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Computer Specs
So I was thinking about how I have gone through 3 upgrades on my computer in order to run CAD decently. This last upgrade should makes everything run smoothly. :D
But that got me thinking about what everyone else uses to run CAD and how well that works for them. The computer specs for the computer I will be using (when the parts come in...) Windows Pro 64-bit Nvidia Geforce 9800GT Graphics Card 6 gigs DDR3 RAM Quad Core 2.8 Ghz Processor This should run quiet well see as its quiet the step up from the last computer. What does everyone else use, and how well does it work? |
Re: Computer Specs
Similar specs on 3 of my CAD computers:
Pentium 4 Northwood OC'd at 3.6ghz (3.7 isn't fully stable even with my water cooling) Abit ic7 mobo 3 gigs DDR2 Ati 1600xt XP Pro AMD Opteron X2 OC'd at 2.2ghz DFI LanParty mobo 2 gigs DDR2 EVGA GeForce 6800gt XP Pro Most used: Intel i7 at 2.66ghz (just replaced my C2 Quad) Intel dx58s0 mobo 6gigs DDR3 Waiting on my new upgrade card- GeForce 9800gt Booting XP 64x, Vista Ultimate 64x, and Windows 7 (yea yea yea calm down) Sadly, I need a better laptop with a legit graphics card to run any modern software. Pentium M 1.6ghz with 512 ddr. The desktops work great, obviously the quad core is best. |
Re: Computer Specs
At the risk of embarrassing myself, I've been continually upgrading a P4-based computer for the last six years, replacing pieces as they fail, or as technology threatens to pass me by....
Intel Pentium 4 @ 2.8 GHz (Northwood, SL78Y, 130 nm)For anything processor-limited, it will get crushed (especially when pitting its primitive HyperThreading against modern multicore systems in multithreaded tasks). But the rest of the computer is reasonably competitive with modern systems. (Stripped down, the system can boot at up to 3.7 GHz, but it's definitely not stable at that speed.) But despite that, it can handle just about anything CAD-related, at least in Pro/ENGINEER Wildfire 4.0. (However, Inventor 2009 just makes it angry.) To put this in perspective, I've got 5 FIRST robots open in Pro/E, 4 of which are complex sheetmetal designs with hundreds of parts, with 3 being native Pro/E assemblies and 2 being Pro/E assemblies composed of STEP import features. It's using about 727 MB of RAM, and all of the windows are responding normally, and the views render cleanly and animate at a full-motion framerate. In Inventor, I have one robot open; it's using 763 MB on its own, and the views are sluggish, normal view manipulation is occuring at around 10 frames per second, and the UI isn't responding properly. When it comes to CAD in Pro/E my computer shows its age only when regenerating or doing things like structural and thermal analyses (which are processor-bound). The video subsystem is relatively modern, and plenty fast enough for CAD work (though the drivers are probably suboptimal). The main hard drive is fast and reasonably large (a 596 GB, 7 200 rev/min unit). More RAM would be a convenience for multitasking, but isn't a big deal here; in non-CAD use, my RAM usage is often around 1.8 GB—or exactly where it ought to be. Despite that, I'm going to have to replace this computer reasonably soon, mainly to maintain my credibility, but also because I'm leaning toward something that's actually portable. At the moment, I'm looking out for the mobile Core i7s that are due in late September. |
Re: Computer Specs
Win7 RC1 (I havent bothered to upgrade to the actual copy I have through school but will be doing that shortly)
1-TB Drives x2 2 GB DDR2 Ram x4 ATI FirePro 3750 Intel Core2Quad 2.4Ghz 22" Dell Monitor 700W Power Supply Total cost of system: <$1400 shipped including OS Planned upgrades, 3rd HDD to use as the OS drive (meaning OS reinstalls will take 30 minutes TOPS) |
Re: Computer Specs
Heath-Zenith Z51, with an 8086 at 4.77 MHz (with 8087 Math Co-processor), Paradise EGA video, 1 MB RAM using QEMM, 20 MB full height HD, mouse. OS is DOS 6.0 with Norton Commander.
Of course, I'm running AutoCad 1.21 here...:ahh: |
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When considering CAD computers remember that CAD is video intensive so that computers that share system RAM for video will bog down. Depending on the CAD platform you are using, they usually spec minimum video card and video RAM. Follow the manufacturer recommendations or forever be waiting for numbers to crunch in the video RAM, especially during zooms and 3D views. |
Re: Computer Specs
Laptop Specs:
Dell XPS M1530 Core 2 Duo T9300 @ 2.5Ghz 4GB RAM GeForce 8600M GT @ 512MB dedicated 15.4" WUXGA LCD Screen with a ridiculous resolution for a laptop 128GB Solid State Drive, 8x DVD R/W Vista x64 320GB Western Digital Passport, where all of my actual files reside It's fast. It's quiet. It's portabl-ish. It was $1700 with a 3 year warranty. I've done CAD, MatLab simulations, and a couple of games with no issues. I originally wanted a laptop that utilizes the NVIDIA Quadro chip, but alas those were ~$300 more on average and you couldn't add the same features/performance in other areas without massive $$$ upgrades as well. Wasn't there a terminal or programming feature in AutoCad at some point? Something triggered a memory where a friend and I were joking about it and he said he CAD'ed his entire mechanical project with the keyboard faster than the pros at his internship could do with a mouse. |
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Laptop:
Lenovo ThinkPad T61p Core 2 Duo T8300 @ 2.40GHz 4GB of RAM (only shows up as 3GB) Quadro FX 570M @ 256MB dedicated (currently shown as having approx. 1500MB of memory, some borrowed from the system) 15.4" LCD screen running 1680x1050 250GB hard drive Vista Business 32-bit 320GB SimpleTech external drive Bought it just over a year ago, $1500 with a 4 year full coverage warranty. Runs everything I can throw at it program wise, Solidworks, Inventor, and some MatLab. |
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Laptop:
Asus 15.6" Core 2 duo 8600 4 gb RAM GT240 m 1 gb dedicated vram 320gb 7200 rpm hd Windows 7 Desktop: Core i7 920 6gb DDR3 1600 1 TB HD GTX 285 1 GB dedicated VRAM Windows 7 |
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Dang! Some of these would destroy mine in a preformance... Most of them actualy.. Gives me high hopes for mine though. :D
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Re: Computer Specs
Here's what I do my CAD on:
Model Name: MacBook Pro Processor Name: Intel Core 2 Duo Processor Speed: 2.5 GHz Number Of Processors: 1 Total Number Of Cores: 2 L2 Cache: 6 MB Memory: 4 GB I just C+P'd that from the system specs... But yeah, I run all of my CAD inside of a virtual OS (A stripped down, brutalized edition), and it runs well enough that I can make a decent paycheck loaning myself out as a drafting consultant. That being said, I do most work in Solidworks, and every now and then I get an odd client who needs Inventor. Edit: After reading this, it appears I'm one of the few who CAD's on a Mac... Am I really that odd? |
Re: Computer Specs
Alrighty:
Laptop of El doomo: -HP -AMD Turion x2 @ 2.66 GHz -4 Gigs of RAM -Nvidia 8400 -500 GB Hardrive -Windows 7 -RC |
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