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Project: Valkyrie - Hardline Water Cooled PC (8700k/RTX 2080/16GB/500GB SSD) from $3,950 + Free Shipping @ Cat's Custom PCs

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OZFREEPOST

As our first entry on OzBargain we're offering free shipping sitewide until April 19th on any PC, pre-configured or totally custom.
If what you're after isn't listed, or you're not sure what you need, contact us for a free quote on a custom build.

Now introducing our best price yet on a full hardline water cooled machine.

Project: Valkyrie

Starting at $3,950 for the base configuration of:

i7 8700k
Asus Prime Z390-A
16GB 3000Mhz TeamGroup T-Force Delta RGB White
500GB Samsung 860 Evo M.2 SSD
2TB Seagate Barracuda 7200rpm
Nvidia RTX 2080 8 GB Founders Edition w/ EK Vector
Lian Li O11 Dynamic (White)
750W EVGA G2 SuperNOVA
Windows 10 Home 64 Bit
Silverstone PCI Express to dual USB3 internal headers for front panel IO
CableMod White/Red full custom sleeved kit

Cooling: Full custom hard line piping with 2x 360mm radiators and Barrow wall mounted distribution plate.
Lighting: RGB software controlled lights for all fans, motherboard and RAM. Remote control separate lighting on the distribution block.

Upgrade options for CPU, RAM and GPU available on site.

 

More budget friendly 1080p60 gaming machines available on site from $940

Don't forget to use code OZFREEPOST for free Australia-wide shipping.

Related Stores

Cat's Custom PCs
Cat's Custom PCs

closed Comments

  • -3

    Not buying but I'd use an i5-8600K and put the savings towards 2080 Ti. Ditch custom loop for CPU if necessary to get there.

    • How is pairing both of those components suitable?

      • because hyperthreading is useless compared to a better video card and 8600k will overclock to 5+ghz easier

        • +9

          Hyperthreading on the 8700k vs 8600k does net an overall 30+% improvement on CPU intensive tasks.
          It's true that most previous generation games don't need more than 6 threads either, but more are coming out now with that ability. Plus live streaming and rendering can definitely make use of them.

        • +3

          6c/6t ruins min framerates especially if the game uses all 6 cores as windows doesn't have anywhere to put background processes.

          the cum thermal interface material will continue to make these chips not hit their peak anyway, so it doesn't really matter.

          • +17

            @maybe a bot:

            the cum thermal interface material

            The what?

            • +1

              @Tacooo: I've been out of the loop for a while but I imagine he's referring to the use of thermal paste under the heat spreader rather then solder, causing undesirable thermal characteristics.

              • +5

                @OZBMate8911:

                the cum

                cum

                • +3

                  @Tacooo: the TIM (the goo between the CPU and the heatspreader) that intel uses is dreadful.

                  community has called it all matter of names, such as 'bird shit' 'cum', etc.

                  it's just really, really dreadful.

                  you can easily delid the chip and just put your own paste such as liquid metal or a good paste under there.

                  • +2

                    @maybe a bot: I knew exactly what you were talking about from the get-go. I've never in my life seen anyone call it cum though.

            • @Tacooo: a way to make some $$$

    • Even 8700k bottle necks 2080Ti at 1080p and 1440p..bad advice.

      • Not if you overclock it - on a custom loop like this, it should be able to hit 5ghz easy? Delid and you'll have a rock solid 24x7 workhorse.

    • +2

      Or save $1500 by buying the components separately.

    • I would stick to the 8700k, better longevity. Software is starting to take advantage of more threads and 6 won't cut it long term.

      https://youtu.be/F92byoMgptU

      If u really want to cut costs for a ti you would lose the custom loop…. but it looks awesome!!!

  • +21

    Looks fantastic, however for that price a 9700K and 32GB 3200mhz would make it a lot more appetising.

    • +1

      I would order one today if they can match the above.

      • +5

        For this particular machine in it's current spec, unfortunately that would mean I'd be at a loss even before taking into account shipping. The Valkyrie is likely only to break even at that price to be honest.

