New build - your feedback please

[Lupos]

Hi everyone,
I am building a new rig to replace an ancient PC at home and would greatly appreciate any thoughts you may have on the configuration I've included below.

Purchase Date: this week

Budget: <$3,000

System Usage from Most to Least Important: Photo editing (Lightroom & Capture NX), MS Office, music, internet browsing. No gaming.

Monitor: Resolution of current monitor is 1920x1200. Single monitor set up. No plans for multiple GPUs / SLI

OS: Win 8 Pro x64

Location: USA

Overclocking: No

Additional Comments: This is the current plan - hope it's "futureproof" enough to last at least 5 years, stable, and fairly quiet.

Processor: Intel Core i7-3930K
Motherboard: ASUS Sabertooth X79
RAM: G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR3 1866 (PC3 14900) F3-14900CL9Q-16GBXL [On the mobo QVL]
Graphics Card: EVGA Superclocked, Signature 2 02G-P4-2687-KR GeForce GTX 680 2GB 256-bit GDDR5
SSD SAMSUNG 840 Pro Series MZ-7PD128BW 2.5" 128GB [For Windows & programs only]
HDD SEAGATE ST2000NM0033 Constellation ES.3 2TB 7200 RPM 128MB cache SATA 6.0Gb/s [For all data files]
This is a new Seagate Entreprise drive so doesn't have many reviews out. Initially I thought of buying a RAID PCI card so I can have two 2TB drives in RAID 1 mode for full hardware redundancy, but then decided to consider this one to avoid the extra cost and potential complications of a RAID configuration.

Power Supply: CORSAIR Professional Series Gold AX850
Initially I was tempted to get the AX860 to take advantage of the Platinum efficiency, but it seems many users are experiencing noise problems. I also considered the AX860i but don't see much value in monitoring the PSU via software, plus the Cross Link software appears not be fully ready yet for Windows 8.

Cooling: CORSAIR Hydro H80i. I'm also considering the Noctua NH-D14 SE2011 to avoid the potential (small) risk of a leakage and the potential kinks of the new Corsair (e.g. software compatibility with Win 8), however the Noctua's size is monstrous and I won't have access to the DIMMs. According to the Noctua website, this cooler is compatible with both the mobo and RAM I have chosen. Also I have seen pictures of it installed in the Define R4 case therefore it fits.

DVD Burner: LG 14x SATA Blu-ray Internal Rewriter
Case: Fractal Design Define R4

Thanks in advance for any thoughts you have - would be much appreciated

 

[bononos]

Did you choose the 680 because the apps (lightroom/capture) could make use of gpu acceleration?

You can save some money by getting a less expensive mb and psu (don't need 850 watts), a 500W would do.

Edit- For your build you should get 8Gb sticks and probably max out (8x4) or get 16Gb and leave 2 slots for future upgrades.

 

[HomerJS]

What is primary use for new rig?

Lots of HP/$ in CPU/mobo.

Maybe go with LGA1155 combo? If primarily gaming you can save money or sink savings in a more powerful graphics card.

 

[Vectronic]

I don't know what Capture NX does/uses... but your video-card is considerably over-powered if you're not doing anything that involves 3D. I suspect you are coming from an outdated GPU and trying to spite it?

If you're not trying to save money, then...sure go for it, nice card.

Don't cheap out on the PSU, 850W is a bit high, maybe get the AX750 (I wouldn't go below 650W though)... obviously you're not that concerned about money, so just don't skimp there.

Do go with 4x8GB though if you can... not really because you need it (though if I assume you are using this professionally, you might top out 16GB largely out of laziness/frustration... simply not closing things that don't need to be open for the current project etc.) but because you'll probably want to max it out eventually, and having quad channel helps, max it out now.

Otherwise I see no problems unless you are just fiddling with home photos, then this is immensely overbuilt.

 

[DistraughtSysop]

My thoughts:

That's way too much computer for MS office and photo editing, even at a professional level.

Since you won't be overclocking, you don't need a K processor. An Intel chip with a K at the end of the number is unlocked for overclocking; it doesn't do anything else. Aside from that, it will be more expensive and will run at a warmer temp. You also don't need six cores. Not overclocking also means that you won't need an aftermarket CPU cooler. The stock cooler will be more than adequate.

The main thing about Asus Sabertooth is all the thermal armor, which you won't need with that build. None of your stated tasks will even come close to causing heat problems. RAM above 1600 MHz will do nothing for you and you'll never use up 8GB, let alone 16GB.

Using that GPU for nothing more graphics intensive than photo editing is like having a formula 1 race car and using it only to go through fast food drive throughs.

Summary:

What you've got listed is an enthusiast rig and, according to your post, you're going to be doing some pretty mundane tasks. You really don't need anything better than a mid-range laptop.

I understand the desire to future proof, but the concept is flawed; if you use the same rig for quite some time, you will always need to upgrade something unless you're doing the most basic tasks, in which case more expensive parts won't do anything for you except cost you more money.

Now, if you simply want to have high end stuff without caring about the cost or you just want to be ready for anything, in case you might want to try overclocking or gaming some time in the next couple of years, I can understand that. I'm just saying that it's way more than what is needed for the use that you've stated. You can do the same things just as well with a much cheaper build. If you were going to overclock, play the newest games, do heavy rendering/encoding and do some serious virtualization work then I'd say that it's a more than capable rig.

 

[Termie]

Welcome to the forums, Lupos!

I'll start by mentioning that there are actually some misinformed comments above. You should go quad channel on x79, and because you only need 16GB for RAW file work, 4x4GB is fine. Second, most processors on x79 are k processors, except for the relatively useless 3820.

