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Looking for hardware recommendations for best Alias performance

6 REPLIES 6
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Message 1 of 7
BillStephens8231
1040 Views, 6 Replies

Looking for hardware recommendations for best Alias performance

Hi - I may finally be switching to Mac after years of using Alias on Windows (and Unix, back in the day).  I've been pricing out machines and need to decide where to put the money to maximize Alias performance.  It'd be great if someone could help me understand when deciding between a) number of cores, b) processor speed, and c) RAM, which has the most impact on rendering speed and overall Alias performance? 

 

Basically, these three setups cost the same: 2.4GHz 8 cores w/ 48GB memory,  2.66GHz 12 cores w/ 24GB, and 2.93GHz 12 cores w/ 6GB.  Which would be the best setup for Alias?

 

I remember a tech telling me once that Alias was designed to utilize up to 8 cores - is that correct?  Would 12 ever be fully utilized?

 

Based on the hardware compatability chart, if I go Mac it looks like I'll need to replace their ATI graphics card with an nVidia Quadro - unless Alias 2012 has different requirements - does anyone know?

 

Thanks in advance for any information - I love Alias and appreciate any input here.  Cheers!

6 REPLIES 6
Message 2 of 7
chris_b
in reply to: BillStephens8231

i wouldn't get hung up on cores/speeds - any high end machine will be fast enough. Most operations in Alias don't need much CPU grunt unless you're really getting into big assemblies. Where you need to put the buck$ into is a the most expensive graphic card you can justify (Nvidia cards are great - choose from the FX or X000 series) and of course don't skimp on the RAM. Put as much in as possible -on the PC 6 gig is minimum.

 

c

 

Message 3 of 7
svolk
in reply to: chris_b

Hi.  I just purchased this computer from new egg

 

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16883227383

 

I am about to return it because alias is unusable.  I updated the graphics card software and it worked for about an hour and then the same problem occerd.  Any feedback would be awesome.   I am very upset because the data on this computer looked very impressive.  Do you think it is hardware compatability related or a software problem?  

Message 4 of 7
BillStephens8231
in reply to: svolk

Your problem appears to be an unsupported graphics card.  According to your link, in your new machine is a NVIDIA GeForce GTX 560 graphics card.  When you look at Alias' Qualified Hardware page - http://download.autodesk.com/us/aliasstudio/qualcharts/alias2012-win.htm

that card is not listed.  Only the NVIDIA Quadro and Quadro FX cards will work.  (Note - that's the Alias 2012 chart; if you're using an older version of Alias you'll need to find that chart).

 

You mentioned updating the graphics card software, but it's the actual card itself that needs to be swapped out with one of the approved cards in order for Alias to work properly.  The cheapest ones on the list run a little over $100 (but this is where you can really get better performance with a higher-end card) - and you should be able to swap it yourself pretty easily.

 

Hope this helps.  I know the frustration of needing to match graphics cards after buying a system; I've done it myself.

 

Bill.

Message 5 of 7
svolk
in reply to: BillStephens8231

Hi Bill,

 

Thanks a lot.  Your feedback is appreciated.  I would much rather keep the machine I have and just change the card, however on the autodesk hardware page only these processors computer platforms are compatable 

Intel Xeon
Intel Core
AMD Opteron

 

and my processor is a AMD FX-Series FX-6100 3.3GHz

 

So is there any risk of installing a quadro graphics card and still not having it work?

 

Thanks again for the help.  I cant wait to start making models again!


~Steve Volk

Message 6 of 7
BillStephens8231
in reply to: svolk

Sorry, Steve; unfortunately that's beyond my knowledge base.  Sounds like a question for Alias tech support or others on this site more technical than me.  I'm not familiar with how well Alias plays with different processors.  Wish I had an answer -

 

Good luck -

Message 7 of 7
svolk
in reply to: BillStephens8231

AMMMAAAZING NEWS!!!!  I purchased a nvidia quadro 4600 installed it today and the programs running very well.  One confusing thing however for people to look out for in the future is that on the recommended hardware page to the right of the graphics cards are numbers for the appropriate nvidia graphics card.  If you click the link it will bring you to download the incorrect product driver.  You must search NVIDIA's website with the product driver specified on the alias 2012 recommended hardware page.

 

Appreciate the feedback!

 

Happy modeling!

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