$2500 Digital Art Computer

Budget:
$2500 (though I can go a few hundred over with solid justification)

Expectations:
Looking for a solid PC to upgrade from my current iMac (first and last apple computer) that has a 256 mb graphics card and 4 gigs of ram, which consistently crashes photoshop. My BIGGEST want is to have a system that can continue to be relevant and upgradable as long into the future as possible, ideally well into the 4k res. era (Which I think is everyone's hope?...)

Usage:
3D modeling in Blender/Maya/Sculptress, texturing in Photoshop, with as much gaming as possible on the side.

Special Needs:
I am hooking this computer up to my 40" 1080p TV for now (not ideal I know), as I don't have a monitor since my iMac is both a computer and monitor, and I want to spend every current penny on this new hardware (and a new Wacom tablet)

I chose a water cooled, thoroughly overclocked i7, since to my understanding CPU power is well in advance of GPU power at present, so a high end current gen CPU will stay relevant longer into the future, while a current gen graphics card will become obsolete, or less expensive more quickly. (Let me know if this is a misunderstanding, or poor logic on my part)

I went with a beastly power supply and a single gtx 770 with the hope of getting a 2nd, 3rd, or perhaps 4th card some time in the future. The 770 seems to be the best value in the high end card arena, and the benchmarks for an SLI 2x 770 set up seem to substantially beat a single 780, for an only marginal increase in price.

Looking forward to any feedback from this awesome community!

Saved Ticket #: 857112

Specifications:
Chassis Model: Special Deal Hot Seller - Digital Storm ODE V3
Exterior Finish: - Standard Factory Finish
Trim Accents: - Standard Factory Finish
Processor: Intel Core i7 4770K 3.50 GHz (Unlocked CPU) (Quad Core)
Motherboard: ASUS Sabertooth Z87 (Intel Z87 Chipset) (Features Thermal Armor and Thermal Radar)
System Memory: 16GB DDR3 2133MHz Digital Storm Certified Performance Series (Highly Recommended) (Hand Tested)
Power Supply: 1050W Corsair Pro Silver 1050HX (Dual/Triple/Quad SLI Compatible)
Expansion Bay: - No Thanks
Hard Drive Set 1: Operating System: 1x (120GB Solid State (By: Corsair) (Model: Neutron GTX Series) (SATA 6Gbps)
Set 1 Raid Options: - No Thanks
Hard Drive Set 2: Multimedia\Data: 1x (1TB Seagate (7200 RPM) (64MB Cache)
Hard Drive Set 3: Backup\Misc.: - No Thanks
Optical Drive 1: DVD-R/RW/CD-R/RW (DVD Writer 24x / CD-Writer 48x)
Optical Drive 2: - No Thanks
Internet Access: Wireless PCI-E 802.11n Up to 300Mbps (Supports 802.11n/g/b) (Model: ASUS PCE-N15)
Video Card: 1x NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770 2GB (Includes PhysX)
Add-on Card: - No Thanks
Sound Card: Integrated Motherboard Audio
Extreme Cooling: H20: Stage 2: Digital Storm Vortex 240mm Radiator Liquid CPU Cooler (Extreme-Performance Edition)
H20 Tube Color:- Not Applicable, I do not have a FrostChill or Sub-Zero LCS Cooling System Selected
Chassis Airflow: Standard Factory Chassis Fans
Internal Lighting: - No Thanks
Enhancements: - No Thanks
Chassis Mods: - No Thanks
Noise Reduction: - No Thanks
LaserMark: - No Thanks
Boost Processor: Stage 2: Overclock CPU 4.5GHz to 4.8GHz (Requires Pro/Deluxe/Sabertooth Motherboard)
Boost Video Card: - 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 8 (64-Bit Edition)
Recovery Tools: Windows Recovery Toolkit (Bundled with Windows CD)
Virus Protection: - No Thanks
Office: - No Thanks
Game: - No Thanks
Display: - No Thanks
Surge Shield: - No Thanks <b></b>
Speakers: - No Thanks
Keyboard: - No Thanks
Mouse: - No Thanks
External Storage: - No Thanks
Exclusive T-Shirt: FREE: Digital Storm T-Shirt - Black (Large)
Priority Build: - No Thanks, Ship Within 10-15 Business Days After Order Is Successfully Processed
Warranty: Life-time Expert Customer Care with 3 Year Limited Warranty

Thanks for the advice and ideas!

So you think even with a 240mm radiator the stage 2 OC is just going to generate too much heat?

If you had the money I'd go with 6 cores, But I know that's not a option in your budget.

