Adding New System

[curbappeal]

I've added to my design staff and in need of a new desktop PC. I will give them my current PC and purchase a new one for me. My current PC is a Dell XPS 9000, Win 7 Pro, 64 bit, I7-920, 12 GB RAM, ATI HD5870 1 GB Graphics Card and has worked pretty good.
I’m looking at two different units. They are basically the same except for the graphics cards. The first has dual graphics cards and the second has a single. Not sure which would be the best or if chief can even use a dual card machine. Specs are below.

#1: Dell Alienware Aurora
Intel® Core™ i7-4820K Processor (10M Cache, up to 3.90 GHz)
Memory: 32GB (4 X 8GB) Quad Channel DDR3 at 1600MHz
Dual NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 760 graphics with 3GB total (2x 1.5GB) GDDR5 - NVIDIA SLI® Enabled
(OPTION can be AMD Radeon HD 8990 6GB GDDR5 - Dual GPU Card)

#2: Dell Alienware Aurora
Intel® Core™ i7-4820K Processor (10M Cache, up to 3.90 GHz)
Memory: 16GB (4 X 4GB) Quad Channel DDR3 at 1600MHz
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 780 with 3GB GDDR5


Thanks for your input
Rob

[HumbleChief]

Good question Rob. Here's my input. 32 GB of memory is probably overkill from what the Chief folks have said but too much is certainly better than too little. I remember a thread where it was suggested Chief rarely accesses more than 4 GB but that's not the only factor when choosing how much RAM. If you can afford 32 GB it certainly can' hurt.

A single Video card will run cooler and use less power and you could add a second later as prices drop and as long as you have enough power to run 2 cards. The 780 is a beast and, as you probably know, will help in 'rendering' 3D views but not with RayTracing which is entirely CPU dependent. The 690 is even faster than the 780 for whatever that's worth.

Dual video cards run in SLI CAN be faster than upper end cards but it depends on the software and how it takes advantage of the dual channels. I don't know the answer as to how Chief treats dual video cards and what increases you should expect. I remember reading an old thread where a user was a bit disappointed but more research could be done to nail down the specifics. I'd love to know myself. In this case the 2 cards are cheaper than the one but I'd call Chief and find out if 2 cards are going to increase performance.

As far as the CPU, if you RayTrace a lot, faster is better, more cores is better. The 4820k looks pretty good and another option could be the 4930K which has 6 cores for a couple hundred bucks more.

Personally I'd lean toward the single 780 (and 16 GB RAM) with a big enough power supply to add another in the future at a lower price, if Chief can indeed take advantage of dual video cards.

Very interested in what you end up with as I'm getting ready to upgrade as well.

Another question - what's the price difference between the 2 machines?

[HumbleChief]

Just went to Dells' site and I think I see the second machine costs about $400 more? I also see that adding the 4930K, which costs $250 more than the 4820K, increases your system cost by $600. Really? I hope that's wrong. (Glad I build my own machines.)

[Oakriverman]

Best alternative to building your own machine: I just had a guy in Colorado build a custom system for me and am very pleased. A $2500 rig for around $1300 - Overclocked and tweaked to the max. Cheaper than I could have done it myself! He is able to buy wholesale and offer great prices. If you're interested I'll get you his email and/or phone number. Great customer support and very responsive. Very knowledgeable about the cpu specs but isn't familiar with CA as of last month.

Impressive work, see below:


However, I can understand if you want to have the manufacturer's warranty to keep you comfy at night.

[Dave Pitman]

If you're interested I'll get you his email and/or phone number. Great customer support and very responsive.

Hi Aaron, I'd be interested in his contact info in case I don't want to assemble my next box. Thx.

[HumbleChief]

I'm interested Aaron. Phone? E-mail?

[Oakriverman]

Sure, Larry. I'll send it directly to you. Actually, he will probably warranty his work better than the manufacturer's.

[saecurtis]

Check out Digital Storm. I just bought one of their Slade models and I love it! It's very quiet and screaming fast. My specs are listed below in my signature.

[perryh]

Aaron, is that a flux capacitor? Can it dream and time travel?

[Joe Carrick]

Aaron, is that a flux capacitor? Can it dream and time travel?

Forget about the Flux Capacitor - I just want the DeLorean and a Worm Hole (not the little ones that the squirmy things use).

[Oakriverman]

"Where we're going, we don't need roads" -Doc

[curbappeal]

Thanks for the input. I know im paying a bit more by going name brand but i like having the warranty if needed on a high end unit. I've heard that the best PC to run chief (rendering / raytrace) is a gaming pc. Any truth to this? I assumed it was due to most games require a better graphics card. You say that rendering is all the graphics card and raytracing is all CPU? Im having difficulty comparing systems as with the CPU's and graphics card as I dont have much knowledge on hardware. Ive found just because a GPU has a higher model number doesn't mean its better or faster. (A XX4525 may be much better than a XX4925) So the more cores the better?. I dont want to pay for features i would never need or use but i do want a screaming pc that im not waiting long for a decent raytrace / rendering and can run multiple programs / fuctions at once. Thanks

[HumbleChief]

Rob,

The 2 systems you have spec'd above looks really good but the only question I'd have is the 1 versus 2 video cards. I don't think Chief can take advantage of the 2 cards at this point. Maybe X6 changes that? I know for me I'd get the single 780 until I heard otherwise from a Chief developer. Other than that You should be very happy with that machine.

[curbappeal]

Thanks Larry. I have read a few reviews about this graphics card and it looks like its the leader of them all right now so I feel comfortable with this. This system has a few optional CPU but for a price. Im not sure if its worth the money.

1. Intel® Core™ i7-4930K processor (6-cores, 12MB Cache, Overclocked up to 4.1 GHz w/ Turbo Boost) $600 Upgrade

2. Intel® Core™ i7-4960X Extreme Processor (6-cores, 15MB Cache, Overclocked up to 4.1GHz w/TurboBoost) $1000 Upgrade

[HumbleChief]

Thanks Larry. I have read a few reviews about this graphics card and it looks like its the leader of them all right now so I feel comfortable with this. This system has a few optional CPU but for a price. Im not sure if its worth the money.

1. Intel® Core™ i7-4930K processor (6-cores, 12MB Cache, Overclocked up to 4.1 GHz w/ Turbo Boost) $600 Upgrade

2. Intel® Core™ i7-4960X Extreme Processor (6-cores, 15MB Cache, Overclocked up to 4.1GHz w/TurboBoost) $1000 Upgrade

That's such a hard call for someone else to make. The 4930K has six cores as you know but the upgrade cost is steep and the problem is the 4930K is out of the 'sweet spot' for processors.

The sweet spot is usually where a high end processor has been out just long enough to see some price drops but still be close enough to cutting edge that you don't lose much in power.

The 4930 hasn't been out long enough to enjoy that price drop advantage that would get it into that sweet spot so you're gonna pay for it. Worth it? Only if you can comfortably afford it. Typically the more you spend now on genuine power items the longer you have to wait until you upgrade.

I bought the i7 (in my specs) when it first came out 3 or 4 years ago (a lot like your current system I bet) and am just now hitting the wall on some larger projects. I'm about to upgrade as well and will get as much as I can afford because it puts off that upgrade in the future just that little bit longer.

AND, just thought of this - how much RayTracing do you do? If you do a lot, like I am lately, the faster CPU will be a very nice upgrade. If not then the slower CPU could serve you very well.

You can't go wrong, just a matter of how much you want to spend.