Gaming PC Spec Advice request

Hi All

Looking for an opinion on a gaming pc I'm looking to get.

As some background - I've got quite a decent budget but obviously don't wan't to spend pointlessly. I have tried to give it some decent thought but confess I am no expert in hardware, and sometimes get carried away with the idea that you get what you pay for. If the formatting holds the comments in bold are where I feel some motivational factors are worth stating.

1.
CASE
CORSAIR GRAPHITE SERIES™ 780T FULL TOWER CASE


2.
Processor (CPU)
Intel Core i9 18 Core Processor i9-7980XE (2.6GHz) 24.75MB Cache
I've seen posts veering from redundant/obsolete to overkill so would like opinions especially here
RAM
ASUS ROG RAMPAGE VI EXTREME: DDR4, 6Gb/s, CrossFireX/SLI, WIFI - RGB Ready
As seen below I am only planning on one graphics card initially but I'd like the option to put in another in the future
Graphics Card
11GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1080 Ti - HDMI, 3x DP GeForce - GTX VR Ready!
I haven't seen the benefit in two over one - but don't feel close minded to the concept. In addition my current machine has AMD RADEON and honestly this has been nothing but a source of problems its seem so I'd prefer GEFORCE. I also see this as providing good results listed for various games I'm interested in so this seemed the best option


3.
I might as well say to start - I'd like to have a decent amount of storage and in some places the cost doesn't seem prohibitive. However some of the storage gets quite expensive so particular interest in opinions
1st Hard Disk
12TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA PRO 3/5", 7200 RPM 256MB CACHE
2nd Hard Disk
8TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA PRO 3/5", 7200 RPM 256MB CACHE
3rd Hard Disk
8TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA PRO 3/5", 7200 RPM 256MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB SAMSUNG 960 PRO M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3500MB/R, 2100MB/W)
Intel Optane Memory
32GB INTEL OPTANE MEMORY
1st PCI-E SSD Drive
480GB INTEL OPTANE 900P PCIe SSD (up to 2400MB/sR | 2000MB/sW)
RAID
None Didn't select RAID as I haven't been convinced it would be worth it - but wont claim to be an expert here
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
16x BLU-RAY WRITER DRIVE, 16x DVD +R/+RW & SOFTWARE
Memory Card Reader
INTERNAL 52 IN 1 CARD READER (XD, CF, SD, etc) + 1x USB 2.0 PORT


4.
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1200W HX SERIES MODULAR 80 PLUS PLATINUM, ULTRA QUIET
I considered the Silverstone Strider 1500W Titanium Modular PSU option but it seemed quite a jump in price compared to the others and wasnt sure it was worth it
Processor Cooling
Corsair H110i Hydro Cooler w/ PCS Liquid Series Ultra Quiet Fans
Thermal Paste
EK-TIM ECTOTHERM THERMAL COMPOUND
Fan Controller
None
Extra Case Fans
2x 120mm Black Case Fan


5.
Sound Card
Creative Sound Blaster ZxR 5.1 PCI-E Soundcard
Wireless/Wired Networking
ASUS PCE-AC88 AC3100 2100Mbps/2.4GHz
USB Options
2 PORT (1 x TYPE A, 1 x TYPE C) USB 3.1 PCI-E CARD + STANDARD USB PORTS
Firewire
2 Port IEEE 1394a Firewire PCI-E Card (2 x 6 pin)


6.
Windows 10 Home, No Anti Virus


7.
No Peripherals


8.
3 year platinum

So all in all opinions/a consensus of best options would be appreciated, any where (and I expect a few) where overkill is estimated.
All opinions welcome - but please don't be too mean if I've made a fool of myself at any point.

Thanks for taking the time to read this and in advance of any help offered.

I've got quite a decent budget but obviously don't wan't to spend pointlessly.

Click to expand...

Intel Core i9 18 Core Processor i9-7980XE (2.6GHz) 24.75MB Cache
I've seen posts veering from redundant/obsolete to overkill so would like opinions especially here
ASUS ROG RAMPAGE VI EXTREME: DDR4, 6Gb/s, CrossFireX/SLI, WIFI - RGB Ready
As seen below I am only planning on one graphics card initially but I'd like the option to put in another in the future

Click to expand...

If it's for gaming, stick to an i7 8700k in the Z370 configurators:
Stock: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/computers/intel-z370-pc/
Overclocked: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/computers/intel-z370-overclocked/

Not only is it £1000 cheaper, it's marginally better too


You don't need the most expensive mobo for SLI. In the Z370 context, an Ultra Gaming has a large feature set, supports SLI, and is already plenty expensive. Or the Z370E for onboard wifi.

