Photoshop/Lightroom Computer Build

[Matt_S]

Hi,

I'm working on a build that will run photoshop/lightroom/portrait professional extremely well on a budget. I'm looking to spend around $1,500 and get the best bang for my buck but am willing to go a little more if I can get a lot more out in performance. Below is the build I've put together. I plan on running the 2 HDD's in Raid 1 for data protection and putitng all programs on the SSD and using that as overflow from my RAM for my scratch disk. I've read that having a seperate scratch disk is best, however I don't think I'll need that much headroom over the RAM. Please advise on anything I could get a better bang for my buck with!

Also, if the card reader/wireless card suck please do tell and recommend something better! I also think I may have gone a little overboard with the power supply but somewhere down the line I may decide to add a video card to the system so that I can have dual monitors.

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/xLPp

 

[ronintexas]

If you are using a RAID setup, I would suggest using these hard drives over the Seagate:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822136792

On the USB 3.0 - the mobo/case should have USB 3.0 ports on them...

I am using the same mobo/processor/RAM - I only have 16GB RAM and I haven't utilized 100% of the RAM - I don't edit super huge files with CS6.

I was amazed that Photoshop loads in 2-3 seconds, and most files are almost instant. On the old PC, with CS4, it would take 45-60 seconds to open, and 3-5 minutes on several files.

 

[Matt_S]

The mobo does have usb 3.0 ports on the outside but the card I'm adding has a 20pin internal USB connector on the inside which means I won't need to use the USB pass through from inside to outside the case and will also add a couple of USB 3.0 ports.

May I ask why you suggest that hard drive over the seagates? They are slightly more than double the cost each.

 

[ronintexas]

Reliability and they are designed for RAID configurations. Nothing against Seagate - they make great drives. For single drive configurations, they do a great job. When you go to a RAID configuration, the WD Black drives are the best.

To compare apples to apples, the WD Green drives are close to the same price.

On non-critical data applications, I have used a mix of WD Green and Seagate in non-RAID configurations because of the price.