Hardware

[MarkusHaven]

I was thinking about building a PC in a month or two. I built it on Origin and then just pieced it together with a few extras off a couple sites like new egg. Anyone see any potential issues I should think about ?

Case: Rosewill ARMOR-EVO Gaming E-ATX Mid Tower Computer Case, support up to E-ATX, come with Six Fans-2x Front Red LED 120mm Fan, 2x Top 120mm Fan, 1x Side 230mm Fan, 1x Rear 120mm Fan
newegg $89 Amazon $89
Model #: ARMOR-EVO

Power Supply: Rosewill Capstone 650 650W Continuous @ 50°C, Intel Haswell Ready, 80 PLUS GOLD, ATX12V v2.31 & EPS12V v2.92, SLI/CrossFire Ready, Active PFC Power Supply $89 new egg
Model: CAPSTONE-650 $99 Amazon

Mother Board: ASRock Z87 PRO3 LGA 1150 Intel Z87 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard $95 amazon $119 cheapest at newegg
Model : Z87 PRO3

Processor: Intel Core i7-4770K Haswell 3.5GHz LGA 1150 84W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics BX80646I74770K $339 newegg $319 amazon
Model #: BX80646I74770K

Graphics Card: NVIDIA GTX 770
Model #: 02G-P4-2774-KR or Model #: GV-N770OC-4GD$329-$369

Memory: (2) CORSAIR Vengeance LP 8GB 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model CML8GX3M1A1600C10B Model CML8GX3M1A1600C10B $84.00 each new egg/ $79 amazon

1st - Hard Drive: Intel 530 Series SSDSC2BW240A401 2.5" 240GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
Model : SSDSC2BW240A401 $169.00 amazon $160

2nd - Hard drive: Seagate Constellation ES.3 ST1000NM0033 1TB 7200 RPM 128MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Enterprise Internal Hard Drive Bare Drive
Model #: ST1000NM0033 $119.00 (least important) amazon $103

DVD/CD Drive: ASUS 24X DVD Burner - Bulk 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM Black SATA
Model DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS $19.99 amazon $23

Sound Card: Creative Sound Blaster Z 70SB150000000 5.1 Channels 24-bit PCI Express (x1, x4 or x16) Interface Sound Card
Model #: 70SB150000000 $79.99 amazon $79

[Wave]

I'm not sure a 650W power supply will be able to run all of that, but otherwise, seems fine.

The motherboard has room for 4 sticks of RAM, but you're only getting two. Do you plan on getting more later on?

[Durron]

I think I'll be fine, but use pcpartpicker.com , you enter what you want to use and it tells you what us compatible and what is not

[EchoSeven]

You might not appreciate all this advice, see what you think, weigh it up in your circumstances.

I would recommend the following:

Invest in a full tower case, which is optimised for cooling and opens up your hardware options for the future. I swear by the Lian Li, but there are other excellent cases.

Improve the motherboard - I could find nothing that confirmed that the motherboard you selected would support dual x8 lanes, which I would expect you to move to in the next 2 years as you improve the graphics performance of the system. I can thoroughly recommend the MSI Z87-GD65 GAMING, which features automated overclocking and is a breeze to use. If not that, ask for the cheapest motherboard that supports dual x8 lanes.

Forget the i7 chip, go to the i5 4670K. There is no bottleneck that you will have with this choice, you will save yourself $100 or more with which to fund some of the improvements I suggest. There is no difference in cryengine3 between them, in fact, the i5 beats it by about 3%. No bottleneck will exist even if you use Dual GPU's (which you likely will one day).

Graphics Card - Use what you like, but honestly, it is suspected that AMD Mantle will improve graphics performance between 10-30%. That is massive. Wait for a month, then buy a R9 290 modified (with a superior cooling system than the current ones) and then get a second in a year or so / crossfire. The current card you picked it great, the only letdown is the memory. It also needs three spots to sit comfortably. Have a think about it. If you still want to go with the 780, the MSI GTX 780 Lightning is great.

Memory is fine, all you need.

Don't bother with a soundcard unless your serious. If you are serious, and have a terrific audio setup, then why aren't you getting a decent one?

Hard drive is good, also look at the Western Digital Red or Black range for some great performance.

Also consider getting extra advice by posting in the hardware section of the RSI forums. If your lucky, cynicalcyanide will respond, hehe...

