Gaming and streaming. Budget £2k - £2.5k

Associate
Joined
25 Nov 2018
Posts
38
Hi everyone

So, for far too many years I've had pretty rubbish computers, mostly with onboard graphics and only being able to play games that are years old and/or on the lowest of the lowest settings. Which I was ok with, but with the multitude of games out and coming out, I want to enjoy them! That and my current PC is now firmly on it's way out!

I am taking the plunge into getting a new high(ish) end computer that I want to use for gaming (a broad spectrum of games) and for streaming/recording my gaming. I've been reading the great advice you guys are giving on this forum, but I'll be honest that I am at a loss on where to start.

I am looking at a system that will see me good for at least 3+ years and have some decent future proofing (as best as can be with PC tech I guess) when I need to upgrade the components inside around that time or longer if the build holds.

I won't be building this, I'll be using the OC custom build option.

I don't need a mouse or keyboard, I have a Phillips 227ESL monitor which I know I'll need to lose for a game worthy screen, and that's all I have right now.

I have no real preferences other than it being an Intel CPU, with either a 1080ti or the 2080 series graphics card and from what I am reading the RAM to be at least 16Gb 3200mhz. I'd like it to be as quiet as possible with good airflow (I live in a pretty dusty environment) and not overly worried/bothered about external aesthetics. I am indifferent when it comes to the RGB stuff.

With the budget, the total can be inclusive with the monitor or without as I don't mind holding on to the one I have until sometime early in the new year to grab one in a sale. So 2-2.5k with monitor or 2-2.5k without monitor. I'll be planning to purchase sometime during the coming week.

Help me OC Kenobi, you're my only hope!

Seriously though, thank you in advance for any support, advice and guidance! And if you need more information, I'll be refreshing constantly to answer any questions!
 
Soldato
Joined
1 Dec 2015
Posts
18,514
Use your current rig as the streaming screen and the main gaming one... for gaming :)

8 core and 8 threads, vega 64 and 1440p 144hz freesync PC wouldn't spending full budget!
plus 3 free games

My basket at Overclockers UK:
Total: £1,732.08 (includes shipping: £23.10)

top end, intel 9700k + gtx 1080ti + 1440p 144hz g-sync

My basket at Overclockers UK:
  • 1 x OcUK Tech Labs Coffee Lake Pro Gaming Configurator = £2,010.77
    • Motherboard:Gigabyte Z390 Aorus Elite Intel Z390 (Socket 1151) DDR4 ATX Motherboard
    • Processor:Intel Core i7-9700K 3.6GHz (Coffee Lake) Socket LGA1151 Processor - OEM
    • CPU Cooler:Alpenfohn Matterhorn Pure Edition CPU Cooler - 120mm
    • Memory:Team Group Vulcan T-Force 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 PC4-24000C16 3000MHz Dual Channel Kit - Grey (TLGD416G30
    • M.2 Solid State Drive **For Operating System If Selected**:Unwanted
    • Solid State Drive 1:WD Blue 3D NAND 500GB 2.5" SATA 6Gbps Solid State Drive (WDS500G2B0A)
    • Solid State Drive 2:Unwanted
    • Mechanical Hard Drive 1:Seagate BarraCuda 1TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache HDD - *System Stock*
    • Mechanical Hard Drive 2:Unwanted
    • Optical Drive **Please Check Chassis Support**:Unwanted
    • Power Supply:Bitfenix Whisper M Series 850W 80 Plus Gold Modular Power Supply
    • Soundcard:Unwanted
    • Network Adapter:Unwanted
    • Case Lighting:Unwanted
    • Operating System:Microsoft Windows 10 Home Advanced - Systems
    • Security Software:Unwanted
    • Build Time:Standard Build Systems - Dispatched within 7 working days
    • Headset:Unwanted
    • Keyboard:Unwanted
    • Mouse:Unwanted
    • Speakers:Unwanted
    • Monitor:Unwanted
    • Gaming Chair:Unwanted
    • Case:be quiet! Dark Base 700 RGB Midi Tower Case - Black Tempered Glass ** FREE DARK ROCK 4 COOLER **
    • Graphics:Gigabyte Aorus GeForce GTX 1080TI 11264MB GDDR5X PCI-Express Graphics Card
    • Graphics 2 (SLI/Crossfire):Unwanted
  • 1 x Asus PG278QR ROG Swift 27" 2560x1440 TN G-Sync 165Hz Gaming Widescreen LED Slim Bezel Monitor Black= £518.99
Total: £2,552.86 (includes shipping: £23.10)
 
Associate
OP
Joined
25 Nov 2018
Posts
38
Thank you

I've looked at the build, sadly I won't be keeping the PC I currently have as that will be going on to a nephew to wreck, quite literally! So it'll just be this PC for gaming and streaming at the same time. So I've added on the Elegato HD60 pro (out of stock currently but will wait or but elsewhere if not in within the next few days) so that I can stream/capture as that seems to be one of the best on the market at the moment?

So I've tweaked the shopping basket as some of the items are now out of stock and I've looked at the reviews on some of the parts, where I just felt they were too low a score I've swapped those out.