But more importantly, you've definitely spec'd this incorrectly for photo work. Only Adobe CS6 uses graphics card acceleration, I believe, but you've listed only Adobe Lightroom. You don't really have a need for a video card at all, if you go with the more reasonably priced Ivy Bridge platform, which has built-in video. A 3770k and H77 motherboard will suit you fine. And honestly, use the $1000 you allocated to unneeded components into more SSD space. That's going to be the huge bottleneck for serious photo work. You'll want your scratch disk on an SSD, and perhaps all the files you're currently working on, using the hard disk only for storage of completed work.

Finally, the power supply is about two times too powerful. For photo editing, you will never need more than 300w, so a good 450w model would be more than sufficient.

 

[Lupos]

Thank you all - very helpful. Seems it makes sense to "downgrade" to a Z77 and use the savings towards a larger or second SSD.

Thanks again!

 

[Insert_Nickname]

Don't cheap out on the PSU, 850W is a bit high, maybe get the AX750 (I wouldn't go below 650W though)... obviously you're not that concerned about money, so just don't skimp there.

Finally, the power supply is about two times too powerful. For photo editing, you will never need more than 300w, so a good 450w model would be more than sufficient.

Given this build seems to be geared for professional work, I'd properly fork over the cash for an AX-series PSU. You could look at the AX-760(i), I have heard good things about it.

As others have said, your GFX card is monstrously overpowered. If you don't game, all it will do is sit there and cost you money in utilities. I would look for a GT640/650. It should be sufficient for your needs.

Oh, and if you're 100% certain you need a bluray burner, you should check out the Pioneer BDR-207EBK(The E is important, there is also a DBK that does not support BDXL). Its one of the few drives on the market that supports read/write of BDXL discs (100GB-128GB).

 

[Termie]

Given this build seems to be geared for professional work, I'd properly fork over the cash for an AX-series PSU. You could look at the AX-760(i), I have heard good things about it.


....

I agree that a high quality PSU is worth the investment, but he doesn't need to spend $150 on a vastly overpowered PSU to get that.

This $90 Seasonic 550w Gold unit will do the trick: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...scrollFullInfo

Here's a glowing review: http://www.hardocp.com/article/2013/01/09/seasonic_gseries_g550_power_supply_review/

 

[Insert_Nickname]

I agree that a high quality PSU is worth the investment, but he doesn't need to spend $150 on a vastly overpowered PSU to get that.

This $90 Seasonic 550w Gold unit will do the trick: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...scrollFullInfo

Here's a glowing review: http://www.hardocp.com/article/2013/01/09/seasonic_gseries_g550_power_supply_review/

I agree. If you can get that Seasonic for $90, it seems a very good buy...

 

[Sleepingforest]

Or he could get a solid 500W PSU for $40AR. He has no need for Gold efficency, and $50 in savings is not insignificant.

 

[Termie]

Or he could get a solid 500W PSU for $40AR. He has no need for Gold efficency, and $50 in savings is not insignificant.

That is a fine PSU, but if the OP has the budget, he should get a better PSU.

 

[mfenn]

For a photo editing rig with a $3000 budget, my first two purchases would be:

Dell U3011 $1078
Xrite EODIS3 i1Display Pro $249

A high-resolution, properly-calibrated display is the number one most important thing on a photo editing machine. The next most important thing (having enough RAM) is a very distant second.

As for the rest of the machine, you definitely don't need some monster GPU and power supply, nor do you need a "tweaker's" motherboard. You don't even really need a 6-core unless you're going to be batch processing thousands of images on a regular basis.

I would build something like this:

Xeon E3-1245 V2 $285
Scythe Katana 4 $26
ASRock H77 Pro4/MVP $80
GTX 650 Ti $130 - in case you use PS which can benefit from CUDA
GeIL DDR3 1600 16GB $66
Samsung 840 Pro 256GB $240
Seagate 3TB HDD x2 $240 - use one to back up the SSD and the other
LG Blu-Ray burner $70
Seasonic SSR-550RM $90
Fractal Design R4 $110
Total: $1337 - I didn't plan it that way, I swear!

 

[Termie]

For a photo editing rig with a $3000 budget, my first two purchases would be:

Dell U3011 $1078
Xrite EODIS3 i1Display Pro $249

A high-resolution, properly-calibrated display is the number one most important thing on a photo editing machine. The next most important thing (having enough RAM) is a very distant second.

As for the rest of the machine, you definitely don't need some monster GPU and power supply, nor do you need a "tweaker's" motherboard. You don't even really need a 6-core unless you're going to be batch processing thousands of images on a regular basis.

I would build something like this:

Xeon E3-1245 V2 $285
Scythe Katana 4 $26
ASRock H77 Pro4/MVP $80
GTX 650 Ti $130 - in case you use PS which can benefit from CUDA
GeIL DDR3 1600 16GB $66
Samsung 840 Pro 256GB $240
Seagate 3TB HDD x2 $240 - use one to back up the SSD and the other
LG Blu-Ray burner $70
Seasonic SSR-550RM $90
Fractal Design R4 $110
Total: $1337 - I didn't plan it that way, I swear!

This is a perfect build.

 

[mfenn]

This is a perfect build.

Thanks!

 

[lehtv]

Agree, it looks really good. Just nitpicking: a GTX 650 non-Ti seems to be enough to max out PS CS6 according to benches by pugetsystems: http://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/Adobe-Photoshop-CS6-GPU-Acceleration-161