HArdware/software upgrade advice

[pauljcox]

Hello everyone!

 

I have a question concerning a system upgrade that I'm about to undergo. I am running 3ds Max 2009 Design, rendering with MR primarily, and (stupidly) running a Dell Quad Core, 4gb RAM with Vista 32-bit (I was ill-advised when purchasing this, my first 'dedicated' 3d PC.) I am about to purchase a new system since I am running out of memory all the time, and I'm thinking Quad i7 is the way to go, and Windows 7 64-bit - my question is whether my 3ds Max 32-bit will run on a 64-bit OS until I upgrade Max. Or actually whether Max 2009 even runs on Windows 7? One other question would be whether Autodesk (or one of it's resellers) would ever consider letting me trade in my Max 2009 32-bit for a Max 2009 64-bit - I mean, they cost the same to buy brand new, and it's not like I'm upgrading to the latest version! I know this is a long shot - just with the money I'm spending on new hardware, I would like to avoid spending another couple of thousand on software!

 

 

Any help would be appreciated.

 

 

Thanks!

 

 

Paul

[AJLynn]

2009 32-bit or 64-bit should run under Windows 7 64-bit.

 

If I might make a suggestion. There's nothing wrong with your PC - an upgrade to an i7 would render faster but wouldn't have anything to do with your memory issues. You can upgrade your Dell to Windows 7 64-bit, which will make much better use of your 4GB than your 32-bit Windows does, and if you still don't have enough RAM it's likely your Dell can use 8GB. You can check this on Crucial.com.

[pauljcox]

Thanks for your response - the OS update is a good idea. The problem I have with the Dell is that it can't be upgraded beyond 4gb (something that i REALLY should have considered when I bought it).

[pauljcox]

...and I guess the other question is whether 3ds Max 2009 Design is compatible with Windows 7? Seems like there is still a lot of debate over that one. Anybody got a definitive answer?

[Dave Buchhofer]

the 64bit upgrade will help stability tremendously even if you only have 4gb of ram.. because it lets max use that 4gb and also use additional hard drive swap space as needed... it'll slow things down a lot if you get over the 4gb physical, but it will keep on rolling.

 

I've had a 4gig workstation for years now

 

now, if its too slow.. well, then its a cost/performance issue whether you're better off adding a rendernode type or updating a workstation type and sending your current station to rendernode uses.

 

win7 has been working OK here.. we're having a lot of issues with older printers and drivers, but not much of a problem with anything max-wise or reasonably up to date hardware

[Dave Buchhofer]

would ever consider letting me trade in my Max 2009 32-bit for a Max 2009 64-bit

 

they both come on the same install cd, you can install both versions as you wish, you shouldn't have any problems with authorizing, and if you do, a quick call to talk to someone at autodesk licence services on the phone will sort it out.

 

and they (32bit vs 64bit) are compatible back and forth also.. I have both authorized here due to needing the 32bit for some very specialized plugins.. and work almost exclusively in 64bit, only going back when i need to export to an old game engine..

Edited May 18, 2010 by Dave Buchhofer

[pauljcox]

Guys - I appreciate you help immensely! I think I'm going to go with the 64-bit OS upgrade first, and hope that fixes things. I guess I need to make sure I am running a 64 bit processor first, right? Or am I being an idiot?! I am nowhere near as tech savvy as I used to be

[AJLynn]

All the quad core CPUs are 64-bit.

[Slinger]

Thanks for your response - the OS update is a good idea. The problem I have with the Dell is that it can't be upgraded beyond 4gb (something that i REALLY should have considered when I bought it).

Well Dell model do you have?