Need help with buying computer for CAD

[redbaby48]

So I want to get solidworks and want to do complex stuff like gun receivers. How much ram shall i get and what kind of processor? Any suggestion on type of computer? Dell ?

[hub]

So I want to get solidworks and want to do complex stuff like gun receivers. How much ram shall i get and what kind of processor? Any suggestion on type of computer? Dell ?

Get at least 4GB RAM. Any modern processor will work really (it's not really hard on the processor). Dual+ core processor would be good, but not necessary. Get a good graphics card with 3D support..

[giz]

Get at least 4GB RAM. Any modern processor will work really (it's not really hard on the processor). Dual+ core processor would be good, but not necessary. Get a good graphics card with 3D support..

SolidWorks is very CPU intensive, and your processor will be the #1 contributor to performance. My home machine uses a Core2Duo (forget which model) and I simply will not use SolidWorks on that machine due to poor performance.

If I were building a new computer today, I would go with the i5 2500k. It has a decent base clock speed, 4 cores (SW will only utilize multiple cores during open/save, rendering, and some simulation), and has an unlocked multiplier that would allow me to overclock to 4Ghz+.

SolidWorks recommends a minimum of 6GB RAM with SW2012 and Windows 7, though I personally have found 4GB to be good enough for my uses. If I were working with large assemblies (500+ parts) or doing a lot of simulation, I would want more. Given the price, I would go with 8GB of fast ram (speed will be a better investment than quantity for many users).

Third on the list is GPU. The biggest thing here is that you need a supported card, that means it will be from the Nvidia Quadro/Quadro FX line or ATI FirePro/FireGL line. There will be many users who say this isn't absolutely necessary, but if you choose not to go with a supported card (they are more expensive than their consumer-grade couterparts) you are gambling with your money. You are opening yourself up to anything from annoying graphics glitches to completely non-functioning software. You will also not have Realview.

I ordered these items in order of greatest effect on performance. 4th would be hard drive speed.

SolidWorks has set up a customer-driven benchmarking site here. You can look up actual performance specs on components you are considering.

[Arich0908]

Here are my thoughts.
build your PC its always cheaper and better than any company like dell or HP can give you. IMO I would say get no less than a AMD quad core . 4 gigs of DDR3 ram and terabyte of hard drive space running on sata cable. This is a bare minimum.
If you have never done it . Building a PC is really easy . I would say a 13 year old now a days with no computer experience could be giving the parts and figure out how they fit together.
Any ways id be more than happy to help you if you would like to go this route PM me and ill drop you my email.
If you do go n just buy a built PC please go with AMD processor I think there so much better than Intel.