Building a PC for rendering

[kysg]

quick question how is the gt620 in the viewport for maya?

I know this is a real stupid question but I'm just asking.

 

[Sleepingforest]

All the Autodesk page has to say on GPUs is "the stronger the better" and "No Kelper."

Edit: After a bit of poking around, I see that the 620 actually isn't certified; However, the GTX 480, Quadro 2000, and Radeon 6870 both pass every bench for Maya Viewport 2.0. Here's the search function Autodesk provides.

 

[mfenn]

quick question how is the gt620 in the viewport for maya?

I know this is a real stupid question but I'm just asking.

Depends on the complexity of the scene. It'll be fine for simple scenes but will struggle in more complex ones.

 

[kysg]

Update:

Almost finished up. I'm waiting for another case. I have a case already but had ordered this guy.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811208052

I ordered it from amazon but still waiting on it.

It has PSU mount on bottom which I guess is an okay deal. There is also a spot for top fan, and there are vent holes on both sides. I know what cooling options I would go with between both cases

For that one I would do

Front: intake
Rear: exhaust
Side: exhaust
Top: exhaust

This is the case I got now. I haven't opened the box yet
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811147166

after looking at the pictures I figured the cooling setup would be

front: intake
Rear: exhaust
Side: exhaust

I do have a question though I'm unsure about which CPU cooler to get. I did some research and I'm stuck on two right now.

This one
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835103177

and this one
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835103099

I don't if there is any huge difference between the latter and this one.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835103065

So yea that is probably the last issue I have to deal with.

only problem I would see is if I could manage to fit it in the case.

 

[Sleepingforest]

The CM 212+ is a little older and less capable than the 212 EVO. Don't get the Gemini; it's meant for small form factor cases. Ideally, you would go for something like the Scythe Katana 4 ($5 more than the CM 212 EVO after shipping).

However, all of this only applies if you got Z77 and the i7-3770K. If you got the Xeon, DO NOT BOTHER. The stock cooler is perfectly adequate.

May I ask why you got that particular case? It doesn't seem to be much better than what you already have (and the LED fan seems ostentatious to me, but that's more personal).

 

[kysg]

Ah, okay just go with the stock cooler, Okay definitely skip the gemini, yea I was wondering how to deal with this since it is a small case. So hypothetically I would opt for a 92mm instead of 120mm fan?

adn the most important measurement is width? because both cases are about 7 inches on width.


I had been wondering about that case. The original case is like this

120 mm fan in front
120 mm fan in rear
side fans which I think are 120mm
Top mount PSU

on the xion case
120mm fan in front
120mm fan in rear
fan in top area
PSU bottom mount
possible 200mm side fan

Maybe that is overkill for a cooling setup. Amazon hasn't shipped the xion case yet so I'm thinking about canceling it.

The only other thing I haven't dealt with is thermal paste.

These are the other two coolers that would clear those cases.

yep I think these two should clear it.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835118223

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16835103064

 

[Sleepingforest]

I can't really give you definitive advice until you give me a definitive answer: did you get the Xeon or the i7 (and what motherboard as well, so I can advise you more on case selection)? If you got the Xeon: The cooler which comes in the package ("stock cooler") with the Xeon is adequate. You do not need to buy an extra CPU cooler.

If and only if you got an i7-3770K, then you'll want an aftermarket one. The Zalman you showed is pretty good in terms of price/performance if you're willing to turn in the rebate; for a solid cooler without having to deal with any rebates, try the Katana 4 for $35.

On the one hand, the Xion case will definitely provide better cooling, but you'll need to buy the extra fans (one 120mm for the top and one 200mm/220mm for the side). On the other hand, it's almost certainly louder, as there are many more ways for the sound to escape.

 

[kysg]

my bad I forgot to update where I was at.

Yea I did get the xeon

so this is where the build is at.

USB stick: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820239404 - this is so I can boot and install ubuntu.
Current case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811147166
RAM: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16820231486
CPU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16819117286
monitor: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16824116581
HDD: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16822148697
mobo: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16813130648
PSU: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16817139049
vidcard: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16814130830 - this I'm gonna change later. I just don't like what I see from the quadro's right now.

Alternate case: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16811208052

So yep stock cooler it is.
and I'll wait about another week for amazon to ship out the XION

 

[Sleepingforest]

Looks good. The only thing I want to add is possibly more fans (a 120mm and a 200/220mm fan) to fill up the case or maybe some sound-dampening foam to cover up the slots you don't use.

Tell us how it goes!

 

[kysg]

oh yea for dust reduction would I just place a filter on the intake fan? or all fans?

 

[Sleepingforest]

On all the intakes, yes. Another way to reduce dust is to have more air in than out. This creates a positive pressure zone, which is typically warmer but prevents air from coming in other than from your filtered vents. A negative pressure design makes your case like a vacuum, so air and dust will come in from all the cracks.

 

[kysg]

This is what it ended up being

CPU: Intel xeon v1230v
RAM: GSkill 16gb 2 x 8 gb
Vid card: nvidia GTX 650 2gb (will change in future)
Mobo: MSI B75 micro atx, H77 board failed, haven't tried the replacement, will probably sell at a loss.
PSU: PC power and cooling 400W psu, Corsair PSU failed, will sell that at a loss.
HD: seagate 1TB hdd
OS: Suse linux 12.2
monitor: Viewsonic 23" e-IPS
case: xion gamer series (or some crap like that)

 

[mfenn]

Looks nice!

 

[piasabird]

Usually for rendering what you want is a good quad core or better processor and lots of RAM. I dont think frames per second will help the rendering part unless you are playing video games.

I dont think the laptop screens are any better or worse. Laptops have to conserve power usage to prolong the battery life. This also means slower hard drives. There are probably some ways to speed it up a bit by using a System with an SSD. So you will also not find many laptops with gaming video cards either. This is what you get with a laptop. You pay for what you get. If you dont look at the specs and choose the models with the better screens and the faster hard drives, then only the consumer is to blame. It seems like laptops also ware out faster. The heat has to go somewhere.

 

[mfenn]

I dont think the laptop screens are any better or worse.

That's true in theory, there is nothing stopping an OEM from putting a really nice screen on a laptop. In practice, the majority of laptops are stuck with the crappiest 1366x768 TN panel that the manufacturer can lay their hands on.