Splashing out on this one v soon I hope

G

[email protected]

Active member
Case
NZXT PHANTOM 410 WHITE GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Processor i7-7700k (4.2GHz) 8MB Cache
Motherboard
Gigabyte AORUS Z270X-Gaming 7 : ATX, LG1151, USB 3.1, SATA 6GBs - RGB Ready
FREE £20 Nando's Gift Card with SELECT GIGABYTE MOTHERBOARDS!
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3000MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
11GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1080 Ti - HDMI, 3x DP GeForce - GTX VR Ready!
1st Hard Disk
4TB WD BLACK 3.5" WD4004FZWX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE (7200rpm)
2nd Hard Disk
4TB WD BLACK 3.5" WD4004FZWX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE (7200rpm)
M.2 SSD Drive
1TB SAMSUNG SM961 M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3200MB/R, 1800MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Memory Card Reader
USB 3.0 EXTERNAL SD/MICRO SD CARD READER
Power Supply
CORSAIR 650W VS SERIES™ VS-650 POWER SUPPLY
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
Corsair H80i V2 Hydro Cooler w/ PCS Liquid Series Ultra Quiet Fans
Thermal Paste
ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND
Extra Case Fans
2x 120mm Black Case Fan (configured to extract from rear/roof)
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
ASUS USB-AC68 Dual-Band AC1900 USB Wi-Fi Adapter (Special Offer)
USB Options
2 PORT (2 x TYPE A) USB 3.1 PCI-E CARD + STANDARD USB PORTS
Operating System
Genuine Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Office Software
NO OFFICE SOFTWARE
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Firefox™
Monitor
IIYAMA XB3070WQS-B1 30" IPS LED 2560x1600 Widescreen
Keyboard & Mouse
ASUS Cerberus Gaming Keyboard
Cable Management
PCS 1.5M Zip Cable Tidy - Professional Cable Management
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FR
 
Oussebon

Oussebon

Multiverse Poster
What's your budget / how much is that coming to, and what will you be using it for? :)

I'm thinking there are some ways to potentially improve what you're getting and /or trim some cost off without affecting performance.
 
G

[email protected]

Active member
Oussebon said:
What's your budget / how much is that coming to, and what will you be using it for? :)

I'm thinking there are some ways to potentially improve what you're getting and /or trim some cost off without affecting performance.
Click to expand...

No particular budget. Mainly gaming - have reduced monitor
 
ubuysa

ubuysa

The BSOD Doctor
Do you really need a 1TB M.2 SSD? Most user data generally doesn't benefit much from being on an SSD and 1TB looks to be way over spec for Windows and programs (which do benefit from the SSD speeds). For most people a 512GB M.2 SSD is more than plenty big enough and it's almost £120 cheaper than the 1TB.
 
G

[email protected]

Active member
ubuysa said:
Do you really need a 1TB M.2 SSD? Most user data generally doesn't benefit much from being on an SSD and 1TB looks to be way over spec for Windows and programs (which do benefit from the SSD speeds). For most people a 512GB M.2 SSD is more than plenty big enough and it's almost £120 cheaper than the 1TB.
Click to expand...

Understand where you are coming from - just I know you always end up needing more space down the road. Something to consider
 
Oussebon

Oussebon

Multiverse Poster
So that spec comes to £2,840.00 not including the monitor.

For most people a 512GB M.2 SSD is more than plenty big enough and it's almost £120 cheaper than the 1TB.
Click to expand...
Alternatively if the OP wants a 1TB SSD they can go with the PM961 which is almost as fast for a saving of £91. Storage speed isn't an issue for games performance so shouldn't be an issue there.

I would suggest a spec like this instead, which would be more powerful for less £:


Case
NZXT PHANTOM 410 WHITE GAMING CASE
Overclocked CPU
Overclocked Intel® Core™i7-7700k Quad Core (4.20GHz @ up to 4.8GHz)
Motherboard
ASUS® ROG STRIX Z270E GAMING: LG1151, USB 3.1, SATA 6GB, Wi-Fi - RGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
11GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1080 Ti - HDMI, 3x DP GeForce - GTX VR Ready!
1[SUP]st[/SUP] Hard Disk
5TB SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 128MB CACHE
2[SUP]nd[/SUP] Hard Disk
5TB SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 128MB CACHE
M.2 SSD Drive
1TB SAMSUNG PM961 M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3000MB/R, 1700MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Memory Card Reader
USB 3.0 EXTERNAL SD/MICRO SD CARD READER
Power Supply
CORSAIR 850W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
Corsair H100i V2 Hydro Cooler w/ PCS Liquid Series Ultra Quiet Fans
Thermal Paste
ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND
Extra Case Fans
2x 120mm Black Case Fan (configured to extract from rear/roof)
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
ASUS USB-AC68 Dual-Band AC1900 USB Wi-Fi Adapter ()
USB Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Genuine Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Office Software
NO OFFICE SOFTWARE
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year 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
Quantity
1

Price £2,585.00 including VAT and delivery

Unique URL to re-configure : https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z270-overclocked/hE7Xm!PjzK/

~£250 cheaper.

It has an OCed CPU and faster RAM, which will help with performance, giving significant gains in some titles.

