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PC for Graphic Design...

JordanPriebe

New Member
I'm thinking about switching over to a PC, anyone know a good set up for freelance, prepress graphic design work. I use my computer for graphic design only, so I would like to save some money on a decent computer and spend the rest on a nice monitor and different software/hardware.
Id like some specs to look for, I know i7 would be the best route but what about AMD? I cant find anything recent on Graphic Design Friendly computers... =[

Let me know! Thanks!
 

WildWestDesigns

Active Member
I'm thinking about switching over to a PC, anyone know a good set up for freelance, prepress graphic design work. I use my computer for graphic design only, so I would like to save some money on a decent computer and spend the rest on a nice monitor and different software/hardware.
Id like some specs to look for, I know i7 would be the best route but what about AMD? I cant find anything recent on Graphic Design Friendly computers... =[

Let me know! Thanks!

I use an i7 overclocked to 3.4 (newer ones are already 3.4 if I recall correcty). Mine is Intel, but I think AMD and Intel are pretty much neck and neck. More then likely it would come down to cost preference. I chose Intel, I just like their stuff more. For hard drives I have 2 SSDs and one mechanical. The main SSD is stripped, the second SSD is the mirror of the first and the mechanical drive is for files and the lighter programs that don't need to be on the main drive.

For graphics card, I have an Sapphire HD 5970 Dual GPU 2 GB DDR5. It supports up to 3 monitors (2 DVI and 1 Mini-Display). Very good for the 3D rendering that I have to do with my embroidery software as well as some of the flash work that I've done.

I do have a Gigabyte motherboard, but it is no longer being made. It supports up to 16GB of RAM, but I only have 12GB which is more then sufficient for my use.

Monitors I have a Viewsonic VG228wm, Samsung 22" (entertainment only) and a 21" Cintiq UX (highly recommend this monitor if it's within the budget).
 

OldPaint

New Member
i can speak for AMD PROCESSORS. i build computer and its all i have ever used. never a problem. as for comparison to intels...........it comes down to how much you want to spend. i7 is pricey, can get same performance from AMD quad core processor a lot cheaper. i now have a GIGABYTE M/B. had to replace it within 30 days as it just died. they are good about replacements. i got an AMD 2.8 QUAD CORE 2 gig ram, on board video card. i got all the speed i can handle. if i wanted more, i could upgrade process(on the same m/b) to 3.4 gig, 6 or 8 core, add a 1-2 gig video card. that is the key to a great graphic computer, put more money into the graphic card, you wont be disappointed. add 2 more gigs a ram.....but iam tellin ya this 2.8 quad core with 2 gigs a ram.......runs everything so fast i dont see the need for more. iam running XPso it wont find more ram anyway. i was just lookin at AMD newest AMD FX 8150 8-Core Processor, 3.6 8 Socket AM3 the only 8 CORE PROCESSOR...$269.00 and will fit any older AM3 socket MOTHERBOARDS!!!! INTEL....Intel® Core™ i7 Processor i7-960
Best Price: $289.99
as for a monitor, i have a VISIO 26" 1080p TV. awesome!!!
 
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Techman

New Member
I just built a new machine using an Intel I7 2600.

To compare:
Core duo machine verses new I7 2600 verses my son's super gamer AMD.
Using a very complex 3D graphics file built in Vectric Aspire.

Core duo machine takes 7 seconds to render that graphic every time something changes. At the time I felt the core duo was plenty fast. Actually it is for most other work. But for 3D is is just adequate. Working on this 3D file is mind numbing waiting for the redraws. seven seconds is not bad for once a day but it is painful when it is all the time.

Compare that to the:
I7 2600 which is a 3.4 gig CPU. Which is not the fastest Intel. There are 3 steps faster chips. It renders that same Aspire file as fast as the Enter key.

The AMD is.. well its good but not in the running against the I7 for this work.

