36 replies to this topic

[PCEddie]

Hey All,

I am in the process of spec`ing out a PC build for a client and would love the forum's input on the choice of hardware. This workstation will be primary used to run Adobe CS3 Suite to design graphics. The OS is Windows 7 Pro. I will be looking for two 24 inch monitors to go with this build, any suggestions?

Photoshop Workstation Wish List

Thanks for your feedback,

PC Eddie

[pcdoc]

Hey All,

I am in the process of spec`ing out a PC build for a client and would love the forum's input on the choice of hardware. This workstation will be primary used to run Adobe CS3 Suite to design graphics. The OS is Windows 7 Pro. I will be looking for two 24 inch monitors to go with this build, any suggestions?

Photoshop Workstation Wish List

Thanks for your feedback,

PC Eddie

Lots of comments. First I would not go at all with an X58 if you are buying new. Go with a 2600k sandy bridge and P67/Z68 board as it is actually faster and get 16 gig of corsair or gskill DDR3. YOu will not need the high performance memeory as sandy bridge handles memory differently. In the end you will save money and end with a faster system. I would go with the 6950 instead of the 6870 (less power and hear, same performnace). Just my two cents.

[c0op3r]

PCDoc

Not to disagree per-say but a different opinion, I would spend the money on upgrading to CS4 (or 5) and a really good Video Card, as both CS4 and CS5 will both use the processing power of the video card, and smoke any Processor you can put on the MB not to say I would not get a good MB and Processor, just dont spend all you money on a good processor/MB combo and expect the world.

A 300$ Video Card with Dual DVI outputs and a fast SSD will make a much better and noticeable upgrade then a good MB and Processor.

I personally am Running an i7 (800 series) w/ a Nvidia 560TI and 2 20" monitors, and dual Intel SSD's in RAID Ø with a WD Cavier Black 2Tb for mass storage.

I have never choked CS4!

[no-control]

I somewhat agree.....but you didn't really state a budget nor if the client would be willing to upgrade his software. at this point I'll assume ~$1200 and will not upgrade to CS4/5


I would go with 2600k/P67, 16gb RAM, & 2x 2TB in RAID0, and an nVidia card so if he upgrades software in the future he'll also get a performance boost.

This would be my choice

Cost = $1265

Only $86 more than what you had (basically the cost of the second 2TB drive)

[JediTim]

I agree with upgrading the software...it wouldn't be the full price as he would only need an upgrade versus buying the full version. I am using Photoshop CS5 and Lightroom 3 on a Quad Q9550 w/ 8GB of memory and have yet to over tax they system. I'm not doing any design graphis so I may not be a direct compariosn though.

[ikon]

I agree with most of what the others have said Here's my list:

i7-2600K
AMD 6970 video card preferably, 6950 at the least
16GB of Corsair RAM.
A Gigabyte P67 mobo
Two 2TB WD RE4-AV drives in RAID0 for data
One SSD for OS/boot drive
Definitely upgrade to CS5
Use an Arctic Cooling case fan instead of the Antec.
Use an Arctic Cooling CPU cooler
And, finally, get the Arctic Cooling 3-fan GPU cooler. I have one and it is AWESOME.

The way we're all contributing our 2 cents, pretty soon you'll be able to buy a coffee

Edited by ikon, 09 June 2011 - 03:42 PM.

[JediTim]

I agree with most of what the others have said Here's my list:

i7-2600K
AMD 6970 video card preferably, 6950 at the least
16GB of Corsair RAM.
A Gigabyte P67 mobo
Two 2TB WD RE4-AV drives in RAID0 for data
One SSD for OS/boot drive
Definitely upgrade to CS5
Use an Arctic Cooling case fan instead of the Antec.
Use an Arctic Cooling CPU cooler
And, finally, get the Arctic Cooling 3-fan GPU cooler. I have one and it is AWESOME.

The way we're all contributing our 2 cents, pretty soon you'll be able to buy a coffee

I assume you are you backing up the Raid0 to the WHS? Wouldn't want to lose the photos to a failed drive in the array.

