i9 or threadripper

[MzCatieB]

OK... its been a while since i last upgraded my hardware and i've been given a decent budget (£5k | $6.9k) from my Studio to overhaul my system...

im keeping my current GPU's till the next gen GTX/Titans come out so dw about that on the budget and i need to keep around £1300/$2000 aside for Software upgrades.

 

if your wondering what i do, im a Character artist in the Games industry and i do a fair amount of work at home.

I pretty much need Raw performance for work reasons and Video Encoding for portfolio stuff.

On top of this i need Upgradability for a few years down the line.

Im currently looking at either the Threadripper 1950X or the Intel i9-7920X 
For motherboards i was looking at a Asus ROG for the Threadripper and a Asus WS for the Intel.

 

As for RAM im leaning on either 32gb's or 64gb's

My storage plan is to get a 1tb m.2 and a 12gb HDD.

the Case im going to get is a Coolermaster C700p (Mostly cause my partner has one and i love how it looks and the space inside)

 

I know both Threadripper and i9 have their benefits and pitfalls but currently im leaning mostly on the Intel for Driver reasons... but i know Threadripper makes up for it in performance.

 

the Software i use is:
- Zbrush (CPU Multicore and RAM heavy)
- Marvelous Designer (CPU Multicore and RAM heavy)
- Maya (All round performance heavy)
- Substance (CPU, RAM and Vram heavy)
- 3D coat (Same as Substance just a little more stable)
- Marmoset Toolbag (well balanced outside texture baking and video rendering)
and Adobe CC (depending on software Performance heavy to performance light)

My goal is overall performance, stability and controllable temps... i dont plan on Overclocking but a Custom loop for the CPU is an option

[MzCatieB]

Another thing i should mention is, i dont plan on upgrading my hardware every year or 2... id like a system that will last 5 years without much need to upgrade (maybe CPU or GPU)... my current system has lasted me around 7 years now and other than the GPU & CPU being replaced its pretty much as i build it.

[Biggerboot]

I'd say in production environments, intel is still the way to go.  Threadripper isn't a bad option for the $, but if you're heavily involved in 3D (maya), I'd spend a couple extra hundred and get the best chip for the job.

[Fraser Cow]

If you want to keep it for a long time go with Intel, it'll be more stable and it has better IPC. My experience with Ryzen wasn't bad, but the low clock speed and lower IPC, and most importantly the stability are what pushed me back to Intel within a year.

[Biggerboot]

7 minutes ago, Pixxie_Payne said:

Another thing i should mention is, i dont plan on upgrading my hardware every year or 2... id like a system that will last 5 years without much need to upgrade (maybe CPU or GPU)... my current system has lasted me around 7 years now and other than the GPU & CPU being replaced its pretty much as i build it.

Either chip is capable of carrying you that long, but I think the i9 is going to give you the most guarenteed performance in the short term.

The only reason I'd consider Ryzen on some kind of high end production environment are pcie lanes.  If you were running a bunch of pci-e ssds and gpu's, doing some number cruncing.  Also, ECC memory support exists on Zen iirc.  You're not in that camp though.

[MzCatieB]

5 minutes ago, Biggerboot said:

Either chip is capable of carrying you that long, but I think the i9 is going to give you the most guarenteed performance in the short term.

The only reason I'd consider Ryzen on some kind of high end production environment are pcie lanes.  If you were running a bunch of pci-e ssds and gpu's, doing some number cruncing.  Also, ECC memory support exists on Zen iirc.  You're not in that camp though.

My intention is 2 Titans / GTX 1180ti's with a USB 3.1 hub in the PCiE lanes.

if i wanted more on my PCiE 's id go Xenon with Quadro's... but then my system will struggle to do part of the work in realtime rendering and gaming.

[Biggerboot]

5 minutes ago, MzCatieB said:

My intention is 2 Titans / GTX 1180ti's with a USB 3.1 hub in the PCiE lanes.

if i wanted more on my PCiE 's id go Xenon with Quadro's... but then my system will struggle to do part of the work in realtime rendering and gaming.

Yeah, gaming production is where I think i9 accels, you get the best of both worlds.  And when you're talking the level of work your doing, spending a bit more over TR is probably worth it. 

[lavablade02]

benchmark wise, the i9 is ever so slightly faster but has a lot more benefits. It excels in programs you probably would use and runs a lot cooler. Also, it seems that the i9 is a beast for 3D rendering.

 

Also, what company do you work for if you don't mind me asking? Just curious

[MzCatieB]

3 minutes ago, lavablade02 said:

benchmark wise, the i9 is ever so slightly faster but has a lot more benefits. It excels in programs you probably would use and runs a lot cooler. Also, it seems that the i9 is a beast for 3D rendering.

 

Also, what company do you work for if you don't mind me asking? Just curious

I work for a Studio thats signed under Devolver Digital

[lavablade02]

1 minute ago, MzCatieB said:

I work for a Studio thats signed under Devolver Digital

Very cool, very cool. My one of my best friend's favorite games is enter the gungeon

[meenmeen1103]

Just now, MzCatieB said:

 

since you're considering the next gen Nvidia gpu's, maybe also wait to see what the likely upcoming threadripper refresh has to offer before seriously weighing options if it does indeed come out by the time you are upgrading. So far, for the extra money, x299 may very well be worth going for for you considering currently available hardware

[MzCatieB]

2 minutes ago, meenmeen1103 said:

since you're considering the next gen Nvidia gpu's, maybe also wait to see what the likely upcoming threadripper refresh has to offer before seriously weighing options if it does indeed come out by the time you are upgrading. So far, for the extra money, x299 may very well be worth going for for you considering currently available hardware

i dont see AMD releasing anything new for TR till later next year... and i sort of need the hardware upgrade soon O. O

[meenmeen1103]

7 minutes ago, MzCatieB said:

i dont see AMD releasing anything new for TR till later next year... and i sort of need the hardware upgrade soon O. O

We also don't know for certain when the newer Nvidia GPU's will be available which is the only reason I brought it up, If it's before the TR refresh (extremely likely) then no harm done, but if it's relatively close and within a manageable timeframe for your upgrade needs it MAY be worth considering. Basically, distant future planned upgrades are seldom reliable from time of planning.

[Jumper118]

4 minutes ago, MzCatieB said:

i dont see AMD releasing anything new for TR till later next year... and i sort of need the hardware upgrade soon O. O

New Threadripper 2950x is coming out about the same time as gen 1 last year