Puget systems quote

[linecrest]

Hi friends, I just had a consultation with a PC builder over at Puget Systems, and for my specific needs, this is what he recommended. Very curious to see what you guys make of this. Btw, I mostly use After Effects, C4D, Red Shift and Houdini. lots of 2d animation and 3d rendering. Here's what they said.

Does this seem like a good deal to you? Would love to hear any feedback you could lend me. thanks guys.

 

[Jerry James]

Hi friends, I just had a consultation with a PC builder over at Puget Systems, and for my specific needs, this is what he recommended. Very curious to see what you guys make of this. Btw, I mostly use After Effects, C4D, Red Shift and Houdini. lots of 2d animation and 3d rendering. Here's what they said. View attachment 188

Does this seem like a good deal to you? Would love to hear any feedback you could lend me. thanks guys.

It's a good build (from a specs POV). For comparison, here's what our PC builder spits out for your workloads:

CGDirector.com Parts List: https://www.cgdirector.com/pc-builder/?=6NFf9

CPU: Intel Core i9 13900K 3.0GHz 24-Core Processor ($599.97)
CPU Cooler: be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4 ($89.90)
Motherboard: Gigabyte Z690 Aero D ATX LGA1700 ($307.82)
GPU: Nvidia RTX 4090 24GB - ZOTAC Gaming ($1866.61)
Memory: 64GB (2x32GB) G.Skill Trident Z5 DDR5-6000 CL30 ($379.99)
Storage SSD: Samsung 860 EVO 2TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($252.00)
Storage PCIe-SSD: WD Black SN850X 2TB NVMe M.2 Solid State Drive ($214.95)
Power Supply: Corsair RMx Series RM1000x 1000W ATX Power Supply ($277.00)
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 Black ATX Mid Tower Case ($150.23)
Total: $4138.47

 

[linecrest]

It's a good build (from a specs POV). For comparison, here's what our PC builder spits out for your workloads:

CGDirector.com Parts List: https://www.cgdirector.com/pc-builder/?=6NFf9

CPU: Intel Core i9 13900K 3.0GHz 24-Core Processor ($599.97)
CPU Cooler: be quiet! Dark Rock Pro 4 ($89.90)
Motherboard: Gigabyte Z690 Aero D ATX LGA1700 ($307.82)
GPU: Nvidia RTX 4090 24GB - ZOTAC Gaming ($1866.61)
Memory: 64GB (2x32GB) G.Skill Trident Z5 DDR5-6000 CL30 ($379.99)
Storage SSD: Samsung 860 EVO 2TB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($252.00)
Storage PCIe-SSD: WD Black SN850X 2TB NVMe M.2 Solid State Drive ($214.95)
Power Supply: Corsair RMx Series RM1000x 1000W ATX Power Supply ($277.00)
Case: Fractal Design Define R5 Black ATX Mid Tower Case ($150.23)
Total: $4138.47

Holy smokes! That's amazing! Thanks Jerry! With this I would be able to invest more into the hardware. In which case I definitely want the 120 Gb RAM.....Are there any other upgrades you can think of for better after effects and C4D Redshift rendering? I see that this graphics card is for gaming. Should that be something to consider?

 

[Jerry James]

Are there any other upgrades you can think of for better after effects and C4D Redshift rendering?

For After Effects yeah, more RAM is always a good choice. Other than that, not much you'll need to change here tbh.

I see that this graphics card is for gaming. Should that be something to consider?

Oh yeah, it should be fine. Zotacs used to be loud, not too sure if that's changed nowadays. ASUS TUF or the Nvidia RTX 4090 Founders Edition is a good pick for good thermals and low noise. Can go for similar options from ASUS, MSI, etc safely too. ASUS Strix and MSI SUPRIM are some of the higher-end options in the market.

PS. Of course, when you build yourself, you do lose out on the warranty and service that SIs like Puget offer, so it's just something to keep in mind.

 

[linecrest]

For After Effects yeah, more RAM is always a good choice. Other than that, not much you'll need to change here tbh.


