We are bang in the middle of an inflection point where the latest generation of CPUs, GPUs, motherboards, memory, displays, and software (Windows 10) just launched. To help our readers wanting to save big on their first gaming PC builds [and because the news is slow these days], TechPowerUp brings to you its Builder's Digest series of guides, on which components we would choose, to build a gaming or media PC from the ground up, at a given price-point.

In this episode, we're trying to build the best gaming PC possible, under $1,700. Our definition of "best" includes not just performance, but also energy-efficiency and noise. $1,700 is a great budget to get building your first serious gaming PC from scratch. Your only semblance of a PC right now is probably a notebook you take to school, and so you need to buy everything that makes up a desktop. Here's how TechPowerUp will spend that money.

Crucial, a leading global brand of memory and storage upgrades, today announced it is unveiling a complimentary white digital camo heat spreader and unique white printed circuit board (PCB) option as part of its Crucial Ballistix Sport LT DDR4 memory offering. The modules, which will be showcased in conjunction with gamescom in Cologne, August 5th - 9th, offer the same DDR4 performance and proven reliability that gamers have come to expect from Crucial.

Designed for mainstream users who simply want to get more performance out of their systems, Crucial Ballistix Sport LT DDR4 memory delivers fast speeds and increased bandwidth. A new addition to the current Ballistix Sport DDR4 lineup, Sport LT modules feature a covert digital camo design, which will be available in both white and gray, and an integrated heat spreader. Whether gamers want plug-and-play installation or Intel XMP 2.0 profiles to achieve DDR4 speeds of 2400 MT/s, Ballistix Sport LT memory delivers seamless, affordable performance.

Crucial, a leading global brand of memory and storage upgrades, today announced significant updates to its Storage Executive tool. The new version (3.20) features Momentum Cache, an intelligent caching feature that can enhance burst performance by up to 10x[1], and allows users to extend SSD lifetime by reducing redundant writes. The tool uses idle memory for caching as needed, and installs easily via the Storage Executive interface.

In addition to the new features, Storage Executive also allows users to:

• Update to the latest firmware
• Monitor drive's temperature and health
• Reset the drive's encryption password
• Easily check how much storage has been used

Crucial, a leading global brand of memory and storage upgrades, today announced Crucial Ballistix DDR4 16GB performance memory. Ideal for gamers and enthusiasts who deal with content creation, virtual machines, RAM drives, and memory-intensive applications, the new Ballistix modules leverage Micron's new 8Gb DDR4 component technology to offer up the highest density DDR4 memory to date.

Until now, only expensive server systems have been able to reach these memory densities, but with Ballistix DDR4 16GB modules, users can achieve greater densities on high-end desktop systems like the latest Intel X99 platforms. Available across Sport LT, Tactical, and Elite product lines, each module includes Intel XMP 2.0 profiles for easy setup and support.

Crucial, a leading global brand of memory and storage upgrades, is now sampling Crucial DDR4 2400MT/s 8Gb-based RDIMM, LRDIMM, and ECC UDIMM server modules through its Technology Enablement Program. Engineered to enable higher density modules, 8Gb-based DDR4 memory allows for increased performance, bandwidth, and energy efficiency.

Higher density modules, when combined with the next DDR4 speed increase of 2400MT/s, create greater channel bandwidth and channel density, as well as increased energy efficiency. Ultimately, these benefits provide more value per gigabit than current 4Gb-based offerings. Taken together, the increase in density, bandwidth, and value deliver a lower total cost of ownership for users.

Crucial, a leading global brand of memory and storage upgrades, today announced the availability of Crucial Ballistix Elite DDR4 memory. Designed to enhance high-performance gaming environments and push performance limits, the new modules deliver introductory speeds starting at 2666 MT/s, and allow users to radically increase bandwidth to 21 GB/s. Ballistix DDR4 memory also delivers up to 40 percent better power efficiency than standard DDR3 memory.*

Ballistix Elite DDR4 memory is optimized for the latest Intel X99 platforms with support for XMP 2.0 profiles, and features a custom-designed black PCB and anodized aluminum heat spreaders for improved heat dissipation. Supported by the exclusive Ballistix Memory Overview Display (M.O.D.) utility, which provides the ability to read information from the module, including real-time temperature from the integrated thermal sensor, voltages and more, all to aid overclocking efforts.

