How powerful is this month's Unicorn? Is there a more cost-efficient build?

[Jinpachi]

Ok after this reply I'll go to bed.

No he doesn't NEED to overclock but he wants the future option to.
Also you made a build using a Z170 motherboard and DDR4-2400MHz with a non-K CPU.
The funny thing about that is a Z170 motherboard offers no benefits to a non-K CPU technically as it won't be able to run the 2400MHz RAM at speeds above 2133MHz because of it being locked.
You also selected Ripjaws RAM which have high heatsinks thus possibly blocking the fan if installed in the first row of RAM slots.
Also it should've been clear what the desires of mechanical storage was for the OP, namely 2TB.

Also ... WoW is not GPU-bound but CPU-bound, an overclocked CPU helps tremendously.

Ok I'm done, NOW I'm going to bed!

i qualified that statement with "with a few exceptions".
a non k cpu in a Z170mobo offers the choice to upgrade in the future.
you dont need to run the ram at 2400mhz. it doesnt make that big of a difference. see any youtube comparo between ddr3 and ddr4.
ripjaws memory is fine to run with the evo 212. no issues there.
SSD's are pretty cheap nowadays, its OS startup times are a real convenience. Ill never go back, and always recommend them.
Most of the items i listed were added with future upgrades in mind.
He already bought his components so i have to wonder what your motivations were in responding to my post. it had nothing to do with you, yet you felt the need to "correct" me?

[stevenho]

First CPU I overclocked was a DX2 486-66, haven't had a stock one in my PC since. None of them had any problems whatsoever.

[Remilia]

i qualified that statement with "with a few exceptions".
a non k cpu in a Z170mobo offers the choice to upgrade in the future.
you dont need to run the ram at 2400mhz. it doesnt make that big of a difference. see any youtube comparo between ddr3 and ddr4.
ripjaws memory is fine to run with the evo 212. no issues there.
SSD's are pretty cheap nowadays, its OS startup times are a real convenience. Ill never go back, and always recommend them.
Most of the items i listed were added with future upgrades in mind.
He already bought his components so i have to wonder what your motivations were in responding to my post. it had nothing to do with you, yet you felt the need to "correct" me?

The ram thing is Intel XMP not enabled on non Z boards. Skylake actually does benefit more from higher frequency RAM than it does in the past few generations of CPUs. Sure there's a point where price/performance plateaus into oblivion but that's a different issue.

[Jinpachi]

The ram thing is Intel XMP not enabled on non Z boards. Skylake actually does benefit more from higher frequency RAM than it does in the past few generations of CPUs. Sure there's a point where price/performance plateaus into oblivion but that's a different issue.

I'm not arguing any of those issues. I was simply putting up a sample build. If you've never oc'd before, and dont want to worry about it, the i5-6500 is your best bet. slap a 1070 in the build with it and ill run anything you throw at it at more than acceptable framerates.

[DeltrusDisc]

i qualified that statement with "with a few exceptions".
a non k cpu in a Z170mobo offers the choice to upgrade in the future.
you dont need to run the ram at 2400mhz. it doesnt make that big of a difference. see any youtube comparo between ddr3 and ddr4.
ripjaws memory is fine to run with the evo 212. no issues there.
SSD's are pretty cheap nowadays, its OS startup times are a real convenience. Ill never go back, and always recommend them.
Most of the items i listed were added with future upgrades in mind.
He already bought his components so i have to wonder what your motivations were in responding to my post. it had nothing to do with you, yet you felt the need to "correct" me?

No one should ever buy a CPU and then later on, buy the CPU literally one step above it. Holy money wasting! Spend the literal $10 difference initially and don't worry about it. The K version is a better CPU and will run with lower voltages, guaranteed, they are higher-binned chips. Higher-binned = higher quality.

Actually, I thought the RAM speeds wouldn't make a difference, however apparently higher RAM speeds are very beneficial, specifically for Skylake 6600k/6700k.

Okay... bold part...

