PC Sherdog PC Build/Buy Thread, v6: My Power Supply Burned Down My House

[Ikky]

Certainly.

The most consequential decision you will make from a gaming point of view is whether or not you choose to go with an Intel CPU build instead of an AMD CPU build. The top gaming Intel CPUs still enjoy a considerable framerate advantage over the best AMD CPUs in games, but they are a terrible value. That R5-2600 is $168 right now. You'll pay over 2.5x as much for the i7-8700K ($380), i7-8086K ($490), i7-9700K ($410), or i9-9900K ($490). While on a very rare occasion you will see as much as 30% more frames with the last, in most games, you'll see 5%-10% more frames with these processors. Even the i5-9600K ($265) is a poor value. Given your budget, if I had chosen any of the first four, I would have had to downgrade the GPU from the RTX 2080 to the RTX 2070, and you would lose far more on the GPU side than you would gain on the CPU side. There are some arguments to choose these, but any build prioritizing value won't.

The lone exception on the Intel side right now is the i5-9400F ($168). That is hands down their best value gaming processor available:
https://cpu.userbenchmark.com/Compare/AMD-Ryzen-5-2600-vs-Intel-Core-i5-9400F/3955vsm699058
If you look into this option you'll have to choose a different motherboard. While you can get another for the same price or less than the one I chose for you no Z370/Z390 motherboard will match that MSI B450 Tomahawk on overall value. That board has well-reviewed BIOS software, a ton of features, and an incredible VRM for its class. The last is relevant to overclocking which is possible with the R5-2600, but no the i5-9400F.

Otherwise, not much will vary:

• Windows 10 is a must (you want DX12 going forward). Only question is whether you have some more "creative" means of obtaining it. Fixed cost.
• Already talked about the PSU. At most you might shave $25 off here, and there's no practical reason to spend beyond $50 more. ]
• Already discussed drive options.
  
• RAM cost is pretty fixed. You want at least 16GB, but 32GB is overkill. You could sahve $20 at most, but it wouldn't be worth it, or you could spend 2x as much on b-die RAM, but it wouldn't be worth it.
  
• You have a million different case options. You could cut as much as $25 here before you start making unreasonable sacrifices, but this NZXT H500 ($70) is a fantastic choice. Most advantages beyond this point are luxurious.

*Edit*
Oh, not sure how fast you're moving with your research, but a sale just hit on the R5-2600:

Excellent! This is making it easier. I use to build my PCs with AMD. I'm not opposed to Intel though if I can manage to squeeze it into my budget.

Thanks for the mobo info too, that would have been something I also carefully look at.

Your insight is greatly appreciated!

 

[jefferz]

I have a 1080 ti, i7 7700k and every single part of my PC that can have RBG lighting has it, even my mousepad, I have a 144hz Predator monitor. and I still fucking suck at most games that aren't PUBG.

It's because you don't have RGB cable combs

https://www.ibuypower.com/IBPStore/Accessories/iBP-RGB-Cable-Combs-1-box

 

[Woldog]

It's because you don't have RGB cable combs

https://www.ibuypower.com/IBPStore/Accessories/iBP-RGB-Cable-Combs-1-box

Noooooo more RGB, my housemate joking said "I'm amazed your desk doesn't light up" Guess who has 5m of RGB cable coming.

 

[Madmick]

Noooooo more RGB, my housemate joking said "I'm amazed your desk doesn't light up" Guess who has 5m of RGB cable coming.

Whatever you do, just don't buy this HyperX drive:

 

[Madmick]

@Ikky, the stars are aligning for you.

First, the R5-2600 drops to $150 which is an all time low.

Now, the MSI B450 Tomahawk motherboard just dropped to $91.09 after the 20% off coupon via Google Express. Google Express will charge you sales tax no matter where you reside, so you won't enjoy the full deductive value of the savings, but that starting price is lower than the $116 best price when I cooked you up that PC Part Picker list the other night, so this is $25 off:
https://express.google.com/u/0/prod...970755609929050_3087232072241005837_125181302

Thought I would throw you the head's up.

