High-end Desktop

[stanzlavos]

Hi All

Actually, the spec below was finalized after lot of discussion here as well as other forums.**I had postponed the build after many adviced to wait for the 6800K / GTX 1080. Anyhow, need a final few inputs and am ready to order.*

Use : Gaming of course. Photo editing. Intensive Matlab programs.*

Intel 3.3 Ghz LGA 2011 i7 5820K

Asus RAMPAGE V EXTREME Motherboard
-*I love the motherboard.**Anyhow, any good replacement option? *Need to be red+black (or full black I*guess). WiFi, decent sound, decent fan cntrl system. Should be OC friendly.*

G.Skill Ripjaws V DDR4 F4-2666C15Q-32GVR 32GB (4 x 8GB) (Red)
- Might get 3200 if available

Asus Strix GTX1080
- As of now I am sticking with the Asus Strix*O8G. Does it make sense for an EVGA SC version or the MSI gaming Z version ? I am not sure if they can provide much of a significant improvement.

Corsair Graphite Series Black ATX 780T Full Tower

Corsair RM1000x 1000W 80 Plus
- Some confusion regarding the 8 pin connectors. If OK, will go with the 750W one.

WD Black WD4003FZEX 4TB
Samsung 850 EVO 500GB SSD
Samsung 850 EVO 120GB SSD
*- Will most most probably get only the 500GB SSD.

Deepcool Gamer Storm Captain 360 AIO CPU Cooler
- decent one ? And if I use this, I would still get one bay for an optical drive right ?

Asus MG279Q
Asus PG279Q
Acer XB270HU
-* I am unsure about a TN panel (unless someone can put forward compelling reasons for it). So maybe*lower priority for the PG278Q. The*MG279Q*was what i had shortlisted for my build. If G-Sync is not going to benefit much, I'd like to stick to it. But as I understood, at lower frame rates, G-Sync could be very much handy. So, maybe a bit in the future, when games become more demanding and my FPS starts to drop, G-Sync would play an important role ? Then, it boils down to the*Asus PG279Q*and the*Acer XB270HU. I did see very good reviews about the Acer and being the lower priced one, I am inclined towards it. Ideas ?

Regards
Nubin Stanley

 

[nsafreak]

Could you link us the website that you intend to purchase the parts from? We can give further suggestions on alternatives. That being said here's what I have concerning your choices so far:

CPU: A Broadwell-E (6800K) is going to give some architectural improvements, better thermals and overall better performance than a 5820k. For the small price increase I would go with the 6800K.

Motherboard: Unless you're getting a massive discount (doubtful) the RAMPAGE boards are massively overpriced for what you intend to do. I would recommend an alternative ASRock or Gigabyte X99 board but I would need to see what's available in your area.

RAM: The speed of the RAM isn't he only factor of how well it handles an overclock it has to do with the timings and general quality of the RAM. The RAM you selected should be fine but there may be better options that are less expensive.

GPU: Depending on the cooling solution you might be able to get a nice overclock on it or you might not haven't seen enough user reviews on that one yet.

Case: Personal choice but I prefer Fractal Designs cases nowadays.

PSU: Massive overkill for this build. You will need at most a 650 watt PSU and if you want some overhead room a 750 watt will be sufficient.

HDD: Zero point in getting a WD Black HDD when you have SSDs in your build. For that matter why are you getting a 120GB and a 500 GB SSD? The combined cost of those two is getting close to a 1 TB SSD. If you're getting the WD Black for warranty reasons you're better off getting a Red instead.

CPU cooler: It's not bad but there are better options available, again would need which website/store you're using to give other options.

Monitor: Should be fine

 

[stanzlavos]

Could you link us the website that you intend to purchase the parts from? We can give further suggestions on alternatives. That being said here's what I have concerning your choices so far:

CPU: A Broadwell-E (6800K) is going to give some architectural improvements, better thermals and overall better performance than a 5820k. For the small price increase I would go with the 6800K.

Motherboard: Unless you're getting a massive discount (doubtful) the RAMPAGE boards are massively overpriced for what you intend to do. I would recommend an alternative ASRock or Gigabyte X99 board but I would need to see what's available in your area.

RAM: The speed of the RAM isn't he only factor of how well it handles an overclock it has to do with the timings and general quality of the RAM. The RAM you selected should be fine but there may be better options that are less expensive.

GPU: Depending on the cooling solution you might be able to get a nice overclock on it or you might not haven't seen enough user reviews on that one yet.

Case: Personal choice but I prefer Fractal Designs cases nowadays.

