Building my first PC ever!! possible parts included--->

[ginobli2016]

Hello Anandtech. It's my first post here and it's an important and monumental one for me, as I am building my first PC. I am fairly learned in the basics. I am excited because I am starting courses for my first 3 IT certifications soon, and I am lucky to have that going hand in hand with my first built PC. My questions are pretty simple, and I am definitely for saving money. I am not a hardcore gamer at all, but I do enjoy an occasional Battlefield 4 here or there. That's how I weighed my decision for the GTX 960. The intel i5 6500k has the future proof thing going for it, so that's why I settled on that. The Gskill brand has a lot of hype now, so I decided to select the 16gb ram, as the price differentials were minimal. The Gigabyte motherboard had seemingly similar techincal specs to the G1 Gaming Series and it was 75 dollars cheaper. The power supply I chose based on reviews and such.

If anyone has suggestions for me and can help me with finding a good case and school me on how to keep my system cool and quiet.
I would so greatly appreciate it!


intel i5 6500k quad core 3.5 ghz lga 1151 processor--- 240.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-561-_-Product

g skill ripjaws v series 16gb ddr4 ---89.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820232090

evga geforce gtx 960---- 240.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814487164


GIGABYTE GA-Z170XP-SLI (rev. 1.0) LGA 1151 Intel Z170 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.1 USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard--126.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813128841

WD Black 2 TB-- 123.00
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822236624

EVGA SUPERNOVA 650 80+ PLATINUM--98.00
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01...-20&ascsubtag=[site|thaus[cat|[art|[pid|B010HWDPKW[tid|14602009236822509[bbc|LEPRIX

 

[lehtv]

What do you use the PC for, mainly? Do you actually need 2 TB of storage space?

What's your overall budget?

Do you need to buy a Windows license? What about peripherals (monitor, keyboard etc)? If you already have a monitor, what is its display resolution?

Do you want to be able to overclock the processor?

 

[gammaray]

adding an ssd will definitely make your daily experience much better.
and for the case it depends what your aim is. Personally i love silence so i go with the define R4 or R5 and remove the midbay for more airflow.

 

[nerp]

You need an SSD for the OS and primary apps. There is no other way.

 

[Flapdrol1337]

6600K I presume?

make sure you buy an aftermarket cooler, because the 6600K doesn't come with a stock one.

 

[UsandThem]

$240 for a GTX 960? You can get a reference GTX 970 for about $35 more and it is significantly faster.

I've seen GTX 960 cards in the $155-$170 range.

 

[ginobli2016]

thanks for the responses everyone!

lehtv--- I do not have a budget, but do not want to waste money on parts that are way above my needs. I am primarily going to use the TV for studying intensely. But I am a former gamer who would love to get back into the action someday, but not at the moment. I need the space for ripped blu-ray movies and such. I do not need a Windows License, but I do need a monitor. The monitor I am willing to go over the top for. I would love 4k and 30 inches. I don't know what overclocking really is, except for the fact that it makes the processor run at a faster speed. The keyboard and and mouse and all the extra accessories I will probably be fine with picking out. Would you be able to see me through what else I need to build the computer? Maybe show me a few items to choose from for each piece?

Thanks Lehtv

Oh, and I am definitely going to get an SSD as well.

Can't wait to hear your thoughts!

 

[ginobli2016]

What do you use the PC for, mainly? Do you actually need 2 TB of storage space?

What's your overall budget?

Do you need to buy a Windows license? What about peripherals (monitor, keyboard etc)? If you already have a monitor, what is its display resolution?

Do you want to be able to overclock the processor?

thanks for the responses everyone!

lehtv--- I do not have a budget, but do not want to waste money on parts that are way above my needs. I am primarily going to use the TV for studying intensely. But I am a former gamer who would love to get back into the action someday, but not at the moment. I need the space for ripped blu-ray movies and such. I do not need a Windows License, but I do need a monitor. The monitor I am willing to go over the top for. I would love 4k and 30 inches. I don't know what overclocking really is, except for the fact that it makes the processor run at a faster speed. The keyboard and and mouse and all the extra accessories I will probably be fine with picking out. Would you be able to see me through what else I need to build the computer? Maybe show me a few items to choose from for each piece?

