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pilotinblue

Building my first gaming PC

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Hello AVSIM community,

 

After being in the forum for a while and some research done I'm almost ready to start building my very first gaming rig. It's worth to say the PC will be used to play mainly P3d (+add-ons), but also I would like to try X-Plane and FSX at some point. My intentions also are to join online aviation networks like VATSIM and IVAO. Additionally,  I'll sometimes play to racing sims as well. Last, I'm going to use this computer for some video and image editing. With that being said, I would like to have your help and recommendations about what I've chosen so far before start this build.

 

Gaming PC setup:

 

-Monitor: Dell UltraSharp U3415W PXF79 34-Inch Curved LED-Lit 

- Box: NZXT Phantom 820 Gunmetal.

- Power: CORSAIR CX850M.

- Mother board: GIGABYTE Z170X Ultra Gaming.

- Processor: INTEL i7 6700k 4.0 GHz.

- Liquid refrigeration: CORSAIR H100i V2.

- RAM: CORSAIR Vengeance LPX 16GB DDR4.

- Graphics card : GIGABYTE GeForce GTX 1080 G1 Gaming.

- SSD: TOSHIBA OCZ Vector 180 240GB.

- HHD: SEAGATE 2TB 128MB 7200rpm.

 

*Should I go 32GB with the RAM?

*I haven't found a keyboard and a mouse that I like yet.

 

Thanks in advance, JL.

 

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Ha...join the club! I'm putting a spec together and getting advice too. There are so many hardware-knowledgeable people here. I wouldn't count myself as one of them, but here are a couple of comments based on what I've read here and been told by real-life people  :wink:

  • 16GB RAM is probably enough.
  • Assuming your SSD is for Windows, I would consider getting a 500GB SSD for FSX. It won't increase FPS, but your flights will load a lot more quickly. Also, for Windows only, 128GB would probably do.
  • If your SSD is for FSX, I'd consider going with something bigger, especially if you like add-on scenery.
  • See if there is an M.2 option for the SSD, because these are even faster than other SSD types and it should make for fast Windows boot times.

Based on your processor and graphics card, it looks like a killer rig. I'd be interested to see what the more pointy-headed forum denizens think of it.  :smile:

 

Who are you buying it from? If you haven't dealt with them before, I'd try to get some opinions about their reputation. Also check how much testing they do on the build before shipping.


 

 

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Liquid refrigeration: CORSAIR H100i V2.

 

 

 

I love the way your supplier refers to it as "Liquid Refrigeration"... which of course it's nothing of the sort.  :smile: It's actually a closed loop all in one water cooler. And the choice between water and air is something you must consider, if you haven't already. These days, leaks from AIO coolers are rare but it does still happen. In addition, AIO water coolers have more moving parts to fail than an air cooler. Pumps do have a limited lifespan, so how far the pumps last beyond the manufactures warranty is something to consider if you intend to keep the cooler long term.  Noise is also generally higher from an AIO cooler but given that you probably wont be utilising full fan RPM it may not be an issue.

 

AIO coolers do have their advantages, like taking up far less space within your enclosure for example and indeed, many find them more aesthetically pleasing.  There's  a big marketing push toward AIO it seems to me. I say ignore that, look at the reviews, think logically and make an informed decision. That applies to all your components, not just cooling.

 

For me though, it's big tower air coolers. Namely the NH-D15S. Quieter, cools great, can't leak and no moving parts. Your choice though. I will say that if I were opting for an AIO cooler, that given that I overclock and prefer a quieter cooler, I'd go for the H115i from Corsair. When the Corsair fans are replaced it seems to perform well and reasonably quietly. I build myself though and it appears that you have decided to buy your PC from a supplier, thus you may have limited options.

 

 

RAM: CORSAIR Vengeance LPX 16GB DDR4.

 

 

 

I always advocate GSkill Ripjaw V for Skylake. Great RAM, designed with Skylake in mind and top quality Samsung modules. The modules that shine are the 3200 MHz versions. 16GB is enough but I did read somewhere that XPlane likes lots of RAM. I can't vouch for the veracity of that statement though as I've never run XPlane.

 

 

- SSD: TOSHIBA OCZ Vector 180 240GB.

 

 

 

I went for Samsung 850 Evo, and I'm more than pleased. Reliable, performs well.

 

 

- Processor: INTEL i7 6700k 4.0 GHz.

 

 

 

Are you prepared to wait a few months? If you are, then the Kaby Lake 7700K will be available. It's estimated that IPC will be up by 2.5%, plus it will Turbo to 4.5 GHz. So compared to the 6700K at stock frequencies, you should probably expect about 10% additional performance. In addition, it may well overclock to 4.9 GHz, or who knows, perhaps more. We won't know for sure till it's released.

 

It will come with Intel Optane support and other possibly useful additions.

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I haven't found a keyboard and a mouse that I like yet.

 

Without any hesitation at all, with 100% certainty, I would recommend the very keyboard and mouse combination I'm typing this reply on...

