Oct '16

Hi guys! I am currently starting my new workstation build and had a few questions i was hoping to get some input on. It seems to me like the xeon processors are more geared toward workstations but the i7s seem to be pretty powerful and a bit cheaper, it seems to me that the main ingredient is how many cores you're running. So I'm having a hard time deciding between the two. My other question is on graphic cards, with all the new pascal cards coming out I can't decide on one. Should i go with 2 gtx 1080s, 1 titan x, or save up for the quadro p5000? Seems like the titan would be the chioce for a hybrid setup but the subject still seems a little fuzy.

malcomModerator
Oct '16

I personally don't see the need to get 2 graphic cards when 1 should be good enough. But if you have the money go for it. I would go with the i7 6k series. It'll get the job done. The quadro 5000 won't do much for you in performance. Slightly good rendering times over the titan x I believe. Having 3 titan x vs 1 quadro 5000 has better rendering and is cheaper. But if your just using photoshop and zbrush you'll be good. If you want a gaming hybrid then the quadro isn't a good idea. GTX 1080 and Titan are your best choices.
Hope this helps. Do some more research but I think you'll be good with a titan x or gtx 1080 and a i7 over the xeon.

Oct '16

Awesome, thanks Malcom! I am kinda leaning towards the titan x for starters, then maybe doubling it after i can afford to (and if needed). I do use a lot of zbrush but i also use lightwave pretty extensively as well as few other programs that should benefit from a good card. Not Solidworks or Autocad so much. That's kinda why I've been on the fence with the quadro. I don't game a whole lot but i do enough to warrent a good system. Which brings up the question of motherboards. I'm planning on going with a good workstation type board but it seems some of the 'best' boards out now are geared towards gaming. So it seems to me if I'm going with an i7 and a titan maybe i should just go for the gaming board? If i was going with a xeon and a quadro then i think i'd stick to the workstation. Any thoughts?

malcomModerator
Oct '16

A game board will still get the job done. Performance wise there won't be a huge difference if really any. I recommend getting a ssd of 128gigs and up to boost speeds of programs anyway. 16 gigs of ram or more is best as well. For power get gold or higher and 800 watts and more. Again hope this helps out. With all the programs you'll be using you should be fine. As for zbrush, more ram the better. Last thing, make sure you have at least two 1 terabyte hard drives. You'll go through space really fast with just 1. I recently had to delete stuff to have space on my PC as I only have 1 terabyte. I'll be upgrading later myself.