Business Start-up needs a new PC - please advise

[wilde-one]

So, as a total newbie I am looking for a new PC for my new business ........ and I'm not too embarrassed to say that I'm not particularly educated in this area so any advice is gratefully received.

I want a reliable and fast system - I do not foresee hugely complicated designs or huge files. I will (probably) be running Corel Draw X8.

Processor - I5, I7 or other?
Windows 10?
RAM: 8GB, 16GB, 32GB?
Storage: ?
SSD: ?
What makes are preferred?
Minimum monitor size?
Etc
Etc

I don't want to over spend on a system that far exceeds any requirements I will ever need but at the same time I want to ensure reliability and speed, and future proof as much as possible.

Equipment - tbc but I envisage a Oki Pro8432-WT laser printer, a Sawgrass SG-400, Graphtec CE6000 Plotter, a laser printer for admin - possibly laser engraving, embroidery or DTG in the future.

I really look forward to hearing from you all to help me avoid making costly mistakes. Thanks in advance.

[webtrekker]

I've got 3 Win7 machines with i5 processors. Main machine has 2Tb internal drive with 8Gb ram. All 3 are reconditioned machines from ebay and the total cost was the same, or less than, a new machine.

You don't need high-end gear for this game. Yes, an SSD would be nice but I can live without it. Apart from work, I do a lot of processor-intensive stuff such as raytracing and running music DAW's such as Ableton Live and never have a problem.

A big advantage is that I have a dual monitor system on my main machine which I'd thoroughly recommend to anyone.

[Justin]

My main PC I built a number of years back, i7, 32Gb RAM, SSD etc. It's a cracking machine but is overkill for sublimation etc.

I threw a machine together a couple of weeks back to run a printer for another section of my business. I only needed it to run Win 7 & Photoshop whilst accessing the network/NAS. I cobbled it together out of old PC's lying around, dual core processor, 4Gb memory. I did have a small HDD in but found an SSD not being used so popped this in. It does everything and more besides.

A dual core processor will run Photoshop etc. on 4Gb, not that many programs use more than 2 cores anyway. As long as you're not putting graphic intense work through but even then, you'll be surprised how well they cope.

For day to day you really don't need anything rapid as webtreeker states above. The one thing that boosts a basic system a great deal is an SSD, biggest improvement you can make. I bought a laptop for £200 new and it was less than useless. Popped in a small SSD and now it's a perfectly usable workstation.

[JMugs]

My old windows 7 PC died with a hard drive failure, so is being repaired. Everything was mirrored on my old IBM ThinkPad laptop which I am using at the moment (again windows 7) runs Coreldraw X6 and Photoshop CC perfectly well.

Just been offered a refurbished windows 7 laptop with 12 months warranty for £120 including an official version of Microsoft Office. So, in my expereince, as the others say high spec not needed.

Janners

[pw66]

Although there are some very good deals on i3 processors - especially in laptops - don't be tempted. They tend to have only 4gb Ram. Although they will be more than enough to run a graphics program they will struggle if using multiple programs at the same time. Sometimes I have a vector program, plotter, website design and photo package open at the same time and things get slow. When busy it is hard not to be using multiple programs.

The wifes i5/8gb laptop copes much better with multiple packages. An i7 processor will probably be overkill.

[logobear]

you really don't need much PC to do what you want ....
no need to buy new, probably a s/h tower for £100 from gumtree will be fine. - maybe buy 2 ?
8gb ram(min), and a ssd really help
Win 10 is no more resource hungry than 7/8 - so I suggest you go for win 10 for security etc
TWIN monitors are useful

If you have a budget, get a lower spec PC and get extra monitors, a SSD and an external hard drive to back up stuff.
imho

[wilde-one]

Some really helpful advice here - thanks everyone for your thoughts and opinions. May I ask if anyone has any preference to monitors - specifically either TN, VA or IPS? I assume the importance here is the representation of colour? I have found such a huge difference in prices - I guess mainly due to so many gaming monitors on the market now. I will probably buy just one to start with but intend to run twins once I am up and running (and know what I'm doing........ which could be a while!)

[webtrekker]

I think you may be overthinking things a bit here!

I have dual Samsung 940bf monitors. I like the fact that they are non-reflective, have a low 2ms refresh rate, and can be easily replaced from ebay very cheaply should anything go wrong.

[wilde-one]

I think you may be overthinking things a bit here!

I certainly am! :redface: ..... I'm most definitely a 'do it once and do it right' person. I just HATE making silly mistakes - particularly those made from not educating yourself ....... and especially ones that cost money to put right later on. And from what I gather ...... research is key in this game. Thanks for the tip non-reflective screens.

[webtrekker]

Can I just add...

Many people fork out for state of the art systems yet don't plug them into a surge protector, or buy a cheapie from Asda that's not up to the job. Look at the 'Joules' rating on the adapter, the higher the better.