Thanks Lehtv

Oh, and I am definitely going to get an SSD as well.

Can't wait to hear your thoughts!

 

[lehtv]

CPU
For studying (which I imagine doesn't involve anything processor intensive), watching movies, internet etc. you don't need a fast processor. Something like i3-6100 would be more than enough, and would handle games just fine as well (with a suitable graphics card, of course). But at a flexible budget, i5 is a decent choice too. I don't see any point in investing in an unlocked processor, i5-6500 or i5-6600 non-K makes more sense.

RAM
16GB is useful for content creation or other memory intensive applications, but for the uses you listed + gaming, you don't need more than 8GB. But again, 16GB is not a bad choice on a flexible budget. It doesn't need to be fast, it's the memory's capacity that matters more than the speed, and you won't be able to run over 2133MHz frequency anyway without spending extra on Z170.

Graphics card
GTX 960 4GB is alright. Great for 4K non-gaming use, video playback etc, and handles BF4 on 1080p pretty well. For optimal gaming performance you'll have to upgrade the video card later.

Motherboard
I would go with a microATX board, there's no particular benefit with ATX. I also don't see any need for Z170 chipset features. DisplayPort would be good to have so that you can run 4K @ 60Hz with the integrated graphics if needed (as a backup).

Storage
Some 250GB SSD paired with a low cost per GB hard disk. WD Black 2TB is quite expensive and you don't need top performance just for storing video files. Go with WD Green or WD Blue.

Power supply
That EVGA unit is extremely good. A little overkill, and you could buy a cheaper unit, but with that at least you won't have to upgrade it in 7+ years, and it will support any graphics card if you decide to start gaming seriously. The price is too good to pass up given that I'm not seeing any discounts on comparable quality ~500W 80+ Gold units.

In essence we're looking at a beefed up home/office PC, not a workstation or gaming PC or anything else concerned with demanding workloads. Here's a microATX build, geared towards silent operation and future upgradeability:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6500 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($204.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: ARCTIC Freezer i11 74.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($21.79 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus B150M-C/CSM Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($80.72 @ Amazon) (has DisplayPort)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Crucial MX200 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($81.72 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Blue 3TB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive ($95.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 960 4GB Video Card ($193.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Nanoxia NXDS4B MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($84.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA P2 650W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($98.68 @ Amazon)
Total: $884.85
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-04-09 18:32 EDT-0400

Upgrade paths:
- CPU can be upgraded to i7 Skylake and probably Kaby Lake. Maybe even Cannonlake if we're lucky
- RAM can be upgraded up to 64GB or DDR4
- Any PCIe 3.0 graphics card up to the highest end gaming cards
- case and motherboard both support 6x SATA hard drives / SSD's
- WLAN card if needed (or other PCIe addon card)

If you want 16GB of RAM: http://pcpartpicker.com/parts/memory/#Z=16384002&sort=a10&xcx=0&s=402133,402400

As for the monitor, I'm not really that familiar with 4K screens... Based on some quick pcpartpicker browsing, BenQ BL3201PH looks nice and the reviews are positive. But it's $900. I'm just not sure if 4K is worth it at this point just for the uses you described, unless you really really want to watch 4K films on your PC. For 1/3 the price you could get a good 27" 1440p IPS screen, and then upgrade that to 4K in 1-2 years as it becomes more affordable. A third option: 3440x1440 ultra wide screen. A bit cheaper than 4K, lots of wow factor. E.g. Dell U3415W

edit Going down from 4K to 1080p works better than from 1440p or 3440x1440. GTX 960 4GB isn't fast enough to run Battlefield 4 or other demanding games on higher than 1080p, and 4K is exactly 4 times 1080p which results in less blur due to downscaling.

 

[PhIlLy ChEeSe]

WOW,
LehTV I'm post up when I need something next time, you guys know how to squeeze the wallet for all she's worth!