PSU: Massive overkill for this build. You will need at most a 650 watt PSU and if you want some overhead room a 750 watt will be sufficient.

HDD: Zero point in getting a WD Black HDD when you have SSDs in your build. For that matter why are you getting a 120GB and a 500 GB SSD? The combined cost of those two is getting close to a 1 TB SSD. If you're getting the WD Black for warranty reasons you're better off getting a Red instead.

CPU cooler: It's not bad but there are better options available, again would need which website/store you're using to give other options.

Monitor: Should be fine

1) I am trying for some local vendor. PC part picker has an Indian site now. But am not able to find all the stuff in there. And the rates mentioned are sometimes very much skewed.

2) I read a few reviews/benchmarks. There were benchmarks were the 5820K outperformed the 6800K !!! The opposite was true for a few others as well. More importantly, I read that the 6800K doesn't overclock as well as the 5820K ? If this is true, is it not better to stick with the proven 5820K ?

3) What I liked about the Asus Mobo (and also need in a replacement if any) :
---- Highly recommended when it comes to overclocking (I knw, the other boards should handle this quite well too.... )
---- Wi-Fi
---- It offers a decent sound sub system ?
---- Offers good on-board temp monitoring and fan control system.
---- It looks awesome. Need something in red + black. Maybe black alone could work.

Please do suggest replacemts for any parts. I should be able to find it somewhere.

4) Yes, I am aware that the timings are also important. Anyhow, the Gskill Ripjaws were also recommended. The Corsair ones are more expensive. What other options do I have ? But then again, I dont think that I will be able to save much here.

5) So far it seems like the 1080 is not going beyond 2100. The strix version I am thinking of and the MSI gaming series as well. And anyhow, I feel that its already clocked at a good number. Maybe I'll add another 1080 a year down the line.

6) PSU : Point taken. Looking into it.

7) I will be moving to a single 500GB SSD. I think that I will end up doing all my photo editing work from the HDD. So I guess, the blacks would be good ?

8) Could you suggest one and I can check ? The other options I had kept were the Corsair H110i GTX, NZXT Kraken X61 etc. I liked the Swiftech H240X but it is not yet available here. All of these are around the same price range. So I decided with the deepcool one coz of the bigger radiator and the red/black aesthetics.

9) A lot of people suggesting to go for a monitor with gsync ? Worth the extra money ?

 

[DigDog]

oh dear, it's this thing twice a day now.

broadwell is a consumer level professional CPU. most games and normal consumer apps don't use or need more than 4 cores.

since you are buying a 1080, i assume you must be a gamer. you are also buying a Freesync monitor and a G-sync GPU - these two don't mix.


i would suggest you simply go with a standard high-end gaming build, it will cost less and perform equally if not better.

(i assume you are willing to do some minimal overclocking, such as pressing the "overclock me!" button and stuff.)

also idk where you are buying this from, i'm assuming USA but maybe not.


PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/list/dPYMnn
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/list/dPYMnn/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($233.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170X-UD3 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($142.99 @ NCIX US)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($69.88 @ OutletPC)
Storage: A-Data Premier SP550 480GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($94.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 8GB Founders Edition Video Card ($699.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: EVGA 650W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: LG WH14NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($45.85 @ OutletPC)
Monitor: Dell S2716DG 27.0" 144Hz Monitor ($509.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1962.55

includes a Gsync monitor and a 1080; note that it's a foudners edition because the partner boards are not out yet, but when they launch they might even be lower in price.

(checking that this is not the Nvidia forum ...)

you might also want to consider building instead around an AMD 480 **AFTER** it is released and the benchmarks come in, as it will be substantially cheaper and will support Freesync.

 

[nsafreak]

1) Understood

2) It depends on what you're using it for really. I tend to go with the newer architecture unless the old one performs significantly better at a task I do frequently.

3) I would recommend the MSI Gaming series, I'm pretty sure that they have an X99 black & red board that's less expensive than the Rampage but will perform just fine.

4) I'll check into the comparisons between those, initial thoughts are favoring the Kraken but I'll double check the cooling figures.

8) I would probably recommend the NZXT Kraken X61.

 

[stanzlavos]

oh dear, it's this thing twice a day now.

broadwell is a consumer level professional CPU. most games and normal consumer apps don't use or need more than 4 cores.

since you are buying a 1080, i assume you must be a gamer. you are also buying a Freesync monitor and a G-sync GPU - these two don't mix.


i would suggest you simply go with a standard high-end gaming build, it will cost less and perform equally if not better.

(i assume you are willing to do some minimal overclocking, such as pressing the "overclock me!" button and stuff.)

also idk where you are buying this from, i'm assuming USA but maybe not.


