PC Build

[mick_ch]

Hi,

 

I'm planning to build a new PC to have better performance when working with Vectorworks. Here are the main components I have chosen :

• CPU : Intel Core i7-9700F, 8C/8T, 3 to 4.7GHz
• RAM : 16GB DDR4 @ 2666MHz
• GPU : Nvidia RTX 2060, 6GB GDDR6
• SSD : Samsung 970 EVO Plus, 500GB, M.2

 

For the same price, I can choose the new Intel Core i5-10600, 6C/12T, 3.3 to 4.8 GHz. According to UserBenchmark the i7-9700F is slightly faster than i5-10600.

 

Should I go for the Core i5 ?

 

Any comments/suggestion for other components would be appreciated.

 

Best regards

 

[herbieherb]

Don't trust UserBenchmark it weights for typical user tasks. Vectorworks is not a typical Gaming/Office task, therefore this comparison doesn't say much.

For CPU i'd look at Cinebench singlecore and multicore benchmarks. You can find them here: https://www.cpu-monkey.com/de/compare_cpu-intel_core_i5_10600-1151-vs-intel_core_i7_9700-911

So i woul'd definitely go with the i5-10600. Note that this CPU has another socket, therefore youll need another mainboard.

With the RAM i'd buy at least 2999 MHz RAM as the i5-10600 officially supports. Also don't get the cheapest one you'll find. Besides the clock speed also look at the timings (CL, lower is better). You don't need the lowest CL but also not the highest 😉

 

[mick_ch]

Hi,

 

Thanks you for your advice.

 

After some research/reading on Vectorworks hardware requirement I decide to increase a bit my budget and components. Here is my new selection :

• CPU : AMD Ryzen 7 3700X, 8C/16T, 3.6 to 4.4GHz
• CPU Cooler : Cooler Master Hyper 212
• RAM : 2x16 GB DDR4 @ 3200MHz (Corsair Vengeance LPX)
• GPU : RTX 2060 Super, 2176 CUDA core, 8GB VRAM (KFA2 GeForce RTX 2060 Super OC)
• Motherboard : ATX ASUS TUF B450 Plus Gaming
• Main storage : Samsung 970 EVO Plus 500Go, M.2
• Additional storage : 2TB HDD 7200 rpm (Seagate BarraCuda)
• Case : Midi ATX tower (be quiet! Pure Base)
• Supply : 500W ATX (be quiet! System Power 9)

 

According to https://www.cpu-monkey.com/de/compare_cpu-intel_core_i5_10600-1151-vs-amd_ryzen_7_3700x-929

 

Ryzen 7 have 5% less performance (compare to i5-10600) in Cinebench R15 single thread, probably negligible in normal VW works. 

 

I think this config is "strong" enough to run Vectorworks correctly, isn't it ?

 

Best regards

 

Edited September 9, 2020 by mick_ch

[Ross Harris]

If you can, hold out for the nvidia RTX 3000 series graphics cards being released for next week... they are significantly more powerful (and very well priced) than the RTX 2000 cards. Bear in mind that VW graphics requirements go up every year and 2021 will likely need more graphics oomph looking at the first teaser Tuesday. 

Edited September 9, 2020 by Aspect_Design

[herbieherb]

Vectorworks will run very well on the computer.

 

The RTX 3060 is released later in january. If you take one of the RTX 3000 cards, I would also take a board with PCI-e 4.0.

 

Also because of this release all the previous generations used cards are available at very low prices at the moment. If you do GPU-Rendering maybe you really want to wait for a RTX 3000 and also get a PCI-e 4.0 Mainboard. If you don't i'd also consider buying a used GPU atm.

[mick_ch]

Thanks for your feedback.

 

Yes maybe I can wait for RTX 3000 series.

 

Even if I take RTX 2000 series or something else, it is probably better to take PCI-e 4.0 motherboard in case of future GPU upgrade. So I selected the MSI B550 A PRO (AM4, AMD B550, ATX)

[Clint Alderman]

12 hours ago, mick_ch said:

Main storage : Samsung 970 EVO Plus 500GB, M.2

Mick,

Consider the Samsung 970 Pro series rather than the EVO Plus.

 

A few years ago upgraded a stock 7200RPM SATA Internal 3.5" HD with a Samsung 860 Pro Series 2.5" 256GB SATA (SSD).

Wow, big difference. But it filled up quick.

So, replaced the 860 Pro with a Samsung 860 EVO Series 2.5" 1TB SATA SSD to save a few dollars.

I knew the Pro was faster on paper, but I didn't think I'd noticed a performance difference between the Pro and EVO.

Wrong. The Pro was snappier.

Edited September 9, 2020 by Clint Alderman

[mick_ch]

Hi Clint,

 

Thank you for sharing your experience.

 

According to Samsung datasheets the 970 EVO Plus seems to be as fast as 970 Pro. 3400 vs 3500 MB/s in read and 2300 vs 2300 in write... The only major change that I see is TBW an 12GB more.

 

Pro EVO Plus

 

My favourite PC components supplier in Switzerland sells 970 EVO Plus for 110 CHF and 970 Pro for 171 CHF, so the EVO is 36% cheaper and I don't see a good reason for invest more on 970 Pro. Even if 61 CHF will not make a big difference in my budget. 

 

Best regards

 

 

[herbieherb]

The technology is somewhat different. The Pro version is always equally fast for files of any size. The Evo variant uses a fast write cache and a much slower permanent storage location. So for large files (4-6 GB depending on the total size of the disk) the Pro is much faster, for file sizes smaller than 4-6GB both are about the same speed.
So if you have to write a constantly large data stream, the Pro is the best choice, if you write single files smaller than 4-6 GB, the Evo is sufficient.

[Clint Alderman]

Hey Mick, good to know. And appreciate herbieherb's explanation.

As usual, this forum is a great resource! Thanks.

 

Looks like Samsung 980 Pro (planned for Q2-Q3) is nearing release with brief lising:

https://www.anandtech.com/show/16052/samsung-980-pro-briefly-listed-online

Nice speed bump.

[mick_ch]

Hi every body,

 

Many thanks for the support.

 

It seems to be a good idea to wait a bit, I just read that AMD will release soon Ryzen 4000 series and radeon RX6000. Even if I don't go for last release CPU/GPU the price of previous generation will probably drop a bit.

 

Best regards

 

 

[Clint Alderman]

Well, here's the new Samsung 980 Pro.

https://www.anandtech.com/show/16087/the-samsung-980-pro-pcie-4-ssd-review

 

Coming soon...