Advice for art studio PC build (1500 for hardware only)...

theeattre

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May 2, 2013
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a couple of things:

this will be a first time build for me. not worried about that but it may be something to take into consideration.

what I need is a machine built solely for design (no gaming whatsoever). i primarily use photoshop and illustrator with the ability (in the near future) for video editing (premiere) and 3d (in hopes of learning).

i'm confused about i7 vs xeon and GeForce (more for gaming?) vs quadro (more for workstation?). I've spent days reading this and other sites but my head is swimming from info overload. I know I should be focusing on CPU and RAM and I don't mind spending the dollars but all in all i'd like to keep it at 1500 (obviously sub 1500 would be great!) for just the hardware. i'd go up to 2000 if the value was worth it but it seems you can get a really decent computer around a grand or so (am I wrong?).

all in all the info I've culled from the users of this site has been amazing, just wish I could properly use it. thanks for any advice/build examples!

detailed info:

like I mentioned, this is a hardware build only (no OS, monitor, keyboard...)
i'd like to spend a little something on the case seeing as i'll have to look at it (no lights or side windows are necessary). was thinking something along the lines of these but suggest away:

http://www.amazon.com/Antec-P280-Black-Tower-Computer/dp/B005X3E5BO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1367524563&sr=8-1&keywords=antec+p280

or

http://www.amazon.com/Fractal-Design-Define-Arctic-FD-CA-DEF-R4-WH/dp/B008HD3EA0/ref=sr_1_5?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1367524635&sr=1-5&keywords=fractal+design+define+r4

 
Solution
get this build instead
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/UBBF

i7s and xeons are about the same, just that xeons are binned so that they run cooler and use less power.

depending on the app, a geforce card may be the same as a quadro card or be completely different. for apps like adobe cs, they perform the same. for things like 3dsmax, maya, and other applications that require the compute power, then the quadro starts to shine. and also, radeon cards will also be just as good if not better if the apps you use support OpenCL (adobe cs6 supports it. older versions tend to not be so great). here is the radeon card if you are interested

http://us.ncix.com/products/?usaffiliateid=1000031504&sku=67547&vpn=GV-R797OC-3GD&manufacture=Gigabyte&promoid=1371
get this build instead
http://pcpartpicker.com/p/UBBF

i7s and xeons are about the same, just that xeons are binned so that they run cooler and use less power.

depending on the app, a geforce card may be the same as a quadro card or be completely different. for apps like adobe cs, they perform the same. for things like 3dsmax, maya, and other applications that require the compute power, then the quadro starts to shine. and also, radeon cards will also be just as good if not better if the apps you use support OpenCL (adobe cs6 supports it. older versions tend to not be so great). here is the radeon card if you are interested

http://us.ncix.com/products/?usaffiliateid=1000031504&sku=67547&vpn=GV-R797OC-3GD&manufacture=Gigabyte&promoid=1371
 
Solution

theeattre

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nikolay, thanks for the links! but I must say, i'm really hoping to build to help cut cost.

the big troll, awesome, that's exactly what I was hoping for; a build idea I could reference. thanks!

 

theeattre

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ok, so, here's the build i'm looking at:

http://pcpartpicker.com/p/UHNn

CPU: Intel Xeon E3-1230 V2 3.3GHz Quad-Core Processor ($234.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-Z77X-D3H ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($132.86 @ Newegg)
Memory: Crucial Ballistix sport 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($99.99 @ NCIX US)
Storage: Plextor M5S Series 256GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($169.99 @ Microcenter)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 2TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($96.87 @ Outlet PC)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 660 2GB Video Card ($191.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Fractal Design Define R4 (Arctic White) ATX Mid Tower Case ($89.99 @ Microcenter)
Power Supply: XFX 550W 80 PLUS Bronze Certified ATX12V / EPS12V Power Supply ($63.99 @ NCIX US)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224BB DVD/CD Writer ($14.99 @ Newegg)
Total: $1095.64

how does that look? it's a mix based on both of your suggestions. i did away with the cpu cooler. was this necessary? is there an actual performance benefit to having one with this build? i upped the mobo for expansion but went with a lesser gpu as the benchmark times seemed negligible for photoshop. oh, and i dropped a hard drive since video editing is not as much a priority at the moment as is performance for pshop and illustrator.

suggestions?

thanks noob12 for your time as well. you really provided a lot of helpful info!

 


-there is really no point of a z77 board. you cant overclock either way. the extra sata ports only go so far if you actually use all 6, which 99% of wont
-the hard drive is 95 bucks at us.ncix
-you may as well pick up the 7970. it will perform a ton better
 

theeattre

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May 2, 2013
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ok, have decided to go with big troll's original build with 7970. i'd like to order today and get this ball rolling so any last minute advice would be appreciated! again, thanks so much for both of your help on my first build.