Best Computer for Photoshop?

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Archive 2009 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Nickle S.
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p.2 #1 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Tom K. wrote:
Nickle S. wrote:
Tom,

Are you going to have AVA overclock the i7-920? Or maybe you'll do that yourself?

Nicholas
www.copperhillimages.com

I don't know much about overclocking. I was thinking I would stay safe and not do it.

I go back and forth about the SSD. Gotta figure that one out.

Tom,
Although I'm not an expert on this, I have read enough to know the i7-920 can be overclocked close to the max and maintain system stability. AVA can do this very easily and they'll burn the unit in for at least 48 hours, maybe 72. This will have all cores of the CPU running at 100% for that amount of time, I don't think our photo programs even come close to that type of stress, you only go there if you're into extreme gaming. This is one advantage of using an experienced and well-regarded company for your build. If you have to tweak anything in the BIOS, their tech-support will walk you through it. They may have more current information on the SSDs, you know, if the number of issues has decreased or been eliminated altogether. I do know that the WD-VelociRaptor has a great reputation for performance and durability.

Decisions, decisions

Nicholas

Nov 04, 2009 at 03:31 AM

scalesusa
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p.2 #2 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Tom K. wrote:
I'm running Photoshop CS3 on a 6 year old self-built PC. In it's day it was a powerhouse......but 6 years is a long time in the world of computers and it's time for an upgrade.

I don't want to build this time. I need a powerful computer to run Photoshop CS4. 64 bit.

I am will to go PC or Mac. It doesn't matter.

Can folks please recommend a computer to run Photoshop CS4 that won't even break a sweat working with huge files and multiple layers if needed.

Thank you,
Tom K.

Photoshop is generally considered to run fastest on a PC.

I bought a Studio Dell XPS with i7 processor, 12GB memory, dual raid 0 drives, and 24 in Monitor with 64 bit windows last November ($1500 then). It really flies for Lightroom and for high end Video editing. I'm currently running the windows 7 64 bit beta on it until my new copy arrives next week.

One drawback is the limited number of USB ports, I use a lot of them.

Nov 04, 2009 at 03:40 AM

Edward Castro
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p.2 #3 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Another thing to consider, X58 motherboards will be able to use Intel's 6 core i9.

Nov 04, 2009 at 04:32 AM

amalgam
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p.2 #4 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

regarding SSD, anandtech has a great article, including a new 40GB kingston SSD (without trim support) but under $100 w/ rebate.

http://www.anandtech.com/storage/showdoc.aspx?i=3667&p=1

Nov 04, 2009 at 04:55 PM

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p.2 #5 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

I built a Core i7 machine with 12 GB memory, and it works well. In particular, I can have a few big (1DsIII/5DII) files open in PS CS4 without having the machine grind to a near halt. My physical memory usage in such cases has sometimes been around 10GB, so having the extra memory really does help. I use a modest fanless graphics card. You don't need a gamer's card.

Nov 05, 2009 at 04:12 AM

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p.2 #6 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Richard in Ida wrote:
Puget systems is one of the top rated custom builders. They are very helpful.

http://www.pugetsystems.com/

OK, any time you order a computer online you cannot just walk in an talk to some one about a problem. While my Puget computer is great I will check with local shops next time I buy.

Just, will not buy from mass market sellers. No HP, Dell, Best Buy, etc.

Puget is "top shelf" for PC's but I will never buy a PC again. Way too much conflicts/problems.

Nov 05, 2009 at 02:18 PM

Tom K.
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p.2 #7 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

mdbassman wrote:
Richard in Ida wrote:
Puget systems is one of the top rated custom builders. They are very helpful.

http://www.pugetsystems.com/

OK, any time you order a computer online you cannot just walk in an talk to some one about a problem. While my Puget computer is great I will check with local shops next time I buy.

Just, will not buy from mass market sellers. No HP, Dell, Best Buy, etc.

Puget is "top shelf" for PC's but I will never buy a PC again. Way too much conflicts/problems.

So you have enjoyed using Macs better than PC's?

Nov 05, 2009 at 04:47 PM

Nickle S.
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p.2 #8 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Tom K. wrote:
mdbassman wrote:
Richard in Ida wrote:
Puget systems is one of the top rated custom builders. They are very helpful.

http://www.pugetsystems.com/

OK, any time you order a computer online you cannot just walk in an talk to some one about a problem. While my Puget computer is great I will check with local shops next time I buy.

Just, will not buy from mass market sellers. No HP, Dell, Best Buy, etc.

Puget is "top shelf" for PC's but I will never buy a PC again. Way too much conflicts/problems.

So you have enjoyed using Macs better than PC's?

