High performance computing

[bozilla]

Hi guys!

I own pretty powerful computer right now, but I'm just not satisfied completely with it's speed. I think it might be Windows XP limitations or whatever that somehow really bogs this machine down. I mean it's fast, but I expected it to perform lightning fast.

Current configuration:
- Dual Xeons 3.6Ghz Nocona
- ASUS NCCH-DL mobo
- 4 Gb of DDR400 ram OCZ High Performance (unbuffered)
- ATI X800XT Platinum Edition video card (AGP)
- WD Raptor 74gb (OS drive)
- 300 Gb Seagate 7200.8 SATA drive (data drive)
- DVD drive and DVD-R drive this is less important

Now, with the introduction of new technologies I was wondering if there's anything out there that would run faster then this machine. I mean, I'm not interested in like 5% difference, but something a bit more faster. I'll spend $4-$5k, maybe even more on the new machine so money is not really a problem.

If there's something that works lightning fast. I need it and I would suggest if you could post your suggestions with detailed specs.

I use the machine for graphic design (Adobe Creative Suite 2 and Adobe After Effects), 3d visualization (3ds max), web development (Macromedia Flash and the whole Macromedia 2004 suite, now new Studio 8 when it comes out) and of course gaming. Because I game I would really prefer high performance gamer cards instead of one workstation board like FireGL or Quadros because 3d visualization is really like the last thing I do. My primary machine mostly does design and development stuff first then I add effects or 3d when I work on some projects.

I'm just upset because it seems that the fastest/latest technology today seems to be actually slower then previous generation of machines (read dual-core CPUs clocked at much slower speeds then their single core counterparts).

Also please keep in mind that I have 3 big LCDs connected to my current machine so DVIs are also important.

I would really appreciate your responses, because I'm getting a bit frustrated.

Thanks.

 

[jonesthewine]

There's no need to post this thread in two forums...someone over in CPU/Processors answered you.

And quit bragging and moaning...you're so far to the right of the bell curve with your setup, no one will sympathize with you.

 

[bozilla]

Listen..it's not bragging or moaning, it's just that I need every bit of power I can get. I work a lot and fast that I need it. I'm not looking for anyone to sympathize with me, especially people like you. I posted in 2 sections because I wasn't sure that in General hardware I could get proper answers and my question both refers to CPU selection as well as other hardware in the computer.

If you don't have anything useful to say, then please don't post idiotic comments like that, there's plenty of people that can actually answer in a technical and useful manner. I have no need to brag, some people actually work for a living and high performance computers are a necessity. For me, time IS money.

 

[bozilla]

Now, if someone would be kind enough to tell me whether or not I would see significant boost in speed if I switched to latest SCSI drives. How much gain in performance can I expect if I switch to SCSI 320 drives possibly in RAID? Will SCSI system lower CPU utilization that SATA controllers impose?

 

[CalvinHobbes]

If you're accessing the hard drives a lot then I would say go with SCSI Ultra320. Get some 15,000 RPM drives and run in RAID5.

 

[Mickey21]

Some higher speed 15K RAID 5 solutions would bump up the speed a little, as well as maybe stepping up to a workstation class video card with a little more umph than the 800XT. That should do you some good. Other than that, I dont really see much better areas for improvement. Looks like a pretty good work horse. I cant really judge your speeds since it seems quite subjective to your own viewpoint.

 

[imported_Kensai]

15K SCSI will only net you faster load times. There's no point in gaming on a dual CPU system.

 

[Mickey21]

Originally posted by: Kensai
15K SCSI will only net you faster load times. There's no point in gaming on a dual CPU system.

He wasnt asking about gaming... He is talking about working with programs that have a lot of hard drive activity... read the OP...

 

[kornphlake]

What exactly do you think is slow? It sounds like you've got a pretty potent setup, your problems may very well be software related.

 

[furballi]

There is NO such thing as lightning fast when working with large, complex data. Provide specific examples of the speed deficiency. "Fast but not lightning fast" is BS talk!

Kill all non-essential services in Windows. Also limit the startup items in MSCONFIG's to the firewall and AV software.

A clean install of Windows may help.

 

[Vegito]

I have similar system.. except im using xeon 3.2 and 4gb of crucial pc3200. i'll let you know in a few days.. I just bought a amd x2 3800 and going to throw similar stuff in.. most of my work are adobe premiere.. It does okay on the xeon but I like to see faster.. and I do have scsi.. 8 73gb scsi.. 4 are 15k and 4 are 10k and another 7 146gb 10k scsi for storage.

I'm hoping to see how much better windows xp or 2003 server 64bit are..