Is it worth having an optane motherboard? Does it really provide that much of a benefit given my tweaking of the build? Or would you guys suggest a different board?

I've swapped the case as I forgot to mention needing an optical drive, is the 750d airflow a step up or down? Any alternatives for same lower price?

Is the M.2 drive worth it? An extra £15 to then go from 250 to 500 seemed like a good deal and I hear good things about the M.2 drives. Would the M.2 be of benefit in a gaming/streaming rig?

The SSD, for an extra £10 is the Samsung 860 EVO 500GB better or no real difference between WD?

Is it worth having a sound card? Or are we at a point with onboard sound now that the difference isn't that big of a deal?

The reviews for the power supply weren't that great, so have swapped that.

I'd like to post my shopping basket so you guys can see what I've switched around and want to hear your thoughts or any changes you'd make, but I don't know how to post it.
 
Soldato
Joined
1 Dec 2015
Posts
18,514
?? whisper is a tier one unit ……. anything tier one that you have a budget for it good. granted its at the lower end of tier one along with 7 year warranty is pretty good.

Gigbayte/.aorus are best boards for £££ for z390 platform. build like nothing else. one thing that lets them down is bios. budget z390 £100 boards are better then most £250 z370 boards :)


there 3 types of m.2 , for storage is Sata 3 and NVMe. you'll see no real gaming difference between NVMe and SATA 3 for pure gaming .

most prefer Samsung for SSD as market leaders

Optane is just intel memory/storage stick. either speeds up HDD or acts like NVMe storage
 
Associate
OP
Joined
25 Nov 2018
Posts
38
Thank you for the video. Definitely a worthwhile and insightful watch.

This is another tweaked basket, a couple of out of stock items that I am hoping will be in before the week is out so I can order, if not I guess I'll have to tweak this again.

My basket at Overclockers UK:
  • 1 x Elgato Game Capture HD60 Pro Capture Card - PC (1GC109901002)= £169.99
  • 1 x OcUK Tech Labs Coffee Lake Pro Gaming Configurator = £2,254.72
    • Motherboard:Gigabyte Z390 Aorus Pro Intel Z390 (Socket 1151) DDR4 ATX Motherboard
    • Processor:Intel Core i7-9700K 3.6GHz (Coffee Lake) Socket LGA1151 Processor - OEM
    • CPU Cooler:Corsair Hydro Series H100i PRO RGB Performance Liquid Cooler - 240mm
    • Memory:Team Group Vulcan T-Force 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 PC4-24000C16 3000MHz Dual Channel Kit - Grey (TLGD416G30
    • M.2 Solid State Drive **For Operating System If Selected**:Samsung 970 EVO Polaris 500GB M.2 2280 PCI-e 3.0 x4 NVMe Solid State Drive
    • Solid State Drive 1:Samsung 500GB 860 EVO SSD 2.5" SATA 6Gbps 64 Layer 3D V-NAND Solid State Drive (MZ-76E500B/EU)
    • Solid State Drive 2:Unwanted
    • Mechanical Hard Drive 1:Seagate BarraCuda 1TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache HDD - *System Stock*
    • Mechanical Hard Drive 2:Unwanted
    • Optical Drive **Please Check Chassis Support**:OcUK Value Blu-ray / DVDRW combi SATA - OEM
    • Power Supply:Seasonic Focus Plus 850W 80 Plus Platinum Modular Power Supply
    • Soundcard:Unwanted
    • Network Adapter:Unwanted
    • Case Lighting:Unwanted
    • Operating System:Microsoft Windows 10 Home Advanced - Systems
    • Security Software:Unwanted
    • Build Time:Standard Build Systems - Dispatched within 7 working days
    • Headset:Unwanted
    • Keyboard:Unwanted
    • Mouse:Unwanted
    • Speakers:Unwanted
    • Monitor:Unwanted
    • Gaming Chair:Unwanted
    • Case:Corsair Obsidian 750D Airflow Full Tower Case - Black (CC-9011078-WW)
    • Graphics:Gigabyte Aorus GeForce GTX 1080TI 11264MB GDDR5X PCI-Express Graphics Card
    • Graphics 2 (SLI/Crossfire):Unwanted
Total: £2,440.61 (includes shipping: £15.90)

Is the 500GB M.2 overkill when there's a 500GB SSD in the build on top of the 1TB HDD?

There is no sound card, for the build you suggested and what I have tweaked. Is the onboard sound sufficient?

I went for the seasonic PSU as the extra £10 gets a 10 warranty, maybe I'm being overzealous but the whisper PSU on a few other sites didn't have as great a review average as the seasonic.

I was torn between the pro and elite motherboard, couldn't decide to literally flipped a coin between the two. Would like to hear everyone's thoughts on which would be the better option.

Hopefully the out of stocks are in before the end of the week so I can gets something put through.

Thanks again.
 