 

[Ikky]

@Ikky, the stars are aligning for you.

First, the R5-2600 drops to $150 which is an all time low.

Now, the MSI B450 Tomahawk motherboard just dropped to $91.09 after the 20% off coupon via Google Express. Google Express will charge you sales tax no matter where you reside, so you won't enjoy the full deductive value of the savings, but that starting price is lower than the $116 best price when I cooked you up that PC Part Picker list the other night, so this is $25 off:
https://express.google.com/u/0/prod...970755609929050_3087232072241005837_125181302

Thought I would throw you the head's up.

Thank you, I really appreciate it!

I found a built PC that I have been keeping my eye on as well:

Intel i9-9900K 3.6GHz, 16GB DDR4, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 8GB, 1TB SSD, WiFi & Win 10 Home - $1600

Do you think this is a good buy?

 

[Madmick]

Thank you, I really appreciate it!

I found a built PC that I have been keeping my eye on as well:

Intel i9-9900K 3.6GHz, 16GB DDR4, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 8GB, 1TB SSD, WiFi & Win 10 Home - $1600

Do you think this is a good buy?

Absolutely. CPPC has been the leader among prebuilds for a long time, and I have touted their value just as long. Wasn't sure if you were considering those (some are snobbish about prebuilds). Also, I think the self-building market is more competitive once again. This would have been the strategy if we had gone the other way, and chosen one of the Intel processors with maximal gaming performance at a sacrifice to the GPU. Many favor this strategy because theoretically it has a bit more "future-proofing" in the sense that it's easier to just upgrade and swap in new GPUs which age out of relevance the fastest of any component. If we are being critical the trade-offs & downsides are listed below:

PRICE
You're $125 over your budget, and with those sales, you're ~$200 above the budget for the R5-2600 + RTX 2080 build we slapped together for you currently (without even counting $20 of mail-in rebates).

MOTHERBOARD & CPU Cooler
This prebuild sports a custom Z390 motherboard which neither they nor ASRock supports (ASRock Z390 Phantom Gaming 4-cb). Don't expect a great BIOS/software experience from this. It's designed for plug n' play potential. The Z390 has overclocking potential, but that doesn't necessarily mean it has good OC potential despite the liquid CPU cooler. This is because the latest Intel CPUs turbo so aggressively that there is little point in overclocking unless you have a more extreme setup. Nevertheless, this liquid CPU cooler is welcome, even if it will be louder, because it should guarantee you keep your temps low while the Intel turbos. Liquid coolers also carry risk (of leaking), and require more maintenance.

Conversely, the MSI Tomahawk for our AMD build is deceptively priced. It actually has one of the strongest VRMs for cooling of any X470 or B450 motherboards. We didn't select an aftermarket CPU cooler, since the R5-2600 comes with the Wraith Stealth, and you were after value, but you could mildly overclock with that, or alternatively, buy a strong aftermarket cooler for around $30, and with that there is a significant amount of CPU performance you could gain from OCing the R5-2600:


GPU
The obvious downside is the RTX 2070 vs. the RTX 2080. Additionally, they don't relay what specific model of the RTX 2070 it is. It probably varies from unit to unit (whatever they have on hand), but several Amazon customers in the know report a Zotac Mini variant. That MSI Ventus RTX 2080 in our AMD build is a dual-fan variant that carries very strong reviewer & customer reviews. The Zotac Mini is a dual-fan mini card with mixed feedback:
ZOTAC Gaming GeForce RTX 2070 Mini 8GB GDDR6 256 Bit 2.0 Graphic Card (ZT-T20700E-10P)

STORAGE
That 1TB SSD is SATA-class, and offers less than half the speed of the NVMe SSD (TLC-NAND with SLC-cache) I selected for the R5-2600 build. There is a $95 1TB SSD options if you wanted to shave another $40 off the AMD build. Not all SSDs are the same.

