Recommended Configuration

[choucove]

Hello everyone!

From time to time I get requests for recommendations on the types of computer systems to use for office tasks. This can vary from basic word documents and emailing to graphics design work. It has been quite a while since I have posted up any information on computer systems and recommendations, so I wanted to take some time to update my recommendations on system hardware for custom computers that recently we have been building, which would work great for a standard design workstation. Please note that these are just recommendations based on my previous experience purchasing and building with this specific hardware, and that the costs described here are for the original purchase of hardware and software alone, so if you have someone else build this for you you will have some additional expense involved. So, below is the hardware configuration that we have been using for several custom desktops lately and have been very pleased with their performance.

Processor: Intel Core i5-3470 3.2 Ghz Quad-Core 77W LGA1155
Motherboard: ASUS P8Z77-M LGA1155 microATX
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8 GB (2 X 4 GB) DDR3 1600 CAS 9 1.5V
Hard Drive: Western Digital Black 1 TB 7,200 RPM SATA6Gb/s 64MB Cache 3.5"
Power Supply: SeaSonic SSR-450RM 450 Watt Modular Gold Certified Active PFC Compatible PSU
Graphics Card: PNY nVidia Quadro 600 1 GB PCI-Express 2.0 Low Profile
Case: Corsair Carbide 200R Mid-Tower ATX Chassis
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 120mm LGA1155 compatible heatsink and fan with Arctic Silver 5 thermal compound
Optical Drive: Lite-On DVD+/-RW Burner SATA Black
Operating System: Windows 8 Professional 64-bit OEM

Total Cost: $980.00

The goal of this build configuration is to remain under $1,000.00 There are some alternatives that you can go with. The onboard Intel HD graphics are often capable of doing your basic multimedia and production work and using only one or two monitors. However, having a dedicated professional graphics card can help to improve render times with newer versions of the Adobe software, as well as offer higher color fidelity and performance. For a design workstation, it's recommended. Instead, though, you may wish to go with a 128 GB or 256 GB solid state drive to get the increased performance which will affect the speed of your entire computer system noticeably. The SSDs that I recommend highly above all others is the Samsung 840 Pro series. Please note there is a huge difference between the standard Samsung 840 and the Samsung 840 Pro, and due to decreased life expectancy and decreased performance I would not recommend the standard Samsung 840. However, I have found the 840 Pro SSDs to offer unbelievable performance, and have not had any issues with compatibility or stability.

 

[tomence]

I have a better configuration for under $1000

Intel Core i5 3570K 3.4Ghz LGA 1155 Processor
CoolerMaster Hyper 212
Gigabyte Z77X-UD5H Motherboard
Samsung 840 Pro Series SSD
Corsair AX750 Power Supply Gold Certified Fully Modular
Crucial Ballistix Sport 16GB DDR3-1600 CL9 (2x8GB)
Gigabyte GV-N65TOC-1GI NVIDIA GeForce GTX650 Ti OC 1024MB GDDR5 Video Card
Corsair Carbide 300 Case
Windows 7 Pro 64 bit

As you can see this are all top of the line items. You can always switch to a lower i5 processor and a lower model motherboard and be well under $1000.
My configuration after all the rebates i am at $1050. I know it is little over $1000 but well worth it.

 

[particleman]

An SSD will probably offer the most significant performance boost over anything else in my opinion. I'd figure out how to work one into your build.

 

[choucove]

Agreed, the SSD is going to be the biggest improvement in performance. The problem is in the cost to fit the size that a customer is going to need. While most situations would allow someone to use a 128 GB Samsung 840 Pro series SSD, which could be squeezed in there, it's not going to be enough for a lot of people. For some, justifying the additional $200 in cost to go from a 1 TB drive to a 256 GB drive is not in the cards. Though yes, it is the better option.

The reason I chose the professional graphics card over the desktop graphics like the GeForce GTX650 Ti (which is a great card) is because of quality over quantity. It's not as powerful of a card, but it's optimally built and configured exactly for this work, design and content creation. It supports higher quality color fidelity, which might be important for people wishing to utilize higher quality true 8-bit IPS displays, and it runs with much less power draw meaning a more efficient system and lower output power supply.

