Neverside

3D Modeling

A friend of mine is going to attend the Art Institute of Pittsburg in their Game Arts and Design course.

His parents want to buy him a laptop for ~$2000.

I think that would be a waste of money. He won't be writing essays.

So I decided to visit Newegg and use my knowledge of computers to build him this computer setup:

MSI K8T NEO FSR K8T800 Motherboard
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=13-130-449&depa=1
$92

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AMD Athlon 64 3000+ 64-bit Processor Retail
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=19-103-424&depa=1
$223

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Buffalo Technology 512MB ECC DDR PC-3200 RAM
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=20-150-599&depa=1
$129

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Buffalo Technology 512MB ECC DDR PC-3200 RAM
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=20-150-599&depa=1
$129

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Antec 400 Watt Power Supply
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=17-103-912&depa=1
$59

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CHIEFTEC Blue Tower Case
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=11-125-263&depa=1
$55

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Sony Beige 52x32x52 CD-RW Drive
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=27-106-815&depa=1
$26

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Lite-On DVD-ROM Drive Black
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=27-131-118&depa=1
$26

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Microsoft Black Keyboard & Optical Mouse Bundle Black
http://www.newegg.com/app/viewproduct.asp?description=23-109-122&DEPA=1
$36

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Western Digital 40GB 7200RPM IDE Harddrive w/ 8MB Cache
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=22-144-126&depa=1
$60

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Logitech Extreme PC Gaming Headset w/ Mic
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=26-106-931&depa=1
$19

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ATI FireGL 9600 128MB Video Card
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=14-102-315&depa=1
$264

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The total of which comes out to ~$1118.

He might need a monitor and he is interested in a Wacom Tablet. I built this with 3d rendering and budget in mind.

Any suggestions before I offer him an alternative setup?

you don't need ecc ram for the 754 pin socket.

so get some cheaper non ecc ram and bump it up to a 3200 that extra 512kb of cache will help in rendering.

make sure the ram is low latency, this is VERY IMPORTANT for A64's.

why only a 40 gb hd? also get an sata one.

if you can fit it in try a raptor and an 80gb+ storage drive.

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Back in the states.

just a thought, why not merge the drives into one?
http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=27-190-003&depa=1

I've heard some bad things about buffalo ram, no personal experiences - why not crucial/mushkin?

and on a side note, if he plans to do 3d rendering you might wanna get a high qualaty (thermaltake?) heatsink with some good case fans (why not cut a 400mm fan in the side )

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how do you weigh human life?

I'm not sure what they're willing to spend. So I was thinking with the pocketbook. The merged drive will be something I'll look into. Thanks for the input.

you said 2000 in your post....

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Back in the states.

Here is a suggestion, check my thread along the lines of "Excellent gaming PC for sale" where you'll get twice the computer for $1200 (which also includes a flat pannel monitor) seriously.

I think it would be best to get a video card along the lines of a FireGL or a Quatro. I'm not sure how well a gaming video card would compare to a card designed for workstation use.

And no offense, but I think everybody would be more willing and at ease buying from a business and not some guy named therealpjdj. Besides, shipping would probably be a lot less.