Evildeffy and myself, have put a lot of effort into this thread from the beginning, so anyone who comes in pages later, essentially slams those suggestions with poorly explained reasons, should definitely expect a response! It had everything to do with Evildeffy (and arguably me, however I was not present, but here I am now!) and I doubt the OP would have a problem with either of us posting to correct you.

Toughen up, on any good computer forum, people will correct you, just as you tried to correct us, no matter the thread, as it's a matter of keeping misinformation at bay and leading people to the best priceerformance ratio, especially in the case of this thread. You posted a lot of stuff "with a few exceptions" and think that's a good enough qualification.

It isn't. You're going to be corrected, learn from it.

[Jinpachi]

No one should ever buy a CPU and then later on, buy the CPU literally one step above it. Holy money wasting! Spend the literal $10 difference initially and don't worry about it. The K version is a better CPU and will run with lower voltages, guaranteed, they are higher-binned chips. Higher-binned = higher quality.

Actually, I thought the RAM speeds wouldn't make a difference, however apparently higher RAM speeds are very beneficial, specifically for Skylake 6600k/6700k.

Okay... bold part...

Evildeffy and myself, have put a lot of effort into this thread from the beginning, so anyone who comes in pages later, essentially slams those suggestions with poorly explained reasons, should definitely expect a response! It had everything to do with Evildeffy (and arguably me, however I was not present, but here I am now!) and I doubt the OP would have a problem with either of us posting to correct you.

Toughen up, on any good computer forum, people will correct you, just as you tried to correct us, no matter the thread, as it's a matter of keeping misinformation at bay and leading people to the best priceerformance ratio, especially in the case of this thread. You posted a lot of stuff "with a few exceptions" and think that's a good enough qualification.

It isn't. You're going to be corrected, learn from it.

I never suggested buying a 6600k after buying a 6500. I merely stated that if overclocking isnt a concern, the 6500 would work just fine. never said better. RAM is pretty cheap right now, and 2400mhz is plenty fast for gaming. I havent slammed any suggestions, i merely posted options. And unless your the thread moderator, it really isnt any of your business. you just took it upon yourself to correct someone who's statements didnt need correcting. The guy responded to me letting me know he already bought his parts, and for me that was the end of it. i didnt ask what he bought, why he bought it, or criticize any of his purchases. I was singled out for apparently having different opinions. what you think or say is irrelevant, as is what i said. he already bought it, discussion over, stfu and move on.

[Greevir]

Guys, cmon. Drop it already. Whats done is done. Besides, OP already bought his parts minus a piece or 2. OP, hope you enjoy your rig. If you ever need assistance in putting it together, be sure to drop by and ask. There are many people here that'll be willing to help.

[DeltrusDisc]

I never suggested buying a 6600k after buying a 6500. I merely stated that if overclocking isnt a concern, the 6500 would work just fine. never said better. RAM is pretty cheap right now, and 2400mhz is plenty fast for gaming. I havent slammed any suggestions, i merely posted options. And unless your the thread moderator, it really isnt any of your business. you just took it upon yourself to correct someone who's statements didnt need correcting. The guy responded to me letting me know he already bought his parts, and for me that was the end of it. i didnt ask what he bought, why he bought it, or criticize any of his purchases. I was singled out for apparently having different opinions. what you think or say is irrelevant, as is what i said. he already bought it, discussion over, stfu and move on.

Actually, people come into threads that are already completed and will read them, sometimes revive them, but unfortunately, if an opinion/suggestion is posted and no one corrects that, people in the future may think that is a valid point, when it in fact is not.

So actually, it is my business, as I care about these forums. It's all of our business. I see it a lot, where someone doesn't want to make a new thread "because this thread is my problem" or similar, so, in a perfect world, yes, you'd be right. The OP of this thread is done, however the thread is not disappearing. The thread is still here. Your posts are still here. The entire discussion remains. It's still going to show up in Google searches and if people read your posts or someone else's posts and not the rest of the thread, they may be led astray.

