i7 vs Dual Quad Core Xeon?

[Tim in Hollywood]

Hi,

It's time to get a new system for MAX2009 and V-Ray.

I've done numerous searches here, on forums, and Google, but was unable to find anything that really compares the two options head-to-head for Max/V-Ray.

The system will be outfitted with all components as identical as possible, running on XP Pro 32-bit. Because my scenes are not super-large (typically 5,000-20,000 polys), I probably don't need a system that can handle massive amounts of RAM, thus the lack of interest in 64-bit XP Pro. I also want maximum compatibility with other software and hardware.


Disregarding price, what will be faster for V-Ray rendering (assuming similar clock speeds and NOT overclocked)?

DUAL Quad Core Intel Xeon Processor E54XX
- or -
Intel Core i7 Processor

Any help or advice you can offer will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Tim

[mike_kennedy]

If your running 32 bit I would go for the I7, the Quad Xeon will need a lot of Ram to be efficient. Each CPU will need at least 2 gigs to run at capacity, your better off with an I7 since a 32 bit system can only see 3 gigs (with the switch)

[Bathyscaph]

Yah, I think Mike is correct. If you don't plan on getting a lot of RAM then you are probably better off with the core i7 otherwise the RAM you do have will get split into tiny helpless crumbs. The core i7 seems to overclock very well also.

I opted for the dual Xeon with 24GB RAM because I want to delay the next computer switch as long as possible.

For comparing the different machines this is the best resource I've found:

www.frybench.com

You can clearly see from their benchmark how the different machines out there compare to each other with respect to rendering.

[xte]

The dual quad core xeon system will be probably a lot faster for rendering than a single i7, but it will also be a lot more expensive. The i7 seems to be a very good choice for a workstation.

I would personally recommend to go 64bits, there are often valuable improvement in render times due to optimisations in 64bits, and you never know, you could need to handle a big scene sooner or later, and RAM is really cheap. Imho it is a safer choice for the future to go for a 64bits system.

I am currently on windows 7 rc1 64bits, and it runs like a dream. I skipped vista but I'll definitely stick to win7. So I would recommend you to test it.

[prey1979]

I'm wondering myself right now aswell what type of system to get my firm to upgrade me too. The i7's sound really great but i want to maximise the rendering speed and not blow the budget... i have about 6-7k to spend.... i have a dual dual core xeon right now with 4 gigs of ram running the 3gb switch but i want to go faster =)

[Bathyscaph]

prey, that's plenty for a beefy dual Xeon system with a high-end workstation card.

I just bought a dual Xeon E5520 with 24GB RAM and a mid-range Quadro for about $3500 US.

The Core i7s are cheaper but probably start costing the same if you overclock them to try and get performance similar to the new Xeons. The nice thing about the Core i7s is that there are a ton of options for motherboards, cases, etc.

[Tim in Hollywood]

My purchase

I just purchased a single Quad Core Xeon E5504 (with a dual-slot motherboard). I also ordered a Dell heatsink and processor shroud from Dell. I'll put in a second E5504 from Newegg.com, plus 12GB RAM from Crucial. Total system, including shipping: $1,475 US.

The only thing I'll need to add is a license for XP Pro 64 or Vista 64 (probably around $130-150).

Perhaps it's possible that I could have saved a bit of $$$ by building my own from parts online, but the Dell includes accidental drop/damage coverage and 3-year next business day on-site service, too.

I recently set up the 3GB switch for my four-year old dual Xeon XP Pro 32-bit system (4GB RAM installed). Because of my low-poly models (typically 5,000-20,000), it didn't affect the rendering times at all.

[crossbow]

Intel's next release of the core i7 variants will include 6 core versions. (6 physical, 6 logical). Those are slated for Q1 2010, with a 8C 16T Xeon slated for later this year.



It should also be noted, that the core i7 architecture, and it's xeon (W5580) equivalent, were designed from the get-go to scale extremely well. As such, vs the previous generation xeons, provides one of the largest performance increases (as they scale up) in a very long time. Also the new xeons do not require those expensive FB-dimm's, and can now use standard DDR3 dimms, reducing the cost of the system, and the availability of faster ram.

http://www.techreport.com/articles.x/16656/1

[stevesideas]

If you are going for the I7 processors you could wait for the new ones to come out as crossbow stated. Prices should drop on the exisiting cpu's so you would have a good choice. If you really want to keep your budget low I would definately go for the i7 920. These cpus overclock really well and can go faster (in most cases) than the i7 940. If you are not intending to overclock (I dont due to wanting the cpu to last), then maybe the i7 940 would be good. Thats the cpu I have and it easily keeps up with a dual xeon system with 2x 5355 cpus and 8gig of ram.

If you want a good motherboard for your i7 cpu I would go for either the EVGA x58 3xsli or the asus P6T deluxe v2 (make sure it is the v2 as v1 had a number of problems).

Good luck

[crossbow]

Also make sure your motherboard bios is up to date. Many core i7 boards have issues with cold boots...easily fixed with bios updates...except for my DFI lanparty board.

I'm running the GIGABYTE GA-EX58-UD4P and the DFI LP UT X58-T3eH8 at work. I like the gigabyte better, but it is still coming with too much extra crap. I prefer relatively barebones personally.
Haven't tried the asus models of late, I'll give that one a try next upgrade.

The 3.33 975 Core i7 Extreme is slated for June, as is the 3.06 ghz Core i7 950. (For those waiting to buy).

-Greg

[Da_elf]

crossbow???? THE crossbow??? really???????? hope things are good with you greg. been a while since ive spoken with you