building a pc for gaming and CAD

Discussion in 'Silicon (v)Alley' started by oztralyn, Feb 9, 2013.

  1. Apparently I need to use a NVIDIA quadro graphics card to run the CAD program I need to use for university (solidworks).

    So I've done a little research and my housemate helped me come up with this build. I've never built a PC before and was wondering if anyone can foresee any issues I might come across with this setup.

    Any input would be GREATLY appreciated. And liked and repped, if you're into that stuff.

    Leadtek NVIDIA Quadro 2000 1GB

    Intel Core i5 3570K

    Seagate Barracuda 1TB ST1000DM003

    Samsung SH-222BB SATA DVDRW Drive OEM

    ASRock Z77 PRO4-M Motherboard

    Corsair Carbide 200R Compact ATX Case

    Corsair Vengeance CML16GX3M2A1600C10 16GB (2x8GB) DDR3

    Corsair CX-600 Modular 80+ Bronze Power Supply

    TP-Link TL-WN951N Wireless N PCI Adapter

    Corsair Hydro Series H55 CPU Cooler

    CoolerMaster 120mm 4-Pack Fans
     
  2. #2 BP to the DP, Feb 9, 2013
    Last edited by a moderator: Feb 9, 2013
    You might want a better psu, that's one part you definitely don't want to skimp on.

    Corsair is a great brand, but that might not be enough power, I'm not familiar with how much power the Quadro cards take though.

    Are you planning on overclocking? If so, you should look at the corsair h80.

    The radiator is bigger, but you have the fans and the room in your case.
     
  3. +1 to this.

    Also, never heard of "Leadtek". Consider grabbing the PNY branded card as they are a reputable company.
     
  4. For the processor you can save yourself $15 by getting the Core i5 3570 (instead of the 3570K). If you don't understand exactly what the K means, then you don't need it. Otherwise you end up paying more money for the same processor.

    Personally I've had bad luck with ASRock motherboards so I would lean towards a Gigabyte like this one instead. Think about what expansion slot configuration you want; do you ever plan on adding a 2nd video card or anything? Most people don't so I picked the cheaper of the Gigabyte boards, but there are lots of options. I recommend making sure you get one with an Intel Z77 Northbridge chipset.
    GIGABYTE GA-Z77-DS3H ATX Intel Motherboard - Newegg.com

    If you can afford it, add a 64GB solid state drive from Samsung/Sandisk in there to use as your OS drive, then you can store your SolidWorks files on the 1 TB drive. This will improve your performance significantly.

    What the other two posters said about the power supply (a little underpowered, maybe look at a 750W instead) and video card (mystery brand) is spot-on.
     
  5. Newegg doesn't ship outside the USA. :( The closest motherboard I could find was the Gigabyte GA-Z77M-D3H-MVP Motherboard. It's only one letter different. Would that one do? I don't know what the S stands for:confused:

    what about the Gigabyte G1 Sniper M3 Motherboard?
     
  6. I see a lot of the parts you list seem to be over-priced and overkill for what you will actually be doing with the PC. Is there anything specific about the Sniper M3 that you need?

    600watts is actually quite sufficient now-adays. Parts aren't as power hungry as they used to be.
     
  7. I dunno they just recommend the quadro 2000 graphics card for using solidworks. i will have weekly assignments to do which contribute to 30% of my final mark, so i want it to run fairly fast. and all the other parts are based around that.

    And I will also be overclocking it because it sounds like fun and even though I don't understand fully what the numbers mean yet, I wanna get them as high as possible so I can boast to people about how awesome my computer is. I'm obnoxious like that.
     
  8. The quadro 2000 may fall short when it comes to gaming, not sure what your expectations are. The i5's are great CPU's but you won't need to go with the highest frequency chip, as you plan on overclocking, you can save a lot of money that way.

    You could also save on the RAM a little bit. Some decent 1600 should be fine, you won't be pushing the ram modules past stock so a fancy brand promising high overclocks seems kind of pointless.

    I highly recommend Gigabyte motherboards. I switched from Asus to Gigabyte recently, and I've worked with a lot of Gigabyte motherboards. They are just very user friendly, offer a great layout, and are always backed by an awesome warranty.
     
  9. The one you picked is fine. Biggest difference is that it is smaller (MicroATX instead of ATX) so you have less room to work with, less room for expansion slots, etc. If you don't plan on expanding, it isn't a big deal
     
  10. Get a higher GB graphics card (2GB+) and a nice 650-700w psu if you plan on gaming heavy games on max settings.
     
  11. A higher wattage power supply won't make any difference. A solid quality PSU will. TBH, high wattage power supplies aren't needed anymore. The days of power hungry processors and video cards are gone. A high quality 500 watt unit could run that system.
     

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