        I could however, match that spec and price if the cooling was changed to CPU only with a single 360mm radiator.
        9700k - Custom loop cooling + Overclock
        Z390
        32GB 3200MHz
        RTX 2080 - air cooled
        500GB M.2
        2TB HDD
        750W PSU with custom sleeved CableMod cables
        Lian Li O11 Dynamic
        W10 Home
        Software controlled RGB Fans
        + 2 year Parts and Labour Warranty
        Total - $3,950 + Free shipping with discount code.

        The price can be lowered further if cooling is again switched for AIO, in which case I would recommend checking out our Crystal series configuration.

  • +9

    You're putting some nice looking systems together, but for me, I can find the same parts at AU PC Part picker, but an AIO cooler instead, for 2900 plus change for the same parts, but not everyone likes putting their own systems together

    • +11

      This is true, and our most popular machines are AIO based due to the added value for money. It's unfortunate that custom cooling parts come at the cost that they do, but for those who aim to show off you can't beat the looks.

      • +11

        Yup - totally agree. If the systems look as nice as the pics then you're doing some fantastic work. And for those who value that crazy cool aesthetic, they should definitely get on this! If I was you, I would mention your custom cooling and design value a little more in your sales pitches - let people know where the value is in your products - it's not the parts it's the custom design of the cooling set up and the implementation. More pics etc too :D

        Of course you can ignore me, but I just thought it might help :D

      • +3

        Do you have a link to your system which is $3000 with AIO please?

        Thanks :)

        • +2

          Not identical, but very similar in spec with a Ryzen 2700X / i7 9700k in a compact dual chamber case by Corsair and 240mm AIO:
          Crystal RGB

          • +1

            @CCPC: Thanks! Looks like a decent price, will keep in mind down the track when I'm in the market :)

      • It's unfortunate that custom cooling parts come at the cost that they do

        So the cooling, cabling and lighting adds $970? What the hell are they made of?

        $599 i7 8700k
        $278 Asus Prime Z390-A
        $175 16GB 3000Mhz TeamGroup T-Force Delta RGB White
        $125 500GB Samsung 860 Evo M.2 SSD
        $79 2TB Seagate Barracuda 7200rpm
        $1199 Nvidia RTX 2080 8 GB Founders Edition w/ EK Vector
        $179 Lian Li O11 Dynamic (White)
        $165 750W EVGA G2 SuperNOVA
        $142 Windows 10 Home 64 Bit
        $39 Silverstone PCI Express to dual USB3 internal headers for front panel IO
        $2980
        ??? CableMod White/Red full custom sleeved kit
        ??? Cooling: Full custom hard line piping with 2x 360mm radiators and Barrow wall mounted distribution plate.
        ??? Lighting: RGB software controlled lights for all fans, motherboard and RAM. Remote control separate lighting on the distribution block.
        $970 $3950 - $2980
        • +17

          A lot of time and marginal profit.

        • +20

          Cables don't comb and hide themselves, hard tubes don't cut and bend themselves, and the cooling loop don't fill and purge itself. All these tasks are labour intensive unlike the mostly plug-and-play nature of a normal DIY PC. You are paying for somebody else's expertise and time.

          • @alvian: Yep, components are cheap, labour is expensive.

        • +53

          ~$70 Fittings, angle adapters and extenders from Barrow
          $70 CPU Water block from Bykski
          $200 GPU Water block from EK
          $200 2x 360mm Radiators from XSPC
          $160 Distribution plate + pump from Barrow
          $20 Solid piping, XSPC
          $10 Thermal Compound, Arctic Silver 5
          $20 Coolant additive & die from Mayhems
          $100 6x RGB Deepcool Fans
          $850 total

          Plus time and effort to build. I guarantee you won't find another company offering both CPU + GPU cooling for less.

          • +6

            @CCPC: Thanks. I can see now that it does all add up to quite a bit. Still seems totally insane to me though to not spend it on performance instead.

            I totally get that there are people out there that do want stuff just for showing off and you wouldn't be in business without them, but I doubt many of them are here. haha

          • +7

            @CCPC: Great breakdown!! Kudos to you for transparency, I really appreciate this.

            However, like kamoi mentioned, that's almost a grand I could have spent on a seperate component upgrade, i.e bumping the GPU up.

