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    Building a Sketchup Computer... on a $1000 budget. UPDATED

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    • KrisidiousK Offline
      Krisidious
      last edited by

      oh and on the note of waiting for the larger e4300 model... I already bought mine with that system from jose... ;(

      but I'm fine with 2

      By: Kristoff Rand
      Home DesignerUnique House Plans

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      • jujuJ Offline
        juju
        last edited by

        Well, don't say you didn't have any warning when the PSU blows. That's just the good part, the bad part is undervolting hardware can seriously damage the hardware, even destroy it. Undervolting happens when the PSU can't supply enough current to the hardware's demand. Also, overclocking a machine to run every now and again is one thing, having it run that way for extended periods of time puts strain on the components, especially the PSU (and CPU, but that is quite another story with electron migration and all) as it needs to feed the setup with juice.

        Oh yes, I think your choice with the CPU is safe for now, I was somehow confusing it with the E6300 / E6400 series which are being updated, AFAIK the Allandale cores aren't getting a microarchitecture update.

        BTW, from what I understand the Intel Q6600 CPU's (quadcore running 8 MB L2 cache, clocking in at 2.40 GHz with a 1066 MHz FSB) will drop in price to approximately $266 (US) in July. At approximately the same time the newer technology will be released with more L2 cache, a FSB of 1333 MHz, possibly requiring less power to operate and could quite possibly then be running cooler as well.

        Snap! Some of the above is in the link that gksl4 provided a few posts up.

        Save the Earth, it's the only planet with chocolate.

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        • KrisidiousK Offline
          Krisidious
          last edited by

          well did you read the test?

          the allendale undervolts to 1.1 volt at 100% stable and could even go lower...

          and the point here is not to spend more than 1000 and $266 for a intel chip that will need a $300 board is not going to help us...

          i didn't understand this part?

          "Snap! Some of the above is in the link that gksl4 provided a few posts up."

          By: Kristoff Rand
          Home DesignerUnique House Plans

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          • jujuJ Offline
            juju
            last edited by

            The "snap" part in blue was with regard to my comments on the Intel pricing, etc.

            Yes, I did read the test, I've also read quite a few others on overclocking and reviews and and and. Do as you must, overclocking is a means to an end, if done correctly that is.

            I don't want to get into a discussion about overclocking and I also don't want to hijack / sabotage your thread. So please continue, I think that there are people that will benefit from the thread, one way or the other.

            Save the Earth, it's the only planet with chocolate.

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            • KrisidiousK Offline
              Krisidious
              last edited by

              you're not hijacking or sabotaging... this is exactly what myself and other will elarn from, two "Points of View"

              and I am not expert... I've read quite a few of these reviews also... and they do vary quite a bit...

              anyway let's keep it going, I have recieved my $512 computer from Jose... time to strip it. photos to follow...

              By: Kristoff Rand
              Home DesignerUnique House Plans

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              • C Offline
                Cyberdactyl
                last edited by

                My two cents is when you pick a video card, pick one that support dx10 such as the nvidia 8800 GTS.

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                • KrisidiousK Offline
                  Krisidious
                  last edited by

                  good point DX10... mmmm

                  I'll post later tonight I have a lot of stuff to add to this.... I've installed serveral components

                  By: Kristoff Rand
                  Home DesignerUnique House Plans

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                  • W Offline
                    Will03
                    last edited by

                    I used to be into the overclocking scene, overclocking everything I got my hands on, from computers, to video game systems, even to my calculator. I learned one lesson from all of it. Computers are delicate machines, that will not be able to sustain being overclocked for long. Instability, lock-ups, and power-downs will all happen to any overclocked computer. guaranteed. if anything, for a computer that I expect to be running stably and for extended periods of time, I would underclock it. not by much, but just enough to run the computer maybe a degree cooler, and slower, that way I know that I will be able to get a long life out of it, and i can expect it to run everything predictably.

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                    • KrisidiousK Offline
                      Krisidious
                      last edited by

                      don't live in the dark ages... yesterday's overclocking is today's standard... as were the overdrive procressors of 1990...

                      I think everyone overclosks to some extent and it has become the standard... so much that system board makers are building these overclockable systems... the cool running of this and it's extreme stable running is one of the main point of this system...

                      however I have been experimenting with a Intel Pentium D 805 2.66 and have some intersting observations to pass on... that will hit on Willo3's theme...

                      By: Kristoff Rand
                      Home DesignerUnique House Plans

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                      • jujuJ Offline
                        juju
                        last edited by

                        @cyberdactyl said:

                        My two cents is when you pick a video card, pick one that support dx10 such as the nvidia 8800 GTS.

                        Hmm, I don't quite know how DX10 will benefit SketchUp (at this point in time) as it uses OpenGL API for best GFX accelleration. Maybe if you intend on building a machine for gaming under the guise of a work machine.

                        Save the Earth, it's the only planet with chocolate.

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                        • M Offline
                          Maggy
                          last edited by

                          Microsoft will not release a DirectX 10 version for Windows XP.
                          http://www.xbitlabs.com/news/video/display/20060525104034.html
                          And as far as I know XP is still the best OS for SU.

                          Dual or quad core and 64bits all sound great, but AFAIK SU6 runs at its max on a single core 32 bits processor. Of course other software does benefit.

                          [Maggy]

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                          • KrisidiousK Offline
                            Krisidious
                            last edited by

                            Maggy,

                            yes all true... I have been experimenting last night with a Bargin Intel Pentium D 805 2.66g...

