Hey all,
Just wanted a GENERAL rating of my pc build.
Ive been told the PSU is too low, and the cooling is poor. But other than that, I wanted to know if theres anything I should change. Much appreciated.
#gaming PC price range £2,500-£3,000
keen sorrel
My budget is £2500-£3000, resolution will be 1440p+, purchasing from the UK, no brand preferences, and it'll mainly be for work, but also some work.
Case: CORSAIR iCUE 5000X RGB MID TOWER GAMING CASE
CPU: Intel® Core™ i7 20-Core Processor i7-14700K (Up to 5.6GHz) 33MB Cache
Motherboard: ASUS® ROG MAXIMUS Z790 HERO (LGA1700, DDR5, PCIe 5.0, Wi-Fi 6E)
RAM: 64GB Corsair VENGEANCE RGB DDR5 5200MHz (2 x 32GB)
GPU: 12GB ASUS TUF GEFORCE RTX 4070 Ti OC EDITION - HDMI, DP
SSD: 2TB SOLIDIGM P41+ GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 4125MB/sR, 3325MB/sW) x2
PSU: CORSAIR 750W RMe SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
CPU cooling: PCS FrostFlow 360 Series ARGB High Performance Liquid Cooler
tawny ledge
the cooler is as good as you can get without a custom loop, but the 14700 is a hot CPU as is, so don't expect fantastic thermals when it's going full tilt
the PSU is fine, little to no room for upgrades, but perfectly serviceable for a 4070ti
that being said, maybe hold off for the super variants to come out before buying the PC
the motherboard is overkill for joe average, the TUF variant from Asus is just fine, plus it saves you a few quid
that money could be fed to faster ram or more storage, possibly both
tawny ledge
My budget is £2500-£3000, resolution will be 1440p+, purchasing from the UK, no ...
right now it says it'll, mainly be for work, but also some work
did you mean, it'll be mainly for gaming, but also some work?
keen sorrel
Yeah it is meant to say that. My bad, I was half asleep writing it.
Mainly for gaming, only for work 1 day a week
tawny ledge
if it's mainly gaming, then maybe an AMD system is better
keen sorrel
The application ill be using for work is lawfusion. It like creates an entire new desktop so you can handle case load etc. Is that impactful?
tawny ledge
is that like a virtual machine?
tawny ledge
a virtual machine is basically a new windows OS while still running windows, keeping a separate system of sorts, or is it just an app like excel
from google it seems to be just an app as is, it doesn't look like it needs a huge CPU really, does it just open documents etc for cases? if you can describe what it does I can make an educated guess as to what it needs to run well
keen sorrel
Essentially, from when you first run the application, it opens up a new desktop for you. It contains all your legal apps, alternate versions of current apps (such as outlook). I just wondered if it seemed demanding as it requires a lot open at once.
It has a massive case (file) broswer too. It includes every case, every relevant document for that case and every future step you want to take. Not just your own cases too, it contains everyones.
But i suppose if you arent downloading every single document, from every single case, its probably fine right?
tawny ledge
so it sounds a lot like a virtual machine then, RAM and cores help if that is the case, to be safe I'd recommend to stick with intel
so just think about the previous advice about the MoBo being overkill, faster RAM and more storage
tawny ledge
the issue with your RAM is you'd be upgrading the amound as well as speed, but you already ahve 64GB in there, so it doesn't feasilbly go up from there
Motherboard upgrades aren't a thing really, as it requires a whole rebuild
storage, ideally now you'd have a small fast drive for windows alone, and some programs that refuse to be installed on anything but the OS drive, and then a larger, slower drive for general storage, maybe even a drive just for work, in case the OS drive fails, the saved files for work don't die with it
keen sorrel
So look for better speed for the RAM, with same or less space, and get a hard drive aswell as the SSD?
For now though, is the pc fine? Cause im thinking of upgrading a bit into the future.
tawny ledge
something like this for the storage
the smallest and fastest for windows, the 2TB for games and non work stuff, and the 1TB for work
tawny ledge
For now though, is the pc fine? Cause im thinking of upgrading a bit into the fu...
it's fine for now, but as for upgrades it's a little limited
the intel CPU is the last that will go in that motherboard, a CPU upgrade means a whole new system with it, thats where AMD has an edge, but other than that RAM and storage are easy upgrades you can do any time
the GPU upgrade will likely require a new PSU to boot, but with video guides it's hard to go wrong there
keen sorrel
Niiice. Im not planning to upgrade the GPU anytime soon, but ill deffo look towards upgrading the storage and RAM. Does the motherboard being overkill affect performance??
