Expert perusal of spec appreciated

[JPT]

Dear experts,

Monitor – Aiming for LG UltraGear 27GR93U (4K IPS monitor). Aim would be to run my existing 2560×1600 monitor alongside for work related stuff. Opted for IPS given apparent issues with 4K OLEDs and blurry text.
Uses – Dual use – one as WFH machine primarily office-based stuff with possibly some imaging processing/AI but in the main as a system to off-load-steam by 4K gaming.
Budget – up to £4K. Prepared to spend but like value for money/return.

Value expert opinion on component selection for performance based PC-

MORE VALUE FOCUSSED OPTION:

PCSPECIALIST - Configure the AMD Am5 PC to your ideal requirements.

PCSpecialist is an award-winning manufacturer of high quality custom PCs & Laptops. Configure the AMD Am5 PC to your ideal requirements.

www.pcspecialist.co.uk

FULL-FAT OPTION:

PCSPECIALIST - Configure the AMD Am5 PC to your ideal requirements.

PCSpecialist is an award-winning manufacturer of high quality custom PCs & Laptops. Configure the AMD Am5 PC to your ideal requirements.

www.pcspecialist.co.uk

Some further questions:

1) Worth upgrading to 7950x3d? I am veering though toward 7800x3d however given dual use plans. Or should I jump ship to intel...?
2) Not in huge rush to get the computer. Any particular time of year pcspecialist is cheaper?
3) Case and fans - any views? Took inspiration from this video

. Any views on iCUE link vs. standard RGB from corsair? Or other fan providers? I am neither pro RGB or adverse to it. Case is going to sit to the right of the desk on floor so "views" might be a little restricted. So might drop the LED strips as they are just vanity additions unless people think they are worth it.
4) Power supply - think this is sufficient for either configuration but happy to take views.
5) 4080 super vs. 4090. I appreciate the frame/£ is better for the former but 4K with 4090... well if you are going to sin your soul, sin it well, as they say.
6) Do PC specialist send you any of the component boxes (e.g. GPU) in case want to sell on later with accessories etc.?


Many thanks,

J

 

[TonyCarter]

In both cases you're spending money on OC versions of GPUs which add very little to the performance for the premium.

Also, on both builds, you've mixed & matched on the fan types. I'd recommend going all iCUE Link, or zero iCUE Link.

This is where I'd be with the FULL FAT build...and it includes a full suite of iCUE Link gear for minimal cabling (AIO, front fans, exhaust). It also gives you the 4090 and the 7950x3D...and another 2TB of storage (to keep your games storage separate from 'work' storage) for £50 less than the original FULL-FAT build.

Case
CORSAIR 5000D AIRFLOW TEMPERED GLASS GAMING CASE - same case as the 5000X, but with a mesh front rather than glass, and no fans so you can avoid the mix of fan/controller types
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D 16 Core CPU (4.2GHz-5.7GHz/144MB w/3D V-CACHE/AM5) - only worth it if you have something that needs the extra cores
Motherboard
ASUS® ROG STRIX X670E-A GAMING WIFI (AM5, DDR5, PCIe 5.0, Wi-Fi 6E) - overkill, but the budget is there
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair DOMINATOR TITANIUM DDR5 6400MHz (2 x 16GB) KIT - overkill again, unless you're chasing the extra 1%
Graphics Card
24GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 4090 - HDMI, DP - pointless going for the OC versions
Graphics Card Support Bracket
NONE (BRACKET INCLUDED AS STANDARD ON 4070 Ti / RX 7700 XT AND ABOVE)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
512GB SOLIDIGM P44 PRO GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 7000MB/sR, 4700MB/sW) - small, fast drive JUST for Windows and Apps
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB SOLIDIGM P41+ GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 4125MB/sR, 3325MB/sW) - drive for game installs only
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB SOLIDIGM P41+ GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 4125MB/sR, 3325MB/sW) - drive for productivity/AI/modelling/editing/etc.
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1200W RMx SHIFT SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS GOLD, ULTRA QUIET - newer ATX3 / PCIE5.0 PSU means less cables for the GPU too
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead, 1.0mm Core)
Processor Cooling
CORSAIR ICUE LINK H150i RGB HIGH PERFORMANCE CPU COOLER - the newest/quietest/single-controller kit that daisy chains to reduce cable clutter
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Extra Case Fans
4 x Corsair ICUE LINK QX120 RGB PWM Fan + Controller Kit - slots into same controller/cabling as the AIO
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
ONBOARD 2.5Gbe LAN PORT
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)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 4 to 6 working days
Price: £3,827.00 including VAT and Delivery
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/8wnqVgs4We/

 

[JPT]

Great thanks so much for these thoughts - extremely helpful. Happy enough with non-OC versions although think they may be out of stock (at least for the 4080).