PCPartPicker part list: http://pcpartpicker.com/list/dPYMnn
Price breakdown by merchant: http://pcpartpicker.com/list/dPYMnn/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel Core i5-6600K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($233.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z170X-UD3 ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($142.99 @ NCIX US)
Memory: Corsair Vengeance LPX 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3000 Memory ($69.88 @ OutletPC)
Storage: A-Data Premier SP550 480GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($94.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1080 8GB Founders Edition Video Card ($699.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Black Pearl) ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: EVGA 650W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($69.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: LG WH14NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($45.85 @ OutletPC)
Monitor: Dell S2716DG 27.0" 144Hz Monitor ($509.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1962.55

includes a Gsync monitor and a 1080; note that it's a foudners edition because the partner boards are not out yet, but when they launch they might even be lower in price.

(checking that this is not the Nvidia forum ...)

you might also want to consider building instead around an AMD 480 **AFTER** it is released and the benchmarks come in, as it will be substantially cheaper and will support Freesync.

1) Do I plan on gaming ? Yes. Is it a pure gaming rig ? No.
I do a lot of photo editing ( some of the focus stacking apps are really demanding). I will also be running some intensive matlab programs. Hence a 5820K. A newer comparable (if not better) processor is the new 6800K. Hence the confusion.

2) I know that gsync and freesync don't match. The doubt was, is gsync worth that extra money ?

3) Overclocking : well I am looking forward to it. Why would I even bother getting a liquid cooler otherwise. If there is a single button that will do everything, I am absolutely willing to press it. Dont think that will be much fun though.

4) I am getting stuff here in India. The prices are higher here. And hence the higher budget.

Anyhow, really appreciate you spending all the time to give that config. Hope my reply justifies some of my choices. The only thing that is overpriced in my build is the Mobo. I will consider moving to another one I guess.

 

[Ken g6]

Are you sure the focus stacking apps are multithreaded? Many Photoshop things aren't. MATLAB I'm not entirely sure about either.

Also Skylake is better at many Photoshop tasks than previous generations of processors.

 

[DigDog]

just to be clear, when you have to render an image, does it say "56 minutes remaining" or does it say "153 hours remaining" ?

because there's been an invasion of people this week all saying "i need to encode my 10 minute youtube video, so i needs 312 cores and 8 petabytes of ram"

 

[stanzlavos]

Are you sure the focus stacking apps are multithreaded? Many Photoshop things aren't. MATLAB I'm not entirely sure about either.

Also Skylake is better at many Photoshop tasks than previous generations of processors.

No idea. But I have seen that they can use up all the available RAM (so i would like to keep that at 32GB).

But I do know that the added 2 cores will definitely help me in Matlab.

So after considering gaming, photo editing, matlab and a lot of reviews/benchmarks, I shortlisted the 5930K (though it was a little above my budget). After lots of suggestions from forums, I moved to the 5820K. It seemed a good option as I might not go above 2 way SLI and it overclocks well.

Well, then comes the 6800K. Again, from benchmarks, it gives better performances here and there. But I read that it doesn't overclock that very well. Hence the confusion. I am very much happy to go with the 5820K. At the same time I am willing to a pay a little extra for the 6800K if its worth it.

 

[stanzlavos]

just to be clear, when you have to render an image, does it say "56 minutes remaining" or does it say "153 hours remaining" ?

because there's been an invasion of people this week all saying "i need to encode my 10 minute youtube video, so i needs 312 cores and 8 petabytes of ram"

Haha.

Please see my reply to "Ken g6". Hope that helps.

 

[stanzlavos]

And one small query regarding the PSU :

The Rampage V extreme needs one 8pin for the CPU and then additional 4 pin as well. So, I guess I'd use one more 8pin available on the PSU for this.

The Asus strix GTX 1080 requires 6+8. So there goes two more 8pin connections available in the PSU. And I would like to keep an option open for a two way SLI. So one more GTX1080 later on would mean 2 more connectors.

So, in all I would require six 8pin slots on the PSU. The 8pin connection available on the Corsair PSUs are marked as "6+2 PCI-E & 4+4 CPU". The number of slots available are :

750x : 3
850x : 5
1000x : 6

So I will have to go with the 1000x ? Or any other option ?

 

[DigDog]

6+8 means it requires two of the connectors.

a PSU will have 1~6 connectors, each of which is BOTH 6 or 8 pin (the 6 pin *is* the 8 pin but with a removable clip removed). so any PSU with 2 connectors will power a 1080.

this is an 8 pin with the 2 extra pins removed. it can work as both 8 or 6 pin.