[MarkusHaven]

Thanks fellow citadels.... I will take all your advice very seriously. I had a friend who is a highly trained MAC / PC guy help me with the build specs, but his expertise isn't gaming PC's. He asked me to get some feedback.

CynicalCyanide did indeed respond to my RSI post in Hardware and had a few recommendation as well:

QUOTE "Not really a problem as such. ... but that's a very, very big case for your motherboard.

You've also locked yourself out of sli, which is always a good thing to have. Another 100w on the psu, and maybe an upgrade to a motherboard with x8/x8 pcie lanes (cant check yours as im on my mobile going off memory).

You should also shop around ad double check whether that Corsair ram is your best option - they tend to overcharge for the same product.

Lastly, you should swap the ssd for a samsung 840 evo or regular 840. Faster, cheaper, just as reliable." END QUOTE

I found this motherboard instead: NEW motherboard: ASRock Z77 Pro3 LGA 1155 Intel Z77 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Intel Motherboard

I will update this thread as I update the list. Maybe this will help someone else like myself that isn't up on this stuff.

Thanks again!

MarkusHaven

[EchoSeven]

Great! So glad that was helpful, well, come on, link us to the post on the RSI forums so we can check out what happened!

[MarkusHaven]

Sorry I'm not super computer savvy:
https://forums.robertsspaceindustries.c ... rdware/p43

It's towards the bottom of that page.

[MarkusHaven]

My updated untested list:

Case: Rosewill THOR V2 Gaming ATX Full Tower Computer Case, support up to E-ATX / XL-ATX, come with Four Fans - 1 x Front Red LED 230mm Fan, 1 x Top 230mm Fan, 1 x Side 230mm Fan, 1 x Rear 140mm Fan $129 new egg

Supply:Rosewill CAPSTONE-750 750W Continuous @ 50°C, Intel Haswell Ready, 80 PLUS GOLD, ATX12V v2.31 & EPS12V v2.92, SLI/CrossFire Ready, Active PFC Power Supply $99 new egg


Mother Board:
MSI Z87-GD65 Gaming LGA 1150 Intel Z87 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Extreme OC High Performance Triple CFX/ SLI Intel Motherboard $167 newegg
Processor: Intel Core i7-4770K Haswell 3.5GHz LGA 1150 84W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics BX80646I74770K $339 newegg $319 amazon
Model #: BX80646I74770K

Graphics Card:MSI N780 LIGHTNING GeForce GTX 780 3GB 384-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card $550 newegg

Memory: (2) PNY XLR8 8GB 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model MD8192SD3-1600-X9 - $69 each new egg

Hard Drive: SAMSUNG 840 EVO MZ-7TE250BW 2.5" 250GB SATA III TLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
$167 newegg



2nd - Hard drive: Seagate Constellation ES.3 ST1000NM0033 1TB 7200 RPM 128MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Enterprise Internal Hard Drive Bare Drive
Model #: ST1000NM0033 $119.00 (least important) amazon $103

DVD/CD Drive: ASUS 24X DVD Burner - Bulk 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM Black SATA
Model DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS $19.99 amazon $23

[EchoSeven]

Okay, let's take a look.

Case: Rosewill THOR V2 Gaming ATX Full Tower Computer Case, support up to E-ATX / XL-ATX, come with Four Fans - 1 x Front Red LED 230mm Fan, 1 x Top 230mm Fan, 1 x Side 230mm Fan, 1 x Rear 140mm Fan $129 new egg

My comments on this are that I am glad you went for a full tower - One tip, check the reviews for it and try and focus on either a case that is very quiet (no vibration) or very airy. Which of these two does this case fit? I went for silent, and it is sweet pleasure to have it running without sounding like a whipper snipper.

Supply:Rosewill CAPSTONE-750 750W Continuous @ 50°C, Intel Haswell Ready, 80 PLUS GOLD, ATX12V v2.31 & EPS12V v2.92, SLI/CrossFire Ready, Active PFC Power Supply $99 new egg

The power supply is important, the wattage is about right, but make sure it is a decent one, designed for gaming. The Antec HCG-750 (High Current Gamer) is excellent. Just read the reviews on yours, I havn't had the chance yet.

