Good for rendering?

[LOLZpersonok]

I'm planning on building a new computer to play my games with the highest graphical settings available, but that's not the only thing I want to do with this future build. I actually want to get into film making (I am planning on taking a couple college courses which will bring me to it), and add 3D CGI elements to live action film, e.g. making a futuristic spaceship fly down my street or use the effects to blow up a building, or make a huge futuristic skyscraper in place where there is nothing. You know, compositing? 

 

My HP Envy will not be used for this purpose, I'm planning on building the system to be an i7-4790K based system to play my games and to possibly do this compositing in the future. My HP Envy, for example, can take 5-8 hours (sometimes longer) to render a 20 minute 1080p video with the highest quality settings and cuts, effects and transitions in the video using Sony Vegas Pro 10, with no compositing. Obviously, this will be vastly improved on an i7-4790K, as my HP Envy has a measly AMD A10-4600M APU and 8GB of RAM, which will be holding it back. 

 

But based a thread I just read, other people are making renderings in Blender 3D (which is software I plan on using as one of my programs), and a few posted examples of two second clips that took hours upon hours to render make me worried that my i7-4790K (future) build will not be adequate for this purpose, which will be to composite 3D CGI into live action. I want to make a movie so bad (trust me, you have no idea how badly I want to make this film I have in mind), but I fear that rendering will take unfeasible amounts of time. I'm all in for taking plenty of time to actually make the movie, but I don't want to have the computer running for days on end. I don't think that's good for my general safety, I don't want to rack up our power bill and I definitely do not want to over-stress the hardware by having it run for so long doing strenuous tasks.

 

Here are my future build's specs:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($354.00 @ Canada Computers)

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus 76.8 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($42.05 @ Newegg Canada)

Motherboard: ASRock Z97 Anniversary ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($88.00 @ Vuugo)

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($164.36 @ DirectCanada)

Storage: Kingston SSDNow V300 Series 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($64.99 @ Canada Computers)

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.97 @ DirectCanada)

Video Card: XFX Radeon R9 290 4GB Double Dissipation Video Card ($389.99 @ NCIX)

Case: Cooler Master HAF XB EVO ATX Desktop Case ($98.50 @ Vuugo)

Power Supply: Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($58.99 @ NCIX)

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($99.79 @ DirectCanada)

Case Fan: Cooler Master Blade Master 40.8 CFM 80mm Fan ($6.62 @ DirectCanada)

Case Fan: Cooler Master Blade Master 40.8 CFM 80mm Fan ($6.62 @ DirectCanada)

Total: $1,428.88CAD

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-03 05:04 EDT-0400

 

I want to know how this build will do with doing such rendering. As I mentioned I want to make a film so bad (I don't want to make it feature length, I really only want to make it about 45 minutes long. And I am not going to be doing 4K for a long time. 1080p is the highest) that involves CGI but I'm worried that I will not be able to render the video clips and the 3D elements in a reasonable amount of time. Also, I have never been able to find a definitive answer for this question, but would the i7-4790K truly be faster at rendering these elements than an AMD FX-9590? I do not want any fanboy answers to this question, I want a true answer, or a good source. CPUBoss doesn't seem to be all too reliable, after what I'm hearing about the site.

 

And, as nice as a Xeon based machine would be, it's too far out of my price range. I do not want to exceed $1,700 and I want to keep it in the $1,500 range.

[Archangel1994]

Don't get XFX R9 290, get sapphire Tri-x instead, it is much better. also this build will render pretty darn fast. The FX-9590 will probably be a bit faster since 8 logical cores are not quite as good as 8 physical cores but the difference is not going to be that big. Logan from TekSyndicate tested his 4930k (6 cores with hyperthreading) vs Pistol's 9570 and Logan was faster by a huge amount so I doubt the difference between the 9590 and the 4790k (given intel's significantly stronger cores) will be huge. The only xeons that are really in your price range are the E3's and they are on the same level as an I7.

 

As for the build itself I would make a few changes:

 

- Do not get the kingston V300, they are pretty bad at the moment. Get Crucial MX100 or Samsung 840 EVO instead.

- 1866 and 2133 memory are often about the same price and worth getting in a content creation environment. (http://ca.pcpartpicker.com/part/gskill-memory-f31866c9d16gsr) Has both lower CAS and higher frrequency for only $14.

- You might want to get a better motherboard, something like ASUS Z97 boards or MSI Z97 boards.

