Cad workstation spec me please :)

Jonnycarter

Jonnycarter

Jonnycarter

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27 Jun 2009
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Basicaly my old pc has just given up the ghost
so i am looking to get ahead and build a rig capable of running autocad with large models (my last one struggeld at small models ... not good)

I wont give a budget because i know the system could easily soar into the high numbers. I DO WANT TO KEEP IT REASONABLE

the only thing i am really struggeling with is should i wait for the 8 core bulldozer? as i understand the more cores the more processing power? and cad is a cpu + grahics intensive softwere? and it will be more PROFORMANCE PER POUND.

Future upgradability is much needed.

also a 24" led monitor aswell
an ssd for os/programs (60gb will do)
8+gb of ram

Obviously i need a good GPU and the obvious choice will be a nvidia chip because of all the hardwere acceleration and cuda and physix and all that but if an ATI can do the same for half the price who am i to complain.

Your help is much apreciated
I look forward to your sugestions
 
if you have no problem waiting then may well be worth waiting for bulldozer to see how it goes, as i understand it from the difference between the current intel 2500 and 2600 its not necessarily speed, but how it handles the information with reference to things like cad/video editing etc.

if you want to buy now then i'd go for the intel 2600K, ssd wise have a look at the corsair m4 64gb.

screen wise if i understand it correctly you'd be better going with an ips panel, but i'm sure some of the cad/design users on here will be better placed to advise on that.

what programs do you use and what operating system are you running.
 
Im in no rush to buy now probably in a month or two.

Imainly use 3ds max and auto cad and a little bit of inventor now and then.

Im running windows 7 and xp on a seperate hdd
 
i'm not 100% sure about autocad, but you can certainly speed up 3Ds max with the cuda cores of an Nvidia card, so its probably best to go for one of them. the rest of your build really depends on the budget, because we could have vastly different ideas as to what is reasonable

as for the i5 2500k vs i7 2600k, the only difference is hyperthreading. this is completely useless for gaming, but will be very handy for what your doing, so if you can fit it into the budget then it will give a nice performance increase as you can see from this benchmark:
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/288?vs=287

and since you dont need the computer for a month or so, theres no harm in waiting for bulldozer
 
Thanks that helps a lot so its i7 2600K VS some sort of bulldozer,

I Guess for budget maximum is 900 :S i know its tight to include a 24" monitor too but as far under that as possible :)
this is what i could come up with on the intel base without a graphics card as i have no idea what one to get.
Product Name Qty Price Line Total
Intel Core i7-2600K 3.40GHz (Sandybridge) Socket LGA1155 Processor - OEM £249.98
(£208.32) £249.98
(£208.32)
Asus VS247H 24" Widescreen LED Monitor - Black £139.99
(£116.66) £139.99
(£116.66)
Asus P8Z68-V Intel Z68 (Socket 1155) DDR3 Motherboard £130.00
(£108.33) £130.00
(£108.33)
OCZ Z-Series 850W '80 Plus Gold' Modular Power Supply £94.99
(£79.16) £94.99
(£79.16)
OCZ Agility 3 60GB 2.5" SATA-3 Solid State Hard Drive (AGT3-25SAT3-60G) £69.98
(£58.32) £69.98
(£58.32)
BitFenix Shinobi Gaming Case - Black £49.99
(£41.66) £49.99
(£41.66)
G.Skill RipJawsX 8GB (2x4GB) DDR3 PC3-12800C9 1600MHz Dual Channel Kit (F3-12800CL9D-8GBXL ) £39.98
(£33.32) £39.98
(£33.32)
Sub Total : £645.77
Shipping cost assumes delivery to UK Mainland with:
DPD Next Day Parcel
(This can be changed during checkout) Shipping : £19.10
VAT is being charged at 20.00% VAT : £132.97
Total : £797.84

I hope bulldozer is as nicely priced as everyone is saying it will be
 
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could drop the mobo down to the Gigabyte Z68XP-UD3.

ssd wise go for the crucial m4 version.

no real need for that high a psu 650w will be enough for a single graphics card.

with the saving off the psu and mobo you could go for a 560gtx to keep under your 900 budget (890) or go slightly over (916) for thr nvidia 560ti.
 
Reaper 392 said:
i'm not 100% sure about autocad, but you can certainly speed up 3Ds max with the cuda cores of an Nvidia card, so its probably best to go for one of them. the rest of your build really depends on the budget, because we could have vastly different ideas as to what is reasonable

as for the i5 2500k vs i7 2600k, the only difference is hyperthreading. this is completely useless for gaming, but will be very handy for what your doing, so if you can fit it into the budget then it will give a nice performance increase as you can see from this benchmark:
http://www.anandtech.com/bench/Product/288?vs=287

and since you dont need the computer for a month or so, theres no harm in waiting for bulldozer
Click to expand...

I agree with everything but the i7 & hyperthreading comment. Infact battlefield 3 is confirmed to now support hyperthreading (only just aware of this myself). How well we shall have to see.

In short personally I'd forfeit the cost of an aftermarket heatsink towards a better cpu anyday ;)

Wether you chose an i5 or i7 is up to you. If your not in a rush you can investigate the hyperthreading tech whilst waiting on bulldozer.

Should you buy soonish. I would vote i7 with 8GB RAM and a Z series mobo. I'd look for the lucid virtu support so you can utilise the IGP whilst also using an nvidia card with cuda let's say ;)

Good luck with your build, look forward to seeing what you settle on. Any probs or questions you know where we are
 
Autoshite doesnt support hyperthreading.

But inventor does i belive. Not sure about 3DS seems like a poor mans surfacing tool to me :)

As for graphics cards and your serious about doing CAD work (3DS is not CAD imo :) ) you need to look at Nvidea Quadro style units and a I7.
 
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