Feedback on $1300 gaming PC

[JamesWatt1]

Here's what I'm thinking. Would love to get your input. Thanks!

CPU
$249.99 Intel Core i5-6600K 6M Skylake Quad-Core 3.5 GHz LGA 1151 91W BX80662I56600K Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 530

CPU Cooler
$29.99 Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO - CPU Cooler with 120 mm PWM Fan

GPU
$399.99 GIGABYTE GeForce GTX 1070 DirectX 12 GV-N1070WF2OC-8GD 8GB 256-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 ATX Video Cards

RAM
$59.99 CORSAIR Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 2666 (PC4 21300) Desktop Memory Model CMK16GX4M2A2666C16

SSD
$199.99 SAMSUNG 950 PRO M.2 256GB PCI-Express 3.0 x4 Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) MZ-V5P256BW

WIFI
$62.99 ASUS PCE-AC56 802.11ac Dual-band Wireless-AC1300 PCI-E Adapter

Motherboard
$139.99 GIGABYTE G1 Gaming GA-Z170X-Gaming 3 (rev. 1.0) LGA 1151 Intel Z170 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.1 USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

PSU
$79.99 CORSAIR CX series CX750M 750W ATX12V v2.3 80 PLUS BRONZE Certified Modular Active PFC Power Supply New 4th Gen CPU Certified

Case
$62.57 Cooler Master HAF 912 - Mid Tower Computer Case with High Airflow, Supporting up to Six 120mm Fans and USB 3.0

Total
$1285.49

Answers to questions from the forum sticky are below.

===

1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing.
Mostly gaming. I like RPG/FPS games (e.g., Deus Ex series, Mass Effect series, Dead Island, Borderlands, etc.), though recently have been playing a lot of Battlefield 4.

2. What YOUR budget is. A price range is acceptable as long as it's not more than a 20% spread
$1200-$1400

3. What country YOU will be buying YOUR parts from.
US

4. IF you're buying parts OUTSIDE the US, please post a link to the vendor you'll be buying from.
N/A

5. IF YOU have a brand preference.
N/A

6. If YOU intend on using any of YOUR current parts, and if so, what those parts are.
Mouse, Keyboard, Monitor

7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.
Default speeds, but would like ability to overclock to extend the useful life of the PC

8. What resolution, not monitor size, will you be using?
1920x1080 (i.e., 1080p)

9. WHEN do you plan to build it?
In the next week

10. Do you need to purchase any software to go with the system?
A Windows license I will buy separately

 

[UsandThem]

Mostly looks good, but a few things to research / think about:

The 950 Pro is fast, but will you really use that speed? 256 GB is not a lot of space for the OS and all your games/files. Might consider get a 850 EVO M.2 drive for your OS, and a regular hard drive for your games and programs.

The Corsair CX series are budget PSUs. You could drop it down to 650w and look at EVGA SuperNova G2 or P2 units for the same price. The G2 and P2 units have 10 year warranties, and they are much better rated units. 750w is way overkill for your hardware. Even a 550w unit would leave you plenty of headroom.

The GTX 1070 is a fast card, but if you are gaming at 1080p, you could save some money and get a card like the RX 480 which is targeted for 1080p gamers.

These are just some things you might want to look at before pulling the trigger.

 

[giantpandaman2]

I'd say paying for an 850 Pro isn't worth it for gaming. You probably won't even notice the extra speed it gives you over a SATA SSD.

Do you have to game on wifi? I'd avoid that as much as possible. Lag, latency, interference, etc. Save the money and install some Cat6 or something. Nothing will make you rage more than lost packets killing you in a game.

I agree with usandthem on the PSU. 750W is overkill. Better quality at the same price is a much better option.

 

[lehtv]

The GTX 1070 is a fast card, but if you are gaming at 1080p, you could save some money and get a card like the RX 480 which is targeted for 1080p gamers.

