Help with a gaming computer :)

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   Budget:

The maximum I'd like to spend is $2000, but I'd prefer to keep it around $1800 if possible.

Expectations:

I want to be able to run most games on the highest settings in 1080p. I currently use two monitors (one for gaming and the other for web browsing and stuff). 

Usage:

I currently play Final Fantasy XIV and World of Warcraft.  I'd like to be able to run those on the highest settings at 1080p.  I also pretty much always have 20+ tabs of chrome open and I watch streams constantly.

Special Needs:

I'm assuming I'd need a SSD, but I'd also like a 2TB hard drive to be included.  I don't need any accessories.  I will not be editing photos or rendering any videos.  Pretty much just gaming and web browsing.  The environment is roughly 70-75F.  

I looked at some of the prebuilt ones, but I have no idea where to start. I don't really know anything about gaming computers so any help would be appreciated.  Thank you

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Cynegetic Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 02 Dec 2016 Online Status: Offline Posts: 13	Quote Reply Topic: Help with a gaming computer :) Posted: 02 Dec 2016 at 10:59am
	Budget: The maximum I'd like to spend is $2000, but I'd prefer to keep it around $1800 if possible. Expectations: I want to be able to run most games on the highest settings in 1080p. I currently use two monitors (one for gaming and the other for web browsing and stuff). Usage: I currently play Final Fantasy XIV and World of Warcraft. I'd like to be able to run those on the highest settings at 1080p. I also pretty much always have 20+ tabs of chrome open and I watch streams constantly. Special Needs: I'm assuming I'd need a SSD, but I'd also like a 2TB hard drive to be included. I don't need any accessories. I will not be editing photos or rendering any videos. Pretty much just gaming and web browsing. The environment is roughly 70-75F. I looked at some of the prebuilt ones, but I have no idea where to start. I don't really know anything about gaming computers so any help would be appreciated. Thank you

