Slade Preliminary Build

Hi Valdamos.....  Welcome to the forums.    That build looks good to me.   You might not get the 2400MHz out of the ram sticks and we usually recommend staying with the 1600 or 1866MHz, but for your CAD the faster ram might be useful.  

Good Luck and stay in touch.

Thanks bprat22!  I was debating between faster ram or more ram.  Any thoughts on sticking with 1600 or 1866 and bumping it up to 32 GB?  RAM makes a huge difference with CAD, though I don't really know how big of a difference it makes when it comes to RAM speed.

danjw1, thanks for the case review.  I'm thinking I'll switch back to the noise suppression level 1 and put on the Digital Storm Thermal Management Control Board & Software.  This seems like it could help with noise as well as temperature.  I've always gone back and forth on the SSD, having never had one...  Is 120 GB sufficient for a boot drive, do you pretty much just put the OS on there?

Thanks for the help thus far! My new configuration number with these adjustments is 956974.

I have switched it to 32 GB of 1600 Mhz RAM.  Presently I'm using AutoCAD 2014 3D, though I'm looking at Revit and a couple of others.  I'm also using RISA 3d for finite element modeling.  Big files in any of these software packages really start to slow things down.

So, after all the wonderful input my configuration number is 957008.  The only thing I am unsure of at this point is the power supply.  After everything I have added/upgraded is the 750W EVGA SuperNOVA Gold Rated (Dual SLI Compatible) sufficient?


Chassis Model: Special Deal Hot Seller - Corsair Obsidian 550D
Processor: Intel Core i7 4770K 3.50 GHz (Unlocked CPU) (Quad Core)
Motherboard: ASUS Sabertooth Z87 (Intel Z87 Chipset) (Features Thermal Armor and Thermal Radar)
System Memory: 32GB DDR3 1866MHz Corsair Vengeance Pro (High-Performance)
Power Supply: 750W EVGA SuperNOVA Gold Rated (Dual SLI Compatible)
Optical Drive: DVD-R/RW/CD-R/RW (DVD Writer 24x / CD-Writer 48x)
Storage Set 1: 1x SSD (120GB Intel 520 Series) <br><strong></strong>
Storage Set 2: 1x Storage (1TB Western Digital - Black Edition)
Graphics Card(s): 1x NVIDIA GeForce GTX 780 3GB (Includes PhysX)
Sound Card: Integrated Motherboard Audio
Extreme Cooling: H20: Stage 2: Digital Storm Vortex 120mm Radiator Liquid CPU Cooler (High-Performance Edition)
Chassis Fans: Upgrade All Fans to Corsair Airflow Performance Edition (Up to 6 Fans)
Airflow Control: Digital Storm Thermal Management Control Board & Software
Noise Reduction: Noise Suppression Package Stage 1 (Optimized Airflow & Fan Speeds Only)
Boost Processor: Stage 1: Overclock CPU 4.0GHz to 4.4GHz

Thanks again!

I should really reread the entire thread after posting a huge wall of text. Seems like much of what I had to suggest was already added to a revised configuration before I finalized my post.

I took a look at the system requirements for AutoCAD 2014 3D and RISA 3D. Both programs should run fine on the Slade with your revised configuration.

The Revit  system requirements indicates that it can take advantage of up to 16 cores for some of its processes so it too should run reasonably well on your revised configuration.

Please keep us posted on your final configuration and purchase. It would also be nice to read your impression of your new machine and how well it performs.



Edited by Theokritos - 28 Apr 2014 at 5:06pm

Thanks for the feedback! I went ahead and ordered the machine Tuesday night.  I got an e-mail yesterday saying they were out of the 120 GB SSD, so I went ahead and called them and ended up upgrading to the 250 GB SSD which I don't foresee me regretting at all due to the space issues Bahger mentioned.  I look forward to its arrival, am planning on taking the day off work when it is supposed to arrive :)

So, I got my computer today and I have a couple questions.  I'm unfortunately going out of town for a few days tomorrow so I probably won't be able to work at resolving them til this weekend.  But, I at least wanted to get them out there to get some replies.

I have Windows 8.1, and every time I right-click on the desktop the computer freezes briefly and the desktop goes blue for a couple seconds.  Then after that I can usually right click successfully.  I'm having a couple issues adjusting to Windows 8.1, but I expected to and that isn't a problem.

