High End Graphics Design Build/s Discussion.

[CrestfallenDesign]

Hi Everyone,

I started this thread in hope of gathering information on making a build optimized for graphics design/2D + 3D animation.
I will be building this desktop for a Uni course ill be looking into next year.

I wanted to go through a few questions I had about this field of work and study with anyone who has knowlege on the matter. This is an open discussion so I will be taking everything onboard, even if someone suggests going with apple, (I'd ask for reasoning first) but my mind is open.

Here are the questions I had in mind:

~For those who are currently onboard with a course like this, would it be best to opt for a Desktop or a laptop?

~Are there any serious arguments or reasons for going with mac over pc in this case?

~would things like sli videocards help in any way with 3D rendering programs, and what hardware would be recommended? I've heard that Nvidia make a line of GPU's specifically target rendering programs, would it be best to go with these? and would they be decent for gaming?

They're all the questions I have so far.. My budget will most likely be around the $2000 - $2500 mark. I game a lot at the moment but that habit will most likely change when I start the course as I will be planning a study schedule, but I hope to get a bit of gaming in every so often to calm myself down if stressed.

I have a intermediate knowledge in PC building, but that knowledge only extends as far as creating a gaming build, I understand that for design and animation it is a different story.

All help will be greatly appreciated and i will try answer any questions anyone has.
Cheers,

 

[g-unit1111]

~For those who are currently onboard with a course like this, would it be best to opt for a Desktop or a laptop?

Any hardcore video editing or rendering you definitely want a desktop. Even the highest end laptops - the CPUs and GPUs are nowhere near their desktop counterparts, so they would be impossible to keep up with a solid desktop.

~Are there any serious arguments or reasons for going with mac over pc in this case?

Nope, no reason whatsoever. The Mac Pro hardware is at least 5 years old and they haven't updated the line in several years. They still use the Radeon 5770 - which is now a four year old GPU. Build your own.

~would things like sli videocards help in any way with 3D rendering programs, and what hardware would be recommended? I've heard that Nvidia make a line of GPU's specifically target rendering programs, would it be best to go with these? and would they be decent for gaming?

Yes. For gaming dual 670's gets you the equivalent of a GTX 690 within a couple of frames. For rendering having more than one card will stream tasks a lot faster.

Here's a sample $2K build:


PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-3930K 3.2GHz 6-Core Processor ($569.99 @ Newegg)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D14 SE2011 CPU Cooler ($89.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock X79 Extreme6 ATX LGA2011 Motherboard ($228.49 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws Z Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($129.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($84.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: OCZ Vector Series 128GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($149.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($369.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 670 2GB Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($369.99 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Phantom (White) ATX Full Tower Case ($129.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: PC Power & Cooling Silencer Mk II 750W 80 PLUS Silver Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($104.98 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Lite-On iHAS124-04 DVD/CD Writer ($22.98 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($139.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $2391.35
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-02-11 14:59 EST-0500)