New PC Specs Advice

[ArchieB 0]

Hi,

 

I am looking to build a new PC and have come up with the below specs as a first rough draft...

Intel Core i7 6700k (4.0 GHz), Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo, ASUS Prime Z270 MOBO, Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR2 16GB RAM, Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 6GB, Fractal Design Meshify C Case and a EVGA Supernova 750W PSU. 

As you can probably tell I am on a budget hence why I am not looking at the i7 9900K or similar. As a first draft how do these specs look and is there anything that you would change? Maybe I can go cheaper on some components (e.g PSU?)and upgrade others? Or maybe there are other components on the market for a similar price as the ones I have come up with but perform much better? 

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,

Archie.

[vortex681 806]

The 6700k is still a good processor, but if you're on a budget I'd consider the AMD Ryzen 7 3700x. It's a similar price to the 6700k but is generally a faster processor - https://www.guru3d.com/articles-pages/amd-ryzen-7-3700x-ryzen-9-3900x-review.html

[pgde 571]

Don't cheap out on a power supply otherwise you may spend a lot of time troubleshooting.....

[Brisafresca 58]

@ArchieB

Hi again, you don't need a powerful pc to play in P3D with a medium settings.

I recommend that you read and see several reviews of the components you choose to ensure that they are of quality and adequate and to ensure compatibility with other components.

CPU:

At this moment, the i7-6700K is a CPU hard to find. You can easily find 8th, 9th generation cpus and perhaps some 7th generation cpu. The cpus that I would recommend are:

i5-8400: https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Core+i5-8400+%40+2.80GHz&id=3097
i5-8600K:https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Core+i5-8600K+%40+3.60GHz&id=3100

i5-9400F: https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Core+i5-9400F+%40+2.90GHz&id=3397
i5-9600K: https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Core+i5-9600K+%40+3.70GHz&id=3337
 

i5 8400 vs i5 9400F: https://www.cpubenchmark.net/compare/Intel-i5-9400F-vs-Intel-i5-8400/3397vs3097

i5 8600K vs i5 9600K:https://www.cpubenchmark.net/compare/Intel-i5-8600K-vs-Intel-i5-9600K/3100vs3337

If you have a limited budget, the i5 8400 or i5 9400F are good cpus, the i5 9400F would be preferable because It may be cheaper than the i5-8400 because it does not have an integrated GPU, so the ''F'', however, with either of them you cannot do overclock.

Their base frequencies are 2.8 and 2.9ghz respectively, when using p3d the most likely is that the cpus use the turbo speed 4.0Ghz and 4.1Ghz respectively constantly.

If you can stretch a little, the i5-9600K or i5-8600K is preferable, they have the ''K'' and therefore you can do overclock when you need it. By doing OC you can extend the life of your PC in the last years of life of the PC.

I would add AMD Ryzen processors, however, I am unaware of its subculture. The ryzen 2xxx cpus currently have very good prices to clean stock in the stores, if it is not already finished, now they have the disadvantage that they lack a little bit mononuclear performance, a problem that has been solved with the ryzen 3xxx. However ryzen 3 have the disadvantage that their motherboards are very expensive, however depending on the manufacturer and model of 2nd generation motherboard, that is, for Ryzen 2xxx, 2nd gen motherboards with 3rd generation cpus can be used updating the bios from motherboard, but as already I have indicated it will depend on the motherboard manufacturer and its model.

The models that I think have stood out are:

Ryzen 5 2600: https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=AMD+Ryzen+5+2600&id=3243
Ryzen 5 2600X:https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=AMD+Ryzen+5+2600X&id=3235

Ryzen 5 3600: https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=AMD+Ryzen+5+3600&id=3481
Ryzen 5 3600X: https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=AMD+Ryzen+5+3600X&id=3494

''X'' means OC version.

Also to indicate that the Ryzen usually bring a stock fan, better than the intel.

I leave for another AVSIM partner to recommend you about AMD.

