Britec Tech Support Forum

I'm looking to build a workstation for someone involved in draughting, professionally, who is a heavy CAD user. I was wondering what i7 CPU would be recommended for use with dedicated CAD software (including, but not necessarily limited to, ArchiCAD and Artlantis)? Would an 6 core 8700 do the trick? I plan to pair it with 16GB of RAM, and Quadro P1000 GPU.

I have looked a Ryzen too, but price-wise over here in NZ there's not much in it. Plus, I've never worked with an AMD cpu in a build before (better the devil you know?)

Also, any strong opinions on the need, or otherwise, for an after market cooler? The 8700 comes with the updated Intel stock cooler, and reports say that temperature results between that and an aftermarket cooler are not that that hugely different (https://discuss.howtogeek.com/t/how-much-better-are-aftermarket-cpu-coolers-than-intels-stock-coolers/62619/21). I've never installed an AM cooler before, so I'd like to try and steer clear, but am also aware that this planned build will be used for CAD rendering, so I guess the cpu will be getting a workout on a daily basis. Would a stock cooler + case fans be enough?

Thanks in advance for any advice!

(11-13-2017, 08:49 AM)Partha Wrote: [ -> ]It would work fine if you build it as you've planned. Just to let you know, the AMD counterparts are relatively low-priced, and so you can save some bucks with AMD

you can use the saved amount on getting even more memory; the stock cooler should be fine but make sure that the other fans are properly installed

Many thanks for the tips and advice.

That i7 will work just fine but in my opinion... When it comes to a mission critical machine, I would not use the stock cooler. I would use a premium cooler like a Noctua NH-U14S. You can get larger models, but they can get in the way if the PCIe slot is close to the CPU socket, or your ram modules are not low profile modules. The Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO is less expensive, but very reliable also. You could also use a liquid cooler, but I am not a fan of installing something like this in a custom machine that I would have to support.


Noctua NH-U14S:

https://www.amazon.com/Noctua-Single-Tower-Cooler-NH-U14S/dp/B00C9FLSLY/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1510701138&sr=8-6&keywords=noctua+cpu+cooler

Cooler Master Hyper 212 Evo:

https://www.amazon.com/Cooler-Master-Hyper-RR-212E-20PK-R2-120mm/dp/B005O65JXI/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1510683509&sr=1-1&keywords=cooler+master+cpu+cooler&dpID=518BEXKEiiL&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch

Cooler master Hyper 212 Evo is a very good CPU cooler and cheap too.

(11-14-2017, 08:38 PM)Britec Wrote: [ -> ]Cooler master Hyper 212 Evo is a very good CPU cooler and cheap too.

In fact, I think Cooler Master has an assembly line specifically dedicated to it...lol