PC for Photography

[Anthony.Ralph]

As some considerable time has elapsed since I bought my last PCSpecialist computer, it has taken time to educate myself with the advances that have taken place, so any comments would be welcome as I close in on a definite specification.

The primary use will be for Photoshop/Lightroom, possibly some light video, as well as Microsoft 365 etc. It will not be overclocked and will drive a BenQ SW272U 4K monitor with a 60Hz refresh rate and will not be used for gaming. On the face of it, the spec below might seem ott but with the advent of AI in Adobe products there are increasing demands on all components especially SSDs and graphics cards. I have found over the years, what seem an over specc'd machine today, becomes the norm in five years time. Budget is £2000 max.

I am still slightly confused about cooling and fans and have noted a liquid cooled system although I wonder if this is necessary so thoughts on this subject would be particularly welcome.

Anthony

Case
CORSAIR 4000D RGB AIRFLOW TEMPERED GLASS GAMING CASE - WHITE
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i7 16-Core Processor i7-13700 (Up to 5.2GHz) 30MB Cache
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING Z790-PLUS WIFI (DDR5, LGA1700, USB 3.2, PCIe 5.0) - ARGB Ready
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR5 4800MHz (2 x 16GB)
Graphics Card
12GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 3060 - HDMI, DP, LHR
Graphics Card Support Bracket
PCS GRAPHICS CARD SUPPORT BRACKET
1st M.2 SSD Drive
1TB SAMSUNG 970 EVO PLUS M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3500MB/R, 3300MB/W)
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB SAMSUNG 970 EVO PLUS M.2, PCIe NVMe (up to 3500MB/R, 3300MB/W)
1st Storage Drive
4TB SEAGATE IRONWOLF PRO 3.5", 7200 RPM 128MB CACHE
Power Supply
CORSAIR 750W RMe SERIES™ MODULAR 80 PLUS® GOLD, ULTRA QUIET
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Processor Cooling
CORSAIR iCUE H150i ELITE RGB High Performance CPU Cooler
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Extra Case Fans
1 x 120mm Thermaltake TOUGHFAN 12 Case Fan
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
ONBOARD LAN PORT
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 11 Professional 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10/11 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Microsoft® Edge
Keyboard & Mouse
LOGITECH® MK540 WIRELESS KEYBOARD & MOUSE COMBO
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 6 to 8 working days
Price: £1,962.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/intel-z790-ddr5-pc/3uZk6X!dnD/

 

[Bhuna50]

Can you include the link please that is at the bottom as well please - this will save those giving advice a bit of time when re-speccing bits and pieces for you, rather than them having to start from scratch on the configurator.

Thanks.

 

[Anthony.Ralph]

Edited my post as requested...

Thanks Andy.

Anthony

 

[Steveyg]

Hi mate you can get a much better performing machine for your money

Case
LIAN LI LANCOOL 205 MESH C GAMING CASE - Solid case
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 9 7900 12 Core CPU (4.0GHz-5.4GHz/76MB CACHE/AM5) - Just better than the 13700 in pretty much any task. It's single core performance is great in Adobe products
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING B650-PLUS WIFI (DDR5, USB 3.2, 6Gb/s) - adequate motherboard
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR5 6000MHz (2 x 16GB) - Space to add more RAM later, Ryzen CPU's need the fastest RAM they can get to perform optimally. This is the current sweet spot for Ryzen and RAM speeds
Graphics Card
12GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 4070 - HDMI, DP, LHR - Much stronger than the 3060, Nvidia is still the way to go for Adobe products. AMD are offering a lot of power for great prices so they are a strong consideration in the gaming space but productivity is still firmly Nvidia's wheelhouse
1st M.2 SSD Drive
512GB SOLIDIGM P44 PRO GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 7000MB/sR, 4700MB/sW) - Super fast boot drive, the idea is to have your operating system and you main programs you use on here. Keep it around 50-60% full and it'll ensure that it runs at it's optimally speeds at all times. All drives tend to slow as they fill up and the SSD tend to start that slow down around the 60% mark
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB SOLIDIGM P41+ GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 4125MB/sR, 3325MB/sW) - This is the working disc, basically where you save your project and work from. Would definitely be worth picking up a 3TB Seagate HDD at 7200rpm for basic storage of projects. I wouldn't work direct from a HDD these days but they are still brilliant robust and durable storage. Just note the Ironwolf drives can be very loud they are designed for server racks less in desktops
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1000W RMx SERIES™ - MODULAR 80 PLUS GOLD, ULTRA QUIET - probably super overkill but it'll offer plenty of power for more components, upgrades or replacements later down the line. Also let the computer itself run cooler and quieter
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead, 1.0mm Core)
Processor Cooling
CORSAIR iCUE H115i ELITE CAPELLIX XT RGB High Performance CPU Cooler - Super cooler more than enough for the 7900 plus it's very quiet
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
ONBOARD 2.5Gbe LAN PORT
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 11 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KUK-00003]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10/11 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Microsoft® Edge
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 6 to 8 working days
Price: £1,999.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/Cg0vmY23RG/

