Hardware & Technical Computer Build to run Elite Dangerous

richard_uk

R
New Build PC - Advice on Spec

Hi Guys (and girls)

I've been planning on building a new PC for sometime as my wife has taken over my old one and I've been using a laptop with monitor and keyboard for the last few years. I only get the PC back at nights and weekends to do a bit of gaming!

Wth the release of Elite I'd been planning a new build although it's not really for Elite as, much to my suprise, my old PC with an i7-870 and GTX760 runs the game just fine (or at least it has in Beta and Gamma). Anyway, I've never built my own system before and would welcome any advice on my selection/combinaion of components.

This is the spec I'm looking at -

Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z97X-UD5H
CPU: Intel i7 4790
RAM: HyperX 16Gb 1600mhz
GPU: Gigabyte GTX970
SSD: HyperX 240Gb
HDD: WD 2TB SATAIII
Case: Cooler Mater Elite 334U
PSU: Corsair RM750

I'm wondering if a GTX 970 is a overkill? It is the most expensive component.

Thoughts or suggestions most welcome.

Thanks.
 

Riktar

Riktar
Overkill is subjective regarding the GTX 970. You can (obviously) get away with a "lesser" card for less money, but until Nvidia releases the GTX 960 (Maybe 1st qtr 2015) you would be hard pressed to find better "bang for your buck" value when you measure it up against ANY other card.

And when it comes to Computer cases, I am just crazy happy with My Cooler Master HAF XB EVO (Amazon Link) case. Sure it wont fit in a "standard" tower enclosure but if you are just placing the case on a open desk or table you will be hard pressed to find a more versatile case.
 

Remo

Remo
Currently running

AMD 965 Be 3.6ghz
16 gig 1600mhz ripjawx
Asus crosshair IV
128gb ocz ssd + 650gb hdd
Xi-Fi platinum soundblaster
Nzxt hades case
850watt ocz psu
2x r7 260x in crossfire.

4 year old now but its good enough for most and should last another couple of years until I can save up for another with Occlus in mind
 

mohoc

mohoc
Finished my build last week:

Mobo: Gigabyte X99-UD4
CPU: i7-5820 @ 4.2 Ghz (still tuning, aiming for 4.5)
Ram: 16Gb DDR4 @ 2400 (Crucial Ballistix Sport 4x4)
GPUs: 2x Asus Strix GTX 980 (and a third on order)
SSD: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB (OS Drive), Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB (Star Citizen and Elite only)
HHDs: 6 older WD Green 1TB drives in a Raid 10 for general non-gaming storage
PSU: Corsair AX1200i
Case Corsair 750D
Display: Asus PB287Q (4K monitor)
HOTAS: X52 Pro with Combat Pedals
VR: Oculuts Rift DK2

First time I spent more than $1500 on a PC. I can run E:D with Max everything and MSAA on at a constant 60 FPS (caped at monitor refresh).

If you are wondering if this is overkill? Why yes, but I won't have to upgrade for probably 6-7 years and I am planning on 2 more 4K monitors and a Voltair Sim Cockpit and an X55 setup.
 

mohoc

mohoc
It took 2 years of saving and then patiently waiting for components to go on sale at Mircocenter during Black Friday sales. I really wanted to wait on the GPUs, but in the end I saw no point in keeping my "old" GTX770 and gave in. My old PC will go to my nephew for Xmas this year. His PC died 3 weeks ago. I saved his hard drive for him, so he will have the all his old data.
 
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Riktar

Riktar
mohoc said:
Finished my build last week:

Mobo: Gigabyte X99-UD4
CPU: i7-5820 @ 4.2 Ghz (still tuning, aiming for 4.5)
Ram: 16Gb DDR4 @ 2400 (Crucial Ballistix Sport 4x4)
GPUs: 2x Asus Strix GTX 980 (and a third on order)
SSD: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB (OS Drive), Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB (Star Citizen and Elite only)
HHDs: 6 older WD Green 1TB drives in a Raid 10 for general non-gaming storage
PSU: Corsair AX1200i
Case Corsair 750D
Display: Asus PB287Q (4K monitor)
HOTAS: X52 Pro with Combat Pedals
VR: Oculuts Rift DK2

First time I spent more than $1500 on a PC. I can run E:D with Max everything and MSAA on at a constant 60 FPS (caped at monitor refresh).

If you are wondering if this is overkill? Why yes, but I won't have to upgrade for probably 6-7 years and I am planning on 2 more 4K monitors and a Voltair Sim Cockpit and an X55 setup.
Click to expand...
This whole thread had me thinking about computer cost, value, etc. so I dug up my receipt from the first computer I ever bought. This was from a local retailer:

CPU: 386DX (No weak kneed sx for me) 40mhz
Memory : 2 meg (Twice as much as my friend's 1 meg machine - HAH!)
20 meg hard drive (At the time I wondered how I would EVER fill up something that BIG)
OS: Dos 6.2 (Ah the days of batch files and command line)
NO soundcard (Didn't care, I was mesmerized by the bleeps and bloops just as they were)
Keyboard

And that was it. No monitor, no printer. And I got it on sale for,,,,, wait for it,,,,,,,, wait for it,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

$1587.42 with tax

And consider this was with "1992" dollars. Anyone want to run the inflation figure for what that would be today?

