Everything Archives - CG Director

Cinema 4D System Requirements – What they don’t tell you

June 2, 2021

Although Cinema 4D’s official System Requirements seem fairly low, there’s more to them than meets the eye at first glance.

CPU vs. GPU Rendering – What’s the difference and which should you choose?

May 29, 2021

Ever wondered what the difference between CPU and GPU rendering was and which one fits your needs best?

Top 5 Low-Profile Memory (RAM) Modules & Kits that fit almost anywhere

May 26, 2021

Buying the right RAM (Memory) kit is a crucial step towards maximizing the performance of your system.

Open-Air vs. Blower-Style Cooled GPUs – What’s the difference?

May 15, 2021

Have you ever wondered why some GPUs come with 3 Fans, some with 2 and many just have a single fan?

Insydium X-Particles Benchmark Results & CPU Performance compared

May 12, 2021

X-Particles is becoming more popular by the day and we are seeing a lot of requests from readers looking to build a PC for X-Particle Workloads.

6 Best High-Quality Texture Sites (Free & Paid)

May 8, 2021

You’re done with modeling, UV unwrapping, and are ready to go.

Our 5 Favorite Low Profile CPU Coolers (for Small Form Factor Builds)

May 4, 2021

Looking for a great low-profile CPU cooler that fits your needs can be time-consuming.

Best Online Render Farms – Our Top 10 Favorite CPU & GPU Render Farms

May 26, 2021

Rendering too slow?

Everything About the Blender Undo, Redo, Repeat Last, and Adjust Last Operations

April 28, 2021

In this article, I will be explaining to you in great detail all of the possible ways you can undo, redo, repeat, and modify an operation in Blender.

Pro vs. Consumer GPUs – What’s the difference & Why so expensive?

May 18, 2021

If you’re looking for a graphics card that suits the demanding requirements of pro-level software, chances are your pro-software’s vendor recommends a Quadro or Radeon Pro GPU.

Do You need a CPU Cooler? All cases where you’ll need a CPU Cooler explained.

May 22, 2021

Whether you need a CPU Cooler or not might seem like a bit of an obvious question to some, but it can certainly be confusing to newcomers.

Best Low-Profile Graphics Card (GPU) for your needs [2021 Guide]

May 18, 2021

If you’re looking to build a compact PC, whether it’s for gaming, work, or to use as a home theater (or a server), low-profile GPUs a must-have.

How long does Thermal Paste last? (Applied and Stored)

May 19, 2021

Thermal paste is a thermally conductive compound mostly used as an interface between a chip and a heatsink.

How much VRAM do you need? Professional and Gaming Workloads explored

April 23, 2021

Raw clock speeds and processing cores are not the only factors to consider when picking a graphics card.

The Best Motherboard Brands (And what to beware of)

April 9, 2021

We often get questions like – ‘What’s the best motherboard brand?

Guide to PCIe Lanes: How many do you need for your workload?

May 1, 2021

When choosing the motherboard and processor for a PC build, a feature we see most builders often overlook is picking the right amount of PCIe lanes.

Adobe Lightroom CC & Lightroom Classic System Requirements and Recommendations

March 18, 2021

Post-processing and image management tools are crucial assets for any kind of photographer.

How to move the Camera in Blender (All possible ways)

March 17, 2021

Camera movement is one of the key elements to any animation, representing the lens through which the viewer sees your animated creation, framing and visually narrating the action (or inaction) displayed.

2021 Motherboard Buying Guide for Workstations [How to Buy a Motherboard]

April 15, 2021

Picking the right motherboard is one of the most complicated but critical tasks when you’re getting parts together for a brand-new PC build.

Where to buy PC-Parts, CPUs & Graphics Cards in your Country

April 6, 2021

Well, it’s 2021, and stock issues still plague buyers worldwide.

Adobe Illustrator System Requirements (And PC Recommendations)

February 4, 2021

Whether you’re a professional graphics designer working in Adobe Illustrator or a new talent that’s picking up the industry-standard program, it’s crucial to figure out Adobe Illustrator’s system requirements, first, to know what it’ll take to perform smoothly.

Best Workstation PC for DaVinci Resolve Studio [2021 Guide]

January 27, 2021

DaVinci Resolve is a powerful video editing package in a unique market position.

Adobe After Effects System Requirements & PC Recommendations

February 20, 2021

Adobe After Effects is one of the most popular Motion Design & Compositing software on the market.