So yes, it matters.

Hopefully this will end the conversation.
@Polarthief, as @Greevir said, hope you enjoy your rig! And you already PM'd me, but obviously, I and everyone else are all always happy to help out here, to debate and critique fellow builds and to help you get the absolute BEST performance for your money! Cheers.

[Evildeffy]

Also just to give you a proper idea of how much Skylake (Skylake only, unsure of Broadwell-E, all other prior architectures had almost 0 difference to RAM speeds) gains with a good kit of RAM:


TL;DR - RAM speed alone can be stupidly good for speed boosts with Skylake, it's often just like getting a free CPU overclock without actually doing so.

[Polarthief]

Guys, cmon. Drop it already. Whats done is done. Besides, OP already bought his parts minus a piece or 2. OP, hope you enjoy your rig. If you ever need assistance in putting it together, be sure to drop by and ask. There are many people here that'll be willing to help.

Thank you, Gree! I'm still checking this thread occasionally since I don't have much going on this week anyways while I wait for the parts

I should be good with putting it together, the only thing I reeeeeeally suck at is the tiny 2-pin case connectors that I may ask someone for some help with (if anyone knows where they go off the top of your head for a Fractal R5, mucho appreciado!)

Also regarding parts I didn't buy, I technically bought everything if we include the GPU for my current rig, haha. But yeah, just need a new GPU now. Only piece I'm missing... Even bought the fan Evil linked me last night :P

Thanks again everyone for your assistance! Deltrus and Evil especially, you guys have helped me for the last two days and I can't thank you enough! Once again, sorry for my noobish-ness when it comes to technical stuff. I'm always willing to learn, I just never got the chance to yet!

Hopefully this will end the conversation.
@Polarthief, as @Greevir said, hope you enjoy your rig! And you already PM'd me, but obviously, I and everyone else are all always happy to help out here, to debate and critique fellow builds and to help you get the absolute BEST performance for your money! Cheers.

*nods* I'm still gonna check in on this thread since I don't even get all my parts until the 5th or so (thankfully the CPU delivery got bumped up to the 26th though so yay!). I'll throw you an @ mention if something comes up

[DeltrusDisc]

Not going to have anything until July 5th?! D:

Why so looong?!

[Polarthief]

Not going to have anything until July 5th?! D:

Why so looong?!

Nono, SOME of the parts won't be here til then. CPU was one since Amazon was out of stock but they just bumped up my order to the 26th though since they had some in stock somewhere.

It's okay though, I've waited over a month already, I just had a lot going on in May/early June

Edit: Just checked sites again, majority of stuff is coming ~24th-27th. Newegg hasn't shipped any items yet and are giving me a vague "4-7 days delivery" thing. The Heatsink may not arrive until the 29th, and I also got some dust cleaner (compressed air) for my current comp that won't be here til the 5th, but of course, that's not a priority, so I should have everything but the GPU by around the 30th tops, hopefully

Edit: Huzzah! Everything but the case has been shipped and should be here by the 24th! Heatsink and Case are the only questionable parts. I also might end up just using the 750 Ti I bought for my current rig until there's more info about the 1070/1080 or 480.

[DeltrusDisc]

Do a motherboard-box system.



Mine, many years back...

[Lathais]

I never suggested buying a 6600k after buying a 6500. I merely stated that if overclocking isnt a concern, the 6500 would work just fine. never said better. RAM is pretty cheap right now, and 2400mhz is plenty fast for gaming. I havent slammed any suggestions, i merely posted options. And unless your the thread moderator, it really isnt any of your business. you just took it upon yourself to correct someone who's statements didnt need correcting. The guy responded to me letting me know he already bought his parts, and for me that was the end of it. i didnt ask what he bought, why he bought it, or criticize any of his purchases. I was singled out for apparently having different opinions. what you think or say is irrelevant, as is what i said. he already bought it, discussion over, stfu and move on.

