Top-end System Build

[ddrueding]

Got my first order for a 1080 build. Current thoughts ($3000+):

ASUS GeForce GTX 1080 Founders Edition GTX1080-8G 8GB GDDR5X PCI Express 3.0

Intel Boxed Core i7-6850K Processor (15M Cache, up to 3.80 GHz) FC-LGA14A 3.6 6 BX80671I76850K
Corsair Dominator Platinum Series 64GB DDR4 DRAM 3000MHz C15 Memory Kit for Intel
Samsung 950 PRO Series - 512GB PCIe NVMe - M.2 Internal SSD (MZ-V5P512BW)
ASUS uATX X99-M WS dual PCI-E 3.0 x16 DDR4 USB 3.1 with Bluetooth /audio /802.11ac Wi-FI onboard
SilverStone Technology 600W SFX Form Factor 80 PLUS GOLD Full Modular Power Supply with +12V single rail, Active PFC (SX600-G)
Corsair Hydro Series H100i v2 Extreme Performance Liquid CPU Cooler , Black
Lian Li PC-O5S PC-O5SX Black Aluminum Mini Wall-Mountable Chassis

It doesn't seem like anyone is currently listing a 1080 with integrated water cooling. I've seen videos from tech shows, but none listed on Amazon.

 

[Mercutio]

Why Skylake over all the cores, extra RAM and PCIe lanes you can shove in an LGA2011 system?

 

[ddrueding]

It is just an absurd gaming box. Additional cores beyond 4 is nearly useless. Max clock (and IPC) is key. Only PCIe device will be the single GPU. I've never seen a game successfully eat even 32GB of RAM, much less 64.

Expandability is not relevant. This system will be replaced entirely when something significantly faster comes along.

 

[CougTek]

The link for the Silverstone PSU, Corsair water cooling and Lian-Li chassis is borked : it links to the Asus motherboard.

Nice chassis, although it is quite expensive.

Will you put passive adhesive heatsinks on the Samsung 950 Pro?

 

[LunarMist]

There is essentially no storage. What is the point of 64GB of RAM?

 

[ddrueding]

The link for the Silverstone PSU, Corsair water cooling and Lian-Li chassis is borked : it links to the Asus motherboard.

Nice chassis, although it is quite expensive.

Will you put passive adhesive heatsinks on the Samsung 950 Pro?

Bah, I'd fix them, but you can at least see what I was looking at. I wanted a newer Lian-Li chassis, featured in the video below. The 950Pro will certainly get heatsinks, and possibly the 1080 as well.
[video=youtube_share;CQXIyvsWTNA]https://youtu.be/CQXIyvsWTNA[/video]

There is essentially no storage. What is the point of 64GB of RAM?

There is a NAS, no significant local storage is necessary. 512GB is enough for the OS and some games.

 

[CougTek]

The 950Pro will certainly get heatsinks, and possibly the 1080 as well.

While the 950 Pro should benefit from a few passive heatsinks (because it has none), I don't see how those would make a measurable difference for the GTX 1080. The reference heatsink already is way more efficient than the sticky heatsinks. It's also more than enough to keep the card cool and relatively quiet. You'd be wasting your small heatsinks IMO.

 

[ddrueding]

While the 950 Pro should benefit from a few passive heatsinks (because it has none), I don't see how those would make a measurable difference for the GTX 1080. The reference heatsink already is way more efficient than the sticky heatsinks. It's also more than enough to keep the card cool and relatively quiet. You'd be wasting your small heatsinks IMO.

The GPU cooler itself is likely fairly optimal, but the backplate would probably benefit from more thermal mass and larger surface area (at least that has been the case with previous GPUs). If you are willing to compromise the slot above it provides an effective secondary route for heat extraction.

This heatsink has been perfect in the past.

 

[time]

While the 950 Pro should benefit from a few passive heatsinks (because it has none) ...

For 7W maximum draw?

 

[CougTek]

For 7W maximum draw?

Yes. It is well documented in several reviews that the 950 Pro throttles due to over-heating during high activity tasks. It's 7W to dissipate on a very small surface area.

Just do a Google search. It will be obvious soon.

 

[time]

OK, but it doesn't throttle in real world scenarios. In other words, when there is a human using the computer, rather than a lengthy benchmark test using the computer.

Of course, the topic of this thread suggests it would be appropriate to use a heatsink in the described configuration.

 

[ddrueding]

I wouldn't be surprised if it did throttle in normal use. Before I put a heatsink on mine it was idling at 65C. Granted, this is a low-airflow very quiet case, but not unreasonably so.

 

[ddrueding]

Switched the chassis to a Corsair Carbide Air 240, and rotated it so that the windows is on the top. This is an astonishing case for the money. The look is distinctive and to my taste, the case shows the motherboard very well while hiding everything else. The 2x120mm Corsair Hydro AIO CPU cooler fits perfectly across the front of the chassis and there is plenty of space for a pair of 120mm fans on either side (ideally for 1080s with built-in 1x120 rads). If you really need to, there are spots for two 80mm fans in the back. The bottom can hold 3x 3.5 and 3x2.5 drives and a full sized-PSU. I've pulled the drive cages altogether. Tons of rubber grommets make passing wires from top to bottom easy.

This build won't be complete for several more weeks as the CPU and GPU are having availability issues, but I'm really happy with the build so far.

 

[CougTek]

Be sure to read this article. Particularly this page and the next. I know because I almost bought the very same enclosure yesterday and I've searched for reviews about it. I remembered that it was a good case, but didn't remember all the specifics.

