Haven't built a gaming rig in 5 years

I'm rather experienced with working on computers but I haven't built a gaming rig in years. Decided this time I'm going to let someone else do it for me and I heard good things about Digital Storm. It's hard to keep up with the ever growing technology, so I'm here for a little advice and opinions about my setup.

Before I go into the guts of my build I need to say a few things. First off I'm going to be using many of the peripherals I already own so no need in mouse, keyboard, monitors, etc. Same goes for the hard drives I'm sitting on two SSD's and two WD Blacks that run just fine. No need to replace them either.

Budget:
~$2500

Expectations:
The typical great performance that will last me another 5 years or more and have the room to upgrade if need be.

Usage:
Primarily hardcore gaming and rendering/editing videos/photo's with lots of multi-tasking. Dual-monitor display at 1080p, hopefully upgrading to 4k in the future.

Special Needs:
I would prefer a quiet computer with great cooling. That's why I'm going with the Obsidian.

Configuration Code:     1065857
Configuration URL:     https://www.digitalstormonline.com/configurator.asp?id=1065857

Specifications:
Chassis Model: Special Deal Hot Seller - Corsair Obsidian 550D
Processor: Intel Core i7 4790K 4.0 GHz (Codename Devils Canyon) (Unlocked CPU) (Quad Core)
Motherboard: ASUS SABERTOOTH Z97 MARK2 (Intel Z97 Chipset) (Military-Grade TUF Components)
System Memory: 16GB DDR3 1866MHz Corsair Vengeance Pro (High-Performance)
Power Supply: 850W EVGA SuperNOVA
Expansion Bay: - No Thanks
Optical Drive: DVD-R/RW/CD-R/RW (DVD Writer 24x / CD-Writer 48x)
Storage Set 1: 1x SSD (128GB Samsung 850 PRO)
Storage Set 2: - No Thanks
Graphics Card(s): 1x NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 4GB (EVGA Superclocked ACX Cooler Edition)
Sound Card: Integrated Motherboard Audio
Extreme Cooling: H20: Stage 2: Corsair H100 Liquid CPU Cooler (240mm Radiator) (Extreme-Performance Edition)
H20 Tube Color:- Not Applicable, I do not have a FrostChill or Sub-Zero LCS Cooling System Selected
Chassis Fans: Upgrade All Fans to Corsair Airflow Performance Edition (Up to 6 Fans)
Noise Reduction: Noise Suppression Package Stage 1 (Optimized Airflow & Fan Speeds Only)
Boost Processor: Stage 1: Overclock CPU 4.0GHz to 4.4GHz
Boost Graphics Card(s): - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my video card(s)
Boost Memory: - No Thanks, Please do not overclock my memory
Boost OS: - No Thanks, Please do not tweak the services on the operating system
Windows OS: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional (64-Bit Edition)

I do have some simple questions that I'm hoping some of you could answer.
-When do you think the GTX 980 SC ACX will be available on here? Within the Halloween sale hopefully?
-How long will the Halloween sale last? Will there be another sale possibly Black Friday? Should I wait?
-For memory, I'm stuck between the 2400MHz and the 1866MHz. What benefits do each have and is it worth it?
-Never OC'd before and never owned watercooling. What should I know? Did I choose ok?

Thanks!
                                                                                                  

Edited by bullet100 - 17 Oct 2014 at 6:14am

We normally recommended the 1866 over the 2400 ram for gaming, but your other apps might make good use of the faster ram.   Not a big difference either way, but can help.

Just be aware, the 240mm radiator with that cpu cooler will mount under the top, meaning the top acoustic, sound deadening panel has to be removed for the fans to exit the heat.   The 550d is as quiet as it is because of the top and side panels remaining on. It will still be relatively quiet, just not as quiet, depending on the fan speeds.

Good luck.

Read this customer review.  It has the Slade 550d with a 240mm rad....

http://www.digitalstormonline.com/forums/slade-my-digital-storm-review-tidf18804/

For stage 1 oc, the 120mm rad, mounted to the inside back wall will work just fine.  I like the added airflow for the case with the top mounted rad, but if your graphics cards aren't the twin fan ACX version in sli, then no problem. 

I believe the Twister Boost is DS's way of saying, overclocked in the Bios.    Not a separate program, but the motherboard's built in adjustments.    They save the oc settings in a Profile in the Bios so you can drop it for troubleshooting and put it back later.

The twister boost won't help with the gpu.  For gpu oc'ng, I think they use Precision X or MSI Afterburner, but not 100%.

I don't know what they tweak for OS boost, but I wouldn't do it.  The rig comes in bloat free and I'd rather decide for myself.

Hope this helps.











Edited by bprat22 - 16 Oct 2014 at 7:57am

Here are a bunch of benchmarks of the 970 vs 980. It should be noted that the 970 used in the benchmarks is an EVGA "For The Win" (FTW), their current factory overclocked top of the line part. That compares to the 980 being a stock graphics card: http://www.anandtech.com/bench/product/1355?vs=1351

Also, here is a review of that case: http://www.anandtech.com/show/5708/corsair-obsidian-550d-starting-to-specialize

It is a flexible case where you can have lots of airflow when you want it, and quiet when you want it. It has covers over some of the fan ports that can be removed when airflow is needed. This works best if the fans mounted in those location are turned off when doing low power stuff (web browsing), and ramped up with the covers removed when under load (gaming, video rendering).

Edited by danjw1 - 16 Oct 2014 at 9:47am

Looks good.

The ram and gtx 970 are good choices.

I always had issues with DVD drives in the past so I haven't owned one in several years and nor have I needed one since. Going to remove it haha :)

Just realized if I get it up to $2500 I can save $75. Since I was just $100 off I added a WD hard drive.

Think i'm going to buy this later today, I'm really excited!

Thanks everyone for the assistance :)

Edited by bullet100 - 17 Oct 2014 at 11:17pm

The 850 watt Super Nova is plenty.  Sli 970 recommended is a 700W minimum, so you have headroom.   It's possible your rig, with sli,  will only draw 500-550 watt, but DS will let you know if there's a problem when they load test it.    Those cards are stingy on power needs, maybe 145 watt each. 

I think you're good to go.


Edited by bprat22 - 23 Oct 2014 at 7:44am

My pleasure.    What kind of stuff do you have?   Drives add very little , maybe 5-10 watts per, and things like monitors, printers use their own juice from the wall.