[c0op3r]

Or you can just backup locally to the 'spinning disc' media in the machine. That what I do (not that I dont backup to the WHS box also) I keep a copy of the Win7 backup that I generate from the OS on the 2TB WD Black in my machine, there is not to much to go wrong with SSD, but I sometimes hose down OS Drives in general.

Also I would not suggest the Sandy Bridge 'K' part that other have suggested, you said it was/is for a client, dont over-clock, so there for no need for the K part. So people see an over clocked part as you trying to get over on them by using cheap parts and stretching what they can do, also you want rock solid for a customer build, I would not get anything but reference parts and no over clock.

[no-control]

I suggested the 2600k as it is on sale more frequently and actually cheaper than the non k parts. Also having a K chip doesn't mean you have to OC it. It'll be just as rock solid as a non K. It also offers better flexibility in the system.

Since this is for a business I just assumed PCEddie was the IT guy and already had a backup solution in place.(Server/NAS). With data not located on the local machine a simple disk image before turning it over to the client is about all the BMP you need. Anything more than that is a service call.

@ PCEddie

I would try to steer the client towards upgrading the software.

[ikon]

I assume you are you backing up the Raid0 to the WHS? Wouldn't want to lose the photos to a failed drive in the array.

Oh yeah, of course; there will actually be 4 copies of all data.

Mind you, I've never quite understand the paranoia about RAID0 vs a single drive. Whether it's a RAID0 or a single drive, if it fails the data is gone. AFAIK, the statistical probability of failure does not go up if you have 2 drives. I'm no stats expert by any means but I think it's like flipping a coin; each toss has a 50/50 chance of turning up heads or tails, no matter how many times it's flipped. Each coin flip is independant of the ones before & after. In the same way, each drive has a probability of premature failure, but it's not related or dependant on the other drive.

Is there a stats expert in the forums who can explain how I'm wrong?

[PCEddie]

Hey All,

Thanks for everyone who posted their opinions and suggestions. I have read and looked into everyone's suggestions. To add more information to my post, I have a budget of $2000 which will include my labor, two 24 inch monitors, and the computer. Unfortunately upgrading to from CS3 to CS5 is on the back burner. I have finished setting him up with a WHS 2011 that is backing up 6 computers (this build will be computer 7). He will use his MS TechNet subscription to test Windows 7 Pro on this build.

Does anyone have any recommendations on 24 inch monitors? If so, I am all ears (eyes).

Below is my updated Wish List for the Photoshop Build. What do you all think?

Photoshop Workstation Build

Thanks again for the input.

[ikon]

Hey All,

Thanks for everyone who posted their opinions and suggestions. I have read and looked into everyone's suggestions. To add more information to my post, I have a budget of $2000 which will include my labor, two 24 inch monitors, and the computer. Unfortunately upgrading to from CS3 to CS5 is on the back burner. I have finished setting him up with a WHS 2011 that is backing up 6 computers (this build will be computer 7). He will use his MS TechNet subscription to test Windows 7 Pro on this build.

Does anyone have any recommendations on 24 inch monitors? If so, I am all ears (eyes).

Below is my updated Wish List for the Photoshop Build. What do you all think?

Photoshop Workstation Build

Thanks again for the input.

My main recommendation to anyone doing photo/graphic work on computers is to get IPS monitors. The Dell Ultrasharps are good. There are higher end monitors but they cost a LOT more.

[JediTim]

My main recommendation to anyone doing photo/graphic work on computers is to get IPS monitors. The Dell Ultrasharps are good. There are higher end monitors but they cost a LOT more.

I agree completely on the IPS monitor...you or your customer won't regret. I wish I had the room for two 24" monitors.

[no-control]

Hey All,

Thanks for everyone who posted their opinions and suggestions. I have read and looked into everyone's suggestions. To add more information to my post, I have a budget of $2000 which will include my labor, two 24 inch monitors, and the computer. Unfortunately upgrading to from CS3 to CS5 is on the back burner. I have finished setting him up with a WHS 2011 that is backing up 6 computers (this build will be computer 7). He will use his MS TechNet subscription to test Windows 7 Pro on this build.

