# Custom Computer?



## AprilRamone (Dec 21, 2007)

Does anyone have a custom computer that they use specifically for their photo editing?  I've been using my laptop for the past couple of years, but I hear that it's much better to use a desktop and a good monitor since it's faster and the color calibration will be easier/better.  Plus my laptop is going kaput and I think instead of buying another one, I'm going to go back to a desktop.  
Anyway, my Dad is really good with computers and I'm trying to do some research on what other pro photogs are using with their custom computers so I can figure out what I want with mine.  So if you have a set up you'd like to share, I'd appreciate it!
Thanks,
April


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## Alex_B (Dec 21, 2007)

I am using a sort of customised computer. it is a PC with a fast cpu and extra memory  (in particular the memor makes a huge difference) and a large widescreen 
with accurate colours.


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## Ls3D (Dec 21, 2007)

I just went the other way, purchasing a 'workstation replacement' class beefy laptop. 2.8 Ghz Core 2 Extreme, 4 Gigs of ram, dual 7200 RPM hard drives. The thing has dual-link DVI and will drive a 30 inch Apple Cinema Display in SLI mode.

Probably overkill for typical photo editing, but it is for 3D work and After Effects, etc. Also needed a fat write off this year. Praise the lard!

Basically any modern workstation will suffice, so perhaps you can put some softwares in your budget as well as springing for a Spyder calibration system and better than average monitor. Printer, external HDD, the list goes on..

-Shea


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## Alex_B (Dec 21, 2007)

Ls3D said:


> Probably overkill for typical photo editing,



not at all, at least not when I am batch workin on large numbers of RAW files or when reducing noise or grain from high res scans or images from digital cameras.

I always think things are too slow.


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## craig (Dec 21, 2007)

I run an iMac 20" 2.16 gig Core 2 with Lightroom and CS2. It is really satisfying. Depending on the amount of work you do a buff computer can really help your workflow.

Love & Bass


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## Snyder (Dec 21, 2007)

When im in the field shooting or traveling I use a 17" Widescreen HP notebook with 2.8 GHZ P4 proccessor 512mb ram 120Gig HD.
At home I use a Compaq 2.4GHZ P4 proccessor 1GB ram and 1TB HD and 17" LCD monitor. 
I planning on building a custom desktop strictly for video and photo work, im looking at newegg to purchas part from.


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## Digital Matt (Dec 21, 2007)

I just built a Pentium Core 2 Quad 2.4 with 4 gigs of Ram.  I gutted my previous computer and used the same case, and hard drives, which contained all of my photos.  It now has 1tb of drive space in it.  I don't think it's overkill at all considered the volume of photos I'm working with and what I'm doing to them.  Not to mention, I'm a graphic designer and I am often running 2-3 Adobe applications at once, which can really hog system resources.


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## Snyder (Dec 21, 2007)

How the Quad Core system working? I heard there are problems with it for personal pc but worked great more so for servers.


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## Digital Matt (Dec 21, 2007)

What problems are you hearing with it?  It's super fast on my end.


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## Snyder (Dec 21, 2007)

Do you have any problems with window crashing alot, or non compatability with other hardware and software?


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## Digital Matt (Dec 21, 2007)

Snyder said:


> Do you have any problems with window crashing alot, or non compatability with other hardware and software?



I've had no problems with anything crashing.  I'm running Windows XP SP2 and the Adobe CS2 suite, with super performance.  I've installed all kinds of various software from anti-virus to FTP, and I haven't noticed a hitch.  All of my hardware, including two monitors with webcams built in, (and all the software that comes with it) have worked fine.  Tablet works fine.  Thumbs up from me.


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## jchantelau (Dec 21, 2007)

I use the following...
Desktop
P4 2.4Ghz
4GB RAM
1TB External Storage (USB2.0)
160GB Internal Storage (SATA & ATA)

Laptop
Dell Inspiron 9300 
4GB RAM
80GB
17" Screen

Memory - 4GB
Monitor - Get the very best you can get.
Storage - 500GB drives are really reasonably priced and I would go with external storage (USB2.0/Firewire) or network attached storage.


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## Snyder (Dec 21, 2007)

Digital Matt said:


> I've had no problems with anything crashing. I'm running Windows XP SP2 and the Adobe CS2 suite, with super performance. I've installed all kinds of various software from anti-virus to FTP, and I haven't noticed a hitch. All of my hardware, including two monitors with webcams built in, (and all the software that comes with it) have worked fine. Tablet works fine. Thumbs up from me.


 
Sweet, I might have to purchase the quad core after all.


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## Viperjet (Dec 21, 2007)

Get maybe 2 or 4 gigs of RAM, a big hard drive, a big backup hard drive, good graphics card and an awesome monitor.  Everything else is up to you.


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## Christie Photo (Dec 21, 2007)

Interesting topic.  One of my plans for the new year is to add a computer and monitor for photo work ONLY.  It won't be on the network, or have any other software installed.  My files only... no customer supplied files.