bprat22 Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS ELITE DigitalStorm East -- (Unofficially!) Joined: 08 Jun 2011 Online Status: Offline Posts: 20391	Quote Reply Posted: 02 Dec 2016 at 11:32am
	Hi Cynegetic..... There are two ways to go..... One is the Vanquish Best, level 3, where I tweaked it for better SSD and HDD and a better Video card. For 1080p monitor, the gtx 1070 is the way to go.... Configuration Code: 1542385 Total Price with Instant Savings: $1,776.00 Direct Load URL: https://www.digitalstorm.com/configurator.asp?id=1542385 Specifications: Chassis Model: Special Deal Hot Seller - Digital Storm VANQUISH 5 Exterior Finish: - Standard Factory Finish Trim Accents: - Standard Factory Finish Processor: Intel Core i7 6700 3.4GHz (Codename Skylake) (Quad Core) (Not Overclockable) Motherboard: ASUS/GIGABYTE (Intel Z170 Chipset) System Memory: 16GB DDR4 2666MHz Digital Storm Performance Series Power Supply: 750W EVGA/Corsair Expansion Bay: - No Thanks Optical Drive: DVD-R/RW/CD-R/RW (DVD Writer 24x / CD-Writer 48x) (Internal) Storage Set 1: 1x SSD (500GB Samsung 850 EVO) <br><strong></strong> Storage Set 2: 1x Storage (2TB Western Digital - Black Edition) <br><strong></strong> Storage Set 3: - No Thanks RAID Config: - No Thanks RAID Card: - No Thanks Internet Access: High Speed Network Port (Supports High-Speed Cable / DSL / Network Connections) Graphics Card(s): 1x GeForce GTX 1070 8GB (EVGA ACX 3.0) (VR Ready) <br><strong></strong> Sound Card: Integrated Motherboard Audio HPC Processor: - No Thanks Extreme Cooling: High Performance Cooler with Large Fan and Copper Pipes HydroLux Tubing Style: - Not Applicable, I do not have a custom HydroLux liquid cooling system selected HydroLux Fluid Color: - Not Applicable, I do not have a custom HydroLux liquid cooling system selected Cable Management: Premium Cable Management (Strategically Routed & Organized for Airflow) Chassis Fans: Standard Factory Chassis Fans Internal Lighting: Remote Controlled LED Lighting System (Multiple color options and lighting effects) Airflow Control: - No Thanks Chassis Mods: - No Thanks Noise Reduction: - No Thanks LaserMark: - No Thanks Boost Processor: Standard Intel Turbo Boost 2.0 Automatic Overclocking Boost Graphics Card(s): - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my video card(s) Boost OS: - No Thanks, Please do not tweak the services on the operating system Windows OS: Microsoft Windows 10 Home (64-Bit Edition) Recovery Tools: Factory Reset Feature (Restore Windows + Drivers) (Partition up to 50GB of Storage) Virus Protection: FREE: McAfee AntiVirus Plus (1 Year Service Activation Card) (Not Pre-installed) ($35 Value) Office: - No Thanks Game: - No Thanks Display: - No Thanks Surge Shield: - No Thanks Speakers: - No Thanks Keyboard: - No Thanks Mouse: - No Thanks Branded Gear: - No Thanks Priority Build: - No Thanks, Ship Within 10-15 Business Days After Order Is Successfully Processed Warranty: Life-time Expert Care with 3 Year Limited Warranty (3 Year Labor & 1 Year Part Replacement) The second way to go is going over your budget but does give you the 760T Apollo case, a Gold rated vs Bronze rated power supply, and an overclocked cpu and better cpu cooler... Configuration Code: 1542380 Total Price with Instant Savings: $2,343.00 Direct Load URL: https://www.digitalstorm.com/configurator.asp?id=1542380 Specifications: Chassis Model: Special Deal Hot Seller - Digital Storm Apollo (White) Exterior Finish: - Standard Factory Finish Trim Accents: - Standard Factory Finish Processor: Intel Core i7 6700K 4.0GHz (Codename Skylake) (Unlocked CPU) (Quad Core) Motherboard: ASUS Z170-E (Intel Z170 Chipset) (Up to 4x PCI-E Devices) System Memory: 16GB DDR4 2666MHz Digital Storm Performance Series <br><strong></strong> Power Supply: 750W EVGA SuperNOVA <br><strong></strong> Expansion Bay: - No Thanks Optical Drive: DVD-R/RW/CD-R/RW (DVD Writer 24x / CD-Writer 48x) (Internal) Storage Set 1: 1x SSD (500GB Samsung 850 EVO) <br><strong></strong> Storage Set 2: 1x Storage (2TB Western Digital - Black Edition) <br><strong></strong> Storage Set 3: - No Thanks RAID Config: - No Thanks RAID Card: - No Thanks Internet Access: High Speed Network Port (Supports High-Speed Cable / DSL / Network Connections) Graphics Card(s): 1x GeForce GTX 1070 8GB (EVGA ACX 3.0) (VR Ready) <br><strong></strong> Sound Card: Integrated Motherboard Audio HPC Processor: - No Thanks Extreme Cooling: H20: Stage 2: Corsair H115i - 280mm Liquid CPU Cooler (Fully Sealed + No Maintenance) <br><strong></strong> HydroLux Tubing Style: - Not Applicable, I do not have a custom HydroLux liquid cooling system selected HydroLux Fluid Color: - Not Applicable, I do not have a custom HydroLux liquid cooling system selected Cable Management: Premium Cable Management (Strategically Routed & Organized for Airflow) Chassis Fans: Standard Factory Chassis Fans Internal Lighting: Internal Chassis Lighting System (Blue) <br><strong></strong> Airflow Control: - No Thanks Chassis Mods: - No Thanks Noise Reduction: - No Thanks LaserMark: - No Thanks Boost Processor: Stage 1: Overclock CPU - Up to 4.4GHz (Depends on Cooling and Motherboard) <br><strong></strong> Boost Graphics Card(s): - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my video card(s) Boost OS: - No Thanks, Please do not tweak the services on the operating system Windows OS: Microsoft Windows 10 Home (64-Bit Edition) Recovery Tools: Factory Reset Feature (Restore Windows + Drivers) (Partition up to 50GB of Storage) Virus Protection: FREE: McAfee AntiVirus Plus (1 Year Service Activation Card) (Not Pre-installed) ($35 Value) Office: - No Thanks Game: - No Thanks Display: - No Thanks Surge Shield: - No Thanks Speakers: - No Thanks Keyboard: - No Thanks Mouse: - No Thanks Branded Gear: - No Thanks Priority Build: - No Thanks, Ship Within 10-15 Business Days After Order Is Successfully Processed Warranty: Life-time Expert Care with 3 Year Limited Warranty (3 Year Labor & 1 Year Part Replacement) The Vanquish for your budget is your best bang for the buck and DS prices it that way because it doesn't have all the options of the Apollo in Configurator. The Apollo, and the reason to pick that would be to custom pick more parts, like the power supply, cooler , etc. Either build will give you what you want. Both builds will give very similar gaming performance, with the Apollo's overclocking giving you a few percentage points better in some games. If you're locked into the $1800 range than the Vanquish is great. You can't go wrong either way. The big thing is the gtx 1070 and better drives in both. Hope this helps and good luck. Edited by bprat22 - 02 Dec 2016 at 11:32am

Cynegetic Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List Newbie Joined: 02 Dec 2016 Online Status: Offline Posts: 13	Quote Reply Posted: 02 Dec 2016 at 11:53am
	Thanks for the quick reply. That helped quite a bit. I have a question though. Is liquid cooling a lot better or is it just quieter? It sounds really cool, but I'm just not sure if it's worth it. Thank you for all the help. I'm definitely leaning towards the Apollo :)

bprat22 Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS ELITE DigitalStorm East -- (Unofficially!) Joined: 08 Jun 2011 Online Status: Offline Posts: 20391	Quote Reply Posted: 02 Dec 2016 at 12:06pm
	My pleasure. I prefer air coolers over the liquid coolers for the air coolers reliability, no pump, liquid, firmware, etc. The liquid like the H115i, does allow for higher overclock and might be a little quieter if you adjusted their fans down. For the Apollo configs overclock, the air cooler works. Some swear by liquid coolers, being smaller and allowing CPU to run a few degrees cooler. They are pretty reliable. Even though the stage 1 air might run a few degrees warmer, the CPU is still well within the safe range, which is all to care about. Decades in field service has me leaning towards less to go wrong. Either cooler , in most cases, will make you a happy gamer, so your tough choice.

bprat22 Members Profile Find Members Posts Add to Buddy List DS ELITE DigitalStorm East -- (Unofficially!) Joined: 08 Jun 2011 Online Status: Offline Posts: 20391	Quote Reply Posted: 02 Dec 2016 at 12:08pm
	The reason for the SSD and HDD changes were to get more reliable drives with much longer warranty. The EVGA ACX 1070 is for EVGAs excellent support and the custom coolers zero rpm fans below about 64c.

Help with a gaming computer :)

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