Thoughts on gaming pc

[SithSolo1]

Edit: Update in post 17



I'm spec'ing out a gaming system for my brother to order soon, just wanted a quick check to make sure I haven't missed anything.

Here's what I have so far:

Case - NZXT H440
PSU - EVGA SuperNOVA 750 G2
CPU/Mobo/Ram Combo - Intel i5-4670k , GigaByte GA-Z97X-SLI , G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB
Cooler - Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo
GPU - MSI Gaming GTX 970
SSD - Crucial MX100 512GB

The PSU is overkill but he's still mulling over adding a 2nd card in a few months so I figure better safe than sorry.
He has a Windows 7 Home disk and an external drive so I didn't include those.

 

[lehtv]

As always, make sure you got all the info requested in this thread. What's missing: budget, preference on overclocking, and monitor resolution.

 

[SithSolo1]

Main goal is to run Star Citizen as it is currently and when it releases without buying a whole new system.

Budget: He hasn't given me a set budget but I'm trying to keep it under $1500 without a display.

Overclocking: Unknown

Monitor resolution: Unknown. At the moment he's bouncing between a single LG 29UM65 which is 2560x1080 and a triple 1920x1080 setup. His current monitor is 1280x1024.

Time frame is this week.

 

[lehtv]

Well, SC will be a really tough game to run smoothly. Currently it's unoptimized and suffers from that, but as we get closer to release, it'll also get more complex. I think they're aiming for current high end PC's to run it on medium settings smoothly. At the time of release you'll want the newest tech and lots of it to run it smoothly on ultra.

To me the idea right now is to keep it simple. I wouldn't start thinking about triple monitors or 1440p just yet. Get the base system figured out, and stick to a single high end card (GTX 970) and a single 1080p monitor for now. When the game is close to finished and optimized and you know for a fact what hardware it needs to run at the intended resolution and settings, upgrade the graphics card and monitor setup accordingly. The rest of the system should be fine for a long time. Maybe a CPU+mobo+RAM to the DDR4 age in 2.5-3 years, but things like the PSU, case, drives, cooler etc should last 5+ years.

Here's what I threw together:

i7-4790K $340
Asrock Z97 Extreme6 $150 AR
2x8GB G.Skill Ares 2133MHz 1.5V $134
Noctua U14S $70
Asus 970 Strix $350
Crucial MX100 512GB $206 shipped @ Superbiiz
EVGA 850-G2 $95 AR (enough for a 970 SLI with OC)
Phanteks Enthoo Pro $100

=$1445

Of course, you can save costs here and there, e.g. settle for a lesser cooler or use the boxed cooler, or get the slightly cheaper EVGA 970, or a 256GB SSD instead of 512GB.

The thing with the 4790K is that CryEngine handles the extra threads really well, and it's bound to get very CPU heavy in the PU with instances full of players and NPCs interacting.

The motherboard and PSU I wouldn't change, both are needed for overclocking and SLI setups which is what you'll want to run Star Citizen properly on a high resolution. 1440p or tri-1080p on a single card without OC just isn't going to happen, and even 1080p at the time of release may well benefit from dual GPUs.

 

[SithSolo1]

Thanks for the input and pricing those parts out, I'll run it by him before we do anything.

He had picked out that NZXT H440 with an Obsidian 750D as a backup case if the H440 wouldn't work. Is there anything wrong with either of those as opposed to the Enthoo?

 

[lehtv]

Thanks for the input and pricing those parts out, I'll run it by him before we do anything.

He had picked out that NZXT H440 with an Obsidian 750D as a backup case if the H440 wouldn't work. Is there anything wrong with either of those as opposed to the Enthoo?

They're both a bit more expensive. I like having $100 as my price ceiling for cases, usually after that the added cost adds progressively less substance. I'm sure that both the H440 and the 750D are pretty nice cases, but aside from aesthetics (personal preference), I don't see a reason to favor them over the Enthoo Pro which already has lots of fan slots, great stock cooling, high quality construction, and a modern feature set (removable disk cages, advanced cable routing, SSD friendly, dust filtered), 5 year warranty.

 

[SithSolo1]

Thats what I figured. Thanks again

 

[escrow4]

If you want CPU longevity, get a 5820K and Asrock Extreme 4 X99. If SC really is built for PCs it will take advantage of those cores. You can upgrade other bits but the core guts should be built to last.

At Microcentre its $300, and the mobo is $240 before a rebate down to $210. I wouldn't put a quad, even hyperthreaded, into a $1500 PC myself.

 

[lehtv]

If you want CPU longevity, get a 5820K and Asrock Extreme 4 X99. If SC really is built for PCs it will take advantage of those cores. You can upgrade other bits but the core guts should be built to last.

