Autocad machine

iwb

I have been asked to specify a computer for Autocad use. I am not too sure what is most important. I was going to specify at least a gig of ram, P4 3.6GHz or better and a fast hard drive. I think the video card is going to be very important but i'm not sure if I need a gamers card or something from Matrox or someone with more of a business slant to it.
Also, any advice on where to get best value for money would be appreciated. If anyone has anything used that would suit, I would also be interested.
Thanks, iwb.

Quackles

Hullo iwb..

We use autocad extensively here.. the usual spec machine we buy is 1gb ram, 3 ghz p4 processor, and the standard, on board graphics that come with a dell optiplex these days.. It runs just fine, but obviously the bigger the spec you can get, the better. On older machines, I find that the bottleneck is definitely ram or processor, not so much graphics card. http://www.avatechsolutions.com/products/software/autodesk/general/autocad_sysreq.asp for system requirements for autocad 2006. HTH.

Q.

godtabh

Quackles wrote:

Hullo iwb..

We use autocad extensively here.. the usual spec machine we buy is 1gb ram, 3 ghz p4 processor, and the standard, on board graphics that come with a dell optiplex these days.. It runs just fine, but obviously the bigger the spec you can get, the better. On older machines, I find that the bottleneck is definitely ram or processor, not so much graphics card. http://www.avatechsolutions.com/products/software/autodesk/general/autocad_sysreq.asp for system requirements for autocad 2006. HTH.

Q.

What is said above is spot on. The Optiplex with the ATI X600 with 128mb is fine. We got a load of them in out office for actual Caddies. The Engineers (mainly using AC LT 2006 )have at least 512mb & 1.4Ghz to 2.Ghz systems with basic graphics cards (to many machines to list all the different ones)

iwb

Thanks guys for the rapid responses. That really helps.

tba

onboard graphics is completely adequate as autocad make no use of the features present on modern graphics cards ie. directx.

godtabh

tba wrote:

onboard graphics is completely adequate as autocad make no use of the features present on modern graphics cards ie. directx.

Your probably right but try regenerating a massive 3-d drawing using on board graphics. I think you may struggle

tba

Agghhhhh
I struggle enough on the machine I have for 2d

PIII with 128mb of ram butchered to 112 by the onboard graphics. Still runs autocad LT though. although I manage to post between regens.

Nukem

kearnsr wrote:

Your probably right but try regenerating a massive 3-d drawing using on board graphics. I think you may struggle

have a cup of coffee and come back:rolleyes:!
Dedicated gfx is almost essential for any 3d modelling!

godtabh

Nukem wrote:

have a cup of coffee and come back:rolleyes:!
Dedicated gfx is almost essential for any 3d modelling!

The do alot of work with surveys which could have xrefs of about 10mb. Switching between view ports and moddle space can take an age. If you update your drawings it could be a bit of a nightmare.

Thankfully I'm getting a new pc tomorrw with an X600 card in it. My boards posting rate may go down!

godtabh

Nukem wrote:

have a cup of coffee and come back:rolleyes:!
Dedicated gfx is almost essential for any 3d modelling!

The do alot of work with surveys which could have xrefs of about 10mb. Switching between view ports and moddle space can take an age. If you update your drawings it could be a bit of a nightmare.

Thankfully I'm getting a new pc tomorrw with an X600 card in it. My boards posting rate may go down!

TempestSabre

Used to be you had some video card that had specific drivers for AutoCad. They usually worked best. Not sure if this is still the case. Also used to be that Nvidia cards (especially the Quadro range) were faster and more compatible for CAD work in any review I've seen. Not sure what the situation is now. For large 2D drawings a fast card will make a difference over onboard video.