CGTalk - Im looking at getting a high spec system, advice?

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vfxmunkey

12-27-2007, 12:52 AM

I've been lurking CGScociety for a bit now, theres some really great advice and tips here, so I thought I'd come to you guys for this.

I've based this current plan off of mac pro's and Boxx systems, I figured it would be a good start.

My old system is 2 years old, and it was made for gaming And 3D. It doesnt like HD rendering very much.

My questions are;

1. Do you have any recomendations on alternative parts?
2. What are the advantages of having a Quadro over a 8800 series?

Quadro FX 3400 is 256Mb - 256bit and 28.8Gb/s @ $1688.41 NZD
Where as 8800GTX is 786Mb - 384bit and 96.4Gb/s @ $741.38 NZD

3. Would a faster boot Hdd say a raptor 15k or scsi drive make much difference?

I'm aiming for a high end workstation, that's able to also put out some fast render times for those tight deadlines.

This machine is for me personally to use at home and work, the company I work for is also getting a similar system just for rendering.

Software I will be using;
Win Xp x64
After Effects CS3
Photoshop CS3
Maya 8.5
Vue 6 Xtreme
Fusion 5

Motherboard: Intel Workstation Board S5000 S5000XVNSATAR

CPU's: 2X Intel Xeon Quad Core LGA771 5310 1.6GHz 2X4MB FSB1066 (updated)

Ram: 4X 4GB DDR2 FB-DIMM (16Gb total)

Gfx: Quadro FX 3400 PCI-Express - 256MB - 256bit - 28.8GB/sec

Monitors: 2X Viewsonic VX2245WM 22" WIDESCREEN LCD monitor

Existing Hdds, 4X 250Gb Sata 7200Rpm

Total cost :NZD$6633.00

Thanks to anyone who takes the time to read this and help me :) free cookie to you...

davijin

12-27-2007, 05:27 AM

1: First thing I saw is that those processors wont work with that board. first thing is that the 3xxx series xeons are just about the same as the core2duo processors thats why they use the same socket and have just about almost the same specs. bad news is that you cant use them in a dual socket senario. the Board you chose has a LGA771 socket which is what the 5xxx series xeons use and they are able to be used in dual sockets to put together an 8 core machine. other than that all the other hardware looks good.

2: as far as the video card thing the only real difference is that the quadro has software that allows it to be faster in some applications and is more stable as far as graphics card glitches. imo if you this is for your buisness or something work related and need a reliable solution go with the quadro. if its more for hobby and gaming type stuff go with the geforce. While I use geforce cards and alot of users do and they work fine theres always the possibility of issues like maya and some other applications are having with the 8 series geforce cards.

3:from what ive heard it does make a little difference, but I dont have first hand experience with the raptor drive vs a standard sata drive.

hope I was helpful. later

vfxmunkey

12-27-2007, 06:04 AM

Thanks :) Good thing I had posted here first, would have been a pain to have cpu's that wouldnt work in the Mb.

Yeah its more for buisness work. I dont have much time now days to play games.

I think I'll stick to normal sata drives, Maybe a raid 5 situation.

Thanks so much for your input! :)

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