RAM
That RAM is much slower than the RAM we chose for you (2400-2666 MHz vs. 3200 MHz). Modest percentage gains in the framerate with the CPU are being partially traded back with this.

PSU
It is an 800W PSU, but that doesn't mean it is the same caliber. The Rosewill Capstone I recommended is one highest of the quality PSUs under $100 (Tier B). One Amazon reviewer reports an Apevia 800W PSU. That is serviceable, but mediocre, and another reason you can expect to meaningfully overclock the Cyberpower:
https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/986897-psu-tier-list-21-legacy/
https://www.legitreviews.com/rosewill-capstone-750w-power-supply-review_2049/8

CASE
The CyberpowerPC Onyxia Black case is probably pretty good, but the NZXT H500 is the successor to one of the most acclaimed cases of all time, the S340, and it one of the mostly favorably reviewed cases of 2018 across major reviewers.


I'm trying to impress upon you that it isn't so easy to take full advantage of the i9-9900K's superiority without suffering unavoidable premium if you really want to harness it. If you make all those small sacrifices to component quality it adds up. This build still has much better component quality than the CPPC build, and yet with a lower upfront total of $1570 (much lower after the additional $70 off in rebates). I even added WiFi:
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/NZ4M9J
Nevertheless, this is not my favorite. I would make some changes.

 

[Ikky]

Absolutely. CPPC has been the leader among prebuilds for a long time, and I have touted their value just as long. Wasn't sure if you were considering those (some are snobbish about prebuilds). Also, I think the self-building market is more competitive once again. This would have been the strategy if we had gone the other way, and chosen one of the Intel processors with maximal gaming performance at a sacrifice to the GPU. Many favor this strategy because theoretically it has a bit more "future-proofing" in the sense that it's easier to just upgrade and swap in new GPUs which age out of relevance the fastest of any component. If we are being critical the trade-offs & downsides are listed below:

PRICE
You're $125 over your budget, and with those sales, you're ~$200 above the budget for the R5-2600 + RTX 2080 build we slapped together for you currently (without even counting $20 of mail-in rebates).

MOTHERBOARD & CPU Cooler
This prebuild sports a custom Z390 motherboard which neither they nor ASRock supports (ASRock Z390 Phantom Gaming 4-cb). Don't expect a great BIOS/software experience from this. It's designed for plug n' play potential. The Z390 has overclocking potential, but that doesn't necessarily mean it has good OC potential despite the liquid CPU cooler. This is because the latest Intel CPUs turbo so aggressively that there is little point in overclocking unless you have a more extreme setup. Nevertheless, this liquid CPU cooler is welcome, even if it will be louder, because it should guarantee you keep your temps low while the Intel turbos. Liquid coolers also carry risk (of leaking), and require more maintenance.

Conversely, the MSI Tomahawk for our AMD build is deceptively priced. It actually has one of the strongest VRMs for cooling of any X470 or B450 motherboards. We didn't select an aftermarket CPU cooler, since the R5-2600 comes with the Wraith Stealth, and you were after value, but you could mildly overclock with that, or alternatively, buy a strong aftermarket cooler for around $30, and with that there is a significant amount of CPU performance you could gain from OCing the R5-2600:


GPU
The obvious downside is the RTX 2070 vs. the RTX 2080. Additionally, they don't relay what specific model of the RTX 2070 it is. It probably varies from unit to unit (whatever they have on hand), but several Amazon customers in the know report a Zotac Mini variant. That MSI Ventus RTX 2080 in our AMD build is a dual-fan variant that carries very strong reviewer & customer reviews. The Zotac Mini is a dual-fan mini card with mixed feedback:
ZOTAC Gaming GeForce RTX 2070 Mini 8GB GDDR6 256 Bit 2.0 Graphic Card (ZT-T20700E-10P)

STORAGE
That 1TB SSD is SATA-class, and offers less than half the speed of the NVMe SSD (TLC-NAND with SLC-cache) I selected for the R5-2600 build. There is a $95 1TB SSD options if you wanted to shave another $40 off the AMD build. Not all SSDs are the same.

