So, are you in search of finding out whether your existing computer or a laptop would be able to help you in your 3D modeling structure, or would you have to go pro and buy some professional and specifically designed computer system for your 3D project?
Without beating around the bush, the answer is a definite yes. However, that does not mean that there would be a computer system in the market with a tag of 3D Modelling on it that you would just go and buy.
Your current computer system may also be capable of rendering and producing 3D models, all you have to do is a little bit of research. And understand the logic behind what makes a computer system a good computer system for 3D modelling.
Rendering and 3D Modelling
Now to begin, remember that although 3D modeling and rendering (CPU) go simultaneously side by side, they work in a completely different way, might I say, opposing each other’s working manner. They both are known to use the computer’s hardware in completely different and opposite ways.
3D Modelling
3D modeling requires you to interact with the relative 3D software. That means it does its working while you are sitting in front of your computer system, entailing utilization of the hardware in such a way that it does it’s highly complex and serious calculations to process what you are trying to achieve with your 3D model, real-time.
Note that all of this is done on a single CPU core, allowing the model to be prepared following a certain hierarchy, step by step.
Therefore, the steps cannot be delegated to other cores (even if you set various cores in your CPU) as the steps are highly dependent on each other and speaking very frankly, don’t bother with having too many CPU-Cores in your computer system, as it is not at all linked with the speed of your viewport or models for 3D modeling.
3D Rendering
However, 3D rendering, which is once you have developed some mathematical representation of a living object or an inanimate, you would want to render it and turn it into a high-quality video, image or animated model demands the opposite of 3D modeling from the computer system.
Unlike 3D modeling, 3D rendering requires as many cores as your CPU has to be able to work effectively. The render engine places a “bucket” to the core of the CPU, and the new one is only assigned once the current has been finished rendering. Therefore, the more the cores, the better it is for 3D rendering.
Then, What Should I Get?
For 3D modelling, you do require a computer system that’s excellent in terms of the clock-speed. So the higher the clock speed is the faster and speedy response time on your viewport, making everything very smooth and fluent in terms of making the 3D model.
Next, to enhance and give meaning and value to your 3D model, you need to render it, and that requires you to have as many cores in your CPU as possible.
So the answer may seem very simple and obvious to you, right? Get a computer system with the highest cores and highest clock speed. But unfortunately, that’s not the case, or better, that can’t be the case because there are heat limitations and power consumption restrictions that need to be kept in mind.
The more cores in your CPU, the more power it would use and that means the more heat it would generate. We all know that our CPUs have some thermal regulations that we need to adhere to therefore we can’t risk making them too hot.
Things to Look for While Choosing the Computer System
The mechanism that you need to be familiar with while choosing the computer system is that the more cores your CPU has, the lower clock time it has, and the faster the cores are clocked, the fewer the cores on the CPU.
Therefore, many big companies have devised a proportional trade-off between the two, making sure that each is on their extreme limits; highest amount of cores with the highest clock-timing possible.
That is made possible with a technique like turbo-boost which lets your CPU automatically overclock the cores until the extreme power limits and thermal restrictions are reached, the duration to which can vary depending on the quality of cooling of your CPU.
So for instance, if you are sitting in front of your computer system and are working on a 3D model, using hardly 1-2 cores, the Turbo-boost feature would overclock these cores to the limit set by the company, and then clock the cores back down as soon as the temperature and power consumption reaches the limit.
This lets the CPUs which have more cores and lower clock time, to clock higher even when the cores are limited or are not fully in use.
Final Say
If you are all set in your mind about making proper 3D models and rendering it, you will have to get an adequate PC having the above mentioned specifications.
Trust me, there is no way out, even if you are very good at rendering, your work would be affected greatly without a good workstation. Please don’t make the mistake of believing that having an expensive PC is good enough to perform amazingly in rendering.
It requires years of practice before you can go on with any computer system and produce amazing 3D models. Also, not all computer systems are the same, some excel at 3D modeling (having the best clock-time) and the others are the best tool to be used for 3D rendering.
There are very few which offer both options so you will have to choose very wisely and carefully.