Workstation GPU Advice: Triple SLI GTX 980 Ti or Quadro M6000

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chris115311

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Jul 11, 2015
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Hi,

I'm currently building a workstation PC, for mostly working purposes. I will be using softwares such as Unreal Engine 4, Maya, 3DS Max, ZBrush and etc. Any advice to ensure smooth and best performance on all these softwares. Thank You 🙂
 
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chris115311,

In my view, with content creation applications, a better priority is to first consider image quality- the output result and then focus on producing that quickly. It's an oversimplification, but the difference in consumer /gaming and workstation GPU's is the focus of image quantity for gaming- how many FPS and with content creation cards, the image quality. With Maya and Solidworks, the ability to run viewports properly and high anti-aliasing- there are Solidworks drivers with x128, the differences are visible. With Autodesk and OpenGL applications, the Quadro is going to produce better results and in some applications better performance as well. It's two years old but an excellent overview of GPU's. Have a look at:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/best-workstation-graphics-card,3493-8.html

> and in the Maya results, you can see that a $110 Firepro V3900 performed better than a Titan.

But, workstations do not live by GPU alone and the results will be better if the overall system has a balanced approach such that every component has the best cost / performance. That said, the GPU can make an especially large improvement in the experience of use because at some level, he GPU is taking one the computing power- the CUDA cores accelerate the computation of position of polygons. This is more dramatic on older workstations. I recently bought a Quadro K4200 for an HP z420 and decided to try it on a couple of other systems:

Dell Precision 390 (2006) (Revised): Xeon X3230 quad-core @ 2.67GHz > 8 GB DDR2 ECC 667 > Firepro V4900 (1GB) > 2X WD 320GB >Linksys WMP600N WiFi > Dell 24" > 1920 X 1200 > Windows 7 Professional 64-bit

with Quadro K600:
[ Passmark system rating = 1296, CPU = 2953 / 2D= 382 / 3D=862 / Mem= 853 / Disk=569]

with Quadro K4200:
Passmark system rating = 1552, CPU = 3467 / 2D= 683 / 3D=4067 / Mem= 866 / Disk=570]

The GPU is in effect improving the CPU performance by relieving it of the computational visualization processes.

With the HP z420, the difference is proportionally less because the CPU is already more enthusiastic:

HP z420 (2015) > Xeon E5-1660 v2 six-core @ 3.7 / 4.0GHz > 32GB DDR3 ECC 1866 RAM > Quadro K4200 (4GB) > Intel 730 480GB (9SSDSC2BP480G4R5) > Western Digital Black WD1003FZEX 1TB> M-Audio 192 sound card > Logitech z2300 > Linksys AE3000 USB WiFi > 2X Dell Ultrasharp U2715H (2560 X 1440) > Windows 7 Professional 64

[ Passmark Rating = 5064 > CPU= 13989 / 2D= 819 / 3D= 4596 / Mem= 2772 / Disk= 4555] [Cinebench R15 > CPU = 1014 OpenGL= 126.59 FPS] 7.8.15

With Quadro K2200 (4GB):
[ Passmark Rating = 4918 > CPU= 13941 / 2D= 823 / 3D= 3463 / Mem= 2668 / Disk= 4764

So, there's a lot of interaction /reliance on the other parts to get good overall results but an outstanding GPU is one that can produces a disproportionate change. With the obsolete technology of 2006, I couldn't make a CPU or any other change to the Precision 390 that would equal the improvement of the Quadro K4200 in the important 3D performance.

With the applications you mentioned, if the choice is triple GTX 980 ti or Quadro M6000, my vote is M6000, with the proviso that everything else needs to be at that level- fast, dual 8 or 10-core E5 Xeons , 64 or 128GB RAM, fast disks and so on- a budget of say $12K.

Cheers,

BambiBoom

HP z420 (2015) > Xeon E5-1660 v2 six-core @ 3.7 / 4.0GHz > 32GB DDR3 ECC 1866 RAM > Quadro K4200 (4GB) > Intel 730 480GB (9SSDSC2BP480G4R5) > Western Digital Black WD1003FZEX 1TB> M-Audio 192 sound card > Logitech z2300 > Linksys AE3000 USB WiFi > 2X Dell Ultrasharp U2715H (2560 X 1440) > Windows 7 Professional 64

Dell Precision T5500 (2011) > Xeon X5680 six -core @ 3.33 / 3.6GHz, 24GB DDR3 ECC 1333 > Quadro K2200 (4GB ) > Samsung 840 250GB / WD RE4 Enterprise 1TB > M-Audio 192 sound card > Linksys WMP600N PCI WiFi > Windows 7 Professional 64> HP 2711x (1920 X 1080)

[ Passmark system rating = 3490 / CPU = 9178 / 2D= 685 / 3D= 3566 / Mem= 1865 / Disk= 2122] [Cinebench 15 > CPU = 772 OpenGL= 99.72 FPS] 7.8.15



 
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I know, but for the GTX 980 TI, I'm going to Triple SLI it, while for the M6000, I'm only going to get a single GPU. And also I'm on an incredibly tight budget so I would like to get the most suitable one for my needs.
 
