First PC Build - Advice

[Jacob Hobbs]

Hi All,

Just looking for some advice really, I haven't done any building of PC's before this as both my previous where sourced through PC Specialist however the first of the two I am looking to upgrade/improve slightly just to test myself more than anything. it will either be sold or gifted, not sure yet. See below for original spec and proposed changes, again its nothing major just to test myself a little. I've kept notes as I was going to make sure I haven't missed anything. I am also guessing it is worth changing the thermal paste on the CPU (brought the PC in 2017).

Is there anything I have missed, should include/improve or something that won't be compatible? Looking to spend less than £200 altogether.

PART		ORIGINAL BUILD	PROPOSED	NOTES
CPU		i5-8600K (3.6GHz)	i5-8600K (3.6GHz)	Only supports RAM @ DDR4-2666MHz.
CPU COOLING		Corsair H55 Hydro Series	Corsair H55 Hydro Series	I've heard this isnt the best cooler, should I look to upgrade?
GPU		GTX 1070 - Zotac Mini	GTX 1070 - Zotac Mini	Keeping the same.
MOTHERBOARD		ASUS® PRIME Z370-P	ASUS® PRIME Z370-P	Keeping the same.
RAM		16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 2133MHz (2 x 8GB)	32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 2133MHz (4 x 8GB)	Increasing from 2x 8GB to 4x 8GB.
STORAGE		2TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA PRO 3.5", 7200 RPM 128MB CACHE	2TB SEAGATE BARRACUDA PRO 3.5", 7200 RPM 128MB CACHE	Keeping the same.
ADDITIONAL STORAGE		None	512GB GBM.2 SATA3 SSD (2280)	Must be M Key type due to Motherboard connections. Windows to be installed directly onto it.
NETWORK CARD		WIRELESS 802.11 AC1900 1,300Mbps/5GHz, 600Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD	WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 2,400Mbps/5GHz, 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD + BT 5.0	Newer part spare.
POWER SUPPLY		CORSAIR 550W VS SERIES™ VS-550	CORSAIR 550W VS SERIES™ VS-550	Keeping the same.
CASE		InWIN GT1 BLACK GAMING CASE	Corsair Carbide 275R Black Tempered Glass	Newer sleeker looking case.

 

[BlessedSquirrel]

Hiya

That board can take up to 2666Hz at native RAM speed, but most RAM these days is run overclocked. That board supports up to 3733MHz Overclocked. For stability though I'd recommend 3200MHz which is still the optimum for gaming for price vs performance to this day on DDR4

You can check the qualified vendor list here for tested RAM compatiblity

https://dlcdnets.asus.com/pub/ASUS/mb/LGA1151/PRIME_Z370-A/Memory_QVL.pdf?model=PRIME%20Z370-P

CPU cooling, I would absolutely upgrade that. If you're going to be doing a self build in the future, then it's worth upgrading to something like the H115i capellix which is a wonderful cooler, and will support a lot of modern chips (which are hugely powerful and require top cooling)

Regarding the SSD, there were some PCIe early M2 drives, but I've had a look and because they were so niche and not supported for very long, they're insanely expensive and wouldn't give vastly better performance I don't think, not for the cost. So yes, stick with a SATA one.

Fully agree on the wifi card, they're really cheap these days, support AC standards and are really reliable in general, they're a great card.

The case is fine, although check the radiator sizes it can fit if you want to futureproof, you want at least room for 280mm which is really the minimum for modern CPU's if you were to upgrade in that case in the future.

 

[sck451]

If you're giving it away or selling it, I'd suggest the RAM upgrade is unnecessary. 16GB is enough for most purposes still, and if it's not then I doubt the rest of the system would be anyway! Likewise the RAM speed: there's only a couple of percentage points in it at most with the 8700K, so I'd struggle to see that as worthwhile.

