Opinion on Upgrade Build

[Cerus]

Hey all - it's been over six years since I last upgraded my PC so I figured it was time for an update. I'm pretty sure I've narrowed it down to the parts below but wanted to get folks opinions before I finalize it. I'll be doing a mix of gaming, photo work via Photoshop/Lightroom and some video editing.

I'll be upgrading to an SSD so I can't see the need to keep both WD HDDs so I'll likely chuck the 320GB unless anyone can think of a reason to keep it. The drive/s along with the ODD, Naga, OS and PSU are the only old parts I'm keeping. I'm still sifting through monitor choices to replace my old HP w1907 that PCPartPicker doesn't even list. Undecided on keyboard upgrades but leaning towards the Corsair K70 LUX RGB.


Anywho....there it is. Thanks in advance.



PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i5-8600K 3.6GHz 6-Core Processor ($280.98 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: NZXT - Kraken X62 Rev 2 98.2 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($156.29 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus - ROG MAXIMUS X HERO (WI-FI AC) ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($281.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($220.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung - 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive
Storage: Western Digital - Caviar Blue 320GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (Purchased For $0.00)
Storage: Western Digital - Caviar Blue 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (Purchased For $0.00)
Video Card: MSI - GeForce GTX 1060 6GB 6GB GAMING X Video Card ($344.98 @ Newegg)
Case: Cooler Master - MasterCase Pro 5 ATX Mid Tower Case ($116.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: Rosewill - Lightning 800W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply (Purchased For $0.00)
Optical Drive: Lite-On - iHBS212-08 Blu-Ray/DVD/CD Writer (Purchased For $0.00)
Operating System: Microsoft - Windows 7 Home Premium SP1 OEM 64-bit (Purchased For $0.00)
Mouse: Razer - Naga Wired Laser Mouse (Purchased For $0.00)
Total: $1402.20
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-01-08 18:28 EST-0500

[Miyagie]

Do you need that 300$ Mainboard ?
I would get a 100$ Mainboard and a 60$ Phanteks Tower and upgrade the CPU to a i7 8700k and the GPU to a cheap 1070Ti.

[Sorshen]

You don't need a $281 mainboard and Kraken X62 unless you're trying to push 5.1GHz+ or something. And that will be decided by silicon lottery mostly.


PCPartPicker part list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/kRykGf
Price breakdown by merchant: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/kRykGf/by_merchant/

CPU: Intel - Core i5-8600K 3.6GHz 6-Core Processor ($265.00 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master - MasterLiquid 240 66.7 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($67.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: Asus - Prime Z370-A ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($154.99 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($184.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung - 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($139.99 @ B&H)
Video Card: Asus - GeForce GTX 1070 8GB Dual Series Video Card ($464.98 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT - S340 Elite (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($74.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1352.93
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-01-08 18:54 EST-0500


LE: since you're doing editing, maybe a Ryzen build is better for you? AMD also just announced some price cuts on their R5/R7 lineup.

[Deleted]

From a newbie here who recently built my own computer I highly recommend to listen to the guys above specially regarding the graphic card.

The 50 & 60 GTX models are not built specificly for gaming but are on the 1050/1060 model good enough for gaming.

If I were you I would look into possibly making some cuts from few of the areas and aim for least 1070.

[Cerus]

I had considered the Z-370A over the Hero but everything I read said the Hero had far better features and was worth the extra $$. I know ASUS boards run a little higher than the competition but I've had excellent luck with them in previous builds. It seemed to be the more future proof of the two as well. I don't really have a budget per se but I don't want to go crazy either.

All the other GPUs I looked at were either worse performers or outrageously expensive....or just plain out of stock like the 1070 listed above... :/ From browsing the forum here the consensus seemed to be to stick with 6GB and above for future proofing. I really wish I had decided to do this a year ago - searching for a GPU now is a nightmare thanks to the miners. Also spending more than $300ish on a GPU makes me cringe.

I like that S340 case but I'm not quite ready to give up on my optical drive and I'm not a fan of the restrictive airflow designs that are all the rage these days. I'm pretty well stuck with the Pro 5 unless I went with something more plain like Fractals. I'm not into the whole RGB fad but a little style doesn't hurt.

I was back and forth late last night between the Kraken and the DH15s. I dang near pulled the trigger on the DH but just couldn't do it...the thing is too friggin huge. If I'm using a windowed case and a MB with some looks to it I don't want to cover it up with a huge CPU cooler. I considered the old standby 212 Evo but I do plan on a moderate+ OC.

But I basically got sick of searching, finding something I liked that was decent only for it to be out of stock, missing a key feature or jacked up in price like the GPUs.

If I stick to 1080p (highly likely) is there any real advantage to the 1070?

[the boar]

I had considered the Z-370A over the Hero but everything I read said the Hero had far better features and was worth the extra $$. I know ASUS boards run a little higher than the competition but I've had excellent luck with them in previous builds. It seemed to be the more future proof of the two as well. I don't really have a budget per se but I don't want to go crazy either.

by the time you need to upgrade your cpu, your motherboard will (most likely) be long irrelevant. future proofing is not really possible here.
asus have always done good motherboards in my experience, the z-370a should do everything you need it to do.

All the other GPUs I looked at were either worse performers or outrageously expensive....or just plain out of stock like the 1070 listed above... :/ From browsing the forum here the consensus seemed to be to stick with 6GB and above for future proofing. I really wish I had decided to do this a year ago - searching for a GPU now is a nightmare thanks to the miners. Also spending more than $300ish on a GPU makes me cringe.

If I stick to 1080p (highly likely) is there any real advantage to the 1070?

yeah, stock and prices are due to the miners as you've said. sucks
the 1060 will do good at 1080p, advantage of the 1070 is it'll last a bit longer before you have to start turning stuff down.

I was back and forth late last night between the Kraken and the DH15s. I dang near pulled the trigger on the DH but just couldn't do it...the thing is too friggin huge. If I'm using a windowed case and a MB with some looks to it I don't want to cover it up with a huge CPU cooler. I considered the old standby 212 Evo but I do plan on a moderate+ OC.

you could put some christmas lights on the heatsink to make it prettier!
honestly this comes down to your preference, air and aio both do good jobs. if you want to avoid that big lump of metal in your window, go for it.

[Cerus]

by the time you need to upgrade your cpu, your motherboard will (most likely) be long irrelevant. future proofing is not really possible here.
asus have always done good motherboards in my experience, the z-370a should do everything you need it to do.


yeah, stock and prices are due to the miners as you've said. sucks
the 1060 will do good at 1080p, advantage of the 1070 is it'll last a bit longer before you have to start turning stuff down.


you could put some christmas lights on the heatsink to make it prettier!
honestly this comes down to your preference, air and aio both do good jobs. if you want to avoid that big lump of metal in your window, go for it.

That price on that 1070 linked above wasn’t bad but of course went out of stock like 10 minutes after I first looked at it. I REALLY hate this mining crap. I’m gonna end up with no choices, having to wait a while or spend $$$ to get anything decent.

Lol on the lights. I read plenty of posts all over of people swapping out the fans for LEDs ones. Seems illogical to get something ya have to “fix” when there are choices galore. I window shop every now and then but the selection is almost too much now.