You said you suggested he buy a Z107 Motherboard so he could upgrade later if he wanted. What is there to upgrade a 6500 to? A 6600k, really, that's the only decent gaming option for an upgrade. Sure, could go i7. but that would provide zero gaming benefit. The next series of CPUs will likely use a new socket type, so no upgrades there either. There is never a good reason to pair a non-k CPU with a Z motherboard. If you recommend non-k CPUs, do not recommend Z-Series Motherboards, it's just plain stupid. As were some of you other suggestions. Which yes, people are going to correct you because someone else will read it and if it is not corrected, take bad advice. Don't give bad advice and then get upset when corrected. Bad form.

[Polarthief]

Bit of an update, parts are coming in! Already got the MoBo, Memory, Storage, PSU, and extra case fan! I also got my GTX 750 Ti that I used to replace my GTX 560 Ti in my old rig, and I'm currently typing this message on said rig, so thankfully I have something to work with for the time being Again though, this will become our family room computer in about a month's time or so (since I'm going to be waiting for awhile on the 480 and 1070/1080 things to wind down before picking a card).

Thanks again everyone for the help, still peeking my head in here for new replies! Throw me a PM or an @Polarthief mention and I'll see it within the same day


PS: I feel dumb for not knowing they started making cards that use the PCI-E's power. I spent a good 10 minutes looking for external 6/8-pin connectors on the 750 Ti until I eventually googled it and felt like an idiot. So cool!

[Evildeffy]

Bit of an update, parts are coming in! Already got the MoBo, Memory, Storage, PSU, and extra case fan! I also got my GTX 750 Ti that I used to replace my GTX 560 Ti in my old rig, and I'm currently typing this message on said rig, so thankfully I have something to work with for the time being Again though, this will become our family room computer in about a month's time or so (since I'm going to be waiting for awhile on the 480 and 1070/1080 things to wind down before picking a card).

Thanks again everyone for the help, still peeking my head in here for new replies! Throw me a PM or an @Polarthief mention and I'll see it within the same day


PS: I feel dumb for not knowing they started making cards that use the PCI-E's power. I spent a good 10 minutes looking for external 6/8-pin connectors on the 750 Ti until I eventually googled it and felt like an idiot. So cool!

No worries, enjoy the rig.
If you have questions then let us know, we'll try and assist as much as possible.

[DeltrusDisc]

Bit of an update, parts are coming in! Already got the MoBo, Memory, Storage, PSU, and extra case fan! I also got my GTX 750 Ti that I used to replace my GTX 560 Ti in my old rig, and I'm currently typing this message on said rig, so thankfully I have something to work with for the time being Again though, this will become our family room computer in about a month's time or so (since I'm going to be waiting for awhile on the 480 and 1070/1080 things to wind down before picking a card).

Thanks again everyone for the help, still peeking my head in here for new replies! Throw me a PM or an @Polarthief mention and I'll see it within the same day


PS: I feel dumb for not knowing they started making cards that use the PCI-E's power. I spent a good 10 minutes looking for external 6/8-pin connectors on the 750 Ti until I eventually googled it and felt like an idiot. So cool!

Always happy to help! I echo what @Evildeffy said!

And yeah, if a card draws a low enough amount of power, it will only need power from the PCI-E lane, however these are rather low power cards. I think 75w or less. So that 750 Ti would be pretty low-power, as it should be!

[Polarthief]

(Note: If the rig parts are needed, here it is. This is the most up-to-date parts list for the build. For GPU, assume a GTX 1070)

Small update, just got my case and a few other parts! Just waiting on the CPU (Monday) and Heatsink (Wednesday)!

It's been about two full days now and the new GPU is working fine in my current rig, so I'm glad that nothing's exploded by now But, I do have a few questions regarding the current (old) and new rig...

1. Once my new rig is built, I'm going to be moving my current/old one to the family room, and I don't think we can just get a giant ethernet cable running from there to my room where the router is. What would be the best option for adding Wi-Fi to the current rig? (Our connected DL is at peak around 110Mbps, Wi-Fi is around 50 or so, I want an option that at least keeps me in the 40-50 range)

2. I don't recall if this was ever discussed but around what OC speed should I be shooting for on the 6600k with the heatsink I've purchased?