            At least initially, for my first PC, I'm looking at getting something more performance-focused, and all this RGB bumping up the price sucks for me. :(

            I guess I'll just go for a cheap build and stick up a few of these RGB Strips.

            Thanks again for the breakdown, not a lot of retailers do that with pre-built PC's. Will definitely keep you guys in mind when I'm getting my PC and may ask for a custom quote for a more bare-bones PC, I'll bookmark your comment. :)

            • +2

              @Zazer: Thanks for the kind words!

              We do mainly offer more value oriented AIO based machines, specialising in smaller footprint cases such as the Micro Tower for mid-range and Crystal RGB for higher end performance.

              And as you noted, we're happy to customise any order or build one from scratch to suit your specific needs in a case you like.

              Hope to hear from you in future :)

              [Edit]: Just noticed you had replied earlier to a different comment so this is partially a rehash of that one

              • @CCPC: Yep, I had a peek at your site. Those PC's look great! There's definitely a few customisations I'd like to make though, so when I'm in the market for a PC soon I'll be sure to contact you guys! :)

                Just a quick question, how big is your operation? Haven't heard of you prior to today :)

                • @Zazer: Sounds great!

                  As you have probably seen we are still quite small, only having officially opened September of last year.
                  We're in the process of growing operations, streamlining the build processes and getting our name out in the wild.

                  • +1

                    @CCPC: Oh, okay! So only about 6 months old then.

                    I'll definitely keep an eye out for any mention of you guys, and will come back down the line when I'm getting a PC :)

          • @CCPC: i had to do some googlefu to find that Barrow Distribution plate. well i found the bitspower version. seems like a pretty cool series of products. https://shop.bitspower.com/index.php?route=product/product&p…

            can you explain why you chose the non-NVMe version of the SSD? seems like an odd choice in an otherwise high end build.

            • @Antikythera: Sata based M.2 drives obviously help to lower cost, and in most OS and Gaming scenarios offer few, if any, noticeable differences.

              I find that NVME really shines for more work related tasks such as video editing.

              These are just recommendations though, and we are happy to accommodate special requests

  • +11

    I feel like your main pic isn't doing it justice. Need to get someone with a good camera, and maybe a bit of editing skills.

    Have a look at something like this for example, with the close-up shots etc

    • +2

      Thank you for your feedback, this is something we are trying to improve with each new showcase build.

    • +6

      Why don't you try your hand at it and let us know how it turns out? This rep looks like they know what they're talking about, don't bash it til you've tried it.

      Where can you find it built for cheaper? I'd be very keen to know, and I'm sure others would be as well.

      • -3

        https://au.pcpartpicker.com/list/br8LQZ

        This leaves over $1k for watercooling…
        Much cheaper to build it yourself as i said.

        • +6

          Not sure if you read the rest of the thread at all, but the rep responded here with an itemised breakdown of where the costs were coming from. ~$850 for parts, then for a custom cooling solution like this, I think that a couple of hundred bucks for labour, plus this having free shipping, is a fair price.

      • +1

        honest, transparent and upfront, all the reason to support a vendor like that.

    • Of course it is cheaper to do yourself - that is basically the premise with all pre built systems, but not everyone has the skill or time or experience to do so. Sure it isnt to hard to look up guides and do it yourself but a lot of people arent to comfortable playing with high end expensive hardware in fear of doing the breaking something - especially when water is involved.
      In my family i am the go to computer guy. have built many systems and i try to build it with them but basically all of the recipients showed this fear of damaging something and definitely would have gone and bought a prebuilt system if myself or someone else wasnt there to do it/show them how to do it.

      Also this comes with a warranty - which you will usually void yourself if custom watercooling the GPU (removing heatsinks and putting on GPU waterblock)

  • +22

    Not a great deal for everyone but +1 for reps honesty and attitude. Unlike some other company…

  • +2

    Typing this on my home made water cooled PC and you guys look to have done a great job. If this deal was around 6 months ago I would have definitely bought!

  • +1

    I’ve done a custom cpu and gpu water cool. It’s a lot of time to get it nice. Hard line would be especially more time consuming. More so as an unskilled DIYer.

  • -1

    I am interested in upgrading well buying a whole new pc in about a years time hopefully when the 2080 Ti is more affordable.

    What is a good build similar to this one with max performance maybe 48gb of ram possibly 64gb.

