Computer build for 3D programming

[Captainpoo]

Hi all

My friend is needing a good build for using these 3D programs:
3D Studio max, Maya, C4D & Zbrush.

Is this build I configured good to run these programs efficiently?


Antec one hundred 100 case (may well change)
intel core i7 2600k
asus p8p67 r3 p67 (does this motherboard still pertain the sata 3 issue?)
xfx hd 6850 1gb x2 (crossfired)
coolmaster silent pro gold 800w psu (or the equivalent corsair)
2x western digital 500gb sata 6gb/s caviar blue for raid 1 (mirror)
corsair vengeance 8gb ddr3 1600mhz cl9 1.5v.

I have this down for £949 with a max budget of £1000.

I'm uncertain whether a firepro graphics card is necessary here, but I am unsure with these programs recommendations. Does this look OK to you?


Thanks

 

[erocker]

Do these programs even support CrossFire?

 

[Captainpoo]

Do these programs even support CrossFire?

Now you mention it, I'm stuck. I believe they support crossfire pro technology relating to the firepro brand (and nvidia equivalent). Perhaps it would be wiser for him to get a more powerful single card?

 

[Fourstaff]

I explored building one for my friend (but ultimately didn't do that, due to various reasons), and I found out that all you need is some mid end graphics card. CUDA is a nice thing to have, because some plugins for 3Ds and Maya does support CUDA. Don't think OpenCL is supported for either though, but its been a few months since I considered that build. Also, you would want to get an SSD, at times even RAID is not going to be fast enough. Size depends on what your friend is working though, but I think a 60gb is round about nice to install the softwares and also for "primary working space". You wouldn't want the raided storage though, because while it offers performance, if something goes wrong that will mean countless hours of lost work. A normal unraided black will do fine for archiving.

My build will look like this for the given budget (I worked with a much lower budget last time):
2600K with a moderate to high overclock
8gb ram
60gb SSD
GTX560Ti or equivalent
whatever else you need

 

[zehpavora]

You have to remember that in order to use those programs fully, you need AMD's FirePro or nVidia's Quadro cards. Simply put, regular Graphic Cards are designed to play games and watch movies. FirePro and Quadro cards are the high performance implementation of the gaming cards. So, in order to maximize production quality in this build, I would recommend you those cards.

As stated by Fourstaff, CUDA is a very appealing technology, with better support than AMD's Spark. I reccomend it to you since this build is about performace in graphical development.

 

[Fourstaff]

Quadro cards are really overpriced, I wouldn't consider them unless you are making content for money.

 

[zehpavora]

Well, yes, they are overpriced, just like FirePro cards. That's because they do not apply for daily use, only for workstation-use, and someone who's working with 3D Studio max, Maya, C4D, Zbrush, etc. would use them quite a lot.

By all means, if your friend is planning to use this build for more than just work, you should look for Radeons 69XX or a GeForce 560+ (570 or 580).

 

[HalfAHertz]

There are some CUDA plugins for Maya but they're not free nor cheap...If he's into MEL and CUDA coding for Maya, then get him a 560 or sth else from Nvidia.

 

[zehpavora]

It depends. Designing is not programming, but you could program for 3D. Think of games, for example. You have to design everything and test it real-time, plus all the graphical aspect of the game.

 

[KingPing]

Buy the Geforce first it's way cheaper, the Quadro can be added later if needed

 

[yogurt_21]

odd does no one make modded bios for these cards any more? used to be you could by the regular radeon/geforce and mode them to firepro(gl)/quadro.

 

[v12dock]

Your paying for drivers optimized for this software.

My 360M runs just fine with Inventor

 

[TechnicalFreak]

It all depends on what he is going to create. I can run 3DSMax, Maya3D, Lightwave and so on.
But in the end, my system started screaming "Not enough memory in system to render".

I had to borrow a system from a friend, unfortunately - only to the end of July. He starts working then again (does commercials, advanced renderings etc.).

Tell me, will he only be using the listed programs? No plugins or so?? Then it's good. It can run those apps with ease. It's just a limitation in 3DSMax, that without enough...power - you are left with a maximum of 100.000 polygons to render (the better the system is, the more polygons can be used).

Test Cinebench when the system is ready, then compare it to other systems.