RX 480 is also targeted for a little lower budgets than what the OP is willing to spend. And it's on par with GTX 970 which was a suitable 1080p card two years ago. For current and future 1080p gaming, GTX 1070 is an excellent pick IMO

 

[lehtv]

Here you go

i7-6700K + Asus Z170 Pro Gaming $478 AR
Thermalright Macho Direct $48
Corsair RMx 850W + Team Dark 2x8GB DDR4-3000 $160 AR
Gigabyte GTX 1070 G1 Gaming $430
Crucial MX200 500GB $144
Phanteks Eclipse P400/P400S $65
TP-Link WN881ND wireless-N PCIe $19 (if needed; I would recommend using wired internet as this is not a mobile PC)
= $1344 after rebates

The Corsair 850W unit is overkill but only $10 more than the 650W unit. At least you'll be set for any dual GPU setup in the next 10 years

CPU can most likely be overclocked to 4.5GHz at about 1.4V and acceptable temps, assuming normal room temperature (23C or less).

Here's a cheaper alternative where overclocking is not possible:

i7-6700 + Asus H170 Pro Gaming $420 AR
Arctic i32 $25
EVGA 650 G2 $80 AR
2x8GB DDR4-2400 $53
-> save about $100.

I would buy the 6700K set, $100 is not a big price to pay for the possibility of 15% higher clock speed, faster RAM speed and better resale value.

 

[UsandThem]

RX 480 is also targeted for a little lower budgets than what the OP is willing to spend. And it's on par with GTX 970 which was a suitable 1080p card two years ago. For current and future 1080p gaming, GTX 1070 is an excellent pick IMO

True. But I think the GTX 1060 is now being moved up and released on July 9. That might be the best current-gen 1080p card; depending on price and performance. If a person doesn't care about benchmark numbers or getting the highest FPS, I think the RX 480 is a great value for 1080p. But of course it all comes down to personal preference. I just like letting people know all their options before they buy.

http://www.guru3d.com/articles_pages/amd_radeon_r9_rx_480_8gb_review,1.html


The GTX 1070 I think is a great card performance wise for 1080p and 1440p, but the price is what kills it for me recommending for 1080p gaming. If people could actually get one for $379, it would be a much price/performance ratio. All I've seen are the $450 FE cards so far actually be in stock for 5 minutes or longer. I know the supply will eventually catch-up to demand, but since it has been close to a month already, who knows when that will be.

Honestly, right now is not not the best time to buy a new card. Eveything current gen is at full MSRP+, the AIB's haven't gotten many cards to market yet, and the reference cards for both AMD RX 480 and Nvidia's FE seem to run hot/possible throttling in some reviews.

Add in the fact that last-gen Nvidia cards haven't really fallen in price as much as I thought they would by now either. In fact, the 980ti prices have ticked back up a little bit over the last 10 days.

 

[lehtv]

The GTX 1070 I think is a great card performance wise for 1080p and 1440p, but the price is what kills it for me recommending for 1080p gaming. If people could actually get one for $379, it would be a much price/performance ratio. All I've seen are the $450 FE cards so far actually be in stock for 5 minutes or longer. I know the supply will eventually catch-up to demand, but since it has been close to a month already, who knows when that will be.

I'm afraid you have not looked at the actual performance numbers. GTX 1070's price/perf is very good, it doesn't have to be $379 to be worth it.

performance
GTX 1070 = 100%
GTX 970 = 64%

price
Gigabyte GTX 1070 G1 Gaming $430 -> 100%
Gigabyte GTX 970 Windforce 3X $280 before rebate -> 280/430 = 65%

(Prices of other 1070's and 970's are in the same ballpark.)

Not only do you get the exact same performance per dollar you also get more than double the VRAM and better features and better aging due to new arch. And all this without even increasing power consumption! How can that not be a better purchase for literally any gamer who can spend that extra $150? Typically these >$400 cards have worse performance per dollar and worse power consumption (-> worse thermals and noise), yet they're still worth it at high budgets for the longevity they provide - no need to upgrade for a long time and you when you do upgrade, the card still has resale value.

 

[UsandThem]

I'm afraid you have not looked at the actual performance numbers. GTX 1070's price/perf is very good, it doesn't have to be $379 to be worth it.

I have. Like I said, one product doesn't fit everyone's wants/needs. I simply suggested they read some reviews, so they could make an informed decision before they bought.

The GTX 1070 might be perfect for some. Not arguing that. The RX 480 might fit others needs better as well.

