Yet another... New build thread

[C42]

I tend to build a new pc every 4-5 years, with little to no upgrading between.

Current system:
i7-2600k @ 4.2ghz
8 GB DDR3 1333
Radeon 6970 2gb slight OC
MSi P67A-GD65 Rev B3
1 TB HDD storage
120gb SSD for boot/ a few games
HP 24 inch monitor (1920x1200) 60hz S-PVA
Corsair TX750W
All "stuffed" into a HAF932
Windows 7 Pro 64

I just got back into PC Gaming and whatnot after a little over a year hiatus. Work/gf/friends all on xb1. Now I'm craving a more diverse and graphic rich experience, so back to PC. Seems like a good time with Battlefront, the new Batman game, Witcher 3, and picking up some deals on other games. Of course the classics like SC2, CS:GO, Skyrim, BF3/4, and maybe, just maybe WoW (doubt it, crack kills).

So that's the main focus of the build, with some minor video editing once in a blue moon.

So I've been eyeballing a new build, and transfering this setup to an old case I have around, along with an old pc power and cooling 500 watt PSU I have from like 10 years ago for my dad. All he does is look on eBay for a retirement RV and check email/general browsing. This will be much quicker than his ~7 year old HP All in one that makes me want to dropkick a small child anytime I'm at my parents' house.

So, the new build... I was considering the following:

i4790k OC to 4.5+ with Noctua NH-15 or something similar
GTX 970 OC to whatever is stable on stock cooler
16gb DDR3 2400 Gskill Aries or Ripjaw if I can fit it under the heatsink/fan
MSi Z97 Gaming 5
Samsung 850 Evo 500gb SSD For boot/games
WD Blue 1tb for general storage
LG 34um95 34 inch 29:1 ratio monitor 3440x1440
Reuse Corsair TX750W
Reuse HAF 932
Windows 8.1 64bit for shits and giggles to try it out and see if I like it better, and then upgrade to 10 this summer

I'd like to run most games on max/near max settings with 1xaa or no aa if need be. The plan would be to upgrade to the new Radeon 390 or 390x this winter when prices start to fall slightly if the performance difference is worth it. If not, let the 390 release push 970 prices down and grab a second one or two 980s if price drops enough.

I was all set to do that, but then I started to read about Skylake coming out soon and looking at perhaps doing a Haswell for another ~150. Not sure if it's worth it, though. Also at that point the video card would either be the 390/x or SLI off top with the 970s or 980s.

Just not sure if it's worth waiting. I only game an hour or two a day if at all at this point. With a new setup I could see that changing to 3-4 hours on a day I have more free time (ie weekends). So is Skylake or Haswell looking to be promising enough to wait it out 2-3 more months? I mean this is the world of technology, so something is always around the corner. I know with the 1150 I'd be killing myself on any upgrade path, but I generally don't upgrade. I just build new every 5 or so years and it seems to work out well for me. At worst GPU upgrades I'd think would be the only area worth addressing. I'm looking to you guys for some advice as I've been going back and forth over the last couple of weeks on this stuff and newegg has some decent deals going on right now to save a little, but I guess they always do.

Thanks in advance for deciphering my novel. It's been a LONG time since I've posted here.

 

[Ketchup]

I prefer Asus or Gigabyte over MSI board, but the rest of the build looks pretty good.

One caution I will give you is the display/video card. You are running a very high resultion, and if you look at the latest Titan X review right here at AT, the 980 struggles to hit 60 on ultra with many on the games they have chosen, but sli would do much better.

 

[C42]

I prefer Asus or Gigabyte over MSI board, but the rest of the build looks pretty good.

One caution I will give you is the display/video card. You are running a very high resultion, and if you look at the latest Titan X review right here at AT, the 980 struggles to hit 60 on ultra with many on the games they have chosen, but sli would do much better.

I've run a few Asus boards in years past, albeit it's been about 9-10 years since the last one. I ran one Gigabyte, and it was mediocre at best, but again that was 15 years ago. The last few MSi boards have done me really well. I liked the Asus boards, but the customer support left a lot to be desired. I'll check them out, but MSi hasn't done me wrong and I tend to stay loyal where I can.

Yeah, I'm a bit on the fence on the 970, but it would be temporary until I would SLI them or switch to the 390 or 390x. I kind of want to wait for the 390/x, but there is always the early adopter fee... so I figured pick it up later down the road and just run only 1x AA or no AA at that resolution would probably be fine in most games until I went with one of those options. That seems to get people in the 60 fps range with these cards.

 

[Ketchup]

Cool. Defintely go with what you are comfortable with. If you likr MSI, stick with them. Gaming on a screen like that should be quite a treat!

 

[mfenn]

To be perfectly honest, you could get 90% of the performance improvement you're looking for by just upgrading the GPU and SSD. An i7 2600K at 4.2 GHz is still a very competent chip.

If you'd rather have AMD, the R9 290X is just as fast as the GTX 970 and costs less. The downside is that it uses more power.

ASUS R9 290X $270 AR AP
Samsung 850 EVO 500GB $198

 

[C42]

Cool. Defintely go with what you are comfortable with. If you likr MSI, stick with them. Gaming on a screen like that should be quite a treat!

I'm looking forward to it, thanks!

To be perfectly honest, you could get 90% of the performance improvement you're looking for by just upgrading the GPU and SSD. An i7 2600K at 4.2 GHz is still a very competent chip.

If you'd rather have AMD, the R9 290X is just as fast as the GTX 970 and costs less. The downside is that it uses more power.

ASUS R9 290X $270 AR AP
Samsung 850 EVO 500GB $198

That's the same SSD I was speaking of, it is about 20 bucks cheaper on Amazon currently, seems like the best bang for the buck on a reliable SSD with decent capacity. Currently there is a MSI 970 for like $25 more than the 290x you listed, I think it's worth it if I plan on doing SLI to cut down on power consumption. If I were to just do a single card and upgrade, this might be better, though.

I'd like to do a complete build to be able to transfer my current computer to a new case to give my dad this, his computer is so damn slow. It's another reason to upgrade for me as well, ha.

Thanks for the input guys.