Gaming/Revit/Autodesk Workstation Build [help?]

[Skookum]

Hey all, 

I'm graduating engineering college in 1 semester and got a job in architecture/mechanical systems design (yay me). This job allows me to occasionally work at home, so I'd like to be able to have the best possible WORKING and GAMING experience with my own PC.

Budget is a non-issue, but I'd like to say within a reasonable price/performance ratio.

At work I'll be using:

Autodesk Revit - Contains very, very large building 3D models.

AutoCad - Contains simple 2D floor plans and city utilities.

Multiple different PDF Softwares - Editing and "marking-up" very high resolution PDFs.

When I game, I usually go for:

newer-ish game titles, high to ultra settings, 1080p, 60 fps-144 fps (depending if on my monitor or TV)  

 

I've been interning at this place for the past 8 months now and the work computer they supplied me is the oldest one in the office and frankly sub-par. Yet it can still handle the software, just much slower than my standards. 

Specs of my supplied office computer:

Intel i7 4770 3.40GHz, 24.0GB Dual channel DDR3 - 798MHz, 1024MB ATI AMD Radeon HD 8570, 931GB Seagate ST1000DM003-1CH162

I'm aware all of the "slow" things can be supplemented with a decent sized SSD, and I plan to ask for one in my office computer. HOWEVER it still has bad, choppy FPS in the Revit model on low graphical settings. I just wanted to show you this information because despite the software being complicated, its still usable on an older, mediocre computer.

 

Now, onto the main point of this thread:

What should I upgrade in my PC to get the best possible performance in my gaming and work software?

My current PC:

Intel 6600k @ 4.20GHz, 16GB DDR4 2400MHz, 8GB GTX 1070, 500GB 850 EVO SSD & 2TB HD 7200rpm (Full build https://pcpartpicker.com/list/cqYqXP )

Here is what Autodesk Revit recommends https://knowledge.autodesk.com/certified-graphics-hardware although, not the best card recommendations for price/performance or gaming. 

 

Thanks, I appreciate feedback

 

[Streetguru]

9 minutes ago, Skookum said:

 

So is that the PC you already own with the 6600K?

If so probably just grab a "cheap" 1920X with a proper TR4 cooler.

[Brooksie359]

Yeah I am running a 3rd gen i5 at work and it runs revit just fine. It is completely dependant on the model mind you. Some of the larger models are absolutely awful and I am unsure what would even fix the issue more so than just more ram. I don't run autocad all that often but a potatoe would run it so I wouldn't worry about that. I would honestly try and shoot for a professional grade gpu purely because a crash while working on a project is really bad for me and the few times I have had it happen it has set me back 4 hours. I work for a firm so hours are pretty important for billing purposes and having high hours for work that shouldn't take that many hours is bad. It should be noted that part if the reason why it took so long to fix is because the model opens up slow and runs slow so making those changes again was very slow. 

[Skookum]

Same deal with me; I do MEP consulting so the faster the better. We run on a decent local server in our office, so loading models isn't that bad. (Cloud collaborative BIM 360 projects are another story; wew lad).

I think an SSD would do wonders for this office computer (launching programs, startup, ect.)

 

However my computer is plenty fast, I was just wondering if there is anything I could buy for my own personal PC that would make the experience better. I would get a Quadro P2000 or something but they're not great for gaming.  

 

[Streetguru]

13 minutes ago, Brooksie359 said:

 

Really don't need to replace the GPU, unless you maybe want to buy Vega FE off ebay for $400 ish, since it may have some professional driver optimization, though the 16GBs of VRAM may not be useful.

Most likely grab something like that, but you just missed the best time to buy stuff, lot of things are overpriced/out of stock now, that SSD was $99 yesterday.
 

PCPartPicker part list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/GV2ftg
Price breakdown by merchant: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/GV2ftg/by_merchant/

CPU: AMD - Threadripper 1950X 3.4 GHz 16-Core Processor  ($449.99 @ Newegg Business)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master - MA621P TR4 53.4 CFM CPU Cooler  ($44.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus - PRIME X399-A EATX TR4 Motherboard  ($299.97 @ Amazon)
Memory: GeIL - TUF SUPER LUCE 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3000 Memory  ($105.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: GeIL - TUF SUPER LUCE 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3000 Memory  ($105.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital - Black NVMe 500 GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive  ($138.57 @ Amazon)
Case: Cooler Master - MasterCase H500M ATX Mid Tower Case  ($169.99 @ Newegg Business)
Power Supply: Corsair - RMx 1000 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($119.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1435.46
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-11-27 12:53 EST-0500
 

 

[Brooksie359]

Just now, Streetguru said:

Really don't need to replace the GPU, unless you maybe want to buy Vega FE off ebay for $400 ish, since it may have some professional driver optimization, though the 16GBs of VRAM may not be useful.

Most likely grab something like that, but you just missed the best time to buy stuff, lot of things are overpriced/out of stock now, that SSD was $99 yesterday.
 

