Photoshop, LR, some gaming set up

[CarlFrank]

Hi,

My max budget is £2100. Mainly used for Photoshop and Lightroom (some but not a lot of video editing) and gaming, plus usual Excel/Word stuff and internet browsing/social media stuff. My monitor is a BenQ GW2765 60Hz. 2560 x 1440.

Important: Speedy processing. Raid 1 for storing images (I only need 2TB as I have 2 x external drives for other storage), a pretty good graphics card and 32GB RAM, built in WIFI 6, plenty of USB slots. No overheating. Future proof, if there even is such a thing, so I can upgrade components as I go.

Not important: Looks, fancy RGB.

Currently I'm using 300GB of my M.2 SSD where I store OS and programs including my War Thunder game and 600GB on my 2TB Black Caviar HDD (I have 2 in Raid 1).

I'd MUCH rather an air rather than liquid cooler but want a quality brand and am not keen on Frost Flow, but there are no dropdown alternatives - are PCS open to swapping in non-listed items?

I've done a hell of a lot of reading and comparing and this is what I've come up with.

Thanks guys - hit me with your suggestions.

Case
CORSAIR 5000D AIRFLOW TEMPERED GLASS GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i7 12-Core Processor i7-12700K (3.6GHz) 25MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING Z690-PLUS WIFI D4 (LGA1700, USB 3.2, PCIe 5.0) - ARGB Ready
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE RGB PRO DDR4 3600MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 3060 Ti - HDMI, DP, LHR
Graphics Card Support Bracket
PCS GRAPHICS CARD SUPPORT BRACKET
1st M.2 SSD Drive
500GB SAMSUNG 980 PRO M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 6900MB/R, 5000MB/W)
1st Storage Drive
2TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 256MB CACHE
1st Storage Drive
2TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 256MB CACHE
RAID
RAID 1 (MIRRORED VOLUME - 2 x same size & model HDD / SSD)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 850W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
Corsair iCUE H115i RGB PRO XT Hydro Series High Performance CPU Cooler
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 11 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KUK-00003]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10/11 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Microsoft® Edge
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 4 to 7 working days
Welcome Book
PCSpecialist Welcome Book - United Kingdom & Republic of Ireland
Price: £2,032.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z690-pc/gcnBauPxPc/

 

[Scott]

Looks pretty good to me, I think you've got everything just about spot on. The only serious consideration I would recommend would be a second M2 drive. It can make such a huge difference to performance when used as a cache for Adobe. The second benefit is obviously a place for fast loading games, including Direct Drive when it's widely adopted.

If you have a decent backup structure I genuinely wouldn't bother with RAID nowadays, it's pretty much redundant with the cloud services etc..... and if you have a dedicated external backup there's not really a lot to go wrong. Of course there's no harm in having it, I'm just saying I don't think it's money well spent.

With the want of RGB I would probably go for a nicer case & slightly more premium cooler. Taking everything into account this is what I would consider. Note that I've left the RAID in, as that seems to be your preference, but this wouldn't be something I would typically suggest.

Also note that I've bumped up the PSU. The next generation of cards are going to be power hungry, you don't want to be caught short. It's not a massive jump in price so well worth it to create a good safety margin for any upgrades.

Case
CORSAIR iCUE 5000X RGB MID TOWER GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i7 12-Core Processor i7-12700K (3.6GHz) 25MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING Z690-PLUS WIFI D4 (LGA1700, USB 3.2, PCIe 5.0) - ARGB Ready
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE RGB PRO DDR4 3600MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 3060 Ti - HDMI, DP, LHR
Graphics Card Support Bracket
PCS GRAPHICS CARD SUPPORT BRACKET
1st M.2 SSD Drive
500GB SAMSUNG 980 PRO M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 6900MB/R, 5000MB/W)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB INTEL® 670p M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 3500MB/sR | 2500MB/sW)
1st Storage Drive
2TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 256MB CACHE
1st Storage Drive
2TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 256MB CACHE
RAID
RAID 1 (MIRRORED VOLUME - 2 x same size & model HDD / SSD)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1000W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
Corsair iCUE H115i ELITE CAPELLIX RGB Hydro Series High Performance CPU Cooler
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 11 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KUK-00003]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10/11 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Microsoft® Edge
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 4 to 7 working days
Price: £2,193.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z690-pc/d8r35N9E7S/

 

[CarlFrank]

Thanks for your feedback. Just a note that RGB is NOT a big deal at all for me.

Great point about 2nd M2.

PCS suggest I need a 650W psu (with a 20% margin) but I added an 850W. Interesting you suggest a 1000W.

The Raid is only £55 extra with the 2nd HDD. That's a lot of piece of mind for little dosh, but point taken.

Any thoughts about an alternative air cooler?

Thanks.

 

[Scott]

Thanks for your feedback. Just a note that RGB is NOT a big deal at all for me.

Great point about 2nd M2.

PCS suggest I need a 650W psu (with a 20% margin) but I added an 850W. Interesting you suggest a 1000W.

The Raid is only £55 extra with the 2nd HDD. That's a lot of piece of mind for little dosh, but point taken.

