Building new gaming desktop

Hey guys,

So, I'd like to build my own desktop, simply because I cannot find the configuration I want from any of the big manufacturers (Dell, HP, Asus, …). I am, however, a total n00b at this, so I was wondering how hard it is?

Here's what I had in mind, roughly:
Case: Cooler Master Midi Tower CM 690 III ATX
Processor: Intel Core i5-4690K, or an i7-4790
RAM: 16GB DDR3-1600
Motherboard: MSI Z97 Gaming 3
GPU: MSI Nvidia GTX 970 4GB
PSU: Seasonic M12II EVO 520W, Modular
256 GB SSD (I have a spare WD Black 2TB lying around I intend to throw in too)
DVD drive
Network card

What do you think? Can you guys give me advice on brands? Is that all the components I need? Do I need separate cooling (keeping in mind I don't intend to OC)?
My sole requirement is that it runs the Witcher 3 smoothly, and will last me a few years.

I was also wondering, if I order these components separately, do they come with all the necessary cables and screws?

Thanks for any advice!

Intel Core i5-4690K - yes, buy!
or an i7-4790 - no, there is no software that needs it desperately nor will be one soon, buy only if you do have cash to throw away

Other than that, it's a great build. You don't need any separate cooling, I can only suggest buying a case with 2-3 builtin fans if this cooler master doesn't have them inside (didn't google so dunno). All components come with everything necessary to plug in so don't worry about that.
It will last you at least 3 years.

Keep in mind that it still can't use Shadows of Mordor ultra textures that need 6 Gb of VRAM. Or be wise and refuse to buy a game that pretends to be something more than it actually is.

Thanks for the input, Joxer.

As for the case, according the specs, it comes with a 200mm fan in the front, and a 120mm fan in the rear. Think that will do?

No need for ultra textures, I want decent FPS at high settings, that's it.

What brand can you recommend for RAM?
And the motherboard, is that any decent? Does the Gaming 5 offer any substantial benefits over the 3?

wiretripped said:

As for the case, according the specs, it comes with a 200mm fan in the front, and a 120mm fan in the rear. Think that will do?

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Most definetly will do.
I have Zalman case with 3 fans here and honestly it's an overkill. Would be useful for SLI based machine though and who knows, maybe I go for that in the future, but so far I doubt it, I'm not interested in 4K res.

wiretripped said:

No need for ultra textures, I want decent FPS at high settings, that's it.

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That CPU and that GPU will pull out 60FPS on max settings in any game.
Unless the game is an unoptimized crap that can't run flawlessly on any hardware. Like for example Thief reboot when was released that had huge FPS drops even on the most expensive hardware out there.

wiretripped said:

What brand can you recommend for RAM?

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All brands are good.

wiretripped said:

And the motherboard, is that any decent? Does the Gaming 5 offer any substantial benefits over the 3?

Click to expand...

I hate to google for specs, but okay.

http://www.msi.com/product/mb/Z97-GAMING-3.html#hero-specification
http://www.msi.com/product/mb/Z97-GAMING-5.html#hero-specification

You get overclock supporting chipset (Z97) on both those MSI cards. You said not planning to do it, but who knows, maybe after a couple of years you will go for it so it's always a good investment if you're not the consumer type who buys a new PC every year.

The difference is only number of PCI slots and SLI support. Gaming 3 doesn't support SLI, just Crossfire, while gaming 5 supports SLI too. From what I've understood, you want a single GPU in your machine just like I do, so there is no point in buying Gaming 5 card. Even if you do opt to go for dualGPU in the future, you can still do that with two ATI cards on Gaming 3, so you'll buy two ATI GPUs and sell this nVidia 9xx on ebay.

EDIT:
Wait a minute. Apparently the price difference between G3 and G5 is just 10 bucks? G5 price is only 10 bucks more? Buy that one. That way you won't be limited if in the future it happens that SLI is cheaper option than Crossfire.
At least this is the price difference in shops over here.

Thanks man, appreciate the effort.

One more thing: I listed a network card, but do I really need a separate one? It looks like the MSI motherboard as a Killer network port, is that right?

I don't use separate network card and I don't think that you need one either.

The network chipsets on motherboards can be pretty shoddy, and a good quality network card can make sense if you plan to do a lot of file transfers from a server. I do, because I keep on my data on a separate server, and dedicated card can get much closer to local speeds, in some cases. If that doesn't apply to you, the motherboard networking should be fine, and shouldn't affect internet speeds or anything like that.

I didn't know why you listed network card exactly as you didn't say anything.

I have a PC with separate network card that use onboard one for internet and the second one for IPTV (means I could watch and record anything I want anytime from IPTV on my HDD) where PC, in fact a software on PC, emulates settopbox.

If you don't need two different MAC addresses on your PC, a separate network card is not needed. In english, lol, that means if all you'll do with your PC is internet browsing, don't buy a separate network card.

But to be honest, I thought you ment there wi fi USB antenna. And if you did, I suggest buying Airlive WL1700, nothing can beat it, even those new ASUS multiantenna wifi gadgets. Will test Alfa Rabbit in next few days to know if that one is better (the rumor is that it gives better results if used instead of Airlive with TP-Link 24Dbi antenna for longdistance wireless connections, but I still have to test that cheap chinese gadget in an actual world, can't confirm it yet).

Ripper said:

The network chipsets on motherboards can be pretty shoddy, and a good quality network card can make sense if you plan to do a lot of file transfers from a server. I do, because I keep on my data on a separate server, and dedicated card can get much closer to local speeds, in some cases. If that doesn't apply to you, the motherboard networking should be fine, and shouldn't affect internet speeds or anything like that.

