My Ultimate Graphics Workstation - 3990x & 4-2080 Ti

[CaddDood]

Remember the old Apple Ad "I'm a Switcher"? Well after 40 years with Apple I'm Switcher from Apple to PC. Apple is now a phone company.  

 

This is my second build after the switch. First was a dual Xeon build with (4) 1080Ti's. I'm a retired Aerospace Engineer and did a lot of CAD and Graphics work during my career. I enjoyed it so much it's now my hobby in retirement. (Never did like to Golf).  I use a lot of different software but currently Solidworks for modeling, Cinema 4D for modeling and animations & Redshift for rendering.
 

This is my first build ever with an AMD CPU. All my career in engineering I used Xeon UNIX workstations as that is what they use in Aerospace. Very expensive boxes in the 70's and 80's. Like $70k per box and the CAD software I used was like $50k per seat annually.  This new build of mine is 100's of times faster than those vintage boxes I used.
 

Anyway, the main goal for this build was to build the strongest workstation possible inside a standard PC case. This workstation sits on my desk very close to me. I didn't want a mining rig, rack mounts or anything external like MoRa3's etc. My office is fully air conditioned and luckily I'm half deaf so fan noise is never an issue with me. Led Zeppelin blew out my left ear drum at a concert in 1974, indoor venue. I've never been able to hear from my left ear since that day. I feel lucky I didn't lose both.

 

I dual boot this new build with Win 10 for Workstations and Linux Ubuntu. I still keep a Mac attached via a KVM switch but find myself using it less and less.

 

Temps:  After 1 hour Hybrid Render, CPU 64 cores @ 100% utilization, GPUs @ 95-99% utilization.

 

CPU:  66-68c
GPUs: 50-55c
Water: 42c

 

I don't do any gaming but I certainly could with this rig. It's insane fast. This build is actually more suited to Creating games.

 

 

 

 

I modeled my custom Radiator Assembly to scale in Solidworks to insure it would fit in the space I had planned for it.

 

[dizmo]

@Den-Fi someone's comin' after you...

 

Beautiful build.

[jones177]

I do the extreme benches as well and it makes you think what is the Premium gaming PC.

 

Also why didn't get the EVGA GeForce RTX 2080 Ti FTW3 Ultra Hydro Copper? 

 

[CaddDood]

1 hour ago, jones177 said:

I do the extreme benches as well and it makes you think what is the Premium gaming PC.

Ha!  I wondered the same thing !?!?!

1 hour ago, jones177 said:

Also why didn't get the EVGA GeForce RTX 2080 Ti FTW3 Ultra Hydro Copper? 

 

I really like using a Quad 2-slot Terminal Block. My last build had 4-1080 TI's tied together with a terminal block. It makes for a very simple and clean connection between the GPUs. It also turns the GPUs into one strong structural unit with zero sag and no twisting stress on the PCIe slots. I wish EVGA made one but they do not. So I went the more expensive route of going with EK's blocks because they have the terminals available.

[jones177]

5 hours ago, CaddDood said:

I really like using a Quad 2-slot Terminal Block. My last build had 4-1080 TI's tied together with a terminal block. It makes for a very simple and clean connection between the GPUs. It also turns the GPUs into one strong structural unit with zero sag and no twisting stress on the PCIe slots. I wish EVGA made one but they do not. So I went the more expensive route of going with EK's blocks because they have the terminals available.

Thanks for the info. 

My 2080 tis seem to be heat limited so I am looking into a few options.

[Fraya]

very nice and also very expensive. 

i wonder what the power consumption is like? 

Epic build with some customisation is nice to see. 

 

 

[CaddDood]

On 5/25/2020 at 7:01 AM, Frayia said:

very nice and also very expensive. 

i wonder what the power consumption is like? 

Epic build with some customisation is nice to see. 

 

 

 

Temps:  After 1 hour Hybrid Render, CPU 64 cores @ 100% utilization, GPUs @ 95-99% utilization.

 

CPU:  66-68c
GPUs: 50-55c
Water: 42c

 

Power Consumption: Not sure, but when I turn it on the street lights in front of my house go dim.   

[djsy100]

Lovely build and very expensive, are you planning on going to hard line tubing in the main motherboard compartment? Would really suit the build.

