I wouldn't go fully passive.  The 8700k puts off too much heat for that.
Large heatsink with large low RPM fan 
 
The right cooler is near dead silent.
You have to put your ear right next to it to hear anything.
Condenser mics just a few feet away isn't a problem.
 
 

I have to admit, my system is not that quiet.  It's not louder than the previous system which had a very large fan and heatsink, but it's noticeable and just a bit louder than the VS700R fan (which I never even noticed before until recently seeing posts here about it).  I don't record anywhere near the system, though, so it's not an issue.
 
Dave
 

I also have to say, after reading many many articles and threads about graphics card needs, my take-away was that a top tier graphics card is unnecessary.  Wrong.
 
I run 2 monitors (actually 3, but one is duplicate with HDMI splitter), the main one for wav/track view and the other for console.  In the last build, when I would scroll the console view with 30+ tracks, the frame rate drop was reakkt significant and ugly.  And, if I need to see signal data (like via Izotope Insight), huge latency in the readings and not smooth at all.  With this new build, it is better but I would have expected at least a stable 30 fps if not better.  If I have 2 Izotope plug windows open, frame rate suffers still considering I'm trying to monitor the signal in real time.
 
Just FYI.  In hindsight I would have gone for the 4GB video.
 
Dave

poetnprophet
I also have to say, after reading many many articles and threads about graphics card needs, my take-away was that a top tier graphics card is unnecessary.  Wrong.
 
I run 2 monitors (actually 3, but one is duplicate with HDMI splitter), the main one for wav/track view and the other for console.  In the last build, when I would scroll the console view with 30+ tracks, the frame rate drop was reakkt significant and ugly.  And, if I need to see signal data (like via Izotope Insight), huge latency in the readings and not smooth at all.  With this new build, it is better but I would have expected at least a stable 30 fps if not better.  If I have 2 Izotope plug windows open, frame rate suffers still considering I'm trying to monitor the signal in real time.
 
Just FYI.  In hindsight I would have gone for the 4GB video.
 
Dave

Thanks for that FYI, Dave.  I hope I wasn't one of the people who steered you wrong!  I knew my graphics needs were high, so I went for a fairly beefy graphics card (and have loved it).  Running four monitors (one's the Slate Raven) is pretty taxing on the video system, especially when you add HD video into the mix.  I wouldn't have guessed that a 2Gb card would lag with two monitors and a fast system, though.  I'll definitely keep that in mind here on out.

If you're talking about video "lagging", that can involve numerous factors:

• If running a video within Sonar (scoring to video) - the type of video can have a major affect on performance
• Running a 4K monitor via HDMI and using an older HDMI cable, the monitor refresh-rate may be 30Hz (instead of 60Hz).  This is awful for eye-strain headaches... and mouse movement is jerky.

 
If you just working with straight up audio projects (no video)... and running a pair of 1920x1080 monitors, you don't need high-end video.  DAW applications themselves don't put heavy demand on video.
 
If running multiple 4K monitors, you've got no choice but go higher-end video.
Doing video editing (running more demanding video plugins like New Blue "Titler Pro"), you've got to have higher end video.
 

I'm not running any video, just working with audio.  Interesting is that the video card shows only 25% processing at most.  So, what is it then?  Also, not a 4K monitor, just regular 1080p.
 
@Heather, no don't worry.  I don't recall exactly, but from several articles and threads I've read that about graphics.  Since I'm not working with video at all really, I thought I'd be safe with 2GB, upgrade from 512mb ha.
 
dave 

Sans GPU, the CPU will take the burden of graphics processing, so there will be some overhead associated with that.

In reality, GPUs do not really give much in the realm of 2D (DAWs are only 2D for the most part) aside from unloading the CPU. Their forte is more in the 3D realm, high frame rates, and CUDA (if used). As Jim mentioned, 4K can be strenuous on multiple monitors, so a GPU can help there as well.

That said, also bear in mind that all onboard graphics are not created equal, and the actual machine will also play into performance.