 

[Triloby]

Here's my suggestion of a good part list below:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6500 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($194.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-H110M-A Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($51.89 @ OutletPC)
Memory: G.Skill Aegis 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($33.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($87.77 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($47.77 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 960 4GB Video Card ($203.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Thermaltake Core V21 MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($44.99 @ Micro Center)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA P2 650W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($74.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $765.26
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-04-10 15:02 EDT-0400

CPU: You don't need more than a Core i5 for the kind of tasks you plan on doing. Even for those small moments of gaming on Battlefield 4, a Core i5 is more than sufficient enough for the task at hand. At least this way, you don't have to worry about your CPU bottle necking your GPU.

CPU Cooler: I chose this one for you because it's cheap and more than good enough for the task at hand. Overall, better temps and noise for your CPU than sticking with that lame stock cooler.

Motherboard: Cheap and more than adequate enough for the job at hand. Decent reviews on Newegg to (if you're planning to buy any parts from there).

Memory: 8 GB of DDR4-2133 is more than adequate enough for your needs. While 16 GB can help for a bit of future-proofing, the extra costs of 16 GB doesn't really justify the purchase right now. You can always upgrade to 16 GB later on in the future, though.

Storage: Pretty simple here. An SSD to store your OS and any applications that you use on a daily basis. A 1 TB mechanical hard drive to store any other applications and files that you don't use on a daily basis.

GPU: A 4 GB GTX 960 that is cool, quiet, power efficient, and more than powerful enough for your small gaming uses. Should be able to do Battlefield 4 at 1080p at 60 FPS on either high or ultra graphical settings. I also chose a GeForce because the current batch of Radeons are very power hungry when it comes to playing back Blu-Ray movies. Also good for non-gaming 4K content as well.

Case: A nice, small, cheap, cube form factor case to house all of your components in. Also has really good reviews from others that used this case for their computer builds. Should also look nice if you plan on putting your computer right next to your TV in your living room. Only real issue is installing the power supply, but you can always get help for that online. Speaking of which....

Power Supply: Extreme overkill, but it is fully modular, quiet, and very power efficient for your needs. Also, if you plan on overclocking or upgrading your GPU in the future, this power supply can easily handle the extra load no problems at all. It also comes with a really nice 10-year warranty, which I would definitely recommend if you must return your PSU if it develops any problems.

Regardless, you're coming in at around $765 overall for this PC build, which isn't very bad when you think about it. It should last you a very long time, provided your small gaming uses don't change in the future.

 

[lehtv]

WOW,
LehTV I'm post up when I need something next time, you guys know how to squeeze the wallet for all she's worth!

Cool. I'm not a TV channel though. It's just 'lehtv', thanks.

 

[lehtv]

Case: Thermaltake Core V21 MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($44.99 @ Micro Center)

Case: A nice, small, cheap, cube form factor case to house all of your components in. Also has really good reviews from others that used this case for their computer builds. Should also look nice if you plan on putting your computer right next to your TV in your living room. Only real issue is installing the power supply, but you can always get help for that online. Speaking of which....

Terrible aesthetics for living room use, IMO. Also, as an owner, I can't recommend this case.

The low quality acrylic window scratches very easily which makes it difficult to keep clean and scratch free. The window is also rather pointless without LED lights inside, and I doubt LED lighting is in the OP's agenda.

The hard disk cage implementation is terribad. There's practically no cooling in that part of the case, it is not suitable for installing hard disks in all three slots. Hard disks can be installed tool-free onto trays which then slide into the cage, but the construction quality (in my case, at least) is so bad that the trays drop out of the cage of their own accord. So I have to use screws to tighten the trays anyway, which means I have to unscrew and take out the entire cage every time I want to install or remove a hard disk. And the cage in an annoyingly tight compartment, making it frustrating to work with.

SSD trays only fit 9mm thick drives snugly, 7mm drives will move about in the tray. A minor issue, but an annoying design oversight nonetheless.

Another minor issue: the power supply is directly below the CPU socket. This is fine for most uses. For CPU overclocking though (especially if the case is in horizontal motherboard orientation), I would much rather have the PSU under the PCIe slots, like on Corsair Carbide Air 240 or Fractal Design Node 804.