With the same spirit in mind, I'd only upgrade the cooler if it's actually going to make a difference. I'd check the temperatures in single-core and all-core workloads and see what they get to. If they're below 85°C, there's little point in spending £120+ on an upgraded cooler.

For the case, I'd suggest getting the Airflow version of the 275R rather than the solid front one unless it's miles more. It's the case I have and I'd speak very highly of it. Again, I'm not entirely sure I'd recommend it as a cost effective upgrade. It's basically a complete rebuild of the PC though, so I guess that would be a good test and kind of fun!

The only upgrade I'd unequivocally recommend would be the SSD; you could fit one with a SATA cable rather than an M.2 one; I'd expect you'd get more choice and could buy a better quality one. A SATA SSD definitely needs a DRAM cache. The Samsung 870 Evo or a Crucial MX500 would be my choice for your system.

The other stuff isn't a bad idea, but the effect will probably be very limited and not worth the investment.

 

[Jacob Hobbs]

@SpyderTracks thank you for the suggestions! What case would you opt for if something different to the Corsair one? I quite like plain and minimalist design, not too big and has to be black.

 

[Jacob Hobbs]

@sck451, thank you for your comments and it will most likely be sold, so I suppose it would make sense to upgrade it in a way that it would be compelling for potential buyers. Again this is mainly more for me and getting experience somewhat building a PC also, making a profit would be nice but wouldn't be the end of the world if not. So far I've only had experience in replacing a GPU, installing an M.2 NVME SSD and WiFi network card in my main PC and its not like that is very challenging!

Whats the reasoning behind opting for a SSD with SATA rather than the M.2; genuine question, I have no idea which is better. I will also make sure to test the CPU temps when I get the PC set up again before replacing the CPU cooler.

 

[BlessedSquirrel]

Whats the reasoning behind opting for a SSD with SATA rather than the M.2; genuine question, I have no idea which is better

Early M2s were SATA drives which max out at 550mbs w/r

After that came PCIe M2 which were an early version of the now standard NVME. PCIe M2 could go up to around 1000mbs w/r but they weren't around very long and future boards moved to the NVME interface which is a different standard.

 

[BlessedSquirrel]

@SpyderTracks thank you for the suggestions! What case would you opt for if something different to the Corsair one? I quite like plain and minimalist design, not too big and has to be black.

That case is pretty old now and quite basic. I'd go for one of the more modern Corsairs like the 4000d

Or really spice it up and go with the Lian li o11 mini X which is an amazing case

Clearance Cases | Computer Cases Deals | CCL

Clearance Cases

www.cclonline.com

 

[sck451]

@sck451, thank you for your comments and it will most likely be sold, so I suppose it would make sense to upgrade it in a way that it would be compelling for potential buyers. Again this is mainly more for me and getting experience somewhat building a PC also, making a profit would be nice but wouldn't be the end of the world if not. So far I've only had experience in replacing a GPU, installing an M.2 NVME SSD and WiFi network card in my main PC and its not like that is very challenging!

Whats the reasoning behind opting for a SSD with SATA rather than the M.2; genuine question, I have no idea which is better. I will also make sure to test the CPU temps when I get the PC set up again before replacing the CPU cooler.

If the M.2 drive is a SATA one (SATA refers to the connection rather than the form factor; I should have said a 2.5" drive), it's exactly the same performance as a standard 2.5" drive, except there's fewer of them on the market and they tend to be lower quality. They also often have no DRAM cache.

By example, the Samsung 860 Evo M.2 is £87 for the 500GB model, whereas the 870 Evo 2.5" (which is a better drive) is £49. The only advantage is that it is slightly easier to fit an M.2 drive than a 2.5" drive, but not much.

 

[Jacob Hobbs]

If the M.2 drive is a SATA one (SATA refers to the connection rather than the form factor; I should have said a 2.5" drive), it's exactly the same performance as a standard 2.5" drive, except there's fewer of them on the market and they tend to be lower quality. They also often have no DRAM cache.