For my gaming requirements, if I needed to buy a card today, the RX 480 would fit my needs better. I'm not arguing that GTX 1070 is a higher-performance card.

I'm not sure why me even mentioning the RX 480 is such an issue. You like the price/performance of the GTX 1070 even above the $379. Great. I'm not going to sit here and tell you are wrong, because I understand people have different viewpoints on hardware, and what works for me might not work for you.

Can we simply just agree to disagree?

 

[lehtv]

I have. Like I said, one product doesn't fit everyone's wants/needs. I simply suggested they read some reviews, so they could make an informed decision before they bought.

I did not disagree with this.

The GTX 1070 might be perfect for some. Not arguing that. The RX 480 might fit others needs better as well.

I also did not disagree with this. I didn't even mention RX 480.

For my gaming requirements, if I needed to buy a card today, the RX 480 would fit my needs better. I'm not arguing that GTX 1070 is a higher-performance card.

Sure, but we're not talking about your requirements.

I'm not sure why me even mentioning the RX 480 is such an issue.

It's not an issue - why do you think it is? I did not say anything about RX 480 or even quote the part where you mentioned RX 480.

You like the price/performance of the GTX 1070 even above the $379. Great. I'm not going to sit here and tell you are wrong, because I understand people have different viewpoints on hardware, and what works for me might not work for you.

This is not about what I like, what works for me or what viewpoints people have. These things are irrelevant to price/performance. According to the numbers in my previous post, GTX 1070 and GTX 970 offer the exact same performance per dollar (plus GTX 1070 offers overall better value for money due to reasons stated). This is not up for debate any more than the statement "2+2 = 4" is up for debate - unless you have reason to think GTX 1070 doesn't perform as well as Techpowerup's tests indicate.

And the reason I brought all this up was because you suggested there was something wrong with the performance per dollar of GTX 1070 priced at $430:

The GTX 1070 I think is a great card performance wise for 1080p and 1440p, but the price is what kills it for me recommending for 1080p gaming. If people could actually get one for $379, it would be a much price/performance ratio.

Of course, feel free to have whatever preference you want about whether paying the extra is worth it for 1080p gaming, but that doesn't change anything when it comes to price/performance ratio which is an objective calculable number.

Now, if you wanted to say RX 480 is going to offer better performance per dollar than GTX 1070, nonreference RX 480's may well do so but it won't be a big difference either way, based on the reference RX 480 performance results we've seen in reviews so far. It won't magically make a dent in a $430 GTX 1070's price/performance ratio.

Can we simply just agree to disagree?

Well, I agree that there's a disagreement. But that shouldn't be a reason to stop having a conversation, instead it should fuel the conversation. :thumbsup:

 

[UsandThem]

Well, I agree that there's a disagreement. But that shouldn't be a reason to stop having a conversation, instead it should fuel the conversation. :thumbsup:

I see you like deep discussion on cards. Nothing wrong about that. However, I am not one for hanging out in the video card and graphic section for long debates. In fact, I can't even remember the last time I posted a message in that sub-forum.

I'm more of a "You might want to read a review on this before buying, and run" type of guy. I don't care what people decide to go with. If they want to buy a $350 motherboard, great. If they want to buy a $70, it's fine as well. I read the reviews from various review sites, and base my buying decisions off of that.

I'm just not as passionate as I was about hardware when I was younger, and at this point in my life, I am the most non-enthusiast person that you might come across here. So, in all honesty, I don't think I'm the right guy for deep discussions. I like reading about it, but I just don't enjoy the back-and-forth debates because to me it's kinda like arguing politics.

I didn't mean to come across that I am done talking with you about stuff. I see your posts in many threads, and I know you know what you talking about. This is just one small area we see things a little bit differently.

 

[lehtv]

I see you like deep discussion on cards. Nothing wrong about that. However, I am not one for hanging out in the video card and graphic section for long debates. In fact, I can't even remember the last time I posted a message in that sub-forum.

Yes, very deep... No not really. All I did was focus on one small point in your reply that stood out as a factual error.

 

[UsandThem]

Yes, very deep... No not really. All I did was focus on one small point in your reply that stood out as a factual error.

