[Robbie Ferguson]

The Vision:
Build a super-sleek computer as wedding/birthday gift for Sasha's soon-to-be hubby.

The Budget:
Up  to around $2,100 CAD (Roughly $1,700 USD)
NOTE: Interested in helping increase Sasha's budget? Send a contribution via our Tip Jar and mark it for Sasha's Computer Build.

Videos:











Hardware Criteria:

1. Full-sized Tower is fine.
   
2. Needs HDMI output for existing 4K 60" TV.
   
3. Fast and future ready.
   
4. Chassis should be very sleek/beautiful. LED's, visual appeal.
   
5. Chassis must have top or front USB 3.x ports.
   
6. RAID 1 for file storage, SSD for OS.
   
7. Linux compatible.
   
8. Wireless keyboard and mouse.
   

Possible Criteria:

1. Able to handle the future addition of VR goggles (such as Oculus Rift).
   

Software:

1. A Linux OS that is not too far of a stretch for a Windows user, but is sleek enough to impress guests with its flashy features.
   
2. Kodi video playback up to 4K.
   

Other Notes:

1. Does not need a monitor: will use the existing 4K 60" TV.
   

Shopping List (Subject To Change Based on Viewer Suggestions):

CPU
Intel 7th Gen Intel Core Desktop Processor i7-7700K (BX80677I77700K)
http://amzn.to/2w0IhhH ($429.90 CAD)

Motherboard
ASUS ROG MAXIMUS VIII HERO/Whetstone LGA1151 DDR4 DP HDMI M.2 U.2 USB 3.1 Z170 ATX with gaming mousepad Motherboards MAXIMUS VIII HERO/WHETSTONE
http://amzn.to/2vVc1Os ($262.99 CAD)

Cooler
Thermaltake Contac Silent 12 150W Intel/AMD with AM4 Support 120mm PWM CPU Cooler CL-P039-AL12BL-A
http://amzn.to/2w0SXg7 ($29.99 CAD)

RAM
Kingston Technology HyperX FURY Black 32GB 2666MHz DDR4 CL16 DIMM Kit of 2 (HX426C16FBK2/32)
http://amzn.to/2iquopL ($407.26 CAD)

Operating System M.2 SSD
Kingston Digital 240GB SSDNow M.2 SATA 6Gbps (Single Side) SM2280S3G2/240G
http://amzn.to/2w2H0YU ($141.15)

Data SATA SSD
Kingston HyperX Savage 960GB SSD SATA 3 2.5 (7mm height) Solid Sate Drive Bundle Kit (SHSS3B7A/960G)
http://amzn.to/2vpscQI ($487.04 CAD)

GPU
ASUS GeForce GTX 1070 O8GB Dual-fan OC Edition 4K/VR Ready Dual HDMI DP 1.4 Gaming Graphics Card (DUAL-GTX1070-O8G)
http://amzn.to/2g2RfH8 ($549.99 CAD)

PSU
Corsair RMx Series, RM850x, 850 Watt (850W), Fully Modular Power Supply, 80+ Gold Certified, 10 Year Warranty
http://amzn.to/2g2GrJi ($178.44 CAD)

Chassis
Thermaltake Versa C22 Black Edition
http://amzn.to/2fYY2ll ($99.99 CAD)

Keyboard/Mouse
TENMOS F1 Wireless Gaming Keyboard and Mouse Combo Set with Waterproof Keyboard and Wireless computer Mouse for Mac/PC/Laptop（Red&Black）
http://amzn.to/2uYGpc2 ($39.99 CAD)

Miscellaneous Supplies
ARTIC MX-4 Thermal Compound
http://amzn.to/2vWSueX ($5.99 CAD)

Total:
$2,632.73

OVER BUDGET by $532.73

Would you like to help Sasha by adding to her budget? Please donate to Sasha's Computer Build as a wedding gift to her and Dave: https://donate.category5.tv

Please post your suggestions, recommendations, and discussion.

[Sasha]

I'm open to any/all suggestions...this will be a real team build for us all!

