ASUS ROG Swift PG279Q IPS 27" LCD Monitor 2560x1440 32bit

When your monitor refreshes just as fast as your graphic card pumps out the frame rate....it's about as good as it gets.

Look up 'G-Sync'...;)

Works for me....;)

So, I finally got my Intel i9 7900X/ Gigabyte X299 Gaming 9 with 2 Samsung 960 Pro 1TB SSD assembled in a Coolermaster Mastercase Maker 5t case with 64 GB of Corsair RAM. The case has 2 tempered glass side panels and looks great with all the LED lighting on the MB and fans, etc. I didn't used to think very much about all the lighting, but having seen it in action, I changed my mind, and upgraded the stock fans with Corsair HD 140mm RGB and Corsair ML 140mm ones. The ML series uses magnetic levitation instead of bearings and has a higher range of speeds. The case is very attractive and can accommodate the larger 140mm fans and more of them (2 on top, 2 or 3 on the front, 1 on the bottom, and 1 on the back). It isn't cheap, but well worth the price.

I'd highly recommend getting the X299 (Intel) and X399 (AMD) motherboards because they have M.2 SSD slots that use 4 PCIe lanes that are 5 times as fast as the SSD SATA 3 specification (32Gb's per second vs. 6 Gb's per second). They also have USB 3.1 and USB C ports, and some can use Thunderbolt 3 (using a USB C connector) that runs at 40 Gb's per second. (I need Thunderbolt for my audio recording, now that Microsoft has finally adopted TB in the latest Windows 10).

One problem with the setup is that you cannot set up a bootable RAID array, which I only discovered after the fact. Intel will not allow any but their own SSD's to be used at this point, and will charge you for a dongle that plugs into the MB. The technology is called VROC (virtual raid on CPU). It's still in it's infancy, and it will be awhile before things settle down. The idea is that the boot disk connects directly to the CPU rather than going through the chipset. (With the X299, there is one M.2 slot that goes directly to the CPU using 4 PCIe lanes to get 32 Gb's per second). The system speed is pretty amazing compared to my old SSD RAID 0 setup using SATA. (Apparently, there is a method whereby you can install Windows on a bootable SSD RAID array using UEFI instead of BIOS despite Intel's limitations; I will be getting my builder to try it out, although he is behind the times in technology and I have to get him up to speed first).

I am having trouble with my build at present; sometimes the PC will constantly try to start and fail until the power is removed and then restored, and now, it does the same thing while running, which makes it kind of useless, you might say. I suspect the power supply, but it might be the MB, which would be a disaster as It's too late to return it and I would have to send it back to Gigabyte under warranty. I've never had any trouble with my other Gigabyte MB's, but maybe this one is a lemon. Having been to the Gigabyte forums, it doesn't appear that they have a stellar reputation for doing warranty work. I have since bought another X299 Gaming 9 MB because I can't wait months to find out if they can or will fix it. My next move is trying out a new power supply first, hoping that that is the problem.

It's been an adventure; hopefully there will be a happy ending.

I envy you those dual 1TB 960 Pros, LOL. Anyway, good luck with sorting your issues, i hope its not the board, as i have Gaming 7 myself  

Regarding Philips displays, thanks for the advice, i will look into those. It will have to be different model than any of the 3 you mentioned, as:

27incher - is TN

32incher - si just full HD, when i would require 4K at that size

43incher - is just too big, TV pretty much. 

I want either 27/1440p or 32/4K IPS panel with good color accuracy and contrast/blacks without major backlight bleed and other issues, for ideally no more than 750 EUROs - good all-rounder for work, movies and games.

Quoting Jafo, reply 26

ASUS ROG Swift PG279Q IPS 27" LCD Monitor 2560x1440 32bit

When your monitor refreshes just as fast as your graphic card pumps out the frame rate....it's about as good as it gets.

Look up 'G-Sync'...

Works for me....

