Please critique my specification

R

RobConway350

Member
I am looking for a significant upgrade to my home office/gaming pc. Budget is around £3k
None of my requirements are particularly high, but I don't want to have to keep upgrading things for a while and I like things to respond quickly.
My main usage is for 3D modelling (Fusion 360), coding and gaming.
My existing build is as follows:
i7-5820K @ 3.3GHz
Gigabyte X99-SLI-CF motherboard
32 GB RAM
GTX 980 Ti - now starting to glitch out
Running 2x Dell U2713HM 2560x1440 monitors

Here is my build:

Case
FRACTAL DEFINE 7 BLACK QUIET MID-TOWER CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ Ultra 7 20-Core Processor 265K (Up to 5.5GHz) 30MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® ROG STRIX Z890-F GAMING WIFI (LGA1851, DDR5, M.2 PCIe 5.0, Wi-Fi 7)
Memory (RAM)
96GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR5 5200MHz CL38 (2 x 48GB) KIT
Graphics Card
16GB MSI GEFORCE RTX 5070 Ti SHADOW 3X OC - HDMI, 3 x DP
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB CRUCIAL T705 GEN 5 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 14,500MB/sR, 12,700MB/sW)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1000W RMx SERIES™ ATX 3.1, MODULAR, CYBENETICS GOLD
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead, 1.0mm Core)
Processor Cooling
CORSAIR ICUE LINK TITAN 360 RX RGB HIGH PERFORMANCE CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
ONBOARD 2.5Gbe LAN PORT
Wireless Network Card
ONBOARD Wi-Fi 7
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 11 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10/11 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Firefox™
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (6 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 7 to 9 working days
Price: £2,765.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z890-pc/cgsJYk4WcD/


Edit: Added a few details and grabbed the full list of specifications (after reading the 'Read before posting' notes)
 
Last edited:
R

RobConway350

Member
From my limited reading of other suggestions, I am thinking that going Intel is a non starter these days. Also the new AMD chips which are becoming available are looking like a sensible choice too.
I will sit on this for a little while to see how it looks once the new supply hits the streets.
 
R

RobConway350

Member
So, switching to AMD looks like this:

Case
FRACTAL DEFINE 7 BLACK QUIET MID-TOWER CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D 16 Core CPU (4.3GHz-5.7GHz/128MB w/3D V-CACHE/AM5)
Motherboard
ASUS® ROG STRIX X870-F GAMING WIFI (AM5, DDR5, M.2 PCIe 5.0, Wi-Fi 7)
Memory (RAM)
96GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR5 5200MHz CL38 (2 x 48GB) KIT
Graphics Card
16GB MSI GEFORCE RTX 5070 Ti SHADOW 3X OC - HDMI, 3 x DP
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB CRUCIAL T705 GEN 5 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 14,500MB/sR, 12,700MB/sW)
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1000W RMx SERIES™ ATX 3.1, MODULAR, CYBENETICS GOLD
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead, 1.0mm Core)
Processor Cooling
CORSAIR ICUE LINK TITAN 360 RX LCD RGB HIGH PERFORMANCE CPU COOLER
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
ONBOARD 2.5Gbe LAN PORT
Wireless Network Card
NONE OR ONBOARD Wi-Fi (MOTHERBOARD DEPENDENT)
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 11 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10/11 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Firefox™
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (6 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 7 to 9 working days
Price: £3,084.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/tDUUY6JSZD/
 
T

TonyCarter

VALUED CONTRIBUTOR
I agree that the 9950X3D will be the best for both your gaming and rendering needs.

Do you have any drives that you're going to move over from the old machine? As I'd not put a 2TB T705 as my one and only drive. There's nothing wrong with the drive at all, but it's an expensive way to get more storage for games that won't benefit from the gen5 speeds.

You can easily get away with a 1TB version of the same and put in a 2-4TB (or 2x2TB) version of one of the Corsair SSDs for your work/play split.

Here's a slightly tweaked version of the AMD option:
Case
FRACTAL DEFINE 7 BLACK QUIET MID-TOWER CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 9 9950X3D 16 Core CPU (4.3GHz-5.7GHz/128MB w/3D V-CACHE/AM5)
Motherboard
GIGABYTE X870E AORUS ELITE WIFI7 (AM5, DDR5, M.2 PCIe 5.0, Wi-Fi 7) - higher level motherboard (X870E vs X870 of the Asus) for less money
Memory (RAM)
96GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR5 5200MHz CL38 (2 x 48GB) KIT
Graphics Card
16GB MSI GEFORCE RTX 5070 Ti SHADOW 3X OC - HDMI, 3 x DP
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB CRUCIAL T705 GEN 5 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 14,500MB/sR, 12,700MB/sW) - primary drive for Windows, apps, games launchers
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB SOLIDIGM P44 PRO GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 7000MB/sR, 6500MB/sW) - secondary drive for other stuff (games, modelling, coding); could also put a tertiary drive in the system if you want to keep the gaming separate
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1000W RMx SERIES™ ATX 3.1, MODULAR, CYBENETICS GOLD
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead, 1.0mm Core)
Processor Cooling
CORSAIR ICUE LINK TITAN 360 RX RGB HIGH PERFORMANCE CPU COOLER - LCD version is pointless if you're using a opaque case
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
ONBOARD 2.5Gbe LAN PORT
Wireless Network Card
NONE OR ONBOARD Wi-Fi (MOTHERBOARD DEPENDENT)
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 11 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10/11 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Firefox™
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour) - extra 6 months of C&R for only £5 extra
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 7 to 9 working days
Price: £3,010.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/gbkrhmsg78/
 
R

RobConway350

Member
Thanks for that; those are sensible comments.
Good call on the motherboard; I hadn't spotted that they were different.
I was going to add in another M2 drive for data but wasn't sure on which of the available options made sense.
I understand on the cooler/fans thing, but all the options seem to have pointless RGB and stuff that I will never see (that side of my case faces a wall). I had just picked one that sounded large enough.
Well spotted with the extra C&R
 
T

TonyCarter

VALUED CONTRIBUTOR
Well, there are enough m.2 slots to fit 4 SSDs in total, so you could have 1 SSD for Windows and 1 each for each of your specific needs (games/coding/modelling).
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top