Motherboard:

Whether you choose an i5 8xxx or an i5 9xxx choose a z390 motherboard, the z390 is compatible with both generations of cpus.

There are several brands and models, choose an intermediate model.

I would recommend the MSI Z390 Tomahawk, only if you choose a ''K'' CPU:

https://es.msi.com/Motherboard/MAG-Z390-TOMAHAWK/Overview

To i5-8400 or i5-9400F is neccesary a for example a B360 motherboard

https://www.msi.com/Motherboard/B360M-BAZOOKA/Overview

 

CPU Cooler:

Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo is economical, functional and compatible with socket 1151 (8th and 9th intel cpus), It will be enough, however if you want to do overclock I think it is not the most appropriate, everything will depend on how much you want to overclock, if it is just a little bit OC, it is an acceptable cpu cooler, now if you want to perform a high overclock, another cpu cooler is preferable with superior features or maybe a liquid cooling system.

 

RAM:

I cannot talk much about the ram, depending on the motherboard model you choose you must find the ram memory compatible with your motherboard, you have to look for the so-called motherboard's QVL, all manufacturers indicate it on their websites.

As a minimum find 16GB ddr4 at 2666Mhz, an economical and reliable brand is Kingston Hyper X or Corsair Vengeance.

GPU:

Currently it is difficult to find a GTX1060 6Gb, the most logical thing is to get the new GTX1660 Super, this has become the new GTX1060, however it has almost the performance of a GTX1070 or GTX1660ti. It is a mid-range gpu, it will serve you perfectly with P3D and with any game. Get the most economical models, the only difference with the most expensive models will be that they have factory oc, a better cooling system or a metal bakcplate, however the difference between cheap and expensive models will not be greater than 30 euros.

I think the most powerful model is the ASUS GeForce GTX 1660 SUPER 6GB ROG STRIX OC with 5% OC and a good cooling system.

https://videocardz.com/nvidia/geforce-16/geforce-gtx-1660-super

 

PSU:

The PSU you use will depend on the final characteristics of the PC and especially on whether or not you do OC.

EVGA has a good application to calculate the power and model you need, anyway I think you would only need a psu from 450w to 650w if you use the cpus and gpu that I have indicated above.

https://www.evga.com/power-meter/

However, it is recommended that you choose a psu with a 80+ Gold certification, if the budget is limited to at least one 80+ Bronze

If you use i5-8400 or i5-9400F + gtx1660 super is enough a 450W PSU.

If you use i5-8600K or i5-9600K + gtx1660 super is enough a 650W PSU.

check it out for yourself

And finally if you can get a modular or semi modular PSU better, because you can reduce the number of wires inside the case.

SSD and HDD:

it is advisable to use a ssd only for W10 and an hdd only for P3D, therefore: (1xSSD 240GB) + (1xHDD 1Tb). If the budget is limited, use only one HDD.

CASE:

Here, choose a case as you like and make sure that the interior dimensions of the box are compatible with the dimensions of its components.

Fractal Design Meshify C is a simple case if the budget is limited, it is enough, now a future may wish to expand its components or improve them, it may have little space to do so, especially if you want to add more fans or SDDs, because that implies more wires on the back side. Now if you are not adding more fans or sdds it is enough.

1.- It has dust filters, two standard fans, perfect 

2.- A very important fact is the compatibility with the CPU Cooler:
Cooler Master Evo measures: 159mm
Fractal Design Meshify C allows up to: 172mm

that is good

3.- I think a two-fan gpu would be preferable instead of three fans.

I recommend you read the following review: https://www.techpowerup.com/review/fractal-design-meshify-c/

 

RESUME

An economic and mid-range configuration could be this: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/2TyP3t

Compatibility Notes

Note:The MSI MAG Z390 TOMAHAWK ATX LGA1151 Motherboard has an additional 4-pin ATX power connector but the Corsair TXM Gold 550 W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-modular ATX Power Supply does not. This connector is used to supply additional 12V current to the motherboard. While the system will likely still run without it, higher current demands such as extreme overclocking or large video card current draws may require it.