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And then there is the matter of what you are basing your build on versus what you are using now.

What is your platform going to be 1150, 2011 or Xeon?

RAM - ECC or DDR4 or DDR3? And how much?

If you make your living off the box and your work with it then the M6000 will pay for
itself by shortening time spent per project. Are there any references you have that
give some rough numbers for either configuration? The 30 bit resolution of the
M6000 is also a consideration. What kind of monitor(s) will you be displaying on?

Your power supply considerations with a 3 way SLI are also much more critical, I'd
be happy with a 1250W + for that setup.

I've also read that the more GPU's the more work for the system to keep dividing up the
tasks and parceling them out.

http://pcpartpicker.com/user/fport/saved/tYFhP6

PCPartPicker part list / Price breakdown by merchant

CPU: Intel Core i7-5930K 3.5GHz 6-Core Processor ($559.98 @ SuperBiiz)
CPU Cooler: Noctua NH-D15 82.5 CFM CPU Cooler ($89.75 @ OutletPC)
Motherboard: Asus X99-E WS SSI CEB LGA2011-3 Motherboard ($476.02 @ Mwave)
Memory: Corsair Dominator Platinum 32GB (4 x 8GB) DDR4-2666 Memory ($489.99 @ Amazon)
Video Card: PNY Quadro K6000 12GB Video Card ($4354.91 @ B&H)
Case: Rosewill BLACKHAWK-ULTRA ATX Full Tower Case ($169.99 @ Amazon)
Power Supply: SeaSonic X Series 1050W 80+ Gold Certified Fully-Modular ATX Power Supply ($166.98 @ Newegg)
Total: $6307.62
Prices include shipping, taxes, and discounts when available
Generated by PCPartPicker 2015-07-11 23:51 EDT-0400

 
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YOUR ON A BUDGET??????? your getting 3x 980ti and your on a budget??? lol xD
 
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Workstation budget is a lot different than our "pheasant" dollars. 😉 For some people in huge companies, $650 is virtually cents compared to the one of the Xeon E5-2699 V3 they poured money in, in which the system, with just the motherboard and the CPU, is already $6600. xD

As for the suggestion, none of the programs (in exception of Maya, of course) really use CUDA or OpenCL, so I'd get the 3 GTX 980 Ti.

 
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Lol I thought when I spent $400 on my 970 that was alot, but apparently not xD
 
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That is crucial information in telling you which is best. Get the M6000.

ZBrush doesn't even use a GPU, Unreal Engine 4 doesn't use much GPU (in other words a 970 would do just fine), for Maya and 3DS Max follow this: http://usa.autodesk.com/adsk/servlet/syscert?id=18844534&siteID=123112

Different programs recommend different GPUs. (And I don't mean a 960 or 970. I mean a Quadro or a Titan, or a FirePro or a GeForce) etc..
 
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oknaline,

I think there is a bit of confusion in the quoted post. Chris15311 is aware of the costs of the 2- GTX 980Ti's and the Quadro M6000 but when writing, "And also I'm on an incredibly tight budget so I would like to get the most suitable one for my needs." I think the word "not" was left out before "incredibly tight budget". I.e, the performance in his uses is the priority and can afford either solution.

I'm entirely sure the Quadro M6000 is the proper choice of the two, given the astounding 3D capabilities using the proper workstation drivers, and as it appears the cost is acceptable that would be my suggestion.

I would add though, that if the ultimate level of workstation GPU performance is not necessary, chris15311 might consider a used Quadro K6000 as the prices for even quite recent examples have dropped (they were $5,000 new also) when the M6000 was released, selling on Ebahhh for as little as $2,750.

If chris15311 is producing a heavily textured, feature length 3D animation in Maya the project may benefit from the extra capability of the M6000 (Passmark low 3D low mark is 8513, high mark is 11979) but the K6000 (Passmark low mark is 6209, high mark is 9046) may be acceptable and $2,200 less. Notice that the high mark for the K6000 and the ow mark for the M6000 overlap somewhat.