How to Update Blender (All possible ways)

January 18, 2021

Over the past few years, Blender’s industry adoption rate has skyrocketed, with the extra exposure and interest driving the contributions to the Blender Development Fund up.

CPU FAN vs. CPU OPT (When to use which)

May 10, 2021

Wondering what the difference between all those fan headers on your motherboard is?

Adobe Premiere Pro System Requirements & PC Recommendations

March 25, 2021

Video Editing is more accessible than ever.

NVLink vs. SLI and Multiple GPUs – Is it worth it?

April 11, 2021

It’s a reasonable enough assumption to make that if one new graphics card (GPU) can speed up your work by X amount, two will do the job twice as fast, right?

Samsung EVO vs QVO SSDs Compared – Which one’s better?

March 28, 2021

Samsung—possibly the most prolific SSD brand on the market—recently released a new line of SSDs to go with their other popular options, the Samsung 870 QVO.

Best Renderers (Render Engines) for Blender in 2021

January 18, 2021

Blender is finally shedding its “quirky kid around the block” attire and donning a more serious and respected “3D powerhouse” one.

How to upgrade your PC (Beginner’s Guide)

April 15, 2021

Upgrading your system is an exciting experience that comes with a lot of benefits:

Adobe Photoshop System Requirements & PC-Recommendations

March 12, 2021

Adobe Photoshop is the most popular photo editor in the world.

How to check your PC’s Specs (CPU, GPU, RAM, Storage & More)

February 17, 2021

Skip this intro and jump straight to the good stuff.

Should you go to Film School or teach yourself? I did both.

April 15, 2021

You ask yourself if going to film school is worth it or if there’s another way.

Our Favorite Gifts for Animators & the technically inclined

May 3, 2021

Picking gifts for a loved one is never easy.

How to Render Faster – In-Depth Guide to increasing Render Performance in 3D

May 13, 2021

We all want to render faster.

Why is Blender Free? A quick look behind the curtain.

May 13, 2021

The 3D industry is full of expensive professional 3D Software.

Current Software Versions of Content Creation Applications [Updated Regularly]

May 28, 2021

As Content Creators, our day-to-day work involves using a multitude of different Applications.

Best Laptops for Engineering Students (2021 Guide)

January 19, 2021

Being an engineering student in college can be quite an undertaking.

AMD Ryzen 5000 Series Review for Content Creators – Goodbye Competition

April 15, 2021

AMD released its newest range of Ryzen 5000 Series CPUs on October 8th.

Cinebench R23 Scores [Updated Results]

April 19, 2021

Maxon’s Cinebench has become one of the most popular benchmarking software for CPUs.

Best Gaming Desks for your needs [2021 Guide]

April 14, 2021

An excellent gaming desk is crucial for both your health and your gaming performance.

LGA vs. PGA and how to fix bent CPU Socket Pins

April 11, 2021

If you’ve ever shopped for processors and motherboards, you might’ve encountered terms like ‘sockets,’ ‘LGA1200,’ and so on.

The Best Thermal Paste for your needs (Beginner’s Guide)

May 19, 2021

Every PC enthusiast knows that a cool PC is the best PC.

AMD Graphics Cards List in Order of Performance

March 27, 2021

There are so many different AMD Graphics Cards for purchase that it can get confusing at times.

Corona Renderer Benchmark Results [Updated]

December 18, 2020

Corona has become a popular Render Engine which is available for 3ds Max, Cinema 4D and as a standalone Application.

Best Workstation PC For 3ds Max [Updated Guide]

May 13, 2021

Autodesk’s 3ds Max is as popular as it is demanding on your hardware.

Best PC / Workstation for Autodesk Revit [Updated Guide]

April 15, 2021

Revit is a powerful building information modeling (BIM) software that allows users to design buildings and their components in 3D, detail them in 2D and 3D, and access building information from the model’s database.

Best Workstation PC for ArchiCAD [2021 Guide]

April 15, 2021

ArchiCAD is a Building information modeling (BIM) CAD package developed by Graphisoft and used by students and professionals worldwide for architectural design and engineering, as well as architectural 3D modeling.

Core i9 10900K and Core i5 10600K Review for CG-Workloads: 3D Viewports Still Love Intel

April 15, 2021

Yes, I know.

Fix Jumpy Mouse Movement across multiple Monitors (Free tool)

December 18, 2020

If you are working on multiple Monitors, chances are high that you have cursed Windows for not being able to properly move your mouse across them.