 

[stanzlavos]

6+8 means it requires two of the connectors.

a PSU will have 1~6 connectors, each of which is BOTH 6 or 8 pin (the 6 pin *is* the 8 pin but with a removable clip removed). so any PSU with 2 connectors will power a 1080.

this is an 8 pin with the 2 extra pins removed. it can work as both 8 or 6 pin.

Now I am confused.

The Strix version has two power connectors. 1 8pin and 1 6pin. Doesn't that mean that I would need to route 2 cables from the PSU (that would occupy two 8pin sockets on PSU) ?

So, since I plan on an SLI down the line, it adds up to 4. And as I said, the Asus RVE takes another 2 ?

 

[stanzlavos]

Now I am confused.

The Strix version has two power connectors. 1 8pin and 1 6pin. Doesn't that mean that I would need to route 2 cables from the PSU (that would occupy two 8pin sockets on PSU) ?

So, since I plan on an SLI down the line, it adds up to 4. And as I said, the Asus RVE takes another 2 ?

Ok, I think I got it.

The cable connects to one of the 8pin sockets of the PSU on one end. On the other end of the cable there are two connectors that can plug into the card?

 

[sm625]

Why is there two black wires and no yellow wires on that little 2 pin connector?

 

[DigDog]

you guys are either trolling me or .. i cannot believe you fail to understand this.

this is a EVGA P1 PSU

as you can see, it has SIX connectors - the red ones. these connectors are big, long cables.

at the end of each cable is a THING to attach to your video card.

now, since some cards use a 6 pin, and some use a 8 pin, a really smart guy said "WHY DONT WE MAKE A 8-PIN THING THAT CAN TRANSFORM INTO A 6-PIN THING".

you can see from the image above that the 2-pin thingie has a small latch which allows it to slide and attach to the 6-pin, thus making it a 8-pin.

a couple years back, someone built a video card that was so powerful, so stronk, that it used TWO connector THINGS. both of these were 8-pin.

then they said, hmm, 2much4strenk, lets use two THINGS, but make it one 8-pin thing and one only 6-pin thing.


your card uses two cables from the PSU. the fact that one is 6 and the other 8 is irrelevant, because 6 and 8 are the same plug. you can't even mess it up because one doesnt fit into the other.

color coding on the cables is also irrelevant and down to individual manufacturers.

as for the motherboard, it takes power from a different set of cables; if you see the EVGA image above, it's the long black strips on the bottom right. Again, you cannot mess this up either because the plugs only fit where they need to.

 

[stanzlavos]

you guys are either trolling me or .. i cannot believe you fail to understand this.

this is a EVGA P1 PSU

as you can see, it has SIX connectors - the red ones. these connectors are big, long cables.

at the end of each cable is a THING to attach to your video card.

now, since some cards use a 6 pin, and some use a 8 pin, a really smart guy said "WHY DONT WE MAKE A 8-PIN THING THAT CAN TRANSFORM INTO A 6-PIN THING".

you can see from the image above that the 2-pin thingie has a small latch which allows it to slide and attach to the 6-pin, thus making it a 8-pin.

a couple years back, someone built a video card that was so powerful, so stronk, that it used TWO connector THINGS. both of these were 8-pin.

then they said, hmm, 2much4strenk, lets use two THINGS, but make it one 8-pin thing and one only 6-pin thing.


your card uses two cables from the PSU. the fact that one is 6 and the other 8 is irrelevant, because 6 and 8 are the same plug. you can't even mess it up because one doesnt fit into the other.

color coding on the cables is also irrelevant and down to individual manufacturers.

as for the motherboard, it takes power from a different set of cables; if you see the EVGA image above, it's the long black strips on the bottom right. Again, you cannot mess this up either because the plugs only fit where they need to.

I do understand the concept of the detachable two pins so that it can act as a single 8 pin or a 6+2. But that's not the question here.

"Ok, I think I got it.

The cable connects to one of the 8pin sockets of the PSU on one end. On the other end of the cable there are two connectors that can plug into the card?"

This understanding is wrong ?

http://www.pcper.com/image/view/62007?return=node/63903

In the image above, that's what I see.

In simple terms, since the Strix version needs two connections, will it use up two 8pin sockets on the pSU ? What I have understood so far is, NO.