Chris15311 might consider the uses and the potential of the rest of the system to produce the highest level of performance. I bought a Quadro K4200 (4GB) recently to replace a Quadro K2200(4GB) on an HP z420 (Xeon E5-1660 v2- 3.7 / 4.0GHz, 32GB RAM) which changed the Passmark 3D from 3463 to 4596- significant by the numbers. However, I've timed but am not experiencing any significant opening, navigation, processing, or rendering time improvements in Solidworks, Sketchup, Revit, 3ds, or Maya. As a designer, I'm not a high-level, extremely fast users of all these, so saving a few seconds here and there is not worth the $400 to me and perhaps the $2,200 extra for an M6000 would not be to chris15311. There are reasons these are sold:

http://www.nvidia.com/object/visual-computing-appliance.html

> containing 8X Quadro M6000 and dual 10-core E5 Xeons, and costing $50,000.

If he is however, very fast with 3D CAD and the projects are very complex, the M6000 may be well worth the cost. There's a reason K6000's are dropping in price and these are the people that can use that level of processing power and we can't assume the OP can not or can't in the future.

But, in an event, using GTX 980 Ti's in 3ds and Maya at anything above a learning / beginner's level would lead to disappointment and frustration based on the important differences in the drivers.

Cheers,

BambiBoom
 
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The only software that uses acceleration would be Maya and 3DS. Otherwise, none of the applications use CUDA or OpenCL.

Hence I said 3-way SLI GTX 980 Ti. It is shy of 3x the power of a Quadro M6000, or a single Titan X, which only has 256 cores more than GTX 980 Ti.
Or another solution would be to get 2 Titan X's, then grab a K4200 and use that as default video card. The other 2 Titans are used as horsepower. I've saw a YouTuber (LinusTechTips, Whole-Room Water Cooling) do that. Just that I'm not sure if this is a solution... Does that work?
 
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okcnaline,

The important aspect of performance in Maya and 3Ds is OpenGL, not CL.

Have a look at this chart of performance in Maya 2013, which makes the situation very clear:

http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/best-workstation-graphics-card,3493-8.html

: > wherein you can see that in Maya, a $130 AMD Firepro V3900 performed far better than a $1,000 Titan.

There's no value in buying three expensive GTX cards for $2,100 if one of most important programs limps along and a card that costs $1,900 less performs as well or better.

A lot of people have asked on forums about running a GTX and Quadro on the same system to be able to use the strengths of each card to accommodate the various software- the GTX 580 in it's time was said to be a very good video editing card for example. I thought of trying this by having a dual boot system- each iteration of the OS contains one driver to avoid conflict, with the programs in a separate, shared partition, but the user would have to switch the primary card in BIOS on every start, a possible complex settings configuration for every program and who knows if there might still be driver conflicts. Other conjectural configurations to do this floated about but I've never heard of anyone doing it successfully. As GPU's have become more specialized, it appears that Quadro /Firepro and GeForce /Radeon shall never meet in a single system.

It's a better approach to put all the funds in a card or pair of cards that performs well in the principal working programs very well and is also good enough to have acceptable performance in programs that might perform better on a desktop /gaming card. The GPU has to be geared to the most particularized task. I think the entry level for the does everything well category is the Quadro K4200.

If chris115311 is doing projects that he believes need an M6000, that's that, but there may be reasonable nearly as good alternatives such as a used K6000. Possibly better- even preferable to the M6000 (12GB, 3,702 CUDA cores), may be a pair of K5200''s (8GB) in SLI as this would provide 16GB of memory, 4,606 CUDA cores, maximum DP 1.2 Resolution 4096 x 2160 at 60Hz, and of course there are two processors. A K5200 is $1,800 so a pair at $3,600, compares very favorably to an M6000 at $5,000. Used, K5200's are sold these days (7.15) down to $1,250 as well, making a pair half of a new M6000. Not everyone likes used Quadros, but I've had seven in the last ten years with no failures and the 2003 FX 580 (512MB) still works perfectly. It's still on the Autodesk certified list for AutoCad 2015.

It's a complicated equation- tending towards assumption and guessing as we don't know enough detail about the kind of projects the OP is doing. But, again to answer his question, "3X GTX 980ti or Quadro M6000 ?:- if that is the only choice, the answer is "M6000".

Cheers,

BambiBoom


.


 
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There's is an x-factor to all this debate, which is choice of render engine. If someone is going to be using a GPU based render engine like Octane, which yields great results, the 3 980 Ti's would be my choice. Personally, I built a machine aimed at CPU and GPU rendering as I like to switch render engines depending on the need of the project and the output.

Another point of consideration, for those looking at Quadro cards for quality of render - if your final deliverable will be an .mp4 for digital delivery, you will never see the difference between a Quadro card and high end gaming card like the 980 due to the compression.
 
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