Building a 3d modeling/photoshop machine

[GeorgeDiego]

My budget is around $1500
I deal with/create large 2D photoshop files (24"X36" 300dpi, 20+ layers, etc) and do some 3d modeling and effects using sketchup and 3ds. I do not render animations but I do render highly detailed stills.

Borrowing some from the "top notch" sticky here is what I have so far -

Antec Sonata Plus 550 Black/ Silver Steel ATX Mid Tower Computer Case 550W - $149

LITE-ON 20X DVD±R DVD Burner with LightScribe Black SATA Model -$37.99

Seagate Barracuda 7200.11 ST3500320AS 500GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - $89.99

Seagate Barracuda 7200.10 ST380815AS 80GB 7200 RPM SATA 3.0Gb/s Hard Drive - $39.99 (scratch drive)

EVGA 512-P3-N841-AR GeForce 8800GTS (G92) 512MB 256-bit GDDR3 PCI Express 2.0 x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Video Card - $239.99

G.SKILL 2GB (2 x 1GB) 240-Pin DDR2 SDRAM DDR2 800 (PC2 6400) Dual Channel Kit Desktop Memory Model F2-6400CL5D-2GBNQ - ($44.99 each)X2

GIGABYTE GA-EP35-DS3L LGA 775 Intel P35 ATX Intel Motherboard - $89.99

Intel Core 2 Quad Q9450 Yorkfield 2.66GHz LGA 775 95W Quad-Core Processor Model BX80569Q9450 - $349.99

Microsoft Windows Vista Ultimate SP1 64-bit - $179

Subtotal: $1,267.90

Is there component that could be upgraded or improved upon for my particular application and stay under $1500?

[The Wise Monkey]

You may want to invest in 8GB of RAM, as this is what will be most used in photoshop.

Also, why have you got two HDs?

Other than that, everything looks good. :)

[GeorgeDiego]

Thanks for the RAM advice. The reason for the extra hardrive is to provide a scratch drive for Photoshop. I've always been under the impression that a separate hardrive allows for faster operation in this aspect.

[The Wise Monkey]

Ok then, now that I understand what a scratch drive is... XD

You might want to opt for a faster WD Raptor 10,000RPM drive in that case, as this will offer even more of a performance boost.