Case recommendations for a dual xeon build

[LED_Guy]

I am considering starting a new build that will be based on dual xeon platinum 8180 CPUs on an Asus C621E Sage motherboard.  My concern is that the sage is an EEB motherboard and there don't seem to be many cases that accommodate these.  Any recommendations appreciated.

 

Absent a good recommendation I may have to build a custom wall mount case.

 

This build will have a minimum of 128GB RAM (192GB more likely and possibly up to 256GB)

GPU: Quadro RTX 6000 GPU.  I may include an RTX 2080 Ti just to round out the system and allow occasional gaming

Boot drive: 1TB Samsung 970 Pro

Data drive: 2x 2TB Samsung 860 Evo

PSU: Season Prime Ultra 1000 Titanium

Water cooling TBD 

 

Before anyone comments, yes I need the cores.  This is a workstation for ray trace optical design (monte carlo simulations) and thermal design using CFD/CHT.

[RollinLower]

the obvious, but very over the top choice would be the Corsair obsidian 1000D.

thats a 500$ case tough.. but it does support lots of watercooling!

 

alternatively the Phanteks Enthoo Elite, but that one's even more expensive.

 

[emosun]

well for my eeb board I used an old gateway case and removed all the drive guts , but it was a lot of fabrication.

 

your eeb board is pretty close to an e-atx board just a bit wider so have a look at tower e-atx cases and just make sure theres some extra room in front of the board for the extra width
 

https://www.newegg.com/p/pl?N=100008044 600029569 600006412 600006416

[LED_Guy]

The sage is an EEB mobo, but the Corsair 100D is compatible with SSI EEB mobos.  I'm not sure of the difference . . .

 

A $500 case with a dual xeon build is not an issue - have you checked the prices for xeons? I am also installing a (single card) $4000 GPU.

[RollinLower]

1 minute ago, LED_Guy said:

The sage is an EEB mobo, but the Corsair 100D is compatible with SSI EEB mobos.  I'm not sure of the difference . . .

 

A $500 case with a dual xeon build is not an issue - have you checked the prices for xeons? I am also installing a (single card) $4000 GPU.

oh i know, but most server guys just plop those things into some 4U rackmount and call it a day

[LED_Guy]

Let me add a comment.  If I'm going to build a $20+k computer it damned well better look good.

 

This is one of the main reasons I am looking for suggestions here.  A $20+k metal box is just lame (IMO).

 

I only wish I had started considering this build before they InWIn 928 launched (and quickly sold out)

[LED_Guy]

For reference my last build used the InWin S-Box titanium case.

 

I'm emphasizing the because InWin only built one titanium version and I was lucky enough to get it.  I understand InWin built a dozen or so red/black S-Boxes, but I'm not sure where they ended up.

[Juular]

The difference between EATX and SSI EEB are only in some standoffs location, so theoretically you can get a EATX case, drill holes for missing standoffs, get standoffs with longer threaded part and secure them with the nut on the other side.

 

Edit: oh, it's also rotated 90° C so I\O ports would be on the bottom\top edge if we compare it with EATX.

[Juular]

See, there's very powerful tool, pcpartpicker.com. Here's your config, you can then see all cases that are compatible with it, it's not always accurate but you save yourself a ton of googling around. So the cheapest option it seems would be Phanteks Enthoo Pro.

[RollinLower]

13 minutes ago, LED_Guy said:

For reference my last build used the InWin S-Box titanium case.

 

I'm emphasizing the because InWin only built one titanium version and I was lucky enough to get it.  I understand InWin built a dozen or so red/black S-Boxes, but I'm not sure where they ended up.

if you have money burning a hole in your pocket you can still order the 928 from casekings.de and have it shipped to you?

personally wouldn't recommend, but personally i wouldn't get the 928 anyway so yeah

[LED_Guy]

1 minute ago, RollinLower said:

if you have money burning a hole in your pocket you can still order the 928 from casekings.de and have it shipped to you?

personally wouldn;t recommend, but personally i wouldn;t get the 928 anyway so yeah

I'm not going to say I have money burning a hole in my pocket.  I do have a legitimate need for a very expensive computer.

 

I just want it to look nice.  The 928 us a beast of a case and I'm not sure I want that path, even if its available.

[Juular]

15 minutes ago, LED_Guy said:

I'm not going to say I have money burning a hole in my pocket.  I do have a legitimate need for a very expensive computer.

 

I just want it to look nice.  The 928 us a beast of a case and I'm not sure I want that path, even if its available.

What's budget for CPUs BTW ? I'd say unless you're going to get 2x 18-24-core CPUs for 4k$ each you're not gonna get any performance increase over single Threadripper 3970X.

 

Edit: actually, it seems that that wouldn't be the case even with two 4k$ E5-2695 V4's, theoretically.

See, R5-2695 V4 have 22 cores, 44 threads, 3.6 GHz single-core boost frequency, so i'd assume that all-core boost are no higher than 3.4 GHz and even this would be generous assumption. Threadipper 3970X has 32 cores 64 threads but AMD's SMT are a bit more efficient (don't have sources for that claim right now, need some googling), all-core boost are around 4.2 GHz IIRC. But AMD Zen 2 also has ~10% higher IPC than Intel Broadwell.

So theoretical performance for these cases would be :

Intel E5-2695 V4 x2 : 22*1.3(SMT)*3.4*1*2(dual-socket) = 195 points

AMD Threadripper 3970X : 32*1.4*4.2*1.1 = 207 points

AMD wins by slight margin but it's platform would cost about 6k$ cheaper ...

 

Edit: I see, Xeon 8180.

[LED_Guy]

Read the original post.  Dual Xeon 8180.  Each 8180 is 28 cores at 2.50 GHz base and 3.80 GHz turbo.  Benchmarks on sustained operation are just north of 3 TFLOPs.

 

Linpack on a 3970x peaks at 1.3 TFLOPs.  Even a single 8180 beats a 3970x and comes in at a lower TDP as well.

[Juular]

3 minutes ago, LED_Guy said:

Read the original post.  Dual Xeon 8180.  Each 8180 is 28 cores at 2.50 GHz base and 3.80 GHz turbo.  Benchmarks on sustained operation are just north of 3 TFLOPs.

 

Linpack on a 3970x peaks at 1.3 TFLOPs.  Even a single 8180 beats a 3970x and comes in at a lower TDP as well.

TDP is a completely pointless metric FYI, don't rely on it as a means of choosing your cooling system.

[WkdPaul]

* thread cleaned *

 

Please keep this on-topic and keep the Community Standards in mind when interacting with others.

[TVwazhere]

6 minutes ago, LED_Guy said:

I will repeat that I am looking for advice on a (good looking) case that's compatible with an EEB mobo.

Phanteks Enthoo 719 (formerly the Luxe 2) immediately comes to mind. 

[LED_Guy]

My options seem to be:

• InWin 928 (a beast of a case)
• Corsair Obsidian 1000D
• Phanteks Enthoo Elite
• Phanteks Enthoo 719
• Thermaltake W100

Or try a custom wall mount build, something along the lines of 

 

Any other suggestions appreciated

 

(still not an Intel employee - just know a lot of grad school class mates who work there . . .)