# New pc build - please help me evaluate



## muk (Feb 28, 2021)

It's time to build a new pc for me. My current build has run stable for more than seven years. But performance-wise it is showing its age.

I am looking to build a pc that should last me for years. Ideally, it should also be quiet. So longevity and loudness are two important factors. Here is what I am thinking of:

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/F7fwZZ

CPU: AMD Ryzen 5950x
Cooler: be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4 (?)
Motherboard: Gigabyte B550 AORUS MASTER ATX AM4
RAM: Crucial Ballistix 64 GB (2 x 32 GB) DDR4-3600 CL16
Graphics Card: Gigabyte Radeon RX 5700 XT 8 GB GAMING OC
Case: Fractal Design Define R4
PSU: be quiet! 500Watt 80+ Gold (?)


Would these parts work together? Any incompatibilities? Better choices for certain parts? The case and the power supply are parts from my current build. If possible I would reuse them in my new build. For storage I have 5 SSDs. I would use them as well for my new build.

The graphics card is solid mid tier I think. I'll also use the pc for occasional gaming.

Finally, will the be quiet cooler enough, or do I absolutely need water cooling? I don't plan to overclock at the moment.

Thank you for any help with this.


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## Technostica (Feb 28, 2021)

Probably better to list the parts in the actual post as you might get more replies.


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## muk (Feb 28, 2021)

Thanks for the tip, I've done that.


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## Jeremy Spencer (Feb 28, 2021)

Definitely upgrade the power supply, it’s one of the most crucial components. Go with at least a 700w.


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## thevisi0nary (Feb 28, 2021)

Jeremy Spencer said:


> Definitely upgrade the power supply, it’s one of the most crucial components. Go with at least a 700w.


700w is not at all neccesary - https://www.whatpsu.com/psu/cpu/AMD-Ryzen-5950X/gpu/AMD-Radeon-RX-5700-XT

It doesn't hurt to have it if they ever plan on upgrading to a more intense graphics card. Quality of the PSU is definitely important though.

OP I would look at something from this line 
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1614308-REG/corsair_cp_9020178_na_rm650x_80_plus_gold.html/?ap=y&ap=y&smp=y&smp=y&lsft=BI%3A514&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI1qi0oY-N7wIViuKzCh2rSAk3EAQYAyABEgKIgfD_BwE
The 750w variant can be found for $20 more usually if you want future headroom, but it is absolutely not crucial for the parts you have here.


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## wayne_rowley (Feb 28, 2021)

Specs look good, but I concur with upgrading the power supply, if only because a higher-powered one may run quieter for you.


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## youngpokie (Feb 28, 2021)

I'm not sure if this review suggests that the bus speed is better in X570 series at comparable price, but it sure sounds like that to me. Perhaps worth checking it out






https://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/gigabyte-b550-aorus-master


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## wayne_rowley (Feb 28, 2021)

A big plus for the B550 over the X570 is the *lack* of chipset fan! It will give you a quieter system.


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## Jeremy Spencer (Feb 28, 2021)

thevisi0nary said:


> 700w is not at all neccesary - https://www.whatpsu.com/psu/cpu/AMD-Ryzen-5950X/gpu/AMD-Radeon-RX-5700-XT
> 
> It doesn't hurt to have it if they ever plan on upgrading to a more intense graphics card. Quality of the PSU is definitely important though.
> 
> ...


Plus the OP has 6 drives running, I’d for sure go at least 700w to be safe.


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## thevisi0nary (Feb 28, 2021)

Jeremy Spencer said:


> Plus the OP has 6 drives running, I’d for sure go at least 700w to be safe.



Components don’t use nearly as much power as you are thinking.






AMD Ryzen 9 5950X AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT - PSU Calculator - Build Y4GB9z


AMD Ryzen 9 5950X AMD Radeon RX 5700 XT - Power Supply Calculator Build Y4GB9z




outervision.com





By all means there’s nothing wrong with a 700w psu, and it’s more headroom if OP ever gets a more power hungry gpu. But it’s not close to a requirement for his build.


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## Pictus (Feb 28, 2021)

muk said:


> I am looking to build a pc that should last me for years. Ideally, it should also be quiet. So longevity and loudness are two important factors. Here is what I am thinking of:
> 
> https://pcpartpicker.com/list/F7fwZZ






With the Gigabyte B550 AORUS MASTER ATX AM4, if you use 1 NVMe SSD in the first
slot OK, but the other 2 NVMe slots share PCIe lanes with the GPU.

With any B550/X570 motherboard, better keep the PCIe = GEN3, not AUTO or GEN4.




From AMD, minimum 600W (recommended 700W) PSU with up to an 8-pin + 6-pin PCI Express Auxiliary connectors.


https://www.amd.com/system/files/documents/radeon-rx-5700-series-quick-start-guide-en.pdf


For high-end GPUs, rail amperage is also important, that is why AMD recommends higher wattage PSUs.
The Corsair RMX850 (2018) up to +-250W the fan is off and up to +- 600W the RPM/Noise is very low





Corsair RMx (2018) 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply







pcpartpicker.com












Corsair RM850x V2 PSU Review: Smaller And Quieter!


