Custom build for around 2,000$.

[stj]

Re: Custom build for around 2,000$.

i had a BARCO monitor like that, it had a device you hold against the tube with colour-sensors in it so it could auto-calibrate the gain on the R,G & B

never seen it done on lcd though!

btw, unlike Linux, windows does not actually support Gamma correction yet afaik.

[dmill89]

Re: Custom build for around 2,000$.

It's some weird monitor for pictures or something like that, IPS or something.

IPS - In-Plane Switching . IPS panels have better color rendering, and viewing angles, definitely useful for photo or video editing. They actually aren't that expensive anymore (only about $50 more than a regular LCD), but they were up until a couple years ago. My laptop (Dell Precision M4600) has one and it looks great though I don't use my laptop for anything that would require an IPS display, and it reduces battery life. In my case I didn't order an IPS screen, but it was a business off-lease system and they shipped me one with higher specs than I ordered (relatively common with off-lease systems, they ship whatever they have in stock as long as it meets the minimum specs and condition ordered).

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Custom build for around 2,000$.

i had a BARCO monitor like that, it had a device you hold against the tube with colour-sensors in it so it could auto-calibrate the gain on the R,G & B

never seen it done on lcd though!

btw, unlike Linux, windows does not actually support Gamma correction yet afaik.

I don't know much about video, like what Gamma correction is. Does that mean her device is useless or something? It seems to work, when she prints stuff, it does seem to look identical to what's on the screen, colourwise.

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Custom build for around 2,000$.

Thanks for the info on IPS! I remember when she bought it, it was crazy expensive. I don't remember how much, but I want to say like 800$, if not more! Just ridiclous! Anyway, I got her to respond as to what the PC will be used for.

The only intensive applications she will be using will be Adobe Photoshop for editing RAW pictures and then another Adobe program for video editting. She said Premier but I think that's gone now, isn't it? I think she's just starting to get into video editing.

There's other things she'd use it for as well, but I didn't think it was worth mentioning, like editing business forums using Microsoft Office, reading e-mail, etc.

[ChaosLegionnaire]

Re: Custom build for around 2,000$.

if she does video editing as well then she might need that powerful cpu. what if she wants to do video editing/encoding of a 4k UHD wedding video? thats gonna need lots of ghz and lots of cores!

also, yes, these days if u arent gaming, u prolly dont need a discrete gpu. intel's igpus have improved a lot since the integrated intel extreme graphics (IEG) during the p4 days. u can get away with using the igpu in the cpu. however, i dont think haswell-e cpus have an igpu. neither do the upcoming broadwell-e cpus. so just get a cheap second hand used gpu off ebay or sumthing.

btw, since u are building a hedt (high end desktop), u might wanna wait a few more weeks for broadwell-e instead which still uses the lga2011-3 x99 chipset. broadwell-e is going to be released during taiwan's computex exhibition from may 31 to june 4. however, u are gonna need ddr4 ram for the x99 board so its a good thing ddr4 ram has come down in price. a quick look around amazon shows that ddr3 and ddr4 ram cost about the same per gigabyte.

lastly, forget about gpu-based video encoding. its a complete joke. it trades off quality for speed. your 4k UHD video is going to end up looking like an SD quality video.

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Custom build for around 2,000$.

if she does video editing as well then she might need that powerful cpu. what if she wants to do video editing/encoding of a 4k UHD wedding video? thats gonna need lots of ghz and lots of cores!

also, yes, these days if u arent gaming, u prolly dont need a discrete gpu. intel's igpus have improved a lot since the integrated intel extreme graphics (IEG) during the p4 days. u can get away with using the igpu in the cpu. however, i dont think haswell-e cpus have an igpu. neither do the upcoming broadwell-e cpus. so just get a cheap second hand used gpu off ebay or sumthing.

btw, since u are building a hedt (high end desktop), u might wanna wait a few more weeks for broadwell-e instead which still uses the lga2011-3 x99 chipset. broadwell-e is going to be released during taiwan's computex exhibition from may 31 to june 4. however, u are gonna need ddr4 ram for the x99 board so its a good thing ddr4 ram has come down in price. a quick look around amazon shows that ddr3 and ddr4 ram cost about the same per gigabyte.

lastly, forget about gpu-based video encoding. its a complete joke. it trades off quality for speed. your 4k UHD video is going to end up looking like an SD quality video.

