New System From DS question

Budget:
$2500-$3000

Expectations:
Longevity of at least 5 years.

Usage:
Light photo editing, gaming 1440p res & 4k res in the later future.

Special Needs:
I have an absolute abhorrence to OS & program update waiting times. I also hate unwanted system changes, so I use a program called Deep Freeze by Faronics, which protects the master boot file. My college uses it to prevent IT nightmares, so I followed suit once I got my laptop back in 2013. I'll be installing it as well on any new system I purchase here from DS. Bloatware is another thing I want to avoid. I dislike the computer manufacturers, such as ****, who install all of these "system check" software programs or other stuff that runs and unnecessarily eats up system resources. I've had Win7 aero themes go off due to low system resources on the ********* despite having 16 GB ram and a 2.4 GHz i7 quad-core CPU! I also prefer that a desktop does not sound like an AC unit.

Saved Ticket #: None at this time

Specifications:

I've been messing around with and gaming on computers since the late 80's. I still have a working Apple IIc. Second system was a Compaq Presario with a Pentium 120Mhz(still works). Third system was a **** XPS T500 with a PIII-500Mhz(still works, too). My most recent system was an ********* 17 laptop, which is a monster(and a bit noisy at times), but a pain to do updates due to the slow 5400rpm hard drive.

The desktop system I want to get needs to be flexible & upgradeable with room to grow. I'm unable to decide between an i7 6700 or X99 system. X99 seems to have the advantage of more PCI lanes or something like that with the higher end cpu's, but my understanding of this benefit is lost since I never really delved into computer tech that far. How does a Z170 vs X99 hold up in regards to future-proofing/technological life expectancy?

Motherboards I'm not well versed in. Potential for SLI should be available on it. Wireless would be a luxury & not a necessity since it is going to be a stationary desktop. 64 Gb RAM max potential should be enough since I do not intend to ever make it a server. However, at some point I do intend to set up 1-2 virtual machines, if possible(Win98 & XP).

Cooling: I'm not much of an overclocker. The most I would use is the automatic turbo boost for the cpu. So while I do want reliable cooling for an environment that might get a little warm(80-85 deg. F), I don't want to be going overboard with it. The system case should have a slight negative pressure(i.e. more air going out than in).

Lighting: No need for a Christmas tree.

Fans: Noctua fans would be nice. I'm surprised they do not offer them here without the need for special order.

Video card power/performance is a bit lost on me as well. I was looking at Asus STRIX 980Ti 8Gb DDR5, but not sure on how that would fare with gaming at 1440p.

Storage is up in the air right now. I was thinking about a single 1 Tb SSD Samsung EVO. Mechanical drives are cheap, but are slow as molasses whenever you want to migrate hundreds of GB of data, do software updates, etc. I won't even mess around with RAID configs because of the potential headaches(and there are MANY). On the other hand, I've read that SSDs, besides being much more expensive, may have the potential of data loss over time with years of use. A possible scenario I'm concerned about: programs sometimes do hang to the point where you just say screw it and do a hard reboot. How would a SSD handle something like this compared to a mechanical drive?

My undecided choice system:
Slade II
i7 6700 or 5820K cpu
16Gb RAM to start.
980Ti 8 Gb DDR5
1 Tb Samsung EVO SSD as boot/primary drive

That's about all I can think of at this time. Any input/suggestions would be both helpful and welcomed!






competitor's names removed...


Edited by Snaike - 24 May 2016 at 2:10am

Just as an aside. DS systems come with zero bloatware. The clean simplicity of the new machine is a sight to behold.   

https://www.digitalstorm.com/configurator.asp?id=1419580

Okay, so what you can do is replace the drives with the single 2TB. You can also drop the PSU down to the 750W unit is you do not intend to go with multiple graphics cards.

For the RAM, what you can do if you want really fast performance is set up a RAM-drive in a partitioned portion of the memory and load frequently used applications into it. RAM prices fluctuate a lot...recently they've been going downward, but there was a good long while where the were stagnate and even increasing at points. There is no reason to believe that RAM prices will continue to drop, especially considering they have razor thin margins so their prices are very much influenced by external forces. If you got an 8GB or 16GB kit, you could possibly get a 64GB memory kit for the amount saved, but if you got it through DS, they will have tested and made sure the system works before you received it, so you wouldn't risk having to go through the RMA process.

And for the fans, silentpcreview.com recommends the Phanteks PH-F140HP and Scythe GlideStream 120 for airflow fans. I would play around with ASUS' automatic fan profile configuration and tweak it to your liking. If you want to try to change the fan on the GPU radiator, take a look at the Gentle Typhoon and the EK Vardar fans.

Edited by  - 26 May 2016 at 12:39am

When it comes to overclocking, in my opinion you reach a point where it becomes more of a liability. The last system I overclocked was a Pentium 120Mhz where it was just a simple matter of rearranging a couple of jumpers on the motherboard. Nowadays you have to tweak voltages and a bunch of other stuff, and if you really want to see an improvement, you really have to push the cpu and spend even more for adequate cooling. I'm not opposed to overclocking, but like I said, it can reach a point where its more of a liability and you're just better off getting a new system with higher specs and a faster cpu. Plus its getting a bit too technical for me.

On the issue of RAM, I see the 2666, 2800, 3000, and 3200 Mhz modules. If I'm not going to be crazy with overclocking, or not bothering at all with it, is there any benefit to selecting 2800 or 3000 compared to 2666 Mhz RAM modules?

The SladeII(Corsair Carbide Quiet 400Q) case is rather bizarre. I was looking at the specs on Corsair's website. I understand the PS unit goes into the bottom backside, but then they have another structure in front of the PS housing, which leaves very very little room for a fan to function efficiently. From what it looks like, the elevation of the front fan is possible so that most of the air intake flow isn't being obstructed, but what if you want to have 2x 140mm fan intakes?

I'm curious about how efficient a cooling solution for this case would be if I opted for 2x 140mm fan as front intake(lower rpm), AIR: Stage 2: Noctua NH-D15 for cpu, and 2x 140mm(higher rpm) for exhaust on the top? I might throw in another 120mm exhaust fan for the back so that the 2x 140mm top exhaust fans can be run at lower rpms and still maintain a negative pressure inside the case. Keep in mind I'm not going to be going overboard with overclocking the cpu, if I ever choose to do so.
If I use the Corsair Airflow Performance Edition($99) for both the air intake & exhaust in the above setup, how much noise is this going to generate?

with no hard drive/optical drive cages in the way you don't need static pressure fans, so the Corsair Air Series fans that DS sells should perform quite well.  there are better/quieter fans on the market but you'd have to special order them thru DS or yourself. 

imo, if you are getting the Corsair 400Q it is because it's a quiet case.   therefore i wouldn't put fans in the top, because you'd have to remove the top (insulated) cover in order for them to be effective.  that in turn is counter productive to the design/intent of the case. 

the psu and 3.5" drive bay covers are removable if you don't like them.  i'm fairly certain Corsair has factored in any airflow drawbacks associated with them.  from the pics on their site it does look like there is some height adjustment available to the front intake fans to either clear the shroud or lower it to blow air thru the shroud.  i'm not sure which is the optimal fan positioning. 

you probably lose a little cooling performance but gain acoustic performance by running 2x140mm intake fans over the other option of 3x120mm fans.