Responses to the OP in order, based on years of experience in general computer engineering and 6+ years of tweaking DF to run best on my many computers:
-Processor - Ivy Bridge-E (2011/X79) or Haswell (1150/Z87)? We like intel, I've never had a problem - wouldn't know what to do with an AMD besides use it as a hat.
Ivy Bridge. Haswells have some great advantages for laptops but not much bang for the buck on a desktop.
-Mobo - ASUS or Gigabyte or someone entirely different? I've used the both and had success, but if there's a newer, better company clue me in! It's been a while since we've built and I haven't been keeping up like I should have. I'm feeling a bit lost here!
I've been happy with ASUS boards but I bought a Biostar for my server and am now a great fan of their boards. The rest are also mostly good but those two are my go-to's.
-HD set up - Is SSD the shizz or should I still be using a standard HD? Are SSDs harder to install, causing any issues, etc?
SSDs are great but still pricey. A common budget SSD setup is a small SSD to hold the system and fast-load files, plus a larger HDD for general storage. If you want to spend $100+ for the performance increase of a SSD, go ahead. You won't regret it.
-Case - the HAF has to go!
My HAF is super-quiet. Sounds like you're using loud fans. Some case rules I always follow and you should too:
1. Get a fan controller w/ temperature sensors. About 80% of the time I'm hardly loading my computer, and my fan controller cuts down the fans to almost nothing when they aren't needed. Makes a world of difference.
2. Pay more for quieter fans. Some are ripoffs and noisy but read reviews and see which fans truly are quieter. Worth the extra $5 or so per fan.
3. Fan everything. If there's a place to mount a fan, mount a fan. If you're using quiet fans, you won't have to worry about extra noise. The colder your computer, the better.
-RAM - do I need to upgrade his RAM? Is there something significantly better? Should I just purchase more to upgrade him to 32gb or go whole hog and get him all new?
I'd suggest getting him a new set that's as fast as the board allows. RAM speed helps with just about everything and especially DF. Unless he does a lot of video editing/multitasking, he should be fine with 16gb... But if he's been complaining about space, get him more. But quality over quantity imho.
-PSU - I think I'm set with 1000W, right? This isn't going to be something that needs more than that?
1000W will be plenty. I'd say you'd be able to get by with 600-700W, and even that is giving you a ton of headroom. Go with a modular PSU though. It'll keep the case clear and airflow good.
-Graphics card - How graphics intensive is DF? I'd like to upgrade him to a DDR3 card, but will I need two or just one really good one? Any suggestions? NVIDIA or AMD? When we purchased I was told NVIDIA held the field, but I don't know if that's changed.
I always go NVIDIA, never been disappointed yet. But I'm pretty sure that Microsoft Paint is heavier on the GPU than DF is, so unless he's been complaining about it, there's no reason to upgrade. It won't make DF faster.
Some other general notes:
Micro-ATX boards are becoming very capable... for most purposes I don't see any reason at all to get anything else, even for decent gaming rigs. I default to that form factor for my builds now, and only go bigger if I have to. The smaller the better when it comes to desktops imho.
AMD processors are absolute crap for computing but make decent beverage warmers. Nothing heats up a mug of bovril better.
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Topic: Optimized Desktop for Dwarf Fortress (Read 1859 times)