Corsair upgraded its best-selling line RMx family with new models featuring smaller dimensions and quieter operation. And despite limited PCB space, performance remains similar from one generation to the next.




www.tomshardware.com








Some tweaks for AMD/Windows





Nvidia Driver, no latency anymore?


Hi all! We all know that AMD drivers have from far, less latency than Nvidia drivers, and for that reason we all recommand an AMD graphic card for audio working. But recently i have dealt with a new install on a PC with an Nvidia graphic card. And when i updated to the latest driver i saw an...




vi-control.net


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## muk (Mar 1, 2021)

Thank you all for the big help! I'll change the cooler to the Noctua NH-15D chromax black. And the PSU to the Corsair RMx (2028) 850W.

Also thanks for the heads up about the NVMe and PCIe. Probably saved me quite a bit of trouble-shooting.


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## muk (Mar 3, 2021)

Thinking about choosing another motherboard for thunderbolt. Would these be a good choice?









ASRock X570 Creator


Supports AMD AM4 Socket Ryzen™ 2000, 3000, 4000 G-Series, 5000 and 5000 G-Series Desktop Processors; Supports DDR4 4666+ (OC); Intel Wi-Fi 6 802.11ax (2.4Gbps) + BT 5.2; AQUANTIA / Marvell 10G LAN, Intel Gigabit LAN; 3 PCIe 4.0 x16, 3 PCIe 2.0 x1; NVIDIA NVLink™, Quad SLI™, AMD 3-Way...




www.asrock.com


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## Pictus (Mar 3, 2021)

Yes, but it has a small pesky chipset fan...

ASRock x570 Taichi SB Thermal Mod


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## rgames (Mar 3, 2021)

The best solution to control noise (by far) is to put the computer in another room. Cable extensions reduce noise much better than quiet components. Quiet components are still audible. Moving the computer to another room moves you from "audible" to "inaudible". Also, it's pretty easy to run 25 ft cables for eveything you need on a DAW. So if you can work a setup that uses 25 ft cable runs then you don't even need extensions. That's what my current setup uses. I've never been in a room with a computer that I can't hear. Even a fanless computer has electrical whine that is audible. Of course, this assumes you have decent hearing. Another option is to just destroy your hearing so you don't notice 

And 700W is definitely overkill for a DAW. I've measured power consumption from mine and it's rarely over 200W at the wall, even with the heaviest load I can throw at it at the lowest possible latency on my setup. So double that and 500W is more than enough.

rgames


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## Jeremy Spencer (Mar 3, 2021)

rgames said:


> And 700W is definitely overkill for a DAW. I've measured power consumption from mine and it's rarely over 200W at the wall, even with the heaviest load I can throw at it at the lowest possible latency on my setup. So double that and 500W is more than enough.


Even with a good video card, over clocking, pci cards, cpu cooler and six drives, etc? How did you measure the power consumption? I’d like to try this.


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## muk (Mar 3, 2021)

Pictus said:


> Yes, but it has a small pesky chipset fan...



Thanks, I'll avoid that board in that case. I'm not keen on modding the mainboard if it can be easily avoided. So I'll go with either the Gigabyte Aorus or the Asus ProArt. Neither the cpu nor the graphics card are available currently, so I can wait for reviews of the latter.



rgames said:


> The best solution to control noise (by far) is to put the computer in another room.


That would be an ideal solution. Not at all possible for me unfortunately. I'll have to go with the second best solution.

As opinions are divided about the wattage, I will spend a bit more to be on the safe side.


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## rgames (Mar 3, 2021)

Jeremy Spencer said:


> Even with a good video card, over clocking, pci cards, cpu cooler and six drives, etc? How did you measure the power consumption? I’d like to try this.


Just look up "wattage meter" on Amazon. There are tons of options for under $40. Mine is a Kill-A-Watt meter (EDIT: wrong, mine is a Watts Up meter) that's pretty ancient. I don't think it's available any more.

Yes, my PC is overclocked to 4.4 GHz at constant speed while running the DAW. I have more than six drives - seven or eight, can't recall - but only a couple are in use while using the DAW. The video card isn't doing much on a DAW so it's not pulling a lot of power. CPU cooler also uses very little power.

There's a thread on this forum somewhere where I gave specifics...

rgames


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## rgames (Mar 3, 2021)

muk said:


> As opinions are divided about the wattage, I will spend a bit more to be on the safe side.


The thing to remember is that efficiency plays a role as well. The power supply rating is what the power supply can *deliver*. The efficiency defines how much power it *requires*.

Power supplies generally have efficiencies that are very low at low power draw, increase to around 75% of max rating then fall off a bit after that. So it's entirely possible (and likely) that a 500W power supply will pull less power than an 800W power supply if the 800W supply is overkill. That means the 800W supply is wasting more power.

