QCAD Pro 3.0 performance and hardware configuration

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dfriasb
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Posts: 119
Joined: Thu Mar 10, 2016 1:08 pm
Location: Calafell, Tarragona, Spain

QCAD Pro 3.0 performance and hardware configuration

Post by dfriasb » Mon Aug 01, 2016 11:27 am

Hello all,

I have been using QCAD Pro (now 3.15.3.0 version) for almost 2 years on a MBAir 13" (1.4GHz i5 Core, 4GB RAM). For simple drawings it works great. I use a 22" monitor as main display and MBAir screen as auxiliar display for toolboxes etc.
Problems started with medium-big drawings (let's say from about 500 entities or more, 100 or more blocks, 100 or more layers...). When I select an entity and I try to change some property (like entity layer) in the Property Editor toolbox, it seems RAM is overflowed and SSD drive starts working, so it takes some seconds (sometimes a minute) to make the change.
I'm now computer expert, but it seems to me that the problem is related with RAM memory, not CPU, and not graphic card neither. The thing is I can even work in Print Preview Mode and it flows perfectly, I can see lightweights and linetypes as the'll be printed, it's almost like drawing by hand "view/experience".
So I'm thinking about getting a more powerful equipment, with more RAM and better display. I'm worried about Very High Resolution displays like iMac Retina 4K and 5K. I love that displays but I don't know how the performance of QCAD will be with them.
I have been reading about Autodesk Revit performance in those machines, and it seems it is not so good. But I guess that software has not comparable requirements and performance as QCAD does.

So, my question is, for the same price, if I'm gonna use QCAD as main drawing software, what should I prioritize?
- RAM
- CPU
- Graphic Card

And which OS gets the best of QCAD? Mac OS, Windows, Linux?

Thank you so much!
David Frías Barranco | architect
[email protected] | davidfriasarquitecto.es

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andrew
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Re: QCAD Pro 3.0 performance and hardware configuration

Post by andrew » Mon Aug 01, 2016 11:42 am

dfriasb wrote:Problems started with medium-big drawings (let's say from about 500 entities or more, 100 or more blocks, 100 or more layers...). When I select an entity and I try to change some property (like entity layer) in the Property Editor toolbox, it seems RAM is overflowed and SSD drive starts working, so it takes some seconds (sometimes a minute) to make the change.
If you experience performance problems with a particular drawing, please attach or e-mail the drawing file and indicate the steps to reproduce the problem, thanks.
So, my question is, for the same price, if I'm gonna use QCAD as main drawing software, what should I prioritize?
- RAM
- CPU
- Graphic Card
I'd prioritise in that same order (RAM, CPU, graphics card). 4GB of RAM is on the low end, especially if you are running other applications in the background. Some web browsers alone very quickly use up 4GB of RAM. A retina display won't have any negative impact on the performance of QCAD, unless you explicitly switch on the retina resolution for the graphics view which essentially means QCAD has to render for a 4 times larger display. I'm using an iMac Retina 5K, 27-inch here as my main computer.
And which OS gets the best of QCAD? Mac OS, Windows, Linux?
That's largely a matter of personal preference. QCAD works fine on all these systems. If you are used to a Mac environment, I'd definitely recommend to stay with that.

renod
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Re: QCAD Pro 3.0 performance and hardware configuration

Post by renod » Thu Aug 11, 2016 3:47 pm

Hi,

My hardware is as low-end as possible except the screen, 1 or 2 years old.:

Base Board Information
Manufacturer: MSI
Product Name: B85M-E45 (MS-7817)
Version: 2.0

processor Intel(R) Pentium(R) CPU G3440 @ 3.30GHz
bridge 4th Gen Core Processor DRAM Controller
bridge Xeon E3-1200 v3/4th Gen Core Processor PCI Express x16 Controller
display GM107 [GeForce GTX 750 Ti]

HP Envy 32.
2560x1440 59.95*+

I dig a little bit to find the video card...
The price with the screen is around 1000 € (half for the screen).

Linux Debian + Qcad pro 4.14.3 but I use the non-free AMD/radeon driver and it's a little buggy with the power management...

My drawing have +/-18.000 entities and it works quite well except that with a 32 inch, you need a little bit more space for the mouse on the desk so now I dream about a touch screen (maybe a foil for 150 €.).

And sometimes I think I shoud add 4 mega's RAM more but it takes some time to buy it...

Reno.

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