SLW210 Posted January 13, 2012 Posted January 13, 2012 I'm still not sure which is really better, the Xeon or the i7. I have an i7 in the computer I'm using now. I talked myself out of a Xeon when I ordered it! LOL I read that there might be a piping limitation using Plant 3D once one gets up to 100 pipe runs. Not sure how that figure was arrived at or if it included flanges, valves, etc. I heard there were problems on the initial release, but didn't hear of any limits on pipe runs, though I found this.. The theoretical limits are database / dwg dependent. The practical limits are based on your hardware and operating system plus how the project is broken up into mutiple documents. If you are looking to maximize the capacity, be sure to use a 64-bit operating system and have as much RAM as possible. If this company goes that route, I think we will be going Bentley AutoPLANT. I went to Xi and for $5000 you can get a lot of computer. Will you be reusing monitors , keyboard, mouse and speakers? Quote
ReMark Posted January 13, 2012 Author Posted January 13, 2012 How did I miss Bentley AutoPLANT? I'm positive I've heard of it too. Did you get any pricing information on any of the software yet? If so, did it include yearly maintenance or licensing fees? Yes, I'll be reusing all those components. The system I have now might be turned over to our resident civil engineer. Quote
SLW210 Posted January 13, 2012 Posted January 13, 2012 How did I miss Bentley AutoPLANT? I'm positive I've heard of it too. Did you get any pricing information on any of the software yet? If so, did it include yearly maintenance or licensing fees? Yes, I'll be reusing all those components. The system I have now might be turned over to our resident civil engineer. My boss got all the quotes, I know that he had them quote at least a two week training course for me. No Idea what the numbers were, but I think you can get them from Bentley web site, except the training probably. We have an old copy of AutoPLANT here for some files a contractor did a job entirely in AutoPLANT, the files converted pretty well to AutoCAD, so I have had no need to use it any. Quote
ReMark Posted January 13, 2012 Author Posted January 13, 2012 You'll be doing the design work on the computer you have now? Quote
bill_borec Posted January 13, 2012 Posted January 13, 2012 Remark, I'd like to chime in on the system discussion...even though I am just a civil engineer! I have custom built several systems. I like the Xeon (some mother boards will let you have dual Xeons) however, I am using and REALLY impressed with the i7. I am not sure if any of the software you are looking are taking full advantage of the hyper-threading capabilities of the multi-core processors, though. I am a BIG fan of loads of RAM...for the money, it shouldn't be the 'weak link' in the tower. I would definitely recommend the beasty graphics cards with loads of video RAM. I like the idea of the dual-drive but why not go with three? 2-SSD (1 for OS & Programs + 1 for current project) with the 3rd for 'other' data/backup. I haven't heard of any SSD failure (too new). However, if they fail like their predecessor-parent (thumb drives)...I am a little wary of SSD, still. I like the data access/write speed. I also recommend (maybe it goes without saying) plenty of case fans...this tower is going to generate plenty of heat! Power supply hasn't been discussed, yet....GO BIG OR GO HOME....the big graphics cards, motherboards and processors are going to take extra juice...don't scrimp on the power supply! Lastly, since THEY are picking up the tab...might as well get a decent UPS, too! Not sure if your power is as 'dirty' as ours is...enough said (THEY might be watching! haha!) Enjoy the new system! Let us know what you decide about the P&ID software, too...we're interested to hear! (at least I am) Quote
ReMark Posted January 13, 2012 Author Posted January 13, 2012 I'm willing to listen to all opinions as I have yet to come to any firm decisions. You're speaking of the 2nd gen i7's right? I generally put enough RAM in a system when I buy it to meet future needs as I always work under the assumption that any system I buy has to last 4 years minimum. I had one system go 5 years before it was swapped out for new. I have 12GB in the computer I use at work right now. I think three drives is overkill. We do not generate enough new drawings per year to even fill up a 150GB drive. My last computer had a 15,000 rpm 76GB SCSI drive in it. When I turned it over to one of the engineers I still had 34% of the drive still available and that was after 4 years of use. As for power supplies I would go with a 750-850 watt. I'd only go higher if I were running dual graphics cards. I have read of problems with some SSD's failing prematurely and the hassles users have had trying to get them replaced. One horror story had three SSD drives failing in a row. The owner gave up and went back to a platter drive. Poor guy. I just put in a new hard drive for a friend and he went with a WD Caviar Black edition. I couldn't believe how quiet it was; and fast too. Quote