RAM
That RAM is much slower than the RAM we chose for you (2400-2666 MHz vs. 3200 MHz). Modest percentage gains in the framerate with the CPU are being partially traded back with this.

PSU
It is an 800W PSU, but that doesn't mean it is the same caliber. The Rosewill Capstone I recommended is one highest of the quality PSUs under $100 (Tier B). One Amazon reviewer reports an Apevia 800W PSU. That is serviceable, but mediocre, and another reason you can expect to meaningfully overclock the Cyberpower:
https://linustechtips.com/main/topic/986897-psu-tier-list-21-legacy/
https://www.legitreviews.com/rosewill-capstone-750w-power-supply-review_2049/8

CASE
The CyberpowerPC Onyxia Black case is probably pretty good, but the NZXT H500 is the successor to one of the most acclaimed cases of all time, the S340, and it one of the mostly favorably reviewed cases of 2018 across major reviewers.


I'm trying to impress upon you that it isn't so easy to take full advantage of the i9-9900K's superiority without suffering unavoidable premium if you really want to harness it. If you make all those small sacrifices to component quality it adds up. This build still has much better component quality than the CPPC build, and yet with a lower upfront total of $1570 (much lower after the additional $70 off in rebates). I even added WiFi:
https://pcpartpicker.com/list/NZ4M9J
Nevertheless, this is not my favorite. I would make some changes.

Thanks so much for this write up!

You said you would make some changes in that last build, would you be able to make those changes and still float in around $1600? And after making those changes, what would you choose between it and the AMD build?

 

[Madmick]

Thanks so much for this write up!

You said you would make some changes in that last build, would you be able to make those changes and still float in around $1600? And after making those changes, what would you choose between it and the AMD build?

Well, the point of that was to show that the self-building market is in a good place right now, and can beat the prebuilds or the customization sites (you can customize your own blueprint at CyberpowerPC and have them build it for you, for example). That hasn't commonly been the case the past few years, frankly, with the cryptoboom inflating GPU prices at the same time RAM prices were just godawful. If I were to put together a more serious Intel build I wouldn't recommend the cuts. I put together a really solid build, and with an RTX 2070 it came out to $1800; with an RTX 2080 it was $2K. That's before rebates, but the budget it getting out of hand.

It's a really tough call. I think if you're spending this much there's a strong argument to go with Intel and try to eke out a longer life with GPU upgrades. The maximum value build (CPU & GPU) comes in much cheaper. The R5-1600 or R5-2600 are the top value CPUs, and all of the top value GPUs are $300 or below. It's just that the R5-2600 left so much overhead with $1500.

• My top suggested alteration to the R5-2600 build would be to simply upgrade to the R7-2700, get the Corsair 270R for the case instead of the NZXT H500 (for better airflow), overclock the CPU, and keep the RTX 2080.
• If you are after slightly better framerates in the here and now, but also with an eye towards value & longevity, and you're not an overclocker, then there's a strong argument for an i7-8700 + RTX 2080 foundation because the Intel 9th gen CPUs are so stupidly overpriced. You could get that Corsair SPEC-05 case, shave money with a cheaper SSD by getting the Intel 660p, and probably still make it under $1600.
• If you want to go balls to the wall, best framerates possible for around $2K or under, and the best possible longevity for the CPU foundation, then you want the i9-9900K + RTX 2080 built properly for overclocking.
• If you want to just simplify go ahead and get that i9-9900K + RTX 2070 prebuild.

 

[Madmick]

Wow, talk about timing. This just went up yesterday. This is the alpha nerd at LinusTechTips (the guy who everyone else seeks out when they need tech advice). He's actually doing a build guide:

 

[Ikky]

Well, the point of that was to show that the self-building market is in a good place right now, and can beat the prebuilds or the customization sites (you can customize your own blueprint at CyberpowerPC and have them build it for you, for example). That hasn't commonly been the case the past few years, frankly, with the cryptoboom inflating GPU prices at the same time RAM prices were just godawful. If I were to put together a more serious Intel build I wouldn't recommend the cuts. I put together a really solid build, and with an RTX 2070 it came out to $1800; with an RTX 2080 it was $2K. That's before rebates, but the budget it getting out of hand.