 

Some Intel B360 chipset motherboards may need a BIOS update prior to using Coffee Lake Refresh CPUs. Upgrading the BIOS may require a different CPU that is supported by older BIOS revisions.

 

Note:Some physical dimension restrictions cannot (yet) be automatically checked, such as cpu cooler / RAM clearance with modules using tall heat spreaders.

 

( I am not responsible if there is any incompatibility , if not, check it yourself or with an expert)

cpu: i5-9400F
cpu cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO
motherboard: MSI Z390 Tomahawk (ATX)   MSI B360M Bazooka
ram: Corsair Vengeance DDR4-2666 (CMK16GX4M2A2666C16)
gpu: MSI GTX1660 Super 6GB Ventus XS OC
ssd: WD 250Gb (WDS250G2B0A)
hdd: WD 1Tb (WD10EZEX)
psu: Corsair TX550M Semimodular 550W 80+ Gold
case: Fractal Design Meshify C

(Estimated wattage: 311W < 550W )

These materials have an approximate price of 800 euros  700 euros (without taxes), if you want to reduce the price even more, although I do not recommend it, you could:

1.- Remove the SSD

2- Change the motherboard model, perhaps for a MSI Z390 Mortar or Z390 A-PRO (although compatibility with the other components may change)

3.- Only use (2x4Gb) 8 Gb DDR4 2666Mhz, maybe the Kingston brand is a little cheaper.

4.- Change the GPU model for a GTX1650 4Gb.

5.- Change the PSU for a 450W 80+ Bronze model

 

I hope this can help you

 

Regards

Brisafresca

 

Edited November 1, 2019 by E69_Brisafresca

[Charlatan 68]

16 minutes ago, E69_Brisafresca said:

If you have a limited budget, the i5 8400 or i5 9400F are good cpus, the i5 9400F would be preferable because It may be cheaper than the i5-8400 because it does not have an integrated GPU, so the ''F'', however, with either of them you cannot do overclock.

Their base frequencies are 2.8 and 2.9ghz respectively, when using p3d the most likely is that the cpus use the turbo speed 4.0Ghz and 4.1Ghz respectively constantly.

If you can stretch a little, the i5-9600K or i5-8600K is preferable, they have the ''K'' and therefore you can do overclock when you need it. By doing OC you can extend the life of your PC in the last years of life of the PC.
 

I would be looking at the 8600k or 9600k as a minimum.  That 8400 or 9400 is only about on par with your 6700k.  However, if you were to go for either of these, I would suggest this motherboard https://www.overclockers.co.uk/asus-prime-h310m-k-r2.0-intel-h310-socket-1151-ddr4-micro-atx-motherboard-mb-6bm-as.html as the H310 chipset will be fine at half the price of a Z390 board, which you would have no need for with a non K cpu.

[ArchieB 0]

Hi all,

Thankyou for the reponses. I am potentially going to buy some of the PC components second hand to save costs, and I have found a few 6700K's on eBay. I have also been looking at the 7700K too, any thoughts on that? I am getting a little confused however as I have read a few times over the past couple of days that with programs such as P3D, CPU clock speed is most important rather than the number of cores? That is why I haven't looked into processors such as the i5 8400 etc. But if this is not the case then I am happy to consider other processors. I am hoping to build something in the range of £500-£700, baring in my I may buy some bits second hand to save cost.

The cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo sounds like a good choice as I am not planning on overclocking, atleast not in the foreseeable future.

I already have a HDD and SDD in my current PC so I would be able to transfer these straight across to the new motherboard hopefully? 

Why do you recommend a two-fan GPU as opposed to a three-fan one out of interest?

So I think the choice of case, RAM and PSU is becoming clearer, but I am really stuck on the CPU - can someone clarify whether, if you had to choose between the two, a high clock speed or higher number of cores/threads is more important for P3D performance?

