Motion Graphics and 3D Workstation PC for under 5000

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lakerwiz

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Mar 21, 2016
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Hello Everyone,

I mainly use Cinema 4D, Octane Renderer, and After Effects in my workflow and am looking to build my first PC for professional motion graphics, 3d modeling, vfx, and rendering. My question is, for my purposes, would you recommend the single CPU build or the 2X CPU build, and am I better off going with Quadro cards instead of the 980ti (or a titan x)?

Thanks for your assistance in advance, it's much appreciated.

Single CPU: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/CHxxyc
CPU: Intel Core i7-5960X 3.0GHz 8-Core Processor ($999.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U14S 55.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($69.89 @ OutletPC)
Thermal Compound: ARCTIC MX2 30g Thermal Paste ($17.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus X99-DELUXE/U3.1 ATX LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($389.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: 8 X Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) DDR4-2133 Memory ($29.99 @ Adorama)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($149.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($149.89 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital Black 6TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($299.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Superclocked+ ACX 2.0+ Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($619.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Superclocked+ ACX 2.0+ Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($619.99 @ Amazon)
Case: Fractal Design Define XL R2 (Black Pearl) ATX Full Tower Case ($121.99 @ NCIX US)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA 1300 G2 1300W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($184.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.89 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Pro OEM (64-bit) ($124.86 @ B&H)
Sound Card: Asus Xonar DSX 24-bit 192 KHz Sound Card ($43.99 @ Newegg)
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series SP120 High Performance Edition (2-Pack) 62.7 CFM 120mm Fans ($21.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $4057.23

Dual CPU: http://pcpartpicker.com/p/KjpQFT
CPU: Intel Xeon E5-2630 V3 2.4GHz 8-Core Processor ($629.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU: Intel Xeon E5-2630 V3 2.4GHz 8-Core Processor ($629.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U12DXi4 55.0 CFM CPU Cooler ($63.99 @ Amazon)
Thermal Compound: ARCTIC MX2 30g Thermal Paste ($17.88 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus Z10PE-D16 WS SSI EEB Dual-CPU LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($495.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: 8 X Crucial 8GB (1 x 8GB) Registered DDR4-2133 Memory ($47.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($149.99 @ Newegg)
Storage: Samsung 850 EVO-Series 500GB 2.5" Solid State Drive ($149.89 @ OutletPC)
Storage: Western Digital Black 6TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive ($299.99 @ Newegg)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Superclocked+ ACX 2.0+ Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($619.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB Superclocked+ ACX 2.0+ Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($619.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: EVGA SuperNOVA 1300 G2 1300W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($184.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Optical Drive: Asus DRW-24B1ST/BLK/B/AS DVD/CD Writer ($19.89 @ OutletPC)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Pro OEM (64-bit) ($124.86 @ B&H)
Wireless Network Adapter: TP-Link TL-WDN4800 802.11a/b/g/n PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($36.88 @ OutletPC)
Case Fan: Corsair Air Series SP120 High Performance Edition (2-Pack) 62.7 CFM 120mm Fans ($21.99 @ Amazon)
Total: $4432.22


Comments:
-I don't know much about cooling at all, but would love some advice as to how many fans you recommend, liquid cooling, etc. I've heard great things about the Noctua fans, however do I need only 1 or 2 for the dual CPU setup? Will they fit without blocking any memory slots?
-With regards to a case, I'm looking to get something that has great cooling or a sturdy rackmount listed here: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16811165181
 
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bambiboom
"Hey Bambiboom,

Thanks so much for the detailed response. I initially thought about building 2 separate workstations, however I think at least for this build, I'm trying to stick with one machine and look to a render machine in the future.

That being said, do you think it's better to go with the single CPU build I have or a dual CPU build?

Thanks for your reply in advance!"


Lakerwiz,

Given that the use includes biothe CPU and GPU-intensive applications, plus the idea that multi-threading is constantly advancing- when Autodesk and Adobe can divert their attention from forcing expensive subsciptions and perpetual upgrades back to improving the programs as Dessault has done, then, in my view, a dual Xeon system...
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The answer to your configuration dilemma hinges on how much work you do with each of your applications.
Are you going to be grinding things out or looking for multiple quick iterations for ideas and flow?

The speed of cores is a big deal for one.

Multi-cores is a big deal for another.

What do your projects look like and what time frames are you concerned with? Are you running a number of
applications at once or drilling down in one with something in the background.