                            bought the board PCCHIPS P23G and the CPU for a C Note... ($100.00 US)

                            working pretty good in sketchup... although it is having major temp problems running at 65c to 70c on a case fan and the stcok intel cooling unit... so not good... not good at all... reviews are similar...

                            the E4300 is running in the base system at 37c so needs more testing

                            By: Kristoff Rand
                            Home DesignerUnique House Plans

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                            • M Offline
                              Maggy
                              last edited by

                              Never trust stock Intel coolers!


                              Regards

                              Maggy

                              [Maggy]

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                              • KrisidiousK Offline
                                Krisidious
                                last edited by

                                really? you think it's all the cooler? it does seem very slow... it's a 3400rpm fan that seems to only run about 2400 even at 70c and the auto fan settings are enabled in the bios... I'll get another fan and see how it acts...

                                By: Kristoff Rand
                                Home DesignerUnique House Plans

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                                • KrisidiousK Offline
                                  Krisidious
                                  last edited by

                                  ok this weekend I had some time to hit this again and got the system up and stable...

                                  here are some screen shots...

                                  now I have to make up my mind on what motherboard to use... any opinions?

                                  right it's running great on this crappy P23G PCCHIPS Mobo

                                  look 33c thats pretty sweet even thought it's just OC'd to 2ghz right now. and that is with the stock fan... running at 900rpm. and 1.28 volts
                                  http://www.sketchucation.com/forums/scf/sas/CornerBar/DSCF0013.jpg
                                  http://www.sketchucation.com/forums/scf/sas/CornerBar/Screenie.jpg
                                  http://www.sketchucation.com/forums/scf/sas/CornerBar/Screenie_2.jpg

                                  By: Kristoff Rand
                                  Home DesignerUnique House Plans

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                                  • KrisidiousK Offline
                                    Krisidious
                                    last edited by

                                    ok...

                                    I have the new motherboard... and video card...

                                    Asus P5N-e Sli mobo...
                                    Verto 512meg Nvidia 8500GT

                                    after getting everything installed... here are the stock setup screenie vs the overclocked @1066fsb

                                    NOTICE THE TEMP!!! NO CHANGE!!!

                                    I'll post my review tomorrow...
                                    and then I'll jump it up to 3ghz...

                                    so far... worth every penny... some $600.00
                                    http://www.sketchucation.com/forums/scf/sas/CornerBar/1066.jpg
                                    http://www.sketchucation.com/forums/scf/sas/CornerBar/Stock.jpg

                                    By: Kristoff Rand
                                    Home DesignerUnique House Plans

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                                    • KrisidiousK Offline
                                      Krisidious
                                      last edited by

                                      New MOBO Installed Photos
                                      http://www.sketchucation.com/forums/scf/sas/CornerBar/DSCF0023.jpg
                                      http://www.sketchucation.com/forums/scf/sas/CornerBar/DSCF0019.JPG

                                      By: Kristoff Rand
                                      Home DesignerUnique House Plans

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                                      • jujuJ Offline
                                        juju
                                        last edited by

                                        This machine complete now Kris, all running sweet? How does it do under load? Details dude, details...

                                        Save the Earth, it's the only planet with chocolate.

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                                        • M Offline
                                          Masta Squidge
                                          last edited by

                                          Hate to barge in here, but if you guys are looking for a video card, you dont want to go with one made for gaming, and DX10? Wont do a damn thing as far as the rendering work is concerned (correct me if im wrong). See if you can scrounge up someone with a student discount and score a new Quadro for like 300 bucks. (If you really want good rendering)

                                          I say this because there is a way to change a fx5500 card into a quadro (albeit not a very good quadro) and i can say for certain that as a Quadro my card performs in SU several times better than it does as a fx5500, and yes, its an old card, im broke what can i say.

                                          My only issue is that i play more games than i use SU, so i went back to using it as a gaming card.

                                          My point is that you would be far better off trying to get a hold of a rendering card on ebay seeing as they are crazy expensive for a new one. Go the extra mile and make sure you are getting parts related to the application, as gaming cards (and dx10 unless im wrong) arent made for rendering.

                                          And yes i realize this was posted several months ago.

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                                          • KrisidiousK Offline
                                            Krisidious
                                            last edited by

                                            yes you do have a point, on the card but this is not a system for professionals per say... this was a under $1000 build and this 8500 gt affords the user future updates in which DX10 maybe needed and it affords the user cost effective graphics for around $150.00 brand new with warranty, and an extra slot for future adding of another card to take advantage of the SLI setup. bringing the total of ram on the card to 1 gig.

                                            with in modeling software, I have not noticed any lagging so far. and I work on some large models. the main reason to use one of those high end cards is to cut down on rendering time.

                                            if I were to buy one of those cards I would buy new, I know, I know they are extremely expensive, outrageous even. but I would say 40% of cards on ebay have issues or are bad altogether. it's a real gamble to get the real card they advertise, and it working with no glitches or issues. and video cards being one of the most problematic of peripherals. I like having a company to gripe out and threaten when need be.

                                            I do concede though, if you're wanting to fill out the budget a little more, and risk finding the "working" used high end cards, you won't find me telling you not too. it is a better machine for it. and your render times will likely drop in half.

                                            By: Kristoff Rand
                                            Home DesignerUnique House Plans

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