 

Thanks a lot,

Archie.

[Brisafresca 58]

1 hour ago, Charlatan said:

I would be looking at the 8600k or 9600k as a minimum.  That 8400 or 9400 is only about on par with your 6700k.  However, if you were to go for either of these, I would suggest this motherboard https://www.overclockers.co.uk/asus-prime-h310m-k-r2.0-intel-h310-socket-1151-ddr4-micro-atx-motherboard-mb-6bm-as.html as the H310 chipset will be fine at half the price of a Z390 board, which you would have no need for with a non K cpu.

ohhh, that dismissal !!! Thanks , you're right, for an i5-9400F a Z390 is not necessary, but I would not recommend an H310 but at least a B360 because the H310 is too basic. The B360 has capacity for up to 6 SATA instead of just 4 and also another difference is that in h310 there are only two memory slots, in B360 there are 4 slots.more freedom

I have corrected my comments in red color

 

56 minutes ago, ArchieB said:

Hi all,

Thankyou for the reponses. I am potentially going to buy some of the PC components second hand to save costs, and I have found a few 6700K's on eBay. I have also been looking at the 7700K too, any thoughts on that? I am getting a little confused however as I have read a few times over the past couple of days that with programs such as P3D, CPU clock speed is most important rather than the number of cores? That is why I haven't looked into processors such as the i5 8400 etc. But if this is not the case then I am happy to consider other processors. I am hoping to build something in the range of £500-£700, baring in my I may buy some bits second hand to save cost.

The cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo sounds like a good choice as I am not planning on overclocking, atleast not in the foreseeable future.

I already have a HDD and SDD in my current PC so I would be able to transfer these straight across to the new motherboard hopefully? 

Why do you recommend a two-fan GPU as opposed to a three-fan one out of interest?

So I think the choice of case, RAM and PSU is becoming clearer, but I am really stuck on the CPU - can someone clarify whether, if you had to choose between the two, a high clock speed or higher number of cores/threads is more important for P3D performance?

 

Thanks a lot,

Archie.

Hello again,

I do not recommend buying second-hand cpus, you do not know how long they have been working, how they have been stressed, I think it is taking too much risk on a cpu that is the heart of the pc.

on the other hand, the i7 7700K has a performance equivalent to that of the i5-8600K. think about it

Regarding the HDD and SSD if you use W10 OEM, keep in mind that you cannot use it on your new device.

I recommend a two-fan GPU because the case you want is somewhat small and if you want in the future to add a liquid cooling on the front you would not have enough space.

I am not sure either, but P3D is really FSX updated so I think it is more important faster than the number of cores.

Anyway, I would recommend that you wait, because if I have not heard badly, intel will launch the new cpus family, the 10th generation and as I read, an i3 10xxx will have the same performance as an i7-7700K.

Regards

Brisafresca

PD: I have corrected my comments in red color about from  z390 to B360 motherboard.

 

[ArchieB 0]

Hi,

Okay I will bear that in mind and consider buying a new CPU. Do you not recommend buying any second hand components or is it mainly the GPU that needs to be brand new?

I will have to check if my windows is OEM - thanks for reminding me.

I am not set on the Fractal Design Meshify C, that was just an example. I really have no idea what case to get, if you recommend any with the setup I am looking for I am open to suggestions.

Okay that might be worth waiting for yes....

Regards,

Archie.

[Brisafresca 58]

3 minutes ago, ArchieB said:

Hi,

Okay I will bear that in mind and consider buying a new CPU. Do you not recommend buying any second hand components or is it mainly the GPU that needs to be brand new?

I will have to check if my windows is OEM - thanks for reminding me.

I am not set on the Fractal Design Meshify C, that was just an example. I really have no idea what case to get, if you recommend any with the setup I am looking for I am open to suggestions.

Okay that might be worth waiting for yes....

Regards,

Archie.