I built this Intel machine for about $700 bux recycling an old case and an extra 1 Terrbyte SATA drive. New parts included power supply, motherboard, dvd rom, vid card, ram win 7 pro, plus an all in one card reader.

However, if I did not have the experience with PC's I would call casey and get a signburst machine all set up with every thing tweaked to perfection.. Why?

This I7 cpu machine is so impressive that I will spend a few more bux to get an SSD drive and a blue ray burner. The time spent doing it myself researching what hardware to obtain, waiting on parts, tweaking, and add extra ons would make it worthwhile for someone not so experienced to buy a ready made machine.
 

WildWestDesigns

Active Member
However, if I did not have the experience with PC's I would call casey and get a signburst machine all set up with every thing tweaked to perfection.. Why?

This I7 cpu machine is so impressive that I will spend a few more bux to get an SSD drive and a blue ray burner. The time spent doing it myself researching what hardware to obtain, waiting on parts, tweaking, and add extra ons would make it worthwhile for someone not so experienced to buy a ready made machine.


I couldn't agree more. I might also add that I just did a computer for my dad that had the new top of the line Asus motherboard and they don't have anything on their forums with tweaking everything as it's so new. I did like the new interface with setting up the new Bios, but it can for sure be daunting for someone that hasn't done a custom build or done one in a while.
 

Letterbox Mike

New Member
I just built a new machine using an Intel I7 2600.

I just built a new machine with this processor too, teamed it up with 2 SSDs, 16gb of RAM and overclocked it to 4.4ghz (air-cooled and rock-solid stable) and it is obscenely quick. For the money it seems like a hard processor to beat...
 

laserman70

New Member
I just built a new machine using an Intel I7 2600.

To compare:
Core duo machine verses new I7 2600 verses my son's super gamer AMD.
Using a very complex 3D graphics file built in Vectric Aspire.

Core duo machine takes 7 seconds to render that graphic every time something changes. At the time I felt the core duo was plenty fast. Actually it is for most other work. But for 3D is is just adequate. Working on this 3D file is mind numbing waiting for the redraws. seven seconds is not bad for once a day but it is painful when it is all the time.

Compare that to the:
I7 2600 which is a 3.4 gig CPU. Which is not the fastest Intel. There are 3 steps faster chips. It renders that same Aspire file as fast as the Enter key.

The AMD is.. well its good but not in the running against the I7 for this work.

I built this Intel machine for about $700 bux recycling an old case and an extra 1 Terrbyte SATA drive. New parts included power supply, motherboard, dvd rom, vid card, ram win 7 pro, plus an all in one card reader.

However, if I did not have the experience with PC's I would call casey and get a signburst machine all set up with every thing tweaked to perfection.. Why?

This I7 cpu machine is so impressive that I will spend a few more bux to get an SSD drive and a blue ray burner. The time spent doing it myself researching what hardware to obtain, waiting on parts, tweaking, and add extra ons would make it worthwhile for someone not so experienced to buy a ready made machine.


700?
Dam im in....
how about some specs on what you bought.
Keep bogging mine down here when designing wraps.
Thanks
 

mopar691

New Member
I just put together a new AMD rig.

AMD Phenom X4 965. 119.99
ASUS M4N68T-M V2. Free with Processor purchase.
PNY GTS 250. Salvaged from old rig.
Pantheon mid case. 70.00
Hyper 212 plus cooler. 14.00
OCZ 600W PS. 59.00
8GB PNY DDR3. 40.00

optical and disc drives all from old rig. Includes 1 ssd and 2 10000 rpm drives.

2 25" Soyo moniters at 1920 x 1200

Running this at 4.2 GHz with zero issues. Runs cool even under full load and after hours of gaming. Which is how I spend my weekends. And why I chose AMD.

Blazing fast. Instant program opening and never waiting for rendering.

If your at all unconfortable putting one together i do suggest having someone such as signburst or the like to build one to your needs and budget. You wont be dissappointed. Such better performance then off the shelf systems you cant even compare.
 