tawny ledge
not to any meaningful degree in regards to the MoBo
I would recommend getting a bigger PSU from the word go though, as ot no waste money on 2 PSUs, as they don't sell well second hand
the 850W unite should be fine, or if you want lots of headroom a 1000W unit will cover you for a long time to come
keen sorrel
I was originally gonna get 1000w, but the pcs website informed me that I only needed 750, so i downgraded. Heavily regretting that choice lmfao
It the psu easily replaceable?
tawny ledge
the process is easy enough, aside from managing the cables, thats an art of it's own, but it's a waste of money if you end up buying 2 PSUs
keen sorrel
People do that??
tawny ledge
well if you go with the 750W PSU now, and go to upgrade to, for example a 4080 later, you'll need another PSU, so you'll end uo with 2 PSUs, when if you just started with a bigger PSU you'd not need to get another
that being said, the 4070TI is a good card that will handle 1440p gaming nicely
and upgrading with a series, is not a good investment usually, so maybe wait for the 50-series, or whatever AMD has upcoming
keen sorrel
Can I not just get a new replacement psu, as opposed to buying a 2nd additional one?
Ive already bought that pc, I can try to ammend the order tho.
But if I can just upgrade, without owning 2 pcus, ill do that later on down the line. Ifygm
tawny ledge
you can amend with no extra charge so long as it's in pre-production
keen sorrel
Its finished building, so it costs about a fiver I think
Well, its still "in building", but i got a photo of it built.
tawny ledge
ah, right, so for now the system is fine really, more storage would be my first upgrade on that PC, as for the GPU and with it PSU, it's fine really you won't need to upgrade that for a long while yet realistically
keen sorrel
Ah good. So would I need to get a 2nd psu, or can i just replace the one I have??
When it comes to upgrading
And the pcu cooler is fine too?
tawny ledge
when you upgrade the GPU, more than likely you'll need to get a new PSU, unless the new GPU has the same wattage requirement
as for the CPU cooler, it's as good as you can get right now
keen sorrel
Ayyy nice. So when upgrading the gpu, upgrade the psu. Cooler is fine for now. RAM and storage needs upgrading but should be easy enough?
Is that a good summary of instruction
tawny ledge
RAM is easy enough, undo the latch for each stick, pull out the stick, push in new one until it clicks for each.
in the BIOS you'll then need to set XMP so it will run at the rated speed and thats it assuming nothing went wrong
storage is easy too, since all you need to do, assuming you get m.2 drives, is plug them in and initialize in windows once booted again, thats easy too, plenty of videos on that
keen sorrel
Perfect. Thank you for your help man. I really appreciate it.
Im excited asf for this thing icl
keen sorrel
Hi,
Im thinking of ammending the order I placed. Would these upgrades be worth it:
Psu: corsair 1000w rmx
RAM: 64gb ddr5 6000mhz
SSD: 2TB solidigm P44 x2
HD: 2TB samsung 870 QVO
Upgrade cost would add about £300
And corsair iCUE H150i Elite
tawny ledge
I wouldn't bother with that SSD, just stick to m.2 drives, they cost about the same, or if you want bulk storage cheap, a HDD is better like one of the seagate models, or just leave it out entirely or keep the 2 P44 ddrives, and add a 512GB p44 drive for the OS alone
the faster RAM is a good idea, no suggestions or recommendations on that
the cooler is equally capable as far as dealing with the heat, but the fans are better in the sense they are quieter, otherwise joe average won't notice a difference, if you are a corsair fan, it can help in the sense corsair has their own RGB controller/fan hub command core, but if you don't care for that it doesn't matter
about HDDs they are slower, and not as good for gaming, but they are cheap, and usually give an audible warning before they die, most SSDs just pop their clogs out of nowhere, but don't make a sound ever
keen sorrel
So faster RAM is fine, what about the psu?
I was thinking of the upgradablity aspect you mentioned
tawny ledge
1000W PSU means you won't be changing that for a long time, I can't imagine PCs needing more power than an electric oven any time soon, and 1000W is getting close to that lol
keen sorrel
Just to specify, should I scrap the HDD, keep the two p44 ssd's and add an extra p44?