After Effects is slated for multi-core improvements and has taken a step back first. Cinema 4D is the GPU.
And the choice for the money being spent on the GPU can go to a Quadro or GeForce. Again, the fastest single
card versus use case. In effect Titan vs K5200. Especially if you need 10bit output. 4K is also a consideration.

The motherboard often carries its own very good sound capability.

A PCI-e SSD boot drive is a good investment now to complement a couple of SATA SSD's for Projects and Scratch disks.

4x2TB drives is nice for raid 0 +1 working on video.

I like the foresight of 64GB of DDR4 RAM. Your package should be all in one (4x16) if possible for maximum compatibility or
two packs of 32GB (4x8)x2.

A water cooler with a larger radiator will provide proper cooling for a slightly overclocked x5690 or a ten core Xeon single
chip.

http://www.intel.com/content/dam/www/public/us/en/documents/guides/workstation-adobe-4k-guide.pdf
http://pcpartpicker.com/builds/by_part/intel-cpu-bx80648i75960x

https://pcpartpicker.com/b/gg6XsY

I myself favour a Thermaltake Core V71
 
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Your second build would be the most fit. Everything looks fine. But I made some changes to the motherboard, SSD/HDD, PSU, and wireless card choices. If you rather have 2 SSDs in RAID 0, I'll change it.

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Xeon E5-2630 V3 2.4GHz 8-Core Processor ($629.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU: Intel Xeon E5-2630 V3 2.4GHz 8-Core Processor ($629.99 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U9DXi4 37.8 CFM CPU Cooler ($59.95 @ Amazon)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-U9DXi4 37.8 CFM CPU Cooler ($59.95 @ Amazon)
Motherboard: Asus Z10PE-D8 WS SSI EEB Dual-CPU LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($548.99 @ SuperBiiz)
Memory: Crucial 32GB (2 x 16GB) Registered DDR4-2133 Memory ($187.10 @ Amazon)
Storage: Intel 750 Series 400GB PCI-E Solid State Drive ($369.99 @ Amazon)
Storage: Western Digital Blue 6TB 3.5" 5400RPM Internal Hard Drive ($214.00 @ Amazon)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB FTW ACX 2.0+ Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($629.99 @ NCIX US)
Video Card: EVGA GeForce GTX 980 Ti 6GB FTW ACX 2.0+ Video Card (2-Way SLI) ($629.99 @ NCIX US)
Case: Phanteks Enthoo Primo ATX Full Tower Case ($219.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: XFX ProSeries 1000W 80+ Platinum Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($159.99 @ Amazon)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows 10 Home OEM (64-bit) ($86.86 @ Amazon)
Wireless Network Adapter: Gigabyte GC-WB867D-I 802.11a/b/g/n/ac PCI-Express x1 Wi-Fi Adapter ($29.89 @ OutletPC)
Total: $4456.67
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2016-03-29 01:31 EDT-0400
 
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Thanks for the detailed reply!

Workflow - I mostly have to grind things out. Lots of overnight rendering and simultaneously working in other programs while something is rendering. I wish it wasn't so, but usually I'm multitasking between Cinema 4D and AE if the sun is up, and running renders overnights in Cinema 4D. This is the current workflow for my Macbook Pro though, since overnight renders generally aren't long enough by themselves so I need to have some sort of overlap.

CPU - The main reason I am leaning more towards the single CPU was due to Adobe's lack of support for multiprocessing and no certain timeframe for when they will be offering that support in the future. With that in mind, I feel like faster single core performance would be much more beneficial than the extra cores. If it ends up being 1-2 years until that fix is implemented and I had gone with the dual CPU, I would feel as though a single CPU overclocked would have been a much better choice. Your thoughts on this?

Motherboard - With regards to the motherboard, I will definitely start out with the on board sound, and possibly upgrade after, however noticed in the build you linked that it was mentioned the Deluxe has "many issues". Any idea what these were?

Storage - Do you have any recommendations for PCI-E SSDs that are compatible with the ASUS X99 boards? How about the Samsung 950 Pro 512GB? Is the speed really that noticeable/ worth the extra cost? With regards to a RAID setup, this is my first build so I don't necessarily know the basics of a RAID. The current configuration I have is to have an SSD drive for my boot drive, another SSD for my media cache, and a regular high storage drive for my files. I've been back and forth with regards to a RAID setup as some people say it's not necessary if you back up your machine regularly, etc. Is it that difficult to set up? Which configuration/ drives would you recommend if I decide to go the RAID route?

