Buying a slave computer for rendering - what spec?

[jonstinton]

Hi all,

My boss is looking to buy me a computer to sun as a dedicated render slave but he's asked me to put together a decent required spec.

I currently use XP 32bit on Intel Xeon 2.0GHz quad core CPU with 6GB of RAM (limited to 3GB because of the 32bit system)

With this computer I have to render certain heavy models within a scene seprately and photoshop them together. This is obviously quite frustrating and time consuming.

What recommendations can people make to get a quicker render time and of higher quality renders.

[frip51]

Re: Buying a slave computer for rendering - what spec?

Jon,
first of all: welcome to the ASGVIS forums!

The hardware you describe seems not too bad to start with.
If you need the equipment straight away and don't have time to wait for the V-Ray 64bit version you might find it interesting to hear about the following info.
I'm using Distributed Rendering for a while now, and I've pushed the hardware I have at my disposal to the very limits quite a few times.

As long as you're computing small scenes with little geometry and average settings, you can literally use any slave machine you can find.
When it comes to large and high quality scenes, it becomes increasingly important to do it right.

- The first thing is to clean your computer tasks and your scene - Micha has made a tutorial (click me) that might help you. It is also crucial for Distributed Rendering, since DR alone is not THE solution for every performance issue.
- The second thing is to understand a few things about DRspawner.exe. Use the forum search (key words: "distributed rendering").
- The third thing is to buy equipment that features high processor power and enough RAM to max out the capabilities of both operating system and Rhino/V-Ray. Connect the computers using the fastest possible network solution. There's just one thing to keep in mind: if your Master computer has much more power, DRspawner.exe tends to crash on weaker slave machines. In some cases, it helps to start a complex rendering on the weakest machine in the network.
- A 64bit system might have some impact on RAM usage, but I can't confirm that since we're still running XP32.

Cheers,
Matt


PS: By the way, one hint for the .vrimg output: you need to download this tool to convert the file into something a program like Photoshop can read. Then, set Gamma correction to .4545 and convert it to 8bit (thx thomthom for this value).

[jonstinton]

Re: Buying a slave computer for rendering - what spec?

Thanks for this info Matthius, interesting. I'll definitely look at some of those tips.

I've basically suggested a similar machine to this one, a HP Z600, 2.0GHz, quad core, 6GB Ram (limited because of 32bit) with Nvidia Quadro FX1800.

I'm am asking for a better graphics cards and a faster processor.

Any suggestions on particualr graphics cards?

[dkendig]

Re: Buying a slave computer for rendering - what spec?

The graphics card doesn't get used for DR at all. Not even a teeny bit, so I suggest you just get a very basic graphics card... maybe somewhere in the $30 range, unless this isn't a dedicated render slave, as you originally mentioned.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...CE&PageSize=20

[Micha_cg]

Re: Buying a slave computer for rendering - what spec?

I would use the fast and good priced i920, that can run at 3.4GHz .. 3.6GHz without problems. 4GB RAM is enough for a slave, the spawner will never use more than 3.2GHz, because the master computer can't send a bigger scene (32bit VfR). For the future a XP64 + more RAM could be good.

[jonstinton]

Re: Buying a slave computer for rendering - what spec?

Oh right, thanks. I'll save him a few quid on the graphics then and get an identical one as my main machine. Still will get a fast cpu though, going to look at the i7 920 now

[schultzeworks]

Another consideration : SFF

I have built several render slaves and used the Shuttle SFF (small form factor) computers with excellent results. Becuase they are the size of a shoebox, you can add more over time by stacking them for a cheap, do it yourself "rack mount server." (I looked at rack mount servers and forget it! All the hardware is double that of normal desktops.)

The unit I have linked to below comes with a motherboard, power supply, cooling, and on-board audio and LAN.

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16856101093

I would also highly recommend getting 64-bit and starting with 8 GB of RAM. The price difference is negligible and will extend the useful life of your system. For CPU's, I only use the Core i7.

[Micha_cg]

Re: Buying a slave computer for rendering - what spec?

If the slaves are placed in the office, than also think about noise. I use very big CPU fans at lowest speed (CPU are overclocked) and very quite power supplies - I'm happy about the low noise. For me it's very important to have a quiet office. Small machines can be quite loud, bigger fans help to keep the noise low.

[frip51]

Re: Buying a slave computer for rendering - what spec?

Just a little side note:
When doing my very first internship as an Industrial Design student, I had my workplace opposite to a guy who prepared real-time visual presentations with his uber-computer. And when his machine was working under full load, I had all the hot outlet air blown into my face! ;D
So much for placing that kinda stuff in the office...

[dkendig]

Re: Buying a slave computer for rendering - what spec?

Our render farm broke our office air conditioning... We had to move to a different building because the only way to keep the machines cool, was to leave the door to the server room open, which let all of the heat and the noise spill out in to the office. It was impossible to think in that place, and sometimes it was hard to even breathe/stay awake due to the heat.