Well, the area you focused on differs depending on which review you use. The one you referenced to earlier for your view on price/performance did. The ones I look at go a different route. Not exactly what I would call "factual" error, and exactly how threads are in the video card sub-forum.

Each main 1070, 1080, RX 480 review/discussion threads in the video card sub-forum each goes into 30+ pages of people lobbing statistics and articles back and forth at each other 'proving' their points. Not into arguing or deep debates.
Not my cup of tea, sorry.

tomayto, tomahto

 

[lehtv]

Well, the area you focused on differs depending on which review you use. The one you referenced to earlier for your view on price/performance did. The ones I look at go a different route. Not exactly what I would call "factual" error, and exactly how threads are in the video card sub-forum.

I find results to be fairly consistent between different review sites, to be honest. Whatever the case, Techpowerup's results are close enough to the truth that GTX 1070's price/perf is close to GTX 970's. Some review sites may show GTX 1070 getting ahead, others may show GTX 970 getting ahead. This largely depends on test bed hardware and what games are being used for testing.

Each main 1070, 1080, RX 480 review/discussion threads in the video card sub-forum each goes into 30+ pages of people lobbing statistics and articles back and forth at each other 'proving' their points. Not into arguing or deep debates.
Not my cup of tea, sorry.

What do you mean you're sorry? I said above I'm not interested in "deep discussion" either. Why do you have to act like I'm lying?

tomayto, tomahto

Not relevant here.

 

[UsandThem]

What do you mean you're sorry? I said above I'm not interested in "deep discussion" either. Why do you have to act like I'm lying?

It's a Southerner's way of trying to politely end a conversation.

Edit:

I don't know why it had to go this far with you, but after the PM you just sent:

Don't send me anymore vulgar private messages. Don't look for me to try and argue. If for some reason you can't end whatever issue you have, I will send the PM to a moderator.

I just knew this was how this thread was going to end with you because you apparently are looking for an argument. Over a difference of opinion on a video card? Really?

 

[JamesWatt1]

Thank you all for taking the time to share a round of feedback--I really appreciate it! Response to your comments and revised build below.

The 950 Pro is fast, but will you really use that speed? 256 GB is not a lot of space for the OS and all your games/files. Might consider get a 850 EVO M.2 drive for your OS, and a regular hard drive for your games and programs.

I'd say paying for an 850 Pro isn't worth it for gaming. You probably won't even notice the extra speed it gives you over a SATA SSD.

Valid questions. The candid answer is probably not. While some loading screens might go marginally faster, I'm interested in the PCIe M.2 disks mostly from the perspective of being in awe at 2.2GB/sec sequential read rates (vs. the 100MB/sec I remember from the 5400RPM IDE HDDs of my youth). I know random reads are probably more impactful on everyday perceived performance, but still think it's pretty neat tech.

I've been working off a 256 GB disk that Windows 10 shares with games now and while there is the occasional game uninstallation to install a different game, it seems to be working ok. This being said, will probably start with the 950 Pro and, if I get frustrated with micromanaging the space, I'll pick up a larger capacity HDD or SSD.

The Corsair CX series are budget PSUs. You could drop it down to 650w and look at EVGA SuperNova G2 or P2 units for the same price. The G2 and P2 units have 10 year warranties, and they are much better rated units. 750w is way overkill for your hardware. Even a 550w unit would leave you plenty of headroom.

I agree with usandthem on the PSU. 750W is overkill. Better quality at the same price is a much better option.

Great insight! Swapped out for $89.99 EVGA SuperNOVA 650 G2 80 Plus Gold Rated, Fully Modular ATX 12V/EPS 12V ECO Mode Power Supply 220-G2-0650-Y1

The GTX 1070 is a fast card, but if you are gaming at 1080p, you could save some money and get a card like the RX 480 which is targeted for 1080p gamers.

RX 480 is also targeted for a little lower budgets than what the OP is willing to spend. And it's on par with GTX 970 which was a suitable 1080p card two years ago. For current and future 1080p gaming, GTX 1070 is an excellent pick IMO

Appreciate the passionate discussion about these cards. Good considerations on both sides. As with the M.2, I think my preference is, even if it’s slightly overkill to go for what I think is most impressive technologically without being obscenely expensive, which, in my mind, is the GTX 1070.