Memory - Definitely not looking to go lower than 64GB, however if I went with the 2X CPU build, would you recommend 128GB? Also do you think it's necessary to have DDR4 2800 or is that overkill? Would I be better off with DDR4 2133, 2400, or 2666?

Cooling - This is my first build and I've heard water cooling can definitely get tricky/ cause complications. I've read that the Noctua Fans are great and keep even overclocked CPUs super cool. Regardless of whether I went with the liquid cooling or the noctua fan for the CPU, how many additional fans do you think I need/ what sort of setup would you recommend for the rest of the computer to keep everything cool. have proper airflow?

Case - Love all those case recommendations, thanks for sharing!


Really appreciate you taking the time to reply to my thread and assist, thanks for your reply in advance!






 
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Thanks for the reply okcnaline,

What are your thoughts on the lack of multiprocessing support from Adobe? Given that and the fact that most of my 3D rendering will be GPU based, is the dual CPU setup still better than a single overclocked one?

What are your Pros for the new motherboard over the other?

For the storage, is it better to have the one really fast PCI-E drive over 2 separate SSD drives for the Boot and Media Cache SSD (For AE and other caches)?

Is the 1300W overkill for the 2nd system?

Would you recommend DDR4 2400 or 2666 over the 2133?


Thanks for your replies and time, it's greatly appreciated.
 
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lakerwiz,

In my view, you have a dichotomy of uses. The 3D modeling requires the highest single-threaded performance while rendering /processing can be either CPU or GP based and the CPU can direct towards more cores rather than high clock speeds and single-threaded performance. If I might suggest: consider two systems.

Modeling:

HP Z440 Workstation Xeon E5-1650 v3 3.5GHz Six Core 16GB 256GB SSD Win7 F1M56UA Buy It Now > $1,358

Then add a Quadro M4000 (8GB)($793), increase to 64GB RAM (about $350) , A Samsung SM951 ($369), and 2X Seagate Constellation ES.3 3TB ($364)

Estimating, the above system complete would cost about $3,250

That particular system is an unused, open box HP z440 (warranty until 3.18) with a Xeon E5-1650 v3 (LGA2011-3) has an average Passmark of 13492 and single-threaded of 2116, and using DDR4 RAM and with M.2 support is an excellent performer. \For comparison, the Xeon E5-2630 v3 single-threaded is 1792) On Passmark , the top rated z440 / E5-1650 v3 system:

Rating: 5756
CPU: 13998
2D: 867 (Quadro M4000 8GB)(1664 CUDA cores)
3D: 6808
Mem: 2586 (32GB)
Disk: 12606 (Samsung SM951 256GB NVMe)

Quadros have important advantages in visualizations work with special x64 anti-aliasing scene processing and the high double precision and OpenGL is coincidental with the way 3ds, Maya, and Solidworks are written.

Rendering:

Adobe and Autodesk both have some dual CPU capabilities and there is a trend towards multi-threading. There seems to be a peak of multi-threading efficiency though that in some programs peaks at 5-8 cores, which argues for a single 8-core. Have a look at the excellent articles on the Puget Systems site. Also, Adobe CS and CC does not utilize multiple GPU's even if they're in the same unit as in a GTX 680. Still, for the rendering system, the bets concerning the future of multi-threading are hedged by having a pair of 8-cores and the ability to have two 150W GPU's:

HP WORKSTATION-Z620 | 2X INTEL XEON E5-2609 2.4GHZ | 250GB HD | 8GB RAM | No OS> sold for $521

Change the E5-2609's to a pair of Xeon E5-2670's (about $150). That’s an 8 core @ 2.6 / 3.3Hz, 130W. In an HP z620 a pair of E5-2670's makes a CPU score of up to 20844 with single threaded performance of 1611.

To the above system, add a used Quadro K4200 (about $500)(1,344 CUDA cores), a Samsung 850 EVO 500GB ($150), RAM to 64GB ( about $300), and a pair of the Seagate Constellation ES.3 3TB drives ($287)

The total cost of the rendering system is in this example, about $1,900, so the two systems together equal about $5,200, but the searches here were very quick and careful patient shopping can save quite a bit.