Mike_Taylor Posted January 13, 2012 Posted January 13, 2012 (edited) Thats actually pretty solid. I'm also in the market for a new computer. As mentioned, more RAM is better. One thing to keep in mind with RAM are the next generations being released. Current DDR3 RAM is mainstream, but look ahead and see when DDR4/5 are coming out (I dont think there is much DDR4/5 RAm, but it is present on most graphics cards now). As i have learned, old RAM prices typically sky rocket as the new generation becomes mainstream, so keep this in mind when purchasing your motherboard. Also, take a look at something like this. I am currently buy one for the extra space at home (with my new computer of course). Its great for the use of backing files up etc. Plus, from what I have read it has an automatic file backup feature. http://www.canadacomputers.com/product_info.php?cPath=14_679&item_id=028981 Edited January 13, 2012 by Mike_Taylor forgot the link Quote
ReMark Posted January 13, 2012 Author Posted January 13, 2012 Look at ??? Could it be it was a link to a portable hard drive? Quote
Mike_Taylor Posted January 13, 2012 Posted January 13, 2012 Kind of, its a docking station for internal hard drives and uses USB 3.0. Supports both SATA and SLI which is nice as well. Just something to keep in mind if you have extra internal hard drives from old machines as I do. Great way to make cheap HD space. It also has a powered USB hub (here they are the same price as the unit i linked itself) and a multi-card reader. I just posted as a cheap alternative to HD space if you have old HD's kicking around. Quote
ReMark Posted January 13, 2012 Author Posted January 13, 2012 Only one right now and it was beginning to fail so I replaced it. Pretty sure I don't want to trust it as a backup drive. Maybe I'll load Ubuntu on it. Quote
SLW210 Posted January 13, 2012 Posted January 13, 2012 You'll be doing the design work on the computer you have now? I told him to price a new computer in the budget as well. 8GB RAM Minimum for 64bit. Bentley AutoPLANT System Specs Quote
ReMark Posted January 13, 2012 Author Posted January 13, 2012 6 cores? I'm hoping it means AutoPLANT can actually use that many. It would be so sweet to use a program that could utilize multiple cores. Quote
SLW210 Posted January 13, 2012 Posted January 13, 2012 6 cores? I'm hoping it means AutoPLANT can actually use that many. It would be so sweet to use a program that could utilize multiple cores. Well I found this... Question: I have a dual-core workstation. Will AutoPLANT i-model Composer V8i (SELECTseries 3) take advantage of multi-core or multi-processor systems? Answer: Yes, AutoPLANT i-model Composer V8i (SELECTseries 3) takes advantage of multi-core or multi-processor systems and performs graphics processing in a separate thread. Back to top Question: Will enabling hyper-threading on my workstation have any benefit? Answer: Yes, the new generation of multi-core processors from Intel (Nehalem) actually yield 20% gain in rendering performance. Therefore, users with single core processors should make sure hyper-threading is not enabled on their workstation and users with multi-core processors should enable hyper-threading to realize the performance gains. Quote
ReMark Posted January 13, 2012 Author Posted January 13, 2012 Oh man I think I just died and went to heaven! I hope the cost is not so high that the president and COO stroke out. I'm definitely looking into AutoPLANT. Thanks a million! Quote
SLW210 Posted January 13, 2012 Posted January 13, 2012 Don't forget to have some training quoted. I hope we switch, mostly so I can get a proper CAD machine. Quote
Dadgad Posted January 13, 2012 Posted January 13, 2012 Oh man I think I just died and went to heaven! I hope the cost is not so high that the president and COO stroke out. I'm definitely looking into AutoPLANT. Thanks a million! Maybe you should tell them over a few beers. That they go with smiles on their faces. Quote
ReMark Posted January 13, 2012 Author Posted January 13, 2012 Training. Yes, that's always a good idea. I had already budgeted for a minimum of 3 days at a cost of $1200. That was just a guessimate on my part. I purposely included training in the spreadsheet I developed so I could track the cost of the new hardware and any new software plus incidentals. Given the right set of circumstances I could see spending around $15,000 for everything. Quote
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