 

Namely the Corsair Strafe RGB with Cherry MX Silent keys - Fantastic keyboard, lovely RGB lighting.

 

Logitech G502 Proteus Spectrum RGB Mouse - Fantastic mouse, all the buttons you need and RGB, so configured to the same colour lighting as my keyboard.

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 First I wanted to say Thank you for your help, it is very appreciated in a situation like this.

 

Ha...join the club! I'm putting a spec together and getting advice too.

 

Who are you buying it from?

I'm not new into computers but as for gaming I am a newbie. Over the years I learned some interesting specs about people but I wasn't fully interested. The SDD is going to be upgraded to 500GB then!

 

Link your thread so I can check it out if you've one running!

 

I'm building it myself, I'm handy person and parts are from online shops, as well as amazon. After watching a couple of videos the most difficult part for me is the BIOS setup (if needed) and probably create my perfect Win10 setup.

 

For me though, it's big tower air coolers. Namely the NH-D15S.

 

I'd go for the H115i from Corsair. When the Corsair fans are replaced it seems to perform well and reasonably quietly.

 

I build myself though and it appears that you have decided to buy your PC from a supplier, thus you may have limited options.

 

I always advocate GSkill Ripjaw V for Skylake. Great RAM

 

I went for Samsung 850 Evo, and I'm more than pleased. Reliable, performs well.

 

Are you prepared to wait a few months? If you are, then the Kaby Lake 7700K will be available. It's estimated that IPC will be up by 2.5%, plus it will Turbo to 4.5 GHz. So compared to the 6700K at stock frequencies, you should probably expect about 10% additional performance. In addition, it may well overclock to 4.9 GHz, or who knows, perhaps more. We won't know for sure till it's released.

 

It will come with Intel Optane support and other possibly useful additions.

 

I'm building it myself so that is why I would like all the advice I can get from the people who actually plays the same games as I would play in the future.

 

I choose liquid cooled because I am a little bit OCD and the cleaner it looks the better. In fact I'd like to change the box doesn't quite fill my style (Minimalistic).

 

The choice of RAM was the easiest part for me since my cousin (a SIM Racing user) has the Corsair and it always worked well for him, but this time I'm going to follow your advice after some research and I'm going to go with the GSkill.

 

The SSD Samsung, no doubt. Replacing the Toshiba right away as I previously said!

 

I'm willing to wait until February for that Kaby processor!  :Cuppa:  My goal is to have it finished by the end of February. I mean the entire cockpit with flight jocksticks and desk setup ready to start flying! 

 

I haven't found a keyboard and a mouse that I like yet.

Without any hesitation at all, with 100% certainty, I would recommend the very keyboard and mouse combination I'm typing this reply on...

Namely the Corsair Strafe RGB with Cherry MX Silent keys - Fantastic keyboard, lovely RGB lighting.

Logitech G502 Proteus Spectrum RGB Mouse - Fantastic mouse, all the buttons you need and RGB, so configured to the same colour lighting as my keyboard.

 

I took a look into and both the keyboard and the mice/mouse (I don't know ha, ha...) rock. Definitively adding these two pieces to the list right away!

 

Cheers, JL

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I choose liquid cooled because I am a little bit OCD and the cleaner it looks the better. In fact I'd like to change the box doesn't quite fill my style (Minimalistic).

 

 

 

 

Fair enough. Do consider the Corsair H115i then. Bigger radiator, better cooling and quieter than the H100i. And obviously a case that accommodates a H115i.

 

http://www.corsair.com/en-gb/hydro-series-h115i-280mm-extreme-performance-liquid-cpu-cooler

 

One of the chaps on the forum replaced the Corsair fans with Noctuas fans. Might be something to consider once up and running.

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Sadly, I cannot edit my first post. My dream gaming PC is almost complete and soon I'm starting to purchase components. I will share some pictures during the following months so people like me and other enthusiasts have a clear vision of what this is about.

 

Fair enough. Do consider the Corsair H115i then. Bigger radiator, better cooling and quieter than the H100i. And obviously a case that accommodates a H115i.

 

http://www.corsair.com/en-gb/hydro-series-h115i-280mm-extreme-performance-liquid-cpu-cooler

 

One of the chaps on the forum replaced the Corsair fans with Noctuas fans. Might be something to consider once up and running.

 

Yes, I forgot to mention it. That's another update. Now I'm looking for a box that fits the components and my preferences.

 

I'll take that advice as well and maybe replace the fans.

 

Thanks for your help.

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I would try the cooler first to see how you get on. No sense spending money unnecessarily.

 

How do you fancy one of the new Corsair cases?

 

 

 

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I would try the cooler first to see how you get on. No sense spending money unnecessarily.

 

How do you fancy one of the new Corsair cases?

 

I really like the Corsair case! I think it gives me an excuse to do an amazing job with cable management. Although I have to say, If I get this case I will have to change some components on my list to match colors. I have to think about it before start buying  :Cuppa: .