Thanks! I wasn't even sure if GPU-based video encoding was a thing. I just remember when I was running SETI years ago, the GPU could be used to process data. I also remember something abou GPUs being used for bitcoin mining or something like that.

The DDR4 isn't too crazy for 16GB. I'm running out of cash. With the board, 16GB of RAM, 512GB PCI-E x4 M.2 SSD, an 850 watt EVGA fully modular PSU, I'm now up to: $908.96

I still need a case, a CPU cooler, a video card, and the CPU. Looks like it's probably going to be the 580$ CPU.

So, for video connectors, what's this DisplayPort stuff all about? I thought HDMI was the way to go but I see a lot of video cards with 3 or 4 DisplayPort adapters and just one HDMI, one DVI connector. I believe her monitor has a DisplayPort adapter. Should she be using that instead of HDMI? Thanks!

[diif]

Re: Custom build for around 2,000$.

You could replace the PCI-E SSD for a SATA3 Samsung EVO, yes it's a fraction slower, noticeable ? I doubt it.

[stj]

Re: Custom build for around 2,000$.

I don't know much about video, like what Gamma correction is. Does that mean her device is useless or something? It seems to work, when she prints stuff, it does seem to look identical to what's on the screen, colourwise.

it means you need to get the details and find out what drivers it needs.

[dmill89]

Re: Custom build for around 2,000$.

also, yes, these days if u arent gaming, u prolly dont need a discrete gpu. intel's igpus have improved a lot since the integrated intel extreme graphics (IEG) during the p4 days. u can get away with using the igpu in the cpu. however, i dont think haswell-e cpus have an igpu. neither do the upcoming broadwell-e cpus. so just get a cheap second hand used gpu off ebay or sumthing.

I wouldn't bother with a used GPU unless you can get a really good deal. The performance of GPUs has increased enough that 2-3 generation old high-end GPUs are only as powerful as mid-level current GPUs with only a minimal cost savings and 5+ generation old high-end GPUs are only as powerful as current entry level stock. The reliability and power savings of a new GPU generally outweigh the (minimal) cost savings of a decent used one. You can get a new GPU for less than $100 (AMD Radeon R7-360 or NVidia GeForce GTX 750) that will handle anything but the most demanding games.

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Custom build for around 2,000$.

it means you need to get the details and find out what drivers it needs.

I gotcha! You mean the device might not be compatible with Windows 10, if she goes for 10. I mean, we know that it's compatible with 7, that drivers exist, because currently, I believe she's running 7.

What's really nice is once I finish this, I get her socket 1366 i7 desktop that I built a few years ago. It's messed up I guess and doesn't boot now. I don't know whicy she just doesn't have me fix that, but eh, a free 1366! That'd be one of the nicest systems I've had in a long time.

Thanks Stj!

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Custom build for around 2,000$.

You could replace the PCI-E SSD for a SATA3 Samsung EVO, yes it's a fraction slower, noticeable ? I doubt it.

Yeah, I might have to make some tough decisions like that. To her, she'd never know the difference, to me, it'd probably kill me. Just knowing I went for the slower SATA 3 Evo vs the PCI-E x4 drive....I always wanted to try one of those bad boys out, but I guess we do what we have to do to make the budget PC, you know?

When she said 2,000$, I didn't think I'd have to make tough decisions like this! I just figured I could pick a really nice motherboard, a really nice CPU, a really nice amount of RAM, a really nice video card, etc.

I'm going to piece together the system the way I'd piece it together and see how much higher than 2,000$ I am. Then I'll start looking at what can be cut and go from there. There's certain components that deserve more weight than others, I think. Like the power supply. I think that's pretty important and I don't want to skimp out on that. A cheap PSU might even ruin the board or the RAM or something, you know?

Thanks!

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Custom build for around 2,000$.

What are you guys thinking for video? When I used to build custom systems, the CPU pretty much determined whether you were going for an nVidia or an ATI (now AMD) video card...now days, we can just pick either, right?

What do you guys think would be a decent but not crazy video card? Who makes better cards, AMD or nVidia? I used to love nVidia but they might have went down hill, I dunno. What do you guys think?

[dmill89]

Re: Custom build for around 2,000$.

What are you guys thinking for video? When I used to build custom systems, the CPU pretty much determined whether you were going for an nVidia or an ATI (now AMD) video card...now days, we can just pick either, right?

