High Performance FEA Desktop for under $2000

[kurt_zeller]

Hello everyone!

This forum has been a great resource during my quest to build a better computer and I really appreciate all who contribute.

I frequenctly use EMPro (electromagnetic) for Finite Element Analysis (FEA) simulations and need something with significantly more processing power and RAM than my current computer (Samsung i7-3615QM @2.3 GHZ 8GB RAM 64 bit OS, off-the-shelf except for a 250GB SSD)

I also do a lot of 3D modeling on SolidWorks and so I opted for a higher end GPU. I also chose a large SSD because EMPro sims create a ton of data that all needs to be visualized at once.


Here is what I have so far:
CPU
Intel Core i7-4790K Devil's Canyon Quad-Core 4.0 GHz LGA 1150 BX80646I74790K Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 4600

Motherboard
ASUS SABERTOOTH Z97 MARK 1/USB 3.1 LGA 1150 Intel Z97 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.1 ATX Intel Motherboard

Memory
HyperX Savage 32GB (4 x 8GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model HX316C9SRK4/32

GPU
ASUS GeForce GTX 970 STRIX-GTX970-DC2OC-4GD5 4GB 256-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 HDCP Ready SLI Support G-SYNC Support Video Card

Drive
SAMSUNG 850 EVO 2.5" 1TB SATA III 3-D Vertical Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) MZ-75E1T0B/AM

PSU
Rosewill Hive-1000, Hive Series 1000W Modular Power Supply, 80 PLUS Bronze Certified, Single +12V Rail, Intel 4th Gen CPU Ready, SLI & CrossFire Ready

I'm a bit concerned with the PSU, it seems too cheap compared to competitors for 1kW.

Case
Cooler Master Silencio 652S - Silent Mid Tower Computer Case with Sound Dampening Panels, Three Silencio FP 120 Fans, and Multiple Removable Air Filters

Wireless Adapter
ASUS PCE-N15 Wireless Adapter IEEE 802.11b/g/n PCI Express 300/300Mbps Transfer/Receive Rate 64-bit WEP, 128-bit WEP, WPA2-PSK, WPA-PSK, WPS support

Total Price: $1630
Does anyone have any pointers or recommendations? I have never built a computer and am just now learning how, any criticism is welcome!

Thanks!

-Kurt

 

[John_207]

Most people don't realize, but for work such as you are doing, which is building a CUDA workstation, GTX cards barely help. GTX cards are designed for gaming and that is why you hear about them so much, but they would barely provide an improvement over Inter HD graphics in this case. You need an AMD Firepro card or a nVidia quatro card. These ar ecards designed for modeling, rendering, ect.

Also, you don't need that huge of a PSU, opt for a smaller more efficient one.

Remove that GTX 970 and replace it with either:
An AMD Firepro (recommended for solidworks)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GUVVZUW?keywords=amd%20firepro&qid=1451865272&ref_=sr_1_7&sr=8-7

Or a nVidia Quatro
http://www.amazon.com/NVIDIA-Quadro-K600-DDR3-Graphics/dp/B00BLTE8HK/ref=sr_1_13?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1451865352&sr=1-13&keywords=nvidia+quadro

The AMD will probably work better in your situation, and it will work MUCH better than that GTX.

Here is a good PSU:
http://www.amazon.com/EVGA-BRONZE-Continuous-Warranty-100-B1-0600-KR/dp/B00EON40CS/ref=sr_1_2?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1451865428&sr=1-2&keywords=psu

You are welcome! Please respond so I know this helped.

Hello everyone!

This forum has been a great resource during my quest to build a better computer and I really appreciate all who contribute.

I frequenctly use EMPro (electromagnetic) for Finite Element Analysis (FEA) simulations and need something with significantly more processing power and RAM than my current computer (Samsung i7-3615QM @2.3 GHZ 8GB RAM 64 bit OS, off-the-shelf except for a 250GB SSD)

I also do a lot of 3D modeling on SolidWorks and so I opted for a higher end GPU. I also chose a large SSD because EMPro sims create a ton of data that all needs to be visualized at once.