Any thoughts on iCUE and whether it is worth it? Would be great to hear from others who have this kind of set up.

I am neither for / against "fairy lights" / RGB. If there was money to be saved though would entertain a plain case with plain fans provided it delivered same cooling performance.

best J

 

[TonyCarter]

Great thanks so much for these thoughts - extremely helpful. Happy enough with non-OC versions although think they may be out of stock (at least for the 4080).

Any thoughts on iCUE and whether it is worth it? Would be great to hear from others who have this kind of set up.

I am neither for / against "fairy lights" / RGB. If there was money to be saved though would entertain a plain case with plain fans provided it delivered same cooling performance.

best J

Unfortunately components come in & out of stock all the time...I had to change my PSU at the last minute on my build last month.

I went for the whole iCUE Link infrastructure as I've had a positive experience with the older iCUE system in my old build...but didn't like the rat's nest of wiring everywhere (especially in my previous small case). The newer iCUE Link system resolves this somewhat, with fans that simply click together and have a cable at one end going to the controller (vs a cable from each fan).

The only significant differences between mine and your's is the case and the CPU (I've got the 7800x3D as it's purely a gaming PC).

There won't be a significant saving by going for non-RGB gear (maybe £50-£100), as PCS don't stock many non-RGB fans anyway - and nothing in the AIO options (which you'll want to keep, but could drop to a H115i for £20 saving)...but you don't necessarily need lots of case fans if the case has good airflow...although I'd avoid the cheaper PCS case fans as they can be a bit noisier.

I've got 10 iCUE Link fans in my new build, and there's little sign of the cabling. It runs at <60ºc when gaming, and the fans are silent at that temp due to the fan profile I've set up in the iCUE software. The only ones that run all the time are the AIO fans and pump.

 

[JPT]

V. nice rig and a beast....

I can see the benefits of the lights and not much clutter as you say. You have persuaded me!

The Corsair 6500X case looks pretty deep as well (don't think it is on PC specialist as an option though and further whilst I can have something tall can't have something too wide as the computer needs to sit under the desk).

J

 

[TonyCarter]

V. nice rig and a beast....

I can see the benefits of the lights and not much clutter as you say. You have persuaded me!

The Corsair 6500X case looks pretty deep as well (don't think it is on PC specialist as an option though and further whilst I can have something tall can't have something too wide as the computer needs to sit under the desk).

J

No, it's not on the PCS configurator...yet...maybe not ever, but they did offer the previous generation dual-chamber 680X.

I bought it elsewhere and used the 'send in your own case' option on the configurator, but the onus is on the customer to ensure the components are physically compatible with the case.

I went for this as I found my iCUE 220T case was a bit cramped with the 4090 and some extra add-in cards. Here are the two, side by side for comparison - you can see how large the 4090 seems in the little case, compared to how small it looks in the previous pictures of it in the new case

 

[TonyCarter]

Don't forget that you can get all the benefits of the iCUE Link system, but simply turn off the lighting (or just have it set up to light up red when you hit a specific high temp).

 

[JPT]

Sorry for late reply - busy work week and haven’t had time to circle back to thinking hard on the PC. have been doing a fair bit of reading on the case and icue link. love the idea of the tidiness offered by both so definitely thinking on heading that way. The 5000D has good airflow qualities as well. I do note the open design of the Thermaltake P6 case but knowing how much my current dust filter picks up dust wise think that would be a recipe for disaster (at least for me).

Swaying a bit toward the 7800x3d as not sure I will use the full multicore capability of the 7950x3d.

Also tossing around whether to go for the ASUS TUF vs STRIX. motherboard. Latter does look pretty mind in the photos above with the silver accents….

J