3d animation computer build

[Consciousvessel]

Hi there, I'm looking to get animation work station with a seperate render box.

Budget is between $4000-$8000
For both
Software primarily used is 3d studio max

I live in Canada and would appreciate any advise

Thanks

 

[quicksand10]

Rendering needs: lightning processor, max memory, fast storage and, last but definitely not least, top-of-the-line workstation graphics.

CPU: Intel i7-3960X or i7-3930K
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 with Arctic Silver 5 or MX-2
Motherboard: ASUS SABERTOOTH X79
RAM: 8 x G.SKILL Ripjaws X Series 8GB DDR3 1866MHz or (Kingston, Mushkin Enhanced, Crucial DDR3, >1600MHz and lowest timings and latency)
SSD: Intel 520 (256GB or more)
HDD: 2 x Seagate Barracuda (LP or not) in RAID1
Case: personal preference full tower or big mid tower
PSU: SeaSonic Platinum/Gold Certified 600-1000w
Video Card: the most expensive single FirePro or Quadro you can afford.

Check on sites such as:
-canadacomputers.com
-ncix.ca
-tigerdirect.ca
-newegg.ca
-directcanada.com
and make sure to go see distributors directly, as they might be able to give you discounted prices as your budget as an individual buyer is relatively high.

 

[Consciousvessel]

Wow great points and much appreciated

Here is the list so far

I7-3930k
Noctua nh-d14
Western digital caviar black 2tb sata3 7200rpm 64mb
Asus p9x79 deluxe
Corsair pro series gold ax750 watt may go 850
Was going to do G.skill sniper series ddr3 2133mhz 16gb (4x4 gb)
But I am going to take your recommendation of going 64gb since the board can take it with ease

Going with the quadro 5000 but would love to do the 6000 but is it really worth breaking the bank!? Lol

As for pricing it is so varied that I'm kinda lost on where to purchase this all from and I would like to be able to negotiate a lot price discount

Thanks so much for your advise I will wait for a response with any other thoughts before I move on this purchase.

 

[quicksand10]

Where in Canada do you live?
Will you be building your system yourself?

Your build will be a whopper.
As for the amount of RAM, it will never hurt and it's not that expensive anymore, relatively (and, you know, you can brag about your 64GB memory )

Also, I would like to suggest that you go with an SSD (Crucial M4, OCZ Vertex 3 or 4, Intel 520, Mushkin Enhanced Chronos or Chronos Deluxe). It really speeds up everything. The RAID1 HDDs I had suggested was to make sure you wouldn't lose any of your clients' data, but this can also be accomplished with well scheduled backups to an external hard drive.

The Quadro 6000 is a great workstation card, I wouldn't be able to tell you if it's worth it or not compared to the Quadro 5000, though. My suggestion is to go with the card that fits in your original budget. They can both do the same job, but one does it faster, really.

 

[obsama1]

Get 32GB. Save the money for a good GPU. The rest is good, but you NEED a good GPU, so get 32GB and put the money toward a Quadro/FirePro. A 850W or more PSU is needed. The CPU, GPU, and RAM will gobble up that energy.

 

[quicksand10]

I know this article is a bit old, but it's worth the quick read (more specifically, scroll to the 3ds Max test section).

EDIT (thanks azeem40): Here's the link:
http://www.cgchannel.com/2011/10/review-professional-gpus-nvidia-vs-amd-2011/

I would suggest:
I7-3930K
Noctua NH-D14
Asus P9X79 DELUXE
(32GB as 4x8GB, for now, add more sticks later if needed) Corsair Vengeance or Dominator/G.Skill RipJaws Z
SATA III SSD 128GB~256GB such as Intel 520/Crucial M4/OCZ Vertex 3 or 4/Mushkin Enhanced Chronos (Deluxe)
Storage HDD, such as WD Caviar Blue/Black or Seagate Barracuda (LP)
Corsair Professional series AX850 PSU (also consider Seasonic USA's Platinum series PSUs for extra efficiency)
At least 16GB RAM, up to 64GB DDR3 1600MHz
PNY VCQ5000-PB Quadro 5000

Also, invest in a high quality case with high ventilation, as the processor and GPU will get pretty toasty.

Also note: make sure the memory will fit with the Noctua NH-D14

 

[azeem40]

You didn't link it.