Need help figuring out my friend's $1.6k build - Hardware & Software

He already has: -Keyboard -Audio -Mouse -Monitor and he currently is thinking of getting a budget new case. (Case is not included into the total) [IMG]http://i59.tinypic.com/ipzejl.png[/IMG] [URL]http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3jl9m[/URL] Posting here because neither me or my friend is really PC parts savvy (and I fear my friend may be dumping unnecessary cash into this), and I know you guys have generally the best opinions Any suggestions from the current list?

If he is just gaming, he should go for an i5 4670k instead of the i7. If he is doing lots of 3D rendering, video encoding etc. then keep the i7. You could also probably spend a bit less on the motherboard if your friend doesn't need its functions. The gigabyte z87-d3h and msi z87-g43 or g45 are a couple of good choices.

My suggestion (included a case too). I would also suggest adding something like the AF120 quiet fans on the side panel which will improve your CPU cooling [url]http://pcpartpicker.com/part/corsair-case-fan-co9050002ww[/url]. You could downgrade the SSD to 120 gb to save money if you want to get closer to 1.6k [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3ozix]PCPartPicker part list[/url] / [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3ozix/by_merchant/]Price breakdown by merchant[/url] / [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3ozix/benchmarks/]Benchmarks[/url] [b]CPU:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/intel-cpu-bx80646i54670k]Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor[/url] ($189.99 @ Micro Center) [b]CPU Cooler:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/phanteks-cpu-cooler-phtc14pebk]Phanteks PH-TC14PE_BK 78.1 CFM CPU Cooler[/url] ($74.99 @ Newegg) [b]Motherboard:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/asus-motherboard-maximusvihero]Asus Maximus VI Hero ATX LGA1150 Motherboard[/url] ($189.99 @ NCIX US) [b]Memory:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/corsair-memory-cmy16gx3m2a1866c9r]Corsair Vengeance Pro 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory[/url] ($154.99 @ Newegg) [b]Storage:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/samsung-internal-hard-drive-mz7te250bw]Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk[/url] ($139.99 @ Amazon) [b]Storage:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/western-digital-internal-hard-drive-wd10ezex]Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive[/url] ($57.98 @ OutletPC) [b]Video Card:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-video-card-03gp42884kr]EVGA GeForce GTX 780 Ti 3GB Video Card[/url] ($709.99 @ Amazon) [b]Case:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/corsair-case-400r]Corsair 400R ATX Mid Tower Case[/url] ($69.99 @ NCIX US) [b]Power Supply:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/evga-power-supply-120pg0650gr]EVGA SuperNOVA 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply[/url] ($94.99 @ NCIX US) [b]Optical Drive:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/asus-optical-drive-drw24b1stblkbas]Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer[/url] ($19.98 @ OutletPC) [b]Total:[/b] $1682.88 [i](Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)[/i] [i](Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-04-08 22:16 EDT-0400)[/i]

Alright, he says he likes what he sees so far but he's gonna wait on a bit more posts to weigh in what he may really want [QUOTE=DwarfOverlord;44494268]If he is just gaming, he should go for an i5 4670k instead of the i7. If he is doing lots of 3D rendering, video encoding etc. then keep the i7. You could also probably spend a bit less on the motherboard if your friend doesn't need its functions. The gigabyte z87-d3h and msi z87-g43 or g45 are a couple of good choices.[/QUOTE] He said he wants to use his new PC for gaming as well as streaming (apparently he wants to have a go at it) and he wants a rig that does very well on both ends [editline]8th April 2014[/editline] Also his maximum budget is $2k and he doesn't mind going there, unless of course it's really excessive

Well in that case the 4770k isn't too big of a stretch. I also recommend he switch all the fans on the case with better and quieter ones if he really wants to go above 1.6k. If he gets 7 good fans which should cost him about $100 maybe, having the front, side, and back all intake and the top exhaust he'll get very good temps for the entire case as well as helping the Phanteks cooler perform more efficiently (make sure to place the cooler facing downwards, so the fans intake air from the bottom and exhaust out the top vent)

