Help with high end Haswel build

[FFM]

I need to build or buy a new PC. My old PC which I built in 2005 and kept updating is dead (boots for few seconds and shut off). Don't laugh but I was able to keep it running 24/7 because it was a Supermicro Dual Xeon (3.0 GHz), ECC memory, and kept upgrading the powewr supply, memory, graphics board, SSD, operating system, 15K RPM SCSI Cheetah drives (RAID) etc.

1. What YOUR PC will be used for. That means what types of tasks you'll be performing.

Used for general computing, Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Premier (basically transfering old family movies to DVD), Encore, InDesign, Desktop publishing, accessing medical imaging and charts from home. No gaming.
I want speed, quality, upgradability, workstation type stability.
I am entertaining runnig a virtual machine for older programs and laser printers (XP)
Want to use PC to store and play high resolution digital music (hook it to high end stereo system)
Like computer to be on the quite side

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

$5,000 +/- for computer alone

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

4. IF you're buying parts OUTSIDE the US, please post a link to the vendor you'll be buying from.
We can't be expected to scour the internet on your behalf, chasing down deals in your specific country... Again, help us, help YOU.

5. IF YOU have a brand preference. That means, are you an Intel-Fanboy, AMD-Fanboy, ATI-Fanboy, nVidia-Fanboy, Seagate-Fanboy, WD-Fanboy, etc.

Presfer Intel, nVidia, Asus, Supermicro, had good luck and bad with Seagate drives.

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

Not realy, maybe a plextor optical drive
7. IF YOU plan on overclocking or run the system at default speeds.
Depends, if I go with i-7 then yes, if Xeon, then maybe not as they are not meant for overclocking
8. What resolution, not monitor size, will you be using?
Eventually a 4K monitor. Now, whatever a high resolution video board will do.

9. WHEN do you plan to build it?
Note that it is usually not cost or time effective to choose your build more than a month before you actually plan to be using it.
Anytime now.
X. Do you need to purchase any software to go with the system, such as Windows or Blu Ray playback software?
Windows 8.1 Pro. Nero ro CyberLink, and update older software

I'm looking at Haswell-E i-7 5960X or equivalent Xeon v3.
Motherboards ASUS X99 E-WS, or Dual Xeon, or equivalent Supermicro board. Start with one xeon (if this is the route) and add another later. Start with one graphic card and add another SLI one later?
The case should have front access to at least 3 5.25 drives.

My big dilema if I need a dual xeon motherboard these days when there are 6 core multithreaded i-7.

Any input is appreciated. Thanks

 

[Ken g6]

Looks like Core 2 didn't launch until 2006, so your Xeons must be Pentium-4 based. You're in for a treat!

The most demanding application in your list for CPU and GPU seems to be Photoshop. Everything else might take RAM, but not much CPU.

To your dilemma, more than 6 cores almost never helps Photoshop. On average it uses 3 in most of those tests. So CPU clock speed is probably more important than cores for you.

I can't help but notice a contradiction in your goals: You want "workstation type stability", but you potentially want to overclock. Overclocking often causes instability. Did you overclock your last system?

If you do want to overclock, I'd go with the i7-5820K. If you don't want to overclock, that's a difficult decision. You could get the 3.5GHz i7-5930K with 6 cores. Or you could get a 3.7GHz Xeon E5-1630 V3 with only 4 cores. Or you could get a 4GHz i7-4790K, but it only supports 32GB of RAM, as opposed to up to 64GB with the others.

You don't need more than one video card if you're not gaming. In Adobe CS, a high-end card has limited utility over a lower-end one, and even less utility on old versions. Which Adobe version will you be using? And what video card were you using in your last system?

I was blown away by your $5000 budget, but then I notice you say "update older software". Can you estimate how much of that you plan to spend on upgrading software?

Finally, why aren't you reusing your SSD?

 

[Essence_of_War]

My big dilema if I need a dual xeon motherboard these days when there are 6 core multithreaded i-7.

You don't. Photoshop won't be able to take advantage of it. As keng6 has pointed out, you get pretty sharply diminishing returns after ~6 cores.

Windows 8.1 Pro. Nero ro CyberLink, and update older software

Can you estimate exactly how much of your budget needs to go towards this? For pro-quality photo/video editing software, this could be a significant investment.

