All posts by Drew

My AutoCAD experience

Video Card Reviews

As a designer, AutoCAD is my best friend but once I tried getting It on one of my computers it ran terribly and took a long time to launch. To solve this I decided to find a good graphics card for my computer so that it can actually handle my work on AutoCAD.  I decided to use a budget of $500 on this graphics card so it’s reasonably affordable for all of you. For everyone who doesn’t already know what AutoCAD is then here’s a short explanation of the basics with the power of ChatGPT, “AutoCAD is a powerful computer software used for drafting and designing in industries like architecture and engineering. It serves as a digital drafting board, enabling users to create precise 2D and 3D drawings efficiently. With a wide range of tools and features, it supports everything from basic sketches to intricate designs. AutoCAD allows for precise measurements and dimensions, ensuring accuracy in the final product. Additionally, it facilitates collaboration among team members and assists in generating essential documentation such as blueprints and technical drawings.” (“ChatGPT Conversation on AutoCAD.” OpenAI, 25 Apr. 2024).

Now let’s go over the requirements for AutoCAD to be usable.

Basic: 1 GB GPU with 29 GB/s Bandwidth and DirectX 11 compliant
Recommended: 4 GB GPU with 106 GB/s Bandwidth and DirectX 12 compliant

These requirements are fairly low which means it will be easy to find a suitable graphics card, you could probably go lower on how much you want to spend on a graphics card but I decided to go all out on choosing mine because I want to be able to play all of my games at the best possible settings and get my projects exported as fast as possible.

 

The Radeon RX 7800 XT for $489.99

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

This one fits right into my budget and it works well for it too. It definitely is a bit overkill with its 624GBps of total bandwidth and 16 GB GDDR6 size but it’s worth it. ASRock is the manufacturer of this and they did a great job. While trying to install it the instructions were very clear and that’s very important to me since I usually don

This also happens to be an AMD so you know it will be of great quality. It also features a 2475 MHz boost clock speed and a 2169 MHz game clock speed. The bus interface this features is PCIe 4.0 x16, to support these features it has many cooling methods including dual fans, a striped ring fan, and 0db silent cooling. It also supports the DirectX 12 Ultimate and OpenGL 4.6 APIs. Make sure your PC includes a 750W PSU to ensure that this great card works the way it should! This card ranks at 28 on PassMark and it has a score of 23939 which is very impressive for the price. I personally really like this card, it looks nice and of course, it works well too, I’d recommend this for anyone with the money and it works perfectly for my work on AutoCAD. So in all, if you’re ever in a similar situation where you have $500 and a need to use AutoCAD then this graphics card is a great choice. 

NOTE: This is a class project

Works Cited

“AMD Radeon™ RX 7800XT.” AMD, https://www.amd.com/en/products/graphics/amd-radeon-rx-7800-xt. Accessed 26 April 2024.

“ChatGPT Conversation on AutoCAD.” OpenAI, 22 Apr. 2024.

Martinez, RJ. “ASRock Challenger Radeon RX 7800 XT OC RX7800XT CL 16GO 16GB GDDR6-90-GA4SZZ-00UANF.” Amazon.com, https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CHK3929K?tag=videocardbenchmark-20&linkCode=osi&th=1&psc=1. Accessed 26 April 2024.

“PassMark – Radeon RX 7800 XT – Price performance comparison.” Video Card Benchmarks, https://www.videocardbenchmark.net/gpu.php?gpu=Radeon+RX+7800+XT&id=4917. Accessed 26 April 2024.

“Radeon™ RX 7800 XT GAMING OC 16G Key Features | Graphics Card – GIGABYTE Global.” Gigabyte, https://www.gigabyte.com/Graphics-Card/GV-R78XTGAMING-OC-16GD#kf. Accessed 26 April 2024.

“Radeon™ RX 7800 XT GAMING OC 16G Specification | Graphics Card – GIGABYTE Global.” Gigabyte, https://www.gigabyte.com/Graphics-Card/GV-R78XTGAMING-OC-16GD/sp#sp. Accessed 26 April 2024.

“System requirements for AutoCAD 2022 (without specialized toolsets).” Autodesk, 8 October 2023, https://www.autodesk.com/support/technical/article/caas/sfdcarticles/sfdcarticles/System-requirements-for-AutoCAD-2022-without-specialized-toolsets.html. Accessed 26 April 2024.

GIGABYTE AORUS NVMe Gen4 SSD 500GB Hard Drive Review

Hard Drive Reviews

Today I will be reviewing the GIGABYTE AORUS NVMe Gen4 SSD 500GB! I got this for a business PC I’ve been building for one of my customers. I’ve gotten stuff from GIGABYTE before. I managed to grab this for $89 which I believe is a really good price for what you are getting.

First of all, I love the beautiful pink metallic finish on it. It pops out compared to all of the other dully colored hardware inside the PC. This might be a pro for some people like me but it might not be so great for others who want a monotone inside so think about that before purchasing. From all of the use and time I’ve spent with this hard drive, I must say I have 0 complaints! It’s built super well and is definitely worth your money. It was also super easy to install with in-the-box instructions.

Now for the most important part, the specs. This beast includes a huge 5000 MB/s sequential read and a 2500 MB/s sequential write speed. Its random read IOPS is up to 400k and its random write IOPS is up to 550k! It has a great MTBF with a long 1.77 million hours. This is also a TLC hard drive which is something to keep in mind while purchasing. It also has a really nice warranty of 5 years and 850 TBW. Overall, this hard drive is a great buy for anyone out there looking for a great choice.

Note: This review is part of a classroom project.