Any thoughts about an alternative air cooler?

Thanks.

I knew it wasn't a big deal, but thought it was maybe a nice to have

Yeah, the calculator isn't the best IMO. It provides calculations based on TDP values, which most manufacturers gloss over nowadays. 850w covers you nicely for what you have right now, decent margin too.... but if you wanted to put in a 4080 down the line you're going to be cutting it razor thin, which you don't want. The last thing you want to do is have to swap out a PSU at the same time as a GPU, so better to spend the marginal difference now and cover all the bases going forward. The great thing is that the RMx has passive cooling up to 30% utilisation I believe. The higher the capacity, the more you can utilise the system without the fan even turning on.

With regards to the cooler, I personally wouldn't touch an aircooler nowadays. They are well and truly past it for the modern day system IMO. It's like sticking with Windows 7, it was a great OS and it definitely had it's place but the game has moved on considerably. Anything that you are reading to the contrary is primarily Chinese whispers or offset owner bias. Starting from scratch I would always have an AIO, the only consideration is if you actually prefer the aesthetic of an air cooler (Big metal square in the middle of your case sorta thing).

 

[CarlFrank]

Hi guys,

Just a couple of questions before I pull the trigger on my new build.

1. I want to make sure that the H150i cpu cooler I have chosen gets mounted in the roof of the 5000D case - will help make sure air escapes from the pump to the rad. and is configured as Corsair state in their blurb - as an intake. Is there a way I can message PCS at the time of ordering to state this?

2. I'm going for a Tuf Gaming Z690-Plus WIFI D4, a 12700K, a 500GB SAMSUNG 980 PRO M.2 + a 512GB INTEL® 670p M.2 and 32GB Corsair Vengeance RGB Pro 3600mhz of ram: will PCS automatically tune the PC to ensure that it runs at maximum speed for the ram or is there a chance I'll have to tweak in the BIOS, cos I'm not sure I know how to do this. I guess I'm asking what their QC covers.

3. Ditto with drivers - do they update all? I'm mainly interested in ensuring motherboard drivers are completely up to date as, if I understand it right, these are slightly more complicated to install and best done from a USB stick, or have I got this wrong?

I think that's it. Maybe more later lol.

TIA

Carl

 

[Aza]

Can you post your full spec? There should be a button near the bottom called post to forums, just copy the whole page that it gives across including the link at the bottom.

Q1 - The case has fans installed in the front already if i'm correct? So the radiator and fans for the cooler will go in the roof (assuming it fits...configurator should tell you if it wont) I dont believe its setup to allow it to consider removing default fans to fit other equipment in.

Q2 - What do you mean by tuned? Bios will all be setup and normally its just a case of running windows update (if you buy with an OS) or without an OS you'd need to install a proper version of windows to replace the test one and then applicable drivers/windows update etc etc If you are referring to overclocking, then it depends what you order. they sell overclocked systems separately.

Q3 - Chipset drivers and such are more if you arent buying a OS, these are pretty easy to update anyway.

(I see the post has moved, the spec stuff may well be above I havent read it yet)

 

[CarlFrank]

Yeah

Can you post your full spec? There should be a button near teh bottom called post to forums, just copy the whole page that it gives across including the link at the bottom.

Q1 - The case has fans installed in the front already if i'm correct? So the radiator and fans for the cooler will go in the roof (assuming it fits...configurator should tell you if it wont and I dont believe its setup to allow it to consider removing default fans to fit other equipment in)

Q2 - What do you mean by tuned? Bios will all be setup and normally its just a case of running windows update (if you buy a OS) or with an OS you'd need to install a proepr version of windows to replace the test one and then applicable drivers/windows update etc etc If you are referring to overclocking, then it depends what you order. they sell overclocked systems separately.

Q3 - Chipset drivers and such are more if you arent buying a OS, these are pretty easy to update anyway.

(I see the post has moved, the spec stuff may well be above I havent read it yet)

Thanks. Yeah, spec pretty much as above. I see what you mean above PCS not moving fans, so it will go in roof. I wasn't referring to overclocking - I've seem some stuff where the BIOS wasn't updated with new firmware (though not PCS, just vids) and I wondered if this was part of the QC. My other concern was really receiving a PC that wasn't using full 3600mhz of RAM and the issues above and me having the hassle of phoning them for a talk through, or worse sending back cos cooler not where I want it.

 

[Steveyg]

Yeah

Thanks. Yeah, spec pretty much as above. I see what you mean above PCS not moving fans, so it will go in roof. I wasn't referring to overclocking - I've seem some stuff where the BIOS wasn't updated with new firmware (though not PCS, just vids) and I wondered if this was part of the QC. My other concern was really receiving a PC that wasn't using full 3600mhz of RAM and the issues above and me having the hassle of phoning them for a talk through, or worse sending back cos cooler not where I want it.

If you order with Windows then PCS will send you the computer with everything it needs to work out of the box and all speeds set at what you've ordered.

The only thing you'll need to do is install all the Windows updates including the optional updates and the computer should be good to go with no hassle of messing in the BIOS or anything