3. Semi-related to the new rig, I've been looking at monitors to purchase soon but I realized I don't know much about resolutions above 1920x1080, or even monitors for that matter; few questions I'd like to ask about them:
== 3A. Can you mix-and-match different sized monitors? (e.g., could I use a 1920x1080+ for my main/gaming monitor but use a current 1440x900 for my second, not-typically-for-gaming monitor?)
== 3B. What are the most common (and not ridiculously overpriced like >= 4k) resolutions?
== 3C. I feel like an idiot for asking this but what exactly is refresh rate and why is it important?
== 3D. Finally and most importantly, if I were to buy two exactly-similar monitors, what would be my optimal (games not dipping below 60FPS on high or ultra settings) resolution/refresh rate?

Again, huge thank you to everyone who has helped me; I'm beyond excited to get this thing up and running by Wednesday and getting the GPU in the upcoming weeks


(PS: @Evildeffy and @DeltrusDisc because you guys are awesome, super helpful, and I totally want your guys' input on this <3)

[DeltrusDisc]

(Note: If the rig parts are needed, here it is. This is the most up-to-date parts list for the build. For GPU, assume a GTX 1070)

Small update, just got my case and a few other parts! Just waiting on the CPU (Monday) and Heatsink (Wednesday)!

It's been about two full days now and the new GPU is working fine in my current rig, so I'm glad that nothing's exploded by now But, I do have a few questions regarding the current (old) and new rig...

1. Once my new rig is built, I'm going to be moving my current/old one to the family room, and I don't think we can just get a giant ethernet cable running from there to my room where the router is. What would be the best option for adding Wi-Fi to the current rig? (Our connected DL is at peak around 110Mbps, Wi-Fi is around 50 or so, I want an option that at least keeps me in the 40-50 range)

2. I don't recall if this was ever discussed but around what OC speed should I be shooting for on the 6600k with the [heatsink I've purchased](http://pcpartpicker.com/product/cwPz...cooler-bk009)? Don't want it frying on me!

3. Semi-related to the new rig, I've been looking at monitors to purchase soon but I realized I don't know much about resolutions above 1920x1080, or even monitors for that matter; few questions I'd like to ask about them:
== 3A. Can you mix-and-match different sized monitors? (e.g., could I use a 1920x1080+ for my main/gaming monitor but use a current 1440x900 for my second, not-typically-for-gaming monitor?)
== 3B. What are the most common (and not ridiculously overpriced like >= 4k) resolutions?
== 3C. I feel like an idiot for asking this but what exactly is refresh rate and why is it important?
== 3D. Finally and most importantly, if I were to buy two exactly-similar monitors, what would be my optimal (games not dipping below 60FPS on high or ultra settings) resolution/refresh rate?

Again, huge thank you to everyone who has helped me; I'm beyond excited to get this thing up and running by Wednesday and getting the GPU in the upcoming weeks


(PS: @Evildeffy and @DeltrusDisc because you guys are awesome, super helpful, and I totally want your guys' input on this <3)

1. Buy a PCI-E WiFi adapter. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-173-_-Product
A real-life friend of mine got that adapter and it seems to be working well for him!

2. I'd try 4.4GHz.

3A. Yes! I used to do it, however you might get annoyed at how tacky it will look.
3B. I advise steering clear of most 2560x1440, as the jump from 1080p just doesn't seem that big/good and the price is usually just too much for such a minor improvement. If you can afford it, you'd probably greatly enjoy a curved 34" 3440x1440 monitor, like my Samsung. It's truly something else. I realize the price is up there, but it's worth it. There are ones that lack some of the qualities of the Samsung, but still deliver pretty nicely, like the Dell version, which is cheaper, often times by $300~! If you don't want to go this crazy, some 4k monitors (albeit not as high-end panel quality, TN instead of IPS or VA, etc) can go for less than $600 or even $500.
3C. Do you mean like playing across both monitors? Or what? I'm a little confused by this question. Do you mean to play on just one? I can guarantee you with a GTX 1070 you should really have no problem getting 1920x1080@60fps in just about any game, pushing up to 1440p and beyond though, is another story!