References:

AORUS NVMe Gen4 SSD 500GB specs 

newegg

VENGEANCE® 32GB (2x16GB) DDR5 DRAM 4800MT/s review

Memory Reviews

Today I will be reviewing the VENGEANCE® 32GB (2x16GB) DDR5 DRAM 4800MT/s! Cool name aside, this is a very great piece of hardware from the people at Corsair. I bought this for my gaming PC and I think it will be a very good fit for the computer. I got this for $92.99 at Newegg which I believe is a great price for what you get.

VENGEANCE® 32GB (2x16GB) DDR5 DRAM 4800MHz C40 Memory Kit — Black

I love the casing because it provides both style and function by protecting the delicate insides. I’ve been using this mainly for gaming but I believe it would also work with other programs that aren’t specifically for gaming. I would recommend this to any market out there that is looking for a well-priced RAM stick for their gaming setup.

Now lets look at the specs for this amazing stick of RAM. It comes with 32 GB and it’s a DDR5 generation. It also has a 34 CAS latency. The Vengeance is also a non-ECC stick, features Dual-Channel support, comes with 288 pins, and boasts a quick speed of 4800MHz. Corsair also supplies a very helpful warranty system! Overall I would highly recommend this RAM to anyone out there looking for a fast and well-made computer.

Note: This is for a Class Project

Works Cited:

https://www.newegg.com/corsair-32gb-288-pin-ddr5-sdram/p/N82E16820236826

https://www.corsair.com/us/en/p/memory/cmk32gx5m2a4800c34/vengeancea-32gb-2x16gb-ddr5-dram-4800mhz-c34-memory-kit-a-black-cmk32gx5m2a4800c34 

Intel Core i9-13900KS review

CPU reviews

Today I will be reviewing this amazing piece of computing machinery that I have been very excited to get my hands on! The Intel Core i9-13900KS is an amazing CPU from the folks over at Intel. It cost me just about $649. I’ve been messing around with it lately and I’m here to inform you about everything that I love about it!My delivery was handled very well! I know this isn’t really considered a part of the review too much but handling of the package is very important to how the CPU as a whole is perceived. Installing the  CPU also went very well, I’m gonna guess that even a beginner could figure out how to install this CPU. I’d highly recommend this for any beginner PC builders out there. Now it’s time to discuss the performance.With a passmark rating of 61886, this is expected to be a great CPU! One of the most important things to a CPU’s performance is the CPU’s clock speed. This computer boasts an impressive E-core base frequency of 2.4 GHz and a P-core base frequency of 3.2 GHz. This CPU also contains 24 cores and 32 threads which really supports its power! It also contains a lot of cache to make its performance top-notch! It contains an L1 Instruction Cache: 8 x 32 KB, an L1 Data Cache: 8 x 48 KB, an L2 Cache: 8 x 2048 KB, and an L3 Cache: 36 MB! It also goes with the FCLGA 1700 socket that works with plenty of motherboards.

Overall this CPU is amazing! I recommend this to basically all PC owners out there! Cheaper PC builders might want to wait for a good deal though.

Note: This review is part of a classroom project.

References:

CPU benchmark

Newegg

GIGABYTE Z790 UD AC Motherboard Review

Motherboard reviews

The GIGABYTE Z790 UD AC is a gaming motherboard being sold on newegg for $200 but is currently on sale for $189. It supports Intel® Core™ 14th/ 13th /12th processors and has a LGA 1700 socket, you can find the support list here. It also has DDR5 memory support, you can find the full list here.

I was very excited when this finally came in the mail, I’ve been waiting for it for a while. The box wasn’t in the greatest condition but I won’t blame that on GIGABYTE. GIGABYTE is one of my favorite motherboard companies so I was expecting a lot from them. Other than the box being kind of dented, the unboxing process was very smooth.

Everything was perfectly fine inside the box, thankfully GIGABYTE has a 3-year warranty to protect me from anything bad happening to my motherboard. The installation process was pretty weird, even for me who has been installing motherboards for years. There was a missing screw but thankfully I had a spare. I think the installation is a little hard for any beginners out there but the best part is the motherboard’s performance.

GIGABYTE has perfected motherboards by making the best ones out there that rarely have issues. My motherboard has yet to crash and it works flawlessly. I honestly might use it as my main motherboard. It also has great features on its back panel. It has lots of USB ports for my mouse and keyboard, HDMI that works with my monitor, and LAN for my internet needs. Overall, this is a great motherboard for any gamer out there, I give it a 4/5

References:

Alkhayer, Tarek. “GIGABYTE Z790 UD AC LGA 1700 Intel Z790 ATX Motherboard with DDR5, Triple M.2, PCIe 5.0, USB 3.2 Gen2X2 Type-C, Intel Wi-Fi, 2.5GbE LAN, PCIe EZ-Latch, Multi-Key.” Newegg.com, https://www.newegg.com/p/N82E16813145420. Accessed 1 December 2023.
“Z790 UD AC (rev. 1.0) Key Features | Motherboard – GIGABYTE Global.” Gigabyte, https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/Z790-UD-AC-rev-10#kf. Accessed 1 December 2023.
“Z790 UD AC (rev. 1.0) Support | Motherboard – GIGABYTE Global.” Gigabyte, https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/Z790-UD-AC-rev-10/support#support-cpu. Accessed 1 December 2023.
“Z790 UD AC (rev. 1.0) Support | Motherboard – GIGABYTE Global.” Gigabyte, https://www.gigabyte.com/Motherboard/Z790-UD-AC-rev-10/support#support-memsup. Accessed 1 December 2023.

Note: This is for a school project