New rig needed for Graphic Design and gaming

[peeley]

Hi All,

So 6 years ago I asked you guys for help on my setup and, 6 years later, I'm still really happy with the PC you guys suggested. So thank you to those that helped (Shout out Keynes and Rakk), other than a power supply change, its been a fantastic PC! However, it's definitely time for a change. I use the setup prominently for my work (Graphic Design) but when I do get spare time I enjoy the odd bit of gaming, which can get up to AAA. Any unnecessary costs you guys can save me, or any optimisations I have missed, would be great!

Spoiler: Current Setup

Case
PCS MAELSTROM T900 BLACK GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD FX-6300 Six Core CPU (3.50GHz/8MB CACHE/AM3+)
Motherboard
ASUS® M5A97 LE R2.0 (DDR3, USB3.0, 6Gb/s)
Memory (RAM)
16GB Kingston DUAL-DDR3 1600MHz (2 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
2GB AMD RADEON™ R9 270X - DVI, HDMI, DP - DX® 11, Eyefinity 4 Capable
1st Storage Drive
1TB WD BLACK 3.5" WD1003FZEX, SATA 6 Gb/s, 64MB CACHE (7200rpm)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
24x DUAL LAYER DVD WRITER ±R/±RW/RAM
Memory Card Reader
INTERNAL 52 IN 1 CARD READER (XD, MS, CF, SD, etc) + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT
Power Supply
CORSAIR 450W VS SERIES™ VS-450 POWER SUPPLY
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
CoolerMaster Seidon 120V High Performance CPU Cooler
Sound Card
ONBOARD 8 CHANNEL (7.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
WIRELESS 802.11N 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 4 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS

Proposed setup:
Case
BE QUIET! BASE 601 TOWER GAMING CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 3800X Eight Core CPU (3.9GHz-4.5GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® CROSSHAIR VIII HERO (DDR4, PCIe 4.0, CrossFireX/SLI) - RGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
64GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 2400MHz (4 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
8GB AMD RADEON™ RX 5700 XT - HDMI, DP - DX® 12
1st Storage Drive
NOT REQUIRED
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB INTEL® 660p M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (upto 1800MB/sR | 1800MB/sW)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
NOT REQUIRED
Power Supply
CORSAIR 850W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
PCS FrostFlow 100 V2 Series High Performance CPU Cooler (AMD)
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
Creative Sound Blaster® Audigy™ FX OEM
Wireless/Wired Networking
WIRELESS INTEL® Wi-Fi 6 AX200 2,400Mbps/5GHz, 300Mbps/2.4GHz PCI-E CARD + BT 5.0
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
NO OPERATING SYSTEM REQUIRED
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
NO RECOVERY MEDIA REQUIRED
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365 (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Google Chrome™
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 12 to 13 working days
Price: £1,943.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/t!BcgumWpY/

Any and all help is much appreciated!

Many thanks,

Adam

 

[Oussebon]

What software do you use?

 

[Scott]

As above, and what resolution are you gaming at?

Case isn't a good choice. Look at the Define R6 if you want quiet.
I think the 3700X would fit well, depending on software.
Crosshair Hero is a huge overspend
The RAM looks like huge overkill, 32GB should be more than enough for even the most RAM hungry software. You also want it significantly faster (3200mhz)
For storage it may be beneficial to look at the silly fast drives. You pay for them but they are as good as it gets. Depending on the software a scratch disk may also be a good idea.
5700XT is good for 1440p.... monitor res depending. Nvidia is often a better choice for professional softwares (graphic design) but depends on the software itself.
750w RMx PSU would be more than enough and save a few quid.
For cooling you want to look at a 240mm AIO cooler. Other than that the stock one is fine.

 

[peeley]

Thanks for you help so far guys, really appreciate it

What software do you use?

Pretty much the full Adobe suite, that can range from Illustrator to After effects, the latter of which is currently painstaking slow.

As above, and what resolution are you gaming at?

