Phasing out Z400 for new Build

[nitron64]

We are thinking of phasing out 5 of our HP Z400 and 1 Z600 and replacing them with a couple of new builds.

 

Can anyone suggest a configuration that will match the rendering power of those without breaking the bank?

 

I was thinking of going with the new i9's for the price to performance against the Xeon's. We mainly use Vray and 3ds max. Thanks.

[Senzelian]

Puget Systems has done a ton of testing when it comes to Vray and 3DS. Here are a few links - sadly the 3DS results are a generation behind.

 

https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/V-Ray-CPU-Comparison-New-14-16-and-18-core-Skylake-X-Processors-1043/

https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/V-Ray-GPU-Rendering-Platform-Comparison-Skylake-X-Xeon-W-and-Threadripper-1023/

https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/V-Ray-CPU-Comparison-Skylake-X-vs-Threadripper-1018/

 

https://www.pugetsystems.com/recommended/Recommended-Systems-for-Autodesk-3ds-Max-159/Hardware-Recommendationshttps://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/AutoDesk-3ds-Max-2017-CPU-Performance-823/

https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/AutoDesk-3ds-Max-2017-GeForce-GPU-Performance-816/

 

I read a bit into those articles and it seems you might run quite well with a 1920X or 1950X Threadripper instead of an Intel i9 if you want to save some cash.

GPU wise it doesn't seem to matter too much. Generally anything in the higher end range from NVidia seems to perform and scale at up to two GPUs really well.

 

I hope this helps for now.

 

 

 

[nitron64]

36 minutes ago, Senzelian said:

Puget Systems has done a ton of testing when it comes to Vray and 3DS. Here are a few links - sadly the 3DS results are a generation behind.

 

https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/V-Ray-CPU-Comparison-New-14-16-and-18-core-Skylake-X-Processors-1043/

https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/V-Ray-GPU-Rendering-Platform-Comparison-Skylake-X-Xeon-W-and-Threadripper-1023/

https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/V-Ray-CPU-Comparison-Skylake-X-vs-Threadripper-1018/

 

https://www.pugetsystems.com/recommended/Recommended-Systems-for-Autodesk-3ds-Max-159/Hardware-Recommendationshttps://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/AutoDesk-3ds-Max-2017-CPU-Performance-823/

https://www.pugetsystems.com/labs/articles/AutoDesk-3ds-Max-2017-GeForce-GPU-Performance-816/

 

I read a bit into those articles and it seems you might run quite well with a 1920X or 1950X Threadripper instead of an Intel i9 if you want to save some cash.

GPU wise it doesn't seem to matter too much. Generally anything in the higher end range from NVidia seems to perform and scale at up to two GPUs really well.

 

I hope this helps for now.

Thanks for the links, will check them out.

 

Indeed the Threadripper will be a better choice than the i9 but our System Builder always recommends and intel Build and may not build us and AMD one. Thanks for replying.

[brob]

2 hours ago, nitron64 said:

Thanks for the links, will check them out.

 

Indeed the Threadripper will be a better choice than the i9 but our System Builder always recommends and intel Build and may not build us and AMD one. Thanks for replying.

If you stick with Intel, i9 is currently a better choice than Xeon. (The only caveat being a budget sufficient to allow for a dual cpu system.)

 

There are v-ray versions that can use gpu or gpu & cpu to render. If more rendering power is needed a multiple gpu system would make sense. In which case the builds below would need higher capacity psu.

 

Threadripper Build List

Spoiler

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Threadripper 1950X 3.4GHz 16-Core Processor  ($959.88 @ OutletPC) 
CPU Cooler: Noctua - NH-U14S TR4-SP3 140.2 CFM CPU Cooler  ($79.90 @ Amazon) 
Motherboard: Gigabyte - X399 DESIGNARE EX ATX TR4 Motherboard  ($399.99 @ Amazon) 
Memory: Corsair - Vengeance LPX 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-3600 Memory  ($501.99 @ Amazon) 
Storage: Samsung - 960 Pro 1TB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive  ($586.99 @ Amazon) 
Video Card: PNY - Quadro P5000 16GB Video Card  ($1800.99 @ Dell) 
Case: Fractal Design - Define C ATX Mid Tower Case  ($74.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic - FOCUS Plus Gold 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($83.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Total: $4488.72
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-11-16 11:09 EST-0500

 

Intel Build List, v-ray benchmark roughly similar to Threadripper build. (Intel currently has three i9 cpu that would offer better cpu render performance.)

Spoiler

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel - Core i9-7920X 2.9GHz 12-Core Processor  ($1099.49 @ SuperBiiz) 
CPU Cooler: Noctua - NH-U14S 55.0 CFM CPU Cooler  ($63.75 @ Amazon) 
Motherboard: Asus - PRIME X299-A ATX LGA2066 Motherboard  ($286.49 @ SuperBiiz) 
Memory: G.Skill - Ripjaws V Series 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-3200 Memory  ($455.99 @ Newegg) 
Storage: Samsung - 960 Pro 1TB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive  ($586.99 @ Amazon) 
Video Card: PNY - Quadro P5000 16GB Video Card  ($1800.99 @ Dell) 
Case: Fractal Design - Define C ATX Mid Tower Case  ($74.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic - FOCUS Plus Gold 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($83.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Total: $4452.68
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-11-16 11:15 EST-0500

 

[nitron64]

13 minutes ago, brob said:

If you stick with Intel, i9 is currently a better choice than Xeon. (The only caveat being a budget sufficient to allow for a dual cpu system.)

 

There are v-ray versions that can use gpu or gpu & cpu to render. If more rendering power is needed a multiple gpu system would make sense. In which case the builds below would need higher capacity psu.

 

Threadripper Build List

  Reveal hidden contents

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: AMD - Threadripper 1950X 3.4GHz 16-Core Processor  ($959.88 @ OutletPC) 
CPU Cooler: Noctua - NH-U14S TR4-SP3 140.2 CFM CPU Cooler  ($79.90 @ Amazon) 
Motherboard: Gigabyte - X399 DESIGNARE EX ATX TR4 Motherboard  ($399.99 @ Amazon) 
Memory: Corsair - Vengeance LPX 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-3600 Memory  ($501.99 @ Amazon) 
Storage: Samsung - 960 Pro 1TB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive  ($586.99 @ Amazon) 
Video Card: PNY - Quadro P5000 16GB Video Card  ($1800.99 @ Dell) 
Case: Fractal Design - Define C ATX Mid Tower Case  ($74.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Power Supply: SeaSonic - FOCUS Plus Gold 650W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply  ($83.99 @ SuperBiiz) 
Total: $4488.72
Generated by PCPartPicker 2017-11-16 11:09 EST-0500

 

Intel Build List, v-ray benchmark roughly similar to Threadripper build. (Intel currently has three i9 cpu that would offer better cpu render performance.)

  Reveal hidden contents

We will have to first see how much the Z400 sell for and then decide the build, but the above config seems solid.