Just at a lower storage capacity?
tawny ledge
thats what I'd do, 1 OS drive with a cute 512Gb drive, a game/personal drive, and a work drive
keen sorrel
Perfect. Other than that, do you think the upgrades are justifiable? Or should I leave it as is now, and just upgrade in the future?
tawny ledge
for now, an OS drive alone as far as storage, then for another m.2 wait for something to come on sale, AMazon often has some cracking deals on Crucial branded drives, a 4TB drive for about 200GB is really good value
the PSU is good as you won't need to bother upgrading that for probably the life of the whole system
RAM saves money as mixing the 2 kits end up with the faster RAM being slowed down to the slower sets speed
As for the cooler, purely personal taste, it's a little quieter, and works with the corsair iCue ecosystem, but thats a mere convenience most folsk don't need
keen sorrel
Gotcha
Atm its just about convenience and how quickly I want the pc 🤣🤣
Obviously if I do the upgrades, ill have to wait longer. But perhaps the longer wait is worth it ygm
So if I went ahead with the upgrades, id just do all of them at once, as opposed to bits, irregardless of the money i could save in the future.
tawny ledge
as for the big m.2 I mentioned earlier:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Crucial-Plus-PCIe-Gen4-Internal/dp/B0CCNCW5QX/
keen sorrel
But idk if I should just get the OG spec i posted asap, use that for a few months/a year and then upgrade
Or if i should just spend the 300-400 getting those upgrades now
And waiting a bit longer
tawny ledge
RAM, PSU, and the OS drive is what I'd do, the cooler is the same in terms of cooling, so convenience and brand name is all you really get
the additional m.2 can be added any time, and on that motherboard is easy.
it's only got 3 slots, but they are easy to get to any time
keen sorrel
I get you. Ill get the upgrades now then. Thanks a lot for the help man
tawny ledge
even with the fattest GPU you should be able to get at the slots and fiddle the m.2 drive in
tawny ledge
the Strix motherboard has 5 slots, but that would mean rebuilding the entier system, and that costs bother time and money
tawny ledge
just to check, you didn't add a sound card, right? only very few folks need those, the on board sound card is perfectly fine
keen sorrel
No, I dont think I did. I didn't know what it was so unless it automatically adds it in then I havent
tawny ledge
no sound cards don't, and wifi shoudln't be added as it flags it on a motherboard with wifi included
keen sorrel
Its got a soundcard on there, but it says (as standard) and I cant remove it.
The wifi I removed because, as you say, it was flagged to my attention.
tawny ledge
thats the onboard sound card, you're gucci
tawny ledge
ideally you'd have more, or another arrangement, but for now the number of fans is just fine
generally, you want more exhaust fans than intake, as it helps reduce dust build up
nvm, I want thinking, you will ahve 4 out 3 in, so that'll be just fine
hang on, I was right, positive pressure is better, so more fans later on would be good, but by no means required
keen sorrel
Hahaha. Yeah that makes sense to me.
I know there is space on the case for more at the sides
I think 3x120
Unsure about the back
tawny ledge
you can get fans cheap later if you want, but honestly, so long as you keep a clean room you won't really need it
keen sorrel
Trust me, I aint letting this baby go dusty 🤣
tawny ledge
the case will have 1 in the back, 3 in the front by default, then the AIO cooler will add 3 to the top
keen sorrel
Which leaves what gaps for additional? Do you know?
I think i saw 3 at the side but im unsure of any other locations
tawny ledge
word of warning, that case is pretty big, and the system as a whole will be fairly heavy, make sure you got space on a sturdy table or another stable arrangement
bit over half a meter long and high, and you need space behind it for all the cables
so factor about 60cm give or take
if a table isn't an option, keep the PC off the carpet, as a stop gap solution, some books or a plank works, then later get a PC stand that will hold it, or some small side table/sturdy furniture to raise it from the floor
keen sorrel
I have a gaming desk with, what I believe is a stable surface. If not, ill put my drawer directly underneath the PC which should give the desk extra support. I wont put it on the carpet dw.
keen sorrel
Ive got one last question. Would it be better to go with 64gbs of 5200mhz ddr5 RAM, or, 32gbs of 6000mhz ddr5 RAM? And, is 2TB p44 + 512gb p44 better than 2TB p41+ x2 + 512gb p44?
And what is the main difference between p41+ and p44
tawny ledge
32GB is fine for most folks, so you can probably save a few quid there
I'd recommend ideally 64GB at 6000MHz, but 32GB at 6000MHz is good
the difference on the 41+ and 44 is speed, for the OS drive
the 44 is faster, so is better for the OS drive, as the faster windows is, the faster the whole system.
the slower ones can fine for gaming as it won't need to load as fast
keen sorrel
I'd recommend ideally 64GB at 6000MHz, but 32GB at 6000MHz is good
Yeah I figured, instead of going for the 64gb 5200mhz, to save and go for the 32gb 6000mhz, and just upgrade and get another 32gb 6000 mhz
When the time to do so is right
Cause i can make do with 32gb for now
But the speed is beneficial
Ifygm
tawny ledge
I've got 32Gb in mine, and haven't run out of space while gaming, but I am using a 4800MHz kit, but don't feel like it's holding me back