[Indus Monk]

i think; if u wanna render and game, you may just get a Nvidia GTX Titan Black or if u cant pay the $3000; then the long forgotten R9 295 X2 will be fine(costs $1500(if u can find one that is))

[Archangel1994]

i think; if u wanna render and game, you may just get a Nvidia GTX Titan Black or if u cant pay the $3000; then the long forgotten R9 295 X2 will be fine(costs $1500(if u can find one that is))

I think it's glaringly obvious his TOTAL budget is $1500 so that will not fly.

[Indus Monk]

I think it's glaringly obvious his TOTAL budget is $1500 so that will not fly.

should have read the whole post

[gundershot]

i think; if u wanna render and game, you may just get a Nvidia GTX Titan Black or if u cant pay the $3000; then the long forgotten R9 295 X2 will be fine(costs $1500(if u can find one that is))

 

I hope you're not serious 

 

OP, as @Archangel1994 said, the Tri-X cooler is indeed superior to the XFX cooler, I highly recommend you get that instead.

[pandorus13]

Hi ,

Just saw your post.

First of can you please be a bit more specific about all the software you're gonna use ? You've mentioned Vegas pro and blender. Making a complete list helps. Because different 3d applications work differently. You'll see what I mean below.

Secondly , for blender , YOU CANNOT USE AN AMD CARD . This is because gpu rendering in blender isn't supported on AMD as it doesn't have CUDA.

Next , for things like Vegas Pro , you're looking for AMD cards as they are generally much better performing when it comes to OpenCL based stuff. But in this case , you can also use an Nvidia card as it supports OpenCL .

In softwares like Maya , The graphics cards don't play a significant role as the CPU . So you're better of getting the best, although , for your given budget I don't think you can upgrade that.

Clearly you can see how specific things are . And if you don't plan on gaming then other options are available. Personally I'd pick Nvidia over AMD as it has more support and versatility as in the case of blender . If you're purely running OpenCL or just apps that work well on The AMD platform or its supported features then go for it.

I think your build is fine otherwise . You cant really get a better processor for the budget UNLESS YOU WAIT FOR THE 5TH GEN. I would recommend a better cooler such as the h100i or swiftech h220x if you wanna push CPU performance(you'll need it) and you should get a more suitable PSU.

As for the graphics cards , I can't tell unless you update this post specifying.

Personally the gtx780ti is better off here.

Cheers.

[LOLZpersonok]

-snip-

 

The software that I plan on using in the future includes Sony Vegas (maybe), Adobe Premiere CC, Adobe After Effects CC and Blender 3D. I could use Maya, but I probably have less than a year left for my student software from Autodesk. After that I'm done. I'm sure my college courses may introduce me to these programs, however.

 

The reason I chose the AMD card is because it's a good, powerful GPU and it keeps my budget (preferrably) below $1,500. I may end up sticking to Maya, but that's not free in the way Blender is.

[LOLZpersonok]

-snip-

I made some modifications to the build. I'm really trying to keep it as inexpensive as I can.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-4790K 4.0GHz Quad-Core Processor ($359.79 @ DirectCanada)

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 Plus 76.8 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($26.46 @ DirectCanada)

Motherboard: ASRock Z97 Anniversary ATX LGA1150 Motherboard ($88.00 @ Vuugo)

Memory: G.Skill Ripjaws X Series 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR3-1600 Memory ($164.36 @ DirectCanada)

Storage: Sandisk Extreme II 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($69.99 @ NCIX)

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($54.97 @ DirectCanada)

Video Card: MSI Radeon R9 290 4GB TWIN FROZR Video Card ($399.99 @ NCIX)

Case: Cooler Master HAF XB EVO ATX Desktop Case ($97.21 @ DirectCanada)

Power Supply: Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($74.99 @ Canada Computers)

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($104.98 @ Newegg Canada)

Total: $1440.74

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-05 01:22 EDT-0400

[brob]

@LOLZpersonok,

 

Something to consider. It is a touch over the top end of the budget but for the work you intend on doing it might be worth it. A 6 core cpu will make a big difference with the usage outlined in the OP. CPU render tasks will take a great deal less time. To get that close to the budget I dropped the gpu to a GTX 770. It has CUDA which may make a difference in some of the software you might use. Is a decent gaming card. And, should provide reasonably good gpu acceleration of editing and rendering tasks.