At Microcentre its $300, and the mobo is $240 before a rebate down to $210.

That's a pretty good price, but it's only available in-store. If the OP has a Microcenter nearby, then he should definitely shop there for the CPU and motherboard.

However, there's still an argument to be made for the 4790K (e.g. $410 paired with a Z97X Gaming-7, or $100 less than the 5820K setup):

• higher performance per clock
• better overclockability
• costs less, and requires a less expensive motherboard
• 25W lower idle watts and much lower load watts reduce running costs
• comes with an IGP for backup

With OC, the 4790K will perform about 15% better per core. Is that amount of performance loss worth having two more cores just for apps that can take continuous advantage of them? I think fewer but faster cores is always a safer bet. Per-core performance tends to be a better indication of longevity than multithreaded performance... because some things just can't be multithreaded.

Also, we know that Star Citizen will feature DX12 support which will reduce CPU limitations, so it's still up in the air whether the 5820K is going to be faster or not in the actual game.¨

 

[formula1]

Hey, as long as you keep that SSD in your machine you're going to be happy. I always find it baffling when someone builds a modern PC without an SSD.

 

[mfenn]

That's a pretty good price, but it's only available in-store. If the OP has a Microcenter nearby, then he should definitely shop there for the CPU and motherboard.

Absolutely. They offer good combo deals on the Haswell-E as well as Haswell.

Regarding Star Citizen core scaling, it is fairly nonexistent at the moment. A the difference in minimums between an quad-core and a six-core is 4 FPS.

 

[lehtv]

Absolutely. They offer good combo deals on the Haswell-E as well as Haswell.

Regarding Star Citizen core scaling, it is fairly nonexistent at the moment. A the difference in minimums between an quad-core and a six-core is 4 FPS.

Nice find. However, the difference between 4C vs 6C is 1 FPS average, 4 FPS minimum. Meanwhile, hyperthreading decreases performance in both CPU's.

I wouldn't put too much stock in these early tests though, the real deal will be the Persistent Universe which is not even in alpha yet.

 

[mfenn]

Nice find. However, the difference between 4C vs 6C is 1 FPS average, 4 FPS minimum. Meanwhile, hyperthreading decreases performance in both CPU's.

Regarding Star Citizen core scaling, it is fairly nonexistent at the moment. A the difference in minimums between an quad-core and a six-core is 4 FPS.

Yep, that's what I said.

I wouldn't put too much stock in these early tests though, the real deal will be the Persistent Universe which is not even in alpha yet.

I agree that it might not be representative of the final product, but it shows that they'll have to tweak and tune the game to get higher multi-core utilization. In other words, the game engine is not natively good at multi-core scaling as some have speculated.

 

[lehtv]

Yep, that's what I said.

I must be blind

I agree that it might not be representative of the final product, but it shows that they'll have to tweak and tune the game to get higher multi-core utilization. In other words, the game engine is not natively good at multi-core scaling as some have speculated.

Yep. Do you happen to be a SC backer by the way?

 

[mfenn]

I must be blind

No worries. :awe:

Yep. Do you happen to be a SC backer by the way?

I am, but I haven't messed with it in a while.

 

[lehtv]

No worries. :awe:

I am, but I haven't messed with it in a while.

Last I played was in AC 0.9x something, a couple months ago (which was right after I joined in, I'm not an early backer). I'm just waiting for the FPS module before I really delve into it and start giving feedback to the devs. I really hope they nail that part of the game because that'll just bring it to another level for an FPS-lover like me

 

[SithSolo1]

Well his computer is up and running. I passed along the info that was presented and here's what he ended up getting:

Fractal Design Define R5
Evga SuperNOVA 750 G2
Intel i7-4790k
Gigabyte GA-Z97X Gaming 7
Noctua U14S
16GB G.Skill Ares
Asus GTX 970 Strix
Crucial MX100 256GB
WD Black Series 2TB
Dell U2415
Win 8.1 Pro

Overall he is happy with the built and you can barely hear it running. Thanks again for all the input and suggestions.

 

[lehtv]

The build looks great. Oozing quality.

I thought he already had a Windows 7 Home Premium?

 

[SithSolo1]

The build looks great. Oozing quality.

I thought he already had a Windows 7 Home Premium?

He does have a copy but, he didn't feel like backing up data and wiping the old PC yet so he just went ahead and bought another copy of windows.

 

[lehtv]

Why Win 8.1. Pro though? It's a lot more expensive than the standard version and doesn't usually offer anything that home users need

 

[SithSolo1]

I didn't ask, thats just what he when I went over to help him put it together.


I have Pro on my system but I got it cheap through the MS student deal a while back, I guess he just assumed it was the one to get.