Any opinions on this build appreciated.

K

Kot88

Member
I would be grateful for your opinions on this build. An example of the games I'd like to play are PUBG, Battlefield 1 and Battlefront. Also, is it worth getting a dedicated sound card?

Case: NZXT S340 MID TOWER GAMING CASE (BLACK/BLUE)
Processor (CPU): Intel® Core™ i7 Six Core Processor i7-8700 (3.2GHz) 12MB Cache
Motherboard: Gigabyte Z370 HD3: ATX, LG1151, USB 3.1, SATA 6GBs - RGB Ready
Memory (RAM): 16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card: 6GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1060 - DVI, HDMI, 3 x DP - GeForce GTX VR Ready!
1st Hard Disk: 250GB Samsung 860 2.5" EVO SSD, SATA 6Gb/s (upto 550MB/sR | 520MB/sW)
2nd Hard Disk: 500GB SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 16MB CACHE
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive: NOT REQUIRED
Power Supply: CORSAIR 650W TXm SERIES™ SEMI-MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable: 1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling: CoolerMaster Hyper 212X (120mm) Fan CPU Cooler
Thermal Paste: COOLER MASTER MASTERGEL MAKER 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: 2 PORT (2 x TYPE A) USB 3.1 PCI-E CARD + STANDARD USB PORTS
Operating System: Genuine Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KUK-00001]
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 Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)

Price £1,340.00 including VAT and delivery
 
J

jerpers

Master
What is your budget and what resolution is the monitor you are wanting to pair this with?

A soundcard is definitely not needed.
 
J

jerpers

Master
Looks pretty good then. You could go for a pre overclocked system with the k series processor and Noctua CPU cooler to better future proof, maximising the speed from you CPU. You might find 500gb fills up quickly, it is not that much more for a 1tb drive.
 
K

Kot88

Member
jerpers said:
Looks pretty good then. You could go for a pre overclocked system with the k series processor and Noctua CPU cooler to better future proof, maximising the speed from you CPU. You might find 500gb fills up quickly, it is not that much more for a 1tb drive.
Click to expand...

Thanks, I think I'll take this advice, it wouldn't be that much more expensive.

Oussebon said:
Is the budget £1500 including the monitor? If not, how much including the monitor?
Click to expand...

It's not a hard limit, more of a target. I'm willing to spend £100 more for the monitor.
 
Oussebon

Oussebon

Multiverse Poster
An i7, a decent system, a good monitor, and a decent GPU to go with it is a tight squeeze for ~£1600.

A GTX 1060 is aiming very low for this price point, in my opinion.

While the i7 might well be more futureproof than an i5, I'm not sure I'd recommend it for a build of this budget when it will be a long time before there's much performance difference, while the amount you need to invest in it versus an i5 8500 is huge (£100+), and even more for an overclocked 8700k.

But if you do want an i7 8700, then something like:

Case
NZXT S340 MID TOWER GAMING CASE (BLACK/BLUE)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i7 Six Core Processor i7-8700 (3.2GHz) 12MB Cache
---FREE Warhammer: Vermintide 2 & XMorph Defense w/ select Intel CPUs!
Motherboard
ASUS® PRIME Z370-P: ATX, LGA1151, USB 3.1, SATA 6GBs
Memory (RAM)
8GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3000MHz (2 x 4GB)
Graphics Card
8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1070 Ti - DVI, HDMI, 3 x DP - GeForce GTX VR Ready! ()
1[SUP]st[/SUP] Hard Disk
1TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 32MB CACHE
1[SUP]st[/SUP] M.2 SSD Drive
256GB SAMSUNG PM961 M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 2800MB/R, 1100MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
NOT REQUIRED
Power Supply
CORSAIR 550W VS SERIES™ VS-550 POWER SUPPLY
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
Super Quiet Titan DragonFly Heatpipe Intel CPU Cooler
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
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 [KUK-00001]
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 Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 4 to 6 working days
Quantity
1

Price £1,403.00 including VAT and delivery

Unique URL to re-configure : https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z370-pc/V0zvGrN0vK/

With £200 for a 1080p 144hz monitor, or a 1440p 60hz monitor.
 
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K

Kot88

Member
Oussebon said:
An i7, a decent system, a good monitor, and a decent GPU to go with it is a tight squeeze for ~£1600.

