Need advice for Matblab PC build

[k4ppa]

I was asked to build a PC for Matlab, but I'm not really sure what CPU would work best for the job. I was debating a threadripper 1900x or a hexacore i7, but I'm not sure. We currently have one PC with a Xeon E5-1650 V4 (6 cores with hyperthreading), and during full load only one of the cores will be 100% usage, with 3-4 more cores at 25-30%. So I was thinking I don't necessarily need more cores, but could benefit from more base clock speed? Can anyone chime in?


CPU and MOBO: ??
650+ watt gold rated PSU
8gb x 4 ram
2 x ssd in raid 0 + 4-6TB HDD
Budget of ~$2300.

 

[Yuriman]

An i7-K not only has ~20% higher clockspeed, but also extra performance per clock.

http://thetechaltar.com/ryzen-3-vs-coffee-lake-i3-per-clock-performance-comparison/2/

From the results we can clearly see that the “Skylake” micro-architecture used in the Coffee Lake i3 8350K has an advantage, even when its clock speed is the same as Ryzen. In cinebench the Skylake core is 13% faster in both multi-threaded and single-threaded scenarios. Moving on to SuperPi, the Intel CPU core manages to complete the 1M calculations of pi on a single thread 16% faster than the AMD core. In Geekbench 4 we see the i3 pull ahead by up to 23% in multicore and 19% in single core.

Opening up 3DMark, I ran Firestrike, and both editions of Timespy to evaluate the performance difference. In Firestrike CPU Physics, interestingly, we see both CPUs produce the exact same score (within margin of error) but the i3 takes the lead by 17% in both Timespy and Timespy Extreme. Moving on to Unigine Superposition, I ran two benchmarks one at a CPU bottle-necked scenario of 720P Low and one with 1080p Medium to see if both CPUs could keep the GTX 1070 Ti fed. In 720p Low, we see the quartet of Skylake cores generate a massive 42% lead over the quad-core Zen, but both CPUs can easily keep the scene GPU bound when the settings rise to 1080p medium.

So, if you're not fully loading the cores, Intel's offering is probably a better bet. ~15% performance per clock appears to be a conservative average.

 

[LTC8K6]

If it uses AVX2, I think Intel is a little better at that?

 

[k4ppa]

It seems like that's the consensus. So are we talking like an Intel I7-4930k, or a i7-8700k? I'm overwhelmed by the choices.

 

[Campy]

If you're in need of the best single core performance, get an 8700K and a good cooler, then overclock it.

 

[Yuriman]

It seems like that's the consensus. So are we talking like an Intel I7-4930k, or a i7-8700k? I'm overwhelmed by the choices.

Not sure where the 4930K comes from? This is a 5 year old CPU on a long-discontinued platform.

 

[k4ppa]

Not sure where the 4930K comes from? This is a 5 year old CPU on a long-discontinued platform.

I was going based off some recommendations for 5th gen LGA1011 chips I found scouring different forums. Thanks for your input, didn't notice the Haswell chip was that old. I'll go with the 8700k with a good liquid cooler then.

 

[DaveSimmons]

If you're in need of the best single core performance, get an 8700K and a good cooler, then overclock it.

For work use? I'd recommend against overclocking. "99% stable" and work use is a dangerous combination.

The good cooler I agree with, more for quiet than anything else. The 8700K probably makes sense, though I like that the 8700 non-K is only 100 MHz slower but with 65 watt TDP instead of 91.

 

[Yuriman]

I was going based off some recommendations for 5th gen LGA1011 chips I found scouring different forums. Thanks for your input, didn't notice the Haswell chip was that old. I'll go with the 8700k with a good liquid cooler then.

I think a liquid cooler is unnecessary. Something like a $35 Cryorig H7 will be on-par with $50-75 1x120mm AiO coolers, and more reliable. Intel CPUs don't mind higher temperatures, for me the only major consideration is noise.

 

[Campy]

For work use? I'd recommend against overclocking. "99% stable" and work use is a dangerous combination.

The good cooler I agree with, more for quiet than anything else. The 8700K probably makes sense, though I like that the 8700 non-K is only 100 MHz slower but with 65 watt TDP instead of 91.

Their choice. Even if they don't overclock it's the best performer out there.