I can't help but notice a contradiction in your goals: You want "workstation type stability", but you potentially want to overclock. Overclocking often causes instability. Did you overclock your last system?

I firmly agree with this. OP, If you NEED rock-stable, don't overclock. Heck, if you DEMAND time=money kind of rock stability, your best bet is to purchase a system from Dell/HP/Lenovo that will come with a service contract.

Also, it wasn't totally clear to me, but do you also need a new monitor? And how much storage capacity do you presently need?

Here's a pass at it:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-5930K 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($529.00 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright HR-02 Rev.A(BW) 73.6 CFM CPU Cooler ($52.90 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus X99-A ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($258.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Crucial 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($384.99 @ B&H)
Storage: Crucial MX100 512GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($199.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Seagate Desktop HDD 4TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 Blackout with Window ATX Mid Tower Case ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA NEX 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($59.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (32/64-bit) ($94.99 @ B&H)
Monitor: Asus PB278Q 27.0" Monitor ($459.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $2270.82
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-10 22:00 EST-0500

And I'd toss in an entry level pro GPU like the K620 for $170

 

[OlyAR15]

This is what I came up with:

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/n4dJTW

CPU: Intel Core i7-5930K 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($529.00 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U14S 55.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus X99-A ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($256.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Crucial 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($384.99 @ B&H)
Storage: Samsung 850 Pro Series 1TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($648.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Western Digital WD Black 4TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($253.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 750 Ti 2GB STRIX Video Card ($155.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo Pro ATX Full Tower Case ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 520W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($139.99 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 Professional (OEM) (64-bit) ($142.97 @ OutletPC)
Total: $2682.87
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-10 21:30 EST-0500

Unless you insist on throwing money at the PC (and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that), you don't need to spend that much money for what you are doing. The above system will still allow you enough to upgrade or add in the future, including more storage or RAM. You don't need a high end video card for photoshop and definitely not SLI. That would be a waste of money if you aren't gaming. The Asus X99-A motherboard has so far been stable for me, doesn't have a bunch of extras which you don't seem to need, but does have an optical digital output for hooking up to your receiver (of course you can always just use HDMI) and the fan control is very good, allowing you to tailor the cooling vs. noise from your fans.

A small overclock will likely still be stable, maybe up to 3.8 or 4 GHz.

Also, if your storage needs are greater than the 4TB drive, you might want to look into something like a NAS.

 

[avinyc]

Unless you insist on throwing money at the PC (and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that), you don't need to spend that much money for what you are doing.

Agreed, I saw the 5K budget and couldn't think of a realistic build that would require so much (unless you are paying someone else to build it).

Also, if your storage needs are greater than the 4TB drive, you might want to look into something like a NAS.

My next project is to build a private NAS that can handle 12+ tb of storage and work as a plex server.

 

[FFM]

Thanks for all the responses so far.
I came up with the $5,000 budget when I was eying a system based on the following (and for the same components, a custom builder on the internet charges $5,900).

Case: Corsair Obsidian 559D or 750D ($160 @Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus X99-E WS ($529 @Newegg)
CPU: Intel i7 5960X ($1,050 @Newegg)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 32 GB ($760 @Newegg)
Power Supply: Corsair AX1200i ($279 @Newegg)
Storage 1 : Panasonic 850 Pro SSD 1GB ($700 @Newegg)
Storage 2: Western Digital RE 4TB SATA III ($270 @Newegg)
Graphics board: EVGA nVidia GTX 980 4 GB ($630 @Newegg)
Optical drive 1: Pioneer Blu-Ray burner BDP 2209 ($86 @Newegg)
Optical drive 2: Pioneer Blu-Ray burner BDP 2209 ($86 @Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NHD14 ($85 @Newegg)
CPU cooler option 2: Corsair H110 water cooler (never build one of those) ($104 @Newegg)
Digital multifunction card reader: ($20 @Newegg)
Operating System: Windows 8.1 Pro retail ($200 @Newegg).

Total around $5,000 excluding other hardware and software.

Currently I have a Dell U2410 monitor.
I'm keeping my old SSD drive with Windows 7 Ultimate and my programs and data on it and eventually (once the new system is up and running) transfer the data and use it as a scratch HDD.