How to Clean and Maintain Your PC (Beginner’s Guide)

March 28, 2021

Few things are more frustrating than a PC that takes ten minutes to load your favorite Software and Games.

Best PC / Workstation (DAW) for Audio Editing & Music Production

April 15, 2021

The modern music industry is built around digital mastering and processing, and the proliferation of flexible and powerful audio software has helped a wide variety of indie, hobbyist, and at-home musicians take their audio production workflows to the next level.

Best B550 Motherboards for AMD Ryzen CPUs [2021 Guide]

April 15, 2021

After numerous delays, motherboards with the B550 chipset for AMD processors have finally started popping up on the market.

Best Smallest ATX Cases for Compact PC Builds in 2021

April 22, 2021

Most of us wouldn’t say no to a PC stuffed with beastly hardware, but not everyone has the desk or floor space to stash a tower the size of a child.

Render Engine Hardware Compatibility – CPU / GPU / Hybrid

December 29, 2020

This is one of the first things you need to know when planning a new PC for Rendering Workloads:

Best Z490 Motherboards for Intel 10900K, 10700K, 10600K CPUs

April 15, 2021

Intel’s 10th Generation lineup has brought back competition to the market, in a way at least, by enabling hyperthreading across the entire product stack.

The 2021 Monitor Guide to Refresh Rates and Response Times

January 5, 2021

If you’re serious about gaming, especially competitive gaming, then the topics of refresh rate, response time, and input lag are likely of great importance to you.

Best Modular Power Supplies of 2021 – 550W / 650W / 850W / 1000W

April 22, 2021

Picking a suitable power supply is critical, as it’s one of the core elements of your PC build.

Best CPU Cooler for Intel i9-10900K

April 22, 2021

Intel’s i9 10900k Processor is an exceptionally powerful CPU.

Best Gaming Monitors [2021 Guide] – Budget / 1080p / 1440p / 4K / 240Hz

April 12, 2021

Buying a great gaming PC or building your own is good and all, but all that power means nothing without a solid gaming monitor to go with it!

Buying The Best Gaming CPU For You [2021 Guide]

April 12, 2021

Buying a processor (CPU) may seem intimidating at the outset, especially if you aren’t a tech expert.

Best Motherboards for Gaming [2021 Guide]

January 23, 2021

Whether you’re building a PC for gaming or work, a motherboard remains one of your PC’s core components.

How to Build your own Render Farm [Ultimate Guide]

May 13, 2021

Although building your own Render Farm might seem like an expensive or complicated endeavor at first, you’ll be astonished by how fast it pays for itself, how much time it frees up in a typical work-day, and you’ll wonder why you haven’t started building one much earlier.

Building the Best PC for SketchUp [2021 Guide]

April 12, 2021

SketchUp is a powerful 3D application that manages to be both approachable for hobbyists and useful for professionals.

AMD Radeon Pro W5500 Review & Benchmarks – An Excellent Entry to Workstation Graphics

April 15, 2021

The Radeon Pro W5500 is one of the latest additions to AMD’s workstation graphics lineup.

Set up your Home-Office & What PC-Parts you’ll need

April 14, 2021

Roughly 5% of people who work do so from home.

Best Curved Monitors For Content Creators

April 15, 2021

Curved Monitors are becoming more and more popular, especially for Gaming.

Best Laptops for Graphic Design

April 15, 2021

Time is money and the importance of good equipment that doesn’t hinder your efficiency is undisputed.

The AMD Threadripper 3990X Review for Content Creators

April 15, 2021

AMD’s Threadripper lineup launch, featuring overwhelming 24 and 32-core CPUs, left a trail of dizzy Intel HEDT and even enterprise-class Xeon processors in its wake.

Mac Pro 2019 vs Custom-Built PC – A closer look

March 16, 2020

The launch of Apple’s Mac Pro in late 2019, ranging from $5000 to 50,000~, set off an endless array of memes, jokes, and general online hate.

Best PC for Adobe Illustrator & Vector Illustration

February 4, 2021

While a workstation for Adobe Illustrator & vector graphics might sound niche to some, knowing how to build a PC that caters to your specific workflow can be incredibly helpful.

Best Pre-Built Gaming PCs of 2021 – Unpack, Plug-In & Play

April 12, 2021

Building your own gaming PC isn’t rocket science, but it’s not the easiest thing in the world, either.

