new system build/help/advice

[TitusTroy]

1. What YOUR PC will be used for....mostly 1440p gaming

2. What YOUR budget is....$1400

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

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....I prefer Intel and Nvidia but am open to AMD
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I've had my current system now for 8.5 years (other then the video card which I upgrade more frequently)...I'm finally looking into building a new one...but technology and hardware has changed so much that I'm slightly overwhelmed...I've been researching online the past week and think I've gotten a good grasp on things (NVMe, MLC/TLC, M.2, DDR4 etc) but I'm still confused about some things and need advice/help...some of the questions may be very noobish so forgive me ahead of time

here's my current proposed build...I'm mainly using it for gaming...I want my system to last another 6+ years so I'm looking for long term value

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/sQmddX

i7 8700K
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819117827

ASUS ROG Strix Z370-E Gaming
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813119033

G.SKILL Ripjaws V Series 16GB DDR4 3200
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820232217

Noctua NH-D15S
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835608072

Samsung 860 EVO 1TB 2.5 Inch SATA III
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820147673

Seasonic FOCUS Plus Series SSR-750FX 750W 80+ Gold
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817151187

** I'm going to re-using several parts from my current system such as my GTX 1070, Lian Li PC-A70B case and ViewSonic XG2703-GS 1440p 144hz G-Sync monitor

some questions I have...

1) am I making the right memory choice?...is the Trident line better then Ripjaw?...is DDR 3200 right if I don't plan on overclocking (beyond the normal Intel Turbo range)?...or is DDR 2666 better?...I keep reading about how 3200 is the 'sweet spot' and that games see a performance increase...so all I would need to do is enable the XMP profile in the BIOS?

2) I'm torn between the 750 watt vs 650 watt PSU...I know 750 is overkill but as of yesterday the price was the same for the Seasonic 650 watt and 750 watt (after rebate)

3) is my motherboard choice good for purely gaming with no overclocking?

4) is an i5 8400 the better CPU choice?

5) I currently have 7 120mm fans installed (2 intake, 1 outtake, 2 blowhole outtake on top and 2 blowing over the GPU area)...can someone recommend some new case fans?

 

[whm1974]

OK if you are not going to overclock then the i7-8700 with the stock HSF and a cheaper motherboard will do and save you some money. Gskill is a good brand But I'm not sure if the non-K 8700 can use above DDR4-2666 memory speeds. The PSU while it is overkill for your system, is a really good brand.

Do you really need seven 120mm fans for your system?

 

[Campy]

I'd get an 8700K and overclock it.

If you want faster RAM get 3200 CL14 or 3600 CL15, what you have selected is fine though. Memory above 2666 should still work with non-K CPUs, as long as you have a Z series motherboard. In theory all you need to do is enable XMP, yes.

PSU is good, but you can do better for 100 dollars like this unit.

Motherboard is overall good, although it's not the best board for overclocking it should have no trouble with it either.

If you want to stay as close as possible to 144fps I don't think the 8400 is advisable.

I suggest you get a new case aswell, it's over 10 years old right? Cases have changed a lot in the past decade and building in a new case is a much better experience in my opinion. There are some really good cases in the $50-100 range and if you go slightly above that you can get a great case like the Fractal Design Define R6.

 

[TitusTroy]

Do you really need seven 120mm fans for your system?

yes my current fans are overkill but I've always liked having a really cool running case...but I am thinking about getting rid of the 2 over my video card and maybe 1 of the 2 at the top for this new build...do you know of any good case fans to buy?...I have a newbie question as well...my proposed board has 7 fan headers on it: 4-pin CPU_FAN, 4-pin CPU_OPT, 4-pin AIO_PUMP, 4-pin M.2_FAN, 4-pin CHA_FAN1, 4-pin CHA_FAN2, 5-pin EXT_FAN...I know the CPU cooler goes into the CPU_Fan header but can I place my remaining fans in any of the other headers?

also do all case fans come with Molex plugs, 3 pin and 4 pin plugs?

I suggest you get a new case aswell, it's over 10 years old right? Cases have changed a lot in the past decade and building in a new case is a much better experience in my opinion. There are some really good cases in the $50-100 range and if you go slightly above that you can get a great case like the Fractal Design Define R6.