Yeah, this one would definitely be my choice - 27inch 1440p, 144Hz, G-sync, acceptable price around 800 EUROs....if not for apparent back-light bleed issues!

not going to swap it like 4x times until i get acceptable one. 

Additionally, it is rather weak in other departments, like color homogenity across the screen, like per this review:

http://www.prad.de/new/monitore/test/2015/test-asus-pg279q-teil13.html#Fazit

Obviously, you could have been lucky to get one of the better pieces, but i dont intend to try my luck here, if i can get some other, better display at that price - granted, without G-sync or 144Hz.

Check the date of those reviews as there used to be issues with them in the early days of G-sync....emphasis on past tense...;)

Quoting Jafo, reply 30

Check the date of those reviews as there used to be issues with them in the early days of G-sync....emphasis on past tense...

Maybe it improved somewhat, but i am not really eager to test it with my hard-earned money

And as i said, those were QC issues regarding backlight bleed and color uniformity, things unrelated to G-Sync. 

Anyway, i gave it bit of a thinking today and in the end, given limited funds, i may just get the cheapest alternative i considered, Dell U2715H, cause i want to buy NAS server too - i checked the prices and it seems it will cost me alongside 2 4TB HDDs another almost 500 EUROs... 

Getting back to i9 vs Threadripper topic, I may have to forget eyeing off a Threadripper.  I was just checking out prices and the top-end 1950x is well out of my price range, starting at AUD$1400... being I have to buy a new mobo and DDR4 RAM as well.  The 1920x starts around AUD$1100, and the 1900x starts at around AUD$729.

Now the 1900x may be a possibility, given that it is just a $100 more than the 1800x, but I'm not decided as yet.  I still have around 3 to 4 months before I start purchasing.  The Ryzen 1800x is still a decent CPU and I may have to settle for it, depending on the cost of the RAM and motherboard at the time.  I don't expect prices to fall greatly between now and then, but one can only hope, and maybe the 1900x is on the cards.

I'm thinking an ASUS motherboard and G-Skill RAM to go with it, and everything else I already have, though maybe a new, updated graphics card would be the icing on the cake.

Well I think I'm pretty much decided on what I will do.  The threadripper and Ryzen 1800x are both out of my price range, so I've decided on a Ryzen 1700x combo with an Asus ROG Crosshair Hero for AUD$829.  With that I'll get 32gb of Corsair Vengeance DDR4 3000 RAM for AUD$394, and an Asus Raedon RX 580 Dual OC 4gb graphics card for AUD$400.

That's pretty my PC upgrade budget spent.... at AUD$1623.00.  Either the Threadripper or Ryzen 1800x would have pushed it over AUD$2000, and even though they both have higher ratings, the 1700x has quite decent figures and I'll be happy with it.

Well, definitely do not go 1900x way, as its the same 8-core CPU as 1800x, except you would need much more expensive motherboard for it. 

BTW, what is the main purpose of your computer? If its gaming, rather than work, you would be probably be better served by Intel Coffee-Lake platform. Dont know about price difference against 1700x, but high clocked six-core Intel is definitely better choice for games than lower clocked 8-core AMD, bar maybe very few specific cases i guess, like AotS . Even though you like AMD and want to support them by your purchase, which is commendable, u should know you might be doing that at your own expense.

On another note, i might have finally decided which display i am gonna get, and its none of the ones i listed in my previous posts, LOL. Rather, something completely different and unexpected....

ultrawide curved LG display!

It actually makes me even more excited than 32inch 4K... although i am somewhat worried about the curvature, i will use it a lot for CAD work, and i fear it may affect it negatively....