To me, stability is more important than over clocking.
I Guess I might forget about a Xeon (single or dual CPU system).

From the responses above, I might be over doing it here for what I need.

 

[Ken g6]

This is what I came up with:

PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/n4dJTW

CPU: Intel Core i7-5930K 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($529.00 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U14S 55.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus X99-A ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($256.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Crucial 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($384.99 @ B&H)
Storage: Samsung 850 Pro Series 1TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($648.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Western Digital WD Black 4TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($253.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 750 Ti 2GB STRIX Video Card ($155.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo Pro ATX Full Tower Case ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 520W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($139.99 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 Professional (OEM) (64-bit) ($142.97 @ OutletPC)
Total: $2682.87
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-10 21:30 EST-0500

Unless you insist on throwing money at the PC (and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that), you don't need to spend that much money for what you are doing. The above system will still allow you enough to upgrade or add in the future, including more storage or RAM. You don't need a high end video card for photoshop and definitely not SLI. That would be a waste of money if you aren't gaming. The Asus X99-A motherboard has so far been stable for me, doesn't have a bunch of extras which you don't seem to need, but does have an optical digital output for hooking up to your receiver (of course you can always just use HDMI) and the fan control is very good, allowing you to tailor the cooling vs. noise from your fans.

A small overclock will likely still be stable, maybe up to 3.8 or 4 GHz.

Also, if your storage needs are greater than the 4TB drive, you might want to look into something like a NAS.

Not bad! From what I can tell I don't think Photoshop uses double-precision floating point on graphics cards, so I don't think a pro-level graphics card is useful. (But I could be wrong! Especially if you're doing 3D modeling in PS for some reason.)

A few things I'd change:
1. The PSU doesn't need to be Platinum level.
2. If you're going to throw that much money at an SSD, I'd suggest something like this PCIe SSD I just saw mention of in Off Topic. Or something similar - I haven't researched. Four times as fast as a standard SSD! :twisted:
3. If you are overclocking, no reason not to go back to the 5820K. It has 16 PCIe lanes for the graphics, 8 for the SSD, and you should be able to reach similar speeds with it easily enough.
4. Also, you now have plenty of budget left if you want to get a 4K monitor. All the modern GPUs can handle them.

 

[Essence_of_War]

To me, stability is more important than over clocking.
I Guess I might forget about a Xeon (single or dual CPU system).

From the responses above, I might be over doing it here for what I need.

A Xeon system is fine. A dual-xeon system is probably a lot of extra money for very little performance improvement. The bottom line is this: Any modern quad-core haswell CPU w/ 16+ GB of RAM, a nice SSD, plenty of storage space, and a nice monitor, is going to feel fantastic. You have enough budget to purchase a 4k IPS monitor (24'' for $700, 32'' for $1700) and put together a great build for photoshop/work build without turning all of the metaphorical numbers up to 11 just to spend money.

We've spec'd out some fairly absurd builds just because your budget is deep, but I think the marginal value in moving to the LGA2011 platform to get 6-cores is pretty small compared to the additional cost of DDR4, and the 6-core premium that intel charges.

Some of the parts that you spec'd out from the system builder look solid, but many of them look strange to me:
1) The RAM is incredibly overpriced
2) the PSU is very nice but VERY expensive and WAY over spec'd,
3) the SSD is a solid choice but eyebrow raisingly large capacity if you're also using a 4TB storage drive,
4) The 4TB storage drive is quite pricey for its capacity
5) The GTX 980 is a fantastic GPU, but it's a gaming gpu, and it's just not going to provide you with much benefit over an entry-level quadro, or the GTX 750/750 Ti if you're not gaming.
6) The NH-D14 is an older model, and the NH-D15 can be found for the same price, and similarly performing CPU coolers like the Phanteks TCP14 and the Thermalright HR-02 can be found for cheaper.

 

[Cerb]

Edit: strike-throughs: I missed the 3x5.25" bay requirement, the first time around.

My big dilema if I need a dual xeon motherboard these days when there are 6 core multithreaded i-7.

Not a chance. You'd probably be happy with an LGA1150 setup, but if you keep stuff forever, and have the budget, might as well go big.