What do you guys think would be a decent but not crazy video card? Who makes better cards, AMD or nVidia? I used to love nVidia but they might have went down hill, I dunno. What do you guys think?

Brand of CPU and GPU really doesn't matter. nVidia has more powerful (single GPU) cards at the top end (980 and the new 1080/1070), but in many cases AMD beats them for the money in the mid level and mid-high end cards (and for comparable cards between the two it often comes down to what's on sale), the R7-360/370 and R9-380/390 are excellent cards for the money (as are the geForce .gtx750 and gt950/960/970). nVidia cards tend to be a little more efficient, though it often isn't enough of a difference to matter unless you are really close to the limit of your PSU. Both nVidia and AMD are unveiling new generation GPUs this year (nVidia just unveiled their new high-end GPUs the 1080/1070, AMD is expected to unveil their new mid/mid-high level GPUs soon, and new high-end GPUs in Oct.) so it may pay to wait a few months to buy a GPU (as others stated intel's 6/8 core CPUs don't have integrated video though so if you go with one of these you'll need some kind of GPU even if it is just an entry-level card or used card you have around or can get cheap to get by even if you plan on waiting until the new gen GPUs come out).

I'm going to piece together the system the way I'd piece it together and see how much higher than 2,000$ I am. Then I'll start looking at what can be cut and go from there. There's certain components that deserve more weight than others, I think. Like the power supply. I think that's pretty important and I don't want to skimp out on that. A cheap PSU might even ruin the board or the RAM or something, you know?

Thanks!

Definitely don't skimp on the PSU, like you said a cheap PSU can fry expensive components, and even a good PSU that is under-spec'd for the application can cause instability and random shutdowns (due to the protection circuitry doing its job). An I7-4790/6700 or even an I7-5820k would likely help the budget while still providing excellent performance, but it depends how you prioritize which components to spend money on, and as others said an SATA SSD would still provide decent performance with a substantial price savings. Mechanical HDD(s) for bulk storage that doesn't require fast access could also provide savings. For the uses you listed a high-end GPU isn't necessary, a decent mid-level card ($100-200) should do fine. It all comes down to where the priorities are as to where to focus the budget. $2k will definitely build a solid system that can handle pretty much anything your sister or you would throw at it, but still isn't enough to cover the "best of everything".

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Custom build for around 2,000$.

Thanks! This is what I've picked so far. What do you guys think?

EVGA 02G-P4-3757-KR G-SYNC Support GeForce GTX 750 Ti 2GB 128-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 FTW w/ ACX Cooling Video Card -- 129.99$

EVGA GTX 750 Ti Backplate Model 100-BP-3755-B9 -- Free with the card

EVGA 220-G2-0850-XR 80 PLUS GOLD 850 Watt ECO Mode Fully Modular NVIDIA SLI Ready and Crossfire Support Continuous Power Supply -- 129.99$

HyperX 16GB (4 x 4GB) 288-Pin DDR4 SDRAM DDR4 3000 (PC4 24000) Desktop Memory Model HX430C15PB2K4/16 -- 123.99$

ASRock Fatal1ty X99 Professional/3.1 LGA 2011-v3 Intel X99 SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.1 USB 3.0 Extended ATX Intel Motherboard -- 319.99$

Intel Core i7-5930K Haswell-E 6-Core 3.5 GHz LGA 2011-v3 140W BX80648I75930K Desktop Processor -- 579.99$

Noctua NH-D14 120mm & 140mm SSO CPU Cooler -- 72.69$

SAMSUNG 950 PRO M.2 512GB PCI-Express 3.0 x4 Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) MZ-V5P512BW -- 317.00$

Subtotal: 1,673.64$
Shipping: 9.75$
Total: 1,673.64 + 9.75$

I still need a case and maybe a few other things. But what do you guys think so far? I'll attach links to each item so you can look at pictures if you'd like:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...28&ignorebbr=1
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...22&ignorebbr=1
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...18&ignorebbr=1
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...28&ignorebbr=1
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...97&ignorebbr=1
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...03&ignorebbr=1
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...18&ignorebbr=1
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...67&ignorebbr=1

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Custom build for around 2,000$.

Here's the case I'm thinking of getting:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...92&ignorebbr=1

It's a Thermaltake Level 10 GT Snow Edition (VN10006W2N) White and Black SECC / Plastic ATX Full Tower Computer Case with Four Fans for a 189.99$.