Originally posted by danjw1 The Sabertooth Z87 will not support more than 2-way SLI. For 4-way SLI on an Asus motherboard and the Haswell (Intel's current desktop processors) platform the only option is Maximus VI Extreme. The other thing to keep in mind is that the case will need 8 expansions slots. The case you have selected will support that. Beyond that, I would suggest changing the SSD to a ~256GB model. The Samsung SSDs are known to be very reliable.

Good catch on the SLI... I missed that part in original post about possibly going past 2x SLI.

Originally posted by gloryofthesky If you had the money I'd go with 6 cores, But I know that's not a option in your budget.

6-core would definitely be great for the 3D modeling, but probably would add $300-$500 more to the build.

I just did a quick lookup on Maya to see what people are recommending and most say stay away from SLI as it has more problems than single card. Depending on how much work you actually do in Maya & PS, you may want to consider going with nVidia Quadro. Autodesk Recommended Hardware link.

That should work out well for you. If your not doing really intensive 3D modeling or PS work, the 770 will work out great. Great plan with 4k - not really anything out currently that can handle 4k well (especially gaming) except multiple Titans...

SO, I am feeling pretty good about the latest version of the system that I posted, though I am still totally open to suggestions!

My final hang up is the GTX 770. Most of my gaming is LoL, SC 2, some Guild wars 2, etc. So basically none of the games I play are nearly as graphically intense as say Crysis 3, so I am wondering if paying the extra $300 for the 780 will net me much visible improvement with the games I am playing. I have seen some benchmarks, but they all focus around the really high end graphics games, so I havn't gotten a clear idea of how the 780 vs. the 770 will actually affect the games I play.

What are the community's thoughts?

Thanks in advance, and thanks again for being such an awesome community!

It is so refreshing to find a forum full of smart people who aren't ass hats

That is an awesome build you have goin there Ewing and it's gonna give your years of gaming fun.the GTX770 is a great card and as Fstcvc pointed out you can SLI it in the relative near future and increase that fun factor.the GTX770 is gonna give you gaming/performance on line with the previous generation's GTX680 (and a bit more) thanx to the GK104 chipset (same as in the 680) and the newest generation of Bio's ungrades. your gonna love that system my friend.

Originally posted by bprat22 Here's a link that compares the gtx 770 and 780 with various games and resolutions.   http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/829?vs=827   Gtx 770 is a best bang for the buck card.

Originally posted by Ewing ERMAGERD! Those benchmarks are exactly what I needed to see! Thanks everybody! So I'm going to stick with the 770. So....no relation to performance but, how about the $10 internal lighting? Is it noticeable? I mean for $10 why not its just another plink in the bucket, but does anyone have pics/a good thread link so I can see some cases with the lighting? I'm not getting a super clear idea from the DS pics. Thanks for the awesome responses all around! Feeling pretty darn good about the build!

The Cold-Cathode lights are okay and for $10 add a nice bit of color to your interior. If your after a little more attention, go for the LED lights (brighter than the CC lights) with remote & you can change your color plus different effects...

I like the look of the Virtue case (looks like a miniature HailStorm II). As long as you have proper and sufficient airflow, you shouldn't have issues with SLI in the Virtue. Plus, if you are using the standard coolers on the 770's (and not the ACX ones) most of the GPU's heat is pushed outside of the case. If you are concerned about internal case temps, keep the sealed looped CPU cooler as it will keep the ambient air inside the case lower. Stage 1 OC will also cut down on heat as well but keep the 240mm cooler. Cool CPU's are happy CPU's!

Hi Ewing..   The build looks great.

Looks like a very solid build! I agree with the others, a little more intake air would be helpful.

Originally posted by Tio If I'm not mistaken that unit also has a mount for either 120 or 140mm fan (or fans) on the inside mottom (just forward of the PSU) which would also be a good thing to add as it would direct air up into the GPU's. The addition of both the 140mm and another 140/120mm fan onto the bottom of the case create enough airflow to def. keep that rig cool. Give em a call and ask but I am pretty sure there is at least 1 mounting point inside on the bottom (say's it'll take up to 5 fans).

There is no bottom fan mount on this case. It is the Corsair 350D it has 2 120/140 mounts on the top, 2 120/140 mounts on the front and one rear 120 fan mount. The case comes with one 140mm front intake and one 120 rear exhaust fans. I presume that DS will install the radiator on the top, leaving one front fan mount empty. The power supply clearance is 200mm (presuming the lower drive bay is installed). The power supply is 200mm long, so not really any room for it anyway.

Edited by danjw1 - 09 Aug 2013 at 3:53pm