As far as a build using ECC goes, Haswell refresh firmwares put a kink into the works. Plus, $5k? Eh, why not go X99? So, here's a bit of a different one, with ECC RAM, and a Xeon (necessary for ECC). In deference to keeping the PC for a long time, I went against my normal ways, and for full ATX. This is a non-overclocking build.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E5-1650 V3 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($576.98 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Macho-120 73.6 CFM CPU Cooler ($44.90 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock X99 Extreme4 ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($204.99 @ Micro Center)
Storage: Crucial M550 1TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($449.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Western Digital Red 4TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive ($168.98 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital Red 4TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive ($168.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 750 1GB ZONE Video Card ($115.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case ($109.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: Corsair RM 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Pioneer BDR-209DBK Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Case Fan: Noctua NF-A14 PWM 82.5 CFM 140mm Fan ($23.95 @ Amazon)
Other: 32GB DDR4-2133 ECC (4x8GB) ($450.00)
Total: $2479.71
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-11 10:32 EST-0500

Edit:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E5-1650 V3 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($576.98 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Thermalright Macho-120 73.6 CFM CPU Cooler ($44.90 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASRock X99 Extreme4 ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($204.99 @ Micro Center)
Storage: Crucial M550 1TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($449.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Western Digital Red 4TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive ($168.98 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital Red 4TB 3.5" 5900RPM Internal Hard Drive ($168.98 @ OutletPC)
Video Card: Zotac GeForce GTX 750 1GB ZONE Video Card ($115.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Nanoxia NXDS5B ATX Full Tower Case ($129.99 @ Micro Center) <- also comes in white
Power Supply: Corsair RM 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($109.99 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Pioneer BDR-209DBK Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($54.99 @ Newegg)
Other: 32GB DDR4-2133 ECC (4x8GB) ($450.00)
Total: $2475.76
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-11-11 11:32 EST-0500

I have not yet used any Nanoxia cases, so how well the stock fans do v. aftermarket, fan control, and any of that, ???. They are well liked, and look suitable, though.

Add OS and accessories as desired.

1. The PSU is a bit oversized ("a bit," being 3-4x ), but it is semi-passive, and at that wattage, will hardly ever even turn its fan on, in regular use.

2. DDR4 ECC still hasn't trickled in to PCPP, it seems.

3. A Xeon is needed to use ECC.

4. WD Red drives for their minimal whine, without much sample variance in that respect, not for performance. You can get another 20-30% performance with any 7200 RPM drive.

5. It won't matter today, I doubt, but as time goes by (where's a TV that I can set to PBS when I need it?), the added clock speed of the 3.5GHz 6-core Xeon will be better to have than more cores. The stock speed cores v. speed does not favor desktop/workstation usage at all, but heavy multithreaded server loads. With 6 cores and 12 threads, you will not want nor need for a 2nd CPU. The only practical application for one will be batch video encoding, and the lone 6C12T Xeon is a beast at that to begin with.

6. The Macho, Macho 120, Ninja 3, and NH-D14 are all great coolers, and at stock settings, will do admirably (NH-D15, too, but it is sometimes too big). The Macho 120 cools close to as well as the Ninja 3 and Macho, but gives you much more room to work around, in the case, than the Macho or D14. The Macho 120 and Macho are both easier to install than the Ninja 3 or big Noctuas, as well. The best cooler, that definitely won't take up a PCIe slot will be the Noctua NH-D14, but are a bit harder to work with than the Thermalrights. At stock speed, the difference between all these coolers, with a fan installed on each, and a good speed v. temp curve, will be negligible. IMO, the U14 isn't worth it for what it offers, though it is smaller than the rest, and a perfectly fine cooler.

7. The NZXT H630 and H440 would be good case alternatives, IMO. The H440 has a window, and covers the 5.25" bays with the door, while the H630 has no window, and exposes them (due to black trim, the white version still looks fine with a black ODD). I'd stick to the R4 if going all black, though.

