New PC for 5-Man: Hardware Advice Needed

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Having gone back and looked at MBox_Bob's build, it's funny how similar the two are.

I have read on these forums that people suggest a minimum of 1 physical core per instance. You are saying that the Skylake quad-core is still preferable over a say 6 core such as the 5820K?
The 5820K is more than capable, I just don't feel right suggesting it currently as X99 is on the verge of a refresh. The motherboards that support it are either missing features compared to Z170 or are very expensive (ASUS RAMPAGE and MSI GODLIKE for example). If you were seriously interested in going more than 5, I'd say go X99. If you were also talking about things like needing a workstation in addition to boxing, I'd also recommend X99. But, I'd also suggest waiting in that case. And then you're looking at more money into the base system that could be spent elsewhere, like the Video card for example.

Furthermore, I can tell you that I and several others are currently five boxing on the 6700k (Ugh if memory serves has a very similar setup to mine, I think we have the same motherboard in fact). The 6700K is going to perform better on single threaded applications, so if you're just running say GTA or some other non boxing game, it'll outperform the 5820K. Additionally, you can push the overclock further on the 6700K compared to the 5820K with fewer heat issues, primarily because of the smaller number of cores. Either will work perfectly well, and be capable of boxing, streaming, etc. But the 6700K builds will offer a little more in terms of "new features" and longevity, whereas I could see someone feeling a bit of buyers remorse picking up a 5820K now, and finding in say six months they can get the same chip used or the refreshed chip with better stats all around.

Given the cost for the builder is somewhere around 250£, I think I have warmed up to the challenge of putting a PC together myself. While I have no trouble with simple plugging, I am a bit more worried about installing a cooling system but you suggest it is quite straightforward. Can you recommend some sources on the web where I can start reading up on putting PCs together?
Absolutely understandable, my advice is to look around Google. I've added a few suggested videos below, Joanne Tech Lover does a great job of getting good quality video and thoroughly explaining the parts. Linus is pretty popular, and also has some good build videos you can find. This video in particular will give you some good information about boosting the processors, which is likely where you'll see the most gains for your boxing needs.

Additionally, I would say that building a PC is definitely daunting the first time. But ultimately it's lot like Legos for adults, the parts generally only fit together one way. And as long as you take your time and don't force anything together, you should be perfectly fine.

Joanne Tech Lover Skylake Build - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzJoF4aGYws
Joanne Tech Lover - How to Clean Install Windows 10 + Drivers: Skylake Build - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzr16pxybnI
Linus Tech Tips Intel "Skylake" Core i7 6700K Overclocking Guide - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FjIweExETlI

MBox_Bob suggested Asus Z170 PRO GAMING ATX LGA1151 over your suggestion, what are the differences?
They're both great boards, I chose the non gaming variant as I ended up with a build that was pretty low key in terms of appearance. Though I personally like black and red, I know not everyone does. Additionally, there are some nice features on the one I suggested, like the PWM pump control that should smooth things out with the corsair cooler. And several other features that make it excellent for overclocking, but mainly I picked it because it was maybe $5 cheaper when I looked at it, had slightly better overall reviews, and looks nice.

Is there a big difference between using 4*4 vs. 2*8 sticks?
For memory, the first thing to consider if you decide you want to go 4x4 is stick with DDR4-2133. Brand isn't as important, just as long as it's a reputable dealer that you like the look of. Corsair, G Skill, and Kingston are all solid choices.I can't speak for MBox_Bob, but I imagine we both chose 2x8 for basically the same reasons. First, when you're boxing you're going to want 16 gigs of ram. Secondly, by going with 2x8 sticks you're giving yourself room to add more later if you so desire. And thirdly, if all you want is 16 gigs, I would still suggest 2x8 as it will likely allow you to have more stable overclocks. I mentioned earlier with regards to the 5820K that it's not going to overclock as fast as a 6700K, part of that is due to it being an older architecture. But also, it's because there are more cores to overclock. Ram factors into your overclocking as well, more ram is more points of failure for your overclocking. If however you find a great deal on 4x4 sticks of DDR4-2133 ram, I certainly wouldn't think less of you for picking it up.

Is it worth going with M.2 storage instead of 2.5”? For example, Samsung 950 Pro 512GB is just double the price. I am saying this because some programmes won’t go on the second HDD such as dropbox for example (I don’t have much on there, maybe 30GB but still)
I honestly don't have any experience with M.2 yet, eventually my goal is go full solid state storage on this system and reserve the old platter HDs for my NAS box, but that's going to take some more time and money. It really depends on how much you want it frankly, for the price of the 512GB M.2 chip you could just about get a 1TB SSD and a 2TB HDD. I'm just not sure if the M.2 chips are fast enough to warrant the price right now.

I read that the Step-Up programme is for 90 days post purchase only so Pascal might be released after such time anyway. Let’s say I upgrade, would I need to upgrade any other part of your hardware setup as a consequence? Also, you say you might have gotten away with a Radeon 390 for 5-boxing and are saying that the 8GB over the 6GB from the 980TI were worth it? Considering the 390 is £270 (USD 380) and the 390x is 350£ (USD 500), could it be worth a try or is it too big a risk for a few 100-200 hundred USD?
The 390 is a very good card, I really like MSIs 390X myself. It's not going to be as fast a TI, but it also doesn't claim to be. I know some people are boxing 970s now. I'd say if you're concerned about buyers remorse when Pascal drops, I'd probably get a 970 or 390. As for the question of 390 or 390X there's plenty of debate on that topic, but the short of it is if you want something out of the box that's faster it's the 390X. You're not going to have a whole lot of room to overclock it though, unless you add a water cooler. In which case, it's become as expensive as a TI.

So, I think if I were going in that range it would be between the 970 and the standard 390 personally. Both are phenomenal, if you're using a 4K monitor though you'll almost certainly want to Crossfire or SLI. In the case of the AMD cards, you're going to need to upgrade the PSU as the recomended wattage is 1000w for those in Crossfire. For the 970s and the 980TI the 850W PSU will be fine in SLI.

MBox_Bob suggested a mid-sized case at a lower price. Does it make sense to save the money here? Does the size of the tower have implications for ventilation and heat build-up? Possible more difficult for me to put everything together in a smaller tower as a beginner?
Honestly, that is a good place to save a few dollars, there's a variety of good midrange cases that I'm sure would suit your needs. The NZXT S340 for example is a simply gorgeous case that's actually pretty easy to build in. Phanteks Enthoo Pro and Pro M are both quite nice. There will be some differences in air circulation and noise, depending on which case you go with. I think the main thing though is how easy is it to build in, and how does it looks on your desk? Otherwise, it's just a box with your parts in it. So, a lot of that is going to come down to personal taste.

Your build suggests 500W usage on PCPartPicker, do I need to go as far as 850W? I guess it doesn’t make much difference in terms of energy costs and hardware price so reducing to say 650W has little sense?
Regardless of the power rating, the machine is only going to draw the amount of power it needs. So having more power just means that your PSU isn't running at full capacity. Running at half capacity just means it's not heating up as much, and will theoretically increase it's lifespan, and of course it means less noise since the PSU isn't ramping up the fan to keep it cool. It also means you've got enough power to run a second video card should you decide to add one at a later date. Additionally, choosing a PSU with a smaller wattage sometimes means it's a less effecient PSU, or it may be missing some features like the modular cables (a lifesaver for building a rig). Less efficient PSU means higher electric bills, and more heat output generally.

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