Best Hardware for Game Creation

What is considered the best hardware for game creations? Currently I plan on using the following software to help make models, terrain, and all that other good stuff. Mind you that some of this software will not be used its just available for use.

-GameStudio A7
-3DS Max 8
-Vue 6
-ZBrush 3.1
-PhotoShop CS2

I am currently contemplating whether or not to buy a Lenovo IdeaPad Y510 Notebook PC with a Pentium Dual-Core Processor T2330 1.6GHz, 2Gigs of RAM and a Intel Graphics Media Accelerator X3100. I am not a hardware expert so I ask you does this fit under best hardware for game creation? And if not what changes need to be made?

the intel graphics chip isn't ideal for this kind of work. better go with nvidia or ati.

I have an AMD Athlon X-2 4000+, 2GB Ram, Ati Radeon X1800XT Graphic

and sometimes 3dgs slows down my machine very nice ^^

This is the 965 Express chipset in my Dell notebook, don't buy this kind of graphic chip for gaming.

many gb ram and a fastprossesor....
the graphic cart is on my 2th place...
my currently settings...
2gb ram ddr 2
intellpentium celeron d 3,06 ghz
and a ati radeon x13000 :X
ok.... not the best.... but enought for the most stuff!...

it's not advisable to use a notebook as a primary development platform. normally, development takes months or years, and you will want to adjust your hardware due to your new requirements. a notebook will never be able to do so.

never use intel integrated GPUs. X3100 performance: doom3 is unplayable in 1024x768 med details. http://www.notebookcheck.net/Intel-Graphics-Media-Accelerator-X3100.2176.0.html actually, it's one of the slowest chips on today's market. however, it's fully programmable and consumes very few power.

The faster your system is, the more likely you will make resource intensive and thus slow games.

So also testuse an older computer during the development.

Thanks for all the comments. After a little research of my own and all you lovely people I figured that the X3100 is horrible thanks for the good advice too. I'm going with a ATI Radeon X1270 now in a different comp now.

x1250 (dunno if there's a 70) is not really a big step forward, you know.

i found a nice used notebook with a radeon9600 gpu here, http://www.tb-computers.de/shop/aktion/5...-intel-cen.html in case you can read german you'll enjoy it, i suppose.

Actually a notebook is a pretty poor choice for most of the software you have listed. You need a desktop computer optimized for graphics. You need a monitor that can show true color. For vue and Z brush you need as much ram as you can stuff in the machine and a MOBO/processor with a fast pipeline or you will have very slow rendering speeds. You also need a large and fast hard drive to access graphics files. For modeling software a notebook may not work well because the keyboard layout may be not standard and you use a lot of keyboard shortcuts. And again if you are doing any internal rendering a notebook just doesn't have the pipes to do it.
The video card is not critical, you are creating games not playing them, but some of them are optimized for graphics. It must show true color.
The needs for A7 are actually pretty low. You can design on any computer.... until you build a large level. Then if your computer can't crunch numbers you will be building for a looong time. If you are using a laptop make sure its plugged in, you don't want to shut down half way through a build!
So good hardware for graphics would be: Intel core 2 processors (extreme if possible) a stable MOBO with fast bridges, 4gb ram (more if you can find a stable MOBO), a fast hard drive (pick your poison), a good monitor (samsung or vuesonic..Eizo if you have the cash)A good video card with as much on board memory as possible (cause you know you want to play COD4!). and a power supply backup! This is just a home build, graphics houses have this as a workstation and then a central server to do the rendering.
Of course you may be able to work on a laptop. usually most mainstream graphics oriented laptops will just take longer to render and build. I had one once that used to shut down half way through a render. Obviously not a useful computer. If you are just doing some low rez images and low poly models it shouldn't make much difference. If you are going to use the software you have listed to its full potential and you try to do it with slow equipment you are asking for headaches.

I should have posted this earlier but the laptop will no be my primary computer. I was in need of a cheap laptop quick so I just wanted the advice of this rather helpful forum for the direction I should go. After a little research, advice from this forum, and measuring how little money I have to spend. I managed to find something suitable. Once again thanks for the comments. I'd like to hear more about this subject.

My bet is a mid range PC, basic graphic card, lotsa RAM, fast BUS and 1.8 minimum so that you force yourself to develop for the widest possible user range as GStudio is only PC orientated.

When your pretty sure you want to go high end graphics, upgrade your card.

Quadro FX4600 768MB 384-bit GDDR3 PCI Express x16 HDCP Ready SLI Supported Workstation Video Card best card you will ever lay eyes on! works wonderfully under workstation loads.

-OR-
NVIDIA Geforce 9800(4-way sli)
though its not a card meant for rendering( its meant for gaming) it can do the job. just not as effeciently.


3-4 gigs of ram.
if i were you id upgrade to an sli motherboard and get two of the fx4600's
(thats if you have the dough)

dual-core processor(or if your just insane quad cores are always nice)
1Tb hard drive(SATA)
cd/dvd/lightscribe combo(SATA)
a physX card(the choice is yours on the physx cards...)
a nice heatsink(with fan) to keep the pc cool.
oh and fans(GOOD fans)
- liquid cooling solutions is an option but make sure you know what your doing

750watt powersupply(or 1000 if your still insane)
2 monitors(or 4 with the quadro fx4600)
HDMI connections

latest pixel/vertex shader( i think is 3.0 or 4.0)

and ofcourse a cool looking case with a clear side panel to let the world know "yea...my pc is bad a$$" and put some LED fans inside the case(green!!!) and let your freshly built beast ROAR! " I AM THE BIG GREEN BEAST BRED FOR RENDERING!"

Quote:

---

and let your freshly built beast ROAR! " I AM THE BIG GREEN BEAST BRED FOR RENDERING!"

---

lol The guy is asking whether he can use a laptop and you recommend the big green rendering beast! Nice build though... serious cash outlay. Unfortunately with my gene pool selling the kids is not an option.