$2,500 Budget. Looking for help building a rig.

[TheLittleBeast]

Hello MMO-Champ community,

I am looking to build a computer for video editing and software development; I want the capacity to test real-time, interactive simulations. If these facets are mutually exclusive I am willing to sacrifice the latter. With that begin said, this is my first time building a rig and would appreciate any additional explanation for your decisions.

Here is a build that created. The utmost honesty and criticism is welcomed. If you have any questions regarding my decisions for specific parts, feel free to ask.
Some parts I refrained from choosing myself include, the monitor (I want at least two, with a minimum bezel width) and the optical drive that can read/write blu-ray, CD, DVD.

Here is the link to my build (new poster, can't link websites): pcpartpicker.com/p/XTvzRB

[Cilraaz]

Looks like this was caught in the moderation queue. Approved, fixed your links, moved this to the build help sub-forum, and here's a free bump!

[Natharin]

Build looks good man, I checked on a couple of things to ensure you wouldn't have any issues when you got the parts. The memory you chose is on the QVL for the motherboard and your case has ~28 mm of room left after the VGA is installed (assuming you keep the drive cages in).

I think you could do better on the PSU, but it might not be necessary depending on you what you have planned in terms of future upgrades. If you plan on keeping your computer at stock settings (no overclocking) and do not plan on adding a second graphic card in the future then the 750w you have chosen should be more than enough. If you do plan on overclocking or adding a second card in the future (or both!) you should consider something with a little more headroom (even within your price point). Consider for example the Thermaltake TDP-0850M another gold rated power supply that is $84.99 after rebate and promo code AF4DEALS0408E. This PSU nets you an additional 100 watts of headroom and 8 amps on the 12v for ~10 dollars more and is well reviewed by JonnyGuru. Once again, this isn't necessary, the PSU you have chosen is a good one, but spending a bit more initially to better future proof your rig is rarely a poor choice.

Overall what you have looks like a well thought out (and researched) build. It should serve you well long into the future!

Edit: I had nested links in the original post but I guess I can't do that either as I don't post here very often. The PSU can be found on Newegg and the review can be found on JonnyGuru's website.

[druidizer]

Two things that are just down to personal preference.
Why choose the R4 case over the newer design R5, when they are similarly priced.
And if using for video editing are you certain a 1TB drive will be enough for all your main storage needs.

[Vargur]

Was there a first post to this thread?

[TheLittleBeast]

Build looks good man, I checked on a couple of things to ensure you wouldn't have any issues when you got the parts. The memory you chose is on the QVL for the motherboard and your case has ~28 mm of room left after the VGA is installed (assuming you keep the drive cages in).

I think you could do better on the PSU, but it might not be necessary depending on you what you have planned in terms of future upgrades. If you plan on keeping your computer at stock settings (no overclocking) and do not plan on adding a second graphic card in the future then the 750w you have chosen should be more than enough. If you do plan on overclocking or adding a second card in the future (or both!) you should consider something with a little more headroom (even within your price point). Consider for example the Thermaltake TDP-0850M another gold rated power supply that is $84.99 after rebate and promo code AF4DEALS0408E. This PSU nets you an additional 100 watts of headroom and 8 amps on the 12v for ~10 dollars more and is well reviewed by JonnyGuru. Once again, this isn't necessary, the PSU you have chosen is a good one, but spending a bit more initially to better future proof your rig is rarely a poor choice.

Overall what you have looks like a well thought out (and researched) build. It should serve you well long into the future!

Edit: I had nested links in the original post but I guess I can't do that either as I don't post here very often. The PSU can be found on Newegg and the review can be found on JonnyGuru's website.

I chose the 5930k over the 5820k because of the 12 more express lanes. I have brushed up on it, but I’m not entirely certain as to what the limiting factors are on number of graphics cards a build can support and the PCI express lane count of its CPU and Motherboard. Is downgrading to the 5820k an option if I do plan on installing a second graphics card?
If I upgrade to a more powerful power supply unit and add additional graphics cards, what then are the requirements to prevent overheating. Would I have to purchase and implement a cooling system? What would this cooling system necessitate?

- - - Updated - - -

Two things that are just down to personal preference.
Why choose the R4 case over the newer design R5, when they are similarly priced.
And if using for video editing are you certain a 1TB drive will be enough for all your main storage needs.

I do plan on upgrading storage over time, unless its smarter to shell out for ample storage from the beginning. My understanding is that RAID is a data storage virtualization technology that combines multiple disk drive components into a logical unit for the purposes of data redundancy or performance improvement. Give me your input on RAID, RAID 0-6?..

Judging by the dimensions of parts, should I also consider getting a bigger tower?

- - - Updated - - -

I’ve reserved trying to settle on a monitor, because its was too variable a choice when I was researching tolerable and affordable monitors for high fidelity, color crisp visuals.
For one, I aim for at the minimum a dual monitor setup. 23-24 inch width minimum for each monitor. IPS. VGA, DVI,& HDMI inputs. But to maintain a budget, the scope is limited to $200+- for each monitor.
If i should settle on a single monitor purchase, it would be a $500 maximum purchase. 30-inch width minimum.

Any picks for a solid optical drive?

[TaintedOne]

You didnt mention any kind of gaming in the op. Will this rig be used for gaming? If so what games ?

[Deleted]

Considerable changes, some personal preference, some performance boosters:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-5930K 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($552.95 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H100i GTX 70.7 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($119.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: MSI X99S Gaming 7 ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($212.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($175.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: Sandisk Ultra Plus 256GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($97.88 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Hitachi Ultrastar 7K3000 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($102.04 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 4GB Superclocked ACX 2.0 Video Card ($544.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 w/Window (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($104.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: XFX XTR 750W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($94.99 @ Amazon)
Optical Drive: LG WH16NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($56.77 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($87.79 @ OutletPC)
Total: $2151.35
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-04-19 04:57 EDT-0400

1) The X99 chipset is quad-channel;
2) Still AIO water-cooling, but it's personal preference - if you want, you can go for the Glacer 240, the Nepton 120XL (astonishing coooler for the cost) or the Kraken X41/X61;
3) Case to the R5 windowed.