By example, the Samsung 860 Evo M.2 is £87 for the 500GB model, whereas the 870 Evo 2.5" (which is a better drive) is £49. The only advantage is that it is slightly easier to fit an M.2 drive than a 2.5" drive, but not much.

I think I get you, the motherboard supports the older M.2 2280 SATA 3, so I was looking at this: link

However you are saying I should go for a 2.5" version instead - being cheaper, same read/write with more options with reputable brands. Like this: link

This is all very new to me, I just assumed the M.2 version would be better!

 

[Jacob Hobbs]

That case is pretty old now and quite basic. I'd go for one of the more modern Corsairs like the 4000d

Or really spice it up and go with the Lian li o11 mini X which is an amazing case

Clearance Cases | Computer Cases Deals | CCL

Clearance Cases

www.cclonline.com

Thanks for sharing I will have a look!

 

[sck451]

I think I get you, the motherboard supports the older M.2 2280 SATA 3, so I was looking at this: link

However you are saying I should go for a 2.5" version instead - being cheaper, same read/write with more options with reputable brands. Like this: link

This is all very new to me, I just assumed the M.2 version would be better!

The Samsung drive is excellent. Basically it's as good as it's possible for a SATA drive to be.

The Teamgroup one is awful: don't buy it. It has no DRAM cache, which means it will have very limited performance. For a SATA drive, a DRAM cache is essential.

 

[BlessedSquirrel]

If the M.2 drive is a SATA one (SATA refers to the connection rather than the form factor; I should have said a 2.5" drive), it's exactly the same performance as a standard 2.5" drive, except there's fewer of them on the market and they tend to be lower quality. They also often have no DRAM cache.

By example, the Samsung 860 Evo M.2 is £87 for the 500GB model, whereas the 870 Evo 2.5" (which is a better drive) is £49. The only advantage is that it is slightly easier to fit an M.2 drive than a 2.5" drive, but not much.

Damn, @sck451 is absolutely spot on, I'd completely forgotten about dram cache.

 

[sck451]

Damn, @sck451 is absolutely spot on, I'd completely forgotten about dram cache.

Yeah, you don't have to worry about them with NVMe drives to nearly the same extent, because they can use system memory over the PCIe link. SATA can't do that so it has to be on-board.

 

[Scott]

If you're giving away/selling I wouldn't invest anything in it in all honesty. Anything you put into it, is going to be moved on at 2nd hand value so it's money for nothing really.

If you're literally not wanting to consider the value aspect of it then I would prioritise the following:

WIFI - Very good shout. Unsure of the cost but would guess around £20.
Cooling - You want a better cooler on there. You're likely to spend around £120 here (H100i)
RAM - 16GB of 3200/3600 depending on cost. Aim for C16 ish (ITRO £60)

Not really any budget left but next would be the case.

Case - I would opt for an airflow offering (around £100)
M2 drive - You would get a decent boost from an NVME drive (Around £80)

My guess is that if you spent £400 you'd be around the point of where you're hitting the second hand value of the system in its entirety. Most people won't really care about the foundations, they just read the CPU/GPU headlines for value.

 

[Jacob Hobbs]

@Scott @sck451 @SpyderTracks Thank you for all your help. Feedback has been very valuable, I will try my best to source parts second hand where possible, this is mainly just so I can have ago at building a PC and not worry if it messes up real bad

One last question, a lot of you have stated that I should use a higher RAM MHz, I know the motherboard a higher range (OC), however the CPU says it has a limit of 2666MHz, how do you overclock the system to be able to use for instance 3200MHz?

 

[BlessedSquirrel]

One last question, a lot of you have stated that I should use a higher RAM MHz, I know the motherboard a higher range (OC), however the CPU says it has a limit of 2666MHz, how do you overclock the system to be able to use for instance 3200MHz?

Any motherboard has memory overclocks, DOCP for AMD and XMP on intel, they apply a preset overclock to boost the RAM to it's stated speed.

3200mhz is the sweet spot.