Budget CAD workstation build

[Mugenlude]

Approximate Purchase Date: ASAP

Budget Range: would like to keep at $1,000, but if something critical is needed I would consider slightly more.

System Usage from Most to Least Important: AutoCAD 2017, Web Browsing, Word/Excel, Photoshop

Are you buying a monitor: No

Parts to Upgrade: New build, re-using 500GB internal and NAS Storage, and can salvage DVD drive

Do you need to buy OS: Yes

Preferred Website(s) for Parts: no preference

Location: Racine, WI, USA

Parts Preferences: i7 processors seems to be the recommendation for this type of budget build, SSD HD

Overclocking: Maybe - never done it before, but results look worth exploring

SLI or Crossfire: No

Your Monitor Resolution: pair of 1920x1080 w/ VGA and DVI connectivity

Additional Comments: 2D design for 95% of the time, lots of sheets with multiple viewports in each drawing.... having 5-6 drawings open at a time isn't uncommon

And Most Importantly, Why Are You Upgrading: recently upgrade to AutoCAD 2017 and existing system is showing it's age (i5-2400 @ 3.1Ghz 4 core w/ 8MB)

Thanks for the help!

 

[sadams04]

Skip overclocking. It isn't needed for high CPU performance.. The Quadro K1200 would be a nice upgrade having professional graphics, however the GTX 1050 Ti would likely hold its own even without optimized drivers.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-7700 3.6GHz Quad-Core Processor ($295.49 @ SuperBiiz)
Motherboard: Gigabyte GA-B250M-DS3H Micro ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($69.89 @ OutletPC)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2400 Memory ($106.88 @ OutletPC)
Storage: SK hynix SL308 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($143.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (Purchased For $0.00)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4GB ACX 2.0 Video Card ($134.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($58.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 450W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($64.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSC0B DVD/CD Writer (Purchased For $0.00)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($92.99 @ B&H)
Total: $968.21

 

[sadams04]

Ryzen alternative...

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD RYZEN 7 1700 3.0GHz 8-Core Processor ($328.89 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus PRIME B350M-A/CSM Micro ATX AM4 Motherboard ($89.99 @ B&H)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2800 Memory ($104.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: SK hynix SL308 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($143.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (Purchased For $0.00)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4GB ACX 2.0 Video Card ($134.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($58.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 450W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($64.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSC0B DVD/CD Writer (Purchased For $0.00)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($92.99 @ B&H)
Total: $1019.82


Intel X99 platform alternative...

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3GHz 6-Core Processor ($378.50 @ Jet)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 LED 66.3 CFM Rifle Bearing CPU Cooler ($24.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock X99M Extreme4 Micro ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($169.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws V Series 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($104.97 @ Jet)
Storage: SK hynix SL308 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($143.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (Purchased For $0.00)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4GB ACX 2.0 Video Card ($134.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($58.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 450W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($64.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSC0B DVD/CD Writer (Purchased For $0.00)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($92.99 @ B&H)
Total: $1174.40

 

[Mugenlude]

Thanks for the help sadams04! I really appreciate the options you provided, tempting to go to the X99 platform.

 

[Mugenlude]

From my research AutoCAD doesn't multi-thread, so the recommendation is to go with fastest single-core performance vs multiple cores. Is there a reason to stay away from the i7-4790K? It seems to have better single-core performance than the i7-5820K from the benchmark tests I've seen. TIA

 

[sadams04]

The fastest single-core option is with the Kaby Lake 7000 series processors. ...then the Skylake 6000 series, then the Haswell i7-4790k or i5-4690k. If you are just after the fastest single core performing CPU out there, then stick with Kaby Lake (my first post), but jump up to the i7-7700k (not the i7-7700). The K series is meant for overclocking, but also has a higher factory base and turbo speeds (4.2GHz and 4.5GHz respectively). If you want to skip hyperthreading, then consider the i5-7600 for the highest factory clocked i5.

If you are OK with overclocking, swap the B250 chipset board out for a Z270 chipset option and add an aftermarket CPU cooler to keep temps in check. Overclock to an easy 4.7GHz and don't look back. This is a good option with either the i7-7700k or the i5 below.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i5-7600K 3.8GHz Quad-Core Processor ($234.49 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG H5 Ultimate 76.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($56.49 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus PRIME Z270-P ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($133.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: SK hynix SL308 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($143.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 500GB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive (Purchased For $0.00)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4GB ACX 2.0 Video Card ($134.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Case: Corsair 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($62.98 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 450W 80+ Gold Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($64.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: LG GH24NSC0B DVD/CD Writer (Purchased For $0.00)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($92.99 @ B&H)
Total: $924.91

 

[Mugenlude]

I built this workstation about a year ago based on the suggestions above, it is working well. We need to build another, looking to see if there is something newer out that I should consider.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i7-7700K 4.2GHz Quad-Core Processor ($326.29 @ OutletPC)
CPU Cooler: CRYORIG - H5 Ultimate 76.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($46.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus - PRIME Z270-P ATX LGA1151 Motherboard ($139.99 @ B&H)
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory ($405.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung - 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($139.99 @ B&H)
Video Card: Gigabyte - GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4GB Video Card
Case: Corsair - 200R ATX Mid Tower Case ($59.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: EVGA - SuperNOVA G2 550W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($92.53 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft - Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit ($89.89 @ OutletPC)
Total: $1301.55
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-01-15 10:30 EST-0500

 

[Mugenlude]

Prices on several of the components are higher now (motherboard and video card in particular). The video card seems to be out of stock everywhere now (discontinued maybe?).