[CaddDood]

1 hour ago, djsy100 said:

Lovely build and very expensive, are you planning on going to hard line tubing in the main motherboard compartment? Would really suit the build.

No plans for going to hard tubing. This is just my workstation for my daily fun. I wasn't really trying to build a showpiece. Just a super strong workstation and the components really needed to be on water. If I had done 5 AIOs it would have looked like a couple octopus in my box, so I went with a simple soft tube custom loop.  

[PolarizedSun]

On 5/24/2020 at 10:58 AM, dizmo said:

@Den-Fi someone's comin' after you...

 

Beautiful build.

Yep... but idk I still think Den-Fi's is still a bit cooler...
@CaddDood Amazing build though! I was a PC user then switched to a macbook when my old laptop broke and now I am saving for a gaming pc... So I am a switched switcher that switched or something like that XD... Great build! Looks amazing!

[CaddDood]

opps

[CaddDood]

11 hours ago, PolarizedSun said:

Yep... but idk I still think Den-Fi's is still a bit cooler...

That dude has the Golden Build !

[Drama Lama]

Epic build

(I know this is a workstation) you could create 4 VM and each would have still more performance than many forum members 

i guess you don’t regret switching 

[CaddDood]

On 6/2/2020 at 4:18 AM, Drama Lama said:

Epic build

(I know this is a workstation) you could create 4 VM and each would have still more performance than many forum members 

i guess you don’t regret switching 

 

My only regret is not doing it 5 years earlier. I hung on to Apple for far too long.

[Drama Lama]

26 minutes ago, CaddDood said:

 

My only regret is not doing it 5 years earlier. I hung on to Apple for far too long.

There might be usecases where Apple is really useful but if you want really big performance Windows or Linux is just the way to go

sometimes I wish MacOS was a buyable operating system but in reality I would probably cost 500 or more and the reason why many things work so great now is that Apple has only a limited amount of hardware to develop software for 

 

beginners use softtubes

advanced users use hardtubes 

 

and people who got real work to do use black soft tubes

[Deuteronomy93]

Awesome build!

 

I require much less power so a 3950x and 1 GPU is enough for my workload, hobbyist CAD and gaming but something like this does make everyone drool.

 

Just a few questions:

• Would quadros be more than you require/you don't require the additional memory?
• Would you consider quick-disconnect fittings in the future?
  • I wanted a bit of a showpiece so went hardline but for a workhorse I know I'd definitely go with this and the matt black tubing I think EK makes (personal preference).
• I saw you had at least 2 taps but you have a less usual loop, how are you anticipating maintenance?
  • Also what liquid are you using? I'm based in Beijing currently and it seems my options are pretty limited unfortunately! Always interested in what others are using in case I can get my hands on some.
• What is the rest of your setup like? I'm interested in your monitors/if you have other specialist equipment.
• Although you said you didn't want a showpiece, do you think you might try to make something more elaborate/push the build further?
  • I'm not sure how far into your retirement you are but maybe you get the itch for a new project that all my family members seem to be going through and that case (I believe everything is modular and can have the mobo tray altered right?) would be a great option and definitely cheaper than building a new house!

[CaddDood]

On 6/20/2020 at 10:06 AM, Drama Lama said:

There might be usecases where Apple is really useful but if you want really big performance Windows or Linux is just the way to go

sometimes I wish MacOS was a buyable operating system but in reality I would probably cost 500 or more and the reason why many things work so great now is that Apple has only a limited amount of hardware to develop software for 

 

I dual boot this build with Win 10 for Workstations & Ubuntu. I also run a macOS Catalina VM in Ubuntu just for my macOS fix.

[Drama Lama]

On 5/24/2020 at 7:39 PM, CaddDood said:

"I'm a Switcher

speaking of being a switcher

I‘ve become one too first Linux mint on a usb stick ( unfortunately lost it after a few months) and now I installed Pop Os on a SSD

 

let‘s all be switchers

[CaddDood]

On 6/22/2020 at 4:41 AM, Deuteronomy93 said:

Awesome build!

 

I require much less power so a 3950x and 1 GPU is enough for my workload, hobbyist CAD and gaming but something like this does make everyone drool.