Crucial, a leading global brand of memory and storage upgrades, today announced two new solid state drives (SSDs): the Crucial MX200, built to deliver leading speeds and features, and the Crucial BX100, designed to offer substantial yet affordable performance gains compared to a hard drive.

Crucial MX200 SSD: Available in 250GB, 500GB, and 1TB capacities with respective MSRPs of £107.99, £191.99, and £360.99, the new Crucial MX200 delivers sequential reads and write up to 555MB/s and 500MB/s, along with random reads and writes up to 100k and 87k IOPS on all file types. Additionally, with an endurance rating up to 320 TBW (total bytes written) on the 1TB model, the Crucial MX200 delivers up to five times more endurance than a typical client SSD.

Crucial, a leading global brand of memory and storage upgrades, today announced new Crucial Ballistix Sport LT DDR4 memory and new Ballistix Tactical DDR4 memory. The new modules offer a combination of sleek design, DDR4 performance, and proven reliability for gamers to own the competition.

Designed for mainstream users who simply want to get more performance out of their systems, Ballistix Sport LT DDR4 memory delivers fast speeds and increased bandwidth. A new addition to the current Ballistix Sport DDR4 lineup, Sport LT modules feature a covert digital camo design and integrated heat spreader. Whether gamers want plug-and-play installation or Intel XMP 2.0 profiles to achieve DDR4 speeds of 2400 MT/s, Ballistix Sport LT memory delivers seamless, affordable performance.

Crucial, a leading global brand of memory and storage upgrades, today announced new Crucial DDR4 SODIMMs, designed to enhance next-generation laptop performance. The new DDR4 modules are more than 30 percent faster than their DDR3 equivalents with speeds of 2133 MT/s, enabling systems to load applications faster and run demanding programs without lag.

Operating at 1.2V compared to 1.5V for standard DDR3 memory, Crucial DDR4 SODIMMs consume 20 percent less voltage than standard DDR3 technology. The reduction in voltage combined with other DDR4 efficiency features leads to an overall power reduction of up to 40 percent, which helps extend battery life. Additionally, Crucial DDR4 SODIMMs increase memory bandwidth by more than 30 percent, allowing systems to handle more data at once.

Crucial, a leading global brand of memory and storage upgrades, has expanded its DDR4 memory portfolio with LRDIMM and VLP RDIMM modules. Designed to enable next-generation enterprise environments with increased speed, bandwidth, and energy efficiency, Crucial DDR4 load reduced DIMMs (LRDIMMs) and very low profile registered DIMMS (VLP RDIMMs) are available for immediate purchase through select global channel partners.

By utilising a memory buffer chip that helps reduce the electrical load presented to the memory bus, Crucial DDR4 LRDIMMs allow for more DIMMs per channel and are up to 50 percent more energy efficient and deliver up to 50 percent more memory bandwidth than DDR3 LRDIMMs. Furthermore, by using less voltage and standby current, Crucial DDR4 LRDIMMs transmit power in a more efficient manner to the CPU, allowing for additional power savings and lower total cost of ownership.

Crucial, a leading global brand of memory and storage upgrades, today announced the availability of Crucial Ballistix Sport DDR4 memory and Crucial DDR4 desktop memory. Designed to enhance high-performance gaming and computing environments, the new Ballistix Sport DDR4 modules deliver introductory speeds of 2400 MT/s, while Crucial DDR4 desktop memory speeds start at 2133 MT/s and are expected to increase as DDR4 technology matures.

