Benefits to replacing my Quadro P2000?

[DaveMvM]

I built a Windows based dedicated CAD machine a few years ago and I am in the planning stage to update the hardware in it.  I am currently running an Intel i7-4790k processor with 32GB of RAM and a nVidia Quadro P2000 graphics card. I use a Dell 27" display as my main running at 2560x1440 (native) and my secondary display is an LG running at 1920x1080 (native).  I will most likely switch out the LG for another 2560x1440 display.  So far, I have been very pleased with the speed and operation of Vectorworks on this machine.  It is dedicated to Vectorworks.  I do use other software on it but email, office, etc. is all done on my new 16" MacBook Pro.  My plan is to change out the processor to either an Intel i9-9900 or an AMD Ryzen 3900x.  I will stay at 32GB of RAM and obviously will need to change MBs.  My main question is with the graphics card.  Should I worry about changing it?  Will moving to a new gaming style graphics card be a better performer?  

 

Thanks for any input...

[herbieherb]

If you are satisfied with the speed, why do you want to change?
What kind of plans do you draw? 2D/3D? What is the current maximum RAM/VRAM usage while using Vectorworks?
The i7-4790K is still pretty good for Vectorworks 2D/3D. Only rendering with Renderworks could be faster on a modern processor. If that's your concern, I'd rather not use an i9, but a Ryzen, since you get more cores for less money. If you want to swap the processor to a newer one, your DDR3 RAM won't work anymore. It is not compatible with today's DDR4 motherboards.

Edited April 27, 2020 by herbieherb

[DaveMvM]

I am starting to do a lot more with rendering so I will need some more speed there.  Most of the stuff I am working on is 3d and will be more so in the future.  

[herbieherb]

Will you render with Renderworks or another software? What other software do you use?

[DaveMvM]

8 hours ago, herbieherb said:

Will you render with Renderworks or another software? What other software do you use?

Currently I render with Renderworks.  I know there are other solutions out there but I haven't looked at any yet.

[herbieherb]

Then you will need a processor with many cores. For example, a Ryzen 3000 with 12-16 cores. In exchange, you'll save on the graphics card. You don't need a Quadro for Vectorworks. You need a decent gaming graphics card. At the moment I find the Radeon 5000 series very interesting in terms of price and performance. Especially because it offers a lot of VRAM for a small price.

 

With RAM and VRAM, you can see the load on one of your largest projects while you have all layers turned on in OpenGL view, and once on a high-resolution Renderworks image. If they are sometimes more than 80% full, you can add a little more RAM respectively VRAM to your new computer.

 

I would sell your old computer in one piece.You won't be able to use the mainboard and RAM with a new processor anyway.

 

If you have a specific machine in mind, please contact the forum again, so you are sure to make a good purchase.

If you do so, post your results from the RAM/VRAM tests and the exact specs of the machine you have in mind.

[DaveMvM]

I was already planning on a new motherboard and yes, I knew changing the processor would require a new motherboard and RAM. I already have the Quadra P2000.  It was chosen a few years ago when I was primarily using AutoCAD.  My main question was trying to figure out how to configure things based on how VW uses the hardware resources. The graphics card is part of that equation, I just wasn't clear if a gaming style card would work better than the Quadro. It has 5g of VRAM, so I would guess that a gaming card with 8g or 11g would work better given what I have been told about VW and graphics use. True?

[herbieherb]

Whether you will notice a difference depends on whether the current card is running at its limit or not. This depends entirely on the level of detail of your models. Vectorworks 2020 introduced a LOD system for OpenGL. It automatically controls the display detail level so that your graphics card is not overwhelmed. A new graphics card would cause more parts of your model to switch to the detailed view more quickly. The Quadro P2000 is surely good enough, you wouldn't need to change it. With a graphics card, your old computer will sell better, and a new, much faster graphics card wouldn't be very expensive. How much VRAM you need depends on your usage. As long as the VRAM is not filled, a GPU with 2 GB works as fast as one with 12 GB (assuming all other stats are the same).

The usage of RAM and VRAM can be viewed in the task manager.

Edited May 4, 2020 by herbieherb

[DaveMvM]

So here is what I did...

 

Changed the motherboard and put in 32G of RAM and a Ryzen 9 3900x processor.  I also changed out to a Radeon 5500xt graphics card that is equipped with 8G of VRAM. I am underwhelmed, to say the least.  It loads files 100% faster based on my own non-scientific method of timing it.  The problem is in rendering.  It is not much faster than before when rendering a particular file I have been using as my benchmark. OpenGL rendered views appear to move smoother when rotated and when I tested it rendering in "Sketch" mode it is faster, but not by much.

 

My bigger issue, that I did not see prior to upgrading, is that most of the time when I open a 2019 generated file, Renderworks disappears.  Under the teapot icon any of the Renderworks option are gone.  If I click on Window/Pallettes/Visualization I get a window saying it is only available in Renderworks. I am perplexed by this to say the least. Any ideas?

[herbieherb]

With the new CPU your computer should render at least 3.5x as fast in Renderworks.

 

Did you change the parts yourself?

Did you reinstall Windows completely or continue with the old installation?

Did you install all the drivers?

Did you check if the new hardware performs as expected in benchmarks?

What kind of RAM did you install? Are they in the correct slots in the mainboard according to the manual.

And once again: How high is the RAM usage for Renderworks/Sketchstyle rendering.

Edited May 13, 2020 by herbieherb