Project Sledgehammer

[TechKnowScope]

Table of Contents:

1. [History & Build Info] < You Are Here
2. [Videos]
3. [Photos]

History:

I run the YouTube channel Tech-Know Scope (www.TechKnowScope.tv). Back in October, I upgraded my camera to the GH4, and along with 4K came the 4K struggle. My desktop handled 1080p just fine, impressive for a computer built in 2009. 4K was an entirely different beast. It's difficult to edit because I can barely preview what I'm doing, and the render times are horrendous. (The first build log video for Project Sledgehammer took over 5 hours to render.)

Obviously it's time for a new build, and I've been wanting to upgrade for a couple of years now. Now it's a necessity for my channel. My current PC is still valid because it was an all out build back in 2009, and this new one will be even more so. 

I always say, anything worth doing is worth doing in excess!

Introducing Project Sledgehammer:

Purpose:

1. 4K Rendering (& Beyond)
2. Other Productivity
3. Gaming
 

Components & Specs:

• Motherboard: Asus Z10PE-D16 WS
• CPU: (2x) Intel Xeon E5-2696 V3 CPUs (Haswell 2011-v3)
  • 18 Cores Each
  • Hyper-Threading
  • 45MB of L3 Cache Each
  • 40 PCIe Lanes Each (Fully Supported by Motherboard)
• RAM: 256GB ECC DDR4 (8 x 32GB)
• GPU: (2x) Nvidia GeForce GTX Titan X in SLI
• Storage:
  • Samsung 950 Pro NVMe 512GB [Boot]
  • (5x) Samsung 850 Pro 512GB
• Case: CaseLabs Mercury S8 + Pedestal
• Cooling: Noctua i4 (x2) & IPPC-3000 PWM Fans (x8)
• PSU: Corsair AX1500i 1500w
• Connectivity:
  • (2x) Gigabit Ethernet
  • Bluetooth 4.0 Class 1 [50m Range]
• Video Capture: Blackmagic Design Intensity Pro 4K (Elgato HD60 Pro was replaced)

 

Peripherals:

• Monitor: 49" UHD Wasabi Mango UHD490
• Keyboard: Corsair K95 RGB Cherry MX Blue
• Mouse: Logitech MX Master
• Audio: Focusrite DAC w/ Yamaha HS8 Monitors

Sledgehammer | because we're not crunching numbers anymore, WE'RE CRUSHING THEM!

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Short Link:

More Photos: http://instagram.TechKnowScope.tv

[TechKnowScope]

Videos:

The Rig

Motherboard: Asus Z10PE-D16 WS

 

 

Case: CaseLabs Mercury S8 (Customized) + Pedestal

 

 

Sledgehammer Components

 

 

The Assembly

 

The Final Build, Benchmarks, and Price

 

Peripherals

 

 

Monitor: 49" UHD Wasabi Mango UHD490

 

 

 

Keyboard: Corsair K95 RGB Cherry MX Blue

 

[TechKnowScope]

Photos:

 

Completed Build:

 

 

Components:

 

Motherboard: Asus Z10PE-D16 WS

 

 

CPUs: Intel Xeon E5-2696 V3

 

 

GPUs: Nvidia GeForce GTX Titan X

 

 

Case: CaseLabs Mercury S8 & Pedestal

 

 

Storage: Samsung 950 & 850 Pros

 

 

Fans & Cooling: Noctua

 

 

Miscellaneous Components:

 

 

Peripherals:

 

[NaLu]

Looks very nice : )

[NinjaJc01]

Just here on my Core 2 Duo laptop with screwed up iGPU drivers...

But it's an awesome build, and if I had the money, this would certainly serve as inspiration.

[Stefan1024]

Quite some powerful hardware you got there. It will serve you well. But the size of the case is insane. Even my passive cooled dual xeon build is (a bit) smaler.

 

Still a nice project.

[TechKnowScope]

10 hours ago, Stefan1024 said:

Quite some powerful hardware you got there. It will serve you well. But the size of the case is insane. Even my passive cooled dual xeon build is (a bit) smaler.

 

Still a nice project.

Your build doesn't look bad itself. I'll have to wait until I get back on the computer to really look at it, but I'm already intrigued... curious, how did you get 73 cores instead of 72?

[Stefan1024]

10 hours ago, TechKnowScope said:

Your build doesn't look bad itself. I'll have to wait until I get back on the computer to really look at it, but I'm already intrigued... curious, how did you get 73 cores instead of 72?

16 cores from the CPUs and 57 cores from the Xeon Phi

[Tech_Dreamer]

Looks awesome, But gotta say , PC case on rollers always made me nervous, all those expensive stuff & nudge could force it off the table top even on the ground those wheels look too loose

[TechKnowScope]

On 7/2/2016 at 8:57 PM, Tech_Dreamer said:

Looks awesome, But gotta say , PC case on rollers always made me nervous, all those expensive stuff & nudge could force it off the table top even on the ground those wheels look too loose

My case sits on the floor in my office, but I keep them locked too. No problems.

[TechKnowScope]

On 6/27/2016 at 4:34 AM, Stefan1024 said:

16 cores from the CPUs and 57 cores from the Xeon Phi

What do you use the Xeon Phi for? How well does it work?