[ChaosLegionnaire]

Re: Custom build for around 2,000$.

EVGA 220-G2-0850-XR 80 PLUS GOLD 850 Watt ECO Mode Fully Modular NVIDIA SLI Ready and Crossfire Support Continuous Power Supply -- 129.99$

great! that is indeed an excellent pick! i was going to suggest the evga g2 series of psus as well! gotta luv the ultra-low ripple! hard drives and ssds will luv that and last a very long time with that ultra-low ripple!

however, the haswell-e and broadwell-e cpus have only a tdp of 140w. add on to the fact that u are not going to get a powerful or multiple gpus and/or overclocking the cpu/gpu, u dont really need 850w. its prolly overkill. 850w is only necessary if u are getting a junk psu that doesnt output its full rated wattage which is not what u want. the g2 series is also a full japcap psu so u dont need to bother about getting a higher wattage than what u need to take into account this "capacitor aging" thingy.

600w+ psus are really only necessary for sli and crossfire setups or powerful single gpus. 500w these days is more than enough for single cpu and single gpu setups. most mid-high end rigs dont use more than 400-500w. get the evga g2 550w instead and use the $50 or so saved for other better components. it doesnt make sense to me to pay $50 more for a 10 year warranty psu vs 7 years. u'd think they would come up with even better platinum or titanium rated psus for the "mainstream" crowd by then. i have no idea why ppl still wanna buy such high wattage psus these days when their single cpu/gpu system only consumes less than half that!

Intel Core i7-5930K Haswell-E 6-Core 3.5 GHz LGA 2011-v3 140W BX80648I75930K Desktop Processor -- 579.99$

like i said, wait a couple more weeks for broadwell-e to come out. at that time, the prices of haswell-e cpus will drop as well as retailers try to clear out their haswell-e cpu stock to make way for broadwell-e. if u still insist, u can then get haswell-e at a much lower price. u may even be able to get the $999 haswell-e at a much reduced price or even cheaper as second hand as enthusiasts sell off their haswell-e cpus to upgrade to broadwell-e.

Here's the case I'm thinking of getting:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...92&ignorebbr=1

It's a Thermaltake Level 10 GT Snow Edition (VN10006W2N) White and Black SECC / Plastic ATX Full Tower Computer Case with Four Fans for a 189.99$.

do note that for the fairer gender, things must look good if she is going to be looking at it in her room everyday. the case should match the color scheme of her room walls, floor and computer table etc. u might also wanna ask the lady herself to see what she thinks of the case and if she likes the color/design etc. and if she thinks the case matches the color of her room etc. the fairer gender may determine that it is more worth it to put more $ into a more attractive case unlike the boys.

that is the gist of additional things to consider when building desktop computers for the ladies.

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Custom build for around 2,000$.

...
600w+ psus are really only necessary for sli and crossfire setups or powerful single gpus. 500w these days is more than enough for single cpu and single gpu setups. most mid-high end rigs dont use more than 400-500w. get the evga g2 550w instead and use the $50 or so saved for other better components. it doesnt make sense to me to pay $50 more for a 10 year warranty psu vs 7 years. u'd think they would come up with even better platinum or titanium rated psus for the "mainstream" crowd by then. i have no idea why ppl still wanna buy such high wattage psus these days when their single cpu/gpu system only consumes less than half that!

I hadn't actually calculated how much wattage the system was going to be using. I liked the 10 year warranty and figured if they were going to warrant it for 10 years, they felt confident that it was built really well. I too noticed the 100% Japanese caps and liked that very much. The reason I had gone for the 850 watt was in case she decided to upgrade it later on or pass it on to me, she wouldn't have to worry about purchasing a newer PSU. I honestly felt like maybe 850 was a little over kill, but I didn't realize it was a lot over kill. I saw some PSUs a while back that weren't constant wattage...or continious or whatever. They'd just provide that if you needed it. So, if she was only using 500 watts, her PSU would only be drawing 500 watts. If her PC needed 850, it'd draw 850. I saw PSUs that also provided a continious supply of power. If you needed 500 watt, you got 850, for example. Are the first type of PSUs pretty reliable?