Where do you think that wasted power goes? Most of it goes into heat. And how do you deal with heat? With fans. And what do fans produce? Noise!

Less power means less noise.

rgames


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## muk (Mar 3, 2021)

Thanks for the heads up. The efficency curve of the Corsair is quite good:









Corsair RM850x V2 PSU Review: Smaller And Quieter!


Corsair upgraded its best-selling line RMx family with new models featuring smaller dimensions and quieter operation. And despite limited PCB space, performance remains similar from one generation to the next.




www.tomshardware.com





The difference between 50 Watt and peak efficiency is barely 7%, and anything above 100 Watt or so is fine. So I am not worried too much about more heat at low loads.


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## mr-sound (Mar 3, 2021)

Nice system. But maybe it’s better to take a Corsair (PSU)? It`s very durable and quiet. Also, the new cases from Define R6 line are very good.


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## muk (Mar 3, 2021)

Thanks. Pictus suggested a Corsair PSU as well. Definitely my choice now. I have a Fractal R4 and I'll reuse that. I am happy with it.


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## merlinhimself (Mar 4, 2021)

Is AMD pretty good for our line of work now?


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## merlinhimself (Mar 4, 2021)

muk said:


> Thanks. Pictus suggested a Corsair PSU as well. Definitely my choice now. I have a Fractal R4 and I'll reuse that. I am happy with it.


Fractals my go to chassis, been using them for the last 3 builds


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## Technostica (Mar 4, 2021)

merlinhimself said:


> Is AMD pretty good for our line of work now?


The Zen 3 versions are.
Prior to that, the architectures had some variable internal latencies which compromised them.


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## Jeremy Spencer (Mar 4, 2021)

merlinhimself said:


> Is AMD pretty good for our line of work now?


I’m not sure the single thread performance is as good as Intel yet. Might be wrong.


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## thevisi0nary (Mar 4, 2021)

merlinhimself said:


> Is AMD pretty good for our line of work now?


Yes very. Just need faster ram to get the most out of it.


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## Tod (Mar 5, 2021)

wayne_rowley said:


> A big plus for the B550 over the X570 is the *lack* of chipset fan! It will give you a quieter system.


Is this true Wayne, I'm also seriously looking at the X570 for my build and although I had the same concern that you express here, in all my searching I haven't seen anything about the X570 being noisy versus the B550 except once, but that person who was a friend of mine was only surmising.

The importance of the X570 for me is that it has two Gen4 PCIe X4 NVMe M.2 SSD slots instead of just one.

Also I haven't had the chance to read all the posts, but in my search for a CPU cooler I came across the "Scythe Fuma 2 Dual Tower CPU Cooler", it has some amazing specs and is smaller and quieter then the"be quiet! Dark Rock 4".


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## Solarsentinel (Mar 6, 2021)

wayne_rowley said:


> A big plus for the B550 over the X570 is the *lack* of chipset fan! It will give you a quieter system.


Hi,
All person who have an X570 motherboard will tell you that is a false purpose, because these fans are inaudible in normal use. You 'll being able to hear it only during 5 -10 sec at startup, then it will be regulated and make nearly zero noise.

So the big plus for the B550 is the lack of the fan chipset which prevent potentially a fan failure, but not for the purpose of a quieter system.
It was a big concern when the X570 chipset was released and now with multiples reviews, we can tell that the noise of these fan are very low to be really take on consideration in a context of choice for quieter system. furthermore if you case is soundproofed like a fractal defined R7 for example.


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## Solarsentinel (Mar 6, 2021)

Tod said:


> Is this true Wayne, I'm also seriously looking at the X570 for my build and although I had the same concern that you express here, in all my searching I haven't seen anything about the X570 being noisy versus the B550 except once, but that person who was a friend of mine was only surmising.
> 
> The importance of the X570 for me is that it has two Gen4 PCIe X4 NVMe M.2 SSD slots instead of just one.
> 
> Also I haven't had the chance to read all the posts, but in my search for a CPU cooler I came across the "Scythe Fuma 2 Dual Tower CPU Cooler", it has some amazing specs and is smaller and quieter then the"be quiet! Dark Rock 4".


Hi, 
Yes indeed your CPU fan will be more noisy than the chipset fan even with a good cooler, so the major noise source will be the CPU. that's why a silent cooler is highly recommanded for your needs. the best one is the noctua NH D15, the Be quiet dark rock 4, or the noctua NH u 12s. Try to avoid the 2 fans configuration (2 fans make more noise than one).


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## Tod (Mar 6, 2021)

Okay thanks Solarsentinel, the only reason I'm thinking X570 is because of the 2 Gen4 NVMe M.2 slots vrs the B550 which I think only has 1.

Regarding CPU coolers, I was thinking noctua NH D15 which I'd have to get a little bigger case for. but then I started hearing about the Scythe Fuma 2, and after seeing several reviews, all giving good marks, plus it's only $59.99, I think that's the way I might go. Here's a link to one of the many reviews I've watched.



This is just one of the results of some of the testing I've seen.


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