Where to buy Pre-Built PCs & Workstations

April 15, 2021

So, it’s time to get a new PC.

Finding The Best NVMe SSDs: Value, Speed, Optane, and more

January 23, 2020

Today, we’re going to walk you through everything you need to know about NVMe SSDs.

What is the Best GPU for Video Editing and Rendering?

May 13, 2021

Buying a new graphics card (GPU) can be tough, especially if you aren’t familiar with all the nitty-gritty tech jargon involved.

Best Motherboards for 3rd Gen AMD Threadripper CPUs 3990X, 3970X, 3960X

July 2, 2020

With the release of AMD’s Threadripper 3000 processors (3rd Generation Threadripper), Intel has finally lost the lead in both single-core and multi-threaded workloads.

The Best External Drives for Graphic Designers

May 13, 2021

What is the best external hard drive for you?

How to Build a PC: Beginner’s Guide (Choose your Parts & Assemble)

April 22, 2021

Building your first PC can be daunting.

ASUS PRO DUO Hands-On & Short Review

March 27, 2020

I recently got a chance to get up close and personal with one of the most unique laptops out there – the ASUS ZenBook Pro Duo UX581.

Best Computer for Photo Editing [2021 Guide]

April 15, 2021

While photo-editing software has become incredibly portable, it’s hard to deny the value of a proper workstation for professional work.

Best Motherboards for i9 9900k, i7 9700k [Intel 9th Gen CPUs]

April 15, 2021

Intel’s consumer CPUs have always remained a step ahead of their AMD counterparts when it comes to single-thread performance.

The Best Time to buy Computer Parts

January 21, 2021

In this article, we’re going to discuss the best time of the year to buy PC hardware.

The Best Case Fans for your PC

April 22, 2021

In this article, we’re going to teach you all you need to know to purchase the best case fans for your needs.

The absolute Best 4K Monitors you can buy today [2021 Guide]

April 15, 2021

Today, we’re going to help you find the best 4K monitor for your needs.

Best Laptops For Photo Editing [2021 Guide]

April 16, 2021

Today, we’re going to teach you all you need to know to buy the best laptop for photo editing.

Best CPU Coolers for AMD Ryzen Threadripper CPUs (Review Roundup)

April 22, 2021

AMD’s Threadripper CPUs were designed to deliver incredible performance at shockingly low prices.

Best Computer for Blender (Workstation & PC-Build Guide)

April 11, 2021

Blender is a versatile digital content creation tool that has been used in a variety of high budget and low budget productions.

Intel Core vs AMD Ryzen CPUs in 2021 (Benchmarks & Comparison)

May 16, 2021

With the launch of Ryzen 5000 CPUs (5950X, 5900X, 5800X, and 5600X), AMD surpassed even Intel’s most premium offerings last year.

Best Memory (RAM) for 3rd Gen AMD Ryzen CPUs 3900X, 3700X, 3600

April 23, 2021

Wondering what RAM would be perfect for your Ryzen PC Build?

Best Motherboards for AMD Ryzen 5000 Series CPUs 5950X, 5900X, 5600X

April 25, 2021

On the lookout for a motherboard that pairs well with a Ryzen 5000 CPU like the 5950X?

Best PCIE Riser & Extension Cables for heavy GPU Workloads

May 6, 2021

PCIe Riser and Extension Cables have become more and more important in recent years.

Best Monitor for Graphic Design, Video Editing & 3D Animation (Updated)

April 14, 2021

The great thing about buying a Monitor for Graphic Design, Video Editing, Photo Editing, or 3D Animation and CAD, is that all of these tasks are visually demanding and therefore require very similar features from a Monitor.

Pre-Built vs Custom PCs (Assemble yourself or Plug & Play)?

April 14, 2021

When it’s time to buy a new PC, the first thing you need to do is decide what type of system you’re going to buy.

Best Laptop For Video Editing [2021 Guide]

April 15, 2021

A short overview for those of you who just want some quick suggestions – These are our top picks for the Best Laptops for Video Editing:

Western Digital Blue vs. Black Series – Which is best for your needs?

March 16, 2021

When it comes to hard drive brands, it’s difficult to find a more famous and trusted name than Western Digital Corporation (otherwise known as WD).

What Kind of Computer Do You Need? (Step-by-Step)

March 28, 2021

Are you thinking about buying a new Computer or Laptop, or want to upgrade your existing one, but don’t really know where to start?