8. For the Define R4, an added exhaust fan. Move the one it comes with to the front, as a second intake, remove the middle drive cage, if you won't be using it, and put the NF-A14 PWM in the exhaust position. Hook the included fans to either the hub/switch on the case, or controllable 3-pin headers (I'm not 100% sure if that motherboard supports controlling 3-pin headers--if it does, great, but the case's controller will work if not). Hook the exhaust fan up to one of the motherboard's 4-pin headers, not CPU. Set the range of speeds for the rear fan and CPU fan to stay at low speeds (Noctuas make very little noise until they approach 800 RPM, generally, and ASRock fan control can run most PWM models down to under 200 RPM). The motherboard's included quiet fan preset may or may not suffice. But, if not, you will have tons of control options, both in the firmware and in Windows.

You could probably get away with not bothering with all this, but you will be able to run all the fans much slower this way, reducing the system's noise to negligible levels 90% of the time, and reducing both dust making it into the case, and even dust that will stick to the filter. At low speeds, stuck in the front, the included case fans should be inaudible, so no need to swap them out, unless they present some unpleasant tonality to you. You're using enough power to maybe warrant the added fan, but still not a lot. The rear one helping pull air will allow the other fans to run at lower RPMs for the same cooling, though, if it isn't actually useful in terms of total heat exhausting.

Also, don't worry about soft mounting fans. It's more trouble than it's worth, with well-balanced fans and a sturdy case.

9. Crucial's M550 SSD, because they're all pretty fast, now, it's 1TB, they have decent CS if you need it, it's not too costly for the space, and it's not brand new. With CPUs and Windows versions, stay cutting edge; with storage, I like to stay a little behind that edge. Also, having one just under half that size, I love having all that space to play with. Put all your working files on the SSD, and leave the HDDs to only what can't fit, or is long-term storage.

10. 2 (or more?) HDDs: RAID 1, or internal scheduled backups. If you want more fancy RAID, go ahead and forget RAID 5. It's 2014, and about as slow as it ever was. Use 0 for unimportant fast data, 1 for HDD failure protection, 10 for important fast data, and don't skip backups on account of using RAID, if you do use RAID.

Load noise can be annoying to deal with in any white box PC much above 100W under load, just due to each one being a little different, and needing its own tweaking. But, the above can, with no more than customizing fan speeds v. temperatures, be made inaudible, from several feet, under all but the heaviest of loads (and maybe even then). Not, "not too loud," but, "the LEDs are how you know it's on." Edit: I'd bet this will still be true, with the Nanoxia Deep Silence 5, but you might need an added fan controller, to make it super quiet.

 

[FFM]

Thanks again for all the input. I have been and searching to digest all the information.
I am convinced now that I don't need the i7 5960X. I'm leaning towards the i7 5930K instead.
I am also convinced that water cooling is the way to go as those fan coolers are so huge they obstruct (or make difficult) access to memory, other slots etc. and generate more noise.
I'm thinking of starting with 16 GB of DDR4 RAM and upgrade later if needed.

 

[Ken g6]

I'm leaning towards the i7 5930K instead.

3. If you are overclocking, no reason not to go back to the 5820K. It has 16 PCIe lanes for the graphics, 8 for the SSD, and you should be able to reach similar speeds with it easily enough.

I'm thinking of starting with 16 GB of DDR4 RAM and upgrade later if needed.

I'd start with 32 myself. You can eventually upgrade to 128GB if needed!

But if you're not overclocking and you think you can start with just 16GB RAM, that makes the i7-4790K sound more appealing, as it's higher-clocked and a lower-cost platform overall.

 

[OlyAR15]

5930k is fine.

The large tower coolers may be overkill for someone who isn't going to overclock, but they are going to be quieter than a smaller heatsink and fan. If you are not going to overclock, a cheap small HSF such as this will work. http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835119157

It won't be the quietest at full throttle,but will work. I would still use something like the Noctua NH-U12S http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835608040 as it will be quieter but still not interfere with ram slots as it is a slimmer design than the really extreme tower coolers.

For your usage I would just go with 32GB of RAM. It just doesn't have to be the overclocked Corsair modules you were looking at.

 

[Essence_of_War]

Thanks again for all the input. I have been and searching to digest all the information.
I am convinced now that I don't need the i7 5960X. I'm leaning towards the i7 5930K instead.
I am also convinced that water cooling is the way to go as those fan coolers are so huge they obstruct (or make difficult) access to memory, other slots etc. and generate more noise.
I'm thinking of starting with 16 GB of DDR4 RAM and upgrade later if needed.

