New Uni/Gaming PC

[kurosagi01]

Hello people after selling my old desktop and moved onto a laptop to have the ability to do uni work portability.
After using a laptop for 8-9 months i can't stand it anymore and want go back to using a desktop.
The PC will be used for Uni still which involves in C programming,Android programming,Python etc.
The last thing will obviously be gaming which i am currently looking into playing Evolve,Dyling Light,Dark Souls 2,Battlefield Hardline etc.
The budget is around £600, i already have 3 old SATA II hard drives from my old desktop and new OCZ ARC 100 240GB SSD which will be the boot and OS Drive prepared.
As for monitor i will be using a TV/monitor with 1080p resolution and case wise i have always wanted a Coolermaster CM690 series which i will be getting the CM690 III as late xmas present from the other half.
This what i am currently proposing:

Any thoughts and opinion be appreciated.

 

[GorbazTheDragon]

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-4460 3.2GHz Quad-Core Processor (£130.94 @ Aria PC)
Motherboard: Asus Z97-C ATX LGA1150 Motherboard (£87.54 @ Aria PC)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866 Memory (£56.57 @ Ebuyer)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 970 4GB Superclocked ACX 2.0 Video Card (£269.99 @ Amazon UK)
Case: Cooler Master 690 III ATX Mid Tower Case (£67.53 @ Amazon UK)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80+ Bronze Certified ATX Power Supply (£46.99 @ Amazon UK)
Total: £659.56
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-01-03 00:03 GMT+0000

Better mobo and PSU. You shouldn't need a DVD reader.

 

[kurosagi01]

Any particular reason why 550W over 650W?

 

[RCoon]

Any particular reason why 550W over 650W?

Fully loaded the system won't even use 500w. You're looking at up to 100 (though unlikely) for cpu and 220 for GPU. Add in overhead and additional components and you're sitting pretty at under 400w.

Also not a fan of aerocool fans. I've thrown away all mine because they're about as effective as a sparrow's fart.

You also won't need sata cables. My motherboard came with at least 2 if not 4.

 

[Devon68]

Just out of curiosity why the 1 meter sata cable?

 

[kurosagi01]

Just out of curiosity why the 1 meter sata cable?

Not sure how many Sata Cables i'll be getting from the motherboard so just buying extra in case since i'll be having 3 old SATA II HDD and 1 SSD.

 

[kurosagi01]

Fully loaded the system won't even use 500w. You're looking at up to 100 (though unlikely) for cpu and 220 for GPU. Add in overhead and additional components and you're sitting pretty at under 400w.

Also not a fan of aerocool fans. I've thrown away all mine because they're about as effective as a sparrow's fart.

You also won't need sata cables. My motherboard came with at least 2 if not 4.

Ah okay fair enough though scan doesn't have any decent 550W PSU,ideally i would like to get all parts from scan because i get next day delivery for free.
Also what are your thoughts on choice of motherboard under the sub £70 mark?
Majority of boards i have been looking at only comes with 2 Sata cables.
As for fans what about these?:
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/120mm-cooler-master-sickleflow-blue-led-quiet-case-fan

 

[GorbazTheDragon]

Main reason I'd go with the XFX over the CS is because of the component quality.

You could get a non-Z motherboard, but I thought why not just take a Z97 board so you can stick a broadwell CPU in it down the road. (not that anyone does that... But whatever) I think the Z97-C is the best price you can get without dropping away lots of features.

 

[kurosagi01]

Main reason I'd go with the XFX over the CS is because of the component quality.

You could get a non-Z motherboard, but I thought why not just take a Z97 board so you can stick a broadwell CPU in it down the road. (not that anyone does that... But whatever) I think the Z97-C is the best price you can get without dropping away lots of features.

Fair enough the XFX 650W is £6 less than the Corsair and the Asus board gone up in price from Aria.
What about this board?
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/giga...3-pcie-30-2-way-crossfirex-d-sub-dvi-hdmi-atx
For some reason scan have 2 of same board but different pricing.
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/giga...-30-(x16)-2-way-crossfirex-d-sub-dvi-hdmi-atx

There is also Asus Z97-P for £69
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/asus...3-pcie-30-(x16)-m2-d-sub-(vga)-dvi-d-hdmi-atx

 

[GorbazTheDragon]

I would skip any of the low end Gigabyte's the VRMs are garbage.

http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/part/asrock-motherboard-fatal1tyh97killer

http://uk.pcpartpicker.com/part/asrock-motherboard-z97pro4

 

[kurosagi01]

Really? I used a budget Gigabyte board couple years ago and i thought they are alright.
Can't really find much information on the Asrock Z97 pro4 either.

 

[GorbazTheDragon]

The Z97 ones are pretty awful. I have a H87 board which is great, but the Z97x-SLI (which has the same VRM as quite a lot of the other low end Gigabyte Z97 boards) has a lot of trouble overclocking haswell CPUs. 4.4GHz@1.25v is already hard, and the CPU gets a lot hotter than it should, indicating the VRM is not operating properly.

