Paramount Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 As far as I know I been a tad bit more nice than naughty this year and Santa is bringing me a new computer to run CA. We have a guy that has built our business computers but I'm not that knowledgeable with them or CA quite yet so I am reaching out to you all for advice on a pro rig. My eye sight is not the best so I have a 24" monitor I am running off a 15" cheap labtop I can barely read now that only has a VGA in/output. I'm thinking three monitors since eventually I will be running CA along side other software (HVAC, WUFI films, ETC). Not sure what other specs I need? I don't want to spend anymore than I have to. I'm hoping a more powerful card cleans up my z-fighting issues (seems like they exist on every model)....My intel core 3 Toshiba Satellite labtop has done ok, not slow or anything, I'll keep for when I have to go mobile to clients or get a new one. I'm not sure building a desktop or buying a labtop is the best way to go. We have a home shows we do too I need to be mobile for and run to a projector. Tips on how to set up a new rig would help. I'm on W10 right now but am considering going back to 7 which some say is the most stable of them all. Some drivers don't work on 10 it has other issues and I was never that impressed with 8. I don't use alot of the features of 8-10 perhaps that is a mistake. I dunno. I need to get my list in the mail to the north pole asap before Santa runs out so let me know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcaffee Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 I don't want to spend anymore than I have to. That is not a budget. For instance, I am replacing laptop hardware this year, and I have a firm budget of $5K for total hardware costs. I then get the best specs available on the day I order within that $5K budget. So Terry, what's your budget? jon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DRAWZILLA Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 ALIENWARE, high end gaming computers, is what you need. a bit pricey but good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwideziner Posted December 3, 2015 Share Posted December 3, 2015 Bear in mind that a new computer is not likely to solve Z-fighting issues. First thing to check is how far away fromm0,0 is your model? if a long way this can cause z-figthing otherwise check your cladding ,marterial thicknesses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paramount Posted December 4, 2015 Author Share Posted December 4, 2015 That is not a budget. For instance, I am replacing laptop hardware this year, and I have a firm budget of $5K for total hardware costs. I then get the best specs available on the day I order within that $5K budget. So Terry, what's your budget? jon My budget is what ever it takes to not hold up production that can cost me $$$. I'm not sure what I need so I was hoping with recommendations people can tell me what I can expect to pay. I travel the US often and I can tell you prices vary drastically, especially where I will be buying in KS compared to CA I frequent often, for example. Also we have an IT friend that builds computers for us in volume at a discount. I can see my future, running simulation models like WUFI and NREL SAM, then working CA whilst the simulations are running. Essentially running 2-3 games at a time. This junk labtop I have not runs CA fine so I'm not wanting to spend more than I have to nor do I care about bragging rights A competitive market has brought down the cost of computers and I think we will continue to see more bang for the buck in the future. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paramount Posted December 4, 2015 Author Share Posted December 4, 2015 ALIENWARE, high end gaming computers, is what you need. a bit pricey but good. Cool, thanks I'll check it out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paramount Posted December 4, 2015 Author Share Posted December 4, 2015 Bear in mind that a new computer is not likely to solve Z-fighting issues. First thing to check is how far away fromm0,0 is your model? if a long way this can cause z-figthing otherwise check your cladding ,marterial thicknesses. My models are @ 0,0. Yesterday I had the back of a dishwasher CA placed/snapped in place in a base cabinet at 0,0 doing it. I think we should be able to model anywhere without it and CA needs to stop the ban-aids and permanently fix this in X8 once and for all. I have run ALOT of 3D software and never seen anything like it. I can see myself displaying CA to large home show groups and them asking what is going on. My answer will be that I sorta regret purchasing CA for this one reason, and there are others. Not going to help my sales nor CA's. If it continuous I cut my losses and go to autocad. Did not mean to turn this into a another z-fighting thread, already plenty of those and tech support did not provide me any good solutions for the ticket I submitted on my soffits, roof, siding, doors, windows, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve-C Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 - Puget Systems is good. - Agree with Perry, Alienwear is also good. - Maingear Get the best Graphics card your budget can handle. Get SSD storage only. My Puget Spirit rig listed below cost around $2600 (without the monitor) and is screaming fast. I would highly recommend avoiding the big names even though they will build systems for less. They supplement their costs with excessive bloatwear which slows a system down. Use a custom PC builder that is dedicated to clean installs of Windows. Some will recommend Mac which is fine. I tried a fully loaded iMac and was underwhelmed. CA ran fine on it but it runs much better (for me anyway) on a cleanly installed Windows system. Plus there are subtle nuances in the interface that differentiate the two and I just prefer the Windows interface better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HumbleChief Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 The parameters for a good Chief computer rarely change and they are mainly IMO budget driven. You want fast and powerful in every component. Fastest CPU, fastest GPU (Graphics card), fastest memory, (Chief is not a memory hog 16 gb should be plenty) fastest hard drive, solid power supply, best cooling - you can afford. A good system can be custom/self built for under $2000 pretty easily. Custom built from suppliers as mentioned above, more like $2500. I lucked out and got the system in my signature for $2500.00 built by a custom shop though I usually build my own. Before you buy post the specs here in case you missed something important. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gawdzira Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 I have a main monitor that is a 30" Dell. Money well spent. The second monitor is a cheap 27". I have not used 3 monitors but some people like it. Since I can't do three things at once (one at once is often a stretch) I suspect the 3rd monitor would just distract me. I have the main window of CA on the main monitor and the library and project browser remote. A budget of 2-3k for the cpu memory and graphics card is respectable. This all depends on your back up storage system and if you choose a really large SSD drive for loading programs. Get at least 256 SSD if you get one or else it will fill too fast. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HumbleChief Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 3 monitors is surprisingly nice. I watch New Egg for deals and picked up a 32" for $399 not long ago. Right now I have this window open on one, a video from a job walk open on another, and my main monitor has a Chief plan I'm working on. The 32" monitor is really nice (Acer B326HUL) and I think a 30" like Alan suggests is money well spent. My second is a 27" and I have an old 19" that's been around forever. Can't find a down side to 3 monitors but again waiting for sales is the way to go IMO.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dshall Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 ..... I suspect the 3rd monitor would just distract me....... Come on Alan, the 3rd monitor is for Judge Judy...... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HumbleChief Posted December 4, 2015 Share Posted December 4, 2015 Come on Alan, the 3rd monitor is for Judge Judy...... ...and this forum Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paramount Posted December 5, 2015 Author Share Posted December 5, 2015 Thanks for the help guy's. My xmas list in on it's way. Can't wait to update my signature with my new pro rig specs and remove the "CA Noob" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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