Desktop Workstation Build

[mlaidman]

Hi folks,

I should really be doing this myself, but I haven't kept up with the latest Intel releases as well as I should have. I know Ryzen makes a lot of sense in this space, although I'm pretty sure it was overtaken late last year by the latest Intel chips. (But is Threadripper back up front?)

Anyway...This is an update for a graphic designer in our office. It'll be used for Photoshop, After Effects, Illustrator, Cinema 4D, etc., but definitely NOT for gaming! The current PC she's using is going back to a different editor, so she needs a new one.

Someone put together a build, but a quick look at it tells me that there could be some better component choices, and some better prices!

Note that I'm in South Korea and so local/Amazon/Newegg prices aren't much use for us here.

The build:

CPU - Intel Core i7-7820X - 665,000 won
Motherboard - ASUS TUF X299 MARK 2 - 396,000 won
RAM - Samsung 16GB DDR4 PC4-19200 - 174,000 won
Video Card - Gigabyte AORUS GeForce GTX 1080 Ti - 1,250,000 won
SSD - WD Blue 3D SSD 500GB - 170,000 won
ODD - ASUS DRW-24D5MT - 20,000 won
Case - 3RSYS T900 - 155,000 won
PSU - SuperFlower SF-850F14MT LEADEX SILVER - 160,000 won
Keyboard and Mouse - Samsung SKP-900B - 22,000 won
Monitor - LG 32MP58HQ - 265,000 won

Total: 3,277,000 won (=$3,068 USD)

A few thoughts from me...

- Is Ryzen going to be faster for our needs?
- We don't need an RGB motherboard...but if it works...
- I'd say to go for for 32GB RAM
- Not for gaming at all, but still, doesn't nVidia offer better GPU acceleration in most applications?
- We'd definitely need a big HDD for larger files
- The ODD is still useful for burning DVDs for productions. Some clients still like a hard copy.
- Never heard of 3RSYS before, but the case doesn't look too garish.
- Nervous of going with a PSU brand I've never heard of before...
- I'm sure there are a million better options for a keyboard and mouse! Please recommend!
- She's currently using an LG 34UT65 (ultrawide), which is kind of fun, but at only 2560x1080, it hurts my eyes when I look at it after using my iMac 5K display. Also, it feels cheap (I still use a pair of Dell 2408WFPs at home, and although they're a measly HD, as well, they feel tough and the stands are great!), and it's not at all colour accurate, although I've never tried to calibrate it. For someone in her line of work, I feel like she deserves a better monitor!

I feel like we could change up the CPU, pop in double the RAM, get a big HDD to accompany the SSD, get a different PSU, maybe change the GPU...well, you get the point!

Normally I'd love to do this stuff myself, but I just don't have the time!

Any and all help is appreciated ~~

 

[whm1974]

Get a SeaSonic brand 80% Gold or better PSU. And yes 32GB of memory is the minimum for a workstation class system. Indeed get a HDD for files, maybe 4TB? Perhaps get a a larger SSD as well.

 

[rchunter]

- Nervous of going with a PSU brand I've never heard of before...

Superflower psu's are supposed to be good but i'd upgrade to at least a gold rated model.
And yeah, more ram 32-64GB.

 

[PianoMan]

- Monitor of a least 4K resolution, 30”+, and at least 16:10 aspect ratio if not more portrait oriented. IPS panel.
- 32GB
- Quadro? Those may be optimized better than the 3D cards for the apps she will be using. Plus, not sure how the 3D card/mining situation is over there. Prices may now be comparable with Quadros.
- PSU Gold would be nice, but I don’t think necessary for 2D work.

 

[whm1974]

- Monitor of a least 4K resolution, 30”+, and at least 16:10 aspect ratio if not more portrait oriented. IPS panel.
- 32GB
- Quadro? Those may be optimized better than the 3D cards for the apps she will be using. Plus, not sure how the 3D card/mining situation is over there. Prices may now be comparable with Quadros.
- PSU Gold would be nice, but I don’t think necessary for 2D work.

Quadro would be good choice, but since he is spending ~$3000 on this I would get a Gold rated PSU.

 

[PianoMan]

He’s gonna be nowhere near the rating for the Leadex, but if he’s got the dough, he could spring for a lower wattage gold rated unit. Either way, he’ll get plenty of usage from either Superflower.

 

[whm1974]

He’s gonna be nowhere near the rating for the Leadex, but if he’s got the dough, he could spring for a lower wattage gold rated unit. Either way, he’ll get plenty of usage from either Superflower.

Back in 2013 I chosen the SeaSonic G550 Gold rated PSU and never had any problems and should last me a long time.

 

[mlaidman]

Thanks everyone

I didn't know that Superflower made good PSUs.

