I don't get the logo.... am i stupid?? lol
I agree. Just because Macs say they are all that for video and stuff doesn't mean it's true. A huge benefit will be gained by getting an i7 and some high performance memory. I'm not really familiar with animation rendering, but just regular video rendering can take a good amount of time and uses a good deal of CPU/RAM resources. I say save the headaches and spend the money on a high performance custom build.I used to be an animation major before I switched to sculpture and I used Maya a lot. I will say that even with freshman work, you will want as much processing power you can get. I think people underestimate the time rendering can take and how much of a difference a stronger processor can make. A single frame with some fairly basic textures, about 3 lights, and some high quality shadows on a human figure which has medium detail to it can take several minutes. Times that by 30 to get a whole second and then by another 60 to get a minute. That is a very long time. An i7 can cut that time significantly compared to an e8500 or even a q9400. I know this first hand because I used to have a QX6700 and then I upgraded to an i7 and I noticed a significant difference.
The only way production companies can crank out movies in a decent amount of time is because they have massive render farms doing all of their rendering for them. Even with those, their high res. movies can still take hours per frame.
I highly recommend an i7. It will last her through her 4+ yrs. of school and she won't have to worry about upgrades. Just because she is a freshman student doesn't mean that an i7 will be too much for her. She will appreciate her projects rendering faster when it comes crunch time. Someone even put together an i7 build for under your stated budget so why not get it?
I used to be an animation major before I switched to sculpture and I used Maya a lot. I will say that even with freshman work, you will want as much processing power you can get. I think people underestimate the time rendering can take and how much of a difference a stronger processor can make. A single frame with some fairly basic textures, about 3 lights, and some high quality shadows on a human figure which has medium detail to it can take several minutes. Times that by 30 to get a whole second and then by another 60 to get a minute. That is a very long time. An i7 can cut that time significantly compared to an e8500 or even a q9400. I know this first hand because I used to have a QX6700 and then I upgraded to an i7 and I noticed a significant difference.
The only way production companies can crank out movies in a decent amount of time is because they have massive render farms doing all of their rendering for them. Even with those, their high res. movies can still take hours per frame.
I highly recommend an i7. It will last her through her 4+ yrs. of school and she won't have to worry about upgrades. Just because she is a freshman student doesn't mean that an i7 will be too much for her. She will appreciate her projects rendering faster when it comes crunch time. Someone even put together an i7 build for under your stated budget so why not get it?
I used to be an animation major before I switched to sculpture and I used Maya a lot. I will say that even with freshman work, you will want as much processing power you can get. I think people underestimate the time rendering can take and how much of a difference a stronger processor can make. A single frame with some fairly basic textures, about 3 lights, and some high quality shadows on a human figure which has medium detail to it can take several minutes. Times that by 30 to get a whole second and then by another 60 to get a minute. That is a very long time. An i7 can cut that time significantly compared to an e8500 or even a q9400. I know this first hand because I used to have a QX6700 and then I upgraded to an i7 and I noticed a significant difference.
The only way production companies can crank out movies in a decent amount of time is because they have massive render farms doing all of their rendering for them. Even with those, their high res. movies can still take hours per frame.
I highly recommend an i7. It will last her through her 4+ yrs. of school and she won't have to worry about upgrades. Just because she is a freshman student doesn't mean that an i7 will be too much for her. She will appreciate her projects rendering faster when it comes crunch time. Someone even put together an i7 build for under your stated budget so why not get it?
Ahhh, I was unaware that diy= do it yourself. I have built two computers now... i guess im not an enthusiast. or just stupid