Workstation PC, what to get?

[jabalsad]

Hi,

 

I have looked at the stickys and a couple of articles such as the one on tomshardware discussing the FireGL and Quadro FX series. I also understand this is a very popular topic and I just couldnt quite find an answer on the forums so far.

 

Im not a workstation user myself, however I'm building machines that require these kind of capabilities for clients. Here is what I've learnt (whether I have been misinformed I cannot say, please correct me where possible):

 

For screen rendering, it depends on whether the software you intend to use it for works with OpenGL or Direct3D. In the case of OpenGL, then Quadro/FireGL series wins hands down. From the requests I've had so far, the software they would like to use is either AutoCAD, 3D Studio or Tekla Structures. Whether they use OpenGL or Direct3D, I have no idea. It also seems like some products such as 3D studio is slowly making the transition from OpenGL to Direct3D, which one has to keep in mind as well.

 

Initially, I recommended the clients to go the QuadroFX route as it seems only logical that you'd want a card that is designed for this purpose. Other than that, I couldn't give them a good reason to get a QuadroFX instead of a GeForce - which led me to do some research. Now it seems like a product such as the QuadroFX 370 or 570 is a very low-end performer and I'm guessing they will still sit with the same problem on large projects. Now if you want something that has a little power, then it seems like the FX 1700 or 3500 is a good bet. The only problem here is that they are extremely expensive if you compare them to a 8800 or 9800 series card. I just don't see the purpose of spending so much more if a 9800 in the right configuration can very well do the same job (perhaps even a SLI config, I don't even know if this impacts 3D/CAD applications). Perhaps someone can tell me if I'm right or not and why?

 

I fully understand that a good motherboard-cpu-memory combination will definitely have an impact on performance (more so if you render straight to file), but there it seems the choices are fairly easy to make. My biggest problem lies in choosing the right graphics card for the job without having them spend a large amount of cash on workstation cards unless its absolutely necessary.

 

I'll appreciate any input you guys can deliver, many thanks!

[AJLynn]

For new versions of Autocad and Max, which do use Direct3D quite well, there is no compelling reason to get anything more expensive than a Geforce 8800GT. Unless it's for a company that values having all their hardware listed as "approved" for their software, in which case they'd need a Quadro or FireGL.

 

If you look at the equivalencies between the Quadro and Geforce lines (they're nearly identical GPUs, or identical except that the ROMs tell them not to be) you'll see that anything but the most expensive Quadro maps to a low-end Geforce - and that is the performance level in Direct3D mode (though you can sometimes gain advantages, such as with Maxtreme software in Max which only works with Quadros). So an 8800GT outperforms anything less impressive than (approximately) a Quadro 3700.

 

As for Tekla Structures... you'll need to research that yourself.

[jabalsad]

Thanks for the quick reply. Another question, would a 3D/CAD application be able to use two GeForces in SLI mode or will one go to waste?

[AJLynn]

That's something people have been talking about for a while and don't have a great answer for but it seems that it does help, but not by the amounts it helps with games. (It's made for games.) For most work, a newish Geforce card is already quite powerful enough - this technology has come a looooooong way in the last 3 years. Mine is an 8800GTS and I never have problems.

[FlyinHawaiian]

I've posted this before, I'm sure, but here's a survey I have up on The Area regarding other people's experiences with gaming vs specialized cards:

 

http://area.autodesk.com/index.php/forums/viewthread/16168/

 

I personally run the 8800gts and an 8800gt and I'm more than happy with both.