    Will be carrying over 2 SSD's and 1 HDD from current build.

    The rest will be sold.

    Will need WiFi ac as well as Ethernet port.

    Already have a Windows 10 key and OS installed on my SSD so would just need everything but storage.

    Will be probably selling my current setup for around $1000 and putting it towards a 8700K/9700K/9900K RTX 2080Ti 64gb DDR4 setup.

    What can you guys recommend or price up?

    Don't need water cooling or fancy lighting just best performance cooling wise and low maintenance.

    Bonus points if the ports for usb devices can be at the front.

    • I checked their website and they focus on the show off type of builds.

      • +1

        Yeah damn looks to be that way.

        Ah well was hoping they would be my next seller as I am not very fond of pc building but assembling the part list I can do.

        It is what I did last time for my sff build and ended up paying my builder $150 for some nice personal touches and working with me so well and overall a very good job.

        The convenience and peace of mind is well worth it to know you get a good job done and everything adjusted to your specifications.

    • Also interested in buying a max performance PC in about a year! Would also like best performance and low maintenance, let me know what you find please :)

      • I will keep you posted if I find a good custom builder or just pc builder.

        Might try it myself but my guy says I shouldn't risk it.

        One mistake could cost hundreds and I usually stuff up or trip somewhere.

        • Thanks!

          Yeah, I'm keen to try myself but if I choose the wrong parts or push in the wrong spot, I could cost myself a lot :/

          Considering finding someone to help me make a build and then teach me to build it, not sure who though.

        • As long as you watch some guides its pretty straight forward (dont watch the verge guide :P )
          watch a wide variety of guides on youtube from people like jaystwocents, pauls hardware, bitwits and even linus tech tips and you will pick up basically everything
          And if you come across any issues there are numerous forums out there on pc building filled with people that would be more than happy to help you.

          • @Pyrock: I can get 80% of it but the remaining 20% will give me a headache.. trust me I have thought this through I am not a pc builder.

            Takes one wrong forceful jam and a pin gets bent or something gets mishandled and a capacitor gets broken then a whole bag of nightmares opens up trying to fix that or getting it rma'd or whatever.. Rather just pay the extra 50 bucks and get it done by a professional and peace of mind.

  • +1

    would love to get this if i hadnt just ordered a whole computer worth of parts when CA had 20% off.

    You should do something about the waterloop going over the RAM though, seems like a difficult task if someone wants to add more ram in.

    anyways, great deal!

    • +4

      Thanks for the kind words, Dogfight!
      With regards to the RAM, there is actually more than enough room to remove and install even quite tall memory under those pipes without dismantling any of the water cooling.

  • +7

    For almost four grand, I would expect the 2080Ti rather than a standard 2080.

  • +2

    Not sure it's a bargain, but I do appreciate the OP's transparency.

    Most other sellers wouldn't be even half as transparent.

    So kudos for that. I would rather a plainer looking PC with better GPU and CPU for less money - but hey, I drive a Hyundai not a Porsche.

    If you have the money and its what you want, why not. The price assembled with warranty and shipping isn't outrageously high based on the prices of the individual components.

    BTW - what are the precise warranty terms on this unit?
    Return to base at buyers cost = unclear
    How many years = 2
    Where is base = Brisbane area

    Does the Consumer Law apply whereby even if the seller states return to base warranty, the seller is legally obliged to pay the cost of shipping to/from under warranty??

    My concerns about liquid cooling is eventually it will leak - might be 1 month, might be 10 years, but it will happen - and when it does it could be catastrophic. Depending on the leak you could be looking at almost every major component being ruined.

    The chances of a custom cooling system leaking would arguably be higher than the chances of a quality closed loop off the shelf solution leaking too….

    My last 3 PC's (all still going) have off the shelf stock Corsair liquid cooling systems for CPU only. I figure as long as they last at least 4 years before leaking, the value of the computers will have depreciated so much, as well as their relative performance declining, that I won't care so much - still won't be a good day…

    • +6

      Thankyou for your comments,

      With regards to the warranty we are currently offering 2 years parts and labour on all PCs, including to fix or replace any damaged parts caused by water leaks, or any corrosion in the loop assuming no alterations have been made by the customer. We leak test each custom loop quite thoroughly and will stand by it's safety for the full warranty period. However if the customer chooses to modify the loop, disassemble or change the coolant they do so at their own risk.