Case isn't a good choice. Look at the Define R6 if you want quiet.
I think the 3700X would fit well, depending on software.
Crosshair Hero is a huge overspend
The RAM looks like huge overkill, 32GB should be more than enough for even the most RAM hungry software. You also want it significantly faster (3200mhz)
For storage it may be beneficial to look at the silly fast drives. You pay for them but they are as good as it gets. Depending on the software a scratch disk may also be a good idea.
5700XT is good for 1440p.... monitor res depending. Nvidia is often a better choice for professional softwares (graphic design) but depends on the software itself.
750w RMx PSU would be more than enough and save a few quid.
For cooling you want to look at a 240mm AIO cooler. Other than that the stock one is fine.

At the moment it's 1080p, but I might be looking to upgrade that

Case - Thank you! It does sit in my bedroom, so that's a big help
MB - Is there a better fit you could suggest?
RAM + GPU - Noted, I'll make a few adjustments tonight, I think I'll go for the 5700XT GPU
PSU - Good shout, I did have a few power supply with my last one, which just made me a little over cautious
Cooling - Perfect, I'll swap that out

 

[Oussebon]

Adobe software tends to favour Nvidia GPUs of a given performance class over their AMD rivals. e.g.

After Effects GPU Roundup: NVIDIA SUPER vs AMD RX 5700 XT

Outside of very specific situations, After Effects is usually going to be limited more by your CPU than your GPU. However, the more GPU accelerated effects you use, the larger the benefit to using a faster video card. Both AMD and NVIDIA have recently released a number of new video cards, but is...

www.pugetsystems.com

So a 2060 Super rather than a 5700 XT would be better bang for buc for Adobe. Either's massive overkill for 1080p gaming.

Multiple SSDs can be a major asset for performance, e.g. 500gb SSD for Windows, software, 500gb SSD scratch, 1TB SSD for the image library. Could do 250gb for OS + software, and get a larger other one of the drives to put the games on. Depends on your particular needs for size of which you're probably the best judge.

NB: The R7 3700x is cheaper than the 3800x and the 3800x is not at all worth it for gaming, but there's a little evidence it may be worth the extra cash for things like PS:

Photoshop CPU Roundup: AMD Ryzen 3rd Gen, AMD Threadripper 2, Intel 9th Gen, Intel X-series

AMD's new Ryzen 3rd generation processors have arrived and shaken up the dynamic between Intel and AMD in many workloads. But how well do they handle heavy Photoshop workloads compared to the AMD Threadripper, Intel 9th Gen, and Intel X-series CPUs?

www.pugetsystems.com

Although that article is an article based on older versions of various things like older Windows 10 iterations and microcode versions, so may not accurately reflect the current situation. If there is anything as detailed that is more recent I'm not aware of it though.

Something like:

Case
FRACTAL DEFINE R6 BLACK QUIET MID-TOWER CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 3800X Eight Core CPU (3.9GHz-4.5GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF X570-PLUS GAMING (USB 3.2 Gen 2, PCIe 4.0, CrossFireX) - RGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 2060 SUPER - HDMI, DP - VR Ready!
1st Storage Drive
1TB Samsung 860 QVO 2.5" SSD, SATA 6Gb/s (upto 550MB/sR | 520MB/sW)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
500GB SEAGATE FIRECUDA 520 GEN 4 PCIe NVMe (up to 5000MB/R, 2500MB/W)
2nd M.2 SSD Drive
500GB SEAGATE FIRECUDA 520 GEN 4 PCIe NVMe (up to 5000MB/R, 2500MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
NOT REQUIRED
Power Supply
CORSAIR 750W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
Noctua NH-U14S Ultra Quiet Performance CPU Cooler
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KUK-00001]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365 (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 12 to 13 working days
Price: £1,870.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/C09ukRyVaR/

 

[Scott]

Above is about as good as it'll get for a quiet bedroom system. Storage will make a huge difference to After Effects so ensure that you configure the scratch disk properly.

