jpdykes,
1. CPU> In 3D modeling and rendering applications, there is an advantage to a hyperthreading CPU- that is, having a 4 core / 8 thread as rendering can use all the threads. Also, a higher clock speed is an advantage. As the i5 is not hyperthreading, and to run a bit faster I would suggest >
Intel Xeon E3-1230 V2, Ivy Bridge, S1155, Quad Core 3.3 / 3.7GHz, 8MB Smart Cache, 33x Ratio, 69W, Retail > £173.81 inc VAT
http://www.scan.co.uk/search.aspx?q=Xeon+E3-1230+v2
http://ark.intel.com/products/65732/
2. Motherboard > Asus P8B-X LGA1155 Socket C202 Motherboard £133.44
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/asus-p8b-x-intel-c202-s-...
> I realize of course, that this is more expensive, but I believe it would be a longer term and more productive choice, given that it's more expensive to change later.
3. GPU> The Quadro 600 and K600 are quite poor in 3D and it is extremely valuable in Autodesk and Adobe applications to have more CUDA cores for rendering. On Passmark, the 600 scores an average of 685 in their 3D test and is ranked at No. 235. the Quadro K600 averages 829 and is ranked 189, which is in the right direction, but I suggest finding a good used Quadro 2000, having 192 CUDA cores to the 96 of the 600 and the memory bandwidth of the 2000 is much better > 42GB/s to the 26 and 29 of the 600 and K600. On Passmark the 2000 scores an average of 1290 and is ranked 115. It appears there are good used Quadro 2000 for about £90 on Ebay UK. I've bought 5 used Quadros over the years and used some for 5-6 years with no problems- they're made very well and to run all the time for years.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nvidia_Quadro
4.WiFi adapter > I have had fantastic luck with a Linksys WMP600N PCI- it's PCI dual band, and has two small antenna. In Windows 7, the second I installed the card and started the system, it self-installed and I saw rates of up to 144MB/s. This was an item I bought in a hurry used, thinking I would replace it when I had time to consider the options, but it's run flawlessly for 5 years. I use a Linksys AE3000 USB now as my new system has only one PCI slot and I have an M-audio 192 sound card occupying it. I see the Linksys 600N on Ebay UK as "new other" for £10-15.
5. Hard Drive > a hard drive that seems to have excellent performance is the > Seagate 1TB SATA 3 Performance Hard Drive OEM ST1000DM003 t £46.78 >
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/1tb-seagate-st1000dm003-...
> and also very impressive to me is the new> WD WD10EZEX 1TB Blue Desktop Drive SATA 3 7200rpm at £47.98 and with very good performance>
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/1tb-wd-blue-wd10ezex-sat...
> watch for the guarantees on these drives as in the US, a "bare" or "OEM" drive can mean short and nasty warrantees on the device most likely to fail.
6. Case > As you know, there are a lot of choices for the case. I've found after years of workstation years that the case needs to be both functional > good expandability for drives inside, good working room to build, front drive bays and USB ports in easy reach, and non-distracting > a non-fussy exterior and more importantly > quiet. Gaming cases often have multiple fans in the front, and often the top and sides. While good air flow is important, so is not feel you're working next to a home hurricane. Here's one >
Corsair Carbide Series 200R Compact ATX Case- Black > £47.04
http://www.scan.co.uk/products/corsair-carbide-series-2...
The Lian Li Aluminium cases would be excellent for this use also, but I'm not seeing their full range on UK sites..
6. OS > I just bought a new system and like many others, took the option to have Windows 7 Professional instead of Windows 8. I feel Windows 8 was made for home, kids, and touch screen use and in multi-tasking, multiple applications would be frustrating. Plus, those huge icons are difficult to sort and I for one don't have room for them as I have over 60 icons on my desktop! If your friend loves Windows 8- of course that's fine- and Windows 8 is often cheaper than 7 because of the response, but be very careful in making that commitment. I still think XP Pro 64-bit was the best OS Microsoft has made and I believe I will be upgrading with Windows 9.
Adding up the parts suggested above plus, the PSU, RAM, case and etc. budgets in your list, I come up with a total of about $670. Of all the suggestions, the most important is to avoid the Quadro 600.
Cheers,
BambiBoom
1. Dell Precision T5400 (2009)> 2X Xeon X5460 quad core @3.16GHz > 16 GB ECC 667> Quadro FX 4800 (1.5GB) > WD RE4 / Segt Brcda 500GB > Windows 7 Ultimate 64-bit > HP 2711x 27" 1920 x 1080 > AutoCad, Revit, Solidworks, Sketchup Pro, Corel Technical Designer, Adobe CS MC, WordP Office, MS Office > architecture, industrial design, graphic design, rendering, writing
2. HP z420 (2013)> Xeon E5-1620 quad core @ 3.6 / 3.8GHz > 24GB ECC 1600 RAM > Quadro 4000 (2GB) > Samsung 840 SSD 250GB / Seagate Barracuda 500GB > Windows 7 Professional 64 > to be loaded > AutoCad, Revit, Inventor, Maya (2011), Solidworks 2010, Adobe CS4, Corel Technical Design X-5, Sketchup Pro, WordP Office X-4, MS Office