-Pete


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## Ls3D (Dec 21, 2007)

> reducing noise or grain from high res scans or images



True that!  This is about the only time I can pick my nose. But given a $4,800 budget I imagine most photogz would mix up the cart a bit. 

-Shea


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## Alex_B (Dec 21, 2007)

Ls3D said:


> True that!  This is about the only time I can pick my nose. But given a $4,800 budget I imagine most photogz would mix up the cart a bit.
> 
> -Shea



funny enough, that in my mixed film / digital world, the most demanding computational tasks are related to scans, not to images from digital cams


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## AprilRamone (Dec 21, 2007)

Snyder said:


> I planning on building a custom desktop strictly for video and photo work, im looking at newegg to purchas part from.


 
I bought a 750 gig External HD from them back in April for $300.  I love it and I don't know how I got along without it before.


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## AprilRamone (Dec 21, 2007)

Thanks for your responses everyone.  My dad and I have already been going over a lot of what I will need and I was just curious to see what other photographers were using.  He already knows that my main emphasis is to have a computer that is FAST while running all of my editing software and a good monitor


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## Holy Ghosted (Dec 23, 2007)

The one thing I try and keep in mind on computer and alot of my electronics is I will either need to or want to replace them in 3-5 years so I try to make sure that it will pay for itself and its replacement in that time. With that this is my current set up.  
My location laptop is a MacBook Pro 2.4 SR 4 gig ram 200Gb 7200 rpm hard drive w. duel 160 externals on fire wires for back ups.
My main is a Mac pro duel quad core / 6 Gig Ram, 4 750 7200 internal HD's, & ATI 1900 graphics card, and a decent monitor set up


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## RyanLilly (Dec 26, 2007)

Holy Ghosted said:


> My main is a Mac pro duel quad core / 6 Gig Ram, 4 750 7200 internal HD's, & ATI 1900 graphics card, and a decent monitor set up



So, is that an 8-core Mac Pro? I hate you!


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## Holy Ghosted (Dec 31, 2007)

RyanLilly said:


> So, is that an 8-core Mac Pro? I hate you!



I just got to impatient waiting for my old computer to do things :er: so I just bought the biggest baddest I could  and am very happy I did  :smileys:


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## nicfargo (Jan 4, 2008)

I built my own system for photography.  
Intel Core 2 Quad 6600 (Overclocked to 3.0ghz).  8gb RAM.  2 160gb WD Raptor Drives (10k).  2 Nvidia 8800 GTS 512mb Video Cards.  I use a Dell 24'' Monitor...and I'm thinking about getting a second one for dual screen action!  

This system screams.  When I'm in lightroom and I say edit photo in Photoshop, Photoshop opens instantly.  I love this kind of speed.  I also use my computer for video editing and it is blazing fast in this regard as well.  Honestly though...what saves me the most time is my pen table (WACOM Intuos 3).  I can use a pen to edit instead of a mouse, and I love it.  Speeds up my workflow a ton.


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## Digital Matt (Jan 4, 2008)

nicfargo said:


> I built my own system for photography.
> Intel Core 2 Quad 6600 (Overclocked to 3.0ghz).  8gb RAM.  2 160gb WD Raptor Drives (10k).  2 Nvidia 8800 GTS 512mb Video Cards.  I use a Dell 24'' Monitor...and I'm thinking about getting a second one for dual screen action!
> 
> This system screams.  When I'm in lightroom and I say edit photo in Photoshop, Photoshop opens instantly.  I love this kind of speed.  I also use my computer for video editing and it is blazing fast in this regard as well.  Honestly though...what saves me the most time is my pen table (WACOM Intuos 3).  I can use a pen to edit instead of a mouse, and I love it.  Speeds up my workflow a ton.



What OS are you running with 8gb of ram?  64bit?


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## nicfargo (Jan 4, 2008)

Digital Matt said:


> What OS are you running with 8gb of ram?  64bit?



Yes, I'm running 64bit.  For those of you wondering why the question, 32bit operating systems can only support up to 4gb or RAM (excluding Linux).  I was running Windows XP Pro 64bit until I got my 8800 GTS 512mb which support DirectX10.  I figured I'd give Vista a try.  It hasn't been too bad...but I also work IT so I know how to get around a lot of problems.


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## Digital Matt (Jan 4, 2008)

I didn't realize that the Adobe products work in a 64bit OS.  Are the versions specific to 64bit or are you running 32bit apps?


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## nicfargo (Jan 4, 2008)

Digital Matt said:


> I didn't realize that the Adobe products work in a 64bit OS.  Are the versions specific to 64bit or are you running 32bit apps?



Just running CS3 and Lightroom as 32bit applications.  Just about all applications will work in a 64bit environment...it's drivers that you have to worry about.  If Adobe programs need 64bit drivers they must already be packaged with them...which would make sense because Adobe seems pretty on top of things when it comes to being compatible with the newest thing out there...and 64bit has been around for years now.


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## Digital Matt (Jan 4, 2008)

Well, I just built a computer with a Core2 Quad.  I have 4 gigs of ram but 32bit XP only recognizes 3.25 of it.  I'd love to upgrade to 64 bit and buy another 4.