 

Tomorrow I'm going to meet a friend who has a GTX 1070, I'm going to see how performs playing FSX loaded with add-ons. I'll decide if stick to my 1080 previous choice or choose the 1070 instead. 

 

It looks like all the doubts I had a couple of month ago are coming back ha, ha...

 

Cheers, JL

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Loads of posh cases around at the moment. Plenty of smoked glass.

 

My case has smoked glass... Lian Li X510. Cost a bomb but I love aluminium cases. 

  • Upvote 1

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Today I played FSX with the EVGA GForce GTX 1070 SC and I have to say, I am amazed. For my purposes I am 100% sure it is enough and it is going to last me for years.

 

That being said, I am going to downgrade to this graphics card and I can use the money to change or upgrade other components.

 

I have two cases in my mind: The Phanteks Enthoo Evolv ATX with only one side tempered glass or the GLASS version which has both. I like both cases in silver, so after some hours of research with my friend's help, I came up with the following changes:

 

- Box: Phanteks Enthoo Evolv ATX Silver / Glass (undecided between the two versions I said).

- Power: CORSAIR CX850M.

- Mother board: MSI Z170A MPower Gaming titanium. (Because it's silver and it matches)

- Processor: INTEL i7 6700k 4.0 GHz.

- Liquid refrigeration: CORSAIR H115i. (As recommended by martin-w) 

- RAM: G.Skill 16GB (2 x 8GB) Ripjaws V Series DDR4 Silver. (Recommended by martin-w)

- Graphics card : EVGA GForce GTX 1070 FTW. (I chose this version because seems to perform better with overclocking).

- SSD: Samsung 850 Evo 500GB. (Maybe futur upgrade to 1TB or 2 x 500GB) (Recommended by martin-w)

- HHD: SEAGATE 2TB 128MB 7200rpm.

 

And that is it so far. I still looking, reading and taking all the information as possible before start building it because I want to make sure that is going to last me at least 5-7 years without having to upgrade it all at once (I understand some thinks might have to be updated on the way).

 

I want to say thank you again to the people that is helping me here in Avsim and outside because this is very important for me. As a student I started saving for this rig more than one year ago.

 

Cheers, JL

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Today I played FSX with the EVGA GForce GTX 1070 SC and I have to say, I am amazed. For my purposes I am 100% sure it is enough and it is going to last me for years.

 

That being said, I am going to downgrade to this graphics card and I can use the money to change or upgrade other components.

 

I have two cases in my mind: The Phanteks Enthoo Evolv ATX with only one side tempered glass or the GLASS version which has both. I like both cases in silver, so after some hours of research with my friend's help, I came up with the following changes:

 

- Box: Phanteks Enthoo Evolv ATX Silver / Glass (undecided between the two versions I said).

- Power: CORSAIR CX850M.

- Mother board: MSI Z170A MPower Gaming titanium. (Because it's silver and it matches)

- Processor: INTEL i7 6700k 4.0 GHz.

- Liquid refrigeration: CORSAIR H115i. (As recommended by martin-w) 

- RAM: G.Skill 16GB (2 x 8GB) Ripjaws V Series DDR4 Silver. (Recommended by martin-w)

- Graphics card : EVGA GForce GTX 1070 FTW. (I chose this version because seems to perform better with overclocking).

- SSD: Samsung 850 Evo 500GB. (Maybe futur upgrade to 1TB or 2 x 500GB) (Recommended by martin-w)

- HHD: SEAGATE 2TB 128MB 7200rpm.

 

And that is it so far. I still looking, reading and taking all the information as possible before start building it because I want to make sure that is going to last me at least 5-7 years without having to upgrade it all at once (I understand some thinks might have to be updated on the way).

 

I want to say thank you again to the people that is helping me here in Avsim and outside because this is very important for me. As a student I started saving for this rig more than one year ago.

 

Cheers, JL

 

Don't forget a separate SSD for Windows. 


 

 

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I've never been an advocate of the separate drive for OS philosophy. Never done that, never had any issues. Even less relevant now with SSD's.

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I agree with Martin. Before the days of SSDs, the theory was that having FSX on a separate HDD from the OS prevented it from getting as fragmented and so helped improve performance. SSDs don't have the same problem so, as long as you've got a reasonable sized SSD (absolute minimum of 250GB, preferably 500GB or more), there's no reason not to have FSX on the boot drive. Plus, it saves you the cost of a second SSD! Also, don't even think about putting the OS on a HDD so you can use an SSD exclusively for FSX or you'll waste the huge system performance improvement that an SSD offers.


 i7-6700k | Asus Maximus VIII Hero | 16GB RAM | MSI GTX 1080 Gaming X Plus | Samsung Evo 500GB & 1TB | WD Blue 2 x 1TB | EVGA Supernova G2 850W | AOC 2560x1440 monitor | Win 10 Pro 64-bit

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