Feedback/Help on New Build, Please!

[Levyan]

Hi! I have been lurking these forums for a while now (since before Haswells), waiting till it got closer to time to build my new tower. I would love some feedback on my build and am open to any suggestions you can give me! I will be ordering parts over the next couple weeks.
• Budget - $1000 (pretty much absolute limit for now)
• Resolution – 1920 x 1200
• Games / Settings Desired – WoW, SC2, Bioshock Infinite, Skyrim/ Ultra or High
• Any other intensive software or special things you do (Frequent video encoding, 3D modeling, etc) – No special software, but during the school year I do tend to have my comp running 16hrs a day with 1-2 dozen pdfs open as well as a game for taking breaks (grad student).
• Country – Alaska, USA (big issue for shipping)
• Parts that can be reused – Have a couple older SATA HDDs and an enclosure that haven’t had much use and a CD/DVD optical
• Do you need an OS? – nope, have a fresh Win 7 OEM disc
• Do you need peripherals (e.g. monitor, mouse, keyboard, speakers, etc)? –No, have monitor, keyboard, mouse.
My initial build: pcpartpicker p/1kAiv

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler
Motherboard: MSI Z87-G43 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card
Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 ATX Mid Tower Case
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply


Since this is well below my budget, I was thinking of maybe picking up an ASUS Z87 – A mobo instead (+$30).
Alternatively, I could get the Storm Scout 2 case which actually has usb3 ports(+$31)....
Thanks!
* sorry - could not post any links due to post count /sigh
edit 2: case suggestion

[Deleted]

I would go for a corsair 350d with the clear sidepanel get an h100i the asus gryphon mATX motherboard and the corsair cx750 modular psu. Iv made a build likethat for my brother and damn it looks really awesome and performes really well.

That might be abit more expensive however the cooler will leave you more headroom to OC your cpu and the psu allows you to add another 760 if would need more out of your pc later on.

[tielknight]

I would go for a corsair 350d with the clear sidepanel get an h100i the asus gryphon mATX motherboard and the corsair cx750 modular psu. Iv made a build likethat for my brother and damn it looks really awesome and performes really well.

That might be abit more expensive however the cooler will leave you more headroom to OC your cpu and the psu allows you to add another 760 if would need more out of your pc later on.

That PSU is overkill, even if they plan on oc'ing and adding another 760. The 550W will work just fine if they don't plan to OC much and would handle 2 760's as well. You could bump it up to a ~600w(like this or this) to make some more room though a 750w is definitely not needed.

Here is a breakdown of what you picked Levyan:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($199.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: MSI Z87M-G43 Micro ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($97.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($62.13 @ TigerDirect)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($162.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card ($265.91 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master HAF 912 ATX Mid Tower Case ($48.00 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($45.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $957.98
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-26 06:36 EDT-0400)

Only thing I would change is maybe the cooler to a Hyper 212 EVO and use $ elsewhere and throw in a Optical Drive. You could change the case to something like This for the USB3 ports

[Toffie]

I would change the god awful case first off, the inside is not colored at all.
Get a better and bigger motherboard also.

[Levyan]

Thanks so much for the links! The mATX mobo wasn't the one I picked (the regular ATX version), but close enough! I also do not have a microcenter :(

My concern with the EVO was from other recent posts that said the the Haswells can be difficult to get good OCs, and with my extended use of my comp in the past I thought it might be a good idea to get something better, but not as pricey as the H100i.
For the optical drive, I have 1 for a tower that I built 6ish years ago that should still work? I included that in the OP, but it is a bit buried in the formatting.

My main concern for the mobo is I don't know how much it restricts me aside from the lack of SLI support. The case has me a bit worried as well, since it appears to be older (no USB3). Should I switch that for an NZXT 220 Source?

*Update* - bought the RAM, which newegg had on a shellshocker sale yesterday for $51.

