Building a new PC

[Anonymous]

I am looking for a few suggestions reguarding a PC which I plan to have built. I had been reading the posts and there seems to be some debate whether or not dual-processors are worth it for running ArchiCAD 8.1 (I am not sure if its worth upgrading to 9...i upgraded to 8.1 not too long ago). Also, can I expect a great difference running on either 1GB or 2GB of RAM? Since I do tend to use multiple applications at the same time, I am thinking 2GB. I plan to be working on dual-monitors, each 21 inch CRTs.

----ALSO--- for work.....
I am looking for feedback for a good plotter. I have been looking at the HP DesignJet 430 (ARCH E size paper 36") roll-fed and wanted to know if anyone had a better suggestion for plotting both ArchiCAD and AutoCAD. Most of the prints are to be black and white, so the option for color isnt necessary. The firm which I work at has been using a HP DesignJet 230 for the last 14 years, sheet fed, and its about time to replace it.

--David

[MarinRacic]

I'll be getting a new PC next week... I'm aiming at AMD Athlon64 3000, 1 GB RAM, SerialAta HDD cca 120-160 GB and nVidia GeForceFX 5900XT 128 MB video card which I'll softmod to QuadroFX 3000. A LOT cheaper than buying a regular Quadro!

Dual CPUs make sense if you'be doing a lot of rendering or simultaneously work in different apps. Solely for AC it's just not worth it...

[Anonymous]

You may want to consider the ArchiCAD upgrade. I have found significant increases in rendering speeds and redraw speeds (600% speed increases in sketch rendering times). This upgrade is the kind that you have to experience to appreciate. I actually think it is much better than advertised. It's really hard to nail down all the features, but I can already tell you I don't like going back to 8 for older projects and I've only had 9 for a few weeks. It may be better to save a some cash by not get the cutting edge system and get ArchiCAD 9 with the left over cash. Your productivity will increase enough by using 9 that I believe it will outweigh the additional performance increase of a faster machine.