 

Just a few questions:

 

Just a few questions:

 

***  Would quadros be more than you require/you don't require the additional memory?
I've use Quadros in the past but IMO they are only worth the extreme high price if your employer is buying them for you. Dollar for dollar GeForce cards will out perform Quadros 10 to 1.

 

***  Would you consider quick-disconnect fittings in the future?
No, they are bulky, ugly and prone to leaks, MHO. If you use quality parts and a simple soft tube loop maintenance is infrequent and very simple.

 

***  I saw you had at least 2 taps but you have a less usual loop, how are you anticipating maintenance?
Lower tap is drain, Upper tap is vent. Open both and the entire loop drains. When draining I can also blow in the upper vent tube to get out every bit of coolant. I've drained and refilled the loop a couple times during the build and it's quite easy. Maintenance now is drain and fill the loop once a year. A 20 minute job. Oh, and don't use opaque coolants with solids in them. They will plug up your CPU & GPU water blocks.

 

***  Also what liquid are you using? I'm based in Beijing currently and it seems my options are pretty limited unfortunately! Always interested in what others are using in case I can get my hands on some.
Distilled water and EKWB EK-CryoFuel Concentrate Coolant, 100mL, Navy Blue  (No solids)

 

***  What is the rest of your setup like? I'm interested in your monitors/if you have other specialist equipment.
I used a SpaceBall (old term for 3D Mouse) most of my career and won't do 3D work without one. 3DConnexion SpaceMouse Enterprise.
I just started posting some of my work on my web site for Family to see. I have a couple pics of my setup here: Pictures Here

 

***  Although you said you didn't want a showpiece, do you think you might try to make something more elaborate/push the build further?
I spent about 6 months building and tinkering with this build. I finally decided it was time to stop tinkering and start using. For me, the hardware tinkering can become addicting and I lose sight of the end goal which is Graphics Work. 

[CaddDood]

On 6/27/2020 at 8:01 AM, CaddDood said:

 

Just a few questions:

 

***  Would quadros be more than you require/you don't require the additional memory?
I've use Quadros in the past but IMO they are only worth the extreme high price if your employer is buying them for you. Dollar for dollar GeForce cards will out perform Quadros 10 to 1.

 

***  Would you consider quick-disconnect fittings in the future?
No, they are bulky, ugly and prone to leaks, MHO. If you use quality parts and a simple soft tube loop maintenance is infrequent and very simple.

 

***  I saw you had at least 2 taps but you have a less usual loop, how are you anticipating maintenance?
Lower tap is drain, Upper tap is vent. Open both and the entire loop drains. When draining I can also blow in the upper vent tube to get out every bit of coolant. I've drained and refilled the loop a couple times during the build and it's quite easy. Maintenance now is drain and fill the loop once a year. A 20 minute job. Oh, and don't use opaque coolants with solids in them. They will plug up your CPU & GPU water blocks.

 

***  Also what liquid are you using? I'm based in Beijing currently and it seems my options are pretty limited unfortunately! Always interested in what others are using in case I can get my hands on some.
Distilled water and EKWB EK-CryoFuel Concentrate Coolant, 100mL, Navy Blue  (No solids)

 

***  What is the rest of your setup like? I'm interested in your monitors/if you have other specialist equipment.
I used a SpaceBall (old term for 3D Mouse) most of my career and won't do any 3D work without one. 3DConnexion SpaceMouse Enterprise. If you don't have one and you work in 3D, take my word, Get one. It will increase your productivity 5 fold.

I just started posting some of my work on my web site for Family to see. I have a couple pics of my setup here: Pictures Here

 

P.S. When I started computing I used a 9" monochrome CRT display (Macintosh 128k) resolution of 512 × 342 pixels. My current 32" 4k Dell 10-bit LCD is beyond my dreams.

 

***  Although you said you didn't want a showpiece, do you think you might try to make something more elaborate/push the build further?
I spent about 6 months building and tinkering with this build. I finally decided it was time to stop tinkering and start using. For me, the hardware tinkering can become addicting and I lose sight of the end goal which is Graphics Work. 

Actually: The next upgrade I see will be swapping out my 4-2080 Ti's to 4-3080 Ti's once water blocks are available for them. Six months out I believe.