In this example, it’s possible to have two systems, each optimized for the use, where one can be in use for modeling, editing, etc. and the second can sit in the corner and render / process. Since the rendering system is independent, the performance does not have to be absolutely at the top, but by using used components, the performance for this cost is impossible to better. I’ve had 5 used workstation since 2010 as old as 2007, and never had one component failure, as workstations are designed for that level of reliability for this exact kind of task. The two HP z420's I have are also the quietest computers I’ve ever had.


Cheers,

BambiBoom


Modeling:

1. HP z420 (2015) > Xeon E5-1660 v2 (6-core @ 3.7 / 4.0GHz) > 32GB DDR3 1866 ECC RAM > Quadro K4200 (4GB) > Intel 730 480GB (9SSDSC2BP480G4R5) > Western Digital Black WD1003FZEX 1TB> M-Audio 192 sound card > 600W PSU> > Windows 7 Professional 64-bit > Logitech z2300 speakers > 2X Dell Ultrasharp U2715H (2560 X 1440)>
[ Passmark Rating = 5064 > CPU= 13989 / 2D= 819 / 3D= 4596 / Mem= 2772 / Disk= 4555] [Cinebench R15 > CPU = 1014 OpenGL= 126.59 FPS] 7.8.15

Pending upgrade: HP /LSI 9212-4i PCIe SAS /SATA HBA RAID controller, 2X Seagate Constellation ES.3 1TB (RAID 1)

Rendering:

2. Dell Precision T5500 (2011) (Revised) > 2X Xeon X5680 (6 -core @ 3.33 / 3.6GHz), 48GB DDR3 1333 ECC Reg. > Quadro K2200 (4GB ) > PERC H310 / Samsung 840 250GB / WD RE4 Enterprise 1TB > M-Audio 192 sound card > Logitech z313 > 875W PSU > Windows 7 Professional 64> HP 2711x (27", 1920 X 1080)
[ Passmark system rating = 3844 / CPU = 15047 / 2D= 662 / 3D= 3550 / Mem= 1785 / Disk= 2649] (12.30.15)

 
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What are your thoughts on the lack of multiprocessing support from Adobe? Given that and the fact that most of my 3D rendering will be GPU based, is the dual CPU setup still better than a single overclocked one?

What are your Pros for the new motherboard over the other?

For the storage, is it better to have the one really fast PCI-E drive over 2 separate SSD drives for the Boot and Media Cache SSD (For AE and other caches)?

Is the 1300W overkill for the 2nd system?

Would you recommend DDR4 2400 or 2666 over the 2133?
Click to expand...
Second build is still better. The 2nd processor can still benefit other programs.
The new motherboard has SLI and Crossfire support. The other one is more geared towards server, with more RAM and no SLI or Crossfire support.
Oh... For media cache. Then no.
Yes. They don't add up above 1000W.
No, because it's not ECC.
 
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Hey Bambiboom,

Thanks so much for the detailed response. I initially thought about building 2 separate workstations, however I think at least for this build, I'm trying to stick with one machine and look to a render machine in the future.

That being said, do you think it's better to go with the single CPU build I have or a dual CPU build?

Thanks for your reply in advance!

 
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Hey okcnaline, thanks for the reply on this. Definitely considering the dual build more now. Love the new motherboard recommendation, and looked into the PCIe for the boot drive and it looks unreal. Might have to go with wither the Samsung 950 or the Intel one and get the Samsung 850 evo SSD for the media cache. Thanks for clarifying the 2133 ECC memory for me as well. Much appreciated.
 
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One final question everyone.

If I went with the dual CPU build, am I better off getting which of the following for my purposes:

2X Intel Xeon E5-2630 v2 2.60 GHz 6-Core Processor https://pcpartpicker.com/part/intel-cpu-bx80635e52630v2
or
2X Intel Xeon E5-2630 v3 2.40 GHz 8-Core Processor https://pcpartpicker.com/part/intel-cpu-bx80644e52630v3
 
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Seems like these guys have you handled, but I just wanted to put it out in the wind that if you're spending that much on a PC you might want to put it in something awesome like this: (it even supports SSI EEB, if you want)

http://www.caselabs-store.com/mercury-s8/
 
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"Hey Bambiboom,

Thanks so much for the detailed response. I initially thought about building 2 separate workstations, however I think at least for this build, I'm trying to stick with one machine and look to a render machine in the future.

That being said, do you think it's better to go with the single CPU build I have or a dual CPU build?

Thanks for your reply in advance!"


