Workstation Build - First build in 10+ years

[bobsaget]

Hi,

I'm looking to upgrade from my 2014 Macbook Pro Retina 15". Could you recommend a good build for me? I'll start with answering the questions below.

1) What will you be doing with this PC? Gaming? Photoshop?
Strictly After Effects CC 2015 - Not concerned about crazy fast render times, more concerned about speed/snappiness while working/scrubbing the timeline. From what I've READ, clock speed plays a large role in this. High number of cores help, but not an absolute must.

2) What's your budget? Are tax and shipping included?
$2,250 USD incl tax and shipping

3) Which country do you live in? If the U.S, please tell us the state and city if possible.
I live in Boise, Idaho

4) What exact parts do you need for that budget? CPU, RAM, case, etc. The word "Everything" is not a valid answer.
Please excuse if I miss any important parts, as it's been a while since I've built a PC (AMD Athlon 2500+, 9800Pro days).

• Case (looking at something sleek, non-'gamerish'... maybe Lian Li?)
• PSU
• Cooling
• Motherboard
• CPU - Thinking i7-6700k, but I suppose my budget could allow for a Xeon build, if it's worth it.
• RAM - 32GB minimum, possibly 64GB
• SSD (unless I could use the 512GB Crucial M4 SSD in my old Mac Mini that isn't being used)
• No HDD needed, as all my working files are stored on servers
• No fancy GPU needed, as I don't utilize AE's 'ray-tracing' features
• No disc drive needed, haven't used one in years
• Cooling
• Cables

5) If reusing any parts, what parts will you be reusing? Please be especially specific about the power supply. List make and model.
Crucial M4 SSD -- Is this possible? Bad idea?

6) Will you be overclocking?
Probably not

7) What is the max resolution of your monitor? What size is it?
2 X Dell 24" 4k monitors

8) When do you plan on building/buying the PC?
By June 2016

9) What features do you need in a motherboard? RAID? Firewire? Crossfire or SLI support? USB 3.0? SATA 6Gb/s? eSATA? Onboard video (as a backup or main GPU)? UEFI? etc.

• Since I'm not using a video card, onboard video might save money over buying a low-end GPU.
• USB 3.0

10) Do you already have a legit and reusable/transferable OS key/license? If yes, what OS? Is it 32bit or 64bit?
I don't own Windows. I'll need to purchase a new copy.


Overall, I'm pretty flexible with budget and my timelines... If it makes sense to raise my budget, or wait till Fall, etc. etc... I could definitely do that. I've answered these questions basically as a starting point, and something I'm comfortable with at the moment.


Thank you!

 

[bobsaget]

Any suggestions?

 

[defaultluser]

Sorry dude, the forum got a little distracted yesterday with the release of Nvidia Pascal

Here's my go:

PC Hound Part List

CPU: Intel Core i7-6700K 8M ($357.39 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: ASUS Z170-A ($157.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: G.SKILL 32GB (2 x 16GB) Ripjaws V Series ($149.99 @ Newegg)
Memory #2: G.SKILL 32GB (2 x 16GB) Ripjaws V Series ($149.99 @ Newegg)
Power Supply: EVGA 750W 220-G2-0750-XR ($84.99 @ NCIX)
Storage: SAMSUNG 512GB 950 PRO MZ-V5P512BW ($322.57 @ Amazon)
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 FD-CA-DEF-R5-BK ($109.99 @ NCIX)
CPU Cooler: COOLER MASTER Hyper 212 EVO RR-212E-20PK-R2 ($29.49 @ B&H)
Total: $1,362.39
Price may include shipping, rebates, promotions, and tax
Generated by PC Hound

That PCIE nvme SSD will provide you with fantastic performance, I figure 512 GB will be enough for you to work in?

I got you a dual-card capable and overclocking capable motherboard just in case your preferences change. The CPU cooler is also capable of a light overclock. The 750w PSU allows you to addd two 250w cards in the future if you desire. All that only adds another $75 to your build cost.

That Fractal Design R5 is very quiet and very nice looking if you want to get away from gamer cases lit-up like a Christmas tree.