Tom,

Here's a thread that has PC<>MAC opinions from some very knowledgeable people:
http://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/831077

Nicholas
www.copperhillimages.com

Nov 05, 2009 at 06:17 PM

dan727
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p.2 #9 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Tom K. wrote:
The more I read about the new SSDs from Intel the more I am impressed. I just might choose one as my main Drive. Photoshop CS4 should fly on that.

The velociraptors are over-rated. The are fast... but the increase is not worth the money you pay. The SSD's on the other hand... they are worth it.

Nov 05, 2009 at 08:51 PM

Tom K.
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p.2 #10 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Nickle S. wrote:
Tom K. wrote:
mdbassman wrote:
Richard in Ida wrote:
Puget systems is one of the top rated custom builders. They are very helpful.

http://www.pugetsystems.com/

OK, any time you order a computer online you cannot just walk in an talk to some one about a problem. While my Puget computer is great I will check with local shops next time I buy.

Just, will not buy from mass market sellers. No HP, Dell, Best Buy, etc.

Puget is "top shelf" for PC's but I will never buy a PC again. Way too much conflicts/problems.

So you have enjoyed using Macs better than PC's?

Tom,

Here's a thread that has PC<>MAC opinions from some very knowledgeable people:
http://www.fredmiranda.com/forum/topic/831077

Nicholas
www.copperhillimages.com

That's a very informative thread. Thanks very much for pointing that out.

Nov 06, 2009 at 05:08 AM

MSC
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p.2 #11 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Tom, you are making me crazy...man, you are going to get a heck of a machine!

Nov 06, 2009 at 05:26 AM

Tom K.
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p.2 #12 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

With computers I feel the more power the better.

Nov 07, 2009 at 07:06 AM

Nickle S.
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p.2 #13 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Tom K. wrote:
With computers I feel the more power the better.

Tom,

The reason I went for the 1000W PSU is that nVidia strongly suggests that as a minimum if I were to add a second GTX-295 to run in SLI. I'm using a 26" monitor right now but I think I'll be adding a second one next year, so the computer will be fully prepared power-wise. But the next video card will have to wait until the price comes down to earth a little which will happen with nVidia's next-gen.

As far as the SSDs, I am waiting for some of the bugs to be ironed out with the Intels and Windows7. It would be very interesting to have one solely dedicated to CS4 and Nikon CaptureNX and a few other photo-programs I'm running, but I'm going to make some queries into how much of a speed increase I'd actually see in the real world. As I said previously, WD VelociRaptors are no slouches in my rig so there is no immediate need.

So have you pulled the trigger or are you getting close to pulling it? The last config you posted will make your head spin in Photoshop, if that's a help

Nov 07, 2009 at 01:22 PM

Tom K.
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p.2 #14 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Nickle S. wrote:
Tom K. wrote:
With computers I feel the more power the better.

Tom,

So have you pulled the trigger or are you getting close to pulling it? The last config you posted will make your head spin in Photoshop, if that's a help

And the company I recommended will do everything they can to make you happy after the sale, guaranteed. Puget has a great reputaion for custom-builds, but I chose AVA because of their myriad of choices in every facet of the components, I felt somewhat constricted with my Puget-config.

Nicholas
www.copperhillimages.com

I'll be making the purchase very soon. I did a direct comparison of AVA vs Puget and surprisingly AVA was much less expensive and the components were the same.

Also....I priced out the components in the last build I posted at newegg to see if building was much cheaper. Surprise! AVA's price was $2088.54. Newegg's price was 2088.83. How about that!

How do you like AVA's tech support?

Possible final config is below:

CUSTOM DESKTOP COMPUTER, Core™ i7 2-way SLI® DDR3 24GB Performance Series System $2055.42

* ANTEC, Performance One P183 Black Mid-Tower Computer Case, ATX, No PSU
* CORSAIR, CMPSU-650TX TX Series Power Supply, 650W, 80 PLUS®, 24-pin ATX12V EPS12V, SLI Ready
* ASUS, P6T Deluxe V2, LGA1366, Intel® X58, 6400 MT/s QPI, DDR3-2000 (O.C.) 24GB /6, PCIe x16 SLI CF /3, SATA 3 Gb/s RAID 5 /6, HDA, GbLAN /2, FW /2, ATX, Retail
* INTEL, Core™ i7-920 Quad-Core 2.66GHz, LGA1366, 4.8 GT/s QPI, 8MB L3 Cache, 45nm, 130W, EM64T EIST VT XD, Retail
* NOCTUA, NH-U12P Copper CPU Cooler, Socket 1366
* CRUCIAL, 12GB (6 x 2GB) Ballistix PC3-12800 DDR3 1600MHz CL8 (8-8-8-24) 1.65V SDRAM DIMM, Non-ECC
* GIGABYTE, GV-N96TSL-1GI, GeForce® 9600 GT 650MHz, 1GB GDDR3 1800MHz, PCIe x16 SLI, VGA+DVI, HDMI, Retail
* WESTERN DIGITAL, 150GB (WD1500HLFS) WD VelociRaptor™, SATA 3 Gb/s, 10000 RPM, 16MB cache
* WESTERN DIGITAL, 1TB WD Caviar® Black™ (WD1001FALS), SATA 3 Gb/s, 7200 RPM, 32MB Cache
* RAID, No RAID, Independent HDD Drives
* LITE-ON, iHDS118 Black 18x48x DVD-ROM Drive, SATA, OEM
* LITE-ON, iHAS324 Black 24x DVD±RW Dual-Layer Burner w/ Smart Erase, SATA, Retail
* MICROSOFT, Windows 7 Professional 64-bit Edition, OEM
* WARRANTY, Silver Warranty Package (3 Year Limited Parts, 3 Year Labor Warranty)

