Which Computers run Civil 3D adequately?

[evanwi]

Where do I look for experiences with certain computers and graphics cards with Civil 3D?

[tcorey]

http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/syscert?id=18844534&siteID=123112

Autodesk Certified Hardware Database.

[evanwi]

Thank you for the response.

Although, I've been to that site many times over the past few years.

Do you know that I have never seen the model Dell computers I'm using on that site??  Nor have I seen any of the graphics cards proposed by Dell on that site!

Do you know that the M3800 laptop advertised by Dell to be configured to run AutoCAD is not on that site?

I'm thinking the information available on that site is not worth much to me.

I'm hoping to find a forum in which I could exchange information with users who have had success with current model desktops/laptops...or not.

For instance, I just bought two Dell M4800 laptops with 8G RAM, the i7 2.7GHz CPU, and the FirePro M5100 graphics card. They seem to run AutoCAD C3D 2014 just fine.

And, I have a Dell XPS-17 that's collecting dust because it won't run C3D very well at all.

Is there such a place to converse with other computer users on this??

Thx......

[AllenJessup]

You can post to the Hardware forum. That's for all AutoCAD products but there may be some Civil users there.

I've always had luck with high end Dell Workstations. I was running a Dell T7400 up until recently. I have a Dell M6500 at home. My most recent Dell is performing well. It's got an SSD and a good hunk of ram. I also like to go with a good Nvidia card. Some say they have good results with gaming cards. But I'll stick with what I know works.

Allen Jessup


Civil 3D 2012 SP 3 / IDSP 2014
Dell Precision T3610, Xeon CPU 3.70 GHz
Win 7 Pro, 64-bit,32 GB RAM, Nvidia Quadro K4000
Samsung SSD 512GB drive, HGST (WD) 512GB drive

[evanwi]

Thanks....but, I haven't been able to find a Hardware forum.

Any hints where to look??

And, I sure understand sticking with success. The problem is Dell keeps phasing out machines I've settled into. Especially the laptops.

Would sure like to hear about successes (or failures) from other users before buying another untested machine.

Sure don't wanna get another XPS-17 brick again.

Thx......

[AllenJessup]

http://forums.autodesk.com/t5/Hardware/bd-p/116

But it looks like it's been closed.

I've had success with the high end Dells. I look at what's at the top or near top of the list and know I need a fast CPU, as much RAM as I can afford, a good Nvidia card and now an SSD.

Hopefully others will add what's worked for them. You can search for terms like Hardware, RAM and CPU in this group and see if that turns up anything useful.

Allen

[Jeff_M]

Office: Sager "Notebook" NP7280, i7-960@3.20, 12GB, 128gb SSD, 500gb 7200rpm HDD, nVidia GeForce GTX 470M, Win7 Pro x64 

Home: Sager "Notebook" NP9750, i7-3930@3.20, 32GB, 256gb SSD, 750gb 7200rpm HDD, nVidia GeForce GTX 670Mx, Win8.1 Pro x64

Both run C3D2014 quite well. The older one is 3 years old now, the other is nearly a year old. 

[dgorsman]

Lurk through this board, make a mental note of frequent posters who seem to know what they are talking about.  Have a look at their signatures - that will be a good guide as to what is being used.

[evanwi]

What are the odds AutoDesk would consider adding a new forum named something like AutoCAD Computing Hardware?

Think it would get any use??

Suspect with all the new computers/graphics cards coming out, I would consult it almost everytime I buy another machine for heavy-duty AutoCAD use.

Thx.....

Evan

[jmayo-EE]

See the specs below. I also use a Toshiba dual core AMD with 8 GB of ram purchased in 2010. They both run Civil 3D 2014 fine.