You really think 500 watt would be enough? Worst case, down the road, when she wants an even better system, she gives me this one. In all honesty, I never expected to get the socket 1366. In my eyes, that socket 1366 is far for retirement. It's not that old of a system...

like i said, wait a couple more weeks for broadwell-e to come out. at that time, the prices of haswell-e cpus will drop as well as retailers try to clear out their haswell-e cpu stock to make way for broadwell-e. if u still insist, u can then get haswell-e at a much lower price. u may even be able to get the $999 haswell-e at a much reduced price or even cheaper as second hand as enthusiasts sell off their haswell-e cpus to upgrade to broadwell-e.

Sorry if you felt I was ignoring your previous advice about waiting. I plan on doing just that, waiting until the Broadwell-E's come out. She needed the quote now though. I guess she's getting something called a business loan and said to try to go a bit high. If she doesn't use all the money, it's fine, but if she needs more, there's a problem. I told her the idea about waiting until the Broadwell-E comes out. I think we're probably going to purchase the Haswell-E then. I mean, I'll definitely check into the Broadwell-E's and see what they're like. Would they require a total different motherboard? She's going on vacation for a few weeks and she's leaving in a day or two. I can't do anything until she gets back.

do note that for the fairer gender, things must look good if she is going to be looking at it in her room everyday. the case should match the color scheme of her room walls, floor and computer table etc. u might also wanna ask the lady herself to see what she thinks of the case and if she likes the color/design etc. and if she thinks the case matches the color of her room etc. the fairer gender may determine that it is more worth it to put more $ into a more attractive case unlike the boys.

that is the gist of additional things to consider when building desktop computers for the ladies.

I never thought about asking her to see if she likes it. That's a great idea. I figured because she's an artist of sorts, she'd want something artitistic. Can't go wrong with showing the customer the case before you purchase it, especially when it's a bit expensive! I saw how they make a custom edition version of this case for over a grand. It's numbered and it's a limited custom edition. One guy on NewEgg, he left a comment. He said he ordered the case thinking it came fully loaded and wanted to let everyone know it was just an empty case. He said it's built really well though. He threw it through the drywall, it went straight threw and didn't even get a scratch. He said it's very heavy as well.

[dmill89]

Re: Custom build for around 2,000$.

I hadn't actually calculated how much wattage the system was going to be using. I liked the 10 year warranty and figured if they were going to warrant it for 10 years, they felt confident that it was built really well. I too noticed the 100% Japanese caps and liked that very much. The reason I had gone for the 850 watt was in case she decided to upgrade it later on or pass it on to me, she wouldn't have to worry about purchasing a newer PSU. I honestly felt like maybe 850 was a little over kill, but I didn't realize it was a lot over kill. I saw some PSUs a while back that weren't constant wattage...or continious or whatever. They'd just provide that if you needed it. So, if she was only using 500 watts, her PSU would only be drawing 500 watts. If her PC needed 850, it'd draw 850. I saw PSUs that also provided a continious supply of power. If you needed 500 watt, you got 850, for example. Are the first type of PSUs pretty reliable?

You really think 500 watt would be enough? Worst case, down the road, when she wants an even better system, she gives me this one. In all honesty, I never expected to get the socket 1366. In my eyes, that socket 1366 is far for retirement. It's not that old of a system...

500W would probably be ok, but 650-750W PSUs don't cost much more and give you a lot more overhead. A lot comes down to price, 850W PSUs can often be found on sale for not much more, and if it doesn't cost much (if anything) more there is no harm in a higher wattage unit (assuming both are quality units). The PC Power & Cooling Silencer 910W in my desktop is way overkill for that system, but I bought it when they were being discontinued and got a really good price.

[Spork Schivago]

Re: Custom build for around 2,000$.

What about the constant wattage versus the providing just what you need type of PSUs? Does that matter at all? I'd rather be a bit green and purchase PSUs that don't provide the maximum amount of power they can provide, 24x7. I like the idea of providing just what is needed and if more is needed later on, provide a bit more...you know?

[dmill89]

Re: Custom build for around 2,000$.

What about the constant wattage versus the providing just what you need type of PSUs? Does that matter at all? I'd rather be a bit green and purchase PSUs that don't provide the maximum amount of power they can provide, 24x7. I like the idea of providing just what is needed and if more is needed later on, provide a bit more...you know?

All PSUs (at least modern ones) only provide the power you need (plus some lost to heat, etc.). Most PSUs will be most efficient with between 30%-70% load, though 80+ certified PSUs (which virtually all newer decent PSUs are) will be relatively efficient at just about any load level.