I am currently planning to build a PC. The PC will be mainly used for 3D related works such as 3DsMax. At the same time, I also plan to use it for Unreal Engine 4. Here are the main specs. (System Stability is the key for me)
Intel Core i7-6800K
Corsair H115i Liquid Cooler
Asus X99-A II
G.Skill TridentZ 32GB (4 X 8GB) DDR4-3200
Samsung 850 Pro 1TB 2.5" SSD
WD Black 2TB
Asus GeForce GTX1070 OC version
EVGA 750W 80+ Gold
Windows 7 64 bit
Although I have asked for advices in other PC forums, I do want to ask them here as well mainly because the PC will be used for Unreal Engine 4 work. So any advices here will be greatly appreciated.
I might OC the CPU to 4Ghz and keep it there as default. I know some people say that a 4Ghz OC is nothing, but I still want to check that the system will remain stable. After all, sometimes tasks like rendering will also use 100% of the CPU for extended times.
I picked out the RAM kit because of quality to ensure stability. (Maybe also because of the speed). But I am not sure exactly is it worth the extra price increase. I also picked it because it explicitly says that it is a Quad Channel Kit, which I fell I should take advantage of since I am on X99. Some kits that are also 4X8GB is Dual Channel, so I was careful around those.
The video card. Tough choice… For UE4 work, I plan to work on some open world map with cities. I know lightings like Dynamic GI needs GPU power. But I might not arrive at that point in my UE4 work just yet. So I was thinking of delaying getting any GPU while waiting for newer GPU to come out. Meanwhile, I will use my old GTS450 until I really need an upgrade. While I know that it will work with my Mobo, I am not sure will the mobo configure that PCI slot to suit an old GFX card. Then by the time I get a powerful card, I will need to manually tweak it back to normal. (I know this sounds like a weird question, but I had to ask to make sure.)
I feel like there are more questions, but I will keep it at this for now. Thanks for the advices.
There wont be any new GPUs for a while, besides maybe a 1080ti, which shouldn’t really change the prices of other GPUs much.
The GTX1070 is a great card and is a good performance per dollar value at the high end, but if you are looking to run UE4 or games at 1440p or 4k, or at 1080p at 120hz, or VR, the GTX 1080 makes more sense with how much you are spending already on the rest of the build.
For ram, you don’t need to buy a quad kit to run it in quad channel. You can easily run different brands at and sticks in quad channel pretty easily, but you should use the same voltage and speed. So don’t look exclusively for a 4x kit when you could get 2 2x kits.
Yes I am planning to run 1440p for now because 4K doesn’t really work for the version of application that I am using. I have considered the GTX1080 before but am afraid that if I got it now, there really isn’t much use for it yet. After all, my projects on UE4 may not reach that stage where GPUs really matter until some time later. If I stick to my old GTS450, Then if a more powerful GPU came out by the time my project progresses further, then it can probably handle stuff like dynamic GI better. But of course if GTS450 cannot run UE4 properly, I will consider a new card now.
As for the ram, I read some interesting posts on some PC forums. It appears there is conflict between members who view it is better on the long run to get specific quad channel key rather than four sticks of dual channel due to issues like timing or stability of the four sticks while working together. Some says it is ok. So it’s great to hear feedbacks here about this too.
