rsvanarnam
Description
I'm in the process of upgrading 3 PCs. My own, our server, and then this one.
So this is my husband's PC. I'm a bit more meticulous with wiring, so he had me take care of it while he was at work. This is replacing an AMD build with an FX8150, Gigabyte UD7, Corsair Dominator DDR3 1600, and an EVGA GTX 770 FTW. Still pretty decent with gaming, but we want our computers to be VR ready, and we've both been wanting to switch back to Intel.
I started out by removing everything from his case to tackle his major build up of dust (augh). By the time I finished, the last package had been delivered. Everything except the cpu, motherboard, ram, and gpu were reused from the previous build or like the Noctuas I actually had in our parts box. They are much quieter than the original fan that came with the Corsair H80i, and so far they are preforming great, as Noctua fans always do.
I used to build computers for profit while I was attending college. I've lost track of how many I've built, I've done a fair few. Anyhow, it was pretty straight forward. The only hiccups were that the I/O shield had its cover bolted on, and that needed to be removed before install, and I always feel like another set of hands would be nice when installing AIO coolers. I ended up removing the top exhaust fans so that I could fit two fans on the H80i. Hopefully that will give his case some positive pressure and cut down on dust. =)
Near the end I pretty much said "good enough" with the cabling. My husband had gotten home and wanted to play with it, and I needed to do some things. I'll tidy it up one of these days.
Part Reviews
CPU
Fast as heck. Haven't really dabbled with overclocking yet. Zero complaints thus far.
CPU Cooler
We both agree an H100i GTX up top would have been nice, but there's not much point in replacing it at this point. Keeps the 6700K cool just fine. Push/Pull Noctua P12's are silent, but the pump is a little noisy.
Motherboard
I always do a red build (I did black this time), so I almost feel like this should have been my board. I like it, our server has an MSI Z97S Krait, and the bios feels very familiar. I like how it tells you what changes have been made when saving in bios. Plasitc I/O shield being bolted and needing to be unbolted before installation made me scratch my head for a second. Really, no complaints, MSI made a great board.
Storage
My first ssd was a 60GB with just the OS on it, now I hate to say it, but this is really too small still, go for at least a 240GB+
Video Card
It hasn't really been used extensively yet, no overclocking, etc. But so far so good. Only 10-15% better than the GTX 770 it replaced....
Case
Very, very open, and as a result definitely not a quiet case. But airflow is great, and that was his primary concern. Can take an EATX like the Gigabyte UD7 no issue (cabling just gets a bit tight). Good case.
Power Supply
Fantastic, fully modular, gold rated efficiency power supplies. I love this series. I have an AX650, also zero issues.
Optical Drive
I don't think he's ever used outside of installing drivers in the six some years he's had it. Hm....
Operating System
Necessary for DX12. Bleh. Windows 7 is better.
Case Fan
Push a lot of air, with very minimal noise. I hate the color, but he likes it. A bit cheaper than four 140mm Noctua fans. I'd have no trouble recommending them if you don't mind the color.
Case Fan
Great fans, hate the color. I love using them in any case that I want to be quiet that doesn't have a window/where they can't be seen.
Fan Controller
This thing is such a pain to wire, simply because there are so many freaking wires. After that's taken care of it seems to do the job well enough.
Keyboard
Washable keyboard. Good for having kids/eating/drinking at your computer. I personally favor mechanical keyboards, but he likes it well enough.
Mouse
Pretty cool looking, can set the leds on the side to be any color. Performs fine, a little bit for my taste (I'm 5'1", I have tiny hands) but again, he likes it.
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