Oh yeah, it should be fine. Zotacs used to be loud, not too sure if that's changed nowadays. ASUS TUF or the Nvidia RTX 4090 Founders Edition is a good pick for good thermals and low noise. Can go for similar options from ASUS, MSI, etc safely too. ASUS Strix and MSI SUPRIM are some of the higher-end options in the market.

PS. Of course, when you build yourself, you do lose out on the warranty and service that SIs like Puget offer, so it's just something to keep in mind.

Do i need to pick a different product for the RAM upgrade or just double it up with that same link?

 

[Jerry James]

Do i need to pick a different product for the RAM upgrade or just double it up with that same link?

Buy double if you can't find a similar kit of 4. But getting a full kit is always the best option. Mixing memory isn't an exact science, unfortunately.

You can find out more here if you're curious - https://www.cgdirector.com/can-you-mix-ram-brands-memory-modules/

 

[linecrest]

Hey Jerry,
I ordered everything through your links, just wanted to say thanks again and i will report back soon on how she performs. Are there any other tools or connectors or anything that should pickup while my orders are coming in? Thanks

 

[Pitsch]

Your choice of Ram was the right one. Keep at 4800. Do not go above that. The cpu can’t handle 4 dimms at the same time with frequencies above 4000Mhz. I bought pretty much the same specs you did, with the difference that I opted for 4 DIMMS Kingston fury 5600Mhz. The build came with the XMP (Ram overclock) activated, so the pc was running at 5600MHz. It was unstable as hell, crashing all the time. Couldn’t handle a C4D render. I got me really scared since I invested in this rig from a pure work perspective and it wasn’t making the cut. Making the story short, after a phone call with the pc builder we ended turning off XMP, making the pc run at 4000MHz and now it runs smoothly, doesn’t overheat and it’s a workhorse. After some research on this subject, I found that this cpu i9 13900k only handles the maximum ram frequencies when it has 64Gb installed . If you go to 128Gb it doesn’t anymore. So if you’re planing to spend an extra fee for ultra speed ram, just don’t. It’s a waste of money because the cpu doesn’t make use of it if you populate all the slots. I hope you guys write an article on this. I did this mistake, because I wasn’t well informed and ended spending way more that I should. Keep up the good work

 

[linecrest]

Wow! Thanks for this @Pitsch. So you removed 64 Gb of RAM and turned off the XMP? Or did you only turn off the XMP and leave all the RAM? Also, I am dreading the idea of assembling this myself at this point, I don't suppose you know of any friendly PC builders in the San Diego area that you could recommend do you? lol.

 

[Pitsch]

I kept the 128Gb of ram (4 slots) because I’d rather have more ram than faster ram. I work in Archviz and some times I have lots of vegetation that consume a lot of ram. Sometimes 64Gb isn’t enough for me. So, I kept all the ram installed and deactivated XMP in the BIOS and now it’s working on base frequency. No overclocking. So I paid 5600 but I use 4000.
As for the build, I’m from Portugal so I can’t help you on that. I’d say if you don’t feel comfortable leave it to someone who knows.

 

[Jerry James]

I bought pretty much the same specs you did, with the difference that I opted for 4 DIMMS Kingston fury 5600Mhz. The build came with the XMP (Ram overclock) activated, so the pc was running at 5600MHz. It was unstable as hell, crashing all the time. Couldn’t handle a C4D render.

Yikes, that sounds rough. Since you have a 5600 kit, you should have an easier time getting it to run on something like DDR5-4800 if you're using a motherboard that has a Try-It feature. But then it does involve getting into manually tweaking your memory.

Is your BIOS updated to the latest version and what motherboard are you using with the 13900K?

I hope you guys write an article on this. I did this mistake, because I wasn’t well informed and ended spending way more that I should. Keep up the good work

DDR5 is so new that there are not enough kits on the market to make an informed decision yet sadly. The best way is still to check your motherboard's QVL. So, for example in @linecrest's case, if he's opting for the Aero D - here's the QVL: https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/Z690-AERO-D-rev-1x/support#support-memsup

Here's what shows up when you sort by number of modules tested -

You can see that for varying capacities and manufacturers, the board can't seem to go above DDR5-4800 when using 4 sticks of memory when tweaking manually.

