Welcome to SPCR!!! Really nice post, like when people take time into doing a long detail post with links.
Birk wrote:Parts I've selected so far:
CPU Intel Core i5 I5-4440
There's not real reasoning behind this choice.
I was thinking of getting an i3-4350, difference is only €28 so I don't mind paying extra here. On paper there's a TDP difference (85W vs 54W) but I don't see this outweighing the performance increase, any input would be good.
Personally i would chose a 4960, you can underclock it if you wish, and intel is pretty good underclocking their cpu via the powermanagement of windows, all haswell chips clock down to 800mhz regardless of their top speed (if you allow it on windows). The only issue is if you are in a budget and don't want to pay more. At the rate intel is milking us, we wont see a big jump in cpu power in years, so a good quad should last you a good amount of time, Sandy Bridge is still pretty good today a platform that was released more than 3 years ago.
TDP... from wikki,
Thermal design power ---> "The thermal design power (TDP), sometimes called thermal design point, refers to the maximum amount of heat generated by the CPU, which the cooling system in a computer is required to dissipate in typical operation. Rather than specifying CPU's real power dissipation, TDP serves as the nominal value for designing CPU cooling systems"
Yet i own a 84W TPD 4770K that runs about 10C hotter than the 4670K that has the same 84W TDP. For me TDP is just a number that gives you a very wide margin but it defines a range, i personally would prefer if it was more individual for each cpu under load instead of a rating that to me at its current state its just a number that doesn't really tell anything specific about what i will encounter. For me its just more a warning... like looking into Haswell E 130W TDP, i might need a lot more cooling than i need for 4770K but how much.... or between the different models its hard to predict until testing. Either way i would invest on a 4690 because i think its a good cpu and can me tame down with a good tower and still remain quiet, and under idle should be as cool as any other haswell quad.
Birk wrote:CPU Cooler Noctua NH-D15 /
Scythe Kotetsu
If I plan on replacing the fans in the case with Noctua fans, I was thinking that getting the same fans for my CPU cooler would make a more pleasant noise (is there anything to this reasoning?).
But the Kotetsu has gotten some great praises here on SPCR, and it's a lot cheaper than the Noctua. And I could just as replace the case fans with the Scythe model on the Kotetsu cooler.
Any other suggestions is appreciated.
The kotestu seems to offer a lot of performance for its price, i do think the NH-D15 can handle much more heat though, and the noctua fans are pretty solid in terms of noise if you manage to keep them below 900rpms. I think Kotetsu can handle any quad from haswell if you want save money, im just a sucker for big coolers, but its you call.
Birk wrote:PSU Corsair RM450
This is a bit overkill for my system, but I can't seem to find another modular semi-fanless (or fanless) PSU without going almost double the price of this one.
I think its a good PSU for the money, specially since it will be fanless most of the time, and its been design to avoid coil whinning... something that seasonic has been blamed lately, although personally i own 4x Seasonic PSU and none of them have coil (well the X400 has some if you get your head right next to the PSU but inaudible at 1mt).
Birk wrote:Case Fractal Design Define R4
I like the outer design of this case.
It seems big enough inside so I don't have to worry about room for my components.
Wonderful case, easy to work with, good cable management, its a solid choice.
Birk wrote:Case fans Noctua NF-A14
I'll start out just using the Fractal Design Silent Series R2 that comes with the case. If I don't feel these are sufficient I'll change them with the Noctua ones.
But I'm a bit unclear on the whole PWM vs not PWM, will I be able to turn down a non PWM fan without any OS specific software, just BIOS or jumpers?
Depending on what CPU Cooler I get, I might be going for the Scythe GlideStream instead, it's just that I have a Noctua cooler in my HTCP that I'm fond of.
Here its not that easy, im running 4x NF-A14 PWM on my R4 and I really like it, inaudible, and i run them at 225rpms on idle and ramp them as CPU temp goes up, but the fans above 650rpms become audible above 900rpm they become loud, above 1k rpms imo they are not worth it, i have them restricted via bios to not pass 900rpms. There are better sounding fans than the NF-A14 for case fans, like Antec True Quiet 140, imo the best 140mm fan specially for someone persuing a quiet setup, more so with someone going with Asus motherboard and controlling them via fanXpert2, it will allow you to drop them to 200rpms, you can run if you like 4, you wont hear them. They only go up to 800rpms where they are noticible but still very quiet, subjectively speaking more quiet than noctuas on the same rpms. With that said, i still remain on Noctua more so because i like more BIOS fan control instead of software, i had issues with asus on other things that made move on to MSI, i still think Asus is a great choice specially for someone not minding running the AI Suite (i do mind).
So more important before choosing the fans, is how you want to control the fans.... bios? software? external fan controller? then chose the correct motherboard for your intended purpose and then chose the correct fans to the headers.
Birk wrote:Memory Crucial Ballistix Sport 2x4GB
They're low profile, so I don't have to worry about size of my CPU cooler. I've also been looking at the Tactical version of this, but when I'm looking at reviews it doesn't really seem worth it.
Love the memory, no comments here, up to you if you like the tactical or the sport.
Birk wrote:Storage Samsung 840 EVO 250 GB
I only got a 72GB HDD (10k RPM, yes it sounds like a speeding train but when I bought it, it felt like one as well) at the moment, so 250GB will be more than enough.
I own a couple of 840evo msata on my laptop and they been perfect, imo its one of the best ssds on the market for the money.
Birk wrote:Missing parts:
Motherboard
This is a jungle to me. I don't intend to overclock anything and I don't think I need any fancy features, I think a h97 will be more than enough for me. Some highlights on what I want (think I want) from a motherboard:
- What I would like is to be able to control my CPU fan PWM. More than 1 PWM controller is not a must, but it would be a lovely bonus if I have to change the case fans and I go for PWM fans instead.
- I don't care about on board sound, I got an external DAC.
- I don't need any special network since I'm getting the wireless AC card. It would be nice to have the AC on the motherboard but it seems to me more expensive to get a motherboard with AC than getting one without and buying the adapter. It would be nice if I was able to disable the onboard adapter complete from BIOS.
- I wouldn't mind paying a bit extra for quality components.
I think Asus H97-PLUS offer a lot for what it costs, it shoudl come with FanXpert3 and rummors place that this new asus gen of motherboards have more than one PWM fan header, personally i dont own one so i cant say for sure, but imo the best bet is to go with PWM fan on the CPU header like the NF-A15 on the NH-C15 or the Scythe Slipstream on the Kotetsu, and Antec True Quiet 140s on the case fans, the CHA_FAN should handle very well the range of operation of the 3pin antec fans.
Birk wrote:Graphics card
I think I'll start with just using the Intel HD Graphics 4600, and if it doesn't work out I'll plugin my old GT9600 or get a MSI GeForce GTX 750Ti GAMING if I feel like splurging. Though I would rather wait for the next gen to come.
Next gen has yet to be announced, rumors place from ends of this year to mid of 2015, i think the GTX750TI is a good choice for not spending much and gaining a ton of gpu power compared to your 9600, its as good as GTX580 and consumes like 4 times less, overall its maxwell meaning next gen. There are rumors that the yields are bad for next shrink so we might stay on 28nm, so could be very similar to whats on the market just more capable, i think the good jump will come in two gens... but all rumors, nothing solid as of now and its your money, up to you if you want to wait.
PS... check CA_Steve build on his signature for a lot of good info on a very similar build. Btw steve... where the naked pics.