OldPaint

New Member
mopar 691, with that m/b you can up grade to the AMD FX 8150 8-Core Processor, 3.6 8 Socket AM3 the only 8 CORE PROCESSOR...$269.00 thats the nice thing AMD is doing upgrading the chip and having it fit existing m/b's.
 

Techman

New Member
specs
Intel I7 2600 3.4 Gig 8 MB cache lga 1155 Unlocked (allows it to be overclocked. However, I see no need to overclock anything) $315
Asus P8 P67 - M Pro ATX, socket h2 P67 express. Gigabyte LAN, with the B3 revisions. This has all the latest goodies. USB 3 SATA 6 etc. And EFI BIOS. $149

8 gigs corsair ram including heat exchangers $64.00
Sony multicard reader , Fits 3.5" FDD bay $12.99
Extreme 500 plus power supply $49.55
Lite on dvd sata $18.99

Add on: MSI R 4350 Vid card. After rebate $9.00 This is an adequate vid card. I wanted it mainly for the HDMI out port and cross fire mods.

Add on: Sony SSD 80 gig drive. $99

Add On: Blue Ray burner $150.00

Ask me if some want a tutorial on how to assemble and tweak.
 

WildWestDesigns

Active Member
specs
Intel I7 2600 3.4 Gig 8 MB cache lga 1155 Unlocked (allows it to be overclocked. However, I see no need to overclock anything)

Sometimes you have to in order to get it to "sync" with the RAM. Yes, the RAM cards were in spec and compatible with the the parts that I had. The only thing that I did different was overclock it. It was as if the RAM was "chomping at the bit" to go faster, but it wasn't able to. This wasn't for my computer though, it was for my dad's. I didn't have to overclock it, but I did anyway. Dad's I wasn't going to, but it ended up I had to.

You also have to remember to that people make these things expecting it to be overclocked to some degree. It's done way to much not for them not to.
 
J

john1

Guest
I just built a new machine with this processor too, teamed it up with 2 SSDs, 16gb of RAM and overclocked it to 4.4ghz (air-cooled and rock-solid stable) and it is obscenely quick. For the money it seems like a hard processor to beat...

I just built a computer with the i7 2600k 3.4ghz and i have 16gb of RAM and it's blazing fast. It's only like $300 for the processor. I would recommend getting it without a problem.
 

mopar691

New Member
mopar 691, with that m/b you can up grade to the AMD FX 8150 8-Core Processor, 3.6 8 Socket AM3 the only 8 CORE PROCESSOR...$269.00 thats the nice thing AMD is doing upgrading the chip and having it fit existing m/b's.

I know. And I almost did. But I really want a better MB to support that chip. I'm maxxed on ram with this one at 8.

I miss my three monitors. When I got this one I was being to thrifty and didn't realize only one pcie slot. So my other matching video card sits on the bench waiting so I can go back to a SLI setup.

Until that happens my son is drooling and waiting impatiently cause he will get this board and processor for his. I will keep him waiting a bit. Its good
 

Techman

New Member
I am rendering a DVD from HD video on two machines.
The I7 rendered the video to DVD in about 14 minutes.

The core duo PC is still rendering the same file for a second copy 34 minutes later and it shows 30% done.
 

tampaprinting

Tampa Printing
Everyone talking PC is great, but what OS? It matters when considering maxing out your RAM. XP-32, XP-64, 7-64.... just curious when you're putting together a PC what OS you're deciding on using. Thanks.
 

WildWestDesigns

Active Member
Everyone talking PC is great, but what OS? It matters when considering maxing out your RAM. XP-32, XP-64, 7-64.... just curious when you're putting together a PC what OS you're deciding on using. Thanks.

Why bother with either XP versions when you can get Win7 Pro or Ultimate and be able to boot up a virtual drive of XP if you have to have XP running for outdated software? Then you can still be relatively current (I say relative because isn't 8 due out sometime soon?) by also having Win7 on there.
 