To be fair I'm still using the case and I'm somewhat happy with it, but only because I've modded it extensively and got rid of the hdd cage entirely.

P.S. there is no issue with installing the PSU that I can tell

 

[Triloby]

Well, to be fair, I don't really own that particular case. I just thought it was small enough that it could sit right next to his TV in the living room.

Also, that PSU issue I mentioned was that some people had a difficult time screwing down the PSU into the case due to bad instructions, or some mounting bracket that had to be screwed in before seating the PSU into place.

That said, a Corsair Carbide Air 240 or a Fractal Design Node 804 are better alternatives for a MicroATX case. The only thing that really irks me about that Corsair case is the tool-less mount for the PCI-E cards which doesn't look robust or stable to me. Otherwise, he could go for those cases if he wants a small form factor in his living room.

 

[lehtv]

None of these cube cases is really that small. Volume-wise they're pretty close to normal ATX towers. If he wants SFF then he should be looking at mini-ITX cases, like Fractal Design Core 500 which is under 20 liters, about half the size of a normal ATX tower. Or HTPC style cases.

 

[RaistlinZ]

I like Triloby's build, with a case of the OP's choosing.

 

[Triloby]

None of these cube cases is really that small. Volume-wise they're pretty close to normal ATX towers. If he wants SFF then he should be looking at mini-ITX cases, like Fractal Design Core 500 which is under 20 liters, about half the size of a normal ATX tower. Or HTPC style cases.

That's true, but I wouldn't recommend a Mini-ITX build to someone who's building his own computer for the first time in his life. Also, a Mini-ITX build isn't exactly any cheaper compared to an ATX or Micro-ATX build.

Either way, he's going to have to make some trade-offs here and there. Unless he's actually willing to go Mini-ITX for his very first computer.

 

[Yuriman]

That's true, but I wouldn't recommend a Mini-ITX build to someone who's building his own computer for the first time in his life. Also, a Mini-ITX build isn't exactly any cheaper compared to an ATX or Micro-ATX build.

Either way, he's going to have to make some trade-offs here and there. Unless he's actually willing to go Mini-ITX for his very first computer.

I'm in agreement here. I tend to recommend ITX builds frequently these days, but a small mATX tower is probably more friendly for a new builder, and has more room for expansion/additional devices.

 

[Majcric]

Op, I would step down in memory speed anything over 3000 can affect your BCLK. this can become a headache unless you're ready for manual tuning.

Anyway I could talk you into the i7 6700k over the i5. You'll thank me later.

Also, I would step up to the Gigabyte gaming 7 MB, it can complete with the more expensive ones very well. I know this from learnt experience.

 

[lehtv]

Op, I would step down in memory speed anything over 3000 can affect your BCLK. this can become a headache unless you're ready for manual tuning.

I'm in agreement that fast RAM and Z170 are not needed for this build but... Can you elaborate? How does running >3000MHz memory affect BCLK?

 

[Majcric]

I'm in agreement that fast RAM and Z170 are not needed for this build but... Can you elaborate? How does running >3000MHz memory affect BCLK?

Over a certain Speed the XMP profile grabs at the BCLK for the faster memory.

For example, base is at 100. When high Speed memory is enabled using the XMP profile it'll set the BCLK around 102.10.

 

[lehtv]

Huh. I wonder if it's feasible to just force BCLK to 100 after XMP profile is applied, or avoid using XMP altogether and instead manually input all the settings.

 

[Majcric]

Not sure but I think most overclockers will suggest manually tuning especially if you have fast memory.

I do know it can throw some pretty crazy voltage at the System agent and VCCIO. For example ,VCCIO I've seen at 1.22 and System Agent 1.28

 

[DigDog]

Cool. I'm not a TV channel though.

lies

 

[ginobli2016]

thanks for the help. here's a question, as I'm weary of a mini case. I'm leaning towards a mid tower case for the room, but as I understand, cases that look like they have more room don't necessarily mean it will fit components easily. is there any suggestions for a good brand that makes PC cases?

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