      Shipping of a repaired machine back to the customer will be our responsibility.

      Shipping from customer to base will be organized by the customer and later reimbursed if the PC is found to be faulty. In the case where the PC is too bulky or heavy to be easily moved by one person, or if evidence can be shown of a clear fault during the claim process we will assist in arranging a courier to collect it.

      As you mention we are located in Brisbane, but as we save running costs by not having a store front all transport is currently done via courier.

      I will make a note to clarify the website's refund policy if any of this is too ambiguous, and we of course have the full intention of complying with Australian Consumer Law as required.

  • Also for that money I would have expected a hybrid HDD. They are not substantially more expensive but thye do deliver a good performance improvement on a standard 7200rpm HDD.

    Anyway I guess it's fully customisable so you get precisely what you want (for a price) which is a refreshing change from most of these high end system packages.

    • +3

      Hybrids are out man. They don't make them any bigger than 2TB anymore and people have gone Intel Optane with bigger capacities for the same effect.

      Arguably with the price of SSDs dropping, you'd want a 2TB SSD more than a 2TB SSHD.

      • Just picked up a 2gb ssd for ~$350 off this site. Negligible when it comes to a $4k PC.

        • +2

          2gb SSD?
          Did you get a flash drive or something..?

      • You can still get a 4TB discontinued Seagate SSHD - I actually hadn't realised they stopped making them over 2TB so thanks for the heads up.

        4TB discontinued model SSHD is $209 so its still a fair bit cheaper than a 2TB SSD.

        Agree SSD is better if your wallet can stretch to it. I'm pretty happy with my existing 4TB SSHD's running as storage in conjunction with 1TB SSD boot drive.

        And also agree Optane is good if you have enough M2 slots and a modern enough CPU/mobo to support it. It uses one slot, so it might not be the best option if you also have other M2 slot needs. 32gb Optane is about $110.

        The mobo in this build has 2 x M2 slots. One is being used by an M2 SSD…

        In this build a SSHD would be preferable to what they are giving you, a stock HDD. 32gb Optane would be even better albeit it the most expensive of the 3 options…

  • +12

    Given the costs here, worth bearing in mind this is a new small business operated by a sole trader.

    ABN registered as operating under that business name in Brisbane since September 2018
    https://abr.business.gov.au/ABN/View/61746760046

    ABN was in existence since 2015 - started in WA - under no registered business name.
    It's not clear what business, if any, was operating under the ABN from 2015 to September 2018 when they moved it to Brisbane.

    You have to weigh up the chances of a small business folding. They are sadly pretty high.

    The components will have individual warranties, but they may not cover everything that could go wrong. For example if the cooling leaks, your motherboard warranty won't cover damage to the motherboard from the leak. Same applies to your CPU, hard disk, SSD, RAM, PSU and GPU.

    Because you are buying a fully assembled system, the individual component warranties may or may not apply at all - for example the video card manufacturer may well say that implementing the custom cooling solution voided the warranty on the GPU….

    If you bought a Dell Alienware or an ASUS ROG at least you would know your warranty was solid….

    But you'd pay more, and not get a system with these sort of looks or cooling designs…

    All businesses must start sometime of course, and these look good - plus the proprietor is open and transparent.

    But buyer beware…. Go in eyes wide open. I am not bagging the vendor, but people may not appreciate the risks…

    This is a lot of money for a lot of people, and it will end in tears if the business folds and you have an issue with any of the custom parts during the warranty period….

    • Yep well said

  • +5

    Dude, that's some nice work.
    It's unfortunate many people don't realise the price of custom loop parts and are quick to jump down your throat.
    Will be in touch in the near future for a build

  • That's one killer looking rig but @ 4k I'll stick to my xb1

  • +1 for awesome service and transparency. Hope you guys sell a few of these! Good rep can be priceless though ;)

  • +2

    Four K and only 16gb of RAM?? No ty

  • for ~$4K you might as well as get the 9900K version for $4300

  • You'd want to make sure this doesn't explode under your desk and end your career

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