Specs for succesfully running CAD aplications

[Lal]

Hi fellas !

Im buying meself a new workstation, solely for uni work (3dmax, autocad, archicad).Now Ive heard some people about the new software versions which can use gaming cards with proper drivers, that handle the apps preety well, but I want to be 100% sure that im not giving away my 2000$ worth of gear and that it will run properly the above mentioned software...

Here are my specs:

intel q6600
4mgs ram
pny quadro fx 1700 512 mb

How bout geforce 8800GTX, it seems to be popular...so how would it stack up compared to a Quadro 1700?

I want to make sure me spending $500 more is worth it for a Quadro FX series?

am not sure about using vista business or xp

regards Lara

[Lal]

gts

[Cad64]

4mgs ram

I think you mean 4GB's Ram, right?

How bout geforce 8800GTX, it seems to be popular...so how would it stack up compared to a Quadro 1700?

I want to make sure me spending $500 more is worth it for a Quadro FX series?

I thought about the 8800GTX when I was having my machine built, but opted for the 8600GT instead. It costs a lot less than the GTX and still delivers great performance. I run Autocad, 3DS Max and Zbrush with ease.

Unless you are a hardcore gamer, the Quadro or the GTX isn't really going to do much for you. Put your money into the processor and RAM first, then whatever's left over can go to the video card.

am not sure about using vista business or xp

I would have liked to have gone for Vista 64 bit, but most of my programs won't run on it.

[Lal]

thx for the quick response !

I made a mistake writing...yes i meant 4 gbs of ram...and not GTX but 8800 gts vs quadro fx 1700

what do u mean quadro is for gamers ? a member from another respectable site had this to say about the quadro fx series :

The NVIDIA gamer series of graphics cards are targeted more towards the gaming trend, where the Quadro series are targeted toward the high end / graphics / CAD users.

Essentially what this means in english is the following: The gamer series of cards feature overclocking, rapid response memory optimization, and customizability. While these are all good, they are not targetting the high end CAD / Graphic Design / Video, etc. etc. users. I have noticed that on several of the current releases for the gamer video drivers, i have seen various stability issues with ArchiCAD (nothing major, but minor delays in redraws after zoom, or having to manually rebuild plotmaker files). These symptoms stem from the fact that the drivers of the gamer series are optimized for rapid, on the fly computations, which are run on the chipset, then cleared, and a new one is run, so on and so forth. These cards aren't specifically built for a steady run of computations that video editing, and CAD would require from them. In a nutshell, the Quadro is targeted at users that don't need all the high level processes that you'd need for the latest and greatest game. The Quadro series of drivers are meticulously optimized with a variety of high end computing applications in mind.

[Cad64]

My bad, when I saw you were talking about the GTX, I assumed the Quadro was the same type of card. I know the GTX is a $600 high end gamer card, so I figured the Quadro must be in the same boat. But now I see you really meant the GTS card, so that makes more sense.

I can't really compare the two because I don't really know much about the Quadro. All I can say is my GT works great, and I'm sure the GTS would also.

I guess it all just depends on what type of work you will be doing. As mentioned before, my GT handles everything I throw at it, including next-gen games, so I just can't justify spending $450 for a video card, when I can get a much cheaper one that does everything I want it to do and more.

[Longchamp]

nvidia recently released the 8800GT video card. Its performance is about 20% less than the GTX but it costs something in the realm of a third as much. I picked mine up at Best Buy for $210 plus tax. I think either card is overkill for a graphics workstation, though. I could be wrong.


EDIT: Have you given any thought to which motherboard? The Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3L (or R?) is a solid board for about $90. Itll let you easily overclock the CPU from the stock 2.2ghz to 2.6ghz with its windows program and no additional cooling (assuming the case has a standard case fan). Intel's given us (the consumer) a gift with its core 2 architecture and it would be a waste not to take advantage of it. Plus it uses the new P35 chipset which will increase RAM efficiency by a lot.

[f700es]

Yes, Quadros suck for gaming. I have a PCIe Quadro FX 3450 at work and while it does work for games (at lunch) it plays them no better than my $100 AGP GeForce 6600GT. In fact I get better frame rates with the 6600GT. Now Acad 2008 opens and flies with the Quadro. I can tell a difference.

[Lal]

thank you 4 all for your reply's...i bought myself 512mb XFX alpha dog edition 8800gts gaming card and i'm more than satisfied for now...
Later on when i'll be better in rendering...i'll upgrade my pc with quadro card
tnx bye

[JD Mather]

...The NVIDIA gamer series of graphics cards are targeted more towards the gaming trend, where the Quadro series are targeted toward the high end / graphics / CAD users.

I have seen Autodesk expert comment that moving to Vista the CAD specific graphics card is no longer required. He suggests putting money into processor and RAM.

See the response by Norbert here
http://discussion.autodesk.com/threa...sageID=5640205

[Lal]

He suggests putting money into processor and RAM.


Tnx i took care of that