The computer seems louder than I expected, definitely louder than my old machine. I got the noise suppression package stage 1 as well as the Digital Storm Thermal Management Control Board & Software airflow control.  I can't find the airflow control software that is shown.  Is this something I have to download and doesn't come pre-installed?

Originally posted by Valdamos So, I got my computer today and I have a couple questions.  I'm unfortunately going out of town for a few days tomorrow so I probably won't be able to work at resolving them til this weekend.  But, I at least wanted to get them out there to get some replies.I have Windows 8.1, and every time I right-click on the desktop the computer freezes briefly and the desktop goes blue for a couple seconds.  Then after that I can usually right click successfully.  I'm having a couple issues adjusting to Windows 8.1, but I expected to and that isn't a problem.The computer seems louder than I expected, definitely louder than my old machine. I got the noise suppression package stage 1 as well as the <span ="ed_s" id="ed_agieas">Digital Storm Thermal Management Control Board & Software</span> airflow control.  I can't find the airflow control software that is shown.  Is this something I have to download and doesn't come pre-installed?

Hm, both of these things strike me as very aberrational. My Slade is whisper-quiet (although I do not have the same thermal management/noise suppression setup as you do). I can control my fans from Bios; I have no software for this. Under minimal load, your PC should be very quiet. As for Win 8.1, it does take a little getting used to (I quite like it, and it runs many games and applications much more efficiently than Win 7) but the momentary freeze and blue screen issues you are having sound completely wrong to me. You should contact DS tech support asap. DS is great and they will own the problems and fix them, even if they need to get the PC back (make sure you have kept the box and packaging). I don't mean to sound gloomy but you cannot settle for a loud Slade or an OS that freezes and goes to a blue screen.


Edited by Bahger - 12 May 2014 at 11:05pm

Before you do it bring up Task Manager, and select the "Processes" tab. Click the "CPU" header at the top until it shows an arrow pointing down on it. Then watch to see if what comes to the top when test it.

Hopefully it is something that will show up there so you can find it quick. If not it is probably a service that will be harder to track down.

Good luck!

Alright, I'm finally home.  I definitely don't have the software that I am supposed to have to manage the fans. And the right click issue is still present.  As it is too late on Friday night I suppose I won't be able to get any of this resolved until Monday.  Any suggestions are definitely appreciated.

I just got off the phone with customer service as their technicians were busy.  So, hopefully I'll hear back this afternoon, get the software I'm missing as well as the issue with the computer lagging out resolved...

Well, I seem to have solved the right clicking issue by switching from the digital storm background...  I have no idea how this makes sense, but apparently the original background that was delivered with my machine was somehow toxic...

I must admit I'm getting a bit frustrated with the lack of response.  I called yesterday morning and was told I'd be called back yesterday.  Then I called today about 30 minutes before they closed, was told I was next on the technician I had been assigned list and that he would call me in a few minutes, and now they have been closed for 30 minutes so I assume that isn't going to happen.  I understand stuff happens, but I feel like I'm basically being lied to, regardless of how good their intentions are.

I definitely paid good money for this machine and for it to be setup appropriately, going so far as to order their custom software and their Windows cleanup.  Then to get the machine, have their software missing which is pretty much just not paying attention when the machine was built and the background issue, which I suppose may or may not be their fault, but frustrating nonetheless.  I'm left hoping that the Windows optimization was actually done, since I don't really know what that process entails.  My friend who has ordered 2 machines from Digital Storm spoke very highly of them and is the reason I ordered my computer here, I don't know if I will be able to do the same for others after this experience...

Hm. They should not be behaving that way. It's time you put a firework under them. You may need to spell out to them how disappointed you are in both your PC and in their initial response to your issues. And tell them you will take it up the chain of command if necessary.

Edited by Bahger - 20 May 2014 at 6:40pm

Alex,

E-mail sent.

I would take off both side covers to locate it.   My guess would be near the card cages but can't say for sure. 

It looks like this........




When you find it, I would power off, unplug the 4 pin  power plug to it, reboot, uninstall the software you just installed and then power off again.  Plug the board back in , reboot, and re-install the downloaded file.

After that I don't have anything other than a bad board.  I ddon't have the HydroLux but this is a good general way to fix a corrupted issue.

Good Luck.

I hope this works out for you. Let us know.