1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB SAMSUNG 960 PRO M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3500MB/R, 2100MB/W)

1st PCI-E SSD Drive
480GB INTEL OPTANE 900P PCIe SSD (up to 2400MB/sR | 2000MB/sW)
RAM

Click to expand...

This is ultra expensive, and pointless for gaming.

A pair of PM961 SSDs would give you the same gaming performance, for ~£400 less than a 2TB 960 Pro.

1st Hard Disk
12TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA PRO 3/5", 7200 RPM 256MB CACHE
2nd Hard Disk
8TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA PRO 3/5", 7200 RPM 256MB CACHE
3rd Hard Disk
8TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA PRO 3/5", 7200 RPM 256MB CACHE

Click to expand...

Also the Pro HDDs are about £100 more than the regular HDDs. For gaming and general file storage, it'll make no real difference. Unless you're in some sort of production environment, don't bother.

Do you actually need 28GB storage for games? Would it possibly not make sense to start with a more modest amount of storage and only add more if you need it?

An 8gb regular HDD would not count as a "modest" amount of storage to most people - it would see them set for a lifetime.

RAID
None Didn't select RAID as I haven't been convinced it would be worth it - but wont claim to be an expert here

Click to expand...

You're spot on.

1st PCI-E SSD Drive
480GB INTEL OPTANE 900P PCIe SSD (up to 2400MB/sR | 2000MB/sW)

Sound Card
Creative Sound Blaster ZxR 5.1 PCI-E Soundcard
Wireless/Wired Networking
ASUS PCE-AC88 AC3100 2100Mbps/2.4GHz
USB Options
2 PORT (1 x TYPE A, 1 x TYPE C) USB 3.1 PCI-E CARD + STANDARD USB PORTS
Firewire
2 Port IEEE 1394a Firewire PCI-E Card (2 x 6 pin)

Click to expand...

Don't stuff the PC full of add-in cards. You won't need most of those:
- (you sure you need firewire?)
- mobos already has 7.1 sound. if you're an audiophile you probably want a USB DAC anyway. Ditch the sound card.
- The mobo already has these USB ports. Unless you are utterly sure you need a pair of USB 3.1 type C ports, ditch it.
- The Optane SSD is nice, but it's a poor value proposition, and it takes up a PCIe slot. A fast M.2 NVMe SSD will be excellent for gaming.

Dropping these add in cards makes more space in the case, helping improve airflow which will matter to you a lot if you ever go for an SLI (2 GPU) setup.

Do you shuffle a lot of data around your home network? Are you coping gig upon gig of data to your network storage? If not, onboard wifi on the Z370E mobo would be more than enough.

CORSAIR GRAPHITE SERIES™ 780T FULL TOWER CASE
637mm x 288mm x 602mm
(Approx H x W x D)

Click to expand...

This case is very large. If you love the aesthetic and don't mind the size, go ahead, it's a good case. But if you don't care about it, there are less huge and somewhat less expensive cases that will do as good a job if not better with dual GPUs like the Carbide Air 540, or the Corsair Crystal series.

===

What monitor are you pairing this with? If you have cash to spare, and your current monitor is quite basic, get a really nice monitor and a 2nd 1080 ti to power it.

Case
CORSAIR GRAPHITE SERIES™ 780T FULL TOWER CASE
Overclocked CPU
Overclocked Intel® Core™ i7-8700K Six Core (3.7GHz @ up to 4.8GHz)
Motherboard
ASUS® ROG STRIX Z370-E GAMING: ATX, LGA1151, USB 3.1, SATA 6GBs - RGB Ready
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
11GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1080 Ti - HDMI, 3x DP GeForce - GTX VR Ready!
1[SUP]st[/SUP] Hard Disk
8TB SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 256MB CACHE
1[SUP]st[/SUP] M.2 SSD Drive
1TB SAMSUNG PM961 M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3000MB/R, 1700MB/W)
2[SUP]nd[/SUP] M.2 SSD Drive
1TB SAMSUNG PM961 M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3000MB/R, 1700MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
16x BLU-RAY WRITER DRIVE, 16x DVD ±R/±RW & SOFTWARE
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1000W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
Corsair H110i Hydro Cooler w/ PCS Liquid Series Ultra Quiet Fans
Thermal Paste
EK-TIM ECTOTHERM THERMAL COMPOUND
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
USB Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Genuine Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KW9-00003]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365
Anti-Virus
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Warranty
3 Year Platinum Warranty (3 Year Collect & Return, 3 Year Parts, 3 Year labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 8 to 10 working days
Quantity
1

Price £3,113.00 including VAT and delivery

Unique URL to re-configure : https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z370-overclocked/BR0ccYHTfH/

I bought a system in December, with Oussebon's help as i haven't had a desktop since my 486-50! It has the same CPU/GPU/MOBO and similar SSD to what he's recommended for you.

