Jump to content

Replacing old desktop with strong laptop for work and rendering - good idea?


Recommended Posts

I`v been planing to replace my desktop computer that is aging a bit now, its a AMD 4800+ with 2GB ram and a 4600 series radeon. I was thinking about getting a strong laptop, so I can iomprove my rendering speeds by quite a lot, and that I could work on bigger scenes, etc.

 

I found a really nice machine - Asus G73JH

 

http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=5571&review=asus+g73+g73jh

 

it has 8 GB RAM, Intel Core i7-720QM processor and ATI Mobility Radeon HD 5870 1GB

 

I was thinking its great, and should be about 3 times faster (very generally speaking) compared to my old machine. But I found on some forums information that laptops are generally not recomended as serious rendering machines, that the miniutarisation takes a toll at processor speed, and that those machines are not made for working for days and nights at highest performances.

 

Was I wrong in planning to buy it, is it being a laptop make it not that great choice for modeling/rendering machine? (lets say I will be rendering for days some times)

 

If its not the best option in your opinion (please tell me why) what do you reccomend for similar price? Will desktop for similar price be much quicker/stronger?

 

thanx,

Tomek

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I`v done some thinking and checked the prices of desktops, and decided to change my mind. That laptop is great COMPARED to my old desktop. But for similar ammount of money, here is what I am planning to buy:

 

Intel Core i7 920

Corsair DDR3 6GB (3x2GB) 1600MHz

GeForce GTX480

(and of course monitor, hdd, etc)

 

But I`m not sure about RAM - to keep the price in that range, and have this procesor and GFX, I decided to get 3 x 2GB of RAM. But I have zero experience with that big ammounts, since I work on 32bit XP and have 2GB of ram.

 

So my question is, will 6GB be enough for that system? Or am I shooting to high with such cpu and gfx card, with that ammount of memory? Will the 6Gb of RAM be the thing thet is holding me down? Purpose: rendering with 3ds Max.

 

Or perhaps it`ll be fine for some time, and if I`ll feel really the need for it in the future, I can change it for 12 Gigs?

 

Any input will be appreaciated.

 

Tomek

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanx very much :). Just final question, I hope ;)

 

 

For visualisation, rendering purposes on that mentioned system will 1333 ram be fine, or 1600 / 1866 mhz is worth buying / will it have serious impact no whole system?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

If the CPU calls for 1333 RAM, using faster RAM will have no effect on system speed because the motherboard will set the RAM to 1333 speed. The faster RAM will only be useful for overclockers and tweakers. However, there is so much more 1600 RAM on the market than other speeds, you may find that the 1600 RAM is cheapest.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanx!

 

I decided to go with that:

 

AMD Phenom II X6 1090T

Gigabyte 890FXA-UD5 Motherboard

ATI Radeon 5850 Sapphire 21162-00-50R

Western Digital WD20EVDS 2000 Gb

G.Skill 8 GB 1600MHz (4 x 2Gb dual channel)

Dell U2311H monitor

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...
  • 5 weeks later...

It's true, the current generation of hardware is pretty darn impressive. I just put a Radeon 5750 in my home PC and it's been blowing my mind, and that's a mid-consumer level card that maxes out at 86W. (Now if only I could get past these stupid kernel panics and install Snow Leopard, so I can put that to use in Aperture...)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
 Share

×
×
  • Create New...