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Hm. Well, I've got a NAS that I use to back things up... I'm sure such a card can't cost much anyway. Got any recommendations (that are compatible with the above components)?

joxer said:

I didn't know why you listed network card exactly as you didn't say anything.

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I just figured I needed it, I hadn't considered the fact it would be on-board.

joxer said:

I have a PC with separate network card that use onboard one for internet and the second one for IPTV (means I could watch and record anything I want anytime from IPTV on my HDD) where PC, in fact a software on PC, emulates settopbox.

If you don't need two different MAC addresses on your PC, a separate network card is not needed. In english, lol, that means if all you'll do with your PC is internet browsing, don't buy a separate network card.

But to be honest, I thought you ment there wi fi USB antenna. And if you did, I suggest buying Airlive WL1700, nothing can beat it, even those new ASUS multiantenna wifi gadgets. Will test Alfa Rabbit in next few days to know if that one is better (the rumor is that it gives better results if used instead of Airlive with TP-Link 24Dbi antenna for longdistance wireless connections, but I still have to test that cheap chinese gadget in an actual world, can't confirm it yet).

Click to expand...

Nah, I just need it for internet browsing and the lot. Nothing special really. As for WiFi, I don't really need a dedicated card for that right, I could just get a dongle?

wiretripped said:

Hm. Well, I've got a NAS that I use to back things up… I'm sure such a card can't cost much anyway. Got any recommendations (that are compatible with the above components)?

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I swear by Intel networking chipsets. Something like this.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Intel-EXPI9...8&refRID=0HQKKB1B18YCT8WDDDT2#customerReviews

Bear in mind that the chipset on the MB might be adequate for your needs. But when I've had problems with unexpectedly low network throughput, I've generally found this to be the problem.

How much more would you have to spend to get a i7-4790K? I paid around $300 for mine, and it's definitely worth every penny.

I'm talking about the 4790K not the 4790. There's a significant difference.

JDR13 said:

How much more would you have to spend to get a i7-4790K? I paid around $300 for mine, and it's definitely worth every penny.

I'm talking about the 4790K not the 4790. There's a significant difference.

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Not if he doesn't want to overclock.

sakichop said:

Not if he doesn't want to overclock.

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No, there's still a difference. The K version is 400mhz faster, runs cooler, and contains some new instruction sets although I don't know how useful they are.

In short, it's worth getting if the price difference isn't significant.

wiretripped said:

As for WiFi, I don't really need a dedicated card for that right, I could just get a dongle?

Click to expand...

You can use dongle, yes. If it doesn't provide enough quality wireless connection go for the antenna I mentioned.

sakichop said:

Not if he doesn't want to overclock.

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He doesn't need to overclock that machine today. Will he do it in a year or two, he'll decide. But with Z97 chipset onboard, it'd be a shame to buy nonK CPU version. Even more, there will be no choice to make in a year or two.

Verify how noisy the CPU & graphics card fans are. Silent components aren't really a cost factor, but you should be aware of the issue. Of course only unless your favourite genre is helicopter sims.

JDR13 said:

No, there's still a difference. The K version is 400mhz faster, runs cooler, and contains some new instruction sets although I don't know how useful they are.

In short, it's worth getting if the price difference isn't significant.

Click to expand...

Hmm, I never knew that, I learned something new today.

And only a $30 difference at microcenter. It's really a no brainier. Odd choice by Intel there's no reason to ever buy the non-k version even if your not overclocking.

i7-4790K overclocking is pretty limited if you are into silent PCs. The CPU is already getting a little hot in a silent system just with the regular boost frequencies (i.e. in CPU intensive tasks like Prime/Orthos and a few/very few games).
Running the CPU at stock is no problem while keeping the system silent. My PC is more silent than it's ever been thanks to pre-installed sound insulation materials in a Nanoxia Deep Silence 5 case and not OC'ing the i7-4790K and a virtually inaudible MSI GTX 980.

Anyway, if it is within budget, sure, get that i7-4790K or else stick with the i5-4690K. There will not be a noticeable difference in games. Better spend any additional cash on more GPU power. I know that the performance difference between a GTX 970 and GTX 980 very often does not justify the additional cost of the 980 but ever since the 3.5GB fiasco, I'd say that a GTX 980 has become a lot more interesting. So before you splurge more on the CPU, I would definitely rather get a nice GTX 980 like the ASUS Strix or that MSI 4G, for example.
Zero fan mode is awesome. It means the fan won't even start up before the GPU reaches 60C. The heatsink on these cards is a monster so there are actually many older and less demanding games where the graphics card will remain completely passive because it always stays under 60C.
The kicker is even if the fan does start up it is still nearly inaudible. I've never before owned such a high performing card as my MSI GTX 980 4G that stayed as super-silent at the same time.
Finally, a little warning: AMD is about (May? June?) to release their 390X card and their entire 3xx lineup so that might shake up the market a little bit and force nVidia to drop prices. Also, the GTX 980Ti is coming in September according to latest rumors.

Finally, since you asked about RAM, there is some pretty nice and perfectly affordable low voltage 1.35V, low latency, low profile Crucial Ballistix RAM that is highly recommendable. Here is the 16GB variant. The low voltage makes sure it stays cool, the low latency 8-8-8-24 is great for performance reasons and the low profile keeps it clear from huge CPU heatsinks. And Crucial = Micron so it's definitely a quality RAM kit.

sakichop said:

Odd choice by Intel there's no reason to ever buy the non-k version even if your not overclocking.

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They weren't released at the same time. The K version is a newer CPU. I'm surprised they're even still producing the non-k version.

Unless you plan to do some uber high capacity/performance networking then you don't need a dedicated network card. Just go with whatever comes with your MB.