I do not recommend buying second-hand components because buying a PC is an important investment that must be amortized in several years. You never know the state in which the second-hand components are found and how much useful life they will have. dont buy second-hand cpu or gpu

ahhh ok, so there's no problem getting a three fan gpu, I understood that the fractal box was the one you wanted to have. There are many manufacturers and the box is a very personal component, the important thing to keep in mind is that there is enough space for all the components.

Regards

[Mace 1,960]

i5-9600K -- $238

Asrock Z390 motherboard $125

I'm not sure what your budget is, but, the above would clock well and wouldn't break the bank.  If you want to get even more budget then by all means go for the B360 boards and an 8600K or similar.  You asked about cores.  Clock speed is still king, but 8 cores is better than 6 cores is better than 4 cores.

[mikeymike 366]

I’ve bought second hand a couple of times before.

got the receipts also.

only I had was a ram module.

it had a lifetime warranty, so I RMA it.

got a replacement hassle free.

 

[ArchieB 0]

18 hours ago, Mace said:

i5-9600K -- $238

Asrock Z390 motherboard $125

I'm not sure what your budget is, but, the above would clock well and wouldn't break the bank.  If you want to get even more budget then by all means go for the B360 boards and an 8600K or similar.  You asked about cores.  Clock speed is still king, but 8 cores is better than 6 cores is better than 4 cores.

I like the look of the i5 9600k, that looks like a pretty nice option and a Z390 motherboard looks good too, would this one be okay - https://www.amazon.co.uk/MSI-Z390-Socket-1151-S-ATA/dp/B07HSCY9R3/ref=pd_bxgy_147_2/260-9072579-0899808?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B07HSCY9R3&pd_rd_r=4ca6ee5e-d58e-4df3-9033-0b798e7b9375&pd_rd_w=BausL&pd_rd_wg=tDTvD&pf_rd_p=655b7c7d-a17d-4637-9a0a-72a813e0d2cb&pf_rd_r=G6QKDZC29Y327716ZDP7&psc=1&refRID=G6QKDZC29Y327716ZDP7?

I have had a quick look on a GPU CPU bottleneck calculator site and it looks like the i5 9600k and the GTX 1660 could be a good match, how does that sound along with some decent RAM?

Archie.

 

[Brisafresca 58]

2 hours ago, ArchieB said:

I like the look of the i5 9600k, that looks like a pretty nice option and a Z390 motherboard looks good too, would this one be okay - https://www.amazon.co.uk/MSI-Z390-Socket-1151-S-ATA/dp/B07HSCY9R3/ref=pd_bxgy_147_2/260-9072579-0899808?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B07HSCY9R3&pd_rd_r=4ca6ee5e-d58e-4df3-9033-0b798e7b9375&pd_rd_w=BausL&pd_rd_wg=tDTvD&pf_rd_p=655b7c7d-a17d-4637-9a0a-72a813e0d2cb&pf_rd_r=G6QKDZC29Y327716ZDP7&psc=1&refRID=G6QKDZC29Y327716ZDP7?

I have had a quick look on a GPU CPU bottleneck calculator site and it looks like the i5 9600k and the GTX 1660 could be a good match, how does that sound along with some decent RAM?

Archie.

 

The i5-9600K is great, yes, that msi z390A-PRO, if I'm not mistaken, is the most basic and economical motherboard msi z390, I think it does not have rgb and it lacks any connection that others have, look at the msi website and compare it with the z390 tomahawk which is the mid-range motherboard.

If your budget is limited it is a good option, it costs around 40 euros less than the z390 tomahawk.

By the way, the gpu that I recommended you is the gtx1660 ''super'' with gdrr6 memory, not the gtx1660 with gdrr5 memory, keep that in mind.

the most logical thing would be to add 16 gb ddr4 of at least 2666mhz, for example kingston hyper x

regards

[Spitty 11]

I was looking at something similar. Is that hardware listed above compatible with W7? 
I’m reluctant to move to W10. So be it if I have too. 
 

Spitty.