[TheLittleBeast]

You didnt mention any kind of gaming in the op. Will this rig be used for gaming? If so what games ?

I am looking to build a computer for video editing and software development; I want the capacity to test real-time, interactive simulations.

I will not be playing any established games but experimenting with creating my own. Majority will be perhaps 2D but I will venture into 3D soon enough.

[Deleted]

The difference between the i7 5820k and 5930k is around 200bucks. Considering the small difference in clocks, that you can overclock both and you will only benefit from more exp lanes only if you go 3 or 4 way sli then....200 bucks is a waste. I would rather put the 200bucks somewhere else, like a better mobo, more ram, bigger ssd or better monitor. I would get a good monitor now and a cheaper 1080p second one later.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3GHz 6-Core Processor ($362.95 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: NZXT Kraken X41 106.1 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($98.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: MSI X99S Gaming 7 ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($232.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Series 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($314.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 250GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($94.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($73.95 @ SuperBiiz)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 980 4GB STRIX Video Card ($554.99 @ B&H)
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 w/Window (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($104.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic G 550W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($79.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: LG WH16NS40 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer ($56.77 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($87.79 @ OutletPC)
Monitor: Asus PB278Q 60Hz 27.0" Monitor ($429.99 @ Micro Center)
Total: $2493.37
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-04-20 04:00 EDT-0400

[TaintedOne]

I am looking to build a computer for video editing and software development; I want the capacity to test real-time, interactive simulations.

I will not be playing any established games but experimenting with creating my own. Majority will be perhaps 2D but I will venture into 3D soon enough.

Will the performance of sli 980's justify the cost ? The gtx 980 is a gamer oriented card

Perhaps going a single titan X card ($1k) with a 5820k($350) is more cost effective ? $1350 vs $1650 (sli980's+5930k)

Idk what software you use for editing but I would check up on benchmarks for various gpu's(GTX,telsa,quadro) before you decide to spend $550+ on them

[TheLittleBeast]

This is my finalized build. Tell me what you folks think?
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/KjHZK8

The only suggestion I believe I need is a solid, two-monitor set-up that will not break the piggy bank. Otherwise, thank you gentle people for the wonderful insight.
Oh and, if you guys know any promo codes to reduce the overall price of my rig, do not hesitate to inbox me or post the codes in this thread.

[Remilia]

I'd say change the 27" to BenQ GW2765HT. It is overall a better performing monitor and if you want a high Hz at that price range I'd go with XL2420Z.

[Master Guns]

The only thing I'd change at all is the motherboard, isn't needed for what you're doing. You can tone that down a bit; don't need a 200 dollar mobo IMO. Other than that, looks great. Maybe want to make it a 2 TB HDD though.

[Deleted]

A couple questions to your updated list.
1. Is there a reason other than probably pref you stick to sandisk and not go with something "more" solid like a samsung ssd.
2. 850W is way too much. Do you plan triple 980 sli?
3. the 2 monitors as a combo trouble/confuse me. One 1440p@60hz and one 1080p@144Hz. Are you going to be swapping main monitor around everytime depending on gaming/application?

[BaseStamp]

Yeah, monitor choice doesn't make sense.

[TheLittleBeast]

A couple questions to your updated list.
1. Is there a reason other than probably pref you stick to sandisk and not go with something "more" solid like a samsung ssd.
2. 850W is way too much. Do you plan triple 980 sli?
3. the 2 monitors as a combo trouble/confuse me. One 1440p@60hz and one 1080p@144Hz. Are you going to be swapping main monitor around everytime depending on gaming/application?

1. Could you please elaborate on "more solid".
2. Over the summer, I do not plan for triple 980 sli but I have the luxury to upgrade my parts every 3-4 months. Is triple sli even an option for i7 5820k? The reason why I picked the 850w was to ensure some future-proofing. Is there any repercussions for using more wattage than the system requires?
3. I originally did not plan to have the screens simultaneously display the same thing. For example, I would have my development environment on one screen and the testing environment on another. I will not be playing video games on this rig. Also, I free-styled my monitor selection because I was not receiving sufficient feedback. Will my choice not enable me to have both of the monitors connected so I could transition from one to the other flawlessly?

- - - Updated - - -

The only thing I'd change at all is the motherboard, isn't needed for what you're doing. You can tone that down a bit; don't need a 200 dollar mobo IMO. Other than that, looks great. Maybe want to make it a 2 TB HDD though.

1 TB will be sufficient for the upcoming 3-4 months. I will have the luxury to upgrade by the end of the summer. If I do feel the need to upgrade mid-summer, I will make the proper accommodations.

[unbound]

I see you are getting plenty of help with most of the specs.

My only comment is that if you have a $2,500 budget, you probably should consider getting a larger SSD. Doing a bit of video editing myself, this will be the drive that you will be doing all of your work on (seriously, don't even think about doing video editing work on a regular hard drive on a newer system), so if you are going to be juggling around a lot of video, you will be happier with a 512 GB SSD instead.

[Butler to Baby Sloths]

2. Over the summer, I do not plan for triple 980 sli but I have to luxury to upgrade my parts every 3-4 months. Is triple sli even an option for i7 5820k? The reason why I picked the 850w was to ensure some future-proofing. Is there any repercussions for using more wattage than the system requires?

No. All that will happen is your PSU operates more efficiently.