I ended up just piecing together this build here:
https://youtu.be/mUSdOLwkP1M

... which is a total cop-out, I know, but I just don't have time to sift through benchmarks these days.

Prices on 1080 ti's are pretty much in line with what they are in the States, but going with a 1070 is about half the price! The remaining money was able to go into a better monitor (Dell P2718Q - I think. Don't have the info with me now.)

It's a consumer 8700K versus the i7 X series, but I'll stress that we're really a pretty small operation in a relatively rural area of Korea. Any of the jobs we do don't seem to be real sticklers for perfect colour correction, and so a 30-inch + 4K monitor and Quadro GPU really aren't necessary.

I also said 2 2TB WD Black HDDs in addition to the 250GB EVO. I'm thinking one as a scratch drive.

The order has yet to be made, I think, so a few changes could still be made!

Thanks!

 

[aigomorla]

wait 7820X is a quad ram channel capable cpu..

you only have 16gb of DDR4, so i am assuming 4x4gb sticks?
That's a horrible investment even for the long run, because 4gb sticks are basically useless.
You should do minimum 32gb with 4 x 8gb sticks, as it will be far more useful in the long run when you re-purpose those sticks in another build or something.

Also the 7820X is not that great of a CPU.

Honestly a 8700K is a better choice with even 2 less cores due to the higher memory bandwith and simular # of PCI-E lanes.
16 from CPU + additional 24 from a Z370 chipset for a total of 40.
vs
24 + 24 -> 7820X + X299


Also the 8700K has a greater clock frequency, and most can overclock well into 5.0ghz territory on all 6 cores, which completely blows away the 7820X.

Again it makes absolutely no sense for you to get a 7820X.

At that point if i really needed the # cores, your better off getting a Ryzen 1700 (not overclocking) 1800X (yes overclocking)

 

[mlaidman]

Thanks aigomorla

Yes, I've decided against the 7820X.

Going for an 8700K, GTX 1070, 32GB DDR4 (4x8GB sticks - memory prices are insane right now!), ASRock Z360 Gaming ITX, an M.2 SSD, and a couple of 2TB WD Blacks as scratch/data disks.

 

[aigomorla]

dont get 4x8gb sticks for a z370 system.
Its limited to dual channel DDR4, so 2x8 is fine right now until ram prices stablize, and get 2 more sticks later on.
Also ITX can not handle more then 2 DDR4 sticks, so buying 4 sticks will make you sad when you can only install 2.

Or even better is 2x16gb. Trust me, get the largest single sticks you can possibly afford while keeping the max number of channels your cpu can support.

Also my TOP pick in boards is the ASROCK Taichi Z370 for that platform.
The TaiChi is about as solid of a board for its value, however its not ITX.
For a workstation PC, you really want a ATX and not ITX.

ITX is more ment for small builds where u dont need the 8 sata ports + 3 M.2 slots + 2 full 16x pci-e slols.
ATX is more meant for workstations / Hybrid Builds / Ultra High End gaming builds / Overclocking because ATX typically has better Vregs + Mosfets + Mosfet cooling then ITX.... better cpu cooler compatibility.

Unless u want to talk about the ASrock X299 ITX, which @ $400 dollars is just crazy insane.

 

[whm1974]

I seconded the OP getting 2x16GB sticks as well as that will free up two memory slots for more memory if needed.

 

[mlaidman]

Perfect. Thanks again for your input. I'll take a closer look at 16GB stick prices!
Also, aigomoria, any particular recommendation for the Taichi board? It looks like there are quite a few in that model line.

 

[aigomorla]

There should only be 1 Taichi for the Z370.
if your still getting on the 8700K:

Its this guy... Make sure its the Z370
https://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16813157792

Because:

1. 12 Phase power design.
2. 2 x Intel Gigabit nics (not the killerlan garbage most boards have now)
Intel nics are much more compatible with things like VM boxes and other non windows software if you go that route.
3. Its not obnoxious blingy like a gigabyte Aorus with LED's everywhere, unless you like that.
4. Its a solid board for what you pay for. Your not paying extra for LED's like the Auros, or for the name RoG like ASuS.

The Taichi is designed as a overclocking / mid class workstation board and secondary gaming board, which means it will be stable, and overclock hard, and do very well in games without the over use of RGB LEDs on pure gaming boards.

 

[mlaidman]

Ok cool. That's what I figured, as all the others looked like they have some extra odds and ends here and there.
And I see you've got a nice guide to watercooling in you sig. I'll be sure to give it a look should I end up watercooling this system , which I might very well end up doing to try and get some more oomph out of the 8700K. It seems like a basic overclock is way easier than it used to be with the modern motherboards these days.