Soldato
Joined
1 Dec 2015
Posts
18,514
Pro has the better audio then Elite , so shouldn't need a sound card . If your rocking 8 core intel might get away without the capture card. rule of thumb capture cards are always better, specially when they are on a cheap basic second rig .
Personally rather get a Large SSD dive whether that's in M.2 format or Sata plug.

then again I have nvme drive for OS and nvme drive for games and another one for back up- but didn't have to pay for them and still wouldn't . Single large 1tb drive should have you rocking :D

single 2TB SSD Sata 3 based :)

also changed Copper+ Aluminum for bequiet Full Copper CLC

My basket at Overclockers UK:
  • 1 x Elgato Game Capture HD60 Pro Capture Card - PC (1GC109901002)= £169.99
  • 1 x OcUK Tech Labs Coffee Lake Pro Gaming Configurator = £2,313.77
    • Motherboard:Gigabyte Z390 Aorus Pro Intel Z390 (Socket 1151) DDR4 ATX Motherboard
    • Processor:Intel Core i7-9700K 3.6GHz (Coffee Lake) Socket LGA1151 Processor - OEM
    • CPU Cooler:be quiet! Silent Loop Superior Liquid CPU Cooler - 240mm
    • Memory:Team Group Vulcan T-Force 16GB (2x8GB) DDR4 PC4-24000C16 3000MHz Dual Channel Kit - Grey (TLGD416G30
    • M.2 Solid State Drive **For Operating System If Selected**:Unwanted
    • Solid State Drive 1:Samsung 2TB 860 EVO SSD 2.5" SATA 6Gbps 64 Layer 3D V-NAND Solid State Drive (MZ-76E2T0B/EU)
    • Solid State Drive 2:Unwanted
    • Mechanical Hard Drive 1:Seagate BarraCuda 1TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache HDD - *System Stock*
    • Mechanical Hard Drive 2:Unwanted
    • Optical Drive **Please Check Chassis Support**:Unwanted
    • Power Supply:Seasonic Focus Plus 850W 80 Plus Platinum Modular Power Supply
    • Soundcard:Unwanted
    • Network Adapter:Unwanted
    • Case Lighting:Unwanted
    • Operating System:Microsoft Windows 10 Home Advanced - Systems
    • Security Software:Unwanted
    • Build Time:Standard Build Systems - Dispatched within 7 working days
    • Headset:Unwanted
    • Keyboard:Unwanted
    • Mouse:Unwanted
    • Speakers:Unwanted
    • Monitor:Unwanted
    • Gaming Chair:Unwanted
    • Case:Corsair Obsidian 750D Airflow Full Tower Case - Black (CC-9011078-WW)
    • Graphics:Gigabyte Aorus GeForce GTX 1080TI 11264MB GDDR5X PCI-Express Graphics Card
    • Graphics 2 (SLI/Crossfire):Unwanted
Total: £2,499.66 (includes shipping: £15.90)​
 
Associate
OP
Joined
25 Nov 2018
Posts
38
Which other z390 motherboard would anyone recommend that is currently in stock with similar features for similar price? As the build above? As sadly quite a few boards are out of stock and I'd like to look some alternatives just in case the board above isn't in stock when it comes to me making my purchase.

Thanks
 
Soldato
Joined
1 Dec 2015
Posts
18,514
Which other z390 motherboard would anyone recommend that is currently in stock with similar features for similar price? As the build above? As sadly quite a few boards are out of stock and I'd like to look some alternatives just in case the board above isn't in stock when it comes to me making my purchase.

Thanks

My basket at Overclockers UK:
Total: £840.55 (includes shipping: £12.60)​
 
Soldato
Joined
5 Nov 2011
Posts
5,362
Location
Derbyshire
Why do you need the elgato card if you are gaming and streaming from the same machine? You can just use a free software like OBS to capture the window/program and have a far tidier solution.
 
Associate
Joined
8 Oct 2018
Posts
277
Location
Bolton
Most streamers use OBS btw OP. Its really good open source software. Elgatos are mainly so console youtubers and streamers can record gameplay
 
Associate
OP
Joined
25 Nov 2018
Posts
38
I thought I needed the capture card? (PS. Did I mention I was a total n00b :eek:)

So I can do without the card and just use OBS?

That certainly saves a few quid
 
Associate
Joined
8 Oct 2018
Posts
277
Location
Bolton
I thought I needed the capture card? (PS. Did I mention I was a total n00b :eek:)

So I can do without the card and just use OBS?

That certainly saves a few quid
Yes OBS is fine. you can have different scenes on hotkeys to switch from game to intermission and facecam etc. Lots of features. Have a mess with it first. its free. and if you need watch you videos on it. tons of beginner tutorials on youtube
 
Soldato
Joined
1 Dec 2015
Posts
18,514
if your streaming well, Capture card will ALWAYS beat solely using CPU to do the muscle work .

If you want the Highest frame rate for yourself and your reviewers, you use a capture card. Technically you use a capture card in a second rig running all the capture software.

But depends on the level of quality you want to produce, show,spend etc .

In theory could drop down to 6 core and overclock to 5ghz and use capture card . if going software would slap Ryzen 2700x and maunally OC all cores to 4.2ghz

worth a GOOD read .

https://www.gamersnexus.net/hwrevie...paste-delid-gaming-benchmarks-vs-2700x/page-3
 
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