Build me a high end desktop for under $1500 USD

[snipedlol]

Hi everyone,

Whats the best possible desktop to build for under 1500 USD? i'll be using it for mainly gaming and high end architecture software.
Can someone please list the best possible parts for me to buy? and i'd prefer to buy from a place that would ship to my P.O. Box
Thank you in advance everyone <3
If possible, would also prefer if all the parts came from the same online store (i.e. Newegg)

[slasher0161]

What high end architecture software are we talking, last I checked most of those programs prefer different gpu's to games. In which case you will either have to choose to optimize it for one use or the other. A gaming rig for $1500 isn't so hard though. Will edit with a build shortly.

[snipedlol]

Autocad and sketchup, i can post some of my old works if you wanna see them

[slasher0161]

Well there is a couple of options 1 is to run dual gpu for it though I couldn't honestly say if that is worth the money. The second is to roll with this build which will handle cad work just fine however might render slightly slower but I don't think the money for a gpu so cad can render faster is really relevant on a personal rig.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-3770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($134.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Patriot Viper 3 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($83.98 @ Outlet PC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($70.90 @ Outlet PC)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($92.99 @ Adorama)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7970 3GB Video Card ($399.99 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Source 210 Elite (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Silverstone Strider Essential 500W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($59.19 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224BB DVD/CD Writer ($15.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $1257.98
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-03-06 20:34 EST-0500)

[Tahapenes]

Where are you located and how soon do you want this (trying to look at possibility of a CPU from Microcenter if you have one nearby)?

[snipedlol]

I'm located in the Caribbean, specifically Trinidad, and i'd prefer if i can get it in at most 3 weeks

[Hellravager]

Should also watch this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yG5dl_XEnck and with slashers build drop the win 8 to win 7 everything else looks fine to me comparing to what others told me across the various threads i've posted. Read this as well http://www.mmo-champion.com/threads/...-build-Read-me!

[chazus]

What version of Autocad. Do you do it for work? If so, you might want to look into getting an actual profession graphics card, not a gaming one.

[Pyro1990]

Well there is a couple of options 1 is to run dual gpu for it though I couldn't honestly say if that is worth the money. The second is to roll with this build which will handle cad work just fine however might render slightly slower but I don't think the money for a gpu so cad can render faster is really relevant on a personal rig.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-3770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: ASRock Z77 Extreme4 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($134.99 @ Amazon)
Memory: Patriot Viper 3 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($83.98 @ Outlet PC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($70.90 @ Outlet PC)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($92.99 @ Adorama)
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7970 3GB Video Card ($399.99 @ Newegg)
Case: NZXT Source 210 Elite (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Silverstone Strider Essential 500W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($59.19 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224BB DVD/CD Writer ($15.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $1257.98
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-03-06 20:34 EST-0500)

Is there any way this list could be dropped down to closer or under 1000 dollars for someone that wants to do generally the same thing? The only games I play are world of tanks and WoW and being able to use AutoCad decently well would be awesome. (I'm an engineering student and it would be nice to be able to model stuff at home instead of being stuck in the computer labs)

[torterra275]

Well there is a couple of options 1 is to run dual gpu for it though I couldn't honestly say if that is worth the money. The second is to roll with this build which will handle cad work just fine however might render slightly slower but I don't think the money for a gpu so cad can render faster is really relevant on a personal rig.
Video Card: Gigabyte Radeon HD 7970 3GB Video Card ($399.99 @ Newegg)

Stupid question, but doesn't AutoCad take advantage of the cuda cores in Nvidia cards or so it would be more beneficial to get a GTX 670?

[Deleted]

Hi everyone,

If possible, would also prefer if all the parts came from the same online store (i.e. Newegg)

You will pay more if your not willing to get parts from more then one source, For instance, Had i bought my GPU from Newegg it would have cost 35 more than from amazon but the CPU and MOBO were 15 each cheaper from Newegg. Save 60 bucks by splitting it and theres enough to upgrade more ram, bigger ssd or get the next step up in GPU. Also, Newegg charges ALOT to ship outside the continental us. I use a Militarty PO box and there shipping was 150 bucks if i shipped everything. Shipping it to my in laws cost 10 bucks and they reshipped it all for 60, saving another 90 bucks... Just a few things to consider.

[slasher0161]

I've just looked into it a bit more and to be honest I am finding a lot of documentation that is showing outside of massive projects people are finding that modern gaming gpu's are nearly keeping pace with the workstation class tesla units, yes 3d rendering is slower but we are comparing the likes of a $400 gaming gpu to a $2000+ tesla card I think the slight loss of performance can be copped on the chin for the money savings. I did try and find about the utilization of cuda cores (i've heard it somewhere i'm sure) but couldn't find documentation on it. Feel free to switch it to a gtx 670 though.

I'll respond if I find anything further (Its also hard when any benchmarks on these tesla cards has them on a dual xenon setup while try finding results of gaming cards benched on a dual xenon setup...)

[Lemmiwink]

Stupid question, but doesn't AutoCad take advantage of the cuda cores in Nvidia cards or so it would be more beneficial to get a GTX 670?

It depends on what Geforce card you have. They support all Quadro cards but not all GTX cards. I guess it also depends on what version you have and how much you payed for it. Mine supports my 680, wether it's much faster than using a 7970 is hard to say tbh.


edit: Found a benchmark test of the version I am using. Seems Nvidia owns the show here http://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/art...eleration-164/

I do find it strange cause AutoCad doesn't directly support Radeon or Geforce cards, I just had this feeling my 680 was handling it better than the quadro I also tried

[slasher0161]

Is there any way this list could be dropped down to closer or under 1000 dollars for someone that wants to do generally the same thing? The only games I play are world of tanks and WoW and being able to use AutoCad decently well would be awesome. (I'm an engineering student and it would be nice to be able to model stuff at home instead of being stuck in the computer labs)

Well based on that link lemmiwink just added I would say change the gpu to a 660 and call it a day.
PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant / Benchmarks

CPU: Intel Core i7-3770K 3.5GHz Quad-Core Processor ($229.99 @ Microcenter)
CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.99 @ Newegg)
Motherboard: MSI Z77A-G41 ATX LGA1155 Motherboard ($83.98 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Patriot Viper 3 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($83.98 @ Outlet PC)
Storage: Western Digital Caviar Blue 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($70.90 @ Outlet PC)
Storage: Samsung 840 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Disk ($92.99 @ Adorama)
Video Card: Gigabyte GeForce GTX 660 2GB Video Card ($209.99 @ Microcenter)
Case: NZXT Source 210 Elite (Black) ATX Mid Tower Case ($49.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: Silverstone Strider Essential 500W 80 PLUS Certified ATX12V Power Supply ($59.19 @ Newegg)
Optical Drive: Samsung SH-224BB DVD/CD Writer ($15.99 @ Newegg)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8 (OEM) (64-bit) ($89.98 @ Outlet PC)
Total: $1016.97
(Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available.)
(Generated by PCPartPicker 2013-03-07 07:42 EST-0500)

You can get close if you have a micro center nearby, if not then drop the 1tb drive for now and pick one up in a bit (or push the budget that little bit to fit one in).