* If I end up using the Asus RVE, I would need to use 2 8pin sockets on the PSU for the CPU.
* One 8pin socket on the PSU is enough to plug into the 8 + 6 connector on the card (the cable would have two separate connectors on the other end)

 

[stanzlavos]

OK... open questions :

1) 6800K ? Worth the upgrade ?
2) Asus Rampage V Extreme.. I love the motherboard. Anyhow, any good replacement option? Need to be red+black (or full black I guess). WiFi, decent sound, decent fan cntrl system. Should be OC friendly.
3) GSkill Ripjaws V DDDR4 2666 ? Should be fine right ? Should I go 2800 ?
4) Any input on which GTX 1080 to get is also welcome.

And just to get an idea : I haven't got a desktop in years (the main reason for all the connection related doubts. Most probably when I see the stuff directly, I would know what to do. ). Have been using an Asus G73JH for some time now. The question is related to sound levels. Once everything is in the case, say the cpu cooler is a lil noisy. Will it be that much audible ? The deepcool cpu cooler am interested in offers decent performance. It is not the best out there but price-wise its on the lower side. And, it is red+black.

 

[DigDog]

I do understand the concept of the detachable two pins so that it can act as a single 8 pin or a 6+2.



the Strix version needs two connections

yes. yes it does.
it uses two of the RED connectors.

* If I end up using the Asus RVE, I would need to use 2 8pin sockets on the PSU for the CPU.

the motherboard, it takes power from a different set of cables... it's the long black strips on the bottom right.

1) 6800K ? Worth the upgrade ?

broadwell is a consumer level professional CPU. most games and normal consumer apps don't use or need more than 4 cores.

 

[stanzlavos]

yes. yes it does.
it uses two of the RED connectors.

Well. I have been looking around and also posting in another forum. The input I got there was :

* 1 8pin from PSU for the CPU 8pin connection
* 1 8pin from PSU for the CPU 4pin connection
* 1 8pin from PSU for 2 connections on GTX 1080 : As the other end has two connectors. Kinda like a splitter I guess. As can be seen in this image :

http://www.pcper.com/image/view/62007?return=node%2F63903

* 1 8pin from PSU for 2 connections on GTX 1080 (in SLI)

So i would only need 4 8pin sockets on the PSU.

Now, are you saying that this can't be done ? Or are you saying that it is better to use two separate 8pin sockets on the PSU (which is what I assumed initially). So :

* 1 8pin from PSU for the CPU 8pin connection
* 1 8pin from PSU for the CPU 4pin connection
* 2 8pin from PSU for 2 connections on GTX 1080
* 2 8pin from PSU for 2 connections on GTX 1080 in SLI

So that makes it 6 8pin sockets on the PSU. Which only the RM1000x seems to have.

 

[sm625]

I must point out that this little 2 pin connector serves no purpose. Adding that extra two pin connector does nothing because you still only have 3 +12V wires going from the power supply to the card. The voltage that is dropped on the wires from the power supply to the card is going to be the same whether or not that connector is plugged in. The power limit is related to the amount of voltage dropped on those wires and the amount of current those wires can carry, not on the actual number of molex pins. Molex pins are designed for several amps more than what the wires are rated. By design, the resistance of a molex connection actually decreases as the temperature of the metal rises.

 

[DigDog]

stan .. ur hopeless. bye.

 

[Ken g6]

That PSU might be a little bit of overkill on the number of available GPU connectors. On the other hand...

https://www.mathworks.com/discovery/matlab-gpu.html

You could buy more GPUs in the future and use them together to make Matlab faster. :hmm:

 

[stanzlavos]

stan .. ur hopeless. bye.

Haha... My problem is that, the last time I made a build, there were no modular power supplies, motherboards were not so complicated and I think that my graphics card did not even have extra power connections... and so everything was quite simple. The second problem is that I haven't exactly seen this PSU or the cable. Now, the input I got from another forum and from you are different. That doesn't exactly help.

Which is why, in the last post, I broke down the problem statement into two use cases based on input I got from another forum and you. I am assuming that at least one of them should work.

Now, the effort you put into typing "stan .. ur hopeless. bye.", could have been reduced if you had typed "YES" or "NO" to the two use cases. And, it would have helped me as well.

I would really appreciate it if you could actually tell me which of the use-cases you meant. If not, thank you for all the help.

 

[stanzlavos]

That PSU might be a little bit of overkill on the number of available GPU connectors. On the other hand...

https://www.mathworks.com/discovery/matlab-gpu.html

You could buy more GPUs in the future and use them together to make Matlab faster. :hmm:

:thumbsup::thumbsup:

Yes, Matlab can use the cuda cores.

And.... I am seriously freaking out now. Is my math wrong ? How many 8pin sockets should my PSU have ? 2 are needed for the Mobo. Home many more are needed for 2 GTX 1080s in SLI ?