flyinghaggis Posted March 3, 2015 Posted March 3, 2015 (edited) I'd also suggest steering clear of 4k monitors for just now. They may seem cheap but the sub £500 ones are all 60hz TN panels and Windows UI/font scaling is still a liability. Better to go with something like the new Acer 1440p 144hz IPS Gsync 27" monitor if gaming is your main concern. Acer Predator XB270HU Review - TFT Central If that doesn't fit within budget it's probably better to stick with a regular IPS 27" 1440p monitor rather than going 4k IMO. Edited March 3, 2015 by flyinghaggis
steveg Posted March 4, 2015 Author Posted March 4, 2015 If she only needs one graphics card I would get an NCase M1 + mITX motherboard (like the Asus Maximus VII Impact) + Silverstone SX600-G SFX PSU. The case is tiny so it would be easy to transport on a train. I really like the look of those 3, although have a couple of worries.... Is 16gb ram going to be enough long term? I'm inclined to say probably yes it is, at least for the next 3 years? Are those cases going to be available in the uk any time soon? If not is there a good alternative? Steve
abillybob Posted March 4, 2015 Posted March 4, 2015 To put 16GB RAM into perspective.... I have 16GB and last night on Windows 8.1 Enterprise 64bit I was running Remote Desktop, Kodu, 4 Chrome Tabs and Samsung Kies and it was using around 3GB RAM so yes you will be fine. Most games don't tend to use more than a max of 6GB as well. As for the 4k monitor I have one, well not a monitor but 49" TV that my computer is hooked up to. The scaling is fine for me and looks really good - Though you do have to remember it maybe the fact I am running it on such a large screen as to why it looks so good. People say you won't ever be able to play 4k Games yet I would say rubbish, I have a GTX 770 and I can play The Talos Principle in 4k Resolution with 4K textures. The framerate is just bearable at around 30FPS average. I have also played the likes of Rust and 7DTD at 4K resolution with no problem and even though they don't support the textures I still think it looks a lot more refined and clear when at 4k Resolution. I have a i7 4790k and it's great, Overlocked with a Corsair closed loop cooler. Have a Samsung Evo Pro 500GB SSD and that does me. Motherboard of choice was the ASUS Z97 Pro + Wifi excellent board and the BIOS features are immense, the software packages that come with it are all aimed at gaming as well and it does make a truly lovely gaming platform.
JRowley Posted March 4, 2015 Posted March 4, 2015 If for example you buy 2,400MHz DDR4 RAM today, would you necessarily want that in your next build when 3,200MHz (or faster) DDR4 RAM will be a lot cheaper than it is currently? That's what the intermediary upgrade is for, you buy 2,400Mhz then in a couple of years time you buy the cheaper 3200Mhz+ RAM rather than having to replace RAM, Motherboard and Processor. It's better in the long run.
Gaz Posted March 4, 2015 Posted March 4, 2015 (edited) Pretty certain you won't see any difference between 2400MHz and 3200MHz, plus in 4 years which is my upgrade cycle you'll probably want to go DDR4 anyway as it may well be mainstream then. The kit listed will be fine for the next 4 years, just need to find the right motherboard and case, I'd recommend M-ATX as you'll be able to do SLI, 32GB memory support and have a smaller form factor. Edited March 4, 2015 by Gaz
LiamH Posted March 4, 2015 Posted March 4, 2015 So... I'm looking at getting something like this. http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/saved/1GU9CD Comments? suggestions? Its so hard staying in the loop with top end PC hardware.
Gaz Posted March 4, 2015 Posted March 4, 2015 So... I'm looking at getting something like this. http://www.cyberpowerpc.com/saved/1GU9CD Comments? suggestions? Its so hard staying in the loop with top end PC hardware. Perhaps start your own thread for that. OTOH it your a techie it should be your passion to keep up with the latest and greatest hardware.
Norphy Posted March 4, 2015 Posted March 4, 2015 The case isn't to my taste but that's by the by. The only thing that catches my attention is the SSD: The Kingston V300 has two versions and the current version is somewhat poor compared to the competition.
LiamH Posted March 4, 2015 Posted March 4, 2015 Yeah the SDD was what i was hung up on. The case is horrible but that's a cosmetic feature. I can live with that. I used to stay current with gaming hardware when i played competitively, but since getting married and playing more casually i just don't have the time to track the rapid changes.
Arthur Posted March 6, 2015 Posted March 6, 2015 (edited) Is 16GB RAM going to be enough long term? I reckon so for 3 years. Are those cases going to be available in the UK anytime soon? NCase ship to the UK. I have an M1 myself. If not is there a good alternative? Nothing quite as small as the M1. Other alternatives would include... Phanteks Enthoo EVOLV ITX (Due to be released later this month. Will cost $79.99 in the US, so maybe £65 in the UK?) Corsair Obsidian 250D (£64.99) Corsair Graphite 380T (£104.86) Silverstone Sugo SST-SG13B (£36.00) or SST-SG13B-Q (£36.98) EVGA Hadron Air (£111.19) or Hadron Hydro (£165.00) Edited March 6, 2015 by Arthur
steveg Posted March 7, 2015 Author Posted March 7, 2015 I think this is the final spec I'm going to order, and will wait for the new acer monitor to be released. The ssds will be in a raid 0, with 2 existing smaller ones in a raid 1 for the boot drive. I've gone for the itx option, won't ever want to go sli so made sense to make it easily transportable. Thanks for all the comments and help. Steve
steveg Posted March 7, 2015 Author Posted March 7, 2015 Going to change motherboard to this Asrock Z97E-ITX/ac Socket 1150 DVI-I HDMI DisplayPort 7.1 CH HD Audio Mini-ITX Motherboard - Ebuyer As the other one only has 4 sata connectors. Steve
Arthur Posted March 7, 2015 Posted March 7, 2015 I think this is the final spec I'm going to order With the PSU being one of the most important components of a PC I would spend an additional £17.43 and get an EVGA SuperNOVA 750 G2 (£97.41) instead of the Corsair CS750M (£79.98). The EVGA has a 10 year warranty (vs 3 for the Corsair), a semi-fanless design (at low loads the fan doesn't spin at all) and 100% Japanese capacitors so reliability should be top-notch. Review: www.jonnyguru.com/modules.php?name=NDReviews&op=Story&reid=380
Gaz Posted March 7, 2015 Posted March 7, 2015 Have you checked whether there will be enough clearance between the cooler and PSU with that case? It all looks fine but Arthur is right a good PSU should last multiple upgrades so its best to invest in a good one.
Arthur Posted March 14, 2015 Posted March 14, 2015 All a bit of a moot point as she wants a rig for lan and ITX is perfect for that which currently there are no X99 ITX boards that I can find. ASRock just made one. ASRock to Debut mini-ITX Haswell-E at CeBIT: X99E-ITX/ac with USB 3.1 http://a.pomf.se/zwmboj.jpg 1
ICTDirect_Dave Posted March 16, 2015 Posted March 16, 2015 It's only going to be able to offer dual channel memory though, which is a shame as quad channel is a feature of the 2011 socket. Also unless that narrow cooler they supply is very very effective, then it's going to be a sod to keep at a suitable temp due to it using the narrow 2011 socket.
steveg Posted March 16, 2015 Author Posted March 16, 2015 Just wanted to say thanks to everyone for your help, it's now built and delivered, she is very happy! Went with the upgraded power supply as recommended above in the end. One of her games that she previously got 20fps on she now gets 299 :-) Will obviously drop when she gets the higher resolution monitor when it's released, but still very quick, can barely see the loading screen on most games! Steve 1
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