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Aurora-R7, questions
Hi, I just want to say you don't have to answer all of my questions at once(I know I asked a lot of them lol). My current PC is an Alienware Aurora r4 that I bought about 6 years ago. It has an i7 3820, GTX Geforce 680, 16gb RAM and a 1tb HD. And mostly all of the games I play have to be run on low or just lag, even on low. I'm wanting to upgrade it now, and Alienware Aurora seems like a pretty good prebuilt. I wanted build a PC that can run every modern game at max graphics and well over 60 fps, preferably 144 for my 144hz monitor. And I would like for it to be future-proof for the years to come. I have two builds in my shopping cart right now.
One is intel i7 8700 - GTX 1080 8gb - 16gb RAM - 256GB M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD (Boot) + 1TB 7200 SATA.
And the other model is intel i7 8700k - GTX 1080 Ti 11gb - 16gb RAM - 512GB M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD (Boot) + 2TB
Both of these will have the 850w Liquid-cooled PSU.
Like i said, I want to be able to run every game around 100+ FPS (The games that can reach those numbers obviously) at max graphics and be future proof for a while. I'm wondering if I can achieve this with the cheaper build here with the i7 8700, gtx 1080 8gb, and 256gb ssd boot. Or if I would be better off buying the higher priced model.
I also, worry about the cooling, and longevity of the CPU. I have heard that the 8700k runs hotter than the 8700. I want this processor to last and run well for around 3 years. The price between the processors is negligible so I don't want to consider that factor. If I were to not ever overclock, on either of these would the higher temperature of the 8700k be of any significance? If the higher heat or power consumption of the 8700k will not be a big deal, I will just go with that one. I also think of the heat and power consumption difference between the 1080 and the 1080 ti in this system. And how good the Liquid cooling and temperatures are in the new Aurora R7 because I have heard this tower is somewhat on the small size and the hardware is fairly cramped together inside. The longevity of this system is extremely important to me. And i want to put the components together that are going to last a while, so I don't want the hardware getting too hot. I also have some more questions if you don't mind.
- I switched from the 32gb ram to 16gb because I read online that for gaming, 16gb is very future-proof. and 32gb is only really used for programmers, etc. And the price gab between the two are quite large. I'm just wondering if this is the correct decision if my Desktop will mainly be used for gaming.
- Something else I'm trying to figure out is if I'll need the 512GB M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD and a 2 TB SATA, or if the 256gb will run just fine alongside a 2 TB SATA (Saves $200). I have never really had a SSD boot, or an SSD at all for that matter in my desktops, only a standard 1TB Hard Drive. If the 512 GB is a lot faster or a lot better in ways, I will go with that one. But if the 256gb with the 2 tb will have good performance and be future-proof for the years to come, I will gladly choose that also.
- Like i said before, I think about the temperature and power consumption of the 1080 Ti and i7 8700k. Would my system be healthier overall running with a regular 8700 and 1080 due to cooler temperatures? Or are the temperatures between them all negligible?
Tesla1856
8 Wizard
8 Wizard
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17K Posts
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July 12th, 2018 21:00
1. I know of no way to guarantee (before hand) that a particular gaming-machine config will hit that target. GSync technology might help. Also, the actual screen-resolution you will be running at is important. It's easier on graphics cards at 1080p vs 2160p (4K)
So, you over-build it because that might be enough. We know too-little is not enough.
2. Good. Yes, you want Liquid-Cooler (for Intel i7) and 850w is best (it will be enough and run cooler).
3. Those are both nice.
Get whatever video card you can afford and you will still want inside machine in a couple of years.
Unless Dell specifically states how many DIMMs you are getting, you might have to get 32gb to insure your machine comes with either 2 or 4 DIMMs installed. Only matched pairs can run in Dual-Channel-Mode. IMO, this is more important than specific speed, because they are all very fast.
You want the M.2-2280/PCIe/NVMe SSD for bootable C: Windows (and all Apps and a few favorite games). It will be smoking-fast like this:
https://dell.com/community/Alienware-General/Aurora-R6-Hard-Lockup-and-crash-while-gaming-SOLVED/m-p/5504121/highlight/true#M6097
I think the 512gb is a good size and affordable. For the other drives ... while spinning HDDs are tempting ... have you priced 2.5inch 512gb SATA-3/600 SSDs lately? They are dirt cheap.
I will try to read and comment on the second part of your post later. However, I think this is a good thread on how to build a nice Aurora-R7:
https://www.dell.com/community/Alienware-Desktops/XPS-8930-or-Aurora-R7-selection-advice/td-p/6028753
@I suppose you should also be aware of this. If you want steady 60fps @144hz but at 2160p (4K) ... who-knows ... it might come into play.
https://dell.com/community/Alienware-Desktops/PCIe-slot-running-at-x8/m-p/6102468
Finally, if you eventually want to 2 of these GTX-1080 (or better) video cards in SLI ... due to bandwidth, power, and cooling ... you should be looking at an Area-51 R5/R6 (with a 1500w PS).
Zack789
3 Posts
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July 12th, 2018 22:00
First, thanks for helping me out.
1. I will always be gaming in just 1080p, nothing higher.
2. The only thing with the 512GB M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD is that it's $250 more than the 256GB M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD. Same with the 32GB Memory being $200 more than the 16GB. For the SSD, would I be fine using the 256GB M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD for my boot drive + a 1TB for storage. Then later on getting a 512 SSD and sticking it in the bottom row of the system?
- With the 8700 and the 8700k. If i were to get the 8700k and not overclock it, would it still run that much hotter than the 8700? and is the performance that much better on the 8700k? I'm not really that interested in overclocking and i want to keep my pc at fair temperatures while having sufficient capability for handling 1080p 144hz gameplay.
Tesla1856
8 Wizard
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17K Posts
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July 13th, 2018 09:00
1. Interesting. It's usually better to run at the native-full resolution of the monitor. A 27inch monitor with a good PPI is usually at least 1440p.
2. Yeah, well ... there is only ONE M.2-2280/NVMe slot. You want at least 256gb installed now. To swap it later for a 512gb model ... you would be wasting the money you spent on the 256gb one. I suggest you worry less about these small upgrade moneys, and more about what you want now and in a year or so (without more upgrades and more money later).
3. AFAIK, the processors picked to be K-class processors are the primo or best copies of the plain processor. It would run at the same temp (or cooler). That said, either is fine if not OCing. On the Aurora-R7 ... the motherboards that come with a K-class processor installed are slightly better (for one, they have the VRM heatsink installed). Pretty sure that point was mentioned in the link I posted.