PCPartPicker part list: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/GV2ftg
Price breakdown by merchant: https://pcpartpicker.com/list/GV2ftg/by_merchant/

CPU: AMD - Threadripper 1950X 3.4 GHz 16-Core Processor  ($449.99 @ Newegg Business)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master - MA621P TR4 53.4 CFM CPU Cooler  ($44.99 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus - PRIME X399-A EATX TR4 Motherboard  ($299.97 @ Amazon)
Memory: GeIL - TUF SUPER LUCE 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3000 Memory  ($105.98 @ Newegg)
Memory: GeIL - TUF SUPER LUCE 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3000 Memory  ($105.98 @ Newegg)
Storage: Western Digital - Black NVMe 500 GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive  ($138.57 @ Amazon)
Case: Cooler Master - MasterCase H500M ATX Mid Tower Case  ($169.99 @ Newegg Business)
Power Supply: Corsair - RMx 1000 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($119.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $1435.46
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-11-27 12:53 EST-0500

You do not need that great of a cpu for revit. It's pretty light weight tbh and cares more about single core. I honestly think their current cpu is fine they might want more ram but the gpu is the only other place i could see being a place to improve. A 1070 is likely capable of running revit for what they need but a professional gpu would have the driver support and better stability which would be important for a work oriented pc. 

[Brooksie359]

11 minutes ago, Skookum said:

Same deal with me; I do MEP consulting so the faster the better. We run on a decent local server in our office, so loading models isn't that bad. (Cloud collaborative BIM 360 projects are another story; wew lad).

I think an SSD would do wonders for this office computer (launching programs, startup, ect.)

 

However my computer is plenty fast, I was just wondering if there is anything I could buy for my own personal PC that would make the experience better. I would get a Quadro P2000 or something but they're not great for gaming.  

 

You can have both. I don't remember how easy it is to switch between the two but I believe you could run the p2000 and the 1070 in the same system. 

[Streetguru]

4 minutes ago, Brooksie359 said:

You do not need that great of a cpu for revit. It's pretty light weight tbh and cares more about single core. I honestly think their current cpu is fine they might want more ram but the gpu is the only other place i could see being a place to improve. A 1070 is likely capable of running revit for what they need but a professional gpu would have the driver support and better stability which would be important for a work oriented pc. 

More Cores is more fun

[Brooksie359]

8 minutes ago, Streetguru said:

More Cores is more fun

Spending money on unnessisary things isn't fun for everyone. 

[Streetguru]

34 minutes ago, Brooksie359 said:

Spending money on unnessisary things isn't fun for everyone. 

Going by the 7900X it seems to scale well with cores for rendering

If not rendering then a 9900K for the clock speeds and core count may be the way to go, if budget is an issue than the 8700K

Dunno how GPUs affect it



https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/Revit-2018-CPU-Comparison-1002/

[Brooksie359]

6 minutes ago, Streetguru said:

Going by the 7900X it seems to scale well with cores for rendering

If not rendering then a 9900K for the clock speeds and core count may be the way to go, if budget is an issue than the 8700K

Dunno how GPUs affect it



https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/Revit-2018-CPU-Comparison-1002/

I do mechanical design so we never do renders. I assumed it was the same for them as the job description seem very similar. Most of my job is purely modeling so that is the performance that matters to me in which case cores doesn't matter all that much. Obviously I wouldn't run a dual core but you get the point. 

[brob]

Your home system should be fine as is. But if you want to improve performance in both work and gaming you might consider upgrading several components.

 

Unless cpu rendering is a significant part of the workflow, going for a cpu with higher turbo clocks as opposed to more cores, will significantly improve performance.

 

More and higher speed memory will make a difference when working with larger projects. 

 

I considered adding an M.2 NVMe ssd. It would offer improved load times, but I don't think the improvement would be significant enough to justify the cost. Of course if more storage is needed, then NVMe should certainly be considered.

 

I think a small gpu upgrade is justified, but not entirely necessary.

 

The psu needs to be improved.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i7-9700K 3.6 GHz 8-Core Processor  ($409.89 @ OutletPC) 
CPU Cooler: EVGA - CLC 280 113.5 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler  (Purchased For $0.00) 
Thermal Compound: Arctic Silver - 5 High-Density Polysynthetic Silver 3.5 g Thermal Paste  ($6.21 @ OutletPC) 
Motherboard: Asus - PRIME Z390-A ATX LGA1151 Motherboard  ($189.89 @ OutletPC) 
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 32 GB (2 x 16 GB) DDR4-3200 Memory  ($226.99 @ Newegg Business) 
Storage: Samsung - 850 EVO-Series 500 GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  (Purchased For $0.00) 
Storage: Western Digital - Caviar Green 3 TB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive  (Purchased For $0.00) 
Storage: Western Digital - Caviar Blue 1 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  (Purchased For $0.00) 
Video Card: EVGA - GeForce RTX 2070 8 GB XC GAMING Video Card  ($529.99 @ Newegg Business) 
Case: NZXT - S340 (White) ATX Mid Tower Case  (Purchased For $0.00) 
Power Supply: EVGA - SuperNOVA G2 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($74.99 @ Newegg Business) 
Operating System: Microsoft - Windows 10 Home OEM 64-bit  (Purchased For $0.00) 
Monitor: Acer - GN246HL 24.0" 1920x1080 144 Hz Monitor  (Purchased For $0.00) 
Other: Arctic Silver ACN-60ML (2-PC-SET) Thermal material Remover & Surface  ($6.45 @ Newegg Business) 
Total: $1444.41
Generated by PCPartPicker 2018-11-27 15:01 EST-0500