Again, this configuration is simply to show what we have been working with lately, the configurations I've been using for several desktops, and have been very pleased with their performance and value. Configuring the system with an SSD would be ideal, but in our situation the SSD is going to be an optional additional at additional cost because my original goal was to keep the configuration under $1,000.00. If you do not wish to use the Quadro 600 for the graphics performance, and the integrated Intel HD is going to be plenty, then you should be able to fit in the Samsung 840 Pro SSD.

 

[tomence]

I would say you do not need a video card at all, i really can't tell a difference between the onboard intel 4000 graphics and the video card that i have installed which is a pretty good vc, so in this case you lose the vc and get a 1 TB Black WD hard drive which is only 89.99.

 

[choucove]

Tomence is right on for the Intel HD. It's quite a bit of power for an integrated graphics core. In nearly every situation we just use the onboard graphics. The reason why I mention the nVidia Quadro 600 is if you have a need of higher speed rendering assistance from GPGPU, or if you have a true 8-bit IPS display you're wanting the high color precision on. Most of the situations you will not need these two features. In fact, going with an SSD instead of the graphics card will still help your rendering performance tremendously even in programs that do not utilize GPGPU technology, as well as every other aspect of your computer performance.

 

[tomence]

This days you can really build a powerful system for under $1000.

 

[JoeBoomer]

SSD Thumper

+1(bazillion) for ssd. Without a doubt, the biggest impact on performance I've ever seen.

 

[KaranGrewal]

Hello everyone!

From time to time I get requests for recommendations on the types of computer systems to use for office tasks. This can vary from basic word documents and emailing to graphics design work. It has been quite a while since I have posted up any information on computer systems and recommendations, so I wanted to take some time to update my recommendations on system hardware for custom computers that recently we have been building, which would work great for a standard design workstation. Please note that these are just recommendations based on my previous experience purchasing and building with this specific hardware, and that the costs described here are for the original purchase of hardware and software alone, so if you have someone else build this for you you will have some additional expense involved. So, below is the hardware configuration that we have been using for several custom desktops lately and have been very pleased with their performance.

Processor: Intel Core i5-3470 3.2 Ghz Quad-Core 77W LGA1155
Motherboard: ASUS P8Z77-M LGA1155 microATX
Memory: Corsair Vengeance 8 GB (2 X 4 GB) DDR3 1600 CAS 9 1.5V
Hard Drive: Western Digital Black 1 TB 7,200 RPM SATA6Gb/s 64MB Cache 3.5"
Power Supply: SeaSonic SSR-450RM 450 Watt Modular Gold Certified Active PFC Compatible PSU
Graphics Card: PNY nVidia Quadro 600 1 GB PCI-Express 2.0 Low Profile
Case: Corsair Carbide 200R Mid-Tower ATX Chassis
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 120mm LGA1155 compatible heatsink and fan with Arctic Silver 5 thermal compound
Optical Drive: Lite-On DVD+/-RW Burner SATA Black
Operating System: Windows 8 Professional 64-bit OEM

Total Cost: $980.00

The goal of this build configuration is to remain under $1,000.00 There are some alternatives that you can go with. The onboard Intel HD graphics are often capable of doing your basic multimedia and production work and using only one or two monitors. However, having a dedicated professional graphics card can help to improve render times with newer versions of the Adobe software, as well as offer higher color fidelity and performance. For a design workstation, it's recommended. Instead, though, you may wish to go with a 128 GB or 256 GB solid state drive to get the increased performance which will affect the speed of your entire computer system noticeably. The SSDs that I recommend highly above all others is the Samsung 840 Pro series. Please note there is a huge difference between the standard Samsung 840 and the Samsung 840 Pro, and due to decreased life expectancy and decreased performance I would not recommend the standard Samsung 840. However, I have found the 840 Pro SSDs to offer unbelievable performance, and have not had any issues with compatibility or stability.

Thank you so much so taking my call this morning. and thanks for all the valuable information.