CPUs for Workstation

[andy55]

Hi, I'm about to buy a new workstation for motion designing & video editing purpose. I have these 2 options for choosing a processor. What do you guys suggest which one will be faster ?


Option1.

Intel® Workstation Board S5520SC : $455
Intel Xeon E5520 Nehalem 2.26GHz : $384



Option2.

Intel® Workstation Board WX58BP : $350
Intel i7-920 2.66 Ghz : $350


Please advice me the best configuration.

Thanks
Andy

 

[GhislainG]

The i7 performance will be better, but you won't be able to install ECC memory. It basically depends on how much RAM you need.

 

[saaiello]

If you will be using more then 12gigs of RAM I would say go with the XEON.

 

[andy55]

I'll be using 16GB RAM.

Motherboard specification:
Memory:

12 DDR3 DIMM sockets (registered or unbuffered)
6 channel native (800/1066/1333 MHz)

 

[andy55]

I was planning to go for x2 Xeon but its exceeding my budget so may be i'll stick to one as of now. But then presently i have C2D 2.16Ghz. Will i notice remarkable performance difference between C2D 2.16Ghz & Single Xeon 2.26Ghz.

 

[GhislainG]

I was planning to go for x2 Xeon but its exceeding my budget so may be i'll stick to one as of now. But then presently i have C2D 2.16Ghz. Will i notice remarkable performance difference between C2D 2.16Ghz & Single Xeon 2.26Ghz.

Can you define "remarkable" in expected performance improvement?

Do you have to buy an Intel motherboard? If not, have you looked at Asus, Supermicro or Tyan? In addition, what case will you use?

 

[andy55]

@ GhislainG

By remarkable i mean faster rendering of AE 3d projects & smooth scrubing previews when compared to my present PC which is C2D.

I trust Intel. Its has worked for for me without any trouble for years.

 

[GhislainG]

It should be at least 2.5 times faster.

 

[andy55]

@GhislainG

I like your confidence...Ok what wud u say for this one


My Present System:
C2D 2.16, 2GB RAM, Seagate SATA 7200 RPM, Inbuilt Graphic Card

v/s

Future Workstation
Intel® Workstation Board S5520SC
Intel Xeon E5520 Nehalem 2.26GHz x2 (8 Cores)
RAM 16Gb
Solid State Drive SSD 80 GB 2.5"
Geforce 285


Now how many (?) times faster you see this new workstation ?

It may seem like a silly question but i just wanna be sure whether its justified to invest over $2500 OR just upgrading my existing PC with RAM, Graphics Card & HDD will do the job.

 

[robinbauer]

I was planning to go for x2 Xeon but its exceeding my budget so may be i'll stick to one as of now. But then presently i have C2D 2.16Ghz. Will i notice remarkable performance difference between C2D 2.16Ghz & Single Xeon 2.26Ghz.

i have just build a 2x XEON E5504 @2Ghz 12GB ECC Memory.
It is the cheapest option but is pretty good.
Especially if you keep in mind that most MoBo's are compatible with the six core xeons that are just being released for future upgrades.

in Euro's the Mobo and CPU's where 500 together I think it might something simular in dollars as you get your stuff cheaper that in Europe.

And to answer your speed question; above would be around 4 times faster.

greetz, PowerBower

 

[andy55]

Hey thnx for your reply. Ok is it possible to install 'NON ECC RAM' into workstation board S5520SC.?

 

[GhislainG]

You should read the note at http://www.intel.com/support/motherboards/server/s5520sc/sb/CS-030229.htm

It might work, but why would you do that?

 

[andy55]

Hi GhislainG, 'Non Ecc' are cheaper & i have heard that ECC RAM slows down system speed by 2 percent. I don't know whether i really need error correction thing..?

 

[GhislainG]

It all depends on the purpose of the system. If you're a gamwer or you run applications that don't take too long to complete their task, then you definitely don't need ECC (as long as you don't try to install 24GB of RAM as that would probably be challenging). Only you knows if you're running critical tasks or not.

 

[andy55]

See I'm a newbie, don't have extensive knowledge about hardware config & types. All i know is that i want my software 'After effects CS3" to work flawlessly & at good rendering speed & previews & i don't know how ECC & NON ECC affects this purpose. And this is the reason i'm seeking your support & knowledge. Thanks again

 

[Emperus]

To cut it short, CPU's termed as 'WORKSTATION' class are essentially the server CPU's.. They are designed to be power efficient, have 24 x 7 runtime reliability and best results when used in multiprocessor setups.. If these come under your selection criteria then surely go for them.. XEON series requires regidtered ECC RAM which are mighty costly.. Also ECC RAMs are slower as compared to non ECC RAMs as the need for error control is present in them ( but they improve data reliability ).. All in all, an i7 920 will be faster than a XEON 5520 and the overall platform cost will be lower.. There are excellent X58 boards available which are highly stable ( even when overclocked )... So my recommendation goes to an i7..

 

[GhislainG]

See I'm a newbie, don't have extensive knowledge about hardware config & types. All i know is that i want my software 'After effects CS3" to work flawlessly & at good rendering speed & previews & i don't know how ECC & NON ECC affects this purpose. And this is the reason i'm seeking your support & knowledge. Thanks again

emperus is right. You either build a workstation with a worksttaion motherboard, a Xeon processor and ECC memory and it will be slightly slower, but very stable. If you want the fastest system and you don't care about a few application crashes on a monthly or yearly basis, then go for the i7-930 (it replaces the i7-920) along with a good motherboard and quality RAM. It's that easy.

 

[andy55]

Other people in this field are using Mac Pro (8 cores) & find it to be as very powerful system. Keeping that in mind i configured my new PC. I would thank you guys for all your comments & end up this thread by requesting you to comment on this final comparison & a last question:


Keeping the other configuration almost equivalent.

XEON 2.26Mhz x2 (8 Cores)

v/s

i7-930


2. Finally, is there any desktop board that supports two i7 processors ? I somehow feel that i should go with dual processor.


THANKS

 

[warmon6]

Other people in this field are using Mac Pro (8 cores) & find it to be as very powerful system. Keeping that in mind i configured my new PC. I would thank you guys for all your comments & end up this thread by requesting you to comment on this final comparison & a last question:


Keeping the other configuration almost equivalent.

XEON 2.26Mhz x2 (8 Cores)

v/s

i7-930


2. Finally, is there any desktop board that supports two i7 processors ? I somehow feel that i should go with dual processor.


THANKS

for your first question, XEON 2.26Mhz x2 (8 Cores) v/s i7-930,

it will really depend on the app's. If the program can only use 4 core / 8threads, then the core i7 930 will be faster. If it can use the two Xeon E5520 (which is 8 core / 16 threads) will be faster.

2. Finally, is there any desktop board that supports two i7 processors ? I somehow feel that i should go with dual processor.

No, there is no dual socket core i7 motherboards. If i remember right, the dont have the same ability to communicate to the other prossesor(s) like the Xeon do. I could be wrong on why you cant, but i do know core i7's cant run in a dual socket motherboard.

 

[andy55]

Best answer selected by andy55.