That ram is maxed-out though, so if you foresee a need for more than 64GB ram in the future, then you might want to go with x99 or a workstation chipset instead.

You may or nay not need ECC ram. You're storing the results on a server, but you are working with a lot of data here. Do you want to pay more for a little added memory protection?

 

[bobsaget]

Hah. Thanks man. That's an affordable build! Is the onboard graph is able to run 2x Dell 24" 4K monitors?

Also, regarding ECC ram, I've had no problems on my MacBook Pro, so I'd assume I should be ok there.

 

[defaultluser]

Hah. Thanks man. That's an affordable build! Is the onboard graph is able to run 2x Dell 24" 4K monitors?

Also, regarding ECC ram, I've had no problems on my MacBook Pro, so I'd assume I should be ok there.

Yes it can provided you have two DisplayPorts on your board. Which yours does not have

Let me see if I can find one with two DisplayPort connections, or I'll find you a cheap graphics card with two.


They don't exist, so just add this card:

EVGA GeForce GTX 950 DirectX 12 02G-P4-1950-KR 2GB 128-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 SLI Support Video Card - Newegg.com

Has three DisplayPorts. Even adds HDMI 2.0 in case you want yo hookup a 4k TV

 

[Deleted member 126051]

Did a little research and found this.

What is the Best Computer For Adobe After Effects?

Recommended Systems for Adobe Premiere Pro

I'd start with defaultuser's system as the base.

Add one of these.

EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti DirectX 12 06G-P4-3994-KR 6GB 384-Bit GDDR5 PCI Express 3.0 x16 SLI Support GAMING ACX 2.0+ Video Card - Newegg.com

I know you're not building a "gaming" machine. But AfterEffects CAN take advantage of CUDA (and it's cheaper and likely more powerful than most of the Quadro cards in your range).

Also, get yourself a second SSD as a "working drive", so there's no I/O contention between the OS, other programs and your work.

 

[defaultluser]

Only if you're running the ray tracing engine, which from the quick read I made, may not work with Maxwell. That is the ONLY CUDA-accelerated portion.

Now stop selling this guy a gaming card.

 

[extide]

980 Ti is WAYYYYYYYYYYYYYYY overkill for Adobe Premiere/AfterEffects!
950 is MORE than enough!

 

[Deleted member 126051]

Only if you're running the ray tracing engine, which from the quick read I made, may not work with Maxwell. That is the ONLY CUDA-accelerated portion.

Now stop selling this guy a gaming card.

But everyone here MUST have a gaming card! MUST MUST MUST! It's a moral imperative!

Seriously though, if you're correct, then yes, I agree, the 950's more than enough.

I'd still recommend a secondary SSD as a work disk though.

 

[defaultluser]

But everyone here MUST have a gaming card! MUST MUST MUST! It's a moral imperative!

Seriously though, if you're correct, then yes, I agree, the 950's more than enough.

I'd still recommend a secondary SSD as a work disk though.

I am correct. Here the list of supported GPUs cuts-off after Kepler:

After Effects System Requirements for Mac OS and Windows

And proof of it blowing-up on several different models of Maxwell graphics cards (including the GTX 750 Ti, this is NOT on the compatibility list):

GTX 970 not supported? After Effects error: Ray... | Adobe Community

And a blog covering the official lack of support from Adobe:

After Effects error: Ray-traced 3D: Initial shader compile failed. (5070::0) – Studio 1 Productions

*The version of OptiX built into After Effects is not compatible with more recent NVIDIA GPU’s. Meaning the NVIDIA’s video cards that are using the Maxwell architecture.

 

[bobsaget]

Thanks for all the help defaultluser!

 

[Deleted member 126051]

I am correct. Here the list of supported GPUs cuts-off after Kepler:

After Effects System Requirements for Mac OS and Windows

And proof of it blowing-up on several different models of Maxwell graphics cards (including the GTX 750 Ti, this is NOT on the compatibility list):

GTX 970 not supported? After Effects error: Ray... | Adobe Community

And a blog covering the official lack of support from Adobe:

After Effects error: Ray-traced 3D: Initial shader compile failed. (5070::0) – Studio 1 Productions

Fair enough! Thanks for the informational post!