I might buy a Silverstone RVZ02 instead.

 

[ddrueding]

Thanks for those links. I'm not really aiming for silent (this case has too many open sides for that), and I did set the radiator back from the front grill by 1cm or so allowing it to pull air from anywhere in the case if resistance is an issue. This is also helped by the awesome, high-static-pressure fans that ship with the Corsair radiators.

The whole thing is together now except the parts with availability issues (CPU and GPU). Really happy with how the build looks; might actually build one for myself with a custom water loop in it. Has anyone here tried the hard-line plumbing?

 

[ddrueding]

Another thing worth noting is that I suspect that this system will draw <300W at the wall even with full synthetic benchmarks running. Idle will be <100W. These are both way less than half of what my current home rig draws, and I expect the performance to he higher for its intended workload.

 

[Handruin]

The whole thing is together now except the parts with availability issues (CPU and GPU). Really happy with how the build looks; might actually build one for myself with a custom water loop in it. Has anyone here tried the hard-line plumbing?

I haven't but always wanted to try just so I could learn. I know it can be time-consuming depending on how complex the bends are and how much piping you need to put into the setup. I've only watched videos on YouTube for this. I had told myself way back that once X99 boards became more stable I might try building a setup with one of those but never got around to it or had a real need.

 

[ddrueding]

Based on what I've seen, it would be difficult to make an argument that it performs at least as well as a normal 1/2" ID flex system. Even if the gains were marginal I'd do it for the looks, but if hard piping requires a sacrifice in performance for looks, I can't bring myself to do it.

 

[ddrueding]

Hardware is finally together. Had to do a BIOS upgrade before the i7-6850K would work.

 

[DrunkenBastard]

So went with a Founders Edition? Which manufacturer? Will you be installing an EK waterblock when available?

The seahawk EK would have been the way to go but rare as hens teeth, the normal seahawk with corsair aio cooling should be out soon as well.

 

[ddrueding]

This one is for a customer, and they weren't willing to splash more cash. That means no custom water cooling and no overclocking from me. If a 1080 with an AIO water cooler was available, I'd have taken it.

 

[sedrosken]

Isn't one of the benefits of a reference design that you can more easily find aftermarket coolers for it, should you need them?

 

[Stereodude]

Isn't one of the benefits of a reference design that you can more easily find aftermarket coolers for it, should you need them?

Founder's Edition should be called the Fleecing you Edition. You pay a premium for a card so you can then replace part of it for even more money later. Whereas you could pay less upfront and not need to replace the cooler later.

 

[ddrueding]

...unless you wanted the card ASAP. Founders edition cards shipped several weeks before the rest.

 

[LunarMist]

Being the early adopter is often a problem. Is that video significantly better than the current product?

 

[ddrueding]

The 1080 is considerably better at specific things than any other card. Specifically VR and games that don't support SLI. If money is not a significant hurdle, this is the way to go.

 

[snowhiker]

View attachment 1109

Hardware is finally together. Had to do a BIOS upgrade before the i7-6850K would work.

Looks sweet. Is that some funky plexiglass or simply 40 million dust particles showing up in the pic?

 

[time]

Dave is going to include one of these:

 

[snowhiker]

Doh! Of course. I should have known Dave would include a high-end squeegee. He thinks of everything.

 

[CougTek]

Dave will only include a squeegee if it's made by Dyson and cost 300$.

 

[ddrueding]

I did clean and polish out the very soft plastic window before delivery; it shipped with protective sheets on both sides that protected the dust and minor scratches below.

I advised that swapping the plastic for a piece of tempered glass would be easy to do and provide a much better appearance (particularly with the RGB LED strip around the edge), but we seem to have exceeded his budget already.

 

[ddrueding]

That picture also doesn't include all the custom black heatsinks stuck everywhere. Not just on chips that got hot (7 or 8 IIRC), but on any piece of cheap-looking chrome flashing that needed to be covered.

 

[mubs]

Is it too late to ask for a pic with the stuck heatsinks? What do you stick them with?

 

[ddrueding]

Afraid so, but I'll likely be building another similar one soon. I strip the double-sided tape off and use 2-part thermal adhesive.

Normally I have a larger selection of heatsink sizes, but for this one I was limited to black anodized for appearance purposes.

 

[mubs]

Thanks. I need to get myself some of that thermal adhesive.

 

[ddrueding]

Just a note on that stuff. It doesn't stick at all for about 3 minutes, and if it is moving at all during that time the bond will never be strong (so don't think you can hold it in place during cure). Also, it can be very strong if done correctly. The best way I've found to remove one after it has set is with a large hammer and a "no fear" swing parallel to the shear line. Keep the velocity up and you may fracture the stuff. Or you'll destroy whatever you were dealing with.

 

[mubs]

Wow! Thanks!

 

[CougTek]

For your next build, if you again want an SFX power supply, you should consider the Corsair SF600 over the Silverstone model. It is much better and cheaper too.

 

[ddrueding]

The second case I went with allowed a full ATX power supply (I went with an AX760i). It also gave me enough space in the lower compartment (since the only thing there was the PSU) to bundle the miles of spare cable that this case did not require.

The big thing that will make the next one cleaner is to de-solder the PCIe power connector from the 1080 and solder on an extension that can lead straight down. Having the power cable go up causes it to hit the window at the top of the case and is impossible to cable manage.

 

[ddrueding]

Customer decided that they wanted me to do an overclock after all. Currently 4.4Ghz for the CPU, 2300 for the RAM, and 2.1/5.5 for GPU/Mem respectively. Still testing.