I need to build a new machine that will be used for some gaming, some picture editing, and other such tasks – more than just web surfing. Years ago, I did this using a Core i7-920 which really seemed to be a sweet spot in terms of price and performance. That machine seems to be failing (probably the power supply), and I want to go again.
I’ve done a little research and it seems like the Core i7-9700K@3.6 GHz may be the new sweet spot. What say you all?
I’m also going to need a new MOBO, power supply, memory, and case, if you have any recommendations there. I’ll probably buy from Newegg. I’m going to try and move my system hard drive over directly – it’s a fairly new 1 TB SSD – I think that’s doable these days. The data drives should be easy to move. I already have a fairly modern GPU. I’d want room for a pretty big GPU card and 3 or 4 drives, and an optical drive, so I think a midsize case works. I think 16 GB of memory should be sufficient, but I’m happy to be convinced otherwise.
I have the same amount of RAM and same card (GTX 1070 Ti on a Black Friday Amazon sale) and games run very smooth.
I can’t recall my CPU but I’ve been a loyal AMD guy since my computer salesman days (20 years ago, has it been that long?). I don’t remember which model. Honestly for gaming while your CPU and MB are of course critical, video card is usually the biggest bottleneck.
I love Newegg but I’ll be honest, I usually go there to find components then buy them on Amazon because they’re cheaper. I use Newegg because it’s easy to search for components there and they have pretty informed reviews.
I haven’t done this in a while – do I want a LGA1151 MOBO or a LGA1151 300 Series MOBO? Does the size of the MOBO dictate the size of the case? What size power supply? So many questions…
Well, if you want to run that CPU that you’ve just linked to, you’ll need the 300 Series. All Coffee Lake processors require the 300 Series, I believe.
I’m running a Skylake i5-6600K on an LGA1151 motherboard, and I’ve been thinking about moving up to an i7 to speed up my video procesing. I’d like the latest-gen processor, but if I don’t want to buy a new mobo, I’ll have to stick with a Skylake or Kaby Lake i7.
Hijack: my brother convinced me to join the dark side and go Ryzen with my build last year, and I’ve become a very big fan. I went crazy with a Threadripper, but the Ryzen 7 2700X is comparable to your i7 9700k, but roughly half the price. That’s ~$200 you can spend on a top-tier X570 motherboard and STILL come out ahead, or getting silly and running two graphics cards.
Hell, for the $364 for the i7, you can get the 3800X running at 3.9 GHz. Add to that larger caches, faster RAM speeds, and a kick-ass stock cooler, and you’ve got yourself a freaking hero of a CPU.
OK, my main computer really is starting to fail – every time I turn it on, it powers up and then shuts off. Then, I can turn it on again and it works – I think there are probably some capacitors in the power supply that are going bad.
So, where’s a good place to help me find the right components? I’m not planning on doing any overclocking, but I will probably always have a fairly beefy GPU (right now, it’s the GTX 970), so I want a good power supply. Midsize case case should be fine for a few hard drives (three or four) and a CD-ROM, right?
If this isn’t the right message board for this question, just let me know a good one. I’ll take other recommendations on a CPU as well, if it’s more of a sweet spot (thanks for the AMD rec, but I’m planning on staying with Intel).
There are hundreds of cases, power supplies, and motherboards – how do you choose??
I’m certainly not an expert, but when I did my last build, I just read a bunch of reviews, and stuck with reputable brands. EVGA Gold 550W power supply, Fractal Design Define R4case, Gigabyte Z170 motherboard. The computer’s still going strong 4 years later, and none of the components have died on me. Knock wood.
If I were starting a new build from scratch right now, I’d probably choose the same CPU that you listed earlier, at least if I were committed to staying with Intel. That said, I’d give AMD a serious look if I were starting again now.
That’s about all the advice I’ve got. If you want more specialized feedback, the Tom’s Hardware boards are good, as is Reddit. But it’s easy to get bogged down comparing dozens of different components looking for small differences, and those expert boards often muddy the water more than they help because you’ll have people arguing about tiny performance increments that will make almost no difference in the real, day-to-day world of your computing needs.
By the way, have you seen PCPartPicker? It’s a good site that allows you to create multiple builds, shows you prices from different retailers, and also gives a good idea if there are any compatibility problems between the different pieces of hardware. I’m often willing to pay a few bucks more for something in order to get it from a reliable supplier with a good return policy. Last time, I bought about half my stuff at NewEgg, and half at B&H Photo.
A 550W should be plenty for the components you plan to use. Just make sure you get a modular one. You will make things so much easier if you can unplug unnecessary cables from the PSU when you install it.
I was necessarily recommending that particular size; rather, I was just noting that I bought a reputable brand. EVGA isn’t the only one, of course, but it always gets good reviews.
Still, as Atamasama says, 550W will probably be fine unless you decide to really crank up your gaming, or do VR or something, and buy a power-hungry gaming card or two.
My modular PSU was actually cheaper than the non-modular equivalent was after a $20 mail-in rebate. It’s also a Gold because at the time the Gold was on special for I think less than a Bronze.
But the typical extra cost for Gold probably isn’t worth it for most people. An standard certified 80 Plus supply is probably all you’ll need. Go better if you get a good deal (or really hate power supply fan noise, since the higher the efficiency the less often the fan will probably run).
But the power savings overall for most people are going to take a long time to recover the extra upfront cost, and might not even recover by the time you need a new PS.
Also, make sure you check that the advertised PS is really 80 Plus certified if it’s claimed as such.
I got some help from Tom’s Hardware. I’m not sure about buying from all those places, so I’ll probably try to reproduce it at Newegg, but I’m having a heckuva time even tracking down the PSU there.
Most people( especially gamers, I think )significantly overestimate how much power they need. The power demand for a standard gaming PC with a single gpu is generally not massive. And going with too beefy of a power source is kinda a waste of money, efficiency and heat. Here’s some online calculators that all do more or less the same thing:
Gah! What CPU cooler should I get? They don’t have the one recommended at Newegg, plus it seems like crazy overkill unless I’m really misjudging the height. Here’s what was recommended:
Here’s what Newegg has:
Need answer kind of fast, because I’m putting my order together tonight.
I haven’t looked at desktop components in a while(been a laptop guy now for a few years), but I am a big believer in an NVMe slot for a boot SSD at least, and would need one hell of a deal to pick up a motherboard without one these days, and I was unable to tell if that MOBO has an NVM2 m2 or a just a SATA one.