 

[Anthony.Ralph]

Hi mate you can get a much better performing machine for your money

Case
LIAN LI LANCOOL 205 MESH C GAMING CASE - Solid case
Processor (CPU)
AMD Ryzen 9 7900 12 Core CPU (4.0GHz-5.4GHz/76MB CACHE/AM5) - Just better than the 13700 in pretty much any task. It's single core performance is great in Adobe products
Motherboard
ASUS® TUF GAMING B650-PLUS WIFI (DDR5, USB 3.2, 6Gb/s) - adequate motherboard
Memory (RAM)
32GB Corsair VENGEANCE DDR5 6000MHz (2 x 16GB) - Space to add more RAM later, Ryzen CPU's need the fastest RAM they can get to perform optimally. This is the current sweet spot for Ryzen and RAM speeds
Graphics Card
12GB NVIDIA GEFORCE RTX 4070 - HDMI, DP, LHR - Much stronger than the 3060, Nvidia is still the way to go for Adobe products. AMD are offering a lot of power for great prices so they are a strong consideration in the gaming space but productivity is still firmly Nvidia's wheelhouse
1st M.2 SSD Drive
512GB SOLIDIGM P44 PRO GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 7000MB/sR, 4700MB/sW) - Super fast boot drive, the idea is to have your operating system and you main programs you use on here. Keep it around 50-60% full and it'll ensure that it runs at it's optimally speeds at all times. All drives tend to slow as they fill up and the SSD tend to start that slow down around the 60% mark
1st M.2 SSD Drive
2TB SOLIDIGM P41+ GEN 4 M.2 NVMe PCIe SSD (up to 4125MB/sR, 3325MB/sW) - This is the working disc, basically where you save your project and work from. Would definitely be worth picking up a 3TB Seagate HDD at 7200rpm for basic storage of projects. I wouldn't work direct from a HDD these days but they are still brilliant robust and durable storage. Just note the Ironwolf drives can be very loud they are designed for server racks less in desktops
Power Supply
CORSAIR 1000W RMx SERIES™ - MODULAR 80 PLUS GOLD, ULTRA QUIET - probably super overkill but it'll offer plenty of power for more components, upgrades or replacements later down the line. Also let the computer itself run cooler and quieter
Power Cable
1 x 1.5 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead, 1.0mm Core)
Processor Cooling
CORSAIR iCUE H115i ELITE CAPELLIX XT RGB High Performance CPU Cooler - Super cooler more than enough for the 7900 plus it's very quiet
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
ONBOARD 6 CHANNEL (5.1) HIGH DEF AUDIO (AS STANDARD)
Network Card
ONBOARD 2.5Gbe LAN PORT
USB/Thunderbolt Options
MIN. 2 x USB 3.0 & 2 x USB 2.0 PORTS @ BACK PANEL + MIN. 2 FRONT PORTS
Operating System
Windows 11 Home 64 Bit - inc. Single Licence [KUK-00003]
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Windows Recovery Media
Windows 10/11 Multi-Language Recovery Image - Unlimited Downloads from Online Account
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft 365® (Operating System Required)
Anti-Virus
NO ANTI-VIRUS SOFTWARE
Browser
Microsoft® Edge
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 6 to 8 working days
Price: £1,999.00 including VAT and Delivery

Unique URL to re-configure: https://www.pcspecialist.co.uk/saved-configurations/amd-am5-pc/Cg0vmY23RG/

Thanks for responding Steve, I found your alternative spec + comments very useful and good food for thought.

Anthony