I can happily confirm that it is a gaming beast. On 3DMark it rates as better than 99% of PC's tested.

I'm currently playing a lot of Warhammer Total War II, which is pretty intensive, and it will run full 4K at pretty high settings at 40-50fps. I tend to play on 1440 though as it gets 60fps (which i set it to for my TV) with mostly ultra settings and still looks amazing. Most of the other games I've tried play even better at 4K but the fans do have to work hard at times.

Thanks for the advice - think that's mostly what I'm after so thanks kindly for the helpful advice.
A couple of follow up questions if that's ok:

Overclocked vs Stock - the overclocked is slightly more expensive but not so much that its prohibitive by any means, but in the past I've shied away from all things overclocked due to a slight fear of ruining things. So while I understand the concept I've always understood there to be risk - am I being a bit of a worrier (a trait of mine) or is it worth it - based on the PCGAMER diagram its worth 3 more.

The RAM I managed to forget and mislabel the mobo. Just curious if the 32GB version is just not seen as worth the extra expense (£200ish).

Thanks for the advice on the storage - probably the main point where I let myself get carried away with myself so thanks for the advice to help reel that in.

Graphics Card - I have seen the prevailing opinion seems to be the 11GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1080 Ti over the TITAN Xp - do you agree? I was planning on using my TV and a old monitor I bought along side the laptop - ASUS VG278HR 27" 144Hz. I was hoping to be able to use the one Graphics Card to run both monitors (I see 3 is meant to be possible but looking at postings online there are varying results).

I was curious as it wasn't discussed if there was any thoughts on the power - I'm assuming you set the RMx instead of the HX considering the lesser wattage enough. But just wanted to check.

And lastly the extra case fans not being set - its a minimal price so I assume they are seen as pointless - again just wanted to check.

And I wasnt't against the size of the case and did like the look but looking further the CORSAIR CRYSTAL SERIES 570X GAMING CASE + RGB Fans! is nice too...

Once again thanks for the advice and the advised spec - and smallkube for the ringing endorsement!

Overclocked vs Stock - the overclocked is slightly more expensive but not so much that its prohibitive by any means, but in the past I've shied away from all things overclocked due to a slight fear of ruining things. So while I understand the concept I've always understood there to be risk - am I being a bit of a worrier (a trait of mine) or is it worth it - based on the PCGAMER diagram its worth 3 more.

Click to expand...

If you overclock really stupidly and screw it up, there's a risk (although actually these days systems have so many failsafes it's fairly hard to do). But that doesn't matter. Here, you're paying PCS to OC it for you, and you're paying for a 3 year warranty which includes the OC. So there's no risk.

OCing would in principle reduce the lifespan of the system. But in real terms you're far more likely to have have got rid of the system due to obsolescence before that happens. There aren't any hard stats for kind of obvious reasons but the sort of change I see discussed anecdotally on forums is taking the CPU's lifespan from 15 years to 12 years.

PCS's overclock is pretty modest. Enough that games which care about CPU frequency will see a benefit. Not enough that it'll degrade the system meaningfully faster.

The RAM I managed to forget and mislabel the mobo. Just curious if the 32GB version is just not seen as worth the extra expense (£200ish).

Click to expand...

There is no point to 32gb RAM for gaming. it will give no benefit - there's barely any benefit to more than 8gb as it stands. By the time games have progressed to a point where 32gb can confer a performance advantage, it won't matter, the system will be obsolete and we'll be on DDR5 RAM anyway.

Graphics Card - I have seen the prevailing opinion seems to be the 11GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1080 Ti over the TITAN Xp - do you agree?

Click to expand...

Yes, no point paying twice the price for a.. 10%?.. performance advantage.

was planning on using my TV and a old monitor I bought along side the laptop - ASUS VG278HR 27" 144Hz.

Click to expand...

That's decent, though if you have the budget (and you probably do after those savings) you could get yourself a 1440p 144hz monitor, with gsync Should give a much sharper image, and very smooth gameplay.

I was hoping to be able to use the one Graphics Card to run both monitors (I see 3 is meant to be possible but looking at postings online there are varying results).

Click to expand...

If you're only gaming on 1 monitor, that's fine. Running the desktop, youtube, web pages, etc on your 2nd (or even 3rd) monitor while gaming is trivial for the system.

When people talk about running 3 monitors they often mean running a single game across all 3 monitors. This is possible, though it's either not possible or at least not sensible, with different resolutions and refresh rates. I assume you weren't thinking of tri-monitor gaming(?).