Cinema 4D Viewport Performance Benchmark & Scores (Updated Results)

May 23, 2021

CGDirector’s Cinema 4D Viewport Performance Benchmark measures how snappy and smooth Active Work inside your 3D Software will be.

Single vs Dual vs Quad Channel Memory on Ryzen Threadripper (Benchmarks)

March 27, 2021

Does Single vs Dual vs Quad Channel Memory impact performance on Ryzen Threadripper CPUs?

Cinebench R20 Scores (Updated Results)

April 19, 2021

There’s a newer version of Cinebench Available Here.

Best Workstation PC / Laptop for CAD, Autocad, Solidworks, Revit, Inventor

April 16, 2021

What is the best Computer or Laptop for CAD Software such as Autocad, Solidworks, Inventor, or Revit?

Parts Needed to Build a PC (Computer Parts List & Explanation)

January 16, 2021

What Computer Parts do you need to build a PC, you ask?

Best Computer for Video Editing [2021 Guide]

April 17, 2021

Video Editing is one of the most popular things you can do on a Computer or Workstation.

Memory Clock Speeds Comparison on AMD Threadripper (Benchmarks)

April 11, 2021

AMD Threadripper CPUs are the unchallenged King of the High-End Desktop.

Building the best PC for 3D Animation [2021 Guide]

April 15, 2021

Building the best Computer for Animation requires some specific Hardware Components and just a tiny bit of insight into the inner workings of 2D & 3D Animation Software and how they use your PC’s hardware.

VRAY Benchmark & CPU + GPU Scores (Updated Results)

January 27, 2021

Chaos Group’s V-Ray Benchmark is a widely used tool for benchmarking your Processor and your Graphics Card.

Octanebench Benchmark Results (Updated Scores)

January 6, 2021

OctaneBench is the currently most popular GPU Rendering Benchmark.

Best Laptop for Animation [2021 Guide]

January 25, 2021

There are quite some things to consider when looking for the best Laptop for Animation.

Best Computer For Graphic Design

April 15, 2021

As a Graphic Designer, you’ll need an excellent Computer optimized for Graphic Design workloads for a fast and frustration-free work experience.

Nvidia Graphics Cards List In Order Of Performance

April 11, 2021

A list of Nvidia Graphics Cards in order of performance is something I keep looking for myself.

PC-Builder: Find The Best Parts For Your PC & Workstation

April 21, 2021

Quickly find the best Parts for your PC & Workstation.

Best Workstation Computer for 3D Modeling and Rendering

April 11, 2021

The most interesting thing about looking for a Computer or Workstation for 3D Modeling and Rendering is the fact that 3D Modeling and (CPU) Rendering are two very different use cases.

Redshift Benchmark Results (Updated)

May 7, 2021

Redshift Benchmark results are not easy to find, that is why I compiled a list for everyone to take a look at.

Cinebench R15 Scores (Updated Results)

April 15, 2021

There’s a newer version of Cinebench Available Here.

Blender Benchmark Results (Updated Scores)

April 11, 2021

The Open Source Digital Content Creation Software Blender is among the most popular 3D-Modeling, -Animation, -Rendering, Video Editing & Compositing Solutions on the market.

How Much RAM Do You Need For Photoshop

January 28, 2021

Knowing how much RAM (System Memory) you need for working in Photoshop can be quite tricky at times because there are so many factors to keep in mind.

Best CPU & GPU Render Benchmarks

May 6, 2021

There are many kinds of Benchmarks out there.

What Does Ti mean in a GPU

March 27, 2021

Graphics Cards have complicated naming schemes and it can get confusing very fast, especially with the rate at which new GPUs are released.

How Much RAM Do You Need For Video Editing

April 17, 2021

Are you thinking about getting a new Video Editing Desktop PC or a Video Editing Laptop or want to upgrade your existing one?

How to Make Money as a 3D Artist (9 Fulfilling Ways)

April 8, 2021

There are many ways to make money as a 3D-Artist.

Best CPU For Rendering [2021 Guide]

May 6, 2021

Have you ever wondered what Processor (CPU) is best for rendering?

How to use the After Effects Wiggle Expression

March 28, 2021

The Wiggle Expression in After Effects (or ae wiggle for short) is a great way to make objects move randomly, have some sort of idle Movement in character joints, animate a random camera shake, create wobbly text or animate a blinking/flickering light.