[bigkitty]

good

[Nicd]

Have you thought about an AMD Ryzen processor? Unless the end user is mostly gaming or using some other predominantly single threaded workload (even games are going multicore though) and needs every frame, they are much better value and much more future proof, since they run around Intel in multitasking capabilities. A Ryzen 1700 is CAD $373.99. It also comes with a good cooler so you don't need a separate one. Double the cores and threads and it can be easily overclocked to somewhat lessen the single core performance difference.

Another thing to think about is the CPU socket. AMD's AM4 will be around till 2020 so you can upgrade CPU. Intel's 7700k is on the LGA 1151 socket that will probably be phased out soon (Intel likes to switch sockets all the time). So an upgrade would require a new mobo as well.

[lovedfriend]

I'm open to any/all suggestions...this will be a real team build for us all!

Hi sweet Sasha,

I am so sorry (I mean glad) you are getting married

I picked out your husband's PC and I picked 4 star only items! I am under $1,009.44 USD

The parts are NOT all from Amazon because I went by price and I was under the price you needed/wanted

Here are some ideas

https://pcpartpicker.com/builds/#page=1&X=100073,101328
https://pcpartpicker.com/b/ZcWXsY

https://pcpartpicker.com/b/QPjcCJ
https://pcpartpicker.com/b/ttGfrH
https://pcpartpicker.com/b/CRPscf
https://pcpartpicker.com/b/9GM8TW
https://pcpartpicker.com/b/ymJV3C
https://pcpartpicker.com/b/rByfrH


Here are my picks. I am sorry but I dont know anything about VR but I know you need a beast of a machine.

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/2KQnD8

[Robbie Ferguson]

Nicd:
The concern I have with Ryzen is that a number of Linux users are experiencing segfaults. The "bang for the buck" is very nice with those processors, but if it has issues, it's a risk. Have you personally had good experience with Ryzen? Nice that it includes the cooler at such a great price... that is indeed appealing.

Thanks for the tip regarding the socket. Yes, that's a very good point. And a new mobo also means, quite likely, new RAM.

If Sasha goes the AMD route for processor, how does that leave us for GPU?

[Robbie Ferguson]

Really great suggestions, lovedfriend.

Again, that's a +1 for Ryzen. Though the one you selected is probably under-powered for this build.

I am a little hesitant to go the route of an ASRock motherboard, as in my experience they are more of a "budget" board than a "good" board. If I was trying to build an extremely cheap system, I may go that route - but for this system I think we want to lean more toward quality than low cost, and find a happy medium.

I feel the same way about that video card. I am happy to go with EVGA (they make nice cards for the price) but the card itself seems grossly under-powered for this build.

Would love to hear back from you and other viewers about my comments above. Let's build from this... if we are going to go the Ryzen route (more power for the money) I want to make sure the other peripherals are up to the task.

I love the PCIe M.2 line from Kingston. Though the motherboard I'd picked (with the Intel chipset) has M.2 onboard, so no need for the riser. So we could choose the drive based on whether or not the board we go with has M.2 onboard. Another note, the larger capacity Kingston M.2's are faster, so I might lean toward a larger capacity. I'd also stay away from such a small spinning drive... really no point in adding something so miniscule. May as well just get a bigger M.2 at that rate, or stick a cheap SATA SSD in for data.

Thoughts? Thanks so much for the great list! Really has me thinking, along with Nicd's suggestion.... hmm....

[Robbie Ferguson]

Found this video specifically comparing the AMD 1700 vs. the Intel 7700K:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aNK7EtXrtjs

Really makes me want to look closer at the AMD stuff... what have you guys done?! :)

[Nicd]

Nicd:
The concern I have with Ryzen is that a number of Linux users are experiencing segfaults.

That's true. It seems to only manifest in heavy compilation loads with GCC though, at least that's my understanding. But AMD is working on it I hear. Personally I have run a VirtualBox on my Windows machine with an Ubuntu Linux guest (I know, not the same thing) and haven't had any issues. Very happy with my R7 1700.

As for the GPU, does it really change with what the CPU is? I think with Linux it mostly comes down to which has the best drivers.

[Robbie Ferguson]

As for the GPU, does it really change with what the CPU is? I think with Linux it mostly comes down to which has the best drivers.

Them's fighting words!  

Thanks for the feedback. I'm really interested in what you're saying about the R7 1700... wanna take a look at lovedfriend's shopping list and adapt it appropriately for the R7?