Setup for a new build

[chigge]

Hi everyone,

This is the first time I'm posting so please let me know if I've made a mistake or missunderstood any guidelines.

I am in the process of changing workplace and my new employer has asked me to specify what equipment I need. As I will be their first and only Animation & Motion Graphics artist, the setup will be from scratch.

I have previously only used CPU rendering before but i'm interested in trying out GPU rendering now that I have the chance.

I am asking for help to specify my build.

They way I see it, I have two options:

One powerful standalone computer with as much GPU power possible. in this scenario, my understanding is that I can start rendering using all but one GPU in the workstation while still continue working on the computer.

or

One less powerful computer for general work aswell as a seperate render node, specifc for rendering.

My budget is between 10-15k usd, what would you do if you were in my shoes and do you have any tips on specific builds?

I'll be using Vray NEXT in 3ds Max.

Thank you in advance!

[Micha]

General I would build two computers, since if one will stop to work, than you have an emergency machine. I would buy two fast AMD Ryzen computers (best based on 3950x, but it will be available from September only). So you should get two fast machines for CPU rendering. The rest of the money you could spend for GPUs.

[squintnic]

then you have to get 2 cases, 2 motherboards, 2 sets of RAM etc etc....

[Muhammed_Hamed]

One powerful standalone computer with as much GPU power possible. in this scenario, my understanding is that I can start rendering using all but one GPU in the workstation while still continue working on the computer.

This is definitely the way you should go about this, your budget is pretty good. Don't bother with DR, it can be a lot of headache
And yeah, you will need a separate card for your viewport and windows performance, and maybe 3 other cards to use for GPU rendering.
Here is what I would get,
Threadripper 2990wx
Aorus Extreme X399
64 GB Gskill TridentZ 3200 MHz
Lian Li 011 Air
Corsiar H150i Pro
EVGA Supernova 1600 Watts
4x RTX 2080Tis Asus Turbo
Samsung 970 EVO 1tb for your OS, and feel free to add as many mechanical drives as you want
This is gonna be around 9 to 11k USD, depending on where you are based
If you have experience you can build this yourself, or check out
https://www.maingear.com/
Send them an Email, tell them about your budget and see what offer you can get. They make nice custom loops and they have a lot of experience in this kind of builds

Don't go with the new 3950X, as this is a consumer platform, you will have hard time running more than 2 GPUs
Let me know if you have any questions

Best,
Muhammed

[Micha]

Muhammed_Hamed I don't know so much about processors and I have seen the CPU benchmark only. So I understand you right, the 3950X maybe be best for CPU rendering, but couldn't not drive 4x2080ti?

Do you know why the 2950x has a higher benchmark than the 2990wx?

[Muhammed_Hamed]

the 3950X maybe be best for CPU rendering, but couldn't not drive 4x2080ti?

Hi Micha,
Yes this is correct, the 3950X has only 20 lanes, 4 of which are for m.2 devices and only 16 for GPUs, so max GPUs you can use are 2 in x8,x8 configuration
On the other hand, the 2950X has 64 lanes, 48 of which are for GPUs, you can run as many GPUs as your Mobo allow.. up to 5 in few cases

Do you know why the 2950x has a higher benchmark than the 2990wx?

yes, this specfic benchmark relies more on core frequency, more than having multiple cores
You will need to rely on V-ray benchmark for this, where the 2990wx beats the 2950x by quite a big margin..almost double the performance

[Micha]

Hi Muhammed,

thank you very much for in detailed info, it will help a lot. I think, my next machine will based on the 2950x to keep the budget. Using 5 cards sounds good - 4 for rendering and one for display. Wich mobo would you recommend? The setup from post #4 above?
At the moment I use 2x2080ti for rendering and one 1080ti for display. Could be nice to have a machine where I could add two additional 2080ti later.

I never used AMD before, but I like the possibility to upgrade the CPU in the future without to buy a new mainboard.

[Muhammed_Hamed]

Wich mobo would you recommend? The setup from post #4 above?

Yes, the Aorus Extreme is pretty good, you also get 10 Gbit ethernet and nice OC features
It will only house 4 cards, not 5.. the one board that can handle 5 cards is Aorus X399 Gaming 7 but you will need riser cables for 2 cards at least, which is a bit harder
I would recommend you stick to the Aorus Extreme and 4 cards, the setup is very very simple.. but if you are interested in 5 cards let me know, will tell you exactly what to do

I never used AMD before, but I like the possibility to upgrade the CPU in the future without to buy a new mainboard.