JordanPriebe

New Member
See I was looking at the HP Pavilion Elite with the AMD Phenom II x4 quad core. 8gb RAM, 3ghz and 1 terrabyte HDD for $500. I might just end up building an i7 with gaming specs.
 

choucove

New Member
There is a little bit of confusing and unknown territory still with the latest AMD FX bulldozer processors when it comes to backwards compatibility. It was said that these FX processors (including the latest AMD FX eight core processor which combats performance-wise with the Core i5-2500k) would work in any motherboard that is AM3. However, that is not the case.

Upon its release, AMD clarified that the only motherboards that would have true support for Bulldozer processors would be motherboards with an AM3+ socket with a 9XX series chipset. This means either a 970, 990X, or 990FX chipset AND an AM3+ socket. While theoretically you can still drop in a Bulldozer processor to a motherboard that has an actual AM3+ socket, in reality the BIOS support is not confirmed and you could very well not have a compatible system. The bottom line was any AM3 socket motherboards would NOT support the new Bulldozer processors as they have a different pin-out.

I've personally built many AMD and many Intel systems for a variety of applications and uses. One thing I've liked more about AMD is they seem to offer a little better "bang for your buck" as you can get great performance at a cheap price, and they tend to run cooler than similar Intel systems. However, if you're aiming for the best performance and price isn't really an issue, then I'd recommend a high-end Intel such as the Core i7-2600 or i7-2600K. They also just released the new flagship core i7-2700K!

Nothing (yet) in AMD's stables can quite keep up with the performance of the Intel flagship models, and anymore the Intel prices are not that much more than AMD prices.

As I've mentioned before elsewhere, one thing I would not skimp on would be the power supply. It's the heart of your computer and can make or break the rest of your build! I've used a lot of Antec High Current Gamer series power supplies as well as Corsair power supplies, which are the elite highest quality on the market. Get something with more power than you need now, as you may decide to upgrade or add more to your system in the future.

Even if you are planning to do really intensive graphics, unless you are planning on hardcore Crysis crunching or wanting to do GPGPU rendering for a medical imaging facility, there's no need to spend all your money on a graphics card. Even a mid-range $100 to $150 will have way more power than you will ever need in your day to day tasks. Again, unless you are doing some major gaming, you will see absolutely no benefit in picking a $500 video card over a $150 for design work.

If you're dead set on getting the best quality video card, just get a mid-range Professional graphics card. I've used several nVidia Quadro cards in the past and while they are expensive, they are unbeatable quality for design work. They can be expensive (expect to pay between $150 to $250) but you don't need ANYTHING more than that.

Save the money from that video card and put it to use on either more memory (which is incredibly cheap right now!) or monitors. If you're doing design work get an IPS panel display if you can. The Dell U2412 is the updated version of an award-winning and well received high quality monitor from Dell. For an IPS panel display you cannot beat the price, often on sale for as little as $320. Many IPS panel displays are going to be in the $1,000 price range or more!

Additionally, get some aftermarket CPU cooling. The included stock fans are never enough to really keep up with demanding tasks on your processor, which can mean your system is constantly hot, and can even lead to decreased expected lifespan of your computer! The Cooler Master Hyper N is a great CPU fan, we've used dozens of them and they are great from your entry level system to a high performance design workstation, and at around $35 they're not expensive but well worth the investment!

For an operating system, Windows 7 Professional 64-bit is probably going to be the best way to go. There's nothing in the Windows 7 Ultimate that you're going to need that Windows 7 Professional doesn't already have and you can save your money there for other things. Purchase an OEM license when ordering hardware to save quite a bit on costs if you plan to do this yourself.

Of course, if you don't really have the skill, understanding, or time to do this assembly yourself, then I'd recommend giving Casey with SignBurst a call. He builds custom systems specifically for the sign and design industry, and he is an expert at what he does.
 
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