There's no point to 32gb RAM for gaming. There's between 0 and very little difference from 8gb to 16gb - 16gb is futureproof, 32gb is just a waste.

The WD Black HDDs are super expensive. A 5TB regular HDD is £63 cheaper, 1TB larger, and probably faster for some things too. And you're buying 2 of them, so savings there.

Unless there are particular features you need off the AORUS motherboard, I'd suggest a less expensive one like the Z270E. It's already very expensive and is stuffed with features. The AORUS is £50 more for which you get Thunderbolt (do you need Thunderbolt?) and a £20 Nandos voucher.

As above, the PM961 offers nearly all the performance of an SM961 for almost £100 less. One of the most prolific posters on this forum Keynes recently weight up the two 1TB drives and opted for the PM961 - I don't believe he's regretting that one bit.
8176_33_samsung-pm961-1tb-2-nvme-pcie-ssd-review.png7970_28_western-digital-blue-1tb-sata-iii-ssd-review.png

You probably don't need that USB card as the motherboards and case already have a lot of USB ports.

Note that the Z270E has built-in wifi. You may want to try that out before buying a separate wifi card / USB adapter as if it's sufficient for your needs that's another £55 savings.

The H100i V2 cooler is a good bit more effective than the H80i.

The RM850x is much, much better build quality and quieter than the VS 650. It will also open up SLI as an option for 4k gaming.

The savings are either £250 more in your pocket, or extra funds to get a much better monitor.
 
Last edited:
G

[email protected]

Active member
Going to run through some of this tonight before pressing the button. Many thanks all for your advice.

Will probably go for the 16GB of faster Ram as at least one change ( I can always add Ram in future), Also changed the M2 SSD as suggested and one drive now changed for cheaper 5tb

Don't see overclocked CPU on the drop down list
 
Last edited:
SpyderTracks

SpyderTracks

We love you Ukraine
[email protected] said:
Going to run through some of this tonight before pressing the button. Many thanks all for your advice.

Will probably go for the 16GB of faster Ram as at least one change ( I can always add Ram in future), Also changed the M2 SSD as suggested and one drive now changed for cheaper 5tb

Don't see overclocked CPU on the drop down list
Click to expand...

There's a separate overclocked section.
 
Oussebon

Oussebon

Multiverse Poster
Same thing but not overclocked and with a cheaper cooler since you don't need a super expensive cooler to run a stock clocked CPU:


Case
NZXT PHANTOM 410 WHITE GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™i7 Quad Core Processor i7-7700k (4.2GHz) 8MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® ROG STRIX Z270E GAMING: LG1151, USB 3.1, SATA 6GB, Wi-Fi - RGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
16GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
11GB NVIDIA GEFORCE GTX 1080 Ti - HDMI, 3x DP GeForce - GTX VR Ready!
1[SUP]st[/SUP] Hard Disk
5TB SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 128MB CACHE
2[SUP]nd[/SUP] Hard Disk
5TB SATA-III 3.5" HDD, 6GB/s, 7200RPM, 128MB CACHE
M.2 SSD Drive
1TB SAMSUNG PM961 M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3000MB/R, 1700MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Memory Card Reader
USB 3.0 EXTERNAL SD/MICRO SD CARD READER
Power Supply
CORSAIR 850W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
CoolerMaster Hyper 212X (120mm) Fan CPU Cooler
Thermal Paste
ARCTIC MX-4 EXTREME THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY COMPOUND
Extra Case Fans
2x 120mm Black Case Fan (configured to extract from rear/roof)
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
USB Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Genuine Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365
Anti-Virus
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 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
Quantity
1

Price £2,431.00 including VAT and delivery

Unique URL to re-configure : https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z270-pc/!y65F5Z!EM/
 
Viper

Viper

Gold Level Poster
Oussebon said:
Note that the Z270E has built-in wifi. You may want to try that out before buying a separate wifi card / USB adapter as if it's sufficient for your needs that's another £55 savings.
Click to expand...

Using this wifi, absolutely perfect with my set up :)
 
Oussebon

Oussebon

Multiverse Poster
If you don't need a specific feature that the Z270E doesn't have, then stick with the Z270E. If you do need something that it doesn't provide, what is it?
 
G

[email protected]

Active member
Just reading up and you are probably right in that the ASUS will probably do the job. So before I commit then the Asus ROG Strix is enough without needing higher up the range? Would certainly help having WiFi built in
 
Oussebon

Oussebon

Multiverse Poster
The Z270E has USB 3.1 including type C, 2 x M.2 slots, build in wifi and BT 4.1, RGB lighting, decent onboard sound, and supports Nvidia GPUs in SLI. It costs about £200 retail (that's quite expensive for a Z270 mobo).

The AORUS has Thunderbolt and no wifi and is £50 more expensive (plus a £22 wifi card). So unless you really need thunderbolt, you probably don't need the AORUS. The Asus Hero has support for LN2 cooling (and no wifi), so unless you're cooling your CPU with liquid nitrogen, you probably don't need that. Etc.

In all honesty I can't think of something you're likely to find yourself missing with the Z270E. There's no real point to buying a more expensive mobo just because it's more expensive - they're only worth it if you need something you're paying for.
 
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