It's a really tough call. I think if you're spending this much there's a strong argument to go with Intel and try to eke out a longer life with GPU upgrades. The maximum value build (CPU & GPU) comes in much cheaper. The R5-1600 or R5-2600 are the top value CPUs, and all of the top value GPUs are $300 or below. It's just that the R5-2600 left so much overhead with $1500.

• My top suggested alteration to the R5-2600 build would be to simply upgrade to the R7-2700, get the Corsair 270R for the case instead of the NZXT H500 (for better airflow), overclock the CPU, and keep the RTX 2080.
• If you are after slightly better framerates in the here and now, but also with an eye towards value & longevity, and you're not an overclocker, then there's a strong argument for an i7-8700 + RTX 2080 foundation because the Intel 9th gen CPUs are so stupidly overpriced. You could get that Corsair SPEC-05 case, shave money with a cheaper SSD by getting the Intel 660p, and probably still make it under $1600.
• If you want to go balls to the wall, best framerates possible for around $2K or under, and the best possible longevity for the CPU foundation, then you want the i9-9900K + RTX 2080 built properly for overclocking.
• If you want to just simplify go ahead and get that i9-9900K + RTX 2070 prebuild.

This give me a lot to consider and think about.
It would have taken me quite a bit of time to learn all this on my own. Thanks for taking the time to educate me on all this.

 

[jefferz]

Wow, talk about timing. This just went up yesterday. This is the alpha nerd at LinusTechTips (the guy who everyone else seeks out when they need tech advice). He's actually doing a build guide:

That’s one of the best videos that LTT has put out in a long time.
They seem to be shifting their content back to building pc’s instead of click bait style videos they’ve been doing since the mining boom took off.

 

[rob mafia]

Wow, talk about timing. This just went up yesterday. This is the alpha nerd at LinusTechTips (the guy who everyone else seeks out when they need tech advice). He's actually doing a build guide:

the verge is never going to live that down (and rightfully so), haha.

and @Ikky - this might be unwanted advice, but i'd go with an amd ryzen 5/7 (depends on what you'd be doing with it, basically). and spend significantly less than your $1600 - unless you have some reason for spending more. the difference between a ~$1k and a $1600 will be rather negligible to most users. and those who would most notice would already know their general preferred specs, anyway.

 

[rj144]

138.00 after coupon? For a 1tb m.2 nvme ssd,

Damn it I don’t need it but that’s fuggin tempting.

They're getting cheaper all the time (take out the spaces at the beginning... Amazon doesn't work here):

https:// www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07LGF54XR/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?tag=slickdeals09-20&ascsubtag=f97b39e46f6c11e9b1509a5345c674ba0INT&smid=A29Y8OP2GPR7PE&psc=1

I got a 1 TB 970 Evo for like $225 about 6 months ago. These are a little slower, but I probably should have waited.

 

[jefferz]

They're getting cheaper all the time (take out the spaces at the beginning... Amazon doesn't work here):

https:// www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07LGF54XR/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?tag=slickdeals09-20&ascsubtag=f97b39e46f6c11e9b1509a5345c674ba0INT&smid=A29Y8OP2GPR7PE&psc=1

I got a 1 TB 970 Evo for like $225 about 6 months ago. These are a little slower, but I probably should have waited.

You can get an Intel 660p 1tb nvme for $110. It’s not the fastest nvme drive but for the average user that games, browses the web, etc will never notice the difference.

 

[Cygnus A]

You can get an Intel 660p 1tb nvme for $110. It’s not the fastest nvme drive but for the average user that games, browses the web, etc will never notice the difference.

That Optane tho.. holy shit

 

[jefferz]

That Optane tho.. holy shit

I wish they were more clear about which Optane they were referring to. I know the stories from 2018 so you can rule out the newer Optane drives, but their naming scheme is horrible.