 

[linecrest]

@Jerry James are you thinking I'm going run into the same problem as @Pitsch with this RAM/motherboard config? Should I start thinking about swapping out motherboard or RAM? I ordered everything from here....CGDirector.com Parts List: https://www.cgdirector.com/pc-builder/?=6NFf9

 

[Jerry James]

@Jerry James are you thinking I'm going run into the same problem as @Pitsch with this RAM/motherboard config?

Most likely you'll have to run at lower-than-rated speeds and set them manually. That said, BIOS updates and/or system upgrades might change this.

Another option is to save $100 per RAM kit and go with something a DDR5-4800 kit (like this one) - https://www.amazon.com/Crucial-4800MHz-Desktop-Memory-CT32G48C40U5/dp/B09HW6ZJV5

The Crucial kit linked above, in particular, behaves well in my tests with most motherboards even with 4x16GB sticks at DDR5-4800. You could save a couple hundred $$ and switch your order to that one. In that case, setting XMP should be the only thing you need to do unless you're really really unlucky.

 

[linecrest]

Okay. So let's say I really wanted to utilize the full 128Gb of RAM at DDR5-6000. Is there a CPU that I could switch to and still keep my current config. At this point pretty much that whole order has been delivered except for the graphics card, which is coming today i think. So, I will definitely test it out and see what happens. But in case i DO run into those problems, could you advise me on how to proceed if I wanted to keep that RAM config?

 

[Jerry James]

Is there a CPU that I could switch to and still keep my current config.

For now nope. From a motherboard POV, people seem to be having better luck with MSI motherboards. Their QVL is far more expansive too. Here's an example from the Z790 Tomahawk (Supported speed).

 

[Jerry James]

But in case i DO run into those problems, could you advise me on how to proceed if I wanted to keep that RAM config?

Well, there's the easy way - run everything at base clocks until BIOS updates or future system upgrades make DDR5-6000 on 4 sticks more stable. (Not recommended)

The harder way is to manually tweak the timings in your BIOS. You'll have to watch a few tutorial videos for the Gigabyte BIOS and how to navigate memory-related settings.

PS. If you're really set on running the memory as high as possible without diving into the BIOS too much, I'd encourage a motherboard change to MSI. That way you'll have access to their Memory Try It! feature that lets you try out a bunch of different preset timings to figure out how high you can set your speed without losing stability.

 

[linecrest]

Hey @Jerry James, I am here with a nice young man from the IT shop assembling the computer now, and he is saying that the cooling fan doesn't fit on this motherboard with 4 sticks of RAM installed. Any advice here?

 

[Pitsch]

Go for an AIO. I installed a Corsair icue h150 360mm. It is really good

 

[linecrest]

Oh nice. Okay thanks. @Pitsch

 

[Pitsch]

Yikes, that sounds rough. Since you have a 5600 kit, you should have an easier time getting it to run on something like DDR5-4800 if you're using a motherboard that has a Try-It feature. But then it does involve getting into manually tweaking your memory.

Is your BIOS updated to the latest version and what motherboard are you using with the 13900K?


DDR5 is so new that there are not enough kits on the market to make an informed decision yet sadly. The best way is still to check your motherboard's QVL. So, for example in @linecrest's case, if he's opting for the Aero D - here's the QVL: https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/Z690-AERO-D-rev-1x/support#support-memsup

Here's what shows up when you sort by number of modules tested -
View attachment 195
You can see that for varying capacities and manufacturers, the board can't seem to go above DDR5-4800 when using 4 sticks of memory when tweaking manually.

Hi there! Yeah, it got me really worried cause I thought one of the components was defective.

I believe the guys who did the assemble updated the BIOS. I remember them mentioning that. I have a Gigabyte Aorus Master z790