ZBrushCentral

Ideal computer for zbrush 3.5+

Community
#1

Hi! I’m want to get a new computer for running zbrush (and playing games on the side :wink: ). Problem is, I only have a basic computer knowledge, and almost clueless to what are the good hardware available now.

What I’ve came to understand is this:
-I need a lot of ram, but zbrush only actually use 2gb?
-I have no clue where to begin choosing a graphics card, other than hearing that nvidia geforce GTX 295 is “the best”).
-I might need to wait for news of version 4 for the best specs.

I have a budget of around $2000.

Wonder if the next version of zbrush will support GPU :confused:

PS: I’ve checked out this thread too:
http://www.zbrushcentral.com/showthread.php?t=74934

#2

Hi there!

What I think you should get
Inter core i7-920 2,66Ghz 4 cores with supports hyper-threading ( 8 cores)
6-12 gb of ddr3 1600 mhz memory
asus P6T deluxe motherboard

Nvidia stopped creating gtx chips ( not all of them, not so sure). Nvidia published their new Fermi Architecture which will ship sometime around q1 2010.
We don’t know much about the new gpgpu, but will most likely be very good for 3d stuff and rendering etc.

Maybe get nvidia quadro graphics gard? or do you plan to play with your comp?

#3

The one that comes out right after you buy the one you’re going to get :wink:

#4

go for as many cores as you can afford
as far as ZBrush on windows, to allow ZBrush to use the full 4GB it’s capable of, you’ll have to have 64-bit windows and 8GB, because windows has poor memory management and splits RAM right down the middle… and 32-bit windows can’t address more than 4GB (that’s where you get your 2GB theory).
as far as ZBrush is concerned, GPU doesn’t matter… especially since zmapper has been scrapped.

#5

thanks for all the suggestions so far guys!

@invertedNorma - that explains a lot about the ram thing. So does that mean that if i have 12 GB, on 64 bit system, zbrush still only use 4gb (and 8gb for everything else)?

@jamespthornton - isnt that always the case!

@DefcoJK - Hey thanks for all the suggestions! Yes I plan on playing some games on my computer too, besides zbrush, 3ds Max 2010, and Photoshop/illustrator CS4.

#6

yes, pretty much. zBrush can use only 4GB… the rest will be delegated by your OS and other apps running.