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Will this PC be able to handle heavy-duty modelling and rendering? 4

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titaniumapple

titaniumapple

Industrial
Jan 17, 2007
46
Hi, I just bought a shiny Core 2 Duo E6700 CPU (2.66Ghz x 2) and an Asus P5B Deluxe Wi-Fi, which I think sets me up well for Solidworks modelling and rendering.

I also just purchased a 500gb 7200RPM SATA2 HDD

Now I'm left to consider upgrading the rest...

It currently has:

- ATI X300SE (don't think I'd even be able to model a cube with that :p)
- 1GB PC2-5400 RAM
- Case with unknown 460W PSU

My first thought is the graphics card obviously

I'm kinda stuck though - Should I upgrade to something mid-range like a 7600GT, or wait a few months until a good/cheaper DX10 gfx card comes out, along with Solidworks 2008/Vista Edition?

And does SLI/Crossfire make a big difference to performace?

Thanks a lot
 
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Whatever you do gfx card wise, make sure it's an approved card. No where on the approved list ( do I see any mention of the cards you're talking about.
You're also going to want at least another gig of RAM.

Jeff Mirisola, CSWP
CAD Administrator
SW '07 SP2.0, Dell M90, Intel 2 Duo Core, 2GB RAM, nVidia 2500M
 
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Ok thanks, one more thing - with Vista, do you have to install the x64 version to use more than 2GB of RAM?
 
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I believe that 32 bit systems are unable to take advantage of more that 2 gigs of RAM. That being said, if the choice is there, don't move to Vista. There have been numerous threads about it and its lack of stability and drivers. If you move to Vista now, you could end up with unneeded headaches.

Jeff Mirisola, CSWP
CAD Administrator
SW '07 SP2.0, Dell M90, Intel 2 Duo Core, 2GB RAM, nVidia 2500M
 
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If you enable the 3 Gig switch on a 32 bit system you can access more ram (3 Gigs total I believe). I personally enable the 3 Gig switch even if I only have 1 gig of RAM. it can be the difference between finishing a rendering or animation or not finishing.

Rob Rodriguez CSWP
Eastern Region SWUGN Representative SW 2007 SP 2.0
 
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Okay thanks, how do I go about enabling the 3 Gig switch? Seeing as I've only got 1Gb atm, I could get a 2Gb set and max out my 32bit system
 
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Right--I think Matthegreeb has it, but that's assuming a full 4GB of RAM stuffed into the motherboard. The cool thing is that such a switch helps even down to 512MB--nice. It tells Windows not to automatically swipe half of your RAM for itself, but you get to use up to 3GB for what you want (such as SolidWorks).

I really like the nVidia Quatro cards and have an FX-500 in one machine and an FX-1400 in my current machine.



Jeff Mowry
Reason trumps all. And awe transcends reason.
 
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Oh, Vista. I don't think your otherwise quick system will be quick with Vista. I'd wait a year or two if I were you--until you're ready to replace ALL your other hardware. Do you have a printer? Scanner? Wacom tablet? DVD burner? USB-operated pencil sharpener? PDA? Lots of these items won't have "Vista ready" drivers that will do anything for you and you'll have to buy new stuff just to print an email.

Nice. Maybe wait three or four years until Microsoft gets tired of the beating they deserve. Maybe a nice Linux version will have a fool-friendly interface that will also run SolidWorks by whatever means within that time.



Jeff Mowry
Reason trumps all. And awe transcends reason.
 
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Lol consider that advice taken on board.

My GOD does having a Core 2 Duo make HD-video run smoothly, and it looks awesome! Even with a crappy gfx card and only 1gb RAM, 720p is sweet (having a 26" Samsung helps :p)

And why are Wacom tablets so much? An A4 tablet costs about £300 (prob about $500), can't believe how ridiculously expensive they are.
 
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Perhaps because they work? I originally purchased a huge off-brand one for 1/3 the cost. I didn't like the response at all. So I purchased a smaller (6 x 8) Intuous 2 and really like it.

It even works with Windows XP!



Jeff Mowry
Reason trumps all. And awe transcends reason.
 
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Yeh I was considering an Intuos3 but as they're so expensive I might go for an Intuos2, what are the good/bad points of an Intuos2?
 
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Mine's fine--but it doesn't have the physical buttons on the side like the Intuous3--just the tabbed stuff along the top of the pen area you can program. (That's the only difference I know of--besides price.) If you can find a reasonable used one, good luck. After paying full price for mine, I do not intend to give it up (or upgrade)--others may feel the same.



Jeff Mowry
Reason trumps all. And awe transcends reason.
 
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