Optimized for the latest Intel X99 platforms, the new modules have increased bandwidth over mainstream DDR3 memory and are up to 40 percent more energy efficient. In addition, select Ballistix Sport DDR4 modules are plug and play, featuring XMP 2.0 profiles for easy configuration as well as an integrated heat spreader and black PCB.

The global PC DRAM module market revenues arrived at US$ 7.3 billion in 2013, a 32% YoY increase from 2012's US$ 5.5 billion, according to DRAMeXchange, the memory and storage research division of TrendForce. The main factors leading to the revenue growth included price increases for PC DRAM, increased spot market demand, and the rising proportion of contract market transactions. The top ten module manufacturers accounted for nearly 88% of the entire market's revenue in 2013, with Kingston Technology maintaining its usual leading position within the industry. ADATA Technology and Ramaxel, which ended up in second and third place, respectively, showed respective revenue growth of 116% and 37%. As the module manufacturers' operations are becoming increasingly diverse, the ranking for 2013 is based solely on their annual DRAM revenue.

The consumer SSD market could witness a price-war, with leading manufacturers spooling up production, according to industry sources. NAND flash chip supplier Micron Technology reportedly reduced supplies of its chips to other manufacturers, in a possible bid to increase production of consumer SSDs bearing its own channel brand, Crucial Memory. The company plans to double shipments of Crucial-branded SSDs quarter-over-quarter. Elsewhere, Kingston Digital ramped up SSD shipments to 600,000 units a month, to step up competition against SanDisk and Samsung.

SSD makers are likely to take advantage of the entry of M.2 standard in the consumer space, with the introduction of Intel's 9-series chipset. M.2 offers 10 Gb/s of interface bandwidth (physical layer PCI-Express 2.0 x2), and some non-standard implementations are wired to offer even 20 Gb/s (physical layer PCI-Express 2.0 x4). M.2 slots feature SATA 6 Gb/s wiring in some onboard implementations, which could pave the way for M.2 replacing 2.5-inch SATA as the highest selling SSD form-factor, in the near future.

Here are the first pictures of a Crucial Ballistix Elite DDR4 memory module up close. Launched earlier this week, the Ballistix Elite DDR4 will be Crucial's first enthusiast module to address the emerging market created by Intel's Haswell-E HEDT platform. It will come in various speeds upwards of 2133 MHz (DDR), and densities of 4 GB, 8 GB, and 16 GB, and will be available as single-module, dual-channel, and quad-channel kits. The underlying DRAM chips are homebrew, from Micron's mega DRAM/NAND-flash plant in Boise, Idaho, US. The chips are cooled by a simple and effective aluminium heat-spreader.

Crucial, a leading global brand of memory and storage upgrades, announced today the new Crucial MX100 solid state drive (SSD). Available in 128 GB, 256 GB, and 512 GB capacities with respective MSRPs of $79.99, $109.99, and $224.99, the new Crucial MX100 offers powerful speeds and advanced features at a low cost per gigabyte.

The Crucial MX100 256 GB and 512 GB drives utilize Micron's new 16 nanometer (nm) 128 Gb NAND, in addition to a SATA 6 Gb/s controller and custom firmware, to deliver up to 90,000 input/output operations per second (IOPS). With true 550/500 MB/s sequential read/write speeds on both compressible and incompressible data, the Crucial MX100 allows users to boot up almost instantly, load programs in seconds, and accelerate demanding applications. Furthermore, at up to 89 percent more efficient than a hard drive, the new MX100 SSD allows users to run systems longer, using less power.

Crucial, a leading global brand of memory and storage upgrades, is now shipping DDR4 server memory. Designed to enable next generation enterprise environments with increased speed, bandwidth, and energy efficiency, Crucial DDR4 server memory modules are available for immediate purchase through select global channel partners and at crucial.com.