Here is what I have so far:
CPU
Intel Core i7-4790K Devil's Canyon Quad-Core 4.0 GHz LGA 1150 BX80646I74790K Desktop Processor Intel HD Graphics 4600

Motherboard
ASUS SABERTOOTH Z97 MARK 1/USB 3.1 LGA 1150 Intel Z97 HDMI SATA 6Gb/s USB 3.1 ATX Intel Motherboard

Memory
HyperX Savage 32GB (4 x 8GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Desktop Memory Model HX316C9SRK4/32

GPU
ASUS GeForce GTX 970 STRIX-GTX970-DC2OC-4GD5 4GB 256-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 HDCP Ready SLI Support G-SYNC Support Video Card

Drive
SAMSUNG 850 EVO 2.5" 1TB SATA III 3-D Vertical Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) MZ-75E1T0B/AM

PSU
Rosewill Hive-1000, Hive Series 1000W Modular Power Supply, 80 PLUS Bronze Certified, Single +12V Rail, Intel 4th Gen CPU Ready, SLI & CrossFire Ready

I'm a bit concerned with the PSU, it seems too cheap compared to competitors for 1kW.

Case
Cooler Master Silencio 652S - Silent Mid Tower Computer Case with Sound Dampening Panels, Three Silencio FP 120 Fans, and Multiple Removable Air Filters

Wireless Adapter
ASUS PCE-N15 Wireless Adapter IEEE 802.11b/g/n PCI Express 300/300Mbps Transfer/Receive Rate 64-bit WEP, 128-bit WEP, WPA2-PSK, WPA-PSK, WPS support

Total Price: $1630
Does anyone have any pointers or recommendations? I have never built a computer and am just now learning how, any criticism is welcome!

Thanks!

-Kurt

 

[kurt_zeller]

Most people don't realize, but for work such as you are doing, which is building a CUDA workstation, GTX cards barely help. GTX cards are designed for gaming and that is why you hear about them so much, but they would barely provide an improvement over Inter HD graphics in this case. You need an AMD Firepro card or a nVidia quatro card. These ar ecards designed for modeling, rendering, ect.

Also, you don't need that huge of a PSU, opt for a smaller more efficient one.

Remove that GTX 970 and replace it with either:
An AMD Firepro (recommended for solidworks)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GUVVZUW?keywords=amd%20firepro&qid=1451865272&ref_=sr_1_7&sr=8-7

Or a nVidia Quatro
http://www.amazon.com/NVIDIA-Quadro-K600-DDR3-Graphics/dp/B00BLTE8HK/ref=sr_1_13?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1451865352&sr=1-13&keywords=nvidia+quadro

The AMD will probably work better in your situation, and it will work MUCH better than that GTX.

Here is a good PSU:
http://www.amazon.com/EVGA-BRONZE-Continuous-Warranty-100-B1-0600-KR/dp/B00EON40CS/ref=sr_1_2?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1451865428&sr=1-2&keywords=psu

You are welcome! Please respond so I know this helped.

I didn't know there were recommended video cards for SW, that helps a lot.
I put everything into this calculator and it says ~500 W recommended PSU. However it doesn't have the option for GDDR5, do you know if that is more/less power required?
I'll probably just spend the extra $25 for a 750 W because I do plan to overclock often.

Thanks for the response!

 

[John_207]

Hey, no problem. GDDR5 makes no power difference.

IT isn't just solidworks, I just saw someone had said it worked great for them.

Most people don't realize, but for work such as you are doing, which is building a CUDA workstation, GTX cards barely help. GTX cards are designed for gaming and that is why you hear about them so much, but they would barely provide an improvement over Inter HD graphics in this case. You need an AMD Firepro card or a nVidia quatro card. These ar ecards designed for modeling, rendering, ect.

Also, you don't need that huge of a PSU, opt for a smaller more efficient one.

Remove that GTX 970 and replace it with either:
An AMD Firepro (recommended for solidworks)
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00GUVVZUW?keywords=amd%20firepro&qid=1451865272&ref_=sr_1_7&sr=8-7

Or a nVidia Quatro
http://www.amazon.com/NVIDIA-Quadro-K600-DDR3-Graphics/dp/B00BLTE8HK/ref=sr_1_13?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1451865352&sr=1-13&keywords=nvidia+quadro

The AMD will probably work better in your situation, and it will work MUCH better than that GTX.

Here is a good PSU:
http://www.amazon.com/EVGA-BRONZE-Continuous-Warranty-100-B1-0600-KR/dp/B00EON40CS/ref=sr_1_2?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1451865428&sr=1-2&keywords=psu

You are welcome! Please respond so I know this helped.

I didn't know there were recommended video cards for SW, that helps a lot.
I put everything into this calculator and it says ~500 W recommended PSU. However it doesn't have the option for GDDR5, do you know if that is more/less power required?
I'll probably just spend the extra $25 for a 750 W because I do plan to overclock often.

Thanks for the response!