Any PC Builders Out There?

I’m ignorant on how the software that you’re using utilizes resources but my primitive understanding leads me to assume that the rendering work will be done utilizing the HDD (I don’t think a technical render would fit on 4x16 of RAM?) and I would imagine that you would be reading/writing faster than an HDD would process.

 

I've never had a bad card per say. I've had flaky drivers from nVidia and AMD/ATI. The two worst cases were a set of 6850s that refused to Crossfire in games that were Crossfire compatible and when the 2080 launched and half my games would hardware disconnect crash about thirty minutes in. As far as I'm concerned both Green and Red can duff their drivers pretty hard.

 

Anything to add to my build?

 

Looking at your build I have a few thoughts.

CPU looks good. Heavy core counts tend to do well rendering in 3D work especially if you are stitching or rendering real time imagery and structure together from buildings.

I have concerns with that motherboard. I had the X570 Gaming Pro Wifi, which has exactly the same VRM cooling solution as the board you picked, and the VRM would get hot with my 3700X when doing stressful work. Like ~110c hot. I can't imagine how hot it'll get with the 3950X but over 115c and it'll throttle the chip. It's a known issue with MSIs low end boards. Sadly it doesn't seem like Xidax offers any boards in between that and the Godlike. I might give them a call and see if you can convince them to order a MSI X570 Unify or Ace for your build since both are much better solutions. Alternatively if you want to pay for the Godlike it does come with a 10G wired Ethernet card which is essential if you want to pull large files off a NAS in real time.

The AMD RADEON 7 16GB HBM2 has gone end of life. AMD isn't guaranteed to provide new drivers for it over time and that's critical with CAD programs. In general while you can use gaming tuned hardware to work in those programs I really would recommend buying either a nVidia Quadro card or AMD FirePro card. Professional cards carry a huge cost but they get a different set of drivers that are certified for use with the programs you are going to use. It's not worth going with cheaper gaming cards if you are using this PC for real paid work. Again it looks like Xidax doesn't offer those cards in your configuration.

As for the storage, that's completely up to you. I would say you should have a RAID array of some kind setup for data protection or a high speed connection to a backup NAS. Optimally I would grab another SSD as a scratch drive at the very least.

Those are my quick thoughts anyways.

 

^

 

One other thought, how big are the files you intend to work on? 64GB of memory seems almost low for this build.

You might want to consider going to the AMD HEDT platform for this. Threadripper will cost more but the extra PCI-E lanes will help with more storage and more graphics card should you need to go that direction. Threadripper also supports a lot more memory and, more importantly, four channel memory access.

Yeah, the more I look at this and what you are trying to do with it the more I think you should go 39XX Threadripper with a nVidia Quadro card even if that means you have to save for a while to get it.

 

I also thought 64gb seems low to me as well. I was thinking in the 100+ category, this is just an initial thought to get me started as a quote. There is tweaking to be done for sure. Which is why I came in here and asked.

Money isn’t the issue for me on this to a point. I’m willing to spend it if it’s worth it if you get my drift.

Stand by for an updated refinement. Thanks for your advice. It won’t go to waste.

 

Look at either AMD Threadripper or Epyc based builds. Epyc is the real workstation CPU and has the most memory availability but each core is slower. Threadripper has a lower memory cap but is much faster per core. I know a good chunk of CAD work is now done on Threadrippers specifically because of their high core counts, high per core speeds, and good memory capacity.

On the plus side Intel is completely not for you lol. Their HEDT and Workstation chips are kind of a joke right now.

 

As far as file sizes go. I honestly do not know, I typically get them on the back end for use.
I’ve been a superintendent for 20 years, I’m just tired of being the problem solver that they use my ideas for and I have a knack with the computer side.
I started in the industry as a drafter and just know how to do it. I just want a career change and now after so long have the contacts and reputation to make the move. Not quoting my day job just yet, but I’ve already lined up several clients that said they would definitely use me if I go that route. Which I am.
I may not know you guys from my years on TW but @TenBeers does. We’ve been friends for almost 10 years now and been playing destiny for almost 7.

Thanks again.

 

No problem. Just my two cents but you might want to check out https://www.pugetsystems.com/

They aren't local to you, but Xidax I don't know and their website seems to scream form over function. YMMV, ask a local company that's used them what they're like to deal with.

I feel Puget might be a better professional style builder than Xidax. They can be Intel fanbois to some degree, but they've started building AMD professional rigs due to the demand for Threadripper and they don't limit the options as much as Xidax seems to. They're also super easy to get on the phone and talk through what you want. Just don't let them push you to Intel. I had a buddy that had a sort of fight on the phone to get them to build an AMD rig a couple of years ago lol. Old habits die hard.

 

It’s threadripper

Already sold myself on that.

 

Appreciate it. That’s just a quote. I want form but not over function. Im not loyal to anyone. Just needed to kick a rock to get it rolling. I’ll check them out as well.

 

Completely fair. I'm not in the drafting/design industry so I don't know what's acceptable hardware practice and what's not. My only frame of reference is that I know Quadro and FirePro cards are specifically geared towards the professional 3D drafting and design market and are usually what's certified by nVidia and AMD for use with those programs. The drivers are completely different than the consumer cards even though the GPU die is the same. Like I said, YMMV. If he talks to Puget they'll let him know what platform probably fits his workload. They're in the know on that level so to speak.

Funny story, 3rd gen Threadripper can game with the best of them. Processors are pretty versatile now especially where they seemingly overlap. Threadripper does support four channel memory and a crap ton of it though, which probably pushes him towards that platform depending on his workload. The extra PCI-E lanes are nice as well if he wants to run fast storage or scratch PCI-E memory cards. I wouldn't suggest he goes all the way in for the 3990X, 24 cores is probably more than he needs but again Puget can help him figure that out as well.

 

Just because I'm curious, I went to Amazon and configured a similar system. Notable differences are 128GB RAM, ASUS TUF X570 MB, 1TB NVMe, 2TB SSD, Noctua NH-D15 CPU cooler (rather than liquid), and a Radeon 5700XT. Total is right at $3200.

 

Swapping to a Threadripper 3970X, compatible MB and Noctua cooler and the price goes to right at $4700.

 

I bet half of the cost is the RAM and SSD.

The last RAM I bought was $99 for 32GB. I had accidently ordered it twice. I shouldn't have returned the 2nd order. Shorty after I returned it, RAM prices doubled.

 

Don't run a 3rd gen Threadripper on air if you plan on using all cores, especially not the higher core count models. It'll bump into 90c or worse territory especially if you leave precision boost enabled. JayzTwoCents has a video where he got a 3970X and 3990X to black out under the correct Noctua coolers. Custom loop is the best solution followed by either a 360mm or 280mm AIO.

and yes, self built is always way cheaper but lacks support. I'd still suggest that OP goes with a Professional card if he's doing paid work since that seems to be the industry standard.

 

Also another reason to run a professional card is the usually much larger memory included on the card. I think most of the RTX Quadros run 16GB-24GB. I'd really avoid the Radeon 7, while it's based on a Professional card AMD declared it a dead product a while ago. Driver support could disappear at any time and with CAD programs I do know driver support is important to prevent errors/crashes.

 

Good points. Swapping in a Quadro P4000 and water cooling bumps it to $5200. RTX 5000 bumps it to $6500.

That would be quite the beast.

 

What's funny is that sort of PC is basically what you would find in any New Media, Engineering, or Design computer lab at a good college. I was dating a girl in New Media during most of my college career and it was crazy how often their computers were updated just to run one of the latest and greatest programs.