A GTX 1060 is aiming very low for this price point, in my opinion.

While the i7 might well be more futureproof than an i5, I'm not sure I'd recommend it for a build of this budget when it will be a long time before there's much performance difference, while the amount you need to invest in it versus an i5 8500 is huge (£100+), and even more for an overclocked 8700k.
Click to expand...

Thanks for your advice. How about this more modest build? I thought that investing more in the GPU might be a better option for a gaming computer.

Case: NZXT S340 MID TOWER GAMING CASE (BLACK/BLUE)
Processor (CPU): Intel® Core™ i5 Six Core Processor i5-8600 (3.1GHz) 9MB Cache
Motherboard: ASUS® PRIME Z370-P: ATX, LGA1151, USB 3.1, SATA 6GBs
Memory (RAM): 16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3000MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card: 8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1070 - DVI, HDMI, 3 x DP - GeForce GTX VR Ready!
1st Hard Disk: 1TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 32MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive: 256GB SAMSUNG PM961 M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 2800MB/R, 1100MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive: NOT REQUIRED
Power Supply: CORSAIR 550W VS SERIES™ VS-550 POWER SUPPLY
Power Cable: 1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling: Super Quiet Titan DragonFly Heatpipe Intel CPU Cooler
Thermal Paste: STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
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
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)
Monitor: Samsung LS24D330HSX/EN 24" LED monitor
Warranty: 3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery: STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time: Standard Build - Approximately 3 to 5 working days

Price £1,452.00 including VAT and delivery
 
Oussebon

Oussebon

Multiverse Poster
The 1070 ti is only £37 more than a 1070 but a good deal more powerful. At those prices I'd go with a 1070 ti. Though either is somewhat overkill for a 1080p 60hz monitor.

Also note that if you're happy buying the system without a GPU and installing your own, you may be able to source a GTX 1080 for less than the 1070 ti. Or get a GTX 1070 for around £400. This is because GPU prices have changed a lot very recently.

The spec seems fine overall though.
 
K

Kot88

Member
I take it you're responding to my post that is awaiting approval. Thanks for putting my monitor-GPU pairing in perspective, I'll see if I can get a monitor that can take advantage of the 1070/1070 ti. I'll also look into sourcing a GTX 1080.
 
Oussebon

Oussebon

Multiverse Poster
A 1070 ti or 1080 would pair well with a 1080p 144hz monitor or 1440p 60hz (or better ofc). Those would be around £200 or a bit more. PCS have a few on offer. e.g. AOC G2590PX for 1080p 144hz, AOC Q2778VQE for 1440p 60hz. There are others too, and you don't have to buy peripherals from PCS if you prefer options elsewhere ofc.

Sorry, hadn't seen your post was moderated. :)
 
K

Kot88

Member
OK, so this is the build I've decided upon based on all your kind advice. And based on your advice and projected system requirements from websites like Game Debate I feel that it is sufficiently future-proof. Does anyone think that the processor cooling and wireless networking card are insufficient for this build? Still open to suggestions.

Case: NZXT S340 MID TOWER GAMING CASE (BLACK/BLUE)
Processor (CPU): Intel® Core™ i5 Six Core Processor i5-8600K (3.6 GHz) 9 MB Cache
Motherboard: ASUS® PRIME Z370-P: ATX, LGA1151, USB 3.1, SATA 6GBs
Memory (RAM): 16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3000MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card: 8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1070 Ti - DVI, HDMI, 3 x DP - GeForce GTX VR Ready!
1st Hard Disk: 1TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 32MB CACHE
1st M.2 SSD Drive: 256GB WD Black™ M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 2050MB/s R | 700MB/s W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive: NOT REQUIRED
Power Supply: CORSAIR 450W VS SERIES™ VS-450 POWER SUPPLY
Power Cable: 1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling: Super Quiet Titan DragonFly Heatpipe Intel CPU Cooler
Thermal Paste: STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card: ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking: WIRELESS 802.11N 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD
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
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)
Monitor: ASUS VG248QE 24" 3D 144Hz GAMING DISPLAY
Warranty: 3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery: STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time: Standard Build - Approximately 3 to 5 working days

Price £1,650.00 including VAT and delivery
 
Oussebon

Oussebon

Multiverse Poster
and projected system requirements from websites like Game Debate I feel that it is sufficiently future-proof.
Click to expand...
There are some very useful websites for tech information out there.