 

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3GHz 6-Core Processor  ($434.95 @ DirectCanada)
CPU Cooler: Corsair H80i 77.0 CFM Liquid CPU Cooler  ($80.99 @ Canada Computers)
Motherboard: ASRock X99M Extreme4 Micro ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard  ($303.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Memory: Crucial 16GB (4 x 4GB) DDR4-2133 Memory  ($241.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Storage: Sandisk Solid State Drive 128GB 2.5" Solid State Drive  ($58.86 @ DirectCanada)
Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive  ($54.97 @ DirectCanada)
Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 770 2GB DirectCU II  Video Card  ($349.00 @ Canada Computers)
Case: Cooler Master N200 MicroATX Mid Tower Case  ($49.50 @ Vuugo)
Power Supply: SeaSonic 620W 80+ Bronze Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($84.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit)  ($104.98 @ Newegg Canada)
Total: $1764.19
Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-05 02:28 EDT-0400

[pandorus13]

Well , I'm telling you just once more , getting an AMD card for blender is pointless , it isn't supported.

And I think it's best if you just compile a list of which software supports what kind of hardware acceleration . Technically you're expected to know that , otherwise you'd be wasting money here. You Can easily decide AMD vs Nvidia.

And there's nothing such as a cheaper AMD card. I'm pretty sure you can get a similar performing Nvidia system at the same price point because this isn't very need oriented.

Just keep your CPU performance at max.

I'm warning you once more , getting a card that doesn't support hardware acceleration on a program you plan to use is a bad cchoice. Please look up.

[LOLZpersonok]

-snip-

 

 

-snip-

 

I must say that I am getting quite nervous/worried about this. I want to be able to play games well, but I want to also do video editing, and eventually compositing with this computer. Your suggestions are all very good, but I'm very worried about the price, mainly because of two factors: I'm very impulsive and have a tough time saving. Even for me, my preference to keep the price of the build ~$1,500 is pushing it for me. I didn't realize how actually difficult it was to decide between different brands or manufacturers. Another thing is that it will take approximately 3 months and 10 days to save for if I spent nothing. Because I despised my previous job and my previous boss, I'm very scared for getting a new job and keeping it.

 

As for you Pandorus13, I literally built a new system on PCPartPicker using the Intel Core i7-5820K processor a couple hours before you replied, and it's about the same price, but it's using the Sapphire Radeon R9 290. I will create a new one based on your suggestion. I will try the GTX 780, and see how the build does with the price. I will, however, go with a Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO CPU cooler as I'm finding that it is an excellent cooler, especially for the price and overclocking is not something I intend on taking to a massive level. If I was going with the 4.0GHz i7-4790K, I'd overclock it to ~4.3GHz, or maybe not at all. I might bump up the i7-5820K to about 3.5GHz or maybe a little bit more. What cooler would you suggest for a 3.5GHz or higher overclock for this processor? Would you suggest overclocking it at all with the Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO? I'm not too interested in overclocking to be totally honest. As long as I get a processor that is at least 3.1GHz, I'm fine. The reason for that is so that PCSX2 will run well.

 

I should also make it clear that I may not be doing compositing like this for a while after I actually buy and build the machine. I will also have to buy a subscription to the Adobe Creative Cloud and possibly a newer Macintosh to run Logic Pro X so I can score my movies on my own. I also have to learn the software as well.

 

As I said before, I really want to minimize the cost as much as I possibly can. Here's the new build, and the price is a little scary to me:

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-5820K 3.3GHz 6-Core Processor ($429.98 @ Newegg Canada)

CPU Cooler: Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler ($29.79 @ DirectCanada)

Motherboard: ASRock X99 Extreme3 ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($229.98 @ Newegg Canada)

Memory: Crucial 16GB (2 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($235.98 @ Newegg Canada)

Storage: Samsung 840 EVO 120GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($79.99 @ Canada Computers)

Storage: Seagate Barracuda 1TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($52.99 @ Canada Computers)

Video Card: Asus GeForce GTX 780 3GB DirectCU II Video Card ($489.50 @ Vuugo)

Case: Cooler Master HAF XB EVO ATX Desktop Case ($95.05 @ DirectCanada)

Power Supply: Corsair CX 600W 80+ Bronze Certified Semi-Modular ATX Power Supply ($74.99 @ Canada Computers)

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 8.1 (OEM) (64-bit) ($104.98 @ Newegg Canada)

Total: $1,823.23CAD

Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available

Generated by PCPartPicker 2014-09-06 03:14 EDT-0400

[brob]

@LOLZpersonok,

 

Keep saving and wait a couple of months. The price of X99 parts is likely to come down as sales volumes increase.

[LOLZpersonok]

@LOLZpersonok,

 

Keep saving and wait a couple of months. The price of X99 parts is likely to come down as sales volumes increase.

 

I expect something like that. I will not buy the parts as I afford them. I don't want a "Project" system that's incomplete for a while. I don't like that idea, so I want to buy all parts at once. And, because I'd be saving like this and I still need to go and look for a job, it'll be a while before I actually do build it. So I do expect the price of the parts to come down by then. It could be the beginning of next year before I buy the parts needed.