You will love it, and yes you don't need to buy a new board for better CPUs
You can upgrade to 2990wx or whatever will be released next, we will see

Best,
Muhammed

[Micha]

It will only house 4 cards, not 5.. the one board that can handle 5 cards is Aorus X399 Gaming 7 but you will need riser cables for 2 cards at least, which is a bit harder
I would recommend you stick to the Aorus Extreme and 4 cards, the setup is very very simple.. but if you are interested in 5 cards let me know, will tell you exactly what to do

Since my 2080ti are 2,5slot cards it's not so easy:

Option A (Aorus X399 Gaming 7) - I use the 2080ti at slot 1 and 4 and the 1080ti at slot 7 (slot count like at boards with 1 standard slot distance). If I want to use more cards, than I could use raiser cable later. My 4-slot NVlink could be used here. The question is - can the monitor card be used at the last slot or need the monitor connected to slot 1 always?

Option B (Aorus Extreme) - I use the 1080ti at slot 1 and if I want to use NVlink, than both cards needs raiser cables.

The Lian Li 011 Air looks like a nice case, but afraid it's to wide for my space here. If I should use raiser cable than I need additional wide space. Do you know a good tower in more standard size?

I tend to the Aorus Gaming 7, only the gaming design is not so much my taste, but I suppose so, the lights can be turned off. The board would allow me to use my current cards, NVlink and I could upgrade to five cards.

[Micha]

At the moment at my old workstation I'm using two LAN connectors - one for the internet and one for DR. The Gigabyte X399 DESIGNARE EX seams to be comparable to the Aorus Gaming 7, but I would get two LAN connectors again. What do you think about the Gigabyte X399 DESIGNARE EX?

[Muhammed_Hamed]

I have a case here that can house up to 7 cards with Riser cables and with spacing between them, will type you here shortly when I'm at home
The Designare is quite good, but only for the 2950x, not for the 2990wx
You will need the Aorus extreme if you want to be future proof

[Micha]

Your 7-card-riser-cable-case sounds interesting. Do you use an extra power supply at this case, so that you get enough power and short cables? Which board you use to drive 7 cards?

I'm curious - why could the 2990wx not work at the Designare? Why it could not be future proof? At the homepage the 2990wx is listed as compatible:
https://www.gigabyte.com/de/Motherbo...rt#support-cpu

EDIT:
Here my current setup by a local reseller. What do you think, is it ok so far? I chose a housing where I can place the radiator on top. The RAM is quite cheap - is it ok?
https://www.mindfactory.de/shopping_...73243262ddb1d1

EDIT2: I don't know so much about PCIe - can the fifth slot be used for rendering per 2080ti, since it is a PCIEx4 slot only?

[Muhammed_Hamed]

Here is the case that you can use for 7 GPUs, and 2x Powersupplies
https://www.v1tech.com/shop/cases/re...zpvZc22bIB-0W4
For 7 GPUs, you will need the X299 Sage and an i9 CPU
or Dual Xeons and this board Z10PE-D8 WS
in both cases, you will need riser cables for your cards, or a custom loop, in which the cards will be single slot, and you can fit all of them directly on your board

I'm curious - why could the 2990wx not work at the Designare? Why it could not be future proof?

It is an entry level board, that was desgined for first and second Gen Threadrippers, but not the 2990wx or 2970wx
The power phases and VRM cooling are not sufficient for these CPUs, you will have stability and performance issues..There are multiple threads about this here on forum

Here my current setup by a local reseller. What do you think, is it ok so far? I chose a housing where I can place the radiator on top. The RAM is quite cheap - is it ok?

RAM is ok, very solid build so far except the case
This case is massive, way bigger than the Lian-Li I recommended above
And you won't be able to fit 5 cards there with riser cables, maybe if you remove the side panel and place 2 cards on your desk or an external rack

can the fifth slot be used for rendering per 2080ti

Yes, X4 you will be losing like 5% of performance which is not much .. You will be fine

[Micha]

This case is massive, way bigger than the Lian-Li I recommended above
And you won't be able to fit 5 cards there with riser cables, maybe if you remove the side panel and place 2 cards on your desk or an external rack

I tried to keep the wide in standard size, but do you mean the Lian-Li allow to use the 2,5slot 2080ti + 1080ti inside the case? Can they free placed/fixed and short cables connect them to the mother board? This would be very interesting and I will find a better place in my small office. What kind of cables should be used?

Your details about the Designare let me tend to Aorus Extreme X399. I understand better now. Thank you for your patient.

[Micha]

Attached an image where I show how my cards could be connected without riser cable if the case is large enough. But I'm not sure it would work, since all connectors at the bottom are blocked by the card and the card need additional space below the main board. I hope the Corsair Obsidian Series 750D could give enough space.