Game debate, GPU Boss, CPU Boss, and userbenchmark are not among them. They are total garbage based on junk numbers that mean nothing. The editor of one of my favourite tech sites said people are better off using a lorem ipsum generator than game debate, which I entirely agree with. They also said some less nice things about game debate... :S

I'd generally suggest sticking to full articles where they have done actual performance tests, instead of some of the sites above that compare meaningless or made up numbers.

The only tweaks I'd recommend are:
- PM961 SSD instead, as much faster and not much more expensive
- 550W PSU as barely any more expensive and could futureproof more for GPU upgrades
- i5 8600k poor value versus i5 8500 - £55 for 200MHz.
 
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K

Kot88

Member
Oussebon said:
There are some very useful websites for tech information out there.

Game debate, GPU Boss, CPU Boss, and userbenchmark are not among them. They are total garbage based on junk numbers that mean nothing. The editor of one of my favourite tech sites said people are better off using a lorem ipsum generator than game debate, which I entirely agree with. They also said some less nice things about game debate... :S

I'd generally suggest sticking to full articles where they have done actual performance tests, instead of some of the sites above that compare meaningless or made up numbers.
Click to expand...

LOL, thanks for being frank, I will be more discerning.

Oussebon said:
The only tweaks I'd recommend are:
- PM961 SSD instead, as much faster and not much more expensive
- 550W PSU as barely any more expensive and could futureproof more for GPU upgrades
- i5 8600k poor value versus i5 8500 - £55 for 200MHz.
Click to expand...

I'm alright with spending £50 more on the i5 8600k. About the PM961 SSD and the 550W PSU, I will take your recommendations.
 
K

Kot88

Member
I have had a last-minute thought about this build. I've decided to hold off on buying a new monitor until I have enough for a decent 144Hz one rather than the budget one I was considering. Is it worth it to spend more to upgrade my motherboard from a PRIME Z370-P to a Z370 AORUS (or any model you would suggest)?
 
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Oussebon

Oussebon

Multiverse Poster
So what monitor are you going to be using in the meantime?

If the rumours are to be believed there will be new and very powerful graphics cards being released as early as July.

If you're not getting a new, swish, 144hz 1440p gsync monitor (~£500-600) for a few months, it may make more sense to get a GTX 1060 3gb for 1080p gaming (or use your existing card / system ) and get a GTX 1170 and swish monitor together.
 
K

Kot88

Member
It's an old Samsung SyncMaster P2250. I'm ok with not using my GPU to it's fullest for 2-3 months (which is about when I will be able to get a new monitor), and then make it last until the next generation of GPUs become cheaper.

Also, what are your thoughts on upgrading my motherboard?
 
Oussebon

Oussebon

Multiverse Poster
The point isn't that you're not using your GPU to the fullest for a few months, the point is that by the time you do get the new monitor there will probably be a GTX 1170 offering ~GTX 1080 ti performance for the same or lower price than a GTX 1070 ti. Going by the rumours. Buying a GPU to 'futureproof' is almost never the right play tbh. Especially at this stage of the lifecycle.

It would have been like buying a GTX 770 and leaving it on the shelf for a few months right before the GTX 970 came out.

You could get a higher end motherboard, mostly depending if you think you'll want USB 3.1 Gen 2 I would say.
 
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K

Kot88

Member
Oussebon said:
The point isn't that you're not using your GPU to the fullest for a few months, the point is that by the time you do get the new monitor there will probably be a GTX 1170 offering ~GTX 1080 ti performance for the same or lower price than a GTX 1070 ti. Going by the rumours. Buying a GPU to 'futureproof' is almost never the right play tbh. Especially at this stage of the lifecycle.

It would have been like buying a GTX 770 and leaving it on the shelf for a few months right before the GTX 970 came out.

You could get a higher end motherboard, mostly depending if you think you'll want USB 3.1 Gen 2 I would say.
Click to expand...

Thanks, that's put it in perspective for me. Looking at the 1060, do you think it's worth it to get the extra 3GB for £70?

Thanks for the motherboard advice.
 
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