Mother Board:
MSI Z87-GD65 Gaming LGA 1150 Intel Z87 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.0 ATX Extreme OC High Performance Triple CFX/ SLI Intel Motherboard $167 newegg
Processor: Intel Core i7-4770K Haswell 3.5GHz LGA 1150 84W Quad-Core Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics BX80646I74770K $339 newegg $319 amazon
Model #: BX80646I74770K

Some good choices here, however I think you are blowing your cash unnecessarily here - I mean, go for it if you have it, but the processor will almost never be a bottleneck. You could even consider going to the GD45 instead of the GD65 (check the price difference, see what you think), and the i5 4670K.

I forgot to metion a cooler. You will need to do better than the stock cooler I would think. There are so many choices here, it is ridiculous, but I would stay away from water, liquids and liquid nitrogen. For a safe, effective option you install once and will love forever, that you can even use on your next board, I would recommend the NH-C12P SE14. It runs virtually silently, mmm......

Graphics Card:MSI N780 LIGHTNING GeForce GTX 780 3GB 384-bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 HDCP Ready SLI Support Video Card $550 newegg

Sounds amazing - shame it won't use Mantle.

Memory: (2) PNY XLR8 8GB 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model MD8192SD3-1600-X9 - $69 each new egg

8GB is pretty much fine, you won't squeeze more than 1-3% more out of it. Worth it? I'd rather put the $69 towards something else, and replace the memory down the track when it will make a difference. The right speed though. Warning : If you are going with the Noctua cooler, buy low clearance RAM, not the high stuff - check your motherboard with the list found here http://www.noctua.at/main.php?show=comp ... =35&lng=en You might think it annoying, but in fact if you need the low clearance memory, it is because the Noctua also cools it, so it is pretty cool (pun intended) actually...

Hard Drive: SAMSUNG 840 EVO MZ-7TE250BW 2.5" 250GB SATA III TLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)
$167 newegg

2nd - Hard drive: Seagate Constellation ES.3 ST1000NM0033 1TB 7200 RPM 128MB Cache SATA 6.0Gb/s 3.5" Enterprise Internal Hard Drive Bare Drive
Model #: ST1000NM0033 $119.00 (least important) amazon $103

Sounds great! Another idea is to get three drives - 1 x 80GB SSD for the O/S & Core programs, one SSD for Star Citizen and a standard HDD (2GB+) for data and everything else. Shame to waste that precious SSD space with just junk. I would get a bigger drive than just 1TB - It will be gone in a flash.

DVD/CD Drive: ASUS 24X DVD Burner - Bulk 24X DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 12X DVD+R DL 24X DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM Black SATA
Model DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS $19.99 amazon $23

Still have money to blow? Go here and pick a nice sound card. http://www.auzentech.com/site/products/cards.php

Er, now that you have a nice sound card, do you really want to listen to stuff on those 9.99 speakers? Get yourself the Audio Technica ATH AD700x or the M50. Check the discussion here : https://forums.robertsspaceindustries.c ... mendations

Don't forget, as you went the Nvidia path instead of Mantle, you can get to take advantage of special technology they are introducing for multiple screens. Make sure you buy a compatible monitor and get two to match it before they sell out.
All good!

[MarkusHaven]

All the things you've mentioned I've given thought to and a few i haven't....... I'm still wondering about Mantle and a different GPU.

I was thinking about the SSD to run the OS and Star Citizen, and the extra TB for data. This will be a dedicated gaming machine with no other junk and I rarely play anything else. I do have 5 Macs in the house that run iTunes, AppleTV, and everything else.
I'll look at the cost difference for a 2 TB just in case, and consider the options on the SSD drives. What's the advantage of running the OS and Star Citizen on two separate drives?

I'm going with a 32 in Samsung monitor, and figured I would add some ASus 24" later if I wanted it.

I had a disucssion with my IT friend yesterday about all this, and he is getting additional input from a guy who builds servers all day and is a big gamer. I'm not sure what their reasoning is for some of their build recommendations, but I'm still learning.

I do send them all the forum info and they are taking the recommendations to heart and researching them so I appreciate the input. I'm not sure how we ended up deciding on Rosewill for the tower, but then we thought we would stick to the same brand of PSU. I did some comparisons on Newegg to come to my conclusions on several of these components.

I think I'm sold on the i7 processor, but I'm still debating the GPU, and am not stuck on much else. I know the almost everything I've selected was 5 eggs or so on newegg. I read a lot of the comments.

Anything else? Thanks.