Toffie: given the budget, got a better idea on the ATX version of that mobo? Maybe the Asrock Extreme3? Got a better case in mind within +$20?
Tielknight: oops, just saw the case link. Ya, actually going for a midTower/ATX.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($225.49 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 65.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($69.99 @ NCIX US)
Motherboard: ASRock Z87 Extreme3 ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($112.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (Purchased For $51.00)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($162.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card ($259.99 @ Amazon)
Case: NZXT Source 220 ATX Mid Tower Case ($54.03 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($55.99 @ NCIX US)
Total: $992.47
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-26 07:33 EDT-0400)
Yay 10 posts is the magic number!

[Deleted]

For the optical drive, I have 1 for a tower that I built 6ish years ago that should still work? I included that in the OP, but it is a bit buried in the formatting.

You would have to check the connection on that one. It could very well be an IDE connection and most motherboards (I think all of them) only have SATA ports left. But an optical is only 15-20 dollars.

[Levyan]

You would have to check the connection on that one. It could very well be an IDE connection and most motherboards (I think all of them) only have SATA ports left. But an optical is only 15-20 dollars.

The HDD was SATA, so I assumed the optical drive was SATA too.

[Toffie]

As for the motherboard, Extreme3 offers very good value at that price; solid choice.
The case is pretty good, I would get the 300r though.

[Deleted]

The HDD was SATA, so I assumed the optical drive was SATA too.

It is easy to check anyway.

I build a computer for my little brother a while back and we wanted to use the optical from his old computer (2 years old) and that one was IDE, while the HDD was sata

[Levyan]

It is easy to check anyway.

I build a computer for my little brother a while back and we wanted to use the optical from his old computer (2 years old) and that one was IDE, while the HDD was sata

Bah! Looks like you are right. Its an EIDE *grumble*

[Deleted]

Opticals are cheap anyway Still annoying tho

[Levyan]

Thanks all! Glad I was at least close for my build choices. I will give these and any other opinions some thought over the next 2 weeks while I start buying parts. I'll probably get that 300R in the next few days, since it has such a good deal now. I'll wait on the cpu/mobo till last (8/9) to see if newegg does one of its $80 off combo deals.

On the fan: it will fit in the 300R alright with the ballistix sport RAM, right? Was I right in that it will give my a little more "room" for OC compared to the EVO? Is it worth being 2x as much? As I have now gone past my budget cap and will be cutting into my food budget, I don't have any more room to buy anything better; and would definitely be willing to save the money if it isn't that much better.

Found this about the fan: http://www.vortez.net/articles_pages..._review,8.html

It looks like the clearance is a bit too tight or the HSF will be scraping the case. Their picture angle is not helpful in seeing the 2mm difference.

- - - Updated - - -

On HSFs, since there has been so little information on this site, I did a little google searching for mine. I did find 1 post that might help future builders (at least with the larger HSFs): http://www.overclock.net/t/1183203/noctua-nh-d14-compatibility-list. Hopefully this link is reliable....

[Toffie]

You could get the h60 2013 edition, it's on par with that air cooler.
It wont interfere with any type of ram though, it's also easier to install.

- - - Updated - - -

You could get the h60 2013 edition, it's on par with that air cooler.
It wont interfere with any type of ram though, it's also easier to install.

[Levyan]

Thanks again, Toffie! I'll look into that.

Bah, NCIX does not provide their free shipping deal to Alaska either, guess I'll have to spend a little extra (probably from buying off of Amazon instead). Newegg also only offers 2-day shipping unless you make an account with that 3rd-party shipping company so I guess I won't be ordering through them again after the 1-month trial expires.

[Levyan]

Hmm, looks like I was double-counting expenses somewhere and so I have about $50 more that I can spend after switching all my purchases to Amazon or Newegg (for shipping concerns previously mentioned). As such I was thinking about about getting the H100i instead.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i5-4670K 3.4GHz Quad-Core Processor ($239.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i 77.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($99.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus Z87-A ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($134.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix Sport 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory (Purchased For $51.00)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($164.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 760 2GB Video Card ($259.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Corsair 300R ATX Mid Tower Case ($69.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($61.24 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224DB/BEBE DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1062.17
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-07-29 15:13 EDT-0400)

Is this the better idea atm, or is there something else I should spend it on instead?
If this looks good, I'll buy the case, optical, and cooler next (promo sales).