Nov 07, 2009 at 05:13 PM

Nickle S.
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p.2 #15 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Tom K. wrote:
Nickle S. wrote:
Tom K. wrote:
With computers I feel the more power the better.

Tom,

So have you pulled the trigger or are you getting close to pulling it? The last config you posted will make your head spin in Photoshop, if that's a help

Chris Mundy is the top tech-support guy at AVA and he'll be there any time you need him. What impressed me most was that with both pre and post sales, you could always get someone to talk to in a speedy fashion, none of this "leave a message" stuff that seems to be the norm for a lot of on-line businesses these days. I had a few hardware issues come up at the onset and they bent over backwards to remedy things to my approval. I know I sound like a shill for this company, but another Miranda forumer just got his rig from them and the last I heard he was of the exact same opinion of AVA.

I really feel you should go with the overclocked i7-920, they should be able to get it up to about 3.2 or 3.3 GHz without breaking a sweat. If you want a super-quiet rig, talk to Joe Mundy in sales and tell him you need the same as Nicholas. You can see the blue LED fans on the heatsink and the rear of the case.
http://www.pbase.com/copperhill/image/116244768/original
These were not placed there for the visual effects, they were chosen over the stock Thermaltake fans because of the low-decibel rating. I also have two Noctua fans in the front of the case blowing over the HDDs and keeping the hot-air flow going to the rear and top exit fans. My computer has a steady hummm that is probably quieter than any super-charged off-the-shelf Dell or HP you can buy, incredible for the horsepower. The Antec case you're looking at is very similar to mine in that it has a full-frontal door with the air intake coming in through the sides. AVA took the acoustic padding and placed it on the backside of my door, this baffles the interior noise, tremendous if you have it under a desk like I do. I highly recommend this not too expensive add-on, better yet, buy the stuff from Newegg and do it yourself.

The only thing I would add to your setup would be a second HDD for programs, but that could be done later and it could be another Raptor or you might take a shot with a SSD. The nVidia 9600 card is perfect for the build, we have one in our other computer and it renders things beautifully, even DVDs and streaming stuff. The 1T storage drive is immense, I mean I have about 5 years of photos on mine with room for another 5 years worth.

Nicholas

Edited on Nov 07, 2009 at 09:17 PM · View previous versions

Nov 07, 2009 at 08:54 PM

Tom K.
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p.2 #16 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Primo advice. Many thanks.

I just want to make sure that the Intel SSD is the 2nd generation version and not the 1st gen version. Then I'll get the SSD.

A quiet PC means a lot to me. I'll ask about the fans.

I noticed when configuring on-line at AVA I can't choose to have two burners. I'll have to call them about that on Monday because I would rather have two burners them a DVD ROM and a DVD RW.

I changed the RAM to Crucial after doing some research. I also went with the NOCTUA, NH-U12P Copper CPU Cooler after doing some more research.

Changed from two extra internal HD's to one bigger second internal HD.

I'm getting very close to closing this deal. The SSD question should be answered by Monday. Then it's likely go time.

Nov 07, 2009 at 09:03 PM

Nickle S.
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p.2 #17 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

I have a Blu-Ray burner and a DVD burner, so I'm sure you'll be able to have 2.

Nicholas

Nov 07, 2009 at 09:05 PM

eplastiq
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p.2 #18 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Yes, i7 920 can be easily overclocked.

my current specs are:
i7 920 2.66ghz @ 3.6ghz (running faster than the i7 975)
noctua cooler and 2 fans (push-pull system)
3x 2gb corsair memory DDR3
P6T WS asus motherboard (because of SAS option, will explain later)
gforce 8800 GTS 640 Ram (will be upgraded to the new ATI 5870 shortly)
2x raptor 75gb in stripping mode for OS and software
1x sata 160disk for photoshop scratch disk and lightroom catalogues
2x standard 500gb SATA disks for data
power supply is a corsair 650W which i found it enough.

that asus motherboard has an integrated SAS controller. SAS are faster than the SATA ones and raids work very well. they are not "really" expensive and i think i would prefer those than SSD right now.

photoshop CS4 opens i less than 5 seconds

Nov 08, 2009 at 12:13 PM

mjb30
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p.2 #19 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

eplastiq wrote:

photoshop CS4 opens i less than 5 seconds

This thread is making me drool! And to think I was going to get new glass....

