US)
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series AF140 Red 66.4 CFM 140mm Fan ($15.99 @ NCIX US)
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series AF140 Red 66.4 CFM 140mm Fan ($15.99 @ NCIX US)
Case Fan: Corsair SP120 57.2 CFM 120mm Fan ($14.40 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: Corsair SP120 57.2 CFM 120mm Fan ($14.40 @ Amazon)
Fan Controller: Lamptron Fanatic Fan Controller ($43.95 @ Amazon)
Total: $1253.61
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-06-21 21:07 EDT-0400


And here is the i7 build. Very similar. Just CPU and Cooler upgrades. And a few personal taste / quality part upgrades, as well.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($279.99 @ Micro Center)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H110i GT 113.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($109.98 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: EVGA Z97 FTW ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (Purchased For $80.00)
Memory: G.Skill Trident X 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($104.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($177.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB FTW+ ACX 2.0+ Video Card ($369.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Corsair Air 540 ATX Mid Tower Case ($134.99 @ B&H)
Power Supply: Corsair RM 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series AF120 Red 52.2 CFM 120mm Fan ($12.99 @ NCIX US)
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series AF120 Red 52.2 CFM 120mm Fan ($12.99 @ NCIX US)
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series AF120 Red 52.2 CFM 120mm Fan ($12.99 @ NCIX US)
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series AF140 Red 66.4 CFM 140mm Fan ($15.99 @ NCIX US)
Case Fan: Corsair SP140 49.5 CFM 140mm Fan ($15.99 @ Amazon)
Case Fan: Corsair SP140 49.5 CFM 140mm Fan ($15.99 @ Amazon)
Fan Controller: Lamptron Fanatic Fan Controller ($43.95 @ Amazon)
Total: $1488.81
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-06-21 21:14 EDT-0400

 

[dudleycpa]

For $80 - can't think of a good reason not to go i7. Have you read any of the reviews of Swifttech H220 or the H240-X? Little bit more money than that Corsair H100i.

Newegg has had 16GB kits for under $100 - maybe pick one up on sale?

Looks to be a very solid build!

 

[Tyerker]

For $80 - can't think of a good reason not to go i7. Have you read any of the reviews of Swifttech H220 or the H240-X? Little bit more money than that Corsair H100i.

Newegg has had 16GB kits for under $100 - maybe pick one up on sale?

Looks to be a very solid build!

I was thinking the same thing with the i7. 500 MHz base clock increase plus Hyperthreading for less than $100.

As far as the RAM, I picked this particular kit because it's CAS 7, but I know that G Skill Sniper and Corsair Vengeance will end up being $95 or less sometimes. Thanks for the info.

 

[ATMINSIDE]

Just grab some 1866 CL9, you'll save cash and notice no difference from the 1600 CL7.

Also, you're wasting money on the PSU.
Grab a SeaSonic G-550, it'll be overkill for your system. Even if you go SLI.

And I'd definitely be going for a Swiftech H220-X or Cooler Master Glacer 240L.
The Corsair units just don't stack up to these.

 

[dudleycpa]

Just grab some 1866 CL9, you'll save cash and notice no difference from the 1600 CL7.

Also, you're wasting money on the PSU.
Grab a SeaSonic G-550, it'll be overkill for your system. Even if you go SLI.

And I'd definitely be going for a Swiftech H220-X or Cooler Master Glacer 240L.
The Corsair units just don't stack up to these.

Thanks for information - Was just reading your frontpage review.

 

[Tyerker]

Just grab some 1866 CL9, you'll save cash and notice no difference from the 1600 CL7.

Also, you're wasting money on the PSU.
Grab a SeaSonic G-550, it'll be overkill for your system. Even if you go SLI.

And I'd definitely be going for a Swiftech H220-X or Cooler Master Glacer 240L.
The Corsair units just don't stack up to these.

The Seasonic G-550 also only has 2 PCI-E 6+2 Pins (according to Newegg) and if I went SLI, would I not need 4 of those Connectors, at least? Plus my motherboard has both an 8-pin and a 6-pin ATX power.

 

[EarthDog]

The motherboard 8 pin is for the CPU, they are not PCie connectors. The 6 pin on the board IS however a PCIe connector and is only used when running multiple GPUs.

That said, you will want a PSU that has at least 4 6+2 PCie connectors if you plan on going SLI. For the motherboard, you can use a molex to PCIe adapter.

Question though... when do you plan on building this rig? Piecemeal isn't a good idea on some parts...

 

[ATMINSIDE]

The Seasonic G-550 also only has 2 PCI-E 6+2 Pins (according to Newegg) and if I went SLI, would I not need 4 of those Connectors, at least? Plus my motherboard has both an 8-pin and a 6-pin ATX power.

Most 970's only have one 6-pin connection.
The 6-pin connection on the motherboard is only used when running multiple GPUs.

I would steer clear of the Corsair RM though.
Stick to the EVGA GS or G2 lineup, you'll get a higher quality unit.

 

[Tyerker]

The 970 SSC and FTW models seem to all have 8+6 connectors, and that seems like the one to go for right now, for connections, price, clock speed, and cooling.

As far as the piecemeal build, I am intending to snipe deals on the stuff that doesn't go obsolete (PSU, Case, Cooling, Storage, etc) and to save the CPU and GPU for last, so I get the best deals on those, and they might have new generations of GPU by that point. I currently don't have a TV or anything, so the Ultrawide is the next step, most likely. Then I have price watches on all the parts I'm interested in on PCPP.

I will look into the EVGA PSUs. Part of the idea behind the Corsair PSU and Cooler was to take advantage of Corsair Link to control the LED colors and whatnot. Primarily aesthetic. But the Swiftechs do look very good, though slightly more expensive.

 

[EarthDog]

For the record, there is nothing wrong with the RM series for corsair. They are not high end, but they are nothing to shy away from build quality wise (perhaps price though compared to EVGA GS650)...

http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story6&reid=369
http://www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story6&reid=363

 

[ATMINSIDE]

Meh, no reason to buy a sub-par cooler for Corsair Link.