Generate more noise than what? Tower heatsinks will be substantially quieter than intel's stock heatsink under sustained loads. They typically come with better designed fans too! If you pick the cooler carefully, or you go with a slimmer design (as OlyAR15 pointed out) and/or you pick RAM without the silly tall heat spreaders, you should be able to access all your RAM/PCIe slots and still get excellent cooling.

 

[Cerb]

^ FI, with a HR-02 Rev. A Macho (big one, not the 120), I can install a 25mm fan on the front (BTW, -2C idle, no load temp changes, when I did, so it didn't stay), and still access all 4 DIMMs, having tallish heatspreaders, that go above the fan frame's bottom, with a B85M Pro4. 25mm is important, because the heatspreaders have only 1-2mm of clearance from the fan, but I did take out and reseat them when I tested it, to be sure.

If going X99, especially, check clearances, as regular size and Micro ATX boards can sometimes stuff them closer to the CPU socket that 2-channel boards. Some coolers start their fins higher, too, so you can install and remove RAM even with the overhang.

<- Large tower cooler user, with an undervolted stock speed CPU.

 

[FFM]

An update and to bring closure to this thread.

I waited a while before I finally decided on the following configuration which I had Digital Storm built for me to save time and get support when needed. Computer was built last October 2015.

System Configuration:
Chassis Model: Corsair Obsidian 550D
Processor: Intel Core i7 5930K 3.5GHz (Six-Core) (Unlocked CPU)
Motherboard: ASUS X99-DELUXE USB 3.1 (Intel X99 Chipset)
System Memory: 32GB DDR4 2800MHz Corsair Vengeance LPX (High-Performance)
Power Supply: 1000W Corsair HX1000i (Digitally Controlled Power)
Optical Drive: Blu-Ray & DVD Writer/Reader (Burn + Play Blu-Ray & DVDs) (12x BD-R)
Storage Set 1: 1x SSD mini-SAS (400GB Intel 750 Series) (2.5 inch - NVM Express)
Storage Set 2: 2x Storage (2TB Western Digital - Black Edition)
RAID Config: RAID 1: Mirroring: Drive Failure Data Fault Tolerance Protection RAID Internet Access: High Speed Network Port (Supports High-Speed Cable / DSL / Network Connections)
Graphics Card(s): 1x NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB (Includes PhysX)
Sound Card: Integrated Motherboard Audio
Cooling: H20: Stage 2: Digital Storm Vortex 120mm Radiator Liquid CPU Cooler (High-Performance Edition)
Chassis Fans: Upgrade All Fans to Corsair Airflow Performance Edition (Up to 6 Fans)
Noise Reduction: Noise Suppression Package Stage 1 (Optimized Airflow & Fan Speeds Only)
CPU Boost: Stage 1: Overclock CPU 4.0GHz to 4.4GHz
Windows OS: Microsoft Windows 10 Professional (64-Bit Edition)
Recovery Tools: Windows Recovery Toolkit (Bundled with Windows CD)
Warranty: Life-time Expert Care with 3 Year Limited Warranty (3 Year Labor & 1 Year Part Replacement)

Sub-Total: $4,425.00
Tax (0%): $0.00
S&H:
Grand Total: $4,425.00

With this computer, I had problems with Windows 10 Pro getting corrupted and constantly trying to repair itself, Files corruption, random re-boots, BSOD with multiple issues. Data was safe on the RAID 1 WD HDDs. Finally Windows 10 Pro would not boot and had to reformat drive and start all over again. Same problems.

Eventually problem found with Intel M.2 Drive and returned to Digital Storm. Drive upgraded to Intel PCIe 750 series 800 GB NVM drive.

Since SSD upgrade (and upgrading MB BIOS and restoring to default setting) I did not have a single BSOD and the computer runs perfectly. This computer resides in my office at work although initially intended for home.

I came back and read to this thread again due to the helpful information provided by all who contributed to it as I am ready now for another somehow similar computer for home now.

I will start another thread as now Skylake is in the picture and new technology is emerging.

Again, thanks for all who took their time to give me advice.