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Revised: 2/29/2012 (Brandon R.)

These recommendations are still current. There has not been any newly released hardware that would alter the system specification outlined in this article.

A common question about computer hardware often revolves around which computer hardware will offer the best performance in Control. This is a difficult question to answer since there a lot of different variables that can influence the answer. The comments below and computer specifications listed are meant to address users looking to have 1-12 client machines.

I would always recommend consulting with a local IT vendor for recommendations on computer systems, etc. The information and PDFs below are meant as a guide to help you and your local IT person make a better decision about what would provide you with the best performance for Control. I've included 3 PDF's from different vendors which are configured in to provide optimum performance for Control. Each of the systems utilizes Intel i-7 quad-core processors which offer some of the best performance in the market today. Every PC manufacturer offers slightly different configurations so the specifications on each machine do not line up exactly but they are pretty close.

In addition to the Intel i-7 processor the other biggest component that is providing considerable speed boost are the new solid state hard drives, aka SSD's. All SSD's are not created equal, so when selecting one be sure that you've done your research or you are working with someone who is familiar with which ones offer high performance.

Dream Machine is a name one of our user's gave for these machines, it stuck so we'll use it here for reference. These are all pretty inexpensive machines in the grand scheme of things.

Vendor: www.ibuypower.com ibuypower_-_dream_machine_10-2011.pdf

• Intel i7-2600k Processor is faster than any of the other configurations.
• 8GB memory
• 120GB Solid State Drive for operating system and Control installation.
• 1TB 7200RPM for misc data/storage.
• USB 3.0 support
• Covered by 3-year labor, 1-year parts, lifetime phone support. Extended warranties are available.

• It's a custom built machine, not something built in mass so potential hardware conflict problems could occur but very unlikely since it is built with quality components.

Vendor: www.cyberpowerpc.com cyberpower_-_dream_machine_10-2011.pdf

• Intel i7-960 Processor which fast, but slower than the i7-2600k or i7-2600 in the Dell machine.
• 12GB memory
• 120GB Solid State Drive for operating system and Control installation.
• 1TB 7200RPM for misc data/storage.
• USB 3.0 support
• Covered by 3-year labor, 1-year parts, lifetime phone support. Extended warranties are available.

• It's a custom built machine, not something built in mass so potential hardware conflict problems could occur but very unlikely since it is built with quality components.

Vendor: www.dell.com dell_-_dream_machine_10-2011.pdf

• Intel i7-2600 Processor which fast, just not quite as fast as the i7-2600k.
• 8GB memory
• 1TB 7200RPM for operating system.
• Covered by 1-year labor, 1-year parts, lifetime phone support. Extended warranties are available.
• Mass produced system so it should prove to be pretty stable.
• Price, it is the cheapest out of the 3. Even with adding $200 to purchase an SSD and install it you are still saving a couple hundred over the other options.

• Does not include an SSD and there isn't an option to have one installed from Dell. You would need to have a 3rd party tech install one for you.
• Does not include USB 3.0 support but that is just a nice to have for when more devices come out that are USB 3.0, it won't make any difference in the performance for Control.
• Will be the slowest of the 3 configurations above but still extremely fast in comparison to 95% of the other desktop systems on the market today.

Contributor: Brandon R. - Cyrious

Date: 10/07/2011

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