Nov 08, 2009 at 03:10 PM

hfillmore
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p.2 #20 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Bookmarked

Nov 08, 2009 at 07:43 PM

Nickle S.
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p.2 #21 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Here's a snippet of SpeedFan utility I just took:
http://www.pbase.com/copperhill/image/119179244/original
You can see there's two readings for GPU temps, indicating the GTX295 is actually 2 GTX260 cards sandwiched to make one. System and CPU temps usually don't go over 45 degrees unless I'm benchmarking

. This is a real testament to the air-cooled design that AVA came up with. The AI Suite utility that comes with the P6T V.2 motherboard will not run in Windows7, that's why I'm using SpeedFan and WebTemp. ASUS needs to update the driver.

Photoshop opens in about 4 or 5 seconds for me, too, and I have a ton of plug-ins. The software at our disposal keeps getting better and better and the files we work with keep getting bigger and bigger, thus the need for more and more power in our PCs.

Nicholas
www.copperhillimages.com

Nov 08, 2009 at 08:40 PM

UCSB
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p.2 #22 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

I just ordered one of these HP units (i7 975, 12 GB, ... etc.) last week.

http://www.shopping.hp.com/webapp/shopping/computer_can_series.do?storeName=computer_store&category=desktops&a1=Category&v1=High+performance&series_name=e9280t_series&jumpid=in_R329_prodexp/hhoslp/psg/desktops/High_performance/e9280t_series

It will be coming along in a week or so. My daughter is a top student and a member of the Golden Key International Honor Society ... so I got special pricing on the unit. Worth looking into if you are a member.

Nov 09, 2009 at 04:25 AM

Tom K.
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p.2 #23 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Joe Mundy from AVADirect sent me an email and stated, " I would recommend going with the velociraptors, than the SSD's, any day".

More for me to think about.

Nov 11, 2009 at 05:17 AM

Tom K.
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p.2 #24 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

Possible final configuration. Without SSD.

$2209.38

* ANTEC, Performance One P183 Black Mid-Tower Computer Case, ATX, No PSU
* PC POWER & COOLING, Silencer® 750W Quad (Black) Power Supply, 24-pin ATX12V EPS12V, Single +12V Rail, Quad SLI Ready
* ASUS, P6T Deluxe V2, LGA1366, Intel® X58, 6400 MT/s QPI, DDR3-2000 (O.C.) 24GB /6, PCIe x16 SLI CF /3, SATA 3 Gb/s RAID 5 /6, HDA, GbLAN /2, FW /2, ATX, Retail
* INTEL, Core™ i7-920 Quad-Core 2.66GHz, LGA1366, 4.8 GT/s QPI, 8MB L3 Cache, 45nm, 130W, EM64T EIST VT XD, Retail
* NOCTUA, NH-U12P Copper CPU Cooler, Socket 1366
* CORSAIR, 12GB (6 x 2GB) XMS3 PC3-12800 DDR3 1600MHz CL9 (9-9-9-24) 1.65V SDRAM DIMM, Non-ECC
* GIGABYTE, GV-N96TSL-1GI, GeForce® 9600 GT 650MHz, 1GB GDDR3 1800MHz, PCIe x16 SLI, VGA+DVI, HDMI, Retail
* WESTERN DIGITAL, 150GB (WD1500HLFS) WD VelociRaptor™, SATA 3 Gb/s, 10000 RPM, 16MB cache
* WESTERN DIGITAL, 500GB WD Caviar® Black™ (WD5001AALS), SATA 3 Gb/s, 7200 RPM, 32MB Cache
* WESTERN DIGITAL, 1TB WD Caviar® Black™ (WD1001FALS), SATA 3 Gb/s, 7200 RPM, 32MB Cache
* RAID, No RAID, Independent HDD Drives
* LITE-ON, iHDS118 Black 18x48x DVD-ROM Drive, SATA, OEM
* PLEXTOR, PX-880SA Black 24x DVD±R/RW Dual-Layer Burner w/ Lightscribe, SATA, Retail
* MICROSOFT, Windows 7 Professional 64-bit Edition, OEM
* WARRANTY, Silver Warranty Package (3 Year Limited Parts, 3 Year Labor Warranty)

Nov 11, 2009 at 05:41 AM

senna4ever
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p.2 #25 · Best Computer for Photoshop?

I'm surprised no one has mentioned (unless I've missed something) that you would also need a good monitor.

Nov 11, 2009 at 09:19 AM


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