The last time I built a computer was in 2009 with the Core i7 920. It's the machine in my sig so you can see what I'm used to working with. I've upgraded that build a few times with various parts, but it's still the same motherboard and ram. I think it's time to upgrade, especially because of the new storage data transfer capabilities that are available now (my motherboard is still using SATA3!). So I think 8700K Coffee Lake (when it's in stock) is looking pretty good. I'm not the type that upgrades yearly. Whatever I build I'd like to last for 5+ years if possible and I've already waited 8 years since my last build.
Below is the link to the parts that I'm thinking.
https://pcpartpicker.com/user/Bluecow/saved/LTvnnQ
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
CPU: Intel - Core i7-8700K 3.7GHz 6-Core Processor
CPU Cooler: Noctua - NH-D15 82.5 CFM CPU Cooler ($88.95 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus - Prime Z370-A ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($174.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: *Corsair - Vengeance LPX 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($294.99 @ Amazon)
OR
Memory: Corsair - Vengeance LPX 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($336.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung - 960 PRO 512GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($295.00 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital - Blue 1TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($275.99 @ Amazon) (I'll get the new 3D version, not available on PartsPicker yet)
Storage: Western Digital - Black 6TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($234.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital - Black 6TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($234.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic - PRIME Titanium 650W 80+ Titanium Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($134.90 @ Newegg)
Total: $2071.79
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-10-06 20:54 EDT-0400
I won't upgrade my video card until next year probably. It's less important to me at this time. I'll keep my current case, optical drive, and sound card.
Here are my main questions:
1. Motherboard. My primary purpose for the machine will be for big photo editing, which means ingesting many GB's of photos regularly and editing them in Lightroom as fast as possible will be very important (no, I won't RAID0 the Samsung 960 Pro). That's why I have the storage items I do in my list. I'll game too if there is something that looks great, but it's less of a concern. I'd also like to have a nice 24/7 overclock (hence my cooler choice).
2. Are there better ram options than the Corsair Vengeance LPX that will provide a rock solid 24/7 overclock? I'll be happy if I can get a 4.7+ GHz 24/7 overclock, which seems doable based on what I'm reading.
3. Is the 650W PSU I selected enough? I will never go SLI. I may add more hard drives in the future.
4. Anything obvious I'm overlooking? I want to spend money for high quality parts that are built to last. I hate dealing with headaches or part failures. I understand there are probably more budget-friendly parts that will get the job done similarly, but focus first and foremost on high quality and reliability.
Thanks!
Below is the link to the parts that I'm thinking.
https://pcpartpicker.com/user/Bluecow/saved/LTvnnQ
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant
CPU: Intel - Core i7-8700K 3.7GHz 6-Core Processor
CPU Cooler: Noctua - NH-D15 82.5 CFM CPU Cooler ($88.95 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus - Prime Z370-A ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($174.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: *Corsair - Vengeance LPX 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($294.99 @ Amazon)
OR
Memory: Corsair - Vengeance LPX 32GB (2 x 16GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($336.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Samsung - 960 PRO 512GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive ($295.00 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital - Blue 1TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($275.99 @ Amazon) (I'll get the new 3D version, not available on PartsPicker yet)
Storage: Western Digital - Black 6TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($234.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital - Black 6TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($234.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic - PRIME Titanium 650W 80+ Titanium Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($134.90 @ Newegg)
Total: $2071.79
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
*Lowest price parts chosen from parametric criteria
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-10-06 20:54 EDT-0400
I won't upgrade my video card until next year probably. It's less important to me at this time. I'll keep my current case, optical drive, and sound card.
Here are my main questions:
1. Motherboard. My primary purpose for the machine will be for big photo editing, which means ingesting many GB's of photos regularly and editing them in Lightroom as fast as possible will be very important (no, I won't RAID0 the Samsung 960 Pro). That's why I have the storage items I do in my list. I'll game too if there is something that looks great, but it's less of a concern. I'd also like to have a nice 24/7 overclock (hence my cooler choice).
- It seems like the Asus Prime Z370-A would fit my needs, but do you think the Asus ROG Maximus X Code is clearly a better board? I like that the Code seems to have more USB 3.0 ports than the Prime if I'm reading things right. High speed connections for peripherals will be important.
- Will the Code have a clearly better build quality than the Prime or are they about the same?
- How much easier will it be to operate/overclock the Code compared to the Prime?
- Will both the Prime and Code do RAID1 through the board? How is RAID support on motherboards these days? My current board can't do it natively.
2. Are there better ram options than the Corsair Vengeance LPX that will provide a rock solid 24/7 overclock? I'll be happy if I can get a 4.7+ GHz 24/7 overclock, which seems doable based on what I'm reading.
3. Is the 650W PSU I selected enough? I will never go SLI. I may add more hard drives in the future.
4. Anything obvious I'm overlooking? I want to spend money for high quality parts that are built to last. I hate dealing with headaches or part failures. I understand there are probably more budget-friendly parts that will get the job done similarly, but focus first and foremost on high quality and reliability.
Thanks!