Yeah, I researched that option and decided that it wasn't practical on the budget I'd worked out, at AUD$1500.  Yes, I went over by $123.00, but I also included the graphics card and it's acceptable.  Had I gone the 1900x way it would have exceeded AUD$2000.00, and I wasn't prepared to go that high.  The 1900x motherboards alone began at AUD$660, and with the Ryzen1900x starting at AUD$729, I'm getting more bang for my buck going the 1700x way.  I am choosing to go with a package deal that bundles the Ryzen 1700x with and an Asus ROG Crosshair Hero VI, which saves me a few bucks going that way.

I don't do a lot of gaming, just a bit here and there, but none of that high-end RPG stuff.  No, I mostly mess around with music and video editing, etc, and the Ryzen 1700x will more than adequately suit my needs.  I did look at an Intel build but the combinations I considered came to more than the Ryzen build without the graphics card.  With the Ryzen I get the graphics card as well, and for around the same price as the Intel build I researched without a GPU.

As for supporting AMD, well I guess that's a part of it, but it also comes down to what I can afford and what I feel is value for money.  I've had several AMD builds over the years and been happy with them.  I also had some Intel builds, starting with a Pentium II and then a P4.  My current main PC has an Intel i7 4790K, and I'm happy with that as well.  However, while it still performs well, it is aging some and I'd like to update to something newer.

Also, I have seen that the Ryzen 1700 series overclocks quite well, not that I'll necessarily bother, but I know it's there should I find the need to add a bit more grunt.

One good thing about your motherboard is it has an M.2 slot for an SSD. If you can afford an M.2 SSD, you will get 5 times the speed of a SATA SSD arrangement because it uses 4 PCIe lanes which gives 32 Gb/sec compared to 6Gb/sec from SATA.

Yeah, I have a Crucial 525Gb M.2, which I'll poach from the Intel rig to go in the new build when the time comes.  An M.2 SSD is definitely the way to go.  Thing is, can I wait until the new year? 

Maybe not... and I could be selfish and tell everybody to bugger off at Christmas.  

Well there has been another slight change.  Instead of getting the Ryzen 1700x, I'm going to go with the Asus ROG Crossfire VI Hero/Ryzen 1700, which includes the new and improved Wraith Spire CPU cooler by AMD.  The 1700x bundle didn't include it, and to have added one would have cost an additional AUD$85.00, bringing the total to over AUD$1700.00.

With the Ryzen 1700/Asus mobo bundle, plus the Corsair DDR4 3000 and Asus graphics card it'll be AUD$1522.00, a saving of $200 if including the CPU cooler.... and with the 1700 being unlocked it can be overclocked to match or better the 1700x, from what I've been reading.

Quoting admiralWillyWilber, reply 39

Quoting Timmaigh,

reply 31

Quoting Jafo,

reply 30

Check the date of those reviews as there used to be issues with them in the early days of G-sync....emphasis on past tense...

Maybe it improved somewhat, but i am not really eager to test it with my hard-earned money

And as i said, those were QC issues regarding backlight bleed and color uniformity, things unrelated to G-Sync. 

Anyway, i gave it bit of a thinking today and in the end, given limited funds, i may just get the cheapest alternative i considered, Dell U2715H, cause i want to buy NAS server too - i checked the prices and it seems it will cost me alongside 2 4TB HDDs another almost 500 EUROs... 

given limited funds i dont understand why then you would take the expensive underpowered option which is dell.

In the end, i got this one and its awesome:

Regarding my 7940x, i have it up and running and for the moment, i am getting along with 4,1GHz overclock on all cores and 4,6GHz for the best 2 cores... tried 4,4 GHz on all of them, but under RealBench stresstest i have been getting past 90C on about 10 out of 14 cores, the hottest one even 97-98C...which was unacceptable. Even though that is just unrealistic stress test (Luxmark and Handbrake at the same time) and even under Cinebench they never crossed 85C, most were under 80, i feel better about this way. May still do some stacked OC, when i keep the upper 2 at 4,6, then have a bunch at say 4,4 or 4,3 and only when more than say 8 are under load i keep it at 4,1 as it is. We shall see.