The modules are up to twice as fast and deliver double the memory bandwidth over DDR3 technology when it was introduced (1066 MT/s and 8.5 GB/s with DDR3 vs. 2133 MT/s and 17 GB/s on DDR4), and are expected to get even faster as the technology matures. Operating at 1.2V, Crucial DDR4 server memory uses up to 20 percent less voltage than DDR3 technology when it was introduced (1.5V). In addition, Crucial DDR4 server memory can be up to 40 percent more energy efficient than previous generations of DDR3 memory, when coupled with other technologies introduced with DDR4. Crucial DDR4 server memory is optimized for future Intel Xeon processor E5-2600 v3 product family-based systems.

Crucial, a leading global brand of memory and storage upgrades, today announced new Crucial Ballistix Elite DDR4 memory modules, which deliver the next generation of memory to high performance gaming. Designed for gamers and enthusiasts, Ballistix Elite DDR4 memory delivers introductory speeds that start at 2666 MT/s and 3000 MT/s and is expected to get faster as the technology matures.

The new modules offer nearly twice the bandwidth of mainstream DDR3 memory at up to 24 GB/s, and deliver improved system responsiveness and increased frame rates. Furthermore, Ballistix Elite DDR4 memory delivers up to 40 percent more power efficiency than standard DDR3 memory.

Gigabyte showed off a reference BRIX space-saving desktop based around its H97N-WiFi mini-ITX motherboard. The desktop packs a mean punch for everything except 3D gaming, and should be capable of complex video-editing and production jobs. At its heart is a Core i7-4785T energy-efficient quad-core processor based on the "Haswell" Refresh silicon. The CPU features clock speeds of 2.20 GHz with 3.20 GHz Turbo Boost, HyperThreading, AVX2 instruction set, and a dual-channel IMC. Other chops include up to 16 GB of dual-channel DDR3-1600 Crucial Ballistix Tracer memory, up to 1 TB of Crucial M550 SSD storage, display outputs that include dual-link DVI and HDMI, 802.11 ac + Bluetooth 4.0 WLAN, gigabit Ethernet, and a 120W power-brick.

We're still a few days away from the official unveiling of MX100 solid state drive but thanks to a distributor jumping the gun we already have the full scoop on Crucial's latest creation. As previously revealed, the MX100 is set to be the first SSD equipped with Micron's 16 nm MLC NAND flash memory but not all models will have the 16 nm NAND - the 128 GB drive will pack 20 nm chips, while the 256 GB and 512 GB versions will have 16 nm flash.

All three MX100 drives come in a 7 mm-thick 2.5-inch chassis (a 9.5 mm adapter is included), and have a SATA 6.0 Gbps interface, a Marvell 88SS9189 controller, and are backed by a three-year warranty.

Announced back in July 2013, Micron's 128 Gigabit 16 nm-manufactured MLC (multi-level cell) NAND Flash memory will soon be making its debut within a new Crucial solid state drive. Named MX100, the 16 nm NAND-equipped drive will be showcased at Computex 2014 and is expected to arrive in a 2.5-inch form factor.

The MX100 has a SATA 6.0 Gbps interface and performance-wise it's said to be somewhere between the aging M500 and the recently released M550. Pricing is expected to be very competitive.

Crucial, a leading global brand of memory and storage upgrades, is now sampling DDR4 server memory through its new Technology Enablement Program. Aimed at channel partners who are currently developing or evaluating DDR4-capable platforms, the program provides early access to select Crucial server DDR4 modules and relevant technical resources, as well as notification of new modules as they become available. The Crucial Technology Enablement Program comes on the heels of Micron's recent ramp up in DDR4 production.

Designed to enable next generation enterprise environments, Crucial DDR4 server memory delivers data rates that start at 2133 MT/s (up to twice as fast as DDR3 when it was introduced) and is expected to get even faster as the technology matures. What's more, when used with Intel Xeon processor E5-2600 v3 product family-based systems, Crucial DDR4 server memory doubles memory bandwidth from 8.5 GB/s to 17 GB/s. Additionally, Crucial DDR4 memory uses up to 20 percent less voltage than DDR3 technology, operating at 1.2V compared to 1.5V for standard DDR3 memory, and delivers up to a 40 percent reduction in power usage.

