Advice on a custom build for pro photographer? help?

fxt84

fxt84

fxt84

Associate
Joined
22 Feb 2012
Posts
5
I'm currently trying to build a new PC to replace my current workstation - I'm a photographer and I need a really powerful machine that's going to last a few years... any advice on the following components would be greatly appreciated.. feel rather clueless about modern tech!

Primary Usage: many hours of intensive photo editing of large files (RAW & jpg), bulk conversions, potentially film editing and rendering.. a lot of intense, memory consuming work, potentially with 3 large monitors connected by DVI/VGA/HDMI... (no gaming)

Primary spec needs:
  • A chassis with as many 3.5HDD slots as possible - and really good airflow and cooling, to keep 8+HDDs happy for a long time... I've got at least 6 archived 1TB WD Caviar black HDs which I'd like to be able to slot into the new PC, I may build a server in the future, but this is more urgent as I've run out of space! Also needs to have lots space inside the case - my current machine has 7 slots, but can only fit in 6 due to large graphics card...
  • Lots of RAM - No idea which brand is better..
  • super fast processor - possibly 6 core, unless anyone can explain why a quad core is better?
  • hdmi, dvi and if possible VGA output - and capacity to feed three monitors.. I'm not gaming at all, so it doesn't need to be a top high-end gfx card, just enough to do that...
  • USB 3.0, firewire and e-sata connections? Maybe?

Questions:
Should I add the overclocked option? Does that effect system stability at all?
What is the best case for my needs? I've been looking at the lian li PC-A77FB.. does anyone know if this is a good case, or if it's overkill? I like it because it has loads of 3.5 sata slots, but perhaps there are more appropriate options? I've also been looking at the fractal design R4, but I don't think OC stock that one...

This is my current build: http://www.overclockers.co.uk/syscon_int.php?prodid=FS-281-OK&recordid=19096159
- £1936 inc vat.. which is a little more than I was planning to spend.. if anyone has any suggestions on modifications or changes that would bring it closer to the £1600 mark without reducing stability or future proofing, please let me know!

Specification
Lian Li PC-A77FB Aluminium Full Tower Case - Black
Intel Core i7-3930K 3.20GHz (Sandybridge-E) Socket LGA2011 Processor - Retail
Stage 1: Overclock of CPU - 10% Overclock (Proceesor speed x1.10)
Alpenföhn K2 Mount Doom CPU Cooler (Socket 775 / 1155 / 1156 / 1366 / 2011 / AM2 / AM2+ / AM3 / FM1 / FM2)
Asus P9X79 PRO Intel X79 (Socket 2011) DDR3 Motherboard
GeIL EVO Corsa 32GB (4x8GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C10 1600MHz Quad Channel Kit (GOC332GB1600C10QC)
Sapphire HD 7770 GHz Edition 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card
System HDD: Intel 330 Series 180GB 2.5
Secondary HDD: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST2000DM001) HDD - I prefer WD, but there doesn't seem to be the option to add that one here?
OcUK 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM
Onboard Sound Card (ZERO COST)
Corsair Enthusiast Series TX 850W V2 High Performance '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply (CP-9020043-UK)
Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 64-Bit - OEM (FQC-04649)

Any help would be greatly appreciated.. I have very little knowledge of current hardware options.. thanks!
 
It seem okay, though the spec needs ironing out, unfortunatly the configuration thing doesn't have some of the bits i wanted to show..

Your spec, doesn't allow 3 monitors easy, thats the main issues.

My spec:

YOUR BASKET
1 x Intel Core i7-3930K 3.20GHz (Sandybridge-E) Socket LGA2011 Processor - Retail £469.99
1 x Gigabyte X79-UP4 Intel X79 (Socket 2011) DDR3 Motherboard £209.99
1 x Avexir MPower Yellow Series 32GB (4x8GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C10 1600MHz Quad Channel Memory Kit (AVD3U16001008G-4CM) £179.99
1 x Crucial RealSSD M4 256GB 2.5" SATA 6Gb/s Solid State Hard Drive (CT256M4SSD2) £164.99
1 x BitFenix Shinobi XL Full Tower Gaming Case - Black £124.99
1 x Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 64-Bit - OEM (FQC-04649) £119.99
1 x Sapphire HD 7770 GHz FLEX 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card £119.99
1 x XFX 750W XXX Edition Modular '80 Plus Silver' Power Supply £96.98
1 x Western Digital Caviar Red 2TB SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache WD20EFRX - OEM HDD £89.99
1 x Alpenföhn K2 Mount Doom CPU Cooler (Socket 775 / 1155 / 1156 / 1366 / 2011 / AM2 / AM2+ / AM3 / FM1 / FM2) £59.99
1 x Asus 24x DVD±RW DRW-24B5ST SATA ReWriter - Black (OEM) £18.95
Total : £1,672.33 (includes shipping : £13.75).



