DrEskimo Build / GA-Z87-UD4H / Intel i7-4770k / GTX 770 2GB

[DrEskimo]

Hello,

I was tempted to build a gaming PC but have always used Mac OS so was put off the idea. I then decided that a new desktop computer (use a MacBook Air as my daily driver) would be ideal for work at home. Decided I could kill two birds with one stone and build a PC with two SSD's, one for Mac OSX and one for Windows.

After months and months of research I decided on the part list below.

• Gigabyte Z87-UD4H Motherboard
• Intel Core i5-4690K
• MSI GTX 770 Twin Frozr
• G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 8GB (2 x 4GB) DDR3-1866MHz
• 2x Samsung EVO 256GB SSD
• Corsair RM650 Watt Power Supply
• Corsair H75 CPU Cooler
• Fractal Design R4 Case (Black)
• TP Link WDN4800 Wireless Card
• A bunch of SP120 and AF140 Corsair fans

Any thoughts or comments welcome. Will keep you posted on the build and hopefully help anyone else out with an issues I come across as I go along!


Cheers


Edit 1

Updated the RAM to G.Skill Ripjaws X Series. This is because of known problems with Corsair RAM in Haswell builds and this memory module is in the UD4H supported RAM list.

Edit 2

Have decide to downgrade to i5 CPU and only 8gb of RAM after research on my application and usage. Could not justify the additional cost!

 

[DrEskimo]

Hello!

Been far too long since I started this thread, and I have still yet to purchase my Motherboard or CPU! I've therefore been having some thoughts about changing the CPU and Motherboard, and would really appreciate your thoughts.

As you can see originally I was going for the Z87 Gigabyte (UD4H) board with a Haswell CPU. Since then, both the Z97 and Haswell refresh has been released.

I have been debating whether to;

a/ just stick with Gigabyte Z87 and Haswell

b/ go with Gigabyte Z87 and Haswell refresh and add a purchase of an older cheaper Haswell CPU to flash BIOS

c/ go with ASUS Z97 and Haswell Refresh, since success with ASUS Z97 seems very encouraging. I was looking at the ROG Maximus VII Ranger, but have yet to see a user build with this specific board


The reason for the change from the UD4H to the ASUS Ranger is mainly price. Looks like the UD4H is becoming harder to buy, and getting more expensive, compared to the ASUS Ranger. Option c is therefore, not only using the most recent tech, but also is the most cost effective solution.

Cheers guys