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Question

Build with 4k, no gaming -advise cpu, mobo, graphics, pls

Sep 15, 2015 6:11PM PDT

Hey, I'm going to try and build my own rig; got about 1-2 k$ to spend, and I want either the i7-4970 Haswell or the i7-5820 Haswell E. I want to run a 27" 4k monitor ( Dell P2715Q ) but I'm not playing any fps games, so I don't need to run multiple graphics cards (sorta wondering if I need all that rezz - I hear scaling is a problem with using 4k.. maybe I get a Dell U2913WM instead??) - so I'm trying to find a good ATX mobo and graphix card that will do 3840x2160 to go with it. I am planning to use an unusual case, the CoolerMaster HAF XB: just to get a horizontal mobo - it disturbs me to see big CPU coolers (not interested in liquid cooling) hanging off the side of mobos mounted vertically, and I've always been into weirdness, so this case is the bomb for me - it was designed as a test bench...
I want to create and edit science textbook pages, and I want to be able to throw 2 full pages up side by side in Word or Publisher and still see good detail and read easily. I like to play chess, and old games (Mechwarrior or RedAlert, anyone?) on my older boxes.... But I will work it out, I'm not in any hurry. Maybe I should get a Xeon?? -Rocky

Discussion is locked

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Answer
You can compare CPUs on ...
Sep 15, 2015 6:22PM PDT

I use CPUBOSS.com to compare CPUs. The move to 4K means you are looking at least the Nvidia 970 4GB RAM or better. As to the 2 pages, the usual chart means something over 32 inch 4K display. (CarltonBale chart.)

As to the games, just set them back to 1080p and let the display do the scaling otherwise you are into Titan cards.

As to the heatsink, I've never found that to be an issue.
Then again, my old setup was this.
http://i.imgur.com/yGp2AnQ.jpg

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Do I really need 4Gb for 4k?
Sep 16, 2015 11:43AM PDT

R.Proffit: I was really impressed by the speed in which you replied to my little note. I'm afraid you think I need a lot of memory and speed for heavy duty gaming. I don't. I won't be playing any modern games at all on the computer I'm trying to build except some different chess programs. I have some money to spend, but I'm a Scot, and I don't want more than need, and a 4Gb graphics card costs a lot more than a 2Gb, or a 1 Gb - money I could use elsewhere, like on more fans for the HAF, or better memory, or SSDs.
I did some research using an old Puget Sound 4k webpage - isn't it true that the Intel i7-4770's onboard graphics will display 3840x2160 at 30Hz through a Display Port or HDMI? I believe I don't need the extreme 4Gb cards, I just want to see pictures, clipart, animations, graphs, etc, at high resolution, and have a lot more desktop space to look at multiple pages at once. Motherboards and Graphics cards are hard for me to understand, the acronyms and and all the info pages on them are so uber-gamer oriented.... I don't know if the advice I read is good for what I want to do. Thanks for your advice, but I would rather not get a 4k card if I don't need it - is the 4k for billions of colors??? - Rocky

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I'm taking your word it's really 4K and not UHD?
Sep 16, 2015 12:11PM PDT

" 4K resolution, as defined by Digital Cinema Initiatives, is 4096 x 2160 pixels "
" 4K should not be confused with ultra-high-definition television (UHDTV) AKA "UHD-1", which has a resolution of 3840 x 2160 "

So that's UHD. Let's carry on. Yes you can get by with onboard i7 current gen UHD but animations is where I expect it to fall apart. 4K UHD rendering at say 30 FPS is still not an easy thing to do. Read http://www.cnet.com/news/hands-on-with-nvidias-new-titan-x-graphics-cards/

Yes you said no gaming but rendering is just as much work as those games. Pictures, charts and graphs will be fine without all this horsepower.

The reason for 4GB is to have enough GPU memory so the video playback can render in the GPU and frames be made into the future so that as more complex scenes play, there is no frame drop.

But 4K on 27 inch displays? What did you think of CarltonBale charts on that? Here's the picture.
http://content.provideocoalition.com/uploads/carlton_bale_resolution_chart_thumb.jpg
http://s3.carltonbale.com/resolution_chart.html
More at http://carltonbale.com/commentary-on-the-cnet-1080p-isnt-important-article/

I've seen a few want to play videos on their UHD display and blow up over the issues and get mad when I set it to 1080p and let the display do the scaling.

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Thanks - is this ok?
Sep 17, 2015 6:27AM PDT

My Mistake, but I read
"Dell 27 Ultra HD 4K Monitor – P2715Q is 27" of gorgeous 3840 x 2160 resolution"
Why do they advert 3840x2160 as 4k?? How I hate advertisers!!

I don't think I can afford "real" 4k - your'e right, UHD is what I am getting.
But I believe a 2k mobo would be ok - this is the one I am considering - what do you think??
GIGABYTE GA-Z97X UD5H LGA 1150) Intel Z97....

I'll quit bugging you, it's just the amount of info and the number of mobos is staggering.

Rocky

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I meant to say this..
Sep 17, 2015 7:01AM PDT

I meant to give you the graphics card,

EVGA GeForce GTX 750 02G-P4-2758-KR 2GB 128-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 Video Card (G-SYNC Support)

will this run the UHD Dell Monitor??

Thanks!!

Rocky

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No problem. Yes it's overwhelming
Sep 17, 2015 7:36AM PDT

Most advertisers are now getting the 4K out of the web/ad pages and writing 4K UHD. If they didn't they would be subject to suits about false advertising. But enough on that.

http://www.gigabyte.com/products/product-page.aspx?pid=4950#ov does note "4K Ultra HD Support" so yes it will drive the display depending on the CPU of course. Your CPU looks to be good to go.

I'd try it without the GPU at first to see if the video performance works for you. And keep in mind that trick of setting it to 1080p if you want to play a video when 4K UHD play is suffering.

As to the 750, http://www.evga.com/Products/Product.aspx?pn=02G-P4-2758-KR notes both 4K and 4K UHD support however many discover the frame rate to not be good enough for games and videos. It's fine for most web and common PC uses.