This is Optane meant to enhance HDD's

And this is super fast storage

And this combines the first one and storage on the same board

And this can be used as memory or storage

 

[GhostZ06]

I wish they were more clear about which Optane they were referring to. I know the stories from 2018 so you can rule out the newer Optane drives, but their naming scheme is horrible.

This is Optane meant to enhance HDD's

And this is super fast storage

And this combines the first one and storage on the same board

And this can be used as memory or storage

i do believe i have a semi boner

 

[Madmick]

CYBERPOWERPC Gamer Xtreme VR GXiVR8380A Gaming PC (Liquid Cooled Intel i7-9700K 3.6GHz, 16GB DDR4, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Ti 11GB, 480GB SSD, 3TB HDD, WiFi & Win 10 Home) Black

• Z370 Chipset
• i7-9700K
• Liquid Cooling
• RTX 2080 Ti 11GB
• 16GB DDR4-2666MHz RAM
• 480GB SSD
• 3TB HDD
• 802.11ac WiFi
• Windows 10 Home
• Gaming Keyboard & 7-Color Gaming Mouse

$1999 (18 left in stock)

Spoiler: Can't match that value

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/nMsrNQ

PCPartPicker Part List
CPU: Intel - Core i7-9700K 3.6 GHz 8-Core Processor ($404.99 @ B&H)
CPU Cooler: EVGA - CLC 280 113.5 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler ($128.98 @ Monoprice)
Thermal Compound: Thermal Grizzly - Kryonaut 1g 1 g Thermal Paste ($9.69 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Gigabyte - Z390 AORUS PRO WIFI ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($193.48 @ Amazon)
Memory: Crucial - Ballistix Sport LT 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($85.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: SanDisk - SSD PLUS 480 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($53.73 @ Newegg)
Storage: Hitachi - Ultrastar 7K3000 3 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($52.93 @ Amazon)
Video Card: Zotac - GeForce RTX 2080 Ti 11 GB GAMING AMP Video Card ($1175.00 @ B&H)
Case: Corsair - 270R ATX Mid Tower Case ($53.71 @ Newegg Business)
Power Supply: Rosewill - Capstone 750 W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply ($80.88 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft - Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($105.12 @ B&H)
Case Fan: ARCTIC - Arctic F12 74 CFM 120 mm Fan ($6.89 @ OutletPC)
Total: $2351.38
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2019-05-10 13:03 EDT-0400

 

[90 50]

Td 1900x for 199.00 at fry’s talk me out of it lol.

Workstation build, will have a quadro gpu (maybe, I have one but haven’t tested everything I want to yet vs a gtx) anyway...

So, 1900x + msi x399 pro carbon @ 305.00 or any microcenter mobo’s below 300, there are several or this asrock phantom gaming for 229.00?

I’m still thinking a 1700x will be plenty for what I’m doing and I’ve been running 1/2 to a 1/4 of the same tasks at the same time as full load with an r3 1200 and a 970, but I’m going to add more screens and increase the load. Other office is getting 80-90% gpu usage on a r5 2600 at their full load(mine should be a little more, but i don’t want a cpu running over 80% 24/7, and all cores on the r5 are being hit same load rate so more cores will help.

The 1700x is 149.00 at micro, plus 30.00 off with mobo purchase , but damn the 2700 is 199.00 now too.

1900x and 2700 for same price, plus mobo is cheaper for 2700 and it comes with cooler.

As I type this it gets harder to decide. If it was a 1920x for 199.00 the answer would be easier I believe.


https://www.frys.com/product/9316130?site=sr:SEARCH:MAIN_RSLT_PG


https://www.microcenter.com/product/600427/x399-phantom-gaming-6-tr4-atx-amd-motherboard

https://www.frys.com/product/9272419?site=sr:SEARCH:MAIN_RSLT_PG

https://www.microcenter.com/search/...94818892&Ntt=&prt=&sku_list=&Ntx=&Ntk=all&Nr=