 

[seewhatyouthink]

I'm going to add to this purely because I've been looking at a similar (slightly cheaper) system myself. The Drive setups were the one thing that had me confused but I think I'm slightly clearer on it now. Anyway, if anyone fancies a read, this has some good info about drive setups (especially for AE). https://www.schoolofmotion.com/blog/after-effects-computer/

 

[peeley]

Adobe software tends to favour Nvidia GPUs of a given performance class over their AMD rivals. e.g.

After Effects GPU Roundup: NVIDIA SUPER vs AMD RX 5700 XT

Outside of very specific situations, After Effects is usually going to be limited more by your CPU than your GPU. However, the more GPU accelerated effects you use, the larger the benefit to using a faster video card. Both AMD and NVIDIA have recently released a number of new video cards, but is...

www.pugetsystems.com

So a 2060 Super rather than a 5700 XT would be better bang for buc for Adobe. Either's massive overkill for 1080p gaming.

Multiple SSDs can be a major asset for performance, e.g. 500gb SSD for Windows, software, 500gb SSD scratch, 1TB SSD for the image library. Could do 250gb for OS + software, and get a larger other one of the drives to put the games on. Depends on your particular needs for size of which you're probably the best judge.

NB: The R7 3700x is cheaper than the 3800x and the 3800x is not at all worth it for gaming, but there's a little evidence it may be worth the extra cash for things like PS:

Photoshop CPU Roundup: AMD Ryzen 3rd Gen, AMD Threadripper 2, Intel 9th Gen, Intel X-series

AMD's new Ryzen 3rd generation processors have arrived and shaken up the dynamic between Intel and AMD in many workloads. But how well do they handle heavy Photoshop workloads compared to the AMD Threadripper, Intel 9th Gen, and Intel X-series CPUs?

www.pugetsystems.com

Although that article is an article based on older versions of various things like older Windows 10 iterations and microcode versions, so may not accurately reflect the current situation. If there is anything as detailed that is more recent I'm not aware of it though.

Something like:

Case
FRACTAL DEFINE R6 BLACK QUIET MID-TOWER CASE
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 7 3800X Eight Core CPU (3.9GHz-4.5GHz/36MB CACHE/AM4)
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF X570-PLUS GAMING (USB 3.2 Gen 2, PCIe 4.0, CrossFireX) - RGB Ready!
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR4 3200MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
8GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 2060 SUPER - HDMI, DP - VR Ready!
1st Storage Drive
1TB Samsung 860 QVO 2.5" SSD, SATA 6Gb/s (upto 550MB/sR | 520MB/sW)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
500GB SEAGATE FIRECUDA 520 GEN 4 PCIe NVMe (up to 5000MB/R, 2500MB/W)
2nd M.2 SSD Drive
500GB SEAGATE FIRECUDA 520 GEN 4 PCIe NVMe (up to 5000MB/R, 2500MB/W)
DVD/BLU-RAY Drive
NOT REQUIRED
Power Supply
CORSAIR 750W RMx SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
Noctua NH-U14S Ultra Quiet Performance CPU Cooler
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Wireless/Wired Networking
10/100/1000 GIGABIT LAN PORT (Wi-Fi NOT INCLUDED)
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KUK-00001]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365 (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 12 to 13 working days
Price: £1,870.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/C09ukRyVaR/

That looks perfect to be honest! Change one or two things like wireless and the odd personal preference etc.
Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am4-gen3-pc/r4Q7V5R7tT/

Above is about as good as it'll get for a quiet bedroom system. Storage will make a huge difference to After Effects so ensure that you configure the scratch disk properly.

Thank you!

I'm going to add to this purely because I've been looking at a similar (slightly cheaper) system myself. The Drive setups were the one thing that had me confused but I think I'm slightly clearer on it now. Anyway, if anyone fancies a read, this has some good info about drive setups (especially for AE). https://www.schoolofmotion.com/blog/after-effects-computer/

I'm definitely going to give that a try once this arrives!


Thank a lot guys! I wasn't expected to be happy with the setup this fast, I was planning on ordering this on payday! (2weeks)
I'll let you know how I get on!

Thanks again,

Adam