I tried looking for a new case but none of the new cases appeal to me from a visual standpoint...they all have too much bling...I like a minimalist design for my case...I don't want open case windows, fancy lighting etc...I love my current Lian-Li case because of the gorgeous brushed aluminum, plenty of internal space, plenty of fan mounts etc...plus a lot of cases don't even come with 5.25" drive mounts anymore and I still use an internal DVD-RW drive

 

[whm1974]

Have you thought about purchasing an external DVD-RW drive?

 

[TitusTroy]

Have you thought about purchasing an external DVD-RW drive?

I could do that...but I'm also trying to keep costs as low as possible and am trying to only go for the essentials while leaving open the possibility of future expansions

 

[whm1974]

This may help you out here:
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/7rdn9J
The Micron 1100 2TB SSD can be had over at Newegg. I believe Amazon has it as well.

 

[TitusTroy]

here is a pic of the fan headers from my motherboard manual...maybe this can help make things more clear...based on that which type of 120 mm fans I should be looking to buy (3-pin, 4-pin PWM etc)?

 

[RLGL]

Ditch the 860 EVO and get the 970 EVO and make full use of the M.2 slot. Also check Microcenter for prices

 

[TitusTroy]

Ditch the 860 EVO and get the 970 EVO and make full use of the M.2 slot. Also check Microcenter for prices

the M.2 slot won't really be any faster for gaming (load times etc)...if I was doing a lot of video editing etc it would make more sense (especially with the higher cost factored in)

 

[Campy]

I tried looking for a new case but none of the new cases appeal to me from a visual standpoint...they all have too much bling...I like a minimalist design for my case...I don't want open case windows, fancy lighting etc...I love my current Lian-Li case because of the gorgeous brushed aluminum, plenty of internal space, plenty of fan mounts etc...plus a lot of cases don't even come with 5.25" drive mounts anymore and I still use an internal DVD-RW drive

The case I linked seems to tick all the boxes except brushed aluminium, but it was just a suggestion anyway.

You should be able to use either 3pin or 4pin fans on your mobo, barring the EXT_FAN connector, I don't know what that is for. 4pin (PWM) fans are preferable.Noctua fans are obviously great, and Corsair ML fans are good too. If you're going to run a lot of fans you could get some splitters to run 2 or more fans off one PWM fan connector.

 

[whm1974]

@TitusTroy What do think of this under $1000 build? Just spec it together a few minutes ago.
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/CPcbRJ

 

[TitusTroy]

The case I linked seems to tick all the boxes except brushed aluminium, but it was just a suggestion anyway.

You should be able to use either 3pin or 4pin fans on your mobo, barring the EXT_FAN connector, I don't know what that is for. 4pin (PWM) fans are preferable.Noctua fans are obviously great, and Corsair ML fans are good too. If you're going to run a lot of fans you could get some splitters to run 2 or more fans off one PWM fan connector.

that Fractal Design case is actually pretty nice...closest I've seen to my current Lian-Li...but 2 things are slight turnoffs...the front case door will somewhat block the 2 front intake fans from getting air into the case...a partial mesh design might have been better...also the case is mid-tower and I really prefer full towers...but I'll definitely save that case info for future reference...thanks for the info about the fan headers...I think I was over-complicating that aspect as it does seem rather simple

 

[TitusTroy]

@TitusTroy What do think of this under $1000 build? Just spec it together a few minutes ago.
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/CPcbRJ

thanks for the recommendation...definitely some nice parts in there that I can play around with

 

[Campy]

the front case door will somewhat block the 2 front intake fans from getting air into the case

That's what bottom intake fans are for


Good luck with the build, and update us with a new list when you've decided on what to get.

 

[TitusTroy]

so I have everything set to order...the only dilemmas are...

1) should I wait 5 weeks for the 9700K/9900K release

2) is it better to keep my i7 980X for a bit longer (6- 12 months) as I'm able to get 60fps in most of my current games at 1440p...plus most benchmarks show the 2600K (close enough to my 980X) as still being a very viable CPU even today in terms of gaming

3) keep the i7 980X for a bit and upgrade to the GTX 2070 which will be cheaper then building out a new system and more beneficial in terms of noticeable improvements (I have a 1440p 144hz G-Sync monitor)