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## nicfargo (Jan 4, 2008)

Digital Matt said:


> Well, I just built a computer with a Core2 Quad.  I have 4 gigs of ram but 32bit XP only recognizes 3.25 of it.  I'd love to upgrade to 64 bit and buy another 4.



I slightly remember there being a way to trick XP 32bit into seeing all 4gb...because it is supposed to be able to...I think if you do a Google search you'd find something.  There are some commands that you have to do in the CMD and it should recognize all 4.  Biggest thing about moving to 64bit is making sure your hardware will work.  I know my wireless card (DLink) would not work no matter what I did...I eventually bought a new one.  The new one is a linksys and I couldn't even use linksys drivers...I had to get the chipset maker's drivers (broadcom I believe).  Everything else works great though.

Also, I checked out your website...Your images are stunning.  I really like them.  I wish I lived near a huge lake/ocean like you do.  That would be awesome.  Great portrait/promotional shots as well.


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## Ls3D (Jan 4, 2008)

> a way to trick XP 32bit into seeing all 4gb


It is called the 3GB switch (sounds like it is already being used) and involves editing your boot.ini - however it will not enable the full 4 gigs as this is a limitation of the OS.

You can read my notes on it HERE.

-Shea :mrgreen:


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## Digital Matt (Jan 4, 2008)

Thanks Nic.  I haven't done anything to the OS to trick it into seeing 3.25gigs.  That's what it saw upon installation.  I think I'll just look into getting a 64bit version.  I hate spending a fortune on the OS, but if it will increase my speed pipeline, then I'm all for it.


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## chrisk121 (Jan 4, 2008)

My PC

Core 2 Duo e6420 2.14 OC'd to 3.2ghz
2GB Ram 667mhz (OCZ Gold Gamers)
Evga 8800gts 640mb
Asus P5N-E-SLI
320gb SATA Seagate HD (Needs Upgrading)
WinXP SP2

Runs Photoshop CS3 excellent (Runs everything in CS3 Masters collection perfectly)


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## Holy Ghosted (Jan 5, 2008)

nicfargo said:


> I slightly remember there being a way to trick XP 32bit into seeing all 4gb...because it is supposed to be able to...I think if you do a Google search you'd find something.  There are some commands that you have to do in the CMD and it should recognize all 4.  Biggest thing about moving to 64bit is making sure your hardware will work.  I know my wireless card (DLink) would not work no matter what I did...I eventually bought a new one.  The new one is a linksys and I couldn't even use linksys drivers...I had to get the chipset maker's drivers (broadcom I believe).  Everything else works great though.
> 
> Also, I checked out your website...Your images are stunning.  I really like them.  I wish I lived near a huge lake/ocean like you do.  That would be awesome.  Great portrait/promotional shots as well.



Ya all that is why I went with a Mac I just do not have the patience or time to try and get my computer to work so I just bought one that does


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## Digital Matt (Jan 5, 2008)

Holy Ghosted said:


> Ya all that is why I went with a Mac I just do not have the patience or time to try and get my computer to work so I just bought one that does



And you paid 4x as much.  Now, let's not turn this into a Mac/Pc debate.  The thread is about custom computers.


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## nicfargo (Jan 5, 2008)

Macs are good and all, but I know too much about PC's and how to get them to run just the way I want to let myself go to a Mac.  If I was just starting out never had a computer before, I would definately consider a Mac.  Unfortunately, if I didn't work with PC's, I wouldn't have a job right now.  99% of businesses use PC's...and I hope it stays that way for my sake


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## chrisk121 (Jan 5, 2008)

nicfargo said:


> Macs are good and all, but I know too much about PC's and how to get them to run just the way I want to let myself go to a Mac.  If I was just starting out never had a computer before, I would definately consider a Mac.  Unfortunately, if I didn't work with PC's, I wouldn't have a job right now.  99% of businesses use PC's...and I hope it stays that way for my sake



More and more businesses are buying macs, you might have to learn them.


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## Holy Ghosted (Jan 5, 2008)

Digital Matt said:


> And you paid 4x as much.  Now, let's not turn this into a Mac/Pc debate.  The thread is about custom computers.



It is no debate I know a mechanic can buy a used car that is in ruff shape and take it on a trip. If that car brakes down on him he has the ability and the tools to fix that car.
I on the other hand I only want to carry tools to take pictures and things I need for my trip so if my car brakes down I would have the expense of lost time, a tow truck, and a mechanic so for me a car like that is out of the question it would cost me more.
 I seen my pc as the same way before I got my Macs I was having to load them with more tools and always doing maintenance to keep them running. That just did not feel right for me to pay a few thousand dollars on a computer that I always had to do that to. If I took photos for you charged you market value then told you that you have to do all the pp and printing you would say I was nuts.
 My work station did not cost 4x as much you must not have priced how much it cost to get duel Xeon  Clovertown or Woodcrest  processors in a hp or dell or some one like that. If you try and get the same through dell you have to get a server class and you will pay more then the Mac pro. So like I said for me and my home work by not ever having to do any maintenance on my computers and having tools running in the background  saves me time which saves me money.


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