Do you have to game on wifi? I'd avoid that as much as possible. Lag, latency, interference, etc. Save the money and install some Cat6 or something. Nothing will make you rage more than lost packets killing you in a game.

Sadly, yes. Despite being in a major city, the neighborhood I’m in only gets a miserable DSL service. Consequently (brace yourself), I wirelessly tether off my phone for gaming. Fortunately, I have a good carrier, so usually have pings in the 50-100ms range, but would be delighted if Google Fiber decided to run service to me.

Revised build is below. Would love to hear any other considerations before I pull the trigger. Thanks again!
CPU
$249.99 Intel Core i5-6600K 6M Skylake Quad-Core 3.5 GHz LGA 1151 91W BX80662I56600K Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 530

CPU Cooler
$29.99 Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO - CPU Cooler with 120 mm PWM Fan

GPU
$399.99 GIGABYTE GeForce GTX 1070 DirectX 12 GV-N1070WF2OC-8GD 8GB 256-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 ATX Video Cards

RAM
$59.99 CORSAIR Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 2666 (PC4 21300) Desktop Memory Model CMK16GX4M2A2666C16

SSD
$199.99 SAMSUNG 950 PRO M.2 256GB PCI-Express 3.0 x4 Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) MZ-V5P256BW

WIFI
$62.99 ASUS PCE-AC56 802.11ac Dual-band Wireless-AC1300 PCI-E Adapter

Motherboard
$139.99 GIGABYTE G1 Gaming GA-Z170X-Gaming 3 (rev. 1.0) LGA 1151 Intel Z170 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.1 USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

PSU
$89.99 EVGA SuperNOVA 650 G2 80 Plus Gold Rated, Fully Modular ATX 12V/EPS 12V ECO Mode Power Supply 220-G2-0650-Y1

Case
$62.57 Cooler Master HAF 912 - Mid Tower Computer Case with High Airflow, Supporting up to Six 120mm Fans and USB 3.0

Total
$1295.49

 

[UsandThem]

Appreciate the passionate discussion about these cards. Good considerations on both sides. As with the M.2, I think my preference is, even if it’s slightly overkill to go for what I think is most impressive technologically without being obscenely expensive, which, in my mind, is the GTX 1070.

It looks like you have put together a very nice gaming PC that will serve you well for years.

I apologize if I came across as passionate about the RX 480. For me they are just video cards made to fulfill a task the buyer wants it to. I am definitely not in the enthusiast category anymore, just an average user. My only goal when I respond to the "build my computer" or "review my computer" threads are to make sure the person knows the options they have. There are many different options out there, and it is not a one-size-fits-all option for people. Some people, like yourself, have definitely done some research on which components work for them.

A lot of people don't take the time to research anything before creating a post, so I want to make sure they are at least aware of some of their options. I don't own stock or work for Intel, AMD, Nvida, EVGA, Corsair, etc., so what a person buys doesn't matter to me. As long as they hopefully read a few reviews, and decide what works for them and their budget, that is my only goal.

I apologize for what your thread turned to, it wasn't my intention at all.

Best of luck to you on your build.

 

[frozentundra123456]

I find results to be fairly consistent between different review sites, to be honest. Whatever the case, Techpowerup's results are close enough to the truth that GTX 1070's price/perf is close to GTX 970's. Some review sites may show GTX 1070 getting ahead, others may show GTX 970 getting ahead. This largely depends on test bed hardware and what games are being used for testing.


What do you mean you're sorry? I said above I'm not interested in "deep discussion" either. Why do you have to act like I'm lying?


Not relevant here.

The problem with the 1070 is that at best the price/performance is about equal to the previous generation, when it should have improved. For instance the AMD 480 at 200.00 gives close to the performance of previous generation 300.00ish cards.