I was curious as it wasn't discussed if there was any thoughts on the power - I'm assuming you set the RMx instead of the HX considering the lesser wattage enough. But just wanted to check.

Click to expand...

An 850W PSU would be enough for an OCed i7 8700k and GTX 1080 ti SLI. A 1000W PSU is liberally enough. The configurator will tell you if the PSU is not enough for your needs. The RMx series is a very good series.

And lastly the extra case fans not being set - its a minimal price so I assume they are seen as pointless - again just wanted to check.

Click to expand...

Not necessary. And depending on the case probably not helpful either. Note that the Graphite 780T has 2 front fans, 1 rear fan, and then 2 more fans from the CPU cooler/radiator. That's quite a lot of fans.

And I wasnt't against the size of the case and did like the look but looking further the CORSAIR CRYSTAL SERIES 570X GAMING CASE + RGB Fans! is nice too...

Click to expand...

This is a good case. If you like the look of it, then go for it.

With this case I would actually recommend buying 1 extra fan because it doesn't have a rear exhaust fan by default. It'd be fine without one, but it's a nice extra to add there in my opinion.

All Ordered this evening - thanks for all the advice.

Just to report I had to go with the Graphite Case - the CORSAIR CRYSTAL SERIES 570X GAMING CASE + RGB Fans! turned out to be incompatible with the 16x BLU-RAY WRITER DRIVE, 16x DVD ±R/±RW & SOFTWARE - and more importantly with the Corsair H110i Hydro Cooler w/ PCS Liquid Series Ultra Quiet Fans and past experiences have made me see cooling as paramount. A shame as I came to like the aesthetic of the Crystal but I didn't want to do without the higher spec processor cooling.

I also got a warning about the power being high - but as mentioned it is 'liberally' enough so I wasn't worried about this.

Case
CORSAIR GRAPHITE SERIES™ 780T FULL TOWER CASE
Overclocked CPUOverclocked
Intel® Core™ i7-8700K Six Core (3.7GHz @ up to 4.8GHz)
Motherboard
ASUS® ROG STRIX Z370-E GAMING: ATX, LGA1151, USB 3.1, SATA 6GBs - RGB Ready
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
11GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1080 Ti - HDMI, 3x DP GeForce - GTX VR Ready!
1st Hard Disk
8TB SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 256MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB SAMSUNG PM961 M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3000MB/R, 1700MB/W)
2nd M.2 SSD Drive
1TB SAMSUNG PM961 M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3000MB/R, 1700MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
16x BLU-RAY WRITER DRIVE, 16x DVD ±R/±RW & SOFTWARE
Memory Card Reader
USB 3.0 EXTERNAL SD/MICRO SD CARD READER
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1000W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
Corsair H110i Hydro Cooler w/ PCS Liquid Series Ultra Quiet Fans
Thermal Paste
EK-TIM ECTOTHERM THERMAL COMPOUND
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
USB Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Genuine Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KK3-00003]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Supplied on USB Drive
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Google Chrome™
Warranty
3 Year Platinum Warranty (3 Year Collect & Return, 3 Year Parts, 3 Year labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 8 to 10 working days

So all that's left is the waiting

Thanks again for the advice

Seems fine to me

The H100i would fit in the 570X and be way more than enough for a modestly overclocked 8700k. You could also have an external blu ray drive. However, if you like the 780T and have the room and money, that's a popular high end case too and lower temperatures from the H110i are hardly a bad thing either.

Let us know how it goes!

Bit of a delay in response for which I apologise - though I'm sure the recommendation doesn't need validation! So far it has panned out really well - big thanks for the advice. Smooth getting it going with only a minor issue with a bad Windows license code (quickly resolved by PCSpecialist). I have played a few of my games to put it through its paces but nothing to strenuous - but I think the nicest thing is nothing seems to bother it much.
Received late March so two Months of usage are complete and nothing has given me concern and in places been really impressed with the machine (even having gone through the above so knowing it had been well thought through).
So once again thanks for the advice!

Good to hear, and kudos for providing an update!

Dmaster said:

Bit of a delay in response for which I apologise - though I'm sure the recommendation doesn't need validation! So far it has panned out really well - big thanks for the advice. Smooth getting it going with only a minor issue with a bad Windows license code (quickly resolved by PCSpecialist). I have played a few of my games to put it through its paces but nothing to strenuous - but I think the nicest thing is nothing seems to bother it much.
Received late March so two Months of usage are complete and nothing has given me concern and in places been really impressed with the machine (even having gone through the above so knowing it had been well thought through).
So once again thanks for the advice!

Click to expand...

+rep for the update, it’s really nice to hear a follow up. If you get the time maybe post a review.