Crucial announced its M550 series of performance SSDs, succeeding its existing M500 series. Built in 7 mm-thick 2.5-inch SATA, mSATA, and M.2 form-factors, the M550 series offers higher sequential transfer rates, and comes in higher capacities near existing price-points, over its predecessor. It also introduces a handful new features, such as NWA (native write acceleration), RAIN (redundant array of independent NAND), adaptive thermal protection (ATP), and hardware encryption. The drives appear to be based on a Marvell-made controller platform, with Micron-made MLC NAND flash. The mSATA 6 Gb/s and M.2 models come in capacities of 128 GB, 256 GB, and 512 GB; while the 2.5-inch SATA 6 Gb/s models include 1 TB capacity. The drives offer sequential reads as high as 550 MB/s, with up to 500 MB/s of sequential writes. They're backed by 3-year warranties, and should eventually replace the M500 series from their existing price points.

The Hybrid Memory Cube Consortium (HMCC), dedicated to the development and establishment of an industry-standard interface specification for the Hybrid Memory Cube (HMC) technology, today announced its continued work to build the HMC ecosystem and support for the industry adoption of this groundbreaking technology through the development of a new interface specification. Today the HMCC also released a first draft of the new specification to a growing list of consortium adopters that now numbers more than 120. The new specification supports increased data rate speeds advancing short-reach (SR) performance from 10 Gb/s, 12.5 Gb/s, and 15 Gb/s, up to 30 Gb/s. The new specification also migrates the associated channel model from SR to VSR to align with existing industry nomenclature. The ultra short-reach (USR) definition also increases performance from 10 Gb/s up to 15 Gb/s.

The HMCC, founded by leading memory providers Micron Technology (Nasdaq:MU), Samsung Electronics, and SK hynix, has begun circulating this draft specification to a broad range of adopters, with the goal of incorporating adopter members' input and targeting a completion date of May 2014 for the final version. The first-generation specification was completed and released publicly in April 2013; several developer and adopter companies, including Altera, Xilinx, and Open-Silicon, have already begun leveraging the specification to design products and solutions that incorporate HMC technology.

Here is the first picture of a DDR4 SO-DIMM module, exhibited by Crucial at its 2014 International CES booth. The company revealed its first DDR4 server memory lineup, as its DDR4 SO-DIMMs, targeting micro-servers, and future notebooks, tagged along. DDR4 DIMMs and SO-DIMMs measure roughly the same as their standard (full-height) DDR3 counterparts, except that the index notch is positioned differently. DDR4 promises to up memory bandwidths, densities, and energy efficiency. Intel's next-generation HEDT (high-end desktop) platform could be the first client platform to support DDR4. Crucial unveiled the first Ballistix-branded DDR4 memory module, targeting some of those systems. DDR4 memory modules could start at speeds of up to 2133 MT/s, and module voltages as low as 1.2V. Compare those to the 1066 MT/s and 1.8V DDR3 started off with!

Crucial, a leading global brand of memory and storage upgrades, today released a new lineup of high-performance memory solutions specifically designed for the new Mac Pro systems. This new memory is engineered to meet the component densities, speeds, and Serial Presence Detect (SPD) programming specifications of the new Mac Pro workstations, and is now available in densities up to 16 GB through select global channel partners and at www.crucial.com.

The new modules designed for Mac Pro workstations operate at 1866 MHz, which is the fastest mainstream DDR3 ECC UDIMM and RDIMM speed currently available, allowing users to leverage all the capabilities of the new Mac Pro systems. For further performance gains, modules are available in densities up to 16 GB. These high-speed, high-density memory modules provide users with increased system responsiveness, faster application load times, and an increased ability to multitask with ease when using data-intensive programs such as Apple FinalCut Pro or Adobe Photoshop software.