Lakerwiz,

Given that the use includes biothe CPU and GPU-intensive applications, plus the idea that multi-threading is constantly advancing- when Autodesk and Adobe can divert their attention from forcing expensive subsciptions and perpetual upgrades back to improving the programs as Dessault has done, then, in my view, a dual Xeon system will have the greatest flexibility.

However, the many-CPU core balance has to include the best possible single-threaded performance for modeling. In my concept of bet-hedging, here's an idea to have the best of both worlds. This is based on using a Supermicro Superworkstation which provides a case, motherboard, CPU coolers, and power supply. this means the user only needs to plug in the CPU's RAM, GPU, and drives- saving a lot of research of parts from multiple sources, ordering, assembly, wiring, basic configuration. Supermicro are server specialists so the motherboards have excellent performance and reliability, and the Superworkstations if not especially beautiful, are rated to be very quiet.

To have the high core count with high single-threaded performance, this build does employ used CPU's. the suhggestion is to have a pair of Xeon E5-2667 v2 which are 8-core @ 3.3 /4.0GHz (used about $750). On Passmark a single averages a CPU mark of 16542 with single-threaded performance of 1996 and a pair on a Supermicro X9DaAi scores 24562. For comparison a single E5-2630 v3 ($690 each ) scores 12891 with single-threaded of 1762 and the top CPU mark on an ASUS Z10PE-D8 WS is 21464.

BambiBoom Pixel Cannon Cadarendermodeographilicious iWork TurboSignature Extreme ModelBlast 9900 ®©$$™®£™©™_4.2.16

Case /Motherboard /Power supply : Supermicro SuperWorkstation SYS-7037A-I Dual Socket LGA2011 Xeon 900W Mid-Tower Workstation Barebone System (Black) > $721

http://www.supermicro.com/products/system/tower/7038/SYS-7038A-i.cfm
http://www.superbiiz.com/detail.php?name=SY-7038AI

CPU: 2X Intel Xeon E5-2667 v2 Eight-Core 3.3 /4.0GHz, 25MB LGA 2011 CPU, 130W > used about $1,500 ($750) each)

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Intel-SR0KH-Xeon-E5-2680-2-7GHz-8-Cores-Socket-2011-CPU-Processors-USA-TESTED-/191770882001?hash=item2ca66f6fd1%3Ag%3A9TkAAOSwCQNWhBsk&nma=true&si=bKkcIBSFWFwXM%252Bjp2IbFzHJFj9Y%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

Memory: 64GB (4x16GB) Samsung DDR3-1866 16GB/2Gx72 ECC/REG CL13 Samsung Chip Server Memory > $368 ($92ea.)

http://www.superbiiz.com/detail.php?name=D318R16GS2

GPU: PNY NVIDIA Quadro M4000 8GB GDDR5 4DisplayPorts PCI-Express Video Card > $793.

http://www.superbiiz.com/detail.php?name=PNY-M4000

RAID Controller : Future:

Drive 1: Intel 750 Series 2.5" 800GB PCI-Express 3.0 x4 MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD) SSDPE2MW800G4X1 > $600

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820167360&cm_re=intel_750-_-20-167-360-_-Product

Drives 2, 3: 2X WD Black 2TB Performance Desktop Hard Disk Drive - 7200 RPM SATA 6 Gb/s 64MB Cache 3.5 Inch - WD2003FZEX> $258 ($128ea) (Files, Backup, System Image)

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16822236624&cm_re=Western_Digital_Black_2_TB-_-22-236-624-_-Product

Optical Disk: ASUS Black 16X BD-R 2X BD-RE 16X DVD+R 5X DVD-RAM 12X BD-ROM SATA Blu-ray Burner BW-16D1HT > $83

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827151266

Operating System: Microsoft Windows 7 Professional SP1 64-bit English (1-Pack), OEM > $139.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16827135306&cm_re=blu_ray_drive-_-27-135-306-_-Product
_______________________________________

TOTAL = about $4,462

Performance should be very good. The Quadro M4000 has 3D scores up to 7234., The Intel 750 800GB is impressive- Passmark scores up to 14186.

This is a way to have it all- very good single-threaded performance, 16-cores /32 threads up to 4.0GHz, 64GB of RAM, one of the fastest SSD's, and a workstation GPU with the 3D performance of a GTX 770. If the storage needs are extensive, add a fast RAID controller such as an LSI 9260.

Cheers,

BambiBoom
 
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