Does anyone have any recommendations on 24 inch monitors? If so, I am all ears (eyes).

Below is my updated Wish List for the Photoshop Build. What do you all think?

Photoshop Workstation Build

Thanks again for the input.

Slightly better..... I still think the P67 board is a better choice. Z68 is still pretty new and if you do not need the features why spend his money on it? I also still feel the nvidia GPU would be a better solution long term. and the PSU is overpowered again kind of a waste of budget that could be used elsewhere. I'm being highly critical here though( you asked right )
For 24" monitors I agree high end IPS is the way to go. Dell U2410, HP ZR24w, NEC 2490, Apple LED Cinema. I'm also hearing good things about the Doublesight 245v and its a bit cheaper. I dells exclusively since I have a supplier and get them heavily discounted.

[ikon]

Slightly better..... I still think the P67 board is a better choice. Z68 is still pretty new and if you do not need the features why spend his money on it? I also still feel the nvidia GPU would be a better solution long term. and the PSU is overpowered again kind of a waste of budget that could be used elsewhere. I'm being highly critical here though( you asked right )
For 24" monitors I agree high end IPS is the way to go. Dell U2410, HP ZR24w, NEC 2490, Apple LED Cinema. I'm also hearing good things about the Doublesight 245v and its a bit cheaper. I dells exclusively since I have a supplier and get them heavily discounted.

I doubt they would fit into the budget, but if you really wanted high end you could look at Eizo or LaCie monitors, but they're pricey.

[PCEddie]

Hey All,

I have completed my final Photoshop build. Thanks for everyone's advice and suggestions. Since I had a $2000 budget which included my labor, I could not use some of your suggestions.

If I have missed anything, please let me know.


Thanks for everyone's input.

[pcdoc]

Hey All,

I have completed my final Photoshop build. Thanks for everyone's advice and suggestions. Since I had a $2000 budget which included my labor, I could not use some of your suggestions.

If I have missed anything, please let me know.


Thanks for everyone's input.

The system build looks awesome. Having two 24 inch panels (one of each), I agree with ikon and no-control. If this if for graphics, it really should be an IPS. Better to get one IPS than two of standard panels. The color difference is huge. For general purpose, it would be OK but for photos, it will be tough.

[ImTheTypeOfGuy]

I agree with no-control on the NVidia being a better option.

[PCEddie]

Good Morning,

An update on the workstation build. I have ordered the parts and they are sitting behind me. I will start putting it together tomorrow. The person who I am building the computer for has asked me to look into solid state drives. A friend of his told him about his solid state drive that was added to his Macbook and the fast boot and access times. I have been doing some research on solid state drives but torn with reliability vs speed. For those that are using solid state drives, what is your experience with reliability and speed?

He has shown interest in 256 GB solid state drives. I have found that Crucial Technology 256 GB Crucial RealSSD C300 Series Solid State Drive CTFDDAC256MAG-1G1has good reviews.

I appreciate any feedback and opinions.

[JediTim]

Good Morning,

An update on the workstation build. I have ordered the parts and they are sitting behind me. I will start putting it together tomorrow. The person who I am building the computer for has asked me to look into solid state drives. A friend of his told him about his solid state drive that was added to his Macbook and the fast boot and access times. I have been doing some research on solid state drives but torn with reliability vs speed. For those that are using solid state drives, what is your experience with reliability and speed?

He has shown interest in 256 GB solid state drives. I have found that Crucial Technology 256 GB Crucial RealSSD C300 Series Solid State Drive CTFDDAC256MAG-1G1has good reviews.

I appreciate any feedback and opinions.

I am all for SSD drives for the boot drive. I am using an OCZ Vertex 2 for my boot drive in my Main PC and HTPC. Best single upgrade I have made in a long time. My computer boots up from a cold start in less than 30 seconds from the time I press power to the time I am at my homescreen. I have had no issues with reliability at all...just make sure you are using with Windows 7 which takes advantage of the Trim command...Windows XP doesn't and performance will suffer. Also turn off defragmantation of the SSD drive...it isn't needed and will wear down the mempry in the drive over time.
Tim