Graphics Workstation (suggestions please)

[crains]

I would like to get as many suggestions (alternitives) as possible for a graphics work station only (no mon., speakers, etc...). The budget is $1500.00, but of course would like to spend less. The cpu and mobo are about the only things I have almost written in stone. I know the cpu cooler i have chosen is a monster and would greatly appreciate an alternative to it (air cooled). Also, I am not sure if the psu is big enough.



Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115202 - $280.00

ASUS P6T WS PRO LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Core i7 / Xeon Intel Motherboard - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813131357&Tpk=p6t%20ws%20professional - $300.00
Free DVD burner w/ purchase, limited offer

Antec earthwatts EA500 500W Continuous Power ATX12V v2.0 SLI Certified CrossFire Ready 80 PLUS Certified Active PFC Power Supply - Retail - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16817371007&Tpk=EA500 - $75.00

OCZ Platinum 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Voltage Desktop Memory Model OCZ3P1600LV6GK - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227381 - $115 X 2 ($230.00) 12GB

ATI 100-505507 FireGL V3600 256MB 128-bit GDDR2 PCI Express x16 Workstation Video Card - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814195048 - $172.00

Western Digital Caviar Black WD6401AALS 640GB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136319&Tpk=WD6401AALS - $75.00 (sys drive) going to split this drive in half and install XP Pro 64 bit and win 7 rc 64 bit

Western Digital Caviar Black WD1001FALS 1TB 7200 RPM 32MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drives - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136284&Tpk=WD1001FALS - $95.00 (storage drive)

Noctua NH-U12P SE1366 120mm SSO CPU Cooler - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835608007 - $72.00

LG Black 22X (CAV) DVD+R 8X DVD+RW 16X DVD+R DL 22X (CAV) DVD-R 6X DVD-RW 12X DVD-RAM 16X DVD-ROM 48X CD-R 32X CD-RW 48X CD-ROM 2MB Cache SATA 22X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe LightScribe Support - OEM - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827136153 - $27.00

COOLER MASTER RC-690-KKN1-GP Black SECC/ ABS ATX Mid Tower Computer Case - Retail
Special $9.99 shipping fee, ends 8/17 - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811119137 - $70.00

Kingston FCR-HS219/1 19-in-1 USB 2.0 Card Reader - Retail - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820134753 - $14.00


total = $1340.00 + tax and ship



Microsoft Windows XP Professional SP2C 64-bit for System Builders - OEM -
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16832116378 - $140.00

or

Microsoft Windows XP Professional x64 - CD - http://www.softwarestockpile.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=MS-30291 - $79.00

If you know of a place to buy XP Pro 64 for $80.00 or less and have a link to your affiliate banner, I will use it.

Thank you for your time!
cr

 

[wathman]

For a graphics workstation, I think you're right about the PSU not being big enough. Not sure what workstation class video cards draw, but I doubt they would be less than the standard gaming graphics cards. For your hard drives, why not just go with 2 1TB caviar blacks? the price difference isn't huge, and the larger drive will perform slightly better than it's smaller counterpart.

As for partitioning for both win 7 and xp pro 64, Can't you just use the win 7 RC with the XP virtualization mode for your needs? it's a bit more flexible and you have access to you win 7 stuff at the same time as your xp programs are running, without needing to restart.
http://lifehacker.com/5331599/windows-xp-mode-rc-available-for-windows-7

When the public release comes out, just upgrade to win 7 pro (which I assume you already plan to do) as this will be sure to have the xp mode feature. Don't think home premium win 7 will. The only issue is that you will need a valid XP license, so you'll still have to get that.