[Polarthief]

1. Buy a PCI-E WiFi adapter. http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...-173-_-Product
A real-life friend of mine got that adapter and it seems to be working well for him!

Any cheaper options? Hoping for around $50 at absolute max.

Saw a few $10 options using a USB dongle, but I plan to use the computer for Netflix/Hulu streaming so... I doubt it'd be able to handle that.

2. I'd try 4.4GHz.

That's not too much? Alright...

3A. Yes! I used to do it, however you might get annoyed at how tacky it will look.

My old desk in my previous two homes (~6 months ago-~5 years ago) had a printer stand taking up like a third of the desk. The second monitor was a good ~half a monitor taller than the main one. I don't think I'll be too annoyed...

3B. I advise steering clear of most 2560x1440, as the jump from 1080p just doesn't seem that big/good and the price is usually just too much for such a minor improvement. If you can afford it, you'd probably greatly enjoy a curved 34" 3440x1440 monitor, like my Samsung. It's truly something else. I realize the price is up there, but it's worth it. There are ones that lack some of the qualities of the Samsung, but still deliver pretty nicely, like the Dell version, which is cheaper, often times by $300~! If you don't want to go this crazy, some 4k monitors (albeit not as high-end panel quality, TN instead of IPS or VA, etc) can go for less than $600 or even $500.

So stick with 1920x1080? I saw a few monitors for only $99 a pop in that resolution on Amazon which is oh-so-nice. I'm already going way over-budget with the 1070 (though thankfully a family member was nice enough to chip in a few hundred).

3C. Do you mean like playing across both monitors? Or what? I'm a little confused by this question. Do you mean to play on just one? I can guarantee you with a GTX 1070 you should really have no problem getting 1920x1080@60fps in just about any game, pushing up to 1440p and beyond though, is another story!

I'm assuming you're talking about 3D, and no, the second monitor is like exclusively for YouTube/Netflix/Hulu/Pandora as I'm doing stuff on my main monitor (e.g., watching YouTube while checking my 5 WoW garrisons like I'm doing at this very moment). Occasionally, I'll play two not-GPU-intensive games simultaneously, such as a combination of WoW, Hearthstone, and Darkest Dungeon (my most played top 3 in recent times), and I'll put like Hearthstone on my second monitor with WoW on the main one, or DD on my main monitor while waiting for queues in WoW on my second monitor.

AAA games, or games like Overwatch where I'd go actual full screen, no, nothing is really on my second monitor ever, but I don't know if having a second, idle, 1080p monitor would affect things (again, total noob here!), which is why I just wanted to make sure

Refresh rate is basically how many frames your monitor can display in a second. Just think of it as the maximum fps your monitor can display. For example a 60hz monitor can only display as much as 60 frames per second. 144hz is becoming popular because having more fps being displayed on your monitor makes games feel smoother overall.

If you're going for a two monitor setup and you're aiming for something more than 1080p at 60hz, I'd suggest having two different monitors with the main monitor being more expensive. With a 1070 as your video card you could easily get a 1440p for your main monitor. However a lot of it depends on your budget for monitors because the price starts increasing a lot once you add in 144hz and gsync. If you play MMOs mostly and had to pick between 1440p or 144hz then I would choose 1440p, if you're into shooters like CS:GO then I would choose 144hz. This is because in MMOs it'll be impossible to have such high fps when doing anything intensive.

Thank you! That makes refresh rate way easier to understand. Didn't know it was that simple! Though now I have to ask, what is gsync? I've heard of vsync but not g.

I always prefer performance over 'dem sweet grayfix', so I'll probably shoot for a higher refresh rate.