HP Z600 Render Node - CPU upgrade choice

[lFallen]

Hello,

I'm a bit new to this so i could really do with a little advise.

I Currently run a 3ds max machine, and distribute jobs between it and a render node. But, I have recently acquired a HP z600.

And s I work as a CGI artist i need a lot of CPU processing power.

Now i used to use these at my old work place as render nodes having 6 x 12 core machines (72/144 ht) , which worked very well. But now that i am spending my own money, I thought it would be wise to ask you guys which dual CPUs I should spend my money on.

i have seen 'matched' quad core CPU going for less than £30, but was wondering if i would be better maybe buying a six core then upgrading in the near future?

I was thinking of getting 2 x5660? Would this be a good option?

I also plan to upgrade the Ram.

Any advise would be greatly appreciated.


Current Specs

Specification:
Processor: Intel Xeon (e) CPU E5504 @ 2.00GHz
Memory: 8GB RAM DDR3
Hard Drive: 500GB HDD
Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce 7300 SE/ 7200GS 256MB
Video Interfaces: 1x DVI, 1x VGA
DVD-RW
OS: Windows 7 Proffesional 64-Bit

Thanks,

 

[Karadjgne]

Matched quad core cpus for under £30? The only way that's happening is old low-end Xeons almost probably lga771. If that's the case, you'd be far better off actually getting a single Xeon or even dual Xeons on a newer lga1150. A dual 771 is going to be slower than a single 1150 8 core. You'll be looking at 8 threads at 1.8-2.2GHz vrs 8 threads at 3.0GHz+. And that's not mentioning the added instructions, larger Lcache etc.

 

[Calvin7]

HP Z600 is a Single Processor year 2009 model. A refurbished one goes for about $250-$300.

Supported CPUs and RAM:
http://h20564.www2.hp.com/hpsc/doc/public/display?docLocale=en_US&docId=emr_na-c01709707

As you can see from this link the Intel Xeon E5504 @ 2.00GHz is not a lot of CPU processing power. You might consider moving up to a more up-to-date system.
https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Xeon+E5504+%40+2.00GHz

 

[lFallen]

Matched quad core cpus for under £30? The only way that's happening is old low-end Xeons almost probably lga771. If that's the case, you'd be far better off actually getting a single Xeon or even dual Xeons on a newer lga1150. A dual 771 is going to be slower than a single 1150 8 core. You'll be looking at 8 threads at 1.8-2.2GHz vrs 8 threads at 3.0GHz+. And that's not mentioning the added instructions, larger Lcache etc.

Yeah low end quad core second hand xeons, http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MATCHED-PAIR-INTEL-XEON-X5550-SLBF5-2-66GHz-QUAD-CORE-CPU-PROCESSOR-/332076640713?hash=item4d514f69c9:g:T2QAAOSweWVXepXD

And the socket is a FCLGA1366 which supports dual CPUs, I plan to keep this cheap and just want a cheap number cruncher nothing special.

I am sure weather there is a better choice than the x5660 or x5675 second hand?

 

[lFallen]

HP Z600 is a Single Processor year 2009 model. A refurbished one goes for about $250-$300.

Supported CPUs and RAM:
http://h20564.www2.hp.com/hpsc/doc/public/display?docLocale=en_US&docId=emr_na-c01709707

As you can see from this link the Intel Xeon E5504 @ 2.00GHz is not a lot of CPU processing power. You might consider moving up to a more up-to-date system.
https://www.cpubenchmark.net/cpu.php?cpu=Intel+Xeon+E5504+%40+2.00GHz

This is a dual CPU workstation as were the ones i have worked with before, I know the CPU hasn't
got a lot of power hence the question about upgrading the processors.