Homework assignment for configuration gurus

Hey guys. I have a co-worker who is very passionate about gaming and I've been talking up DS and their special brand of wizardry. My associate has been primarily a console player (has 4 systems) and a DIY'er with his PC rigs.

He's been thinking about a new PC and we decided on a challenge: He'd put together his best effort on a budget and I would come with the best DS could do with the same cost.

(We have agreed that Lifetime Service, 4 year warranty, etc has a value and time saved from DIY is all a part of the challenge.)

Basically, post up your very best builds with the following parameters, please.




Budget:
$4,000 FIRM. That will include tax and shipping.

Expectations:
Stable OC, very high FPS (4k monitor x1), stay cool in a warmer ambient temp. (Noise not a concern)

Usage:
FPS games (HALO 5, COD, GTA V), AAA games (Fallout, Skyrim, etc), movies and anime

Special Needs:
No limitations other than 76°-79°f ambient temp. Clean environment (no smoke, animals, carpet office). Will be operating pretty much 24/7


He is a DIYer, so any machine that will really push the "WOW!" buttons would be best. Higher OC, more RAM, faster, better, cheaper.

Help me look good here, experts!!

what you need for good 4K: 

1) 2x GTX 980ti's (or Fury X)-expect to pay more for non-reference cards, and if you're oc'ing them then why wouldn't you?
2) I7-6700K
3) the best budget, sli-capable, overclocking mobo is probably the Asus Z170-A (although you will be sacrificing some other features like audio codec). 
4) 1000W psu
5) at least a good 240mm rad (i'd prefer a 360mm if pushing the oc) cooling for overclocking the cpu.

desirable: an Intel 750 NVMe PCIe ssd for faster loading of high rez textures/large maps.  system ram with an XMP.

do your own overclocking and save some money.  you can get this config in an Apollo for right around his 4k budget.    


Edited by db188 - 07 Nov 2015 at 9:56pm

Here's another choice.....so many ways to go. 

Config # 1312943       Cost $ 3698

Chassis Model: Special Deal Hot Seller - Digital Storm Velox
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 PRO GAMING (Intel Z170 Chipset)
System Memory: 16GB DDR4 2666MHz Digital Storm Certified Performance Series
Power Supply: 1000W Corsair HX1000i (Digitally Controlled Power)
Expansion Bay: - No Thanks
Optical Drive: DVD-R/RW/CD-R/RW (DVD Writer 24x / CD-Writer 48x)
Storage Set 1: 1x SSD (256GB Samsung 850 PRO)
Storage Set 2: 1x Storage (1TB Western Digital - Black Edition)
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): 2x SLI Dual (NVIDIA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB (ASUS Strix Edition)
Sound Card: Integrated Motherboard Audio
HPC Processor: - No Thanks
Extreme Cooling: H20: Stage 2: Corsair H100i GTX - 240mm Radiator Liquid CPU Cooler (Extreme Performance)
H20 Tube Color:- Not Applicable, I do not have a custom HydroLux liquid cooling system selected
Chassis Fans: Standard Factory Chassis Fans
Internal Lighting: - No Thanks
Airflow Control: - No Thanks
Chassis Mods: - No Thanks
Noise Reduction: - No Thanks
LaserMark: - No Thanks
Boost Processor: Stage 1: Overclock CPU 4.0GHz to 4.4GHz
Boost Graphics Card(s): - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my video card(s)
Boost Memory: - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my memory
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: Windows Recovery Toolkit (Bundled with Windows CD)
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
Portable Gaming: - 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 Velox case is the best air cooled case her, but is on backorder until December, so if the wait isn't wanted than the Apollo 760T, Corridium and Air 540 will all work great.  I picked the Velox even though I don't like the right side window/reversed mobo orientation, because with sli 980Ti Strix, the case will have less chance thermal issues.  The Strix 980 ti are excellent cards but will dump its heat into the case, so a good airflow case is preferable.

I went with more transitional storage.  Not as fast as the Pcie 750 series, but still plenty fast, cheaper and lots more cheaper storage on the HDD for things not utilizing the quickness of SSD, etc.

The motherboard is a tough one.  Depends on the options each have and what the customer really needs. 

1000 watt psu gives more headroom but the 850 watt would be ok.

You could save some money and select the i5-6600k cpu for gaming.  The 6700k does have hyperthreading and is preferable for just about everything else, but you might not see the difference.

Hope this helps.   All the builds posted are excellent. 





 

I like the 850 Pro for double the warranty and double the writes. Long term the Pro is a better buy to me. Although in the 512 size you can save $208 with the EVO.

Good point on the Velox case. The Velox does come with a premium cost.   

Frank

Edited by FrankW - 08 Nov 2015 at 7:33am

No problem, Snaike.   Our pleasure.   Wait till you get our consultation fee.

No worries.. I got this..

When Alex gifts me the new Envy Green Aventum 3 as a finder's fee, I'll let you look at is as long as you like. I'll even bring the cookies!