My how things have changed,,,,,,,,,,,
 

Sniger

S
Main Rig:
MB: Asus P8Z68-V
CPU: i5 2500K @4,0 GHz
Ram: 2*8GB Kingston HyperX 1866 MHz
GPU: Asus Strix nv970 GTX
Screen: Sony 32" HDTV 1920*1080@60Hz VSynced
Asus Phoebus Audio > Denon 1308
Crucial M4 SSD 256 GB :Win7 pro
Crucial M500 SSD 480 GB : games/video recording
Internal storage: 2 * Seagate dm001 3 TB
PSU: 650W (old OEM thingy, but amazingly stable)
Case: Lian Li (something.. it's ancient)
Externals:
Logitech G710+, Razer Naga 2014, Saitek X55 Hotas
Linksys EA6200 > 60/60 Fiber
Qnap 269 : 2 * WD red 4 TB
HD-Homerun dual TV tuner

Runs ED Gamma 1,05 at solid 60 FPS
 

Seaker

Seaker
I purchased my first PC in about 10 years 2 months ago, having come back from a 360 and Laptop for this game :)

I couldnt afford all the latest stuff, and it took me months to save up to what I could afford!

The idea was to get myself a basic system, then over time upgrade it into a better machine.

Currently
AMD A8
8 GB 1600 Ram
1TB HDD
stock psu
stock case
running into a 37" Screen :)

It runs Far 4 and the combat trainer for ED at a playable rate - so that I am happy with.

At some point in the new year, I will replace the psu with one I can trust! and add a graphics card and another 8 GB Ram - then I should have a system that will do all I want for a while.
 

mohoc

mohoc
Riktar said:
This whole thread had me thinking about computer cost, value, etc. so I dug up my receipt from the first computer I ever bought. This was from a local retailer:

CPU: 386DX (No weak kneed sx for me) 40mhz
Memory : 2 meg (Twice as much as my friend's 1 meg machine - HAH!)
20 meg hard drive (At the time I wondered how I would EVER fill up something that BIG)
OS: Dos 6.2 (Ah the days of batch files and command line)
NO soundcard (Didn't care, I was mesmerized by the bleeps and bloops just as they were)
Keyboard

And that was it. No monitor, no printer. And I got it on sale for,,,,, wait for it,,,,,,,, wait for it,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

$1587.42 with tax

And consider this was with "1992" dollars. Anyone want to run the inflation figure for what that would be today?

My how things have changed,,,,,,,,,,,
Click to expand...


My first computer was an Amiga 500+, but I used to play on my friends C64 all the time. I don't remember how expensive they were, since I was pretty young, but the first x86 PC we had in our apartment was a 486 @ 33Mhz with 4MB of Ram. The first PC I bought and build was a Pentium 60, with (If I remember correctly) 8MB of Ram.

- - - - - Additional Content Posted / Auto Merge - - - - -

Sniger said:
Main Rig:
MB: Asus P8Z68-V
CPU: i5 2500K @4,0 GHz
Ram: 2*8GB Kingston HyperX 1866 MHz
GPU: Asus Strix nv970 GTX
Screen: Sony 32" HDTV 1920*1080@60Hz VSynced
Asus Phoebus Audio > Denon 1308
Crucial M4 SSD 256 GB :Win7 pro
Crucial M500 SSD 480 GB : games/video recording
Internal storage: 2 * Seagate dm001 3 TB
PSU: 650W (old OEM thingy, but amazingly stable)
Case: Lian Li (something.. it's ancient)
Externals:
Logitech G710+, Razer Naga 2014, Saitek X55 Hotas
Linksys EA6200 > 60/60 Fiber
Qnap 269 : 2 * WD red 4 TB
HD-Homerun dual TV tuner

Runs ED Gamma 1,05 at solid 60 FPS
Click to expand...

That is a nice solid rig.
 
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Remo

Remo
mohoc said:
Finished my build last week:

Mobo: Gigabyte X99-UD4
CPU: i7-5820 @ 4.2 Ghz (still tuning, aiming for 4.5)
Ram: 16Gb DDR4 @ 2400 (Crucial Ballistix Sport 4x4)
GPUs: 2x Asus Strix GTX 980 (and a third on order)
SSD: Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB (OS Drive), Samsung 840 Pro Series 128GB (Star Citizen and Elite only)
HHDs: 6 older WD Green 1TB drives in a Raid 10 for general non-gaming storage
PSU: Corsair AX1200i
Case Corsair 750D
Display: Asus PB287Q (4K monitor)
HOTAS: X52 Pro with Combat Pedals
VR: Oculuts Rift DK2

First time I spent more than $1500 on a PC. I can run E:D with Max everything and MSAA on at a constant 60 FPS (caped at monitor refresh).

If you are wondering if this is overkill? Why yes, but I won't have to upgrade for probably 6-7 years and I am planning on 2 more 4K monitors and a Voltair Sim Cockpit and an X55 setup.
Click to expand...