Similar to Lilyo's build, here's my suggestion. From looking at motherboards around this price range myself lately, I'd suggest this UD4H, or the Asrock Extreme 6. The Seagate drive will provide a faster data drive that is just as reliable, although as a data drive it does not matter that much. If he does decide to get heavily into streaming, using [URL="http://pcpartpicker.com/part/seagate-internal-hard-drive-st120hm000"]this[/URL] as a recording drive would do him well. The Seagate's sequential write speeds are king. [PCPartPicker part list]([url]http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3oBcS[/url]) / [Price breakdown by merchant]([url]http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3oBcS/by_merchant/[/url]) / [Benchmarks]([url]http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3oBcS/benchmarks/[/url]) [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3oBcS]PCPartPicker part list[/url] / [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3oBcS/by_merchant/]Price breakdown by merchant[/url] / [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/p/3oBcS/benchmarks/]Benchmarks[/url] [b]CPU:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/intel-cpu-bx80646i74770k]Intel Core i7-4770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor[/url] ($319.99 @ Newegg) [b]CPU Cooler:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/phanteks-cpu-cooler-phtc14pebk]Phanteks PH-TC14PE_BK 78.1 CFM CPU Cooler[/url] ($74.99 @ Newegg) [b]Motherboard:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/gigabyte-motherboard-gaz87xud4h]Gigabyte GA-Z87X-UD4H ATX LGA1150 Motherboard[/url] ($159.99 @ Micro Center) [b]Memory:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/kingston-memory-khx18c10k216]Kingston 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1866 Memory[/url] ($139.99 @ Amazon) [b]Storage:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/samsung-internal-hard-drive-mz7te250bw]Samsung 840 EVO 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk[/url] ($139.99 @ Best Buy) [b]Storage:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/seagate-internal-hard-drive-st1000dm003]Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive[/url] ($54.98 @ OutletPC) [b]Video Card:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/msi-video-card-gtx780tigaming]MSI GeForce GTX 780 Ti 3GB Video Card[/url] ($639.99 @ Newegg) [b]Power Supply:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/corsair-power-supply-rm650]Corsair RM 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply[/url] ($89.99 @ Newegg) [b]Optical Drive:[/b] [url=http://pcpartpicker.com/part/asus-optical-drive-drw24b1stblkbas]Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer[/url] ($19.98 @ OutletPC) [b]Total:[/b] $1639.89 [i](Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)[/i] [i](Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-04-08 23:11 EDT-0400)[/i] [editline]8th April 2014[/editline] Alternatively if he only games in 1080p at 60hz, you could drop the video card down to a 780 with zero problems and raid 2 120gb ssd's in raid0 for even faster speeds while getting the same storage.

Some thoughts looking at that list... - Anything more than a cooler master 212 (only like $35) is overkill unless you are overclocking. - Motherboard is probably also super overkill unless you are overclocking or there is a particular feature you are interested in. - Get a better power supply for that video card. Corsair is great, but I'd go at least 750w just to be safe. edit: for quiet fans the Nexus PWM series are great

650w is completely fine as it is

I guess I assumed due to the original build that OP's friend was interested in fairly heavy OC'ing

Kingston makes some seriously ugly ram sticks. How is a cas 10 stick better than a cas 9 with better designed heatsinks? The Corsair can be overclocked to 2400 easily, and they're cheaper too right now with the sale. Also [IMG]http://www.legitreviews.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/temp-testing-645x405.jpg[/IMG] And the Hero has an awesome built in sound card and it's totally worth the extra money. I'm not aware of any other actual difference. Here's a review on pretty much all top fans if you want to decide on getting some for the case. [url]http://www.overclock.net/t/1389355/fan-testing-round-12-begins-thanks-to-cpachris-and-prymus-nb-e-loop-sp120-nf-f12-cougar-vortex-pwm-vortex-red-led-pirahna-ap-45[/url]

On the contrary, I love Kingston's simple design. I hate the look of 90% of Corsair's stupid ass heatsinks. You really don't need much of a heatsinks on RAM, because OC'ing it is unnoticeable without an APU