The 8-series boards they made were with IR Powerstages, so a 4 phase system was more than adequate for a baseline board, the H87-D3H which I have uses 4 IR3553s which are 30A each. So 160A@1.8v VIN (288w) is more than enough, but the SiRa12s they used on the 9-series boards are 25A and arguably lower quality components, 100A@1.8v is only 180w, and a 4.4GHz 4790k draws around 130w peak, judging from what I've seen from other VRMs, most of them don't really like taking more than 50% of their rated loads, some (IR powerstages for example) can take more.

 

[kurosagi01]

Oh i see,well i don't think i would be doing any overclocking but i may consider the Asrock Z97 Pro4 but i can't really find any information for it.

 

[RCoon]

Ah okay fair enough though scan doesn't have any decent 550W PSU,ideally i would like to get all parts from scan because i get next day delivery for free.
Also what are your thoughts on choice of motherboard under the sub £70 mark?
Majority of boards i have been looking at only comes with 2 Sata cables.
As for fans what about these?:
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/120mm-cooler-master-sickleflow-blue-led-quiet-case-fan

I've used the sickle flow fans before, they're alright and quite quiet, more for silence and looks than performance, but they're perfectly good for generic use.

I tend to steer clear from ASRock motherboards as they have the highest failure rate from the big manufacturers, and gigabyte have the smallest failure rate. I just buy msi because I'm familiar with their BIOS but Asus, gigabyte or msi are generally all good brands to consider.

If you're not overclocking and don't intend to like me, you can always look at the H87 motherboards. @Tatty_One did a fair bit of research for his Intel build and settled for a nice biostar Z board that was cheaper than some H series boards. Biostar are a classic underdog but they're making steps to become a quality brand.

I agree on the XFX psu though, the corsair CS series isn't built with decent components.

EDIT:
Here are my charts for manufacturer failure rate
http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/t...-update-from-hardware-fr.207128/#post-3192194

 

[kurosagi01]

Thanks for the opinion on fans,the fans just for looks and i want lot quieter due to living at home.
I have never experienced MSI boards before nor have i have used Asrock before. The only two boards i have used are Gigabyte when i had Core 2 duo E6230 and Asus MATX board for i3 530 and never had problems with them.
The MSI H97 Gaming 3 cost as much as the Asrocks.
Though i don't mind MATX boards as i would only be using 1 Graphics card mainly.
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/msi-...0-(x16)-2-way-crossfirex-displayport-hdmi-atx

 

[GorbazTheDragon]

LOL highest failure rate by like .5%

OK, 2% for Z87, but the difference is negligible IMO.

Kinda interesting how the 970s have the highest by chipset, I suppose it's because of those MSi ones that blew up when you put the 8 cores in them... The VRMs were only 120w rated or something like that...

That one's ATX, looks like a decent board to me.

 

[kurosagi01]

So you like the MSI H97 Gaming 3?

 

[RCoon]

So you like the MSI H97 Gaming 3?

Dave was always a fan of the features provided by the budget MSI boards. They seem to offer a lot considering the market they're aimed at.

 

[kurosagi01]

Hows this?

 

[Tatty_Two]

Looks a nice build..... all I would say to reiterate RCoon is that if you go for a budget Z97 board you are future proofing your build, only if in a year or two's time you decide you want what will be then probably a cheap K series quad and some of the budget Z97's are cheaper than your MSI there, for example mine! Apart from that, looks a very nice build.

 

[kurosagi01]

Thanks for reply Tatty out of the motherboards under £80 from Z97 which would you recommend?:
http://www.scan.co.uk/shop/computer...ards-intel/socket-1150-intel-z97-motherboards

 

[RCoon]

Thanks for reply Tatty out of the motherboards under £80 from Z97 which would you recommend?:
http://www.scan.co.uk/shop/computer...ards-intel/socket-1150-intel-z97-motherboards

Has more features than the sub £70 motherboards on Scan, and has free UK delivery:
http://www.amazon.co_uk/dp/B00K8K8VGM/?tag=tec053-21

(Note, replace the "_" in that link with a ".". Amazon UK links break on TPU)

Does it have to be sub £70? The better option would possibly be the non Micro version.
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/msi-...0-(x16)-2-way-crossfirex-d-sub-dvi-d-hdmi-atx

 

[Devon68]

The only thing I personally would change is the gpu for a card with an aftermarket cooler.

 

[kurosagi01]

Has more features than the sub £70 motherboards on Scan, and has free UK delivery:
http://www.amazon.co_uk/dp/B00K8K8VGM/?tag=tec053-21

(Note, replace the "_" in that link with a ".". Amazon UK links break on TPU)

Does it have to be sub £70? The better option would possibly be the non Micro version.
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/msi-...0-(x16)-2-way-crossfirex-d-sub-dvi-d-hdmi-atx

Ideally would like to spend less than £80 on motherboard because i won't really be doing any kind of overclocking or something drastic cause motherboard failure.
The 2nd one seems perfect.
As for the 970 i quite like reference board,though aftermarket coolers is an option the Zotac seems pretty good or the Gigabyte OC ITX cooler.
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/4gb-...boost-1216mhz-1664-cores-1x-dp-2x-dvi-1x-hdmi

Edit:
I don't think i will be looking into upgrading the system until another 3-4 years time which by then i would probably change the whole thing together.

 

[GorbazTheDragon]

I'd say go with the H97 one, AFAIK they still support overclocking...

Avoid Zotac pls and get CAS9 memory, the 1600MHz CAS11 ones are usually less reliable