That is an amazing rig and very similar to one a have been designing and drooling over. I take my hat off to you, you're gonna have some fun with that
 

mohoc

mohoc
Remo said:
That is an amazing rig and very similar to one a have been designing and drooling over. I take my hat off to you, you're gonna have some fun with that
Click to expand...

It would not have happened before Xmas, if Microcenter had not had the mobo and CPU on sale at the same time ($100 off the CPU, $90 off the mobo), and then took off another $40 for buying them together. Case was $60 off as well, plus a $30 mail in rebate. Only thing I ended up paying full price for was the DDR4, which seems to just get more expensive every week and the GPUs ($570 each). I already had my cooling system and PSU sitting at the house, because I was going to fix my nephews PC, but it turned out easier to just finally pull the trigger on this build and give him my old rig. Drives are all out of my old rig, just moved over with a fresh OS install.
 
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Radamanthe

R
I am far below minimum requirements :

CPU : AMD Athlon 64 Dual Core (this is quite old !)
RAM : 4GB
GPU: Nvidia GTX 660

And to my surprise : maximum details -> ~60hz

Really, any gamer should not worry about his hardware setup for ED. The engine is very well optimized.
 
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KillingTime

KillingTime
http://www.overclock.net/lists/display/view/id/4733525

That's my machine, I don't have the nerve to add up how much I've spent on that over the last few years, it's certainly more than my car! Didn't build it for elite mind you, in fact I don't really play many games, I just like to tinker with the machine as I do like it to look good and run a min of 60 fps when I do want to play.

Also, anyone with a high end 700 or 900 series nvidia card and running a 1080p or 1440p monitor should enable DSR super sampling for added loveliness as it's essentially a full screen anti aliasing technique and drastically improves on the available in game options. This needs to be enabled in the nvidia control panel. You could do it for 4k too but not sure at what point you'd run out of VRAM. My rig dropped down to 40-50fps when rendering at 5120 x 2880 (4x 1440p) probably due to the 3GB VRAM limit of my 780ti's so on a 4k monitor you might struggle to go much higher.

SLI/X-fire never works as well as the manufacturers would have you believe so always go with the best single card before adding more.
 

dalek501

dalek501
I know very little about computer building... well ok... nothing! My Son has had money given to him for Christmas and is itching to spend it on a computer build. I wonder if anyone more knowledgeable than me would have a look over some items he has been looking at.

View attachment 6659

Bearing in mind I know nothing and he is 12, does this look ok? He basically wants to run things like Battlefield and Arma in 1080p at good frame rates (50-60?) in high quality. I will probably use it for ED too so if it will play ED at the same sort of levels I would be happy too!

Another thing to mention would be that he wants to upgrade in the future so will this spec allow upgrading?

Thank you for any help!
 

dalek501

dalek501
Thank you. He is at the edge of his budget but we will see what we can do. Do you know if the motherboard is ok for future updates?

Edit:

This is a new spec he has come up with:

AMD (Piledriver) FX-6300 3.50GHz (4.10GHz Turbo) Socket AM3+ 6-Core Processor - Retail - 77.99
Gigabyte GA-970A-DS3P AMD 970 ATX Motherboard - 48.42
8GB Arianet (1x8GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz DIMM Memory - 51.31
500GB Seagate Barracuda ST500DM002 3.5" SATA III Hard Drive - HDD - 34.74
Asus GTX 750Ti OC 2GB Nvidia PCI Express Graphics Card - 112.79
Sharkoon VG4-W Mid Tower PC Gaming Case with Window, Blue LED Fans + USB 3.0 - 29.39
600W EVGA 600B, 85% Eff', 80+ Bronze Quiet Power Supply - PSU - 47.99
LiteOn 24x Internal SATA DVD RW Drive [IHAS124-14] - 11.16
Total Price Without OS : £413.79

Does this seem ok/upgradeable?
 
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adoredtv

adoredtv
dalek501 said:
Thank you. He is at the edge of his budget but we will see what we can do. Do you know if the motherboard is ok for future updates?

Edit:

This is a new spec he has come up with:

AMD (Piledriver) FX-6300 3.50GHz (4.10GHz Turbo) Socket AM3+ 6-Core Processor - Retail - 77.99
Gigabyte GA-970A-DS3P AMD 970 ATX Motherboard - 48.42
8GB Arianet (1x8GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz DIMM Memory - 51.31
500GB Seagate Barracuda ST500DM002 3.5" SATA III Hard Drive - HDD - 34.74
Asus GTX 750Ti OC 2GB Nvidia PCI Express Graphics Card - 112.79
Sharkoon VG4-W Mid Tower PC Gaming Case with Window, Blue LED Fans + USB 3.0 - 29.39
600W EVGA 600B, 85% Eff', 80+ Bronze Quiet Power Supply - PSU - 47.99
LiteOn 24x Internal SATA DVD RW Drive [IHAS124-14] - 11.16
Total Price Without OS : £413.79

Does this seem ok/upgradeable?
Click to expand...

Get the R9 270 instead of the 750 Ti.
 
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