The Shinobi XL has 8 x 3.5 bays and 5 x 5.25, so you can use adapters to fill another 4 bays. :) 12 HDD's in all..

The 7770 i picked has 2 x DVI outputs and a HDMI. :)

If you bought it like this you would have to build it yourself.. Though you could phone up ICUK, link them to this thread (if you like my spec) and see how much theyd charge to build it for you.. They are very nice like that. :)
 
Is there any chance of you building it yourself? It's quite an easy straight forward process, and you'd save a chunk of money and be able to use all the hardware you specifically want to.
 
sorry - was being stupid.. what are the main differences between the Gigabyte X79-UP4 Intel X79 (Socket 2011) DDR3 Motherboard &
Asus P9X79 PRO Intel X79 (Socket 2011) DDR3 Motherboard?

My current machine (which is about 5 years old now) has a gigabyte EP45-UD3LR in it, which has behaved very well..
 
I have built a pc myself before, but that machine developed problems after about 4 years.. random errors that I couldn't work out how to fix.. chaged gfx cards, psu, ram, but still couldn't work out the problem (random bsods), so I'm a little wary of doing so again.. as it's a big investment I'd rather pay the extra and make sure it gets properly tested by people who know what they're doing... plus, the machine I'm currently on was built by Overclockers, and has done really well..
 
fxt84 said:
I have built a pc myself before, but that machine developed problems after about 4 years.. random errors that I couldn't work out how to fix.. chaged gfx cards, psu, ram, but still couldn't work out the problem (random bsods), so I'm a little wary of doing so again.. as it's a big investment I'd rather pay the extra and make sure it gets properly tested by people who know what they're doing... plus, the machine I'm currently on was built by Overclockers, and has done really well..
Click to expand...

4 years is quite some time for a PC. Regardless of whether you built it yourself or got somewhere to build it for you, at 4 years old it'd be well out of warranty, so you'd be in the same position anyway.
 
Does anyone know which cases have the most 3.5hdd slots (I need something that has at least 8) and best cooling/airflow options.. ? I like the look of the Shinobi XL and the Lian Li PC-A77FB and the fractal design R4 - but finding it very difficult to compare any directly? I want something really big, so it's not too much of a squash inside.. I've had good experiences with coolermaster machines in the past, but no idea what the current products are like.. so much choice!

This is my latest build - switched the motherboard and the second hdd...

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/syscon_int.php?prodid=FS-281-OK&recordid=19103203

Lian Li PC-A77FB Aluminium Full Tower Case - Black
Intel Core i7-3930K 3.20GHz (Sandybridge-E) Socket LGA2011 Processor - Retail
Stage 1: Overclock of CPU - 10% Overclock (Proceesor speed x1.10)
Alpenföhn K2 Mount Doom CPU Cooler (Socket 775 / 1155 / 1156 / 1366 / 2011 / AM2 / AM2+ / AM3 / FM1 / FM2)
Gigabyte X79-UP4 Intel X79 (Socket 2011) DDR3 Motherboard
GeIL EVO Corsa 32GB (4x8GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C10 1600MHz Quad Channel Kit (GOC332GB1600C10QC)
Sapphire HD 7770 GHz Edition 1024MB GDDR5 PCI-Express Graphics Card
Intel 330 Series 60GB 2.5
Seagate Barracuda 2TB 7200RPM SATA 6Gb/s 64MB Cache - OEM (ST2000DM001) HDD
OcUK 24x DVD±RW SATA ReWriter (Black) - OEM
Onboard Sound Card (ZERO COST)
Corsair Enthusiast Series TX 850W V2 High Performance '80 Plus Bronze' Power Supply (CP-9020043-UK)
Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 64-Bit - OEM (FQC-04649)
BitFenix Alchemy Premium Modding LED Strip - Connect White 30cm
Full Cable Management
OcUK Tech Labs - Zaward Golf III Fan 120mm

Any thoughts?
 
Fractal Define R3 and that has 8 3.5 HDD bays, and there's also 2 5.25 bays, which you can either mount two hdds in those 2 bays or can put an adapter bay in there which can convert the 2 bays into 3 3.5" bays. There's 10/11 bays right there, and I think the XL is a bigger version of the Define, so should be able to hold more

http://fractal-design.com/?view=product&prod=71

or

try this,

http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showproduct.php?prodid=CA-077-BX&groupid=2362&catid=2276

BitFenix Shinobi XL Full Tower Gaming Case

5.25” Drive Bays: x 5
3.5” Drive Bays: x 7

so also using adapters you have more than enough at 11 plus a dvd drive

yours picked above has more than enough

- 12 x 5.25" Drive Bays
- 9 x 3.5" Drive Bays

and great spec by the way
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom