Building a PC for digital art

wekanian 2021-09-20 06:13:12 UTC #1

Hi guys! Please recommend me specs for PC.

I want to build a PC since it’s gonna be cheaper. I am going to use it mainly with CSP for comics, also a little gaming with The Sims 4, streaming and video editing once in awhile.

What specs you would recommend that it’s going to be comfortable without lags but not overkilling it. (I prefer Intel processor btw)

myumyudapao 2021-09-20 06:29:06 UTC #2

for a good cheaper choice for intel processor,

i5 , atleast 8gb ram and a graphic card, (although you might experience lags but just minimal)

better choice i7 ,16gb ram, and a graphic card. also better choice for storage is SSD than HDD

wekanian 2021-09-20 07:41:32 UTC #3

Yeah seems like i7 16gb will be the sweet spot. My laptop now is i5 (gen 4 tho) with 8gb ram, is usable but occasionally lags, not bad but noticeable.

darthmongoose 2021-09-20 08:31:41 UTC #4

RAM is the really key thing for digital art. When you're working with a lot of layers, you'll be thankful for investing in a decent amount of RAM. A late i5 with 16 gig of RAM sounds like it should be solid.

One big piece of advice I'll give you for building a PC that was given to me when I built one: Never skimp on the power supply (PSU). People often cheap out on their PSU and it's never a good idea. A decent PSU will really help your computer work more efficiently and all the parts will last longer, and there's a much lower chance of disasters due to power fluctuation.

wekanian 2021-09-20 08:37:55 UTC #5

OMG yes on the PSU!! It’s not commonly used in the place I live in but I can see it gonna save me some tears in the future XD

frgmnt 2021-09-20 13:23:31 UTC #6

I don't know if that's true??? Based on my knowledge, SSD are faster but less durable than HDD, and generally live shorter. I personally think SSD for the system and software, and additional HDD for storage is the optimal option.

Then again, I'm not a computer expert so if anyone wants to correct me go ahead.

sushy00 2021-09-20 13:30:09 UTC #7

I use SSD for the OS and an HDD for storage. I do worry that the SSD might quit working one day.

Llyrel 2021-09-20 13:40:23 UTC #8

That's what I heard too. SSD are apparently good for running your OS and/or some very demanding games, but not very good for storage. Just going with what I read/I've been told, though, not a PC expert either.

The one thing that I know for sure, though, is that SSD tends to be much more expensive than HDD. For my own pc, I recently switched to a 512 GB SDD for my OS and kept my old 2TB HDD for storage. I also definitely recommend an i5 at very least and an i7 for better performance, as well as a high RAM.

My own pc is an i7 with 12 GB of RAM. Can handle The Sims 4 with (almost) all expansion packs/game packs/whatever + a ridiculously high amount of custom content (~10 GB) on ultra settings with no lag, 3D editing softwares such as Blender and CSP/Photoshop with no problem. It does struggle on bigger canvases (like A3 sized paper or 600 DPI resolution), so if you're planning to work on a BIG canvas, I'd definitely recommend getting more than 12 GB of RAM.

arxianfall 2021-09-20 13:46:15 UTC #9

Build for gaming then, not for comics. Many just use a tablet.

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/
For parts and compatibility checks.
https://www.reddit.com/r/buildapc/ Subreddit

wekanian 2021-09-20 15:12:14 UTC #10

Thanks @frgmnt @sushy00 I think I’ll separate the programs and the storage as well then. Thanks also @Llyrel for sharing your experience! Seems like i7 16gb (idk whether my place has 12gb) is the sweet spot here. My canvas is usually A4 at 300dpi so by your description it’s gonna run smooth.

@arxianfall CMIIW but I read that content creation and gaming have different focus and CPU handles digital art better than GPU when it comes to 2D? I know that games run better with good GPU, but 2D digital art is processed better with integrated graphic in CPU? So I guess I’ll keep looking with digital art in mind and not just lumping it to gaming build.

Llyrel 2021-09-20 16:11:28 UTC #11

Yusss, A4 canvas at 300 DPI is what I use too, so if you go for an i7 with 16 GB you're definitely going to be fine!

Re: gaming vs digital art pc... again, I'm not an expert on the matter, but my own pc is technically a pre-built gaming pc (HP ENVY Phoenix desktop, which is a rather old model and had multiple parts replaced throughout the years, I believe its most recent counterpart would be the HP Omen series). If you're planning to use your pc for both gaming and art, I'd definitely recommend a gaming pc, works just fine for art and, as a bonus, runs 3D modeling programs very well (might come in handy if you want to build your own sets and/or make 3d poses for the comic)!

wekanian 2021-09-20 22:29:01 UTC #12

That’s true! But, GPU can be expensive
I am thinking to rely on the integrated graphic card in the CPU only since my laptop has been doing that and I am OK with it. I am not picky with my games.

thedude3445 2021-09-21 01:14:02 UTC #13

HDDs theoretically live longer while SSD has an eventual expiration date (way far off of course) but all those moving parts in an HDD tend to make it break faster. HDDs are good for long-term storage, like full PC backups or something. HDDs are also good for heavy downloading, while with SSDs that just helps slowly ruin the drive towards its inevitable end.

You can get like 8TB external HDD for like $100 now, so I really recommend buying one for backups and long-term storage regardless. But for everything else, as long as you have all your files backed up on HDD and/or cloud storage, SSDs are better in every way except cost, since you'll probably replace it before it dies anyway.

Kaisei 2021-09-21 08:10:54 UTC #14

For inside the computer, I'd want SSD storage - preferably 512 GB or more (it's a good idea to check how much space you are using now). You should have at least one external drive for backups (HDD is fine for this use).

Processor generation makes a big difference. Since you are coming from a 4th generation, you'll notice an improvement, even if you stick with an i5. I recently went from an i7 to an i5; but since the generation gap was so big, the new processor is much better. I have 8GB of RAM; I'm not an artist though. I do see some lag when working with multiple large photo files (photo editing is pretty much the most demanding task I ask of my computer, and sometimes I open way too many files). I think your potential specs of i7 processor and 16GB RAM would be good, if it fits your budget (that's always the hard part).

nostalgicroxas 2021-09-21 10:08:23 UTC #15

Side note on the HDD / SSD thing, keep in mind that some machines are coming with software that throttles your HDD to act like a SSD. I have an intel i7 8th gen and somewhere in the settings I saw that it's got a mode that's just auto on to make my HDD act like an SSD. Whether or not that's a good thing I don't know. I did google it once to see and the general answer is "leave it to whatever setting it was out of the factory if you don't know what you're looking at".
I've had the machine for about 2 years now and it's been mostly okay (all issues come from Windows updates causing BSOD).

wekanian 2021-09-21 15:06:19 UTC #16

Thanks for the insight! The price range is good enough for me as long as GPU is not added into the equation. I am still looking for more info whether it’s safe not adding GPU into the build.