 

[MongGrel]

Revised build is below. Would love to hear any other considerations before I pull the trigger. Thanks again!
CPU
$249.99 Intel Core i5-6600K 6M Skylake Quad-Core 3.5 GHz LGA 1151 91W BX80662I56600K Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 530

CPU Cooler
$29.99 Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO - CPU Cooler with 120 mm PWM Fan

GPU
$399.99 GIGABYTE GeForce GTX 1070 DirectX 12 GV-N1070WF2OC-8GD 8GB 256-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 ATX Video Cards

RAM
$59.99 CORSAIR Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 2666 (PC4 21300) Desktop Memory Model CMK16GX4M2A2666C16

SSD
$199.99 SAMSUNG 950 PRO M.2 256GB PCI-Express 3.0 x4 Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) MZ-V5P256BW

WIFI
$62.99 ASUS PCE-AC56 802.11ac Dual-band Wireless-AC1300 PCI-E Adapter

Motherboard
$139.99 GIGABYTE G1 Gaming GA-Z170X-Gaming 3 (rev. 1.0) LGA 1151 Intel Z170 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.1 USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

PSU
$89.99 EVGA SuperNOVA 650 G2 80 Plus Gold Rated, Fully Modular ATX 12V/EPS 12V ECO Mode Power Supply 220-G2-0650-Y1

Case
$62.57 Cooler Master HAF 912 - Mid Tower Computer Case with High Airflow, Supporting up to Six 120mm Fans and USB 3.0

Total
$1295.49

Looks solid to me, any issues with the PSU and SSD others have all ready covered.

I'm still an ASUS mobo and GSkill ram fanboi, but that is probably personal preference. Nothing wrong with what you have on the list now IMHO for $1300.

 

[jana519]

I'll echo what others have said and recommend going with the 850 Evo and using the money saved to upgrade other parts. For a PC that's used for gaming, the 850 Evo will feel just as fast. The price premium for 950 Pro sequential reads is not worth it for you. You may have new PC Buyer's syndrome and are overly enamored with specs on paper.

Second recommendation is to match case and motherboard form factor. The HAF 912 is an ATX case and you have a Gigabyte GA-Z170X-Gaming 3 mATX motherboard. If you're set on that motherboard, why not choose a smaller case or vice versa?

Finally I believe the GTX 1070 would be overkill for that monitor. Wait one week for either the GTX 1060 or the AIB RX 480s to come out. The newest gen GPUs are going to give you higher performance/$ than what is currently available.

That said, here's my recommended:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($249.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170MX-Gaming 5 Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($152.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($92.00 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 960 4GB Superclocked Video Card ($213.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Define Mini MicroATX Mini Tower Case ($105.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Wireless Network Adapter: Asus PCE-AC56 PCI-Express x1 802.11a/b/g/n/ac Wi-Fi Adapter ($62.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1067.89
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-07-01 15:33 EDT-0400

My parts list is the same as yours with the $200 1060/GX 480 instead of a GTX 1070 and a Samsung Evo 850 instead of a Pro 950. Also, I went with the Fractal Define Mini mATX case which has sound dampening for near silence under load. Total savings of $228. All the parts were chosen from a single vendor (Newegg), which means if you can find a Newegg Giftcard at 95% you save an additional $53. That should leave your wallet a little heavier for splurging somewhere else.

(The GTX 960 is just a placeholder until the new cards arrive. Roughly equivalent in price to the RX 480 or GTX 1060.)

 

[lehtv]

The problem with the 1070 is that at best the price/performance is about equal to the previous generation, when it should have improved. For instance the AMD 480 at 200.00 gives close to the performance of previous generation 300.00ish cards.

What. The GTX 1070 at $450 gives the same performance as the previous generation's $650 GTX 980 Ti. Of course, 980 Ti is no longer $650, prices were pushed down when GTX 1070 was released because no one will buy remaining 980 Ti units at $650.

 

[mjdupuis]

I'll only mention this since it's something I've been looking into and it may be worth your while:

Xeon E3-1230 v5 and an overclocking capable C-232 board. This is the Xeon version of the 6700k. Same price as the i5 but you get the i7 hyperthreading and performance. From everything I've looked at it's just a Xeon version of the 6700k, no integrated graphics and it adds ECC RAM.
The big downside: You loose the easier overclocking and have to use BCLK methods (the board I'm linking to can overclock).
Board: Gigabyte GA-X150M-Pro
CPU: Xeon E3-1230 V5

TLDR: less money than the motherboard/CPU combo you listed but with i7 performance and potential overclocking if you want it.
A video that explains it all
Turn a Xeon E3 1230v5 into an i7 6700K!