Another what PC thread ..

eeyore

eeyore

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eeyore
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In mix of all this brexit crap I've decided to flog a few things and get myself a proper pc for my photos / Lego cad / 3d stuff.

The programs I use are:
Photoshop cc
Topaz plugin collection (it has a stand alone app but also within ps)
Ptgui (pano/gigapan)
Ldraw / leocad
Blender

I've looked at scan and have got a rough idea.
64gb ram and i7 quad core over clocked, liquid cooling. I did have a 8gb graphics card in the section.

I'm stuck for graphics cards, is it better to go for Quattro or normal gaming cards?

Storage, I had a 500gb ssd for the main programs. 1tb Norma disk for storage and a 128gb solid drive as a scratch disk. (Ptgui has the option.. Dunno about the others.

Does this sound like a decent set up? Or are there better options?
 
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Sounds like a very good setup. Assuming you've chosen the i7 6700k as Skylake is the only Intel processor that will give you 64gig of ram.

I wouldn't worry about a 128gig ssd as as a scratch disc, not needed into with ssd's and you could always allocate some of that excessive amount of ram to a virtual disc.

Given your going for a high end system, get a 1tb ssd instead of a mechanical drive for storage. They can be had very cheaply now <£150.

I can't help on the GPU choice but having just bought a 1080 I know there are workstation benchmarks out there for graphics vs quadro.

What PSU?
 
Skylake isn't the only CPU to give that memory option. 6700k with 64gb would be an absolute waste. You would overload the CPU miles before you used the RAM.

I would look at X99, sky lake-E so 6800k or above (6800 great value 6core, 6900 has 8 cores, 6950 10 cores) sweet spot is 6800 or 6900. With the latter being my choice if budget allows. These also allow expansion to 128GB later down the line.

Storage wise, m.2 nVME drives are a must at 2gbps or faster. Add to this slower sata6 SSD for programs and then any old mechanical drive to store and dump things too when your done.

VGA.. If you don't game then the new RX480 at £210 ish has 8GB of ram and is plenty fast enough for accelerating CAD etc but if you do game and you want to game at 4K then you would be looking at a GTX1070 or preferably a GTX1080.
 
The PSU is a 650w corsair 80+ gold..
What ever that means [emoji2]

Nvidia geforce Titan x 12gb is an option for a graphics card.

The i7 is a 6800k broadwell -e hex core unlocked and clocked to 4.2

The main board is an Asus x99-a
 
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I'd recommend MSI as that's who I work for however... Go ASUS X99-A II of that board you have mentioned is a must. It's newer and better featured.

Titans are expensive and a waste now given the 1070 is just as fast and around 40% of the price.

Give a call over to BOX Ltd, ask to speak to Shane in SI with a message that MSI asked you to call.

We may be able to get you up to a 6900K and have it clocked with a few other gems added in for similar money if you are willing to sit on a reduction to GPU power and have an 8GB card.
 
As mentioned above, X99 is the way to go as the memory bandwidth is much higher, and you have 6, 8 and 10 core processors available. The new 1080 series graphics cards are faster than the older Titan cards and are about half the price and the 1070 cards are on a par for many tasks, and also consume less power (equals less fan noise as well). One thing to note is that some of the Quattro/Firepro cards offer support for 10-bit colour through a displayport connector and photoshop is capable of displaying 10-bit colour. However, not all monitors are capable of displaying 10-bit colour.

A stable 4.2 overclock should be easily achievable with liquid cooling. I used to get a stable 4.4 overclock just using the auto settings on my older X99 board (Asus X-99 deluxe) with a 5820k processor until the MB went pop when I shorted out a USB connector by accident. I replaced it with an MSI X-power board (only one in stock locally that day) which has been stable, but only seems to get about 4.0 on the auto overclock settings (push a button on the motherboard) and despite numerous attempts and BIOS setting changes I can't get it to recognise an M2 SSD drive in the slot.

The newer batch of X99 boards released for Broadwell-E all offer USB 3.1 and most offer support for M2 and U2 SSD drives. It sounds like you won't need all the features offered by some of the top-end boards, so an entry to mid level X99 board should suffice.
 
Cheers, some things to think about.

I kind of think I have my spec down...
3XS GW-HT15
Asus X99 motherboard
Intel Core i7 6800K Unlocked, Broadwelll-E, 6 Core, 3.4GHz, 3.8GHz Turbo [Overclocked up to 4.2GHz]
64gb ram
8GB NVIDIA Quadro M4000 graphics card
128GB Samsung M.2 drive (scratch)
256GB Samsung 850 Pro (program os drive)
2TB Seagate Barracuda (file drive, files will be sent to back up disk/nas/ of site disk)
Microsoft Windows 10 Pro 64-Bit

Free scan mug :)

I'll be using my own keyboard and stuff... monitors will be got a later date... expect another annoying thread then!
 
a Quadro M4000 8GB is an 8GB variant of the 4GB GTX 970 (a card that's £220 now). The Quadro is £800 and likely built by PNY.

Personally I think you would be much better off with a much faster and quieter 12Gb Titan X. Itll do 90% of what a Quadro will as its a titan and not a cut down 980ti yet will be twice the speed, ofer 50% extra VRAM and will be quieter.

Dropping down again to similar speed but at half the cost os the GTX1070 with 8GB.

Personally I think you will be better off with the Titan if you must go down that route of having pro grade or semi pro grade VGA hardware.
 
Have to admit the graphics card is one think that I'm not as confident about. I've read loads about them but nothing swayed me
 
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