Budget CAD/3D graphics build

[nednarb]

I am looking for a motherboard, processor, videocard, and ram for ~$700


APPROXIMATE PURCHASE DATE: 10/1/09 BUDGET RANGE: $650-750 AR

SYSTEM USAGE FROM MOST TO LEAST IMPORTANT: CAD, Rhino, Maya and the like, gaming, movies, internet, word processing

PARTS NOT REQUIRED: 480 power supply (if sufficient), keyboard, monitor, mouse, case, hard drives, dvd

PREFERRED WEBSITE(S) FOR PARTS: like newegg but don't really care COUNTRY OF ORIGIN: United States

PARTS PREFERENCES: intel

OVERCLOCKING: Maybe SLI OR CROSSFIRE: not for now

MONITOR RESOLUTION: 1920x1080

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS:

I am debating between the i5 and the i7-860 or 920. I am and architecture student who will primarily be using the machine for rendering and would benefit from the Hyper-threading. I am trying to balance that need and cost against a better graphics card to make for smoother modeling. In addition, I am looking for 8gb of RAM. Any suggestions or advice would be appreciated.

QUESTIONS:

Will there be a significant drop in render time with the i7 vs the i5?
How much does the memory interface of the graphics card (128 vs 256bit) matter?
Will a card geared for CAD/CAM applications be able to play graphics intensive games?

 

[gkay09]

For your questions -
1) Yes there will be drop in render time with the i7 but it would be upto you to see if that is significant enough for you to choose the i7 over the i5...
http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/intel-core-i5,2410-12.html

But i7 920's Tri-Channel would provide higher memory bandwidth than the i5/ i7 LGA 1156 socket's Dual-Channel.

2) It not only depends on the memory bandwidth but also depends on the RAM type used - For eg: The GTX 285 using a GDDR3 memory and 512 bit memory interface has similar memory bandwidth as that of a HD 4890, using a GDDR5 and 256-bit memory interface...

3) I doubt that those kind of cards would be able to play graphic intensive games well as the drivers and the firmware will be much oriented towards the correct rendering rather than the speed, which is the characteristic of a gaming card...

But you can get decent CAD/CAM performance with gaming cards...

 

[Transmaniacon]

ASRock X58 Extreme LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157163&cm_re=asrock_1366-_-13-157-163-_-Product ($169.99)

Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115202&cm_re=i7_920-_-19-115-202-_-Product ($279.99 + Free Shipping)

(2) OCZ Gold 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Voltage Desktop Memory Model OCZ3G1600LV6GK - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227365 ($111.99 w/ $20 MIR + Free Shipping) [$223.98]

ATI 100-505551 FirePro V3700 256MB PCI Express 2.0 x16 Workstation Video Card - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814195072 ($84.99)

Total: $758.95

 

[Why_Me]

ASRock X58 Extreme LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157163&cm_re=asrock_1366-_-13-157-163-_-Product ($169.99)

Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115202&cm_re=i7_920-_-19-115-202-_-Product ($279.99 + Free Shipping)

(2) OCZ Gold 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Voltage Desktop Memory Model OCZ3G1600LV6GK - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227365 ($111.99 w/ $20 MIR + Free Shipping) [$223.98]

ATI 100-505551 FirePro V3700 256MB PCI Express 2.0 x16 Workstation Video Card - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814195072 ($84.99)

Total: $758.95

http://www.newegg.com/Product/ComboDealDetails.aspx?ItemList=Combo.243896 Combo Discount: -$12.00 Combo Price: $399.98 $20.00 Mail-In Rebate Card
Price After Mail-In Rebate(s): $379.98 Free Shipping*
OCZ Gold 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Voltage Desktop Memory Model OCZ3G1600LV6GK - Retail
Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80601920 - Retail

 

[nednarb]

Thanks for the advice.

I like the processor and mother board, but what about substituting the RAM and graphics card for?

OCZ Special Ops Urban Elite 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 $169.98

XFX HD-485X-ZDFC Radeon HD 4850 1GB 256-bit GDDR3 $169.99

Total: $745

 

[Why_Me]

Thanks for the advice.

I like the processor and mother board, but what about substituting the RAM and graphics card for?

OCZ Special Ops Urban Elite 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 $169.98

XFX HD-485X-ZDFC Radeon HD 4850 1GB 256-bit GDDR3 $169.99

Total: $745

You want triple channel RAM for an X58 mobo. It comes standard in 3x2 gig sets.

 

[overshocks]

ASRock X58 Extreme LGA 1366 Intel X58 ATX Intel Motherboard - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157163&cm_re=asrock_1366-_-13-157-163-_-Product ($169.99)

Intel Core i7 920 Nehalem 2.66GHz 4 x 256KB L2 Cache 8MB L3 Cache LGA 1366 130W Quad-Core Processor - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819115202&cm_re=i7_920-_-19-115-202-_-Product ($279.99 + Free Shipping)

(2) OCZ Gold 6GB (3 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Low Voltage Desktop Memory Model OCZ3G1600LV6GK - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820227365 ($111.99 w/ $20 MIR + Free Shipping) [$223.98]

ATI 100-505551 FirePro V3700 256MB PCI Express 2.0 x16 Workstation Video Card - Retail
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814195072 ($84.99)

Total: $758.95

That video card won't work well with his needs.

 

[shortstuff_mt]

That video card won't work well with his needs.

The OP stated "CAD, Rhino, Maya and the like" as the most important use of the computer. That's exactly what workstation cards like the FirePro are for.

 

[nednarb]

what about going with 6gb of RAM and instead going with this Quadro FX580 512MB 128-bit GDDR3?

 

[jitpublisher]

The OP stated "CAD, Rhino, Maya and the like" as the most important use of the computer. That's exactly what workstation cards like the FirePro are for.

Very true, but that is a fairly low end card. It is going to struggle with what he is doing, (it will handle CAD fine) and any modern games he wants to play is going to simply knock it to it's knees. Its a noble suggestion to keep him under budget, but you really need more horsepower, actually quite a bit more horsepower in the GPU department to do everything he mentioned.

 

[gkay09]

I would agree with jitpublisher here...
That card would suit for his CAD/ CAM needs but would never be able to handle graphic intensive games even @ low resolutions...

Maybe wait for the ATI HD 5750/ 5770 ?? But those would be launched in October but no word on the launch date...

 

[core i7 ownage]

Don't buy firePro or FireGL or any workstation card from Nvidia or matrox, it's not that good at gaming, and high end graphic can beat that. Only good about it is drivers.

 

[nednarb]

Don't buy firePro or FireGL or any workstation card from Nvidia or matrox, it's not that good at gaming, and high end